My prayers stopped in surprise.
Then the priests frowned and looked toward the door.
“What’s the fuss about at this important time?”
A nervous voice cut through the silence.
Then a panicked voice spoke urgently.
“It seems that the monsters are gathering to the south of the central shrine.”
“What?”
Was this a final struggle?
A murmur spread among the priests at those words. I couldn’t help but be surprised by those words.
“Right now...”
The holy knights who could guard the area around the shrine would have already gone far away.
It didn’t seem right for me to think that way. While Belled made eye contact with me, conversations between the one who had rushed in and the priests continued.
“Where are the monsters gathering?”
“It’s not far from here. They’re just gathering right now and not approaching, but if they run at full speed, they’ll be attacked in a few hours.”
The priests’ faces turned pale at those words. Then, another priest suddenly spoke.
“If we continue like this, they might ruin the opening ceremony.”
Those words spread anxiety through the strange silence.
“Small things must be sacrificed for the big things.”
Then, another priest spoke solemnly.
“First, focus the attention of those monsters.”
Was he planning to send a paladin?
At least, he must be moving for his own safety.
I narrowed my eyes when the priest casually gave an order beyond imagination.
“And have the imperial people of the nearby village buy time.”
“What?”
I was surprised for a moment and asked back. But the priest turned to me and said,
“There’s nothing we can do. If we send troops, the demons who are waiting for the opportunity might try to disrupt the opening ceremony. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to choose the safe option?”
“...Safe option?”
Then the priests frowned and looked toward the door.
“What’s the fuss about at this important time?”
A nervous voice cut through the silence.
Then a panicked voice spoke urgently.
“It seems that the monsters are gathering to the south of the central shrine.”
“What?”
Was this a final struggle?
A murmur spread among the priests at those words. I couldn’t help but be surprised by those words.
“Right now...”
The holy knights who could guard the area around the shrine would have already gone far away.
It didn’t seem right for me to think that way. While Belled made eye contact with me, conversations between the one who had rushed in and the priests continued.
“Where are the monsters gathering?”
“It’s not far from here. They’re just gathering right now and not approaching, but if they run at full speed, they’ll be attacked in a few hours.”
The priests’ faces turned pale at those words. Then, another priest suddenly spoke.
“If we continue like this, they might ruin the opening ceremony.”
Those words spread anxiety through the strange silence.
“Small things must be sacrificed for the big things.”
Then, another priest spoke solemnly.
“First, focus the attention of those monsters.”
Was he planning to send a paladin?
At least, he must be moving for his own safety.
I narrowed my eyes when the priest casually gave an order beyond imagination.
“And have the imperial people of the nearby village buy time.”
“What?”
I was surprised for a moment and asked back. But the priest turned to me and said,
“There’s nothing we can do. If we send troops, the demons who are waiting for the opportunity might try to disrupt the opening ceremony. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to choose the safe option?”
“...Safe option?”
Those were shocking words. Most of the villagers don’t know anything about combat.
In the end, the time that ordinary people spend running away and fighting for their lives was expressed as ‘buying time.’
It was beyond imagination. No, it was a disgusting thought that I had a hard time getting out of my head.
It was when I tightly shut my lips.
“Naberus.”
Belled gestured. Then Naberus immediately knelt in front of him.
“I await your order.”
“There is time until the gate opens, so deal with it and return quickly.”
The priests cleared their throats at those words.
“Ahem!”
“Are you okay? No matter how capable Vine’s forces are, we still don’t know how large the monsters are...”
Belled cut them off with a single stroke.
“It is the Saintess’s will.”
Not his will, but the Saintess’s will. And on the surface, the priests could no longer meddle with him since they were under the Saintess.
In the end, the priests only cleared their throats and retreated.
“...Thank you.”
I whispered to him softly. My voice seemed like it would be buried in the commotion, but Belled, who managed to hear my voice, slightly bowed his head.
I took a few steps closer and held his hand tightly, feeling so grateful that he had understood my intentions first.
Belled couldn’t take his eyes off the lovely smile that bloomed on my face without me knowing.
“Please resume the prayer.”
At that moment, the priest’s impatient voice cut through the air. I bit my lips.
It was because I felt a sense of selfishness to the extent of a role.
However, their greed would soon end. With the opening of the gates of hell.
I opened my mouth again.
“With the great one...”
The prayer I read was so full of beautiful words that it was surprising that my tongue didn’t get tangled up.
And after the part praising God ended, what came next was something that made one laugh out loud.
“...The holy knight Cladda, leading the knights who follow the will of God and imprisoning the demons...”
It was clear which family’s knights that followed the will of God were.
The Knights of Vine.
It was far from reality. The knights of the devil family were the knights who followed the will of God.
But no one would know the truth.
Would the god be happy to hear this?
I wondered, but one thing was certain: the temple people knew nothing and were so overwhelmed with joy that they couldn’t even lower the corners of their mouths.
“Also, the priest Nibel..."
When my mouth or prayers mentioned their name, most of them shook their shoulders.
The more I saw them, the more I thought of my past life.
In my past life, the priests who had sent me to the devil’s family, and who had not even thought of saving me, but had sacrificed me with the devils to open the gates of heaven.
They were them.
If I hadn’t joined hands with Vine in this life, I might have met the same ending.
They had insisted that I must marry one of the three families, the real devil’s family, and the devil’s family. They only thought of their own glory. They were confident that they would eventually open the gates of heaven.
“...”
My desire for revenge flared up again.
And when I saw the priests shaking their shoulders with joy, anticipation, and excitement, filled with hope, I was surprisingly... filled with anticipation.
What kind of expressions would they make when the gates of hell opened?
Kkwak.
I tightly gripped the book with the prayer written on it.
“To the great one who looks down on us and watches over us,”
And after the part where each priest recited their achievements, the other priests and paladins began to pray.
Wow!
And pure white holy power began to surge between them. It wasn’t because their holy power was outstanding.
It was a wave created by the gathering of countless people with holy power.
“...!”
I almost flinched and looked back at Belled. But he bravely didn’t look back.
He’ll be okay.
It wasn’t that I hadn’t anticipated this situation while planning the battle at the altar. And if this situation of overflowing holy power came before the gates of hell opened, the demons would definitely endure.
Without showing any signs of it.
As expected, fortunately, none of them even groaned.
Only then did I feel relieved and quickly read the prayer.
“...I offer the blood of those who dared to block the path of the holy one.”
And finally, the time had come.
The sun in the sky, which was gradually darkening, was about 2/3 covered.
“Then, the sacrifice.”
The high priests all spoke in unison, solemn voices.
“...”
I tried not to tense up at those words.
‘If you wish, Beryl. You may use the sword.’
Before the opening ceremony began, Belled had clearly said that.
It was clear where the sword would be used.
‘...When making a sacrifice?’
‘Yes.’
Some argued that revenge was a futile act that made one lose the purpose of life, and that revenge would not bring back what was lost, but Belled was different.
‘They will die after the opening ceremony. Those who made your past a nightmare will disappear from this world.’
He said that.
‘Before that, I want you to know that they are nothing. I dare to teach you that, Beryl.’
They were nothing, so there was no need to be afraid anymore.
The nightmare was literally a nightmare that was inflated to a scary extent, and it was nothing more than a small thing that could be solved with your fingertips.
As he spoke, he was ultimately asking.
Would my desire for revenge be satisfied only if I cut them down with my own hands? Only then would my nightmare end.
He was saying that as if he would do whatever I wanted.
It was not that I did not hesitate. But in the end, I shook my head.
'Belled, please do it.'
Even if I was not used to using a sword, I could make a mistake while trying to sacrifice Orobas and Yubar, but I had no intention of bringing up the nightmare that seemed like something from a distant past whenever I was with Belled.
'That's better.'
In the end, the time that ordinary people spend running away and fighting for their lives was expressed as ‘buying time.’
It was beyond imagination. No, it was a disgusting thought that I had a hard time getting out of my head.
It was when I tightly shut my lips.
“Naberus.”
Belled gestured. Then Naberus immediately knelt in front of him.
“I await your order.”
“There is time until the gate opens, so deal with it and return quickly.”
The priests cleared their throats at those words.
“Ahem!”
“Are you okay? No matter how capable Vine’s forces are, we still don’t know how large the monsters are...”
Belled cut them off with a single stroke.
“It is the Saintess’s will.”
Not his will, but the Saintess’s will. And on the surface, the priests could no longer meddle with him since they were under the Saintess.
In the end, the priests only cleared their throats and retreated.
“...Thank you.”
I whispered to him softly. My voice seemed like it would be buried in the commotion, but Belled, who managed to hear my voice, slightly bowed his head.
I took a few steps closer and held his hand tightly, feeling so grateful that he had understood my intentions first.
Belled couldn’t take his eyes off the lovely smile that bloomed on my face without me knowing.
“Please resume the prayer.”
At that moment, the priest’s impatient voice cut through the air. I bit my lips.
It was because I felt a sense of selfishness to the extent of a role.
However, their greed would soon end. With the opening of the gates of hell.
I opened my mouth again.
“With the great one...”
The prayer I read was so full of beautiful words that it was surprising that my tongue didn’t get tangled up.
And after the part praising God ended, what came next was something that made one laugh out loud.
“...The holy knight Cladda, leading the knights who follow the will of God and imprisoning the demons...”
It was clear which family’s knights that followed the will of God were.
The Knights of Vine.
It was far from reality. The knights of the devil family were the knights who followed the will of God.
But no one would know the truth.
Would the god be happy to hear this?
I wondered, but one thing was certain: the temple people knew nothing and were so overwhelmed with joy that they couldn’t even lower the corners of their mouths.
“Also, the priest Nibel..."
When my mouth or prayers mentioned their name, most of them shook their shoulders.
The more I saw them, the more I thought of my past life.
In my past life, the priests who had sent me to the devil’s family, and who had not even thought of saving me, but had sacrificed me with the devils to open the gates of heaven.
They were them.
If I hadn’t joined hands with Vine in this life, I might have met the same ending.
They had insisted that I must marry one of the three families, the real devil’s family, and the devil’s family. They only thought of their own glory. They were confident that they would eventually open the gates of heaven.
“...”
My desire for revenge flared up again.
And when I saw the priests shaking their shoulders with joy, anticipation, and excitement, filled with hope, I was surprisingly... filled with anticipation.
What kind of expressions would they make when the gates of hell opened?
Kkwak.
I tightly gripped the book with the prayer written on it.
“To the great one who looks down on us and watches over us,”
And after the part where each priest recited their achievements, the other priests and paladins began to pray.
Wow!
And pure white holy power began to surge between them. It wasn’t because their holy power was outstanding.
It was a wave created by the gathering of countless people with holy power.
“...!”
I almost flinched and looked back at Belled. But he bravely didn’t look back.
He’ll be okay.
It wasn’t that I hadn’t anticipated this situation while planning the battle at the altar. And if this situation of overflowing holy power came before the gates of hell opened, the demons would definitely endure.
Without showing any signs of it.
As expected, fortunately, none of them even groaned.
Only then did I feel relieved and quickly read the prayer.
“...I offer the blood of those who dared to block the path of the holy one.”
And finally, the time had come.
The sun in the sky, which was gradually darkening, was about 2/3 covered.
“Then, the sacrifice.”
The high priests all spoke in unison, solemn voices.
“...”
I tried not to tense up at those words.
‘If you wish, Beryl. You may use the sword.’
Before the opening ceremony began, Belled had clearly said that.
It was clear where the sword would be used.
‘...When making a sacrifice?’
‘Yes.’
Some argued that revenge was a futile act that made one lose the purpose of life, and that revenge would not bring back what was lost, but Belled was different.
‘They will die after the opening ceremony. Those who made your past a nightmare will disappear from this world.’
He said that.
‘Before that, I want you to know that they are nothing. I dare to teach you that, Beryl.’
They were nothing, so there was no need to be afraid anymore.
The nightmare was literally a nightmare that was inflated to a scary extent, and it was nothing more than a small thing that could be solved with your fingertips.
As he spoke, he was ultimately asking.
Would my desire for revenge be satisfied only if I cut them down with my own hands? Only then would my nightmare end.
He was saying that as if he would do whatever I wanted.
It was not that I did not hesitate. But in the end, I shook my head.
'Belled, please do it.'
Even if I was not used to using a sword, I could make a mistake while trying to sacrifice Orobas and Yubar, but I had no intention of bringing up the nightmare that seemed like something from a distant past whenever I was with Belled.
'That's better.'
Because I was already next to someone who was like a dream.
Belled nodded at those words.
So now, he was standing in front of the altar with his sword in hand.
"God! Descend!"
"God! Descend!"
"Guide us to the gates of heaven!"
The sun was gradually covered by the moon, and when there was only a little bit of the sun left,
"Ugh! Ugh!"
Duke Orobas and Duke Yubar were dragged out, their eyes and mouths covered with cloth and gags.
Their voices were buried in the people's frantic prayers, so they could not be heard properly.
"Ugh!"
Duke Yubar, who was led from the hands of the knights to the hands of the knights of Vine, struggled even more. Then, when the gag was barely removed from his mouth, he screamed.
“That Saintess, no, that woman Beryl, is the real devil!”
“To heaven! To heaven!”
But that voice was also drowned out by the sound of prayer. Now, the prayers of the temple people were closer to madness than prayer.
“The devil is Vine! Damn it...!”
Duke Yubar roared and Duke Orobas screamed, but no one listened.
Just as no one had heard what I had claimed in my previous life.
“...”
I waited for the moon to completely cover the sun, listening to the screams.
Then Belled raised his sword and cut the cloth covering the eyes of Duke Yubar and Duke Orobas.
Slash.
When the cloth was released and their eyes met, the two Dukes’ miserable appearances, covered in bodily fluids, were revealed.
“It is time to pay the price.”
“To heaven!”
“Lead us!”
Even among the maddening voices, his voice particularly permeated the two Dukes.
“You will be executed.”
Belled nodded at those words.
So now, he was standing in front of the altar with his sword in hand.
"God! Descend!"
"God! Descend!"
"Guide us to the gates of heaven!"
The sun was gradually covered by the moon, and when there was only a little bit of the sun left,
"Ugh! Ugh!"
Duke Orobas and Duke Yubar were dragged out, their eyes and mouths covered with cloth and gags.
Their voices were buried in the people's frantic prayers, so they could not be heard properly.
"Ugh!"
Duke Yubar, who was led from the hands of the knights to the hands of the knights of Vine, struggled even more. Then, when the gag was barely removed from his mouth, he screamed.
“That Saintess, no, that woman Beryl, is the real devil!”
“To heaven! To heaven!”
But that voice was also drowned out by the sound of prayer. Now, the prayers of the temple people were closer to madness than prayer.
“The devil is Vine! Damn it...!”
Duke Yubar roared and Duke Orobas screamed, but no one listened.
Just as no one had heard what I had claimed in my previous life.
“...”
I waited for the moon to completely cover the sun, listening to the screams.
Then Belled raised his sword and cut the cloth covering the eyes of Duke Yubar and Duke Orobas.
Slash.
When the cloth was released and their eyes met, the two Dukes’ miserable appearances, covered in bodily fluids, were revealed.
“It is time to pay the price.”
“To heaven!”
“Lead us!”
Even among the maddening voices, his voice particularly permeated the two Dukes.
“You will be executed.”
They would be treated as sacrifices here, but at least not in Vine.
Belled spoke softly to them, who were glaring.
“For the crime of thinking something unspeakable to Beryl, to someone precious.”
He raised the corners of his mouth.
“Not us!”
“That woman is the devil!”
“No, Vine is the devil! You’re all being deceived!”
By then, Duke Orobas’s gag had been released and he was screaming. However, the story did not reach the people’s ears as if it were being told in another world.
Belled listened to their tantrums and said,
“Just like now, in the next life, and in the life after that, you will live a very long and painful life under those who will not confirm your words, and who will treat you as mere tools.”
Wow.
His green eyes shone. Looking at the strangely magical eyes, Duke Yubar and Duke Orobas felt a fear they had never felt before in their lives.
“That... that is..!”
These were not human gazes. They were the eyes of a transcendent being who had lived for a time incomparably longer than that of humans.
That being was confidently predicting their future, their afterlife.
As if it would really happen.
The moment they instinctively got goosebumps and became scared.
“Save me, save me.”
“Save me, please!”
At the moment when they were most terrified, my sword slammed down on them.
Wow!
And at the same time, the entire central altar began to be enveloped in light.
Kurururung...!
As if responding to that, the sky also darkened. Exactly, it was the moment when the sun was completely covered by the moon.
“Oh...!”
“It’s opening...!”
And at the same time, the door that occupied one wall of the altar began to shake.
It was the door that the people of the temple had been wishing to open for a long time. In another sense, it was the door that the demons of Vine had also been waiting for to open.
People’s eyes were drawn to the crack in the door.
Kung...?
And finally, when something began to appear through the crack in the door, people’s eyes widened.
Belled spoke softly to them, who were glaring.
“For the crime of thinking something unspeakable to Beryl, to someone precious.”
He raised the corners of his mouth.
“Not us!”
“That woman is the devil!”
“No, Vine is the devil! You’re all being deceived!”
By then, Duke Orobas’s gag had been released and he was screaming. However, the story did not reach the people’s ears as if it were being told in another world.
Belled listened to their tantrums and said,
“Just like now, in the next life, and in the life after that, you will live a very long and painful life under those who will not confirm your words, and who will treat you as mere tools.”
Wow.
His green eyes shone. Looking at the strangely magical eyes, Duke Yubar and Duke Orobas felt a fear they had never felt before in their lives.
“That... that is..!”
These were not human gazes. They were the eyes of a transcendent being who had lived for a time incomparably longer than that of humans.
That being was confidently predicting their future, their afterlife.
As if it would really happen.
The moment they instinctively got goosebumps and became scared.
“Save me, save me.”
“Save me, please!”
At the moment when they were most terrified, my sword slammed down on them.
Wow!
And at the same time, the entire central altar began to be enveloped in light.
Kurururung...!
As if responding to that, the sky also darkened. Exactly, it was the moment when the sun was completely covered by the moon.
“Oh...!”
“It’s opening...!”
And at the same time, the door that occupied one wall of the altar began to shake.
It was the door that the people of the temple had been wishing to open for a long time. In another sense, it was the door that the demons of Vine had also been waiting for to open.
People’s eyes were drawn to the crack in the door.
Kung...?
And finally, when something began to appear through the crack in the door, people’s eyes widened.
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