The knights rushed at Ian as he came out of the church door.
The knights were all messed up with the blood and body fluids of the beast, but no one was seriously injured.
All the beasts struggled to enter the cathedral rather than fight the knights.
At some point, they floundered like puppets with broken threads.
The knights realized everything at once.
âThe Commander did it.â
According to the most recent reports, these beasts are owned by the Incubus King.
Incubus is a mighty demon. They could not be said to be powerful if it was their king.
The beasts, led by King Incubus, raided Rycallion and settled in the cathedral.
No matter how powerful they were, the king would not have been able to defeat the Holy Knights.
The Incubus King, on the other hand, became more powerful than ever after swallowing the holy stone.
And the beasts which followed him grew stronger as well.
When the beasts stumbled, it meant that their master was in trouble.
âYou did it, Commander!â
âAre there any injuries?â
They were expecting Ian to come out with the Incubus Kingâs supplies. Instead, he came out holding a woman in both arms.
The knights were captivated by the scene.
âOh, the saintessâŠ!â
âSaintess! Are you all right!â
The knights were taken aback when they discovered who the drooping woman in Ianâs arms was.
âGet out of the way.â
Ian commanded.
The knights hurriedly backed away from the voice, which was deeper than usual.
âDid you find a safe place nearby?â
âYes, Commander. Itâs good news. The search party has found a cave with survivors! Itâs not far from here.â
âI will go there.â
Ianâs face was frighteningly stiff as he stated this.
He was shown around by the knights.
âYes, Commander. Iâll take you this wayâŠ!â
Ian took a step and looked down at Irene.
His blue eyes stared at Irene and were filled with mixed emotions.
âFuck it.â
Then the Incubus King collapsed at that word.
âBe careful of what you wish for.â
A divine power to make what is said come true.
âSometimes people who are born with divine power used to do it⊠⊠.â
Long ago, it was known that Jasper, the saintess of wisdom in the legend, also used that ability.
The holy sword weakened them, but still, the king was the king.
With a single word, the woman brought down the mighty beast and was calmly held in his arms.
âSaintess, RaâŠâŠ.â
Ian looked down at Irene for a moment.
Her tightly shut eyes seemed at ease as if she were dreaming.
In fact, Ian wasnât completely convinced that she was a saintess.
The evidence was clear, but something about it made her suspicious.
His suspicions whispered in his instincts that she was hiding something fatal about her from him.
But now that this has happened, he has no choice but to believe it.
That Irene Grace is loved by God.
But is it really a blessing?
ââŠâŠIrene.â
He bowed slightly and whispered that he only reached her when her eyes were still tight.
That much reaction comes with her strong power.
Ian remembered Irene passing out when the Incubus stopped breathing after hearing that single word.
She fell to the floor like a doll with a broken thread.
âYour power, please never use it again.â
He didnât know why his heart was beating as it would stop.
But obviously, it was something he didnât want to see again.
âIâll make sure you donât have to use it anymore.â
Ian looked down at Irene quietly after finishing his whisper.
Ireneâs eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings as if she understood what he said.
***
âUghâŠâŠâ
As soon as I woke up, I had a headache.
âWhat happened? Did I get drunk and fell asleep yesterday?â
I felt dizzy and nauseous, as if I had a bad hangover.
âWait. What happened to make me fall asleep last night?â
I immediately opened my eyes after searching my hazy mind.
âThat demon!â
I remembered the last time I saw a devilâs face.
Yeah, I was dealing with him alongside Ian.
It seems that I passed out when I noticed the memory was suddenly cut off, but I do not recall what happened after that.
What happened to him?
âLady Irene. Are you all right!â
A familiar voice was heard in my ears.
As I turned my head, I saw Dame Joan running towards me with a worried look on her face.
âStay in your bed. You must have complete rest.â
âDame JoanâŠâŠWhere the hell am I?â
I looked around blankly.
This was a strange place.
The whole area was covered with black rocks. It reminded me of a cave.
The strangest thing was the black rocks emitting fluorescent green light.
âThis is a safe zone. The survivors were hiding here to avoid the beasts.â
âPardon? Really?â
My eyes were wide open.
Then there was a rumbling sound.
âIs the saintess awake?â
âShhh, she is talking to Dame Joan.â
âWhoa, you are the real saintessâŠâŠâ
I was startled when I turned my head.
Peopleâs eyes shone brightly like fireflies from afar.
âOh, she looked this way.â
âYou look so cute.â
âHey, itâs disrespectful to the saint.â
âHey, did you hear what I said?â
Yes, I can clearly hear them.
With blank eyes, I continued to look around.
âDame Joan. Those peopleâŠâŠâ
âYes. They are the survivors of Rycallion.â
Thatâs great news.
A sigh of relief escaped my lips.
The survivors appeared out of nowhere, hiding amongst themselves, looking for a safe haven.
âDame Joan, how about your family?â
I asked carefully, and Dame Joan put a faint smile on his lips.
âI found them.â
âReally!â
I jumped up without realizing it.
âThank God, really, really!â
âThank you. Lady Irene.â
Dame Joan bowed her head in respect.
âIt seems that God Elune has heard the saintessâs prayer.â
âNo, what did I do?â
I didnât really do anything, now that I think about it.
It was a prayer that muttered only a few words to Elune, and it was the same in the cathedral.
[TL/N: This means she is a fake priestess â pretended to be a believer; itâs the same thing that she is a fake Saintess and only prays to god for a particular reason.]
It was Ian who went up against the demon. What I only did was hide behind his back and boost his morale⊠Saying that would have been nice. It would have just made me crazy.
âIs Commander Ian all right?â
âThe Commander has been by Lady Ireneâs side just now.â
âWhat?â
My pupils dilated.
That busy man was by my side?
Why? Did he want to rest?
âDo you recall Lady Irene passing out?â
Dame Joan asked in a worried voice.
âThe Commander was concerned that a lot of energy would have leaked out of Lady Ireneâs body.â
âYes? Are you referring to my divine power? Why?â
I asked for something that hit me up.
Is there any divine power in my body?
âI donât know the details because the Commander did not tell me. Could it be because you had close contact with the King of Incubus?â
âOhâŠâŠâ
Thatâs true. But because he is a powerful demon, Iâm not sure what the effect it had on my body.
I rummaged through my memories again before I passed out, but nothing came to mind.
âI think thatâs why Lady Irene fainted.â
I thought of that demon in my head.
Although he appeared to be attractive, he was actually a powerful demon.
âIt hurts, it really hurtsâŠâŠ Please help me.â
I suddenly remembered the figure the devil had been begging for.
I canât believe he could bring the demon down at that level. I was once again terrified of Ian.
I canât remember what happened after that, but seeing that Iâm still alive like this, Ian must have ended the demon.
âLetâs not be arrogant either.â
I looked back at Dame Joan naturally.
âIs Commander Ian also fine?â
âYes. The Commander is completely safe. He will now be dealing with the remnants with the battle corps.â
âAll right.â
I nodded my head.
âDame Joan, is your family here now?â
âOh. Theyâre close by.â
âGo to your family. You donât have to be tied up here because of me.â
âButâŠ.â
âNoona!â
After that, I heard the childâs clear voice.
âDarren. I said donât come here.â
The expression of Dame Joan had hardened.
With a scared expression on his face, a young boy named Darren burst into tears.
âNoona, but, Alicia⊠Alicia.â
âWhy Alicia?â
For a brief moment, Dame Joanâs eyes flashed with panic.
âAlisha is having trouble breathing. She huffs strangely⊠The fever is rising. Ugh, What am I supposed to do?â
âDame Joan, go ahead.â
I hastily stated. Dame Joan bit her lower lip.
âIâm sorry, Lady Irene. Excuse me for a moment.â
It happened right before I was about to dispatch Dame Joan.
I could hear the murmur of people.
âWhatâs going on?â
âDame Joan, her youngest sister, seems to be getting worse. It is extremely difficult for a child to go through this.â
âIâm happy though. The saintess is here.â
âI know. Thatâs really fortunate. Itâs like a miracle.â
ââŠâŠ.Huh?â
I detected an anomaly and secretly returned my gaze to the crowd.
People stared at me in wonder and anticipation.
âIt was because of the saintessâ prayer that Joan found this location.â
âHe truly is a saintess.â
I swung my gaze around.
Hearing this, it seems there will be a lot of weight on my shoulders.
Everyone seemed to believe that I could heal a little girl named Alicia.
âHmm, Dame Joan.â
I instinctively opened my mouth.
I just couldnât help myself. Given this, I have no choice but to go pretend to pray.
âAlicia, is her condition getting worse?â
âShe will be fine. Do not worry.â
âI will go too.â
Dame Joan shook her head at my request.
âYou shouldnât overdo it.â
âI canât do much anyway. What I could do was just praying. It doesnât matter.â
Dame Joanâs eyes seemed to tell that she was hesitant. I didnât waste any time and jumped up to take the lead.
âNow, letâs get moving. Did Dame Joan say your name is Darren?â
A boy named Darren looked up at me blankly.
âYes, yes⊠Saintess noona.â
âPlease guide me to where Alicia is.â
âYes!â
Darren nodded vigorously.
After a while, we reached where Alicia was lying.
Many people were already there, and they were guarding Alicia, who had already fainted.
âHuh? What exactly are they up to?
My eyes were puzzled.
If I looked closely, I could see that people were putting some kind of green ore on Aliciaâs body.