NOVEL NEXT WORLD What has happened to the Celestial God, I wonder?
In the Evian Diocese, Vigrind knelt down in the central cathedral and clasped his hands together in prayer.
With the rosary symbolizing the Celestial God firmly in his grip, Vigrind cried out in prayer.
This prayer was a heartfelt plea for the Celestial God to watch over this poor human.
He also asked for the strength to correct the misguided path of the Church of the Celestial God.
The Celestial God had appeared when Vigrind became a saint.
Even though the Celestial God had manifested, there had been no guidance or blessings, just warnings.
It was a prophecy that stated a great calamity was approaching.
And that Ludvik and Vigrind must face this calamity.
But beyond those prophecies, the mortal realm needed blessings.
Abundance.
Bounty.
There weren’t many words as precious as those two for the lives of the humans represented by the Duchy of Kapatia.
Originally, the Northern Continent was a harsh place for humans, far too cruel.
When the blessing of the Celestial God was bestowed, it became a more livable place, and combined with human adaptability, the might of humans grew incredibly strong on the Northern Continent.
But now, with the blessings halted, abundance and bounty had become mere echoes, and while the population increased, poverty was becoming a vicious cycle.
Thus, the blessings of the Celestial God were more desperately needed than ever.
And amidst all this, one saint prayed fervently—Vigrind.
The door to the assembly hall opened silently, and a man stepped inside.
The lengthening shadows of the setting sun fell into the assembly hall.
A black figure amidst the crimson twilight.
The tall man quietly entered the hall and slowly sat down on a long bench, absently staring at Vigrind’s back.
A man with brown hair.
With an endlessly gloomy gaze, Ludvik watched Vigrind’s back, his mouth firmly shut.
‘What on earth am I doing?’
As always, he was confident in his martial prowess.
The title of ‘Gold-level Adventurer’ was one that adorned him well, along with the honor of being a hero and the power of the Celestial God, topped off by his weapon, the Dragon Spear.
Moreover, he had the steadfast support of the saint, Vigrind.
For him, the burden of fear seemed unnecessary now.
That was why he had bravely charged in, believing he had finally defeated the foe—but…
A devastating defeat.
And since that day, even the knights and priests of the Cathedral seemed to look at him differently.
‘What on earth am I doing?’
Honestly, he didn’t care about such things.
If he was someone who worried about others’ opinions, he wouldn’t even reach the rank of a bronze-level adventurer.
He would end up as a corpse lying somewhere in a dungeon, lost and forgotten.
What tormented Ludvik now was a single line left by Priest Vigrind.
– Isn’t being an apostate all defined by the Church of the Celestial God? Then, I must ask you, Hero. Whose hero are you? Are you the hero who upholds the will of the Celestial God and acts on it, or are you the hero of the now decaying Church of the Celestial God—no, the lackey of the Church of the Celestial God? Which one is it?
Ludvik buried his face in his hands, washing away his thoughts.
Even now, Priest Vigrind sat quietly on his knees, praying, not a single tremor in him, while only Ludvik’s heart wavered.
Ludvik sank deep into profound contemplation.
*
“Ugh, this is so annoying.”
Yona pouted, her lips jutting out.
Seeing Yona like that, Rubina gave her chest a gentle pat, and only then did Yona look down at Rubina.
“I’m not mad, okay? I’m just feeling a bit off. So, you don’t have to worry. Understand?”
Rubina nodded as if she understood.
Yona, ruffling Rubina’s hair, gazed out the window.
Feeling the frustration rising as she caught a glimpse of her chest, when she lifted her shirt slightly.
The tattoo that had once covered her right breast was now spreading to the left after absorbing Damian’s power.
So now, Yona’s upper body was almost entirely covered in tattoos.
Moreover, Damian’s tattoo was shaped like a mouth with exposed teeth, making it look grotesquely frightening.
‘It looked really terrible. Sigh…’
Her fair skin had been a point of pride for Yona, but now that it was covered in tattoos, how could she feel good about it?
There was nothing she could do about it, but this was a bit too much.
【Is there something you’re troubled about?】
‘It’s the concern that I didn’t know you could be that weak, duh.’
Why was Vervaria choosing this moment to speak up?
【…It was simply a matter of mismatched compatibility, Saint. I think there’s been a misunderstanding.】
‘Talking about compatibility, huh?’
If she had lost fighting against Damian, that would be a different story, but no, she had been absolutely annihilated by one of Damian’s lackeys!
It’s a different story, but didn’t Damian’s henchman totally wreck us instead of Damian himself?
Yona barged in believing Vervaria, but when Vervaria got wrecked like that, she was completely helpless.
If it weren’t for Priest Vigrind, both Yona and Alex, along with the whole party, would probably have ended up dead right there.
Who would have thought that the mighty Vervaria, who turned the Church Region upside down, would be defeated so hopelessly?
“Damian is one of the top contenders among the demon archdukes. He’s on a completely different level than a local deity like me, so what can I do about it?”
“If it weren’t for Priest Vigrind, we would’ve really all died… Ugh.”
“Damian was that strong of a human. He was human, and because he had so much life, he became comparable to a demon.”
Vervaria is rambling on comfortably.
Yona isn’t unaware of that fact either.
Haven’t they already clashed once?
She knows it all too well.
But the reason Yona is annoyed right now isn’t that.
After a series of events, it had been quite calm for a while.
But now, during the trip to Kapatia Port, it was nothing but serene.
And Alex keeps hovering in front of her.
There’s this ticklish sensation rising from her lower abdomen.
That’s the problem.
Yona knew exactly what this was.
And knowing it made the situation all the more awkward.
Playing with her hands in the carriage was out of the question, and just stacking it up was driving her crazy.
As those feelings piled up, they eventually turned into irritation.
“Hey, Vervaria.”
“What is it, Saint?”
“Damian is dead, and I’ve absorbed his power, right?”
“That’s correct.”
Vervaria devoured him well; the human Damian.
In the end, the magical power became Yona’s strength, and knowledge about magic was gradually being absorbed by her too.
But unlike Vervaria, Damian didn’t speak to her in her mental realm, and even when she called out to him just in case, he didn’t respond.
He was probably dead.
He must have vanished after screaming while being absorbed through some heavenly gate, as Priest Vigrind had said, so that must be it.
“Then that means the only one who can talk to me now is you, right?”
“That’s correct.”
So, it’s a legitimate deduction.
After all, it’s been three years since she became a woman.
While she may have messed around a bit during that time, this was the first time it had escalated to such unbearable levels.
It was the first time things had escalated like this last time.
And there’s a high chance it could happen again now.
‘…You, um, maybe…’
【What are you trying to say, Saint?】
Yona screamed internally, ughhhh. Right now, it felt like ants were crawling around in her lower abdomen, itching like crazy.
On top of that, the wild scent mixed with sweat was wafting over from Alex, who was sitting next to her.
‘That guy Alex needs to shave his head again.’
His dark hair was annoyingly luscious.
Just brushing it back a bit made his face pop back to life.
Yeah, that’s the problem.
Wasn’t he originally pretty decent-looking?
Plus, those broad shoulders, and um, she caught a glimpse of his toned, well-defined muscles.
The big muscle blocks all jammed in with tight little muscles could only be described as solid, there was no other way to put it.
And with a decent face, once he styled his hair, he looked more like a noble cathedral knight than an adventurer.
‘No, he is a cathedral knight.’
Well, that’s not wrong.
So that means he’s got the looks, strength, and background all lined up—
Looks, strength, and background, isn’t that enough?
Damn right!
Every time Yona saw Alex loitering around her, it was driving her insane.
【Saint, why aren’t you saying anything?】
‘…No, nothing.’
How could she possibly ask, “Are you the reason I’m getting all hot and bothered?”
“Today, I’ll book the inn for us. It seems like it’ll be nice for everyone to relax a bit.”
“Eh? Is that okay?”
Yona’s eyes widened at Alebians’ words. No matter how she looked at it, renting out an inn seemed like a big deal, but if it were possible, there’s nothing better.
“Anyway, Lukasia is closely linked to the Evian Diocese, so it should be fine. If anything comes up, we can use the Saint’s name.”
Yona nodded at Alebians’ explanation.
That makes sense, right?
Since Yona had never been to Lukasia, she couldn’t comment much, but using Vigrind’s name should work.
For now, the name of helping the Saint to save Evian might hold more weight than the label of heresy.
And maybe this was a chance to somehow tame this burning desire.