The leader of the Neuters entered the Great Woodlands.
Shortly after being enlightened on this information, Vera attempted to send Renee back to Aedrin’s roots.
This thought came naturally to Vera. Renee was a frail girl whose combat skills were extremely low if her authority and divinity was extracted. Wouldn’t it be dangerous for her to accompany him?
However…
"I can help out."
Renee's words urged Vera to break his stubbornness.
It would be more accurate to state that Renee’s determination undermined Vera’s attempts to ask her to retreat.
Vera measured her combat capabilities.
Marie was not available. In preparation for an unexpected situation, she must allocate her strength to Aedrin’s protection. Norn and Hela had to remain by Renee's side when the battle began.
In the end, only 50 elves and himself could fight.
"How many Neuters are there?"
"…Their numbers exceed one hundred. There were approximately two hundred siblings who followed Gillie. Approximately a hundred of them were slain by us.”
It's 50 to 100.
It was a difference of twice the magnitude of power in favor of the Neuters. Yet, Vera considered it rather fortunate.
"Retreat with all of the elves once the battle begins."
"I don't understand.”
"They'll get in the way."
Vera glanced at Friede and spoke.
"I alone am enough."
Friede’s expression darkened in response to Vera’s words.
****
The Sanctuary was not a power that always worked to his advantage.
It would be quite disappointing if the restrictions imposed on the battlefield for his personal advantage resulted in unfavorable conditions for his allies.
Due to the ability's severe limitations, it acted like a plague in group battles.
It was the Sanctuary.
So, Vera thought.
If the battlefield he created would be disadvantageous to his allies, it would be better to leave all his allies outside the Sanctuary and entrust them with rear support.
Even if his allies were outnumbered by an order of magnitude of two, it was nothing when compared to his strength. It would be more beneficial for him to fight alone and leave the remaining 50 troops to defend Renee.
Vera ran with Renee in his arms. His running came to a halt when he noticed figures standing in the distance.
Vera's eyes narrowed to determine the individuals.
It was a group of elves, undoubtedly Neuter. The long gray-haired tramp in the center must be Gillie.
"Saint, I'll be back."
"… Vera."
"There is nothing to worry about. I will not be defeated by such a number of foes."
Squeeze!Renee's hand squeezed Vera's collar.
She exuded a pure white divinity.
Renee remained silent, but planted a small aggregate of her powers within Vera’s body. .
To wish him luck, She bestowed him with a blessing of luck that would prevent him from being injured by arrows that approach from his blind spot.
As Vera stared at Renee, a strange sensation permeated through his body.
"…Thank you."
"You have to be careful.”
"Yes."
Vera glanced at Friede to ensure that the elves were following them before he drew his sword.
"Take good care of Saint."
These words were addressed to Friede.
Immediately after Vera stated those words, he flew at the enemies without looking back.
*
Gillie frowned at the sight of a single figure blocking them on their march towards Aedrin.
The human was entirely covered in a dark robe.
Gillie could determine the identity of the individual at a glance.
'Apostle.'
It wasn't Abundance, the shape of their bodies were too different.
Perhaps, according to the information collected by the siblings who had recently entered the Great Woodland, he must be the Apostle of the Oath.
Gillie gazed into the distance behind Vera. Among their dear siblings, they noticed a pure white girl.
"…We're in luck."
Smirk.A grinning smile hung around their mouth. What kind of windfall is this? If they captured the Saint, they would be able to return the state of their homeland to a time when it was still beautiful.
The land, which was green and rich in vegetation, would return.
Gillie trembled in joy and glanced forward again.
Their hand reached into their arms. Their hand came in contact with a dagger. It was a dagger prepared for today and polished for nearly 30 years.
Clink.Gillie drew the dagger.
"Siblings-!"
A loud cry emanated. Gillie stepped forward again for their long-awaited dream.
*
The enemies were approaching. As Friede had stated previously, their numbers were approximately 100.
Although he was in an unbelievably unfavorable battlefield, Vera did not shrink from it in the slightest.
Vera was always one who fought alone, and he was also the one who was victorious.
That wasn't all.
Vera focused his attention on the presence he felt gazing at his back.
'Things to protect.'
It was behind his back.
The delight that usually enveloped his body when he fought was non-existent this time.
He was no longer fighting for himself. He was fighting to protect something important to him that he guarded behind him.
It was a fight to protect the light that he had always been chasing.
Backing down or negotiations never once materialized as thoughts in Vera’s mind.
He held his sword tightly and tensed every muscle within his body.
The enemies were approaching.
The enemies, 200 steps away, were approaching.
They were approaching, ravaging the withered vegetation and scattering fallen leaves with every step as they ran.
100 steps became 50 steps, and 50 steps became 30 steps.
Vera parted his lips as he stared at the approaching enemies.
"I declare."
His voice resonated throughout the entire battlefield. Gray divinity enveloped the space. At the same time, Neuter arrived before Vera.
Slash!
Vera continued to utter Oath as he eviscerated the three Neuters who rushed past him.
"From henceforth, all who enter this Sanctuary will not be able to leave it."
Shriiiieked.
A constraint that is borrowed in the name of God. It was a restriction that even the elves who had lived for eons could not escape.
Vera continued, deflecting an arrow approaching from afar, slicing through two Neuter who were rushing at him.
"Also, everyone in the Sanctuary must continue their battle until there’s only one man left standing."
Vera kept cutting down enemies and moving his lips.
"As a result, everyone who continues to fight in the shrine gains unlimited vitality. Furthermore, their swordsmanship skill is further enhanced."
Again, space cried. Vera savored the feeling of his increased vitality and enhanced swordsmanship. He continued the onslaught of Neuter once more.
"If the rule is violated, the offender pays the price with their life."
The feeling of cutting through flesh and bones increased the vividness of the battle.
With killing intent directed at him from all directions, his senses were sharper than ever.
"All these rules are enforced in the name of Lushan."
Schluk-!
A Neuter was decapitated.
And the completion of the Oath.
A Golden Regulation rose within the ashen realm.
Vera discarded his defensive stance and sprinted toward Gillie in a straight line.
Stomp-!
His steps carried a different weight than before.
****
Friede couldn't understand any of the events that were happening.
'Why….'
Why did the Saint come all the way here? For what reason did that escort stepped forward alone?
Why did he make such an irrational judgment?
Friede's eyes were focused on Vera, who cut and slashed through the Neuter.
He was the only one who made rational judgements this entire time. He was the one who observed them suspiciously while considering numerous factors.
However, Friede could not understand why such a rational person was fighting a battle in which he had nothing to gain.
They felt as though their throat was being burned by the thirst that welled up inside them.
They felt uneasy in their stomach due to a question they couldn't quite find an answer to.
Friede glanced at Renee, who was praying with her hands together, with a distorted expression. (*1)
Pure white divinity was faintly enveloping her body. Friede wasn't ignorant enough to not understand that Renee was preparing something.
Friede's hand swept their face in a trembling motion.
Right after.
‘…Shaking?’
Friede, who belatedly realized they were shaking, stared blankly ahead with a more distorted face than prior.
‘Why?'
It was because they themselves could not figure out why they were shaking.
Yeah, they couldn't quite understand.
Even what's happening right now.
This Saint, that escort.
…And themselves.
The elf, who had accumulated numerous experiences over thousands of years of life, felt as if they had become an idiot who was clueless of the world because of the emotions that permeated through his body.
****
Claaank-!
The sound of clashing swords and daggers reverberated through the air.
Gillie, who had blocked Vera's sword, gnashed their teeth so hard that you could hear a 'crack' sound.
'What… !’
What unbelievable strength. Gillie felt their knees on the verge of buckling and quickly cast their spell.
Mana was flowing.
The moment a thorn emerged from the fallen leaves under Vera's feet.
Schwiiiing-!
Vera leapt, his sword drawing a crescent amidst the sequence of events and separating the heads of their siblings.
Gillie quickly pulled back, their eyes scanning the battlefield.
The siblings who had arrived with numbers reaching over a hundred, were now reduced to less than half of them.
It would be nice if they could collapse from exhaustion, but this bloody gray space continued to revitalize both the Apostle and themselves.
Gillie was able to grasp Vera's intentions at once.
He was confident that if he had the infinite vitality and enhanced swordsmanship, he’d be able to cut all of them down. This barrier was materialized to make his desires become reality.
Squeeze!Strength increased in the hand holding the dagger. Yet, they didn't feel anything like contempt.
Don't they know what an Apostle is?
Aren't they clothed with the power of a God, who renders the weight of time and the inherent limitations of a species useless?
'Naturally….'
It was only natural that they couldn't win.
Gillie stared at the characters engraved on the dagger.
The letters were flashing in a pale red light.
Gillie's eyebrows narrowed.
'… It's early.'
It's still too early.
It was too early to use this dagger. It was a dagger to sever the shackles of Aedrin, who they once thought of as their mother.
It was a dagger they had to conserve until they arrived there.
But…
"Arrghh!!!"
"Kergh!!"
There was no time to relax.
Their siblings were getting slain left and right.
The siblings, who had endured hardships together for their long-cherished wish, were being torn apart by that Apostle.
Gillie gripped the dagger in reverse with bloodshot and glistening eyes.
'Barely…!'
Their dream could not end in a place such as this.
They didn't want to, but they had no choice but to use it here. If they could eliminate this Apostle, they would be able to capture the Saint behind him.
If they capture the Saint, they would be able to achieve their long-awaited dream without the need for the use of the dagger.
Gillie witnesses the carnage afflicted by Vera. He stared at his own heart with a crumpled expression on their face.
Schwiing.
They drove the dagger in.
[-----!]
There was a ringing in their ears and their field of vision was stretch to infinity.
The Apostle approaching them seemed to be getting farther and farther away. Even though he was clearly approaching, his visage seemed to be retreating due to his body stretching backwards.
Thump-.
They heard the final beat of their heart. The dagger that was stabbed in the middle of the heart absorbed their life.
Gillie could feel the souls of their brothers buried in this land the moment their lives were absorbed into the dagger.
Time seemed to stop for Gillie as they spoke.
'Siblings….'
The time has come to fulfill our dream.
*
An ominous crimson light exploded.
While Vera was charging toward Gillie, he sensed something unusual and assumed a defensive stance, expelling his Sword Veil.
Ruuuumble-!
An explosion occurred due to the collision of the Sword Veil and the crimson light.
"Kheup-!"
An audible moan emerged from the explosion, but Vera had no time to pay attention to such trivial matters.
All his nerves were focused on the phenomenon unfolding before his eyes.
He focused on the crimson light that had completely devoured him. His eyes widened and his breathing came to a halt.
He wasn't afraid.
Nor was he surprised by the unexpected card of his opponents.
'This....'
A crimson aura.
He was bewildered upon seeing the aura itself.
Vera knew this crimson aura.
It would be strange if he didn’t recognize this aura. On the current continent, the only person who recognized this aura was probably himself.
Vera's pupils trembled.
In his previous life, it was the light of war that swept the entire continent into despair.
The light of the Apocalypse that eventually eradicated half of the continent's nations.
'…The Demon King.'
This ominous light, the light of the Demon King.