Chapter 13

“Commander! Monsters!”

Silia’s lips pressed into a straight line.

“It’s earlier than expected.”

“It seems they let their guard down because they thought monsters couldn’t possibly appear yet. The damage is reportedly severe. The defensive forces guarding the perimeter have already been wiped out, and—”

“Enough. What region?”

“Near the Arinald Gorge in the northwestern mountain range.”

“Prepare.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Eric snapped a salute and left the commander’s office.

Monsters, a seizure… what an unlucky day.

Silia took the cloak hanging from the rack and headed outside, only to stagger briefly.

Her head spun, and her body felt so weak she could collapse at any moment.

Endure.

She clenched her teeth.

Endure.

Taking a deep breath, she bit the inside of her cheek hard to force herself awake.

The signs aren’t good. I’ll have to contact the Holy Kingdom soon.

And to do that, she first had to stay alive.

She had to live to make her report.

Live to lead the subjugation.

Live to…

Take care of Ran.

Ran…

Silia squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before opening them again and stepping out of the office.

Monsters had appeared.

It was time to struggle for survival.

*

The frequency of monster appearances rising and falling like waves was nothing new.

The Holy Kingdom of Gaiyana had never considered the increasing monster problem across the Western Continent particularly alarming.

They assumed it would pass as usual.

However, after Silia’s report, messages began pouring in from garrisons throughout the continent. As the frequency continued to rise beyond acceptable limits, an emergency was finally declared.

Only clergy blessed with holy power could fight monsters.

As a result, Gaiyana naturally became overwhelmed with work.

Still, that much was manageable.

After all, Silia had a firm grip on the Empire of Grinia, the largest and most troublesome nation on the continent.

The other countries were not as capable as Silia, but their Holy Knight Orders were managing their defenses reasonably well.

The real problem lay elsewhere.

“What do you mean?!”

“Y-Your Holiness, you mustn’t strain your—”

“I asked what you mean!”

Unable to wait any longer, Pope Ivashif sprang to his feet.

He nearly ran down the corridor, followed by a line of holy silver knights directly under his command.

No one dared stop him.

Not only was he too important a figure, but everyone understood that the report they had just received was difficult to believe without seeing it personally.

At last, the large double doors made of rosewood swung open.

In the center of the spacious chamber stood a Barrier Stone whose light was slowly fading.

The Barrier Stone.

A sacred relic of Solar that protected the Western Continent from monsters.

Its light was dying.

Pope Ivashif’s face instantly turned pale.

“How long has it been in that state?”

“Since last night, Your Holiness.”

One of the guardians standing nearby, Julius, spoke in a dry voice.

“Shall we question the Saint?”

“No! How dare you—!”

The Saint.

The holy child of God.

The person chosen as the Saint of this generation was a man named Iris, a figure who stood even above the Pope himself.

Proof of God Solar’s love for the Western Continent and humanity.

The embodiment of selflessness, love, justice, and judgment.

A person born carrying all of those sacred responsibilities and favored by Solar.

That was what it meant to be Solar’s Saint.

How could anyone question such a person?

How could they dare?

“Then what are we supposed to do? The barrier is about to collapse, Your Holiness.”

Julius’s voice carried a faint edge of mockery, but the Pope was too distraught to notice.

“Y-you saw it too, didn’t you?”

“…”

“You saw the Saint’s holy mark, yes?”

Rather than making a decision, the Pope desperately clung to the fact that others had witnessed proof of the Saint’s legitimacy.

“The holy mark personally bestowed by the great Solar can never be forged.”

“That is true.”

Julius answered flatly.

“Whenever a new Saint appears, the shape of the mark changes, but its authenticity can always be verified using a phoenix feather.”

“…”

“Lord Iris underwent that process and was officially recognized as the Saint. Yet you dare question him?”

“Then why is the Barrier Stone dimming?”

Julius asked through clenched teeth.

“The barrier protecting the Western Continent is maintained by the Saint’s power. If Saint Iris is truly genuine, then why has the barrier become so unstable—”

“What is the meaning of this commotion?!”

At that moment, Iris stormed into the barrier chamber, his face flushed red with rage.

The moment he saw the fading Barrier Stone, he bit his lower lip before marching directly toward his guardian, Julius.

Then he slapped him across the face.

He was so enraged he could barely see straight.

“Julius! How dare you slander me!”

“No, Saint.”

Julius lowered his head and ran his tongue across his bloodied lip.

Seeing that only seemed to infuriate Iris further.

“Who are you trying to fool?! I am the Saint! The child of the great Solar!”

“…”

“The price for lying to me will be severe! Do you not fear God?!”

It seemed Iris had rushed here immediately after waking late in the afternoon.

His hair was completely disheveled.

His priestly robes had been hastily thrown on and were wrinkled beyond recognition.

Oil glistened on his face.

Pope Ivashif merely stood there and watched.

“Guardians! You wretches!”

Iris trembled violently with rage, shouting even at the guardians who were not present in the chamber.

Years of frustration and resentment had finally exploded.

“Julius! You sinner known as the First Guardian! Do you truly not know why the Barrier Stone is fading?!”

“…”

“You guardians call yourselves protectors of the Saint! This happened because none of you respect me!”

Veins bulged from his neck as he glared at Julius with venomous eyes.

“How is it that not one of the five is loyal to me?! Not one!”

No one answered.

Because it was true.

The guardians closest to the Saint could not accept Iris as the Saint and openly despised him.

A guardian of God rejecting the Saint.

Such a thing had never happened before.

“You misunderstand.”

“Misunderstand?!”

Iris laughed sharply.

“Then why did you report the condition of the Barrier Stone to Pope Ivashif before reporting it to me?”

“…”

“It should have been reported to me first!”

“I apologize.”

“Listen carefully!”

Iris ignored Julius’s apology entirely.

“Guardian Julius is hereby sentenced to one month of confinement in the underground prison!”

“S-Saint…”

Ivashif finally snapped out of his stupor.

“Perhaps it would be best if you calmed down first. Julius is simply confused, and—”

“Pope! Be quiet!”

The Pope’s eyes widened at the Saint’s abusive outburst.

Could this man truly be the Saint, the pillar of the Western Continent?

His knees nearly gave way, and a nearby knight hurried to support him.

“Take Guardian Julius away!”

Iris barked the order at the Luminasol Knights.

The knights hesitated.

And for good reason.

Julius was none other than the commander of the Luminasol Knights.

Faced with this absurd situation, the Pope’s complexion turned yellow.

“Why are you all just standing there?! Do you dare disrespect me as well?!”

A terrified knight finally grabbed Julius and escorted him out of the room.

After fuming for some time, Iris glared at the Barrier Stone before turning his cold blue eyes toward the Pope.

“I will resolve this matter myself, Ivashif! In the first place, this object has nothing to do with the Saint’s power!”

“It is not an object, but a sacred rel—”

When the Pope tried to correct him, Iris pointed directly at him.

“Do not argue with me!”

“…”

“Leave. Immediately!”

Only after receiving several more scoldings from Iris did Ivashif finally move.

He stumbled down the corridor like a man whose soul had left his body.

Everything had happened so quickly that he could barely think.

Yet as he walked through the silent white halls of the Holy Palace, his thoughts gradually returned.

The Saint’s influence over not only Gaiyana but the entire Western Continent was immense.

After all, the Saint was the one who held back the monsters crawling up from chaos itself.

The barrier protecting the Western Continent is maintained by the Saint’s power. If Saint Iris is truly genuine, then why has the barrier become so unstable…?

Remembering Julius’s words, the Pope swallowed hard.

If the Saint were fake, the monster population could never have remained stable until now.

The number had increased, certainly.

But until recently, things had remained manageable.

However, the Barrier Stone dimming is evidence that cannot be ignored. What am I supposed to do? I have never heard of Solar’s love for a Saint simply fading midway through their life…

There were only two possibilities.

Either the Saint had been a fraud from the beginning—

Or the power of Solar, the great god of the Western Continent, had weakened.

The second possibility was unthinkable.

Naturally, his thoughts drifted toward the first.

For the Pope, it was an almost unbearable conclusion.

But there was nowhere left to retreat.

He had seen the fading Barrier Stone with his own eyes today.

And Iris’s behavior…

That man is not the Saint.