Thanks to all the guards fleeing, the underground corridor was quiet.
There, I recalled the Saintess from my memory.
She was a Transcendent Being, difficult to handle even in the previous regression.
Countless heroes of The Empire were brainwashed and turned into enemies.
The mind-boggling situation of today’s trusted ally swinging a sword at me repeated itself.
Still, there was valuable information I gained from facing her.
Ange was from a fallen noble family, and her parents were framed as traitors and executed.
Afterwards, she was sent to the Underground of the Holy See and lived through harsh experiments.
The only time she could rest amidst the terrible pain was when she was reading the Holy Scripture.
They say she read only the Holy Scripture thousands of times in that dark underground.
It was likely around this time that she came to believe she was a Saintess.
Ange was a huge fan of a figure in the Holy Scripture called the ‘Prophet’.
He was a righteous man who received a divine revelation and resigned from his post as Knight Commander.
He met the Saintess and worked with her to save the masses, which eventually led to a conflict with the kingdom.
Protests and suppressions continued for years.
When the morale of the people fell, the Saintess asked the Prophet to stab her.
She awakened the public by sacrificing herself.
The Saintess met a heroic end while watching the kingdom fall.
The Prophet, left alone, established a new era upon the ruins of the kingdom.
On the surface, it’s a perfect story of overthrowing a corrupt nation.
However, this was a fake bible created by the Holy See to manipulate her.
If she instigated the people to bring down The Empire, the Holy See planned to easily absorb the nation’s foundation.
And so the Saintess who started a revolution alone ultimately met her death at my hands.
Not by a Prophet, but by the Sword Master of The Empire she so despised.
However, surprisingly, she wasn’t sad at all.
In fact, she said she was grateful to die a death similar to the story in the Holy Scripture, thanks to me.
Until her death, she could not escape the clutches of the Holy See.
Creeeak—.
A spacious prison cell.
A woman sat under a ceiling from which only a single ray of sunlight streamed down.
Thanks to the glasses, her face wasn’t clearly visible.
Still, the faint sight of white hair and a red velvet dress.
Befitting the owner of such unparalleled looks, she exuded a sensual atmosphere.
“You’re not the ones I usually see.” “It’s Prison Warden Derek.
I’ll be conducting the interview myself today.”
A thin, delicate hand brushed her bangs aside.
Soon, cloudy, inhuman red eyes were revealed.
“As expected, I can’t see your face very well.” “I can’t see your face either.
Let’s talk from this distance.”
The corners of her red lips, the same color as her dress, curled up.
“Alright.
Shall we start with your business?” “If you’re here for committing a crime, you should stay quiet.
Why do you keep tormenting our guards?”
“I’ve never tormented them.
I merely reminded them of the sins they’ve committed.” “If you weren’t going to solve it, you shouldn’t have interfered.”
As I continued to speak curtly, her snow-white face tilted in confusion.
Most men, enchanted by her looks, had automatically shown favor.
This new type of person she was meeting for the first time seemed peculiar.
“It’s because I possess the divine power to make everyone happy.” “Divine power?
Isn’t it just mental magic and the help of spirits?”
I thought she’d be flustered for a moment if I saw through her true nature.
However, befitting one of the Great Calamities, Ange remained unfazed.
“Unlike the rumors of you being a ruffian, you have sharp eyes.”
I thought I was the only one who knew about her, but Ange already knew about me as well.
It seems a brainwashed guard told her.
“But what does it matter what kind of power I use?”
The Saintess slowly rose.
She opened her palm toward the warm sunlight, savoring the small warmth.
“Isn’t it enough if that power can save the suffering masses?” “Six guards who approached you have either gone mad or quit.
What kind of salvation is that?”
“They realized their sins and offered themselves to God.
I will soon lead the survivors to the path of repentance as well.” “By killing them all, you mean?”
The Saintess Ange pointed her finger upwards.
“Those who exploit others for their own greed.
Those who sow discord among the masses and make them slander one another.”
Her unfocused red eyes stared intently at me.
Very accurately, despite being more than twenty steps away.
“If they all disappear, the world will naturally find peace.”
The heroes enchanted by her sophistry were all naturally brainwashed.
But…
I am no hero, nor a revolutionary.
“No matter how pretty your face is, you’re not charming when you only spout bullshit.”
As a corrupt noble who likes a warm back and a full stomach, I responded with a sneer.
“Not all people in power are bad.
The world develops when exceptional people become leaders.” “The standards for choosing exceptional people have become corrupt, which is why I’ve stepped forward.”
No matter how indifferently I spoke, there was no waver in her voice.
Rather, it was as gentle as a kindergarten teacher’s.
“The current ruling class of The Empire doesn’t give the people a chance to display their abilities.
They only hire corrupt officials who offer bribes, and those hired officials exploit the people to get back what they paid.”
The Saintess flicked a pebble sitting on the windowsill with her finger.
As if kicking away a ladder.
“They all deserve to disappear.
Newly selected individuals will govern the new era.” “With people you’ve chosen, you mean?”
The Saintess Ange smiled faintly.
However, it wasn’t a bright feeling at all.
It was a forced smile that only someone who has experienced a desperate situation could make.
“At least I, who listens to the word of God, would be better than the corrupt people in power.” “That’s your delusion.
Your standards weren’t exactly right either.”
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Character illustrations & later chapters: