The Villain Carries the Holy Sword – Chapter 163

Chapter 163: Summer Flower (2)

A small cathedral in the royal capital, Lindbloom.

Creak—

Caterina lightly pushed the door open and entered.

“All things are by the light.”

The priest, who had been quietly praying inside, turned around and greeted her with the Holy See’s salutation.

“The light is ours.”

Caterina responded with a twinkle in her characteristically clear blue eyes.

“How did persuading the hero go?”

She smiled bitterly and shook her head. The priest also gave a similar smile.

Anyone else might have been different.

Or, if it had been Abel, who first held the holy sword at the Royal Tournament, he might have been more agreeable. But of all people, it had to be Cain.

Moreover, he was a hero who had been at odds with the Saintess from the beginning and had changed the history of Airian and created legends in just one season.

“I didn’t expect it to be easy from the start.”

Caterina touched the Holy Crown, ‘Autumn,’ which always rested firmly on her head.

The future had changed.

Certainly, in the future ‘Autumn’ had shown her, Abel was supposed to be the hero, and Cain was the demon king who killed him. But now, Cain had become the hero recognized by ‘Summer.’

She briefly wondered if their roles might have been reversed, but then she dismissed the thought, remembering that Abel would never do such a thing.

“I’ve opened a line of communication with the Holy See.”

“Thank you.”

Caterina made the sign of the cross and was about to enter the communication room.

“That……”

At that moment, the priest of Lindbloom Cathedral lightly tugged on her sleeve.

Caterina looked back at him in wonder.

“Be strong. The Saintess walks the thorny path of the Saintess.”

Caterina’s eyes trembled slightly. She hadn’t realized it because she didn’t have the opportunity to meet with priests on the front lines.

“In the name of the light. Thank you.”

A warm feeling tickled her heart.

The most noble place in the Holy See was not bad, but she felt that the grassroots faith of Airian was quite alright.

[Rina, His Holiness is deeply saddened.]

It was only after entering the communication room that Caterina understood why the priest had left her with words of encouragement.

On the other side, she saw Cardinal Fiorelli, who usually contacted her, and…

[This is disappointing.]

Aurelia Bonn.

One of the eight cardinals, externally known as the head of the Holy See’s Archives, but internally a secret cardinal whose duties were undisclosed.

[So, how was that boy’s swordsmanship?]

And the last person.

An old man with a white beard that covered his cheeks and chin, and white hair that stood up like a lion’s mane.

It was Leonardo Andrea, the leader of the world’s strongest knight order, 〈Order of Autumn,〉 and the master of all paladins in the world.

“……”

Caterina was momentarily speechless.

Even as a Saintess, she had never imagined that the three most important figures in the Holy See would be huddled together like this, communicating with her.

[Why aren’t you saying anything?]

Cardinal Fiorelli urged her on, a sharp reprimand hidden behind her gentle smile.

Caterina quickly straightened her clothes and replied.

“I didn’t realize there would be others.”

[So you’re not happy? Well, I suppose there’s not much to say when the owner of the holy sword has appeared, and you’re busy playing with a witch.]

“……”

Caterina rolled her eyes like she used to when Fiorelli scolded her as a child.

[There you go again. How many times have I told you that rolling your eyes is a bad habit?]

“I apologize……”

[Don’t drag it out.]

“Yes.”

If one were to strictly compare the hierarchy between a cardinal and a Saintess, the Saintess would be slightly higher. However, Caterina couldn’t bring herself to pull rank on Fiorelli, who had raised her since childhood.

Caterina stiffened, and a voice from the other side echoed through the communication room.

[Don’t mind this old woman too much. She should have retired ages ago, but to think she’s still clinging on like this—]

[Knight Commander Andrea, don’t you know this is an official communication channel?]

[What does that matter? We’re all getting old together.]

Master Paladin Andrea brushed off Fiorelli’s sharp words with a jovial demeanor.

She glared at him with sharp eyes that seemed to pierce through anything before relaxing her shoulders.

[I got a little carried away.]

[I understand. It’s not every day a hero appears. But if we look at the situation a little more broadly, it could actually be a good thing.]

He turned his head to look at Caterina on the other side.

[If the hero had appeared on Airian soil, we wouldn’t have been able to act this quickly.]

[I agree.]

Not only was the physical distance vast, but the Holy See’s diocese wasn’t as widespread as an empire.

Naturally, if ‘Autumn’ had told them there was a hero on Airian Island, it would have taken quite a bit of time to identify who it was, go there, and find them.

But now, the Saintess was there in person.

Since she was the highest-ranking individual besides the Pope, Andrea pointed out that they were able to respond quickly.

[We have the results of the investigation into the Ethelred family.]

A chilling voice.

Aurelia’s voice, imbued with a coldness that seemed to emanate from the depths of a cave, flowed out, overwhelming the other three.

[Temporary permission to wield the holy sword has only been granted about once every hundred years. However, it seems that the holy sword only reluctantly allowed it in situations where it was absolutely necessary, such as during transport.]

[For example?]

[When the holy sword was being brought from the Empire to the Holy See, we couldn’t find a chest with a sealing inscription at the time. It is said that the youngest and purest priest at the time prayed to the holy sword for seven days and nights before he was able to hold it.]

Aurelia answered Fiorelli’s question lightly and then turned to the Saintess.

[However, we were unable to find any connection between the Ethelred family and the holy sword, perhaps because it’s a remote island nation.]

Why would the holy sword, which refused to acknowledge her so stubbornly, allow those bearing the Ethelred name to wield it, even temporarily?

No matter how much she searched the archives, she couldn’t find an answer to that question.

[But I did find some interesting records.]

[What kind?]

[The Great Wall, the boundary between humanity and monsters, was built by the first witch, ‘Karen Myer.’ In some records, Karen’s surname is recorded as ‘Karen Ethelred.’]

“The witch’s bloodline……”

Caterina had a hunch that the Ethelred family and witches were inextricably linked.

[Next are the records I found under ‘Karen Ethelred.’ You all know that the most common complaint at the Holy Assembly has always been the excessive severity of the witch trials.]

The cardinal, the paladin, and the Saintess.

All three nodded simultaneously.

It was certain that witches were heretics, as written in the ‘Scripture of Light.’

However, as those who directly carried out the judgments, they found it strange.

If they were heretics, they only needed to judge those directly related to the heretics themselves.

Other demons, pagans, and the like were dealt with in that manner.

However, in the case of ‘witches,’ a powerful judgment was carried out to erase even the space where the witch had existed.

No matter how perfect the ‘light’ was, it was imperfect humans who followed it. Although they carried out judgments, there were many who objected to the unreasonably broad scope of the witch trials.

Although they couldn’t speak openly, there were always debates about the witch trials at the Holy Assembly held in the Holy See.

[I found out why.]

[……!]

“……!”

Cardinal Fiorelli and Caterina’s eyes widened as they turned to Aurelia.

Andrea stroked his beard and smiled.

[I commend you for finding it within the vast records of the Holy See. So why are witch trials particularly harsh?]

[The Demon King.]

“What?”

[When the holy sword finds its owner and ‘Summer’ blooms, the Demon King will also appear to confront it. The Demon King doesn’t just fall out of the sky.]

“……”

[The most unique and special witch among witches will awaken as the Demon King.]

[That’s insane……]

Cardinal Fiorelli instinctively made the sign of the cross and cursed under her breath. Andrea and Caterina were too shocked to speak.

[The reason we haven’t been able to find this record until now is that it wasn’t recorded as ‘Demon King’ but as ‘eternity’s agent.’]

[…Ah.]

Cardinal Fiorelli let out a gasp.

As Andrea and Caterina looked at her, she explained to the Saintess.

[I asked you to look into Commons a bit more when we last spoke, and I’ve been looking into them.]

“Yes.”

[Despite appearances, they maintain a secretive organization within, and they have a clear belief. One of them is to end the ‘eternity’ of this world.]

“If it’s ‘eternity’…”

[This world should have originally come to an end, but there are those who sacrifice themselves like scapegoats to maintain it eternally. Those are the ‘witches.’]

The information about Commons and the search for records on Ethelred had unearthed a secret that had remained hidden until now.

“A special witch…… you mean Oleciren?”

[Most likely. She’s a fledgling witch, but she wields more power than an awakened witch.]

Aurelia added.

[She is also the witch who has had the most contact with the 〈Sacred Treasures of the Four Seasons〉 and has spent a long time with the Saintess.]

“She has the highest probability of awakening as the Demon King.”

[That’s right. Keep her away from the hero as much as possible. Who knows what might happen if she’s stimulated by ‘Summer’……]

Aurelia’s advice.

Clang—

Caterina shot up from her seat in shock.

She had just seen Cain heading to Oleciren at the royal palace.

She couldn’t just let him be, not now that she knew.

With renewed determination, she hurriedly made the sign of the cross towards the three people on the other side of the communication.

“I’ll move immediately.”

As if to show her urgency, she left the room without even ending the communication.

The three watching from the Holy See saw Caterina’s retreating figure.

[Oh dear.]

Then, Andrea snapped his fingers and frowned.

[I forgot to tell the Saintess something important.]

[What is it?]

[The Empire’s 〈Order of Summer〉 has made its move. They’re probably trying to reclaim ‘Summer’…]

🔹🔹🔹

If one were to rank the fastest movers in Airian, Cain would be first, and Oleciren would be second.

As soon as the words left their mouths, they boarded a train bound for the Lamaring estate and, upon arrival, began galloping on horseback towards Ethelred.

The blue sky and the azure sea.

And a country road devoid of a single soul.

“Remember this?”

Cain asked, looking at her, who had turned completely pale.

Oleciren nodded silently.

“I do. We took this road when we went to Lamaring before.”

“I didn’t know we’d be going back like this.”

Cain looked out at the horizon.

Under the clear, spotless sky, the sunlight shattered, making the surface of the water sparkle like fish scales, and his heart felt as if it were clearing up.

Oleciren seemed to feel the same.

Unlike when she was cooped up in the royal palace, her expression was much lighter as she brushed back her black hair.

Then she looked down at her hand.

A few strands of shiny black hair were caught between her fingers.

“My hair is the same color as yours now.”

“It is.”

“I didn’t like the witch’s power that was dyeing me black, but I like this.”

Cain chuckled.

After exchanging such pointless banter for a while, they began to see the border of Ethelred in the distance.

Rumble—

From beyond the seemingly clear horizon, ominous black storm clouds were gathering.

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