Chapter 96

“Haah, ha…”

Nadia gasped for breath.

It felt as if she were drowning, struggling to breathe. She staggered while panting.

As she moved, barely leaning against the wall, a sudden tightness gripped her heart, and she pounded her chest with her fist.

Since she first used her divine power to defeat the monster, Nadia had been in this state. At first, she thought it was just hyperventilation from being too tense, but she couldn’t calm down.

Driven by an instinctive pull, she moved into the castle.

The place she was heading to was none other than her own room.

Nadia opened the door and collapsed onto the floor. Crawling, she made her way to the bed.

“Ugh, hnn…”

Moaning in pain, Nadia urgently pulled a box from under the bed, opened a small bottle, and poured its contents into her mouth.

The familiar metallic taste of blood ran down Nadia’s throat.

The more blood she drank, the quicker she regained her composure. Her breathing steadied, and her trembling hands ceased.

Without time to put away the box and bottle, Nadia raised her hands.

Then, she gathered the divine power that had been hard to collect earlier. A gray light appeared in the air.

Only then did Nadia let out a sigh of relief.

“Right, I’m a saint. I am a saint.”

Seeing her strength restored, her anxiety vanished.

Nadia stared blankly at the light bursting from her hands and muttered.

“This power is mine. It has always been my power. I won’t let anyone take it from me. Absolutely…”

Though Nadia obtained this power through the blood of a sorceress, she firmly believed it was originally hers.

She was as beautiful as a saint and was someone who suited the role of a saint better than anyone else. This power couldn’t possibly belong to anyone else.

‘What if… it happens again like before?’

If she had been just a little late, Nadia would have been attacked by the monster.

Nadia, rolling her eyes in sudden anxiety, looked down at the box she was holding.

She had to consume this blood only once a week. Otherwise, she had been warned about side effects… but that warning didn’t matter to Nadia.

Without hesitation, she took out another one, removed the lid, and drank every last drop without leaving a single drop behind.

As she gathered her strength once more, a clearer light burst forth than before. Nadia smiled brightly at this.

“It’s done now. That will never happen again. I won’t lose it again…”

With that, Nadia mumbled for a while with a blank expression.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

“It was a box containing about five small bottles of blood.”

Philome explained in more detail to Theodore and Natasha.

“The box was very old and shabby. If it hadn’t smelled of Nadia’s perfume, I would never have guessed it was hers.”

Logically, it didn’t make sense for someone to have bottles of blood, so they hadn’t thought it could belong to Nadia.

However, the scent of perfume that wafted out as soon as they opened the box was undoubtedly hers.

Philome was convinced that the box belonged to Nadia and examined it further.

“There was some kind of pattern inside the box that I had never seen before. Please take a look.”

Philome pulled out a handkerchief she had kept in her pocket. The handkerchief had a light-colored lip print with some kind of pattern drawn on it.

“I’ve never seen it before.”

Natasha shook her head as she stared at the pattern.

“Me neither. It’s a pattern I’ve never seen before.”

Theodore felt the same way.

“Then could it be a meaningless pattern?”

“…Wait a moment.”

Theodore, who had been closely examining the pattern, suddenly took something out in a hurry and spread it beside him.

It was nothing less than a piece of cloth with a spell inscribed on it.

“Given that it resembles a spell… it’s highly likely that the pattern inside the box is also a spell.”

Philome murmured at Kaien’s words.

“Does that mean Nadia is related to the sorcerer?”

“Philome, has Nadia Alice ever mentioned anything about sorcerers?”

Quickly recalling, Philome shook her head.

“No, not even once. If Nadia were a sorceress, I would have noticed something strange long ago.”

Indeed, given Nadia’s oblivious nature, she wouldn’t have the ability to deceive someone like that.

Kaien, knowing Nadia’s personality, nodded at Philome’s words.

“Then it means that after your relationship soured, she had contact with a sorcerer… The problem is that there’s a significant possibility that Nadia Alice was foolishly deceived.”

“It’s a possibility that cannot be ignored with Nadia.”

This made it difficult to act recklessly.

If Nadia had colluded with the sorcerer, it would have been easier to move, but the assumption that she could be a victim imposed restrictions on their actions.

“For now, I’ll tell Rita to keep a close watch on the saintess.”

“It would be wise to do so until more evidence appears.”

For now, the only option was to monitor her as thoroughly as possible.

Kaien even took Philome’s handkerchief and tucked it away.

Just then.

“It’s me, Harnen!”

Harnen urgently knocked on the door.

“What is it? Come in.”

As Theodore gave his permission, Harnen rushed in, breathing heavily.

“Harnen, what’s going on?”

“I found it, boss! I found it!”

What Harnen was holding was none other than the “Record of Monsters.”

Harnen brought the book and opened it.

“This is the record from ten years after the monster appeared. This passage states, ‘A product of nature has appeared. The monster, being unnatural, is bound to be powerless against the forces of nature.’”

“Could that product of nature be a spirit?”

“Yes!”

Both magicians and spiritists use innate powers. However, the difference between the two is that magicians do not know the source of their power, while spirits have a definite source.

Water, fire, earth, wind. That source is none other than nature.

“According to this record, it seems that the power of spirits can inflict damage on monsters just as much as transcendent beings can.”

As Harnen rapidly spoke, the room fell into a brief silence. It was Kaien who broke the silence.

“I’ll go to the snowy plains. Since I have a spirit scroll, it’s worth experimenting.”

Even if Harnen’s hypothesis was wrong, Kaien, being a transcendent being, could still confront the monster.

Thus, Kaien prepared to return to the snowy plains just hours after coming back.

After leaving the castle with the spirit scroll, Kaien returned in just one hour. The spirit scroll was torn, and there was no monster blood on his sword.

Harnen’s hypothesis was correct.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Philome couldn’t get a good night’s sleep.

‘So it really is possible to fight the monster with the power of spirits.’

Philome had a lingering worry.

There were not many people who could confront monsters, and the number of monsters was considerable. In such a situation, Kaien would have to engage in dozens of battles against the monsters.

No one knows how many years or even decades that battle will last.

No matter how much of a transcendent being Kaien is, he is still human and will eventually be injured or become exhausted.

Philome was mindful of Kaien’s reckless behavior. She worried every day about whether he would survive.

However, with Harnen’s hypothesis proving correct, the likelihood of such an event occurring drastically decreased. It was a simple problem that could be resolved by relying somewhat on the spirit scroll.

Philome felt relieved not just that Kaien had returned safely, but that the probability of him dying had decreased.

She tossed and turned, recalling the events of the day.

Then suddenly, she sensed a presence.

But there was no need to be tense.

Opening her eyes, which she had kept closed, Philome smiled and sat up.

“Are you going to show me the aurora again today?”

“Well, I don’t know.”

Just as she heard the voice in the darkness, Philome was pulled into Kaien’s arms.

“Is that because you want a kiss?”

Philome smiled and playfully poked Kaien’s cheek with her finger.

Kaien caught her finger and gave her a quick kiss.

“Anyway, you certainly know how to seize an opportunity.”

“Unfortunately, it’s not the aurora today.”

“Really?”

Seeing Philome’s expectant expression, Kaien chuckled playfully.

“Close your eyes.”

After wrapping a cloak around Philome, Kaien opened the window. Philome, familiar with his embrace, buried her face in it and closed her eyes.