Chapter 301: Chapter 300: Fiona’s Hidden Agenda

At the center of the shattered remains.

There stood Fiona, her head bowed, shrouded in a dark, shadowy energy.

Through her disheveled hair, a pained voice escaped her lips.

“O Boiling Silence… You should have let me die.”

It was a calm confession.

She wasn’t wrong.

One of our worst-case scenarios had been Fiona taking her secret of being a cultist to the grave.

The Levantin Empire’s alliance with the Church of Righteous Radiance would fracture, and we’d end up as wanted fugitives.

Abandoning half the continent held by the Levantin Empire? That would mean starting the impending war at a tremendous disadvantage.

Even if they later recognized the threat and sought an alliance, it would be after considerable losses.

And posthumously proving her as a cultist wouldn’t be easy; Fiona likely would have destroyed any material or human evidence by then.

The only potential clue might be physical distortions common in those who accept the power of Evil Gods.

But Fiona, specialized in deception, wouldn’t have left anything suspicious visible at a glance.

After much consideration, Solari had only tilted her head as we mulled over these concerns.

“She won’t die, you know?”

To be precise, she meant that Boiling Silence would never allow her to die.

The reason was simple: not just anyone could become an Apostle.

In the Church of Righteous Radiance alone, among countless believers, only Helena possessed the qualities of a saintess.

And, well, I had a unique constitution, so I was an exception.

In H&A, other saintess candidates go through individual episodes to awaken their potential. It wasn’t something they were born with.

An Evil God would be no different.

With fewer followers than the Good Gods, they relied on monsters to bolster their forces, making it even harder for them to find Apostle-worthy talent. �

That’s why the Apostles introduced later in the story often would suffer from defects, such as lack of intelligence due to overpowering abilities or notable weaknesses.

The storyline had players sequentially take down the Apostles with the most severe flaws first, progressively increasing difficulty.

At the time, I thought it was a gameplay device, but it turned out to be because finding “proper” Apostles was nearly impossible.

For a player, it’s feasible to become an Apostle of any god by following the right path, and even Solari had considered making me her Apostle. So I didn’t fully appreciate how rare it was to possess the talent to receive a god.

Talent alone wasn’t enough either; it would take a massive blessing to lay the foundation.

Even Helena, to compensate for her lack of blessings, had to bond with me.

In H&A, only three Evil Gods had full Apostles: the Boiling Silence, the Cardinal of Intolerance, and the God of Grotesque Proliferation.

Since I took Carla away, the Grotesque Proliferation would no longer have a complete Apostle.

As it stands, Fiona is an irreplaceable asset to the Boiling Silence.

He likely found it too costly to let her go, even if it meant depleting substantial power and forfeiting a chance to impede us.

Above all, the Boiling Silence specialized in concealment and disguise.

With enough effort, he might believe he could still extract Fiona from this situation.

Hearing Fiona’s lament, Solari let out a fierce smile.

“Don’t be foolish. Don’t assume a god’s perspective is the same as a human’s. What we prioritize and what we see as threats differ.”

“Is that so? In the end, it’s my failure for not fully understanding my God’s intentions after serving him for so long.”

Fiona nodded calmly, acknowledging her mistake.

By now, no one could deny that Fiona was under the Boiling Silence’s favor.

Except for two people.

“F-Fiona? What is…?”

“Uh… Mother?”

The Emperor and Crown Prince, both struggling to reject reality, stared at Fiona, who responded with a gentle smile.

The serene smile of a devoted wife and loving mother. Yet there was something ominous in it.

Havel, standing nearby, swiftly swung his sword, his aura blade flashing coldly.

Swish!

For some reason, his sword passed right through Fiona without harming her.

Frowning, Havel swung again, but the result didn’t change.

It was as if he was slashing at an illusion; his sword and aura blade passed through her body without even touching the hem of her dress.

But despite this miraculous occurrence, Fiona continued speaking in a calm voice, unaffected.

“It’s unfortunate things have come to this, Your Majesty. I was curious to see the expression on your face if I whispered words of love as I squeezed your heart…”

“Fiona, are you truly…?!”

Rodrigo’s shout of rage reverberated through the hall. But Fiona turned her gaze to the Crown Prince, as if Rodrigo held no place in her heart.

“My dear child, did you not say you wanted to be a great emperor like your father and marry a fine woman like your mother? How I would have loved to see you live on alone, having lost both.”

“Mother… W

The Crown Prince, stunned and stumbling, tried to approach Fiona, but Havel grabbed him swiftly and brought him back to Rodrigo’s side.

Since he couldn’t strike Fiona, he was clearly prioritizing the safety of those who mattered most.

Standing protectively in front of the Emperor and Crown Prince, Havel shouted in a commanding voice.

“Imperial Guard! Protect His Majesty and the Crown Prince at all costs! I will hold off this vile cultist here!”

“Yes, sir!”

At his command, the knights moved in formation, escorting the Emperor and Crown Prince from the hall.

The nobles and attendants hurriedly followed, exiting one by one, but Fiona only watched them leave without any attempt to stop them.

Well, Fiona, not yet awakened as an Apostle, possessed no combat ability.

Even the dark energy surrounding her wasn’t her own but a power used directly by the Boiling Silence.

However, it couldn’t last indefinitely. Distorting a Swordmaster’s strike wasn’t easy, so it was likely consuming a vast amount of divine power.

Even if the Boiling Silence had been recovering power in secrecy, it would still be taxing.

So, even if our attacks were ineffective now, we needed to prepare for the moment when that aura dissipated.

I distributed hidden weapons from my inventory to my companions, and we cast spells, ready to launch them at any moment.

Iris and Solari layered magical and divine barriers, sealing off the audience chamber.

With everyone evacuated, Havel also summoned his aura, free to unleash his full power.

The blue aura around him grew clearer and sharper, eventually turning transparent like glass—he was clearly preparing for something.

We surrounded Fiona, fully prepared, but she only smiled serenely.

“Oh my. To think a powerless woman like myself would warrant the gathering of a Swordmaster and a famed young hero… How intimidating.”

“Regardless of your disguise, you’re still a potential Apostle who infiltrated the Imperial Palace. Right now, you’re protected by the Silent Shroud. Caution is never wasted.”

I remembered that haze—the Silent Shroud, an ability that inflated Fiona’s boss fight difficulty in the game.

It hides one’s existence from the world, granting absolute evasion from all attacks for a limited time.

While Fiona wasn’t yet an Apostle, the Boiling Silence had overextended to grant her this ability. Its effect, however, remained absolute.

The best strategy would be to wait until it deactivated and focus on defense in the meantime.

“So, you know that much? Then I wonder… Why do you think I’ve been calmly waiting here all this time?”

“…What?”

Wasn’t she simply buying time, waiting for an opportunity to escape with the Boiling Silence’s power?

A chill ran down my spine as I instinctively turned, just in time to see a black spike inches from my face.

I had reflexively deployed a shield, but the spike passed right through it as if it wasn’t there.

I quickly struck at it with my dagger.

Clang!

The spike shattered effortlessly.

“…It’s light.”

I was alarmed when it penetrated my shield, but it was lighter than expected—like a hollow attack from a novice wielding newfound power.

No way…

I quickly glanced back at Fiona, who stood where she was, nodding with a calm smile.

“Is this how it’s done? I was a bit clumsy at first, but I’m getting the hang of it now.”

Fiona created another spike and fired it toward us.

I recognized it. The spike was one of the Boiling Silence’s rare combat abilities—the Spike of Silence.

Its effect? An unblockable strike that bypasses all magical defenses.

It sounded unbeatable, but the power was weak and wouldn’t bypass physical defenses, so armor or a simple weapon block could stop it.

“Everyone, gather together!”

I watched my companions close ranks, backs to each other, then cast a telekinesis spell on my dagger, tracing a winding path.

Ching! Ching! Ching!

The dagger intercepted all the spikes coming at us from different directions as if mocking our attempts to defend.

The Spike of Silence was designed to exploit unguarded moments, not to be used so openly. Naturally, it wasn’t effective like this.

But Fiona was gradually mastering the ability, and each spike grew sharper as the battle continued.

By the time I deflected the last one, Fiona’s spikes were anything but light.

Granting her new powers now—is he insane?

Maintaining the resource-draining Silent Shroud alone would be costly enough. Adding in these abilities, the Boiling Silence’s power consumption must be skyrocketing.

Unless he’s going all in without regard for the consequences…

“What?”

I glanced at Fiona, now enveloped in an even more intense haze, as if daring anyone to stop her.

Realizing something, Solari’s eyes narrowed, and she shouted.

“That conniving fiend! He’s not just buying time! He’s preparing to make her an Apostle right here!”

Fiona grinned in delight at Solari’s furious outburst.

“Correct. But even if you realize it, what can you do? The Boiling Silence still conceals me from the world.”

“You…!”

I turned to Solari.

“Is there no way to stop this? Solari, you’re a god too.”

“…There is, technically, but I don’t have the power to pull it off.”

Since Solari had expended a huge amount of divine power at Solaris, it was no surprise her reserves hadn’t fully recovered.

In a simple clash of divine power, we might stand a chance, but in a contest of miracles, we were outmatched.

I hadn’t expected the Boiling Silence to invest everything into Fiona.

The rushed blessing would likely leave some instability, but…

An Apostle was an Apostle. In H&A, she was a monster capable of tearing Havel apart and bringing down the Imperial Palace like a one-woman war machine.

My jaw clenched at the thought of being helpless as we watched her ascend.

Havel, maintaining his focus, kept his eyes fixed on Fiona and spoke.

“I think I can cut through half of it. Would you take care of the rest?”

“What?”

I turned toward Havel, stunned by his words, only for my breath to catch in my throat.

His once glass-like aura was now fully transparent, as if it had vanished entirely. His usual sharp presence had dulled as if he’d become an ordinary man.

But my instincts blared a warning—something dangerous lay before me.

Havel spoke to me again as I stood in shock.

“If it hides her from the world, then I’ll cut through the world itself. But I can only manage half. Will you handle the rest?”

I looked at Solari, who shook her head uncertainly.

“It might still be a bit short.”

“…If it’s just a bit, I can manage.”

Mana and divine power don’t naturally blend, but they don’t repel each other, either.

With enough mana and control, it’s possible to wield divine power—just like when I had forcibly channeled the Sun God’s blessing.

Triggering my dragonic transformation, I grinned.

“We don’t have time to waste. Let’s do it.”

Crack.

A sharp sound echoed as something within me broke and reassembled.