Chapter 47: Chapter 236

"Unfortunately, neither of those things are true."

"Pardon?"

"Let's discuss the Chimera Researcher's placement another time. Also, the Vatican didn't send me. I came on my own. They're not in any position to help another nation because all of the countries are under attack right now."

"All of the countries are under attack? Is that really true?!"

"Yes. Dungeon bursts occurred in each of the capitals, but only the Vinchester Kingdom and the Duchy of Heathfenrir have been settled. Grand Duke Heathfenrir has gone to the holy kingdom to help."

Tesilid also added, "Marchioness Lecandro has probably arrived in Fanel by now as well."

Come to think of it, Tesilid and I had both sent someone else to the holy kingdom instead of going there ourselves. This was an unimaginable thing to do for regular believers of the religious order, and Wynard was quick to point it out.

"Why wouldn't you go to the holy kingdom first?"

"I am best suited to fight the boss here. Cavalencia can only be subjugated by an aura master who uses a sword, and I happened to have recently reached the level of aura master."

And, most importantly, I was the only one who knew the strategy to subjugate her.

"D-did you hear that? She's an aura master now."

"Does that mean the Divine Emissary is a Tier 9 aura master?"

While the mage knights murmured amongst themselves, Wynard spoke up again, seemingly unsure of the current arrangement. "But... as the Divine Emissary of the holy kingdom, the religious order will not allow you to prioritize another city over Fanel."

"While I appreciate your concern," I smiled and explained simply, "I will take responsibility for my own actions."

I could sense the gazes of the mage knights intensify, so it seemed like a good idea that I stated this clearly.

"The capitals of both nations are in danger, and I know for a fact that no one could subjugate Cavalencia better than I can. Do you still believe we must take sides when determining priority?"

The mages around me voiced no objections.

"I serve my god before I obey the rules of the religious order, and my god never taught me to be narrow-minded."

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World is proud of their well-educated follower.⟭

Silence persisted for a moment as the mage knights of the republic all stared at me with wide eyes. I gave them plenty of time to soak in what I had said, and eventually they began to murmur their admiration.

"Well! How magnanimous of you, Your Eminence!"

"Saintess Lucretia didn't care about the border when doing good deeds two hundred years ago either."

"She's far wiser than those idiots at the Vatican!"

⟬«System» You have converted an atheist into a follower.⟭

⟬«System» You have converted an atheist into a follower.⟭

⟬«System» You have converted an atheist into a follower.⟭

I didn't expect to sway many hearts or minds because mages were very secular, but they had somehow been moved by my actions to convert.

This would've been even more effective if I was wearing the Grand Priest costume of Voiceism. I was mulling this misstep over with some regret when a message interrupted my thoughts.

⟬«System» Warning. Time remaining until the start of the performance: 5 minutes, 0 seconds.⟭

I didn't have another moment to waste. I quickly scanned over the available mage knights, which turned out to be a rather depressing group.

"Sir Wynard."

"Yes, Your Eminence."

Not wanting to sound dismissive, I tried to offer a productive suggestion that would include him and his soldiers in my plan.

"I will begin Cavalencia's subjugation in five minutes, so please standby until I ask for support. Please also take care of any bombs that get past my defenses."

The strategy was similar to when I defeated Nazril—once I turned the boss into a punching bag, everyone was to attack them at once.

"'Bombs,' did you say?"

"Yes. This boss likes to use bombs, and a lot of them, too."

This was precisely why Cavalencia was called the Diva of Explosions. Once I received Wynard's confirmation, I turned toward the two-hundred-year-old elderly man with a falsely youthful appearance.

"The same goes for you, Moriphys."

"Me as well? But I'm a Tier 8 grand mage... Aren't my abilities going to waste?"

"Your skills will be useless in the beginning anyway. Only aura masters can climb those stairs."

"Ugh. I guess the role of an aura master is all that matters in this fight. Very well, I'll do as you say."

The members of my knight division who were listening in from the side were pleased with this bit of information.

"Wow, so the entire thing is the job of an aura master! We should take a break, Ash."

"Sounds good, Brother Ephael. I love how comfortable it is to be an aura expert."

"Agreed. This is exactly why we shouldn't strive to become aura masters. Where are you going, Tesilid? You should join us over here."

The two men took a break from mocking themselves to beckon Tesilid over to them.

"No, thanks."

Swoosh.

Ten aura blades unfolded elegantly behind Tesilid, causing all those around the holy knight to drop their jaws in disbelief.

"What?!"

"H-he's an aura master!"

"The master of the holy sword has already mastered something else!"

While the mage knights shouted in awe, Ephael and Ash wore matching blank looks on their faces.

"That's insane."

"I can't believe this. Brother Tesilid as well?"

Tesilid walked away from his colleagues and approached me as he put his flying swords away. He looked like he had something important to discuss.

"Allie."

"Yes, Tez."

"About the Cavalencia subjugation strategy... You're going to approach her and make her stop singing, right?"

"Yes, that's right. That's the first step."

Seemingly having expected my reply, he remarked, "Then I will go, Allie. You stay here." His voice was firm and determined. When I merely stared at him without replying, he explained his suggestion further. "It will be too difficult to reach Cavalencia with seven aura blades, so I'll go alone."

I was still staring at him in amusement when an annoyed voice broke the silence.

«Too difficult?»

"Saint Agnes?"

«He's looking down on you, Ailette. Is this the kind of guy you want?»

"N-no, that's not what I meant..."

Various glances were shot in Tesilid's direction as he stuttered with shock, making me laugh at his frantic and confused reaction.

"Allie?"

I wasn't necessarily upset by what Tesilid had said—I just needed time to think.

Eventually, I looked him in the eyes and said, "I know what you're worried about, Tez. But I'll be fine. Actually, while we're on the topic, why don't we bet on it?"

"A bet?"

⟬«System» Warning. Time remaining until the start of the performance: 1 minute, 0 seconds.⟭

There was a minute left until the subjugation was going to start, so I suggested, "Yeah. First one to reach the peak first and shut Cavalencia up wins."

✠

She stared at him with the confidence of someone who retained all the knowledge of the world, her green eyes like emeralds shining brightly even amidst the dreary backdrop of the dungeon burst.

"You wanna bet?" She went on, "The loser has to grant the winner a wish."

He had a feeling that she was going to win, which was a good thing. He was willing to do anything for her, so he replied without hesitation, "Sounds good."

They exchanged smiles, then simultaneously turned to face the front, as if they'd silently agreed to look away at the same time. With that, their eyes were drawn up to the peak of the pyramid, their expressions now grim without the slightest hint of levity lingering. It was time.

"Let's go! I'm ready!" cried out Cavalencia. "It's a pity that the audience is so small, but I will start the performance anyway."

Dun dun!

Golden horns started to play a foreboding tune over the lilting sound of a piano, which was the sign that the boss battle had begun. Ailette and Tesilid stepped onto the first stair.

"The chaotic dark sky of midnight—"

The moment she sang the first verse, a circular shockwave exploded outward, destroying everything it touched.

"Blessing of Protection."

Ailette murmured the activation spell of the skill she had prepared in advance, causing Cavalencia's soundwave to collide with an invisible barrier and crumble away. However, this was only the most basic attack she would repel, as Cavalencia's main weapon wasn't music.

"I shall scatter evil stars around the world—"

When the second verse was over, Cavalencia's body and the pearls that were attached to her dress floated into the air. Soon, they started to grow in size and multiply.

"Wh-what the heck is that?!"

It was impossible to count how many there were. People were still yelling in shock when the song continued.

"Sparks of destruction shall explode wherever my breath lingers!"

The third verse was powerful, for the countless pearls began showering down to the ground like bits of lava from a volcano.

Thud! Boom!

Buildings and roads were instantly demolished by the gigantic pearls that slammed down onto the city, for the pearls were cleverly disguised bombs. Since the pearls multiplied endlessly, the city was going to continuously get destroyed while more lives were lost as long as the singing continued.

We need to stop Cavalencia from singing as soon as possible. There was a sharp look in Tesilid's eyes as he stared at the peak. Ten aura blades spread out on either side of the holy knight before swooping toward the endless array of bombs at incredible speed.

Boom! Thud! Wham!

None of Tesilid's attacks missed because the trajectory of the bombs was rather obvious, but there was one problem. The aura blades were destroyed along with the bombs every time they collided, which meant each aura blade became a single-use weapon every time it destroyed a bomb. As it took some time for new aura blades to form, the endless shower of bombs was too overwhelming for the blades to keep up.

Thankfully, Tesilid could produce numerous aura blades at once, so he precisely calculated the regeneration speed of the aura blades to make sure he didn't have less than seven blades at a time. Staying focused and taking out the bombs in this way allowed him to walk up the stairs, step by step, battling the oppressive mass attack of the enemy by utilizing the aura blade efficiently. This was Tesilid's subjugation strategy for Cavalencia that he had developed through trial and error over the course of his many lives. As he was an aura master who could wield many blades at once, this was a method only he could enact.

I'd say it's a workaround, at best. He had never discovered the actual strategy for overcoming this boss, even when he asked the Bible of Truth, because the bible always told him something he could not understand.

"Treat it like a rhythm game."

What in the world does that mean?