“Kulis, we’re finished! We’re going to die! Ahhh — !!!”
Lucas sat paralyzed on the ground, clutching his head with both hands and screaming at the top of his lungs.
“Ahhh your head, you idiot!” Kulis punched him irritably, cutting off Lucas’s wailing. “You piece of trash, can’t you open your eyes and look? I’ve never seen such a useless priest in my life!”
Knocked down by the punch, Lucas braced his hands against the ground and looked up. Only then did he realize that a young man had appeared in front of them at some point, gripping a sword with both hands to block the golem’s attack.
However, it was clear that the youth facing the attack head-on was struggling. His face was contorted into a grimace from the sheer effort he was exerting. Suddenly, the youth spoke.
“Old man! Get out of the way!”
Lucas was stunned, not understanding who was being addressed. He only heard his companion give a light chuckle before grabbing him and rushing to the side, completely clearing the range of the attack.
Seeing the two of them leave, the rescued Shilo let out a sigh of relief. They had heard the terrifying boom while on their way and immediately followed the sound, arriving just in time for the scene that had just unfolded. Now that the bastard Kulis was out of danger, he could focus entirely on the task at hand.
With a sharp shout, the veins on his arms bulged. He swung his knight’s sword, which was shrouded in holy power, with everything he had. The strike successfully forced the giant arm to float upward for a brief moment.
Seizing this tiny window, Shilo quickly performed a roll, escaping the range of the arm’s attack in a somewhat disheveled manner. Although his speed was fast enough, he was still scratched by the flying debris from the impact. He had been wounded right at the start of the battle, and his knight’s uniform was damaged as a result.
Shilo didn’t care about this. He stood back up and took a stance, warily watching the golem as it raised its arm once more.
Just then, three strands of holy power emerged from the forest, dancing through the air. A young girl followed closely behind, her slender, fair hands waving like a conductor’s baton. She controlled the holy power with pinpoint accuracy, letting it fall upon the three men.
Marcus and Lucas’s injuries were repaired before their very eyes. This was Lintis’s Holy Art, **[Holy Healing]**. It was the same spell she had used on Eric and the others, but while the version she had given them was an incomplete one, this was the full version. The healing effect was outstanding. Since this was a battlefield, the slow and steady healing method from before wasn’t suitable; she didn’t care if there was a bit of physical strain.
As for the Holy Art that fell on Shilo, it carried a faint, silvery-white glow.
Holy Art: **[Protection]**.
This was a blessing-type Holy Art, a spell that every priest learned, which could comprehensively enhance the combat capabilities of the recipient. Furthermore, because of Lintis’s status as a Saintess, the effect was significantly more pronounced.
Feeling the surge of power within his body, Shilo’s gaze narrowed. He looked at Lintis with some surprise and was about to say something, but seeing her smug expression, he silently closed his mouth and looked back at the golem.
According to the intelligence provided by the association, this golem was completely controlled by corruption, indiscriminately attacking and destroying every living thing in its vicinity. The strength of the strike just now had left his hands slightly numb even until now. Fortunately, under the influence of the Lady Saintess’s Holy Art, that sensation was gradually fading.
However, this still proved that the golem’s strength was superior to his own. Even with the Lady Saintess’s protection, he had no confidence in matching it in terms of raw power.
Perhaps because of the attack just now, the golem had fallen into a brief lull, and its magic circuits had dimmed considerably. At the same time, the dark-red energy on its surface surged to replenish it, and the originally pale purple circuits were gradually being converted to red.
It seemed that the degree of pollution had deepened further. Shilo was surprised; he had thought this golem had been completely eroded long ago. ‘Recalling the magic circuits that had just dimmed, was it possible they were the ones preventing the corruption from deepening further?’
Though it was just a guess, Shilo was almost certain of the result. The golem in front of him began to move again. The aura emanating from its body was more than a little stronger than before.
Seeing this, he quickly turned and shouted to Marcus, “Old man! Your weapon is broken, so take your priest and get out of here! This golem’s strength isn’t right. Go back and report to the Church. I’ll hold it back.”
“Be more honest from now on. You’re at such an age and you’ve wasted so many years; don’t you realize how useless you are? You dared to take on a mission like this? Are you really not afraid of death?”
Hearing this, Marcus scratched his head awkwardly and replied irritably, “You brat! Can’t you be a little more polite to me?”
“Heh,” Shilo sneered.
Immediately afterward, he lunged forward, reaching the golem in a single stride. His body lifted slightly off the ground as he channeled his holy power, slashing his sword against the golem’s torso in an attempt to deal damage. But it only left a single sword mark.
Its defense was also stronger than expected!
Shilo’s heart sank, but his movements didn’t stop. A dark-red magic beam was already heading his way, and he swung his sword head-on to destroy it.
This seemingly effortless display was witnessed entirely by Lucas. He first pointed a finger at Shilo, then at Marcus, showing a look of disdain. Marcus’s brow twitched as he pointed at Lintis nearby, and then at the Lucas in front of him, mirroring the expression.
“Um… you two, please evacuate as soon as possible~” Lintis said as she walked over.
But immediately, she caught a whiff of an unpleasant smell. She looked around, identified the source, and silently moved a few meters away.
This action was witnessed by Marcus, who felt that his face had been completely lost. He gave Lucas another punch. The physical difference between a knight and a priest, combined with the fact that he didn’t hold back at all this time, knocked Lucas unconscious instantly.
Then, he hoisted Lucas onto his shoulder and prepared to run, looking at Lintis before he left.
“By the way, young Priestess, you should also evacuate early. That kid is quite strong, so don’t worry about him. Our presence here will only be a burden to him.”
Understanding that the other party was concerned for her, Lintis didn’t argue and gave a gentle nod.
“Alright, then we’ll be going first.”
With that, Marcus turned and left. After traveling dozens of meters, he looked back and saw that the priestess was still watching Shilo’s battle, seemingly having no intention of retreating. He didn’t say anything more; they were both adults, and he had said his piece. If she chose to stay, this priestess’s strength was surely extraordinary, at least hundreds of times stronger than the trash on his shoulder.
But… where on earth did that brat Shilo find such a cute priestess? His luck was way too good! Damn it! He was so jealous!
Soon, Marcus carried Lucas out of the Black Forest, happening to run into the association staff who were chattering for some reason at the entrance.
“Hey, you guys, move it! The thing this time is too much. We have to go back and call for reinforcements.”
***
On the other side.
Once Marcus had completely disappeared, Lintis dropped her serious act. She casually picked up a tree branch and followed at a leisurely pace, not far from Shilo and the golem. Whenever Shilo was nearly hit, she would frown slightly and let out a sharp intake of breath.
The frequency was so high that even Shilo, in the middle of his battle, noticed it.
After clashing with the golem once more, Shilo used the counterforce to land beside Lintis.
“Lady Saintess, if you’re going to watch, fine, but can you stop making so much noise?”
“And I’m not joking; the strength of this golem is genuinely a bit exaggerated. I’m afraid only that Holy Knight in Isol City can deal with it. Please stop following me. I really don’t have the spare energy to look after you.”
Shilo’s breathing was slightly rapid, and he spoke very quickly with no trace of politeness. Compared to Shilo’s urgency, Lintis seemed as if she were out for a stroll, her pace of speech slow and steady.
“Eh? That’s not right.”
“If it’s only at this level, any knight by Ifreya’s side could beat it until it couldn’t stand back up.”
“What kind of joke are you telling!?” Shilo frowned with dissatisfaction.
Wasn’t the Lady Saintess basically saying his strength was completely inferior to her accompanying knights? Among the knights currently in Isol City, his strength was at least in the top two, if not the first. Even if her accompanying knights had been training hard since childhood, it was impossible for the gap between them to be that large! Shilo was convinced of this.
Lintis merely tilted her head, not quite understanding why he was angry.
In that short moment, the golem had already caught up, firing a magic beam first. Feeling the movement behind him, Shilo was about to swing his sword to block it when he saw a curtain of platinum-blonde hair obscure his vision. The Saintess had stepped in front of him.
Facing the incoming strike, she swung the wooden stick in her hand. The stick, imbued with holy power, extinguished the magic beam as casually as if it were nothing, not even creating a spark. The entire process was so easy it looked as though she were shooing away a mosquito.
Ignoring Shilo’s shocked expression behind her, Lintis walked toward the golem with the stick. Holy power, solidified into substance, gathered on the branch, extending and reshaping itself. A longsword composed entirely of holy power was held in her hand. Then, she took a step forward and swung.
The longsword sliced through the air, and an extended arc of golden sword light flashed by.
*Clang — !*
In the next second, the golem’s massive arm was sliced clean through from the center. It hit the ground with a thunderous boom, kicking up a cloud of dust.
After the strike, Lintis turned around, her cute face full of confusion.
“By the way, Mr. Shilo, why aren’t you using any Holy Arts? Why are you just hacking away?”