Chapter 14 …..
Milleon was so shocked that he bit his lip.
In the brief moment he had turned to speak with Patrick, who would have thought that the blue flame would suddenly fly toward Dante?
“Sir Dante!”
He had never imagined that the sacred flame could move like that, and the sight truly startled him.
But though he was startled, he wasn’t worried.
For some reason, he felt that even if a dragon were to drop out of the sky in front of Dante, he would somehow handle it.
Yet, there was no response.
As if time itself had stopped, Dante remained frozen, wrapped in the flame.
Only then did the three knights realize that something was seriously wrong with him.
“Sir Patrick.”
Milleon chose not to touch Dante recklessly and instead called the most experienced among them.
“Did he… touch the flame?”
“It’s the other way around.”
It wasn’t Dante who had moved—it was the sacred flame.
Patrick’s face hardened.
He had been so shocked by Dante awakening his stigmas that he hadn’t paid attention to the danger.
“I believe that flame is a relic left behind by a god defeated in the holy war.”
“I think so as well.”
“And sometimes, relics can be…”
Cruel.
Most were nothing more than remnants of power with no will or thought, but rarely, there were exceptions like this.
In such cases, a god who had lost its existence tried to manifest again in the world by attaching itself to the consciousness of any living being it touched.
Like a parasite.
And while it did grant tremendous power in return, the price was the complete loss of self.
Anyone consumed by a relic became a being entirely different from who they once were.
They would be nothing but puppets, obeying only the god’s will.
“Then what should we do?” Elaine asked.
But Patrick couldn’t easily answer.
He didn’t know either.
Normally, to obtain a relic, countless magical precautions had to be taken beforehand.
Measures to weaken the god’s power, protect the mind and body, and prepare methods to cut the connection in case of emergencies.
Only then could one safely claim it without side effects.
But Dante had touched it barehanded, with no protection at all.
In this case, there was nothing they could do.
All they could do was hope Dante would overcome it himself.
‘Impossible.’
Why was it called a relic?
Because it contained divine power.
Even if a god had been defeated in battle and left behind only fragments of its existence, the power was still far beyond what a mere human could withstand.
‘Perhaps our lord might endure it…’
But even a knight awakened with stigmas couldn’t avoid being consumed by a god’s desire.
‘And Sir Dante is only…’
Though he possessed unbelievable talent, it was still just potential.
At only ten years old, there was no way Dante’s willpower could overcome a god’s will.
“What is the nearest city?”
“Termann. If we ride hard, it’s within six hours.”
Milleon, who had managed their route, answered without hesitation.
“Then we must send word to the marquis there at once.”
There was nothing they could do here.
Instead of wasting time in panic, it was better to get word to the House of the Marquis and call for help as quickly as possible.
“Describe Sir Dante’s condition and request every available mage and priest be dispatched here immediately—”
Patrick was issuing orders when—
Brrrrrrrrrr!
Dante’s body suddenly began to tremble.
“Sir Dante!”
Startled, Milleon rushed closer.
But he didn’t dare touch him.
Crack—crrrrack!
The sound of bones and muscles twisting grotesquely rang out.
It looked as though Dante would collapse to his knees at any moment.
Patrick’s eyes widened in shock.
‘…He’s resisting?’
Amazingly, that small body was standing against the will of a god and forcing through his own will.
Even as he trembled like a shaking leaf, his knees did not touch the ground.
“I… can’t believe it.”
The sight was so shocking that Patrick forgot they should be moving immediately.
“Hnnngh!”
Dante bit down on his lip and glared fiercely forward, refusing to yield.
Blood dripped from his torn lips.
Crackle—crackkk!
“Ughhh!”
Patrick heard the sound echoing from inside Dante’s body.
‘His mana circuits are tearing apart.’
Even when just flesh is cut, a human screams in agony.
And this was his mana circuits?
The pain must have been unimaginable.
Yet—
Dante endured.
That small body was withstanding the selfish desire of a god.
The three knights could do nothing but silently watch.
Dante moved.
Slowly, ever so slowly.
His trembling hand reached instinctively for the sword at his waist.
Even in this situation, he sought his blade!
No one could find words in the face of such an incomprehensible act.
Clink—
Whooooom!
The moment his hand grasped the sword, mana exploded outward.
It was an overwhelming force, impossible to believe came from a child.
But what the knights focused on wasn’t the amount of mana.
‘That’s…’
‘A sword?’
‘Is it?’
The sword in Dante’s hand hadn’t even left its sheath, yet they could clearly sense the form of a blade raised.
It radiated the sharpness and will of a sword ready to cut down its foe.
“Hah—”
Patrick gasped without realizing it.
‘He has raised the Sword of Imagination!’
A manifested sword of the heart.
That was a realm even Patrick, a veteran knight, had never dreamed of reaching.
Even in the Marquis’s household, perhaps only the lord himself and the commander could achieve it.
Yet Dante did it as naturally as breathing.
Goosebumps prickled Patrick’s arms.
It was awe itself.
Dante’s ever-expanding presence, his sword—
At last, it cut through something.
Slice—!
At that moment, unimaginable mana stormed outward.
Blue flames surged around Dante, swirling into a raging vortex.
“Back!”
Patrick shouted as he stumbled away.
Even with his skill, he couldn’t withstand the mana’s aftermath.
“Insane…”
He found himself uttering the very word of awe that Milleon had once spoken, as he beheld the surreal spectacle.
The blazing vortex of mana shrank bit by bit.
As though being absorbed into Dante’s body.
Slowly, but surely.
The divine flame vanished into him completely.
Fsssssshh—
Smoke drifted upward.
Like the thin white wisp from smoldering wood, it rose and soon dissipated into nothingness.
“Sir Dante?”
Milleon swallowed dryly and approached.
Twitch—
Dante’s eyelids fluttered.
Patrick, tense without knowing why, instinctively touched his sword hilt.
That was how heavy the pressure from Dante felt.
“Are you all right?” Milleon asked again.
Then—
Dante slowly opened his eyes.
Eyes clearer and deeper than a lake.
They were not the eyes of someone consumed by desire.
“Hah…”
Patrick exhaled in relief and released his grip on his sword.
Dante’s gaze swept over the knights.
“What happened?”
His voice carried worry, reproach, and countless emotions mingled together.
Dante let out a weary sigh.
“It seems I made a mistake.”
Then he bowed his head to the knights.
“Forgive me for causing you worry. I truly hadn’t expected this outcome.”
“…Are you sure your body is all right?”
Patrick wanted to scold Dante for his recklessness, but checking his well-being came first.
“Yes. Better than ever.”
Dante nodded firmly.
Though he looked tired, it seemed only from mental exhaustion.
Patrick, too, could see no physical injuries.
That left only one question.
“What happened to the relic?”
This time Milleon asked.
On the surface, nothing seemed changed.
But they could all feel that something was different.
It was hard to put into words, but Dante had definitely gained something.
Dante smiled.
“Fortunately, I was rewarded for my effort.”
“What do you mean?”
“Yes, I obtained it. Just a small fragment, but still.”
Dante lay his weary body on the bed.
They had decided to stay another day in Fran’s village, so he didn’t have to rest uncomfortably in the carriage.
‘I never expected things to unfold like that.’
But in the end, he had gotten what he wanted.
Though he had suffered a storm of nagging from Eina on the way back to the village.
“The sacred flame, huh…”
Dante released his mana.
Fwoosh—!
The pure aura took the form of blue fire.
Just like the flame he had first seen.
Honestly, it didn’t feel like his power had increased much compared to the ordeal.
Maybe his mana reserves had grown a little.
But Dante felt no disappointment.
The fire mingled with his mana was anything but ordinary.
Sacred flame.
Just the name told him it would be devastating against unholy beings.
Of course, he’d have to test it to know for sure, but that was enough to satisfy him.
After all, the enemies who would plunge the world into chaos were dark and evil.
Against them, this would be a great strength.
‘In my past life, the mercenary must have been consumed by the god’s will.’
The fact that he had died crying the god’s name instead of his own made it certain.
With a snap of his fingers, Dante extinguished the bluish flame.
‘Now all that’s left is facing the Sword Queen.’
In as little as two weeks, he would see her.
A woman who had reached the pinnacle of the sword.
That alone made her worthy of Dante’s curiosity and attention.
‘I wonder what kind of sword she wields.’
To cross blades with someone said to rival his father in strength.
His heart pounded with excitement.
How far ahead of him would she be walking?
And if the gap between them was vast—
‘Can I ever catch up to her?’
The thought alone made his chest surge with anticipation.
“No use. I have to at least swing my sword.”
Dante got up from the bed and opened the door.
“Where are you going?”
But he couldn’t take a step further.
Elaine was standing guard outside, her expression cold.
“Ah, I was just going to train a bit—”
“No.”
Her voice was sharp, cutting off his words like a blade.
“Mm.”
Normally, Dante would have asserted his will, even if it meant scolding her.
But not now. He had committed a fault.
“We leave early tomorrow morning. Go back inside and rest. If you refuse, I’ll summon Lady Eina immediately.”
That was frightening.
“…Fine.”
Not wanting to be dragged back into nagging hell, Dante obediently nodded and closed the door.
It seemed he would have to behave quietly in his room for tonight.
