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Chapter 166
As they reached for their swords, my fists were already slamming into their solar plexuses.
The forceful blow to their vital points caused them to collapse, lifeless.
"Three senior inquisitors taken down this easily…?"
The knight mumbled in disbelief, then suddenly gasped.
"No, wait—how did you wield aura like that?"
"It's a bit troublesome, but not impossible."
Though my level was still at that of a Sword Master, that didn’t mean my control over aura was limited to that level.
* * *
"Nothing here. We'll move on to the next point."
"Those heretics have nowhere to run. Close in slowly and tighten the net."
The environment of this secluded place was so restricted that even external communication was difficult.
But it wasn’t just the inquisitors who were bound by these limitations.
While divine power couldn't be used for communication, physical sound still carried through the tunnels, so it didn’t matter.
Having confirmed through confidential information that the heretics were hiding in this secret passage, the inquisitors scattered throughout the area, gradually enclosing the entire network.
The only issue was that if something went wrong, there would be no way to verify it.
But it didn’t matter.
Everyone here was an elite.
Then, from a distance, a shout rang out.
"Heretic spotted!!"
Immediately, all the inquisitors swiftly moved.
In mere moments, they closed in on the fleeing figure draped in ragged robes, running for their life.
However, no matter how desperately she ran, to the highly trained inquisitors, her movements seemed painfully slow.
In an instant, they had her surrounded.
The inquisitors pointed their heavy battle hammers and axes at the fugitive.
"Give up your resistance, filthy witch."
"……"
The fugitive—no, the saint—flinched and took a few steps back but quickly realized she had no room to escape.
The inquisitors had her completely encircled.
"Why… why are you doing this?"
"Our duty is to capture heretics."
"I'm not a heretic."
She calmly pleaded, but her words fell on deaf ears.
"Hmph. We'll determine that during the investigation. Stop resisting and submit quietly."
"Please! If I don’t contact the Hael Tribe now, something terrible might happen! You must let me—please!"
"Deploy the binding spell."
A cold, commanding voice rang out, and a divine restraint circle was instantly activated.
Shimmering white chains wrapped around her, binding her body and preventing her from moving.
"Please… please listen to me! I am not a heretic!"
As the chains tightened mercilessly, she trembled from the pain.
Gritting her teeth, she released a burst of divine power.
Fwoooosh!!!
In an instant, the divine chains constraining her were shattered.
"What the—?!"
"Please… I am the Saint… Saint Nadia Ten Lilibel. There are those in the Holy Kingdom who are framing me and using countless lives to seize power."
The inquisitors stared at her, wide-eyed, as she emitted a brilliant halo of divine light.
"I need your help. Please, lend me your strength to correct this injustice."
One of the inquisitors slowly approached her.
Nadia, convinced that they had finally realized she was the true Saint, let out a faint sigh of relief.
Snap!!
But she was mistaken.
The man abruptly seized her, swiftly restraining her with practiced efficiency.
"Wha—what is this?!"
"You filthy witch. How dare you impersonate the Saint?"
"What?! I am the Saint! Saint Nadia Ten Lilibel! Why won't you believe me?!"
"You blasphemous wench!"
Thud!!!
A brutal blow struck Nadia, and she doubled over in pain.
"Ugh… cough, cough…"
"So this is the deceit they warned us about."
Why wouldn't they believe her?
Nadia, stunned, stared at the senior inquisitor restraining her.
And then, her eyes widened.
She recognized him.
He was the subordinate of a man who had long viewed her as a thorn in his side.
They hadn’t captured her because they doubted her identity.
They knew exactly who she was.
"You… you’re…"
"High Priest Nabel, to the heretic who dares impersonate the Saint and betray the gods, you are not permitted to speak. Gag her."
Rough hands shoved a gag into her mouth.
Since becoming the Saint, she had never once been treated this violently.
The humiliation and shock were overwhelming.
No… their influence has already reached this far…
It was clear now—the Holy Kingdom itself had conspired against her.
To the outside world, it would seem as though they had captured the heretic Nabel, but in truth, they were already aware that Nabel was merely her false identity.
Nadia had no idea what was truly happening behind the scenes, but the betrayal was so staggering that she was left utterly dismayed.
Treated like a heinous criminal, she was roughly thrown to the ground.
She struggled with all her might.
The only knight loyal to her had acted as a decoy to help her escape.
By now, he was surely captured.
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She had come this far at the cost of his sacrifice, only to be caught so easily.
Tears welled in her eyes.
'I'm sorry, Sir… I’ve rendered your sacrifice meaningless…'
She wept with sorrow and guilt.
"Take her away. Signal the others to gather."
At the order, one of the inquisitors activated the signaling device, and a loud sound reverberated through the area.
The other inquisitors scattered around would now begin to converge.
However, they were much slower than expected.
The sound of footsteps could be heard, but instead of running, they approached leisurely, almost as if they were on a casual stroll.
Thud… thud…
“Stop dragging your feet and run! Are you going to take responsibility if we lose the heretics?!”
Annoyed by the sluggish footsteps, one of the inquisitors shouted furiously into the darkness.
The signal had been sent and the reinforcements had arrived quickly, but their leisurely pace was infuriating.
They should be disciplined immediately.
As the inquisitor turned his head in anger, light faintly illuminated the figure emerging from the darkness.
The person was not wearing the attire of an inquisitor.
Just a mask and a shabby robe draped over them.
Anyone with a shred of awareness could tell they were an enemy.
Yet, no one opened their mouths or moved.
It wasn’t as if the figure exuded an overwhelming or menacing aura.
Still, for some unknown reason, an eerie chill paralyzed their movements.
The inquisitors were elite warriors, trained to face dangerous heretics.
The higher-ranked inquisitors, in particular, were far more seasoned and powerful.
But strangely, no one dared step forward.
‘If we lose the saint here, we’re all finished…’
If it were revealed that they had knowingly framed the saint as a heretic, the consequences would be catastrophic.
“What should we do?”
“Why are you even asking? They’re heretics as well! Do your duty!”
At the command, one of the inquisitors launched forward with incredible speed, wielding a battle axe.
But the masked young man simply watched in silence.
Then, he casually reached for his mask.
“If I’m going to kill everyone, no need to keep this thing on.”
Click…
With a faint snapping sound, the mask came loose, revealing silver-gray hair.
And cold, sky-blue eyes.
Crack.
Just as the battle axe was about to come crashing down on his head, a sickening crunch echoed from the young man’s fist.
CRAAASH!!!
The sound that followed was impossible to believe—it was as if two massive weapons had clashed, not a mere fist against an axe.
A human fist should have been shattered upon impact with a massive battle axe.
But instead, the shockwave that burst out produced a surreal result.
As his fist struck, the space around it seemed to distort, as if bending under an immense gravitational force.
The battle axe warped unnaturally, as if caught in a gravitational anomaly.
And it didn’t stop there.
His fist drove forward, twisting and tearing through everything in its path, before slamming into the inquisitor’s chest.
BOOOOM!!!
A gruesome explosion rang out.
The inquisitor’s internal organs were obliterated in an instant, and blood violently gushed from his mouth.
The heart ruptured, and the destructive force continued upward, shredding the stomach and esophagus.
Blood surged out, splattering everywhere.
An elite inquisitor—an expert-level officer—dropped lifelessly without so much as a scream.
A suffocating silence fell.
And it was none other than the saint’s knight, who broke it.
“Lady Nabel! Are you safe?!”
“Sir! What is happening…?”
“I had assistance. Thank goodness you’re unharmed, Lady Nabel.”
“Are you all right?”
“Yes. I am perfectly fine.”
The inquisitors’ faces contorted in disbelief upon recognizing the knight.
“Y-You… how are you here? You were barely clinging to life!”
The inquisitors, who were aware of the situation, were shocked to see the knight standing before them, fully healed and ready for battle.
“Silence! You vile heretics! You claim to serve the divine, yet you commit such blasphemy!”
The knight boldly declared, then turned and called out to Leon.
“My lord! Show them your power! There is no need for mercy here!”
Both the saint and Leon stared at him in disbelief.
“W-Why are you doing this?”
“No, never mind. At first, I thought you were at least somewhat reasonable.”
But he was just another fool.
So blatantly cheap and obvious.
Leon agreed, to some extent.
The knight was indeed skilled, but there was only so much he could do alone against the inquisitors.
Leon turned his gaze toward the saint, Nadia, and slowly spoke.
“Lady Nabel, I’ve come to retrieve you.”
“Le… no, my lord.”
She almost called him by name but quickly corrected herself.
“I came because of your letter, but it seems it wasn’t actually from you.”
Hearing that, her eyes widened in confusion.
Leon then extended his hand, lightly channeling mana into his palm, and clicked his tongue softly.
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