Chapter 314

Chapter 314

It was Friday, the day of the Miss Temple contest and the Open Tournament finals. Olivia Lanche, who had to participate in both, was undoubtedly very busy. The first-year Royal Class students didn’t seem particularly interested in the Open Tournament program, which opened with the semifinals.

Ellen, Riana, and Cliffman seemed busy with contest preparations. However, Ellen approached me in the morning.

“Are you...” she said, staring at me.

I knew what she wanted to say.

“Of course, I’m going to go,” I said.

“... Okay.”

Ellen had watched all my tournament matches. Even if that weren’t the case, there was no reason for me not to attend the Miss Temple contest today.

I would go as far as using Revise to make Cliffman Mister Temple, but I was unsure about what I would do when it came to Miss Temple. There was no reason for me not to attend the contest, though.

“... Please come,” Ellen said after a moment of hesitation, determination burning in her eyes.

“Okay. Prepare well.”

“Okay.”

It felt like she had something to say to me after the contest. At least, that’s what I understood from her expression.

With that, Ellen went off with Riana to prepare. The other students seemed to have their own ideas about how to enjoy the festival, but I decided to head out alone during the day, without anyone accompanying me.

I decided to go watch the finals of the Open Tournament, for which most of my classmates had lost interest. Of course, some of them might still end up going, but I planned to go alone.

I felt a lot of guilt towards Olivia. She always took care of me and did anything I asked of her, but I always treated her poorly. The day before, I had openly cheered for Harriet as well.

Just because someone was good at everything didn’t mean they were unbreakable. I intended to go alone, even if others ended up showing up later on.

The program for the day began with the semifinals, so there were only three matches in total. Even if I watched all the matches, it wouldn’t take too long.

—Waaaaaaah!

The cheers from the crowd were thunderous.

The fact that Harriet had lost hadn’t changed. However, things had taken a completely unexpected route to get there, even though the eventual outcome was still one I’d expected.

Just as my tournament had its own twists and turns, the Open Tournament had its surprises. Olivia had only lost one bout so far, and that was to Harriet.

As I waited for the match to start, I heard someone calling me from behind.

“Reinhart, you came to watch the finals too?”

It was Charlotte.

“Ah, hi Charlotte.”

Even though I had planned to watch the tournament alone, I was in the designated VIP seating area, so I was bound to run into someone. I wondered why Charlotte had specifically come to watch the finals.

The reason became clear soon enough.

“Teacher Tana, you’re here too?”

“Yes.”

It seemed that it wasn’t Charlotte who wanted to watch the finals, but Sabioleen Tana. As Charlotte’s bodyguard, though, she couldn’t leave Charlotte’s side. Charlotte, being no fool, must have read her desire and suggested they come to watch.

“If you were going to come, you should have said so. Why come alone?”

“Oh, just... No particular reason.”

“Really?”

I thought it would be better to watch the matches alone rather than bring someone along, but now that we had met, I had no intention of moving seats.

Naturally, Charlotte and Sabioleen Tana sat beside me. Charlotte looked around and crossed her arms.

“Hmm.”

“Why?”

“Huh? Nothing...”

We were in the section of the VIP seating reserved for students of the Royal Class, but there were other VIP seats as well. Charlotte had just been looking over at the VIP seats reserved for distinguished guests.

“I saw Commander Volten,” she said.

“Volten?” I said, tilting my head in confusion, and Sabioleen Tana looked at me.

“Didn’t you greet him at the last sponsorship gathering?” Sabioleen Tana asked.

“The sponsorship gathering?”

I’d already forgotten the names of quite a few people I had greeted at the sponsorship meeting.

‘Volten? Who’s that?’

“Hmm.”

‘This kid has a bad memory,’ said Sabioleen Tana’s eyes for a moment.

“Sir Illeion Volten, the current Commander of the Order of the Holy Knights,” Charlotte clarified.

“Ah.”

‘That’s right. I’ve heard that name before.’

Illeion Volten, the one who had taken over as the Commander of the Order of the Holy Knights after Leverier Lanche’s dismissal. I didn’t know much about him, and since he hadn’t sponsored us, I had completely forgotten about him.

Charlotte smiled slightly. “I was looking out for him yesterday, but he wasn’t here. But he’s here today. Maybe because it’s the finals.”

“... Do you think he doesn’t want to see Olivia win?” I asked.

“Hmm... I don’t know what Sir Volten thinks, but it might be an uncomfortable sight for him.”

How would the current Commander of the Order of the Holy Knights feel about seeing a once-promising future religious leader who had abandoned her faith win a tournament without using Divine Power?

It certainly wouldn’t be pleasant.

Now that I recalled who he was, I could recognize his face. Unlike Leverier Lanche, he had a stern and rigid appearance. He wasn’t wearing knightly armor but ceremonial robes, and he was quietly watching the arena while surrounded by his close aides, who were undoubtedly also holy knights.

The god of war, Alse...

“Instead of offering healing power, it focuses entirely on offense...”

While the power of Ouen wasn’t purely limited to healing, most Divine Powers had some ability to heal. However, the priests of Alse couldn’t use healing. Their power was specialized solely towards destruction.

A power of destruction that specialized in slaughter and massacre, a power other than magic. That was the Divine Power of the god of war.

Radia Schmidt, having fully absorbed the Divine Power rising from the earth, pulled her sword out, wrapped in white light. She faced her opponent with both blue and white auras surrounding her body.

“Here I come.”

“Yeah.”

These two were not just superhumans, but among the best of the superhumans. They were the pinnacle of the Royal Class—two monsters clashing.

Boom!

When their swords collided, the shockwave was so intense that I could see the air distort.

Given the level of their duel, they were undoubtedly wielding powerful artifact-grade weapons capable of withstanding such an intense battle. This was a true fight between superhumans.

***

The second semifinal match ended with Radia Schmidt from Class B emerging victorious, taking the match 3-1.

While Jordan Windsor’s Mana Reinforcement was exceptional, Radia Schmidt had the Divine Power of Alse. That was the biggest difference.

Her destruction-focused Divine Power was so terrifying that it made my skin crawl, and ultimately cost Jordan Windsor the match.

Since no one moved between Class A and Class B, it was pretty common for Class B students to surpass Class A students in the upper grades. Still, it felt different to see it with my own eyes. I could see Jordan Windsor gritting his teeth in frustration.

No matter what relationship they usuall had, losing so decisively after training so hard throughout one’s life in the Temple would always be hard to accept.

Accepting defeat was difficult for anyone.

I didn’t particularly empathize with either of them. If there was anyone I could empathize with, it was Olivia. Unlike me, the audience seemed satisfied with the spectacle, as they had no particular favorites and were just here for the entertainment.

But could Olivia really win?

Olivia couldn’t use Divine Power, while Radia Schmidt could give it her all. What kind of relationship did Radia Schmidt and Olivia have? If Radia Schmidt had been jealous of Olivia throughout their life in the Temple, she would surely want to defeat Olivia with all her might.

After a short break, it was time for the finals. It was a match between classmates. Formerly Royal Class sixth-year, A-1, Olivia Lanche, and Royal Class sixth-year B-3, Radia Schmidt.

Right from the start, things seemed different from what I’d expected. Olivia, who always wore a confident smile, now wore a hardened expression, while Radia Schmidt was smiling.

“Olivia.”

“... Yeah?”

The atmosphere between them was tense. Radia Schmidt’s eyes, which had seemed normal when conversing with Jordan Windsor before their match, now seemed different. The same could be said for her smile. There was a hint of madness in Radia Schmidt’s eyes.

“The Divine Power I sense from you is stronger than before.”

“...”

“Return to the embrace of the gods. Olivia, you were born for this. You were not made for a life outside of the embrace of the gods,” Radia Schmidt implored.

“Radia, I...”

“Come back, Olivia.”

There was none of the jealousy or sense of inferiority I had expected. It seemed Radia Schmidt had an entirely different emotion towards Olivia.

“I told you, I’ve given it all up. I keep... I keep telling you...”

“No, Olivia. Your Divine Power, your talent, your character, all of it. You are the only one who can truly unify the Church of the Five Great Gods. You are the only one who can usher in a new era in the long history of our faith.”

Radia Schmidt smiled as she spoke to Olivia. Olivia wielded the Divine Power of Ouen, while Radia Schmidt wielded the Divine Power of Alse. Even though they worshiped different gods, Radia Schmidt was trying to bring Olivia back to the faith. Olivia looked visibly troubled.

“Come back, Olivia.”

“I’m sorry, Radia. I have no intention of returning.”

It was then that I realized how little I knew about Olivia’s life at the Temple. Just as Leverier Lanche did not want to lose the talented Olivia, many others also regretted Olivia’s departure from the faith, including her classmates who had been influenced by her. She must have heard such pleas countless times since abandoning her faith, not only from religious figures, but also from many of her close classmates.

Those who had gotten along well with her while she maintained her faith had likely tried tirelessly to persuade her to return once she abandoned it. Olivia must have grown weary of it all.

Contrary to my expectations, Radia Schmidt wasn’t jealous of Olivia Lanche; she was one of her fervent followers.

“What are they talking about?” Charlotte asked Sabioleen Tana as we focused on the distant conversation between Olivia and Radia.

“... She’s trying to persuade Olivia to regain her faith.”

“Ah...” Charlotte sighed. “That must be exhausting for her.”

“...”

There was fatigue bordering on desperation in Olivia’s expression. She knew she would be plagued by this for the rest of her life. Olivia was dealing with far more than I had imagined.

“My answer is the same, Radia. I have no intention of returning to the embrace of the gods.”

At Olivia’s words, Radia closed her eyes for a moment.

“I see... Then, you must be prepared.”

“... Prepared?”

“Yes, prepared.”

Radia Schmidt once again drove her sword into the arena floor.

“Prepared to endure sadness.”

Clang!

Radia Schmidt didn’t seem like an evil person. My unease was unfounded; even during our brief conversation, she had had a kind smile.

However, she seemed like a totally different person while conversing with Olivia. The expression on Radia’s face, now devoid of any hint of a smile, conveyed the madness and obsession within her, completely different from how she had seemed during her semifinal match.

“Everything that happens from now on is the will of the gods to guide you back to the right path,” Radia declared.

Whoooosh!

Divine Power surged from the arena floor, enveloping Radia Schmidt.