Chapter 99 Tainted Light

The young girl with the golden light was taken by her father to the church in the city where they praised her as some kind of saint.

The girl didn't understand what all the words meant but she was happy with her current situation.

Her father received some pouch with a clanking sound and left her with the head priest.

The head priest was a nice man everyone called father Donovan and he treated her nice enough.

He gave her food that wasn't spoiled or out of the trash, a bed to sleep on and he even let her go to the bathroom whenever she wanted.

He kept telling her she was destined for a special purpose but she didn't believe that.

What could possibly be so special about her after all?

Her new life wasn't all that great though.

Sometimes she would hear some of the nuns make remarks calling her strange because she never spoke.

It wasn't her fault though she just became used to her father telling her that good children didn't make sounds.

Today father Donovan had told her that she would be going to a very special meeting with him.

She didn't understand what would be so special about a meeting but she happily accompanied him nonetheless.

He'd already done so much for her after all.

As she walked towards the meeting place, she held onto the robe of father Donovan as she admired the architecture.

The city of Hado was a very large and extravagant religious city.

The girl had heard stories about this city supposedly being the former site of a demon lord's castle.

But demon lords were supposed to be very scary and this place was so beautiful so surely that couldn't be true?

Eventually the pair reached their destination, a large and exorbitant mansion in the center of the city.

They were escorted inside by the guards and brought inside to a simple meeting room with several people inside.

The girl glanced over all of the people present before her eyes landed on a tall beautiful woman with four wings on her back.

She desperately fought the urge to run up to the woman and pet her feathered wings.

Something was screaming out to her that they'd be as soft as clouds.

The woman's gaze finally seemed to settle on her and she immediately frowned.

"What is the meaning of this?" Her voice was regal and serene like the distant ringing of bells.

Father Donovan turned to face the little girl and gave her his signature polite smile. "Illia, show everyone here the pretty trick you do."

The girl nodded only after frowning briefly.

She didn't like the name the priest gave her.

Even though she didn't have a name of her own, there was something about that name that made her feel uncomfortable.

The girl held up her palms and her illustrations golden light sprang forth and everyone in the room immediately sucked in their breath.

"T-this is.." The woman muttered.

"It's divine power alright." Father Donovan nodded with a satisfied expression. "Illia here is the culmination of our prayers."

"This is madness! Do you not understand the threat?! We can not send a malnourished child on this hunt!" The angel, whose name was Malenia , punched the table and shattered it into splinters.

"I understand very well." Father Donovan seemed unfazed by Malenia's anger and continued making his proposition.

"She is of course too small to venture into a battlefield but we don't need her to do that. If the legends are to be believed then the bodies of the one chosen by the holy mother are supposed to bring unrivaled harm to demons."

"Those of the abyss are no mere demons." Malenia's eyes began to glow with a golden light.

"So you say but isn't this a better weapon than none at all? With her help we can arm our soldiers with weapons blessed by her divine grace. You have your own strength and your own army but what of us humans? Unfortunately we can only scrape by on chance and the sacrifices of others."

The faces of all the men and women present contorted uncomfortably as they let the truth of those words sink in.

The angel had alarmed them so much about this supposed coming monster that they were willing to do just about anything to survive.

Looking at this little girl with lifeless eyes and an expressionless face, one would immediately assume that she did not care about her fate.

Father Donovan kneeled in front of the girl once more and clasped her frail shoulders.

"Illia my dear, do you want to help defend humanity from the scourge that threatens to tear us apart?"

Truthfully, she did not understand what was going on or even what was being asked of her.

All she knew was that the man who had been so kind of her and never asked anything of her was now asking her to help her fellow man.

Surely she could do that much for him right?

The girl nodded without much thought and Malenia could only shake her head.

This poor child did not truly know what she had agreed to but she would soon find out.

- 3 Days later.

The young girl's dreamy new life did a complete 180 degree turn and she was now living in an even worse hell than the one she'd originally been born in.

After agreeing to father's request she was taken to a cellar and strapped to a table.

They took her blood and coated it onto thousands of blades.

​ They took her hair and weaved it into the fabric in their armor.

They struck her until she weeped silently and bottled up her tears for consumption.

In that dark and terrifying dungeon all she could remember was the smiling face of father Donovan that thanked her for her great sacrifice.

In the end, she ended up hating her power that used to make her so happy.

Hearing the creaking of the large metal door that signaled it was again time for blood to be drawn, she prayed furiously for someone, anyone to end this nightmare.

-

"Excuse me mister!"

"Hm?" A guard in shiny silver and gold armor looked down at an adorable little girl with black hair and almond eyes who couldn't have been older than six years old.

"I'm supposed to deliver a message to someone important do you know where I am supposed to go?"

The guard tilted his head in confusion as he stared at this strange young girl with an even stranger question.