Chapter 462

The view of the city from atop the city walls was nothing short of shocking.

Every section of the city was surrounded by hastily erected barricades, and in front of them, crimson flames and golden light clashed in a brutal slaughter.

Well, calling it a slaughter might be a bit off.

Even though the two church orders were engaged in fierce combat, the number of corpses scattered around wasn’t particularly high.

The reason was simple.

The paladins injured in battle were immediately pulled to the rear, where priests helped them recover from their wounds.

Truly, the paladins were as tenacious as they were mediocre.

Unless they were killed in one strike, it was only natural that they wouldn’t die easily.

But more than that…

“Sigh…”

Is this what it feels like to have your vision go dark?

I couldn’t help but sigh as I watched.

What the hell is this?

Civilian uprisings, armed suppression… this is way beyond that level.

What was unfolding before my eyes was undeniably a war.

A full-scale urban battle between two church orders, no less.

Yes. Neither the Sacred Order members, nor Lacey, nor even I had anticipated this.

That the Astraea Church Order wasn’t the only one managing Arad.

The fire and civilization of Crannus.

I thought they’d quiet down after losing their cardinal… but it was the opposite.

Whether it was the will of the entire order or just the Arad branch acting on its own, they had joined the protesters and were now clashing head-on with the Astraea Church Order.

The civilians’ armor, the barricades surrounding the city sections, the flaming oil barrels—they must have been provided by Crannus.

The god of fire and civilization, after all, was essentially the god of blacksmiths.

Just from a glance above, I could tell.

They had joined the civilian militia to hold back Astraea’s paladins, which was why the brutal massacre I had expected hadn’t occurred.

“Praise Astraea!”

“Praise Crannus!”

Instead, a city-wide urban battle had broken out.

…Seriously, what am I supposed to do about this?

I just stared down at the chaos below, feeling utterly lost.

Where do I even start? How do I intervene in this mess?

—

Everyone has a plan.

When I left Nasiriya, I had a plan of sorts too.

A bit rough, as expected from my own thoughts, but still a plan that could minimize casualties if executed well.

Of course, I hadn’t anticipated this kind of scene back then.

Yes. The plan I had in mind was scrapped the moment I arrived on the scene.

As always.

…Maybe I should just stop making plans and wing it from now on. They never seem to be of much use anyway.

“Sigh…”

I took a deep breath and steadied myself.

What else can I do? I’ll just have to improvise and stop this chaos from escalating further.

For now, the fight between the two branches was maintaining some balance, but news of Arad must have reached the Holy City.

The moment Astraea’s main force arrives, this battle will end.

With the massacre of those who resisted “lawful execution.”

So, I had to stop this urban battle before that happened.

As for how… I’ll figure it out once I get down there.

I leapt off the wall, plunging into the void below, and used Ice Blade and Durandal to scrape down the wall as I descended.

Broken fragments rained down like a storm.

—

The moment I landed, I dashed across rooftops toward the fiercest part of the battle, all while pondering what to do.

Two options came to mind first.

Either help the suppression forces quickly quell the riot and stop the paladins from executing the protesters, or help the civilians and drive back Astraea’s paladins.

Unfortunately, neither option was particularly appealing.

Even if I chose the former, I doubted Astraea’s paladins would listen to me. If they were that flexible, this situation wouldn’t have happened in the first place.

In fact, considering the hostility Seilon had shown me, I’d probably just get cursed at even if I helped.

…And I didn’t want to help the ones who massacred the protesters and caused this mess.

But if I helped the civilians and cut down Astraea’s paladins?

Morally, that seemed like the right choice.

However, helping the protesters made me uneasy because of the Sacred Order members’ reports.

They suspected that this uprising was incited by someone.

While the voices criticizing Astraea’s strictness had been growing louder, it shouldn’t have escalated this quickly.

Some bastard must have orchestrated this… and those instigators were undoubtedly among the civilian militia.

If I helped the civilians, I might just be playing into their hands.

Moreover, even if I drove back the paladins in Arad, it wouldn’t end there.

The moment their main force arrives, I’d have no choice but to clash with an entire church order.

…The dilemma deepens.

What would the others I know have done in this situation?

Damien would probably side against whoever attacked him.

Milia would attack the side that looked more like kobolds.

Ophelia wouldn’t even care about this mess, while Leonor and Nigel would protect the weak, following their knightly code.

And Hersela…

“Stop overthinking. Just cut down everything that opposes you,” or something like that.

……

…That doesn’t sound too bad, does it?

Now that I think about it, it doesn’t seem like a bad idea.

Simple, decisive, and all it requires is strength.

Yes. Alright, let’s go with that.

I guess I can learn something from Hersela after all.

I finally made up my mind on how to deal with them.

Of course, I’m not planning to create a slaughterhouse like Hersela would. I’m not a lunatic.

I’m just going to cut out the factors I don’t like from the options I don’t like.

The deliberation is over.

Looking at the battlefield now just a few steps away, I kicked off the rooftop and leapt.

Into the heart of the battlefield, where flames and divine light surged.

Toward the barricade separating the protesters and the suppression forces.

First impressions are important in these situations.

Something so shocking that they forget they’re even fighting.

It’s my specialty.

My body soared through the void and then plummeted toward the ground.

The barricade rushed closer at high speed. I pulled my left arm back and swung it down the moment I landed.

– BOOM!

An explosion loud enough to drown out the noise of the battlefield.

The power of Ice Blade shattered the wooden barricade.

The sturdy barricade crumbled in an instant, and the fragments scattered in all directions.

The splinters shot out like arrows, and those hit screamed as they were flung back.

A cloud of dust mixed with debris rose, and in the silence where even shouts and curses had stopped.

I slowly rose to my feet, drawing my sword.

Standing atop the remains of what was once a barricade.

—

Like a falling comet, I descended, shaking the surroundings as I made my grand entrance.

Could there be a more impressive entrance than this?

As planned, all eyes turned to me.

Even those who had been swinging swords at each other moments ago forgot what they were doing.

“Huh…?”

“The barricade… it’s gone…?”

“Something fell from the sky…!”

Those who couldn’t yet comprehend the reality before them.

“What is it? What fell? A catapult?!”

The paladins frantically readied their swords, taking defensive stances.

“Ugh…!”

Those hit by the debris groaned as they rolled on the ground.

I took them all in, then swung my left arm to disperse the dust cloud obscuring their vision.

The thick dust scattered in the wind, dissipating weakly.

Now they’ll see who I am.

Go on, say my name!

Just then, a man who met my eyes seemed to recognize me, his mouth hanging open in shock.

“…Valkyrie?”

What…?

What’s he talking about? Why’s he bringing up Bølberg’s angels all of a sudden?

Judging by his nonsensical babbling, he must have been more shocked than I expected.

Not helpful.

I turned my gaze from him to the Astraea paladins pointing their swords at me.

Truly fitting for the paladins of order. They were the only ones who seemed to have kept their wits in this situation.

Sure enough, they were glaring at me with wide eyes.

“The blue-eyed Ka`har…! No way. It can’t be. The Winter Slayer, Ai-shan Gi-or Ha-shal-leur?!”

“Ha-shal-leur?! The Radiance of the Elpinel Church Order…? Why is the woman who should be in Nasiriya here?!”

They all know me. Well, of course they would.

They might not have met me in person, but paladins like them would have at least heard rumors about me.

“The descendant of the Twelve Knights. The Empire’s Greatest Sword, Median…!”

“That’s right. You know me well.”

I pointed Durandal at the Astraea paladins who had taken combat stances and declared in a calm voice, mimicking Hersela.

“If you recognize me, then step back. I won’t tolerate any further encroachment on my property.”

“Property…? What are you talking about…?”

– CRACK!

Durandal embedded in the ground cut off the paladin’s words.

I placed my right hand on Durandal’s hilt and shouted to everyone present.

“I, the plunderer and conqueror, descendant of Ai-shan Gi-or, declare this! This city, Arad, is now mine! The land, the walls, the buildings, the wealth, every human in the city—everything!”

This is my land now, so get lost.

Ka`har is a plundering tribe, after all.

Isn’t seizing territory by force just the natural way of things?