Chapter 229

Luna anticipated that the brawl would unfold as usual, with Sivar’s unilateral massacre continuing.

No matter how much the opponents tried to counter it, there was no way to resist overwhelming strength. So she approached the brawl with a calm mind.

“Let’s just deal with those who come at me. That’ll be enough to score points.”

With this mindset, she participated, but an unexpected situation suddenly arose.

‘What’s wrong with Sivar? What on earth…’

It happened when it was her turn. She entered with a relaxed attitude, but couldn’t believe the reality unfolding before her eyes.

For some unknown reason, Sivar was collapsed on the ground, face down, moaning in pain that was incomprehensible.

At first, she wondered if the illness from that time had returned, but that wasn’t it. There were severe burns all over his body.

“Sister, what on earth is going on?”

“I don’t know! That pink-haired one did something…!”

“Ugh… it hurts…”

While Kara was panicking, Sivar continued to writhe in pain. Luna’s eyes shook violently.

This was the third time Sivar had been seriously injured. The first was during the bloody battle with Ratatosk, the second with Hector.

But this was only the second time he had cried out in pain since the illness. Normally, Sivar had a tendency to be indifferent to physical pain.

If not, he wouldn’t have done reckless things with his own body. Yet here he was, trembling all over in agony.

Throb!

“Ugh…”

Luna grimaced. For some reason, seeing Sivar like this made her eyes sting.

But after a while, it seemed to improve, indicating it was an intermittent pain.

Recently, she had gotten into the habit of observing someone’s abilities, so such occurrences had happened often. It seemed to be an aftereffect.

“First, let’s look after Sivar!”

“Yes, yes!”

What was urgent was Sivar’s recovery. Luna thought it was time to keep the incoming throngs at bay.

She was managing to hold them off somehow, but as time passed, her strength inevitably waned.

If she hadn’t trained with Rod, she would have collapsed long ago. Luna gritted her teeth and held her ground.

‘When will this be over…’

Wham!

Just when she was gradually being pushed back due to physical exhaustion, she suddenly sensed something launching from behind.

Tracking the sensation with her eyes, surely enough, Sivar, who she had no idea how had recovered, was charging ahead.

“S-Sivar!”

Luna called anxiously, but Sivar was already far gone. He was so fast he had already reached Erica’s nose.

Any attempt to stop him was meaningless. All attacks were deflected, and even blocking with her body sent her flying.

Especially, students who were body-checked flew all the way to the spectator seats from the impact. At least a few bones must have been shattered.

Bang!!

Finally, Sivar swung his battle hammer down on Erica. If she had been hit directly, she wouldn’t have remained in this world.

In that instant, a shockwave erupted, blocking Luna’s line of sight. Her ponytail whipped wildly in the wind.

“Ugh…”

The dust storm made it impossible to see for a moment. Luna blinked, trying her best to open her eyes.

As tears washed away the irritation, she finally managed to see.

“…Saintess?”

No idea what was going on, but Rize was holding Sivar tightly. Luna stared at the scene in disbelief.

According to Academy regulations, third parties should definitely not intervene. Yet Rize had broken that to directly step in between Sivar and Erica.

Still, given the situation, it was understandable. Erica’s life could have been in real danger.

Just when she thought things would settle down, Zap!

“Uh?”

Suddenly, Luna’s vision went strange. A flash occurred in front of her, changing what was visible.

A world engulfed in flames, with bodies scattered like trash. Even the darkened sky was shrouded in smoke.

In the center of all this stood Rize, holding Sivar. The tragic sight starkly contrasted with the surrounding devastation.

It felt like they were closing their eyes together in a world heading towards ruin. Yet both seemed severely injured at a glance.

‘Her arm…’

Rize, who was hugging Sivar, had one arm missing. The remaining part of her arm was just a bone protruding awkwardly.

Sivar wasn’t in any better shape. It seemed he had exhausted all his regeneration, making it hard to find any uninjured spots.

What had happened to leave both of them like this, and also the surroundings? Luna found it utterly incomprehensible.

Zap!

Once again, a flash occurred, shifting the scenery. It was the arena where the brawl had taken place.

Luna was in confusion, unable to grasp what had just happened. In mere moments, that was…

Smack!

At that moment, a refreshing sound reached Luna’s ears. She snapped back to reality and looked ahead.

Lying on the floor was Sivar, turned away from Rize, and Erica in front of them.

Erica’s head turned, and it seemed Rize had slapped her, as her hand was raised.

Smack! Smack!

It wasn’t just once. Rize, unable to contain her anger, consecutively slapped Erica’s cheeks.

If it hadn’t been for her Saintess form, Gwonseong’s form would have likely left her with broken bones.

Screech!!

[We will pause the brawl for a moment. Students, please wait.]

A delayed announcement echoed, declaring the brawl paused.

Smack!

But Rize’s hand did not stop.

*****

As the brawl ended, Sivar was promptly taken to the hospital. Not just Sivar, but the students who were injured as well.

Fortunately, the doctor diagnosed that Sivar didn’t have any serious injuries. He lost consciousness due to a sudden buildup of fatigue.

Additionally, unlike other students, he was using a personal room, thanks to Rize’s request.

Even in a personal room, that didn’t mean friends couldn’t visit. Thus, friends including Luna were able to drop by.

“It’s strange no matter how I think about it.”

“What’s strange?”

“I can’t understand why Sivar was in pain. I was fine.”

Kara expressed her doubts while looking at Sivar, who was peacefully sleeping. She recalled the moments during the brawl.

When her fist struck the barrier, she was perfectly fine while Sivar had taken severe burns.

Thanks to his remarkable regeneration, he was saved, but if he were an ordinary person, it could have been very dangerous.

“Do you perhaps know why, Saintess?”

Kara turned to ask Rize, who was sitting with a troubled expression.

However, there was one noteworthy point here: Rize was sitting, and beneath her was a certain pink-haired girl with her head buried.

The so-called “Korean punishment.” She was keeping her arms behind her back, supporting herself on her head and feet while Rize sat atop her.

It must have been pure torture to maintain such a position, especially with Rize sitting on her.

Tremble-tremble-tremble—

“Ugh…”

“Stand up straight. It’s a punishment for not listening to me.”

“Y-Yes…!”

She was somehow enduring, though it seemed she was nearing her limit. But Rize was resolute.

Given her usually benevolent demeanor, it was quite a peculiar sight.

“I’m sorry. Where was I?”

“You were asking if I know the reason Sivar ended up like this.”

“A reason… What do you wish to know?”

Kara glanced at Erica, now beneath Rize. Since she was the reason for all this, she wanted nothing more than to slap her.

However, Rize was punishing her, so she managed to suppress the impulse. It seems people don’t change easily.

“Erica… I know she’s a follower of Gaia. But I heard she has changed her faith to Chaos…”

“That’s not true. She only received help from Chaos; her faith still lies with Lady Gaia.”

“Does that mean Lady Gaia dislikes Sivar?”

“………”

At Kara’s pointed question, Rize remained silent. In essence, this was an unspoken confirmation.

Yet, Kara couldn’t piece things together. Even if she didn’t like him, was it so much to the point of deep-seated animosity?

After all, even Gulrak would strike with lightning at times but never treated him torturously.

In fact, he would often send spirits to coax him softly. Gaia, however, did none of that.

“…Could you leave for a moment? Except for Luna.”

“Me?”

“Yes. Only Luna please remain.”

With that, Rize issued a decree. Not to Kara, but to keep Luna behind.

Others, including Kara, were puzzled but followed Rize’s order without question.

Even Erica, who had initially looked like she wanted to live, left the room.

“Then you have to talk to us for a bit?”

“Right. Let’s see what you have to say.”

“Ah…”

It wasn’t only Rize gritting her teeth. Erica looked like a calf being led to the slaughter as she stepped out.

Now, in the personal room, it was only Rize, Luna, and lastly, Sivar lying on the bed.

“………”

“………”

An awkward silence filled the hospital room. Luna was busy being observant, while Rize wore a thoughtful expression.

But the silence didn’t last long. Rize lifted her head and met Luna’s gaze.

Luna also waited for her to speak until their eyes locked.

“…Luna.”

“Y-Yes!”

When Rize called her name, Luna replied vigorously. She was so tense her posture was rigid.

Perhaps seeing her like this was cute to Rize. She smirked before gently admonishing her.

“You don’t have to be nervous. I just want to have a conversation with you.”

“W-What… do you want to talk about?”

“Luna.”

Rize stared directly into Luna’s eyes as she asked.

“You can see things others cannot, right?”

“!!”

At that question, Luna’s eyes widened. Her heart skipped a beat, and her blood ran cold.

It felt like a secret that shouldn’t be exposed had been discovered. She asked in a trembling voice.

“H-How did you… know that?”

“I’ll tell you later. Then you’ll understand that Sivar is different from ordinary people.”

“…Y-Yes.”

“So can you share what you know?”

Luna hesitated for a moment at Rize’s request. Perhaps it was because her secret had been found, but she felt a sense of wariness.

Why does she know my secret? Was it something Chaos revealed?

That likely wasn’t the case. After all, she hardly ever had a private talk with Rize.

“…Life.”

“Life?”

“I know that Sivar is far removed from life.”

But she trusted her. After all, Rize was revered as a Saintess.

If she had approached with ulterior motives, she would have used another method. To begin with, wasn’t she one of the most free-spirited people in the world?

If she were up to something, she would have acted long ago. With that thought, Luna revealed what she knew.

Of course, it wasn’t everything; it was merely speculation. But it would be sufficient.

“Far from life… That might be a correct statement.”

“Then Sivar is truly a demon…”

“It’s true he’s associated with demons.”

“…”

The answer came too easily. Luna fell silent.

Yet the following response from Rize sparked further questions.

“He is the only hope for the demons. No, he used to be their hope.”

“What do you mean…?”

“You must know the phrase, ‘the child born from pain.'”

Of course, she was familiar with it. It described the pain a mother endures during childbirth, and the affection expressed towards her child.

As Luna blinked at that phrase, Rize spoke with a bitter voice.

“Sivar fits that description perfectly.”

Demons cannot create descendants.

“But he vanished without even being given a name.”

Thus, their rage was justified.

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