1.
Nahan immediately realized.
‘That crazy old man… he’s chosen Hestia as his avatar.’
The reason he noticed was simple.
【Gardner Patriarch – <Balak Gardner(SS+)> has designated <Hestia Gardner(F)> as his avatar.】
He saw it.
He was already anxious about being exposed as a Black Wolf mercenary, but now Balak was making things more obvious, like a thief shouting “I’m here!”
Fortunately,
【*Note: Contact with avatar – <Hestia Gardner(F)> can release the descent of <Balak Gardner(SS+)>】
There was a solution.
“Last time I found the way to the roof, and the recent attack has made the guards quite lax… Before that crazy old man causes more trouble, I’ll quietly go up there, solve it, and come back down.”
“Huff…”
The stairs are going to be tough.
Leader Tehelaran must have half lost his mind too. Nahan naturally slipped away from the scene and began heading toward the roof where Hestia was.
2.
“Hey! You there, cold-looking kid!”
A thunderous shout.
With the arrival of an unusually thrilled Hestia, all eyes turned toward her.
“Show me what you just did! I’ll block anything!”
Her usually calm voice was now extremely strong and, consequently, filled with arrogance.
Her usually gentle purple eyes sparkled with vitality, and Balkin’s shield she raised high shone brilliantly in the light.
What especially shocked the crowd was,
“Her legs…”
Hestia’s legs.
The mobility she had lost long ago when she saved Balkin now seemed not only restored but firmly stood grounded as if waiting for this moment.
“What? What is this?!”
Lord Tehelaran’s eyes widened and shook uncontrollably.
“…Eh?”
Balkin, rushing to reclaim his shield, froze, having lost for words.
“…Hestia?”
Even Asha, always expressionless, murmured in disbelief.
Of course.
The legs injured by the super-grade beast’s special magic could not be healed by any miraculous medicine.
Even the greats of the Empire and the world couldn’t restore her legs and had given up.
Even the world-class Light Party members could do nothing more than suppress the spread of the super-grade magic in her spine.
“The Gardner’s shield is the world’s best! It won’t break against any force!”
Clearly standing on both legs, Hestia was supported by that strength.
Because of this, the direct descendants of the Gardners and warriors clenched their fists and asked each other.
“Has she awakened?!”
“Finally, she’s mastered it!”
“She was protecting us with her weak body; how much stronger will she become now?”
They believed that Hestia had awakened the Gardner family power.
Awakening was just that.
A miraculous and transcendent transformation where the entire body is dismantled and reformed, granting supreme physical abilities — a phenomenon possible only for direct descendants of the Gardners.
However, the view of the Light Party was different.
While the Gardners focused on her physical changes, Asha’s focus was on her internal transformation.
“Hestia has always been a quiet child.”
Instead of the bold and aggressive characteristics typical of the Gardner family, she was always calm, thinking carefully before acting.
But the Hestia standing there now,
“I’ll go to them if they don’t come to me!”
Completely different from what Asha knew, she now seemed to embody the essence of Gardner itself.
As if,
‘Something has been overlaid upon her.’
When that thought came to Asha, she remembered something Duke Hallorand had said:
“Four of the world’s top ten have changed in manner. There are many similar cases, but the definite fact is that it’s dangerous. So, Hero, you must be cautious.”
The story of four of the top ten world powers changing allegiance to an unknown group.
Marin, whom they had met personally, also mentioned that traces of magical energy could be detected in them.
“Could it be…”
Could Hestia also have fallen victim to ‘something’?
“The mysterious group mentioned by Duke Hallorand is a dangerous lot.”
Each of their actions was horrifying, yet elusive and hard to capture.
“Allegedly, they are the private battalion of the Emperor.”
The private battalion of the Emperor, infamous as an evil faction within the Empire. This was the adversarial organization they planned to eliminate after neutralizing the Black Wolves.
“Is the Emperor’s hand extending even to Hestia?”
“If the Hero encounters them, it is best to deal with them immediately. Their influence has grown rapidly, making it impossible to control.”
“To suppress them?”
“Impossible. They seem to have some kind of magical device planted in them. When captured, they explode and die. Moreover, through some means of magic, they regard all but their own as enemies.”
Recalling the Duke’s words again, Asha let out a deep sigh.
Gooack.
Her grasp on the sacred sword tightened.
“If Hestia fell to them…”
If she became a puppet of the Emperor directing an army against them,
“An unprecedented adversary would be born.”
So, if Hestia had truly been corrupted by something,
“She must be… eliminated.”
Because she was such an outstanding strategist.
If she were to turn against them, her strategies could double the damage to their side.
“But it’s not certain yet.”
Balkin mentioned that awakening could also bring about changes in personality.
“If this is a result of her awakening, there should be no traces of magical energy inside her.”
Asha, to thoroughly investigate, quickly descended to the ground.
Where she landed was the center of the banquet hall full of sweet desserts.
Regardless of the commotion, amid high-level, 8th circle protective barriers, a woman with blue hair was nibbling on cookies.
“Marin.”
“Ah, is it over?”
“Not quite.”
Asha entered the barrier naturally and wiped cookie crumbs from the corner of Marin’s mouth while pointing to Hestia on the roof.
“Is there any magical energy left?”
“Hmm? That one? Smart sister?”
Asha nodded, and Marin’s crimson irises flashed with a blue light.
The woman, looking like an excited child holding a brown shield haphazardly attached together, shouted cheerfully.
Crunch!
As the sweet cookie broke in half, the probing gaze that had scanned downward from above stopped near the spine.
“Is that so?”
“Are you sure?”
“Eeee? You’re asking me? Ha! Fine. Believe it if you will.”
The child-like Marin puffed her cheeks and sulked.
Contrary to the light-hearted atmosphere, Asha’s aura immediately became heavy.
The residual magical energy,
The inexplicable hostility,
The sudden change in character.
The likelihood that this was caused by the Emperor’s sorcery, as mentioned by Duke Hallorand, was high.
In other words,
“Hestia… must die.”
If suppressed, the magic would explode causing her death.
And if left alone, others could die at her hands.
“…Why.”
Asha murmured unconsciously.
– I will somehow help the Hero! Please wait a little longer!
That child who, despite having no talent, worked tirelessly to become a strategist.
Who, even with her disability, managed to maintain the balance of the Empire and supported their operations while they were away.
Though she could not walk, she was smarter than anyone, and she, who kept her word about their agreement, was precious and beloved.
That child, who finally stood on her own feet to make her dream come true,
-If the Hero encounters them, immediate action is necessary.
Do I have to break her with my own hands?
Why must I,
live this kind of life?
The dark, sticky feelings of guilt weighed heavily on her.
If only she could express emotions, she might have shed tears and processed the pain, but Asha could not be granted that luxury.
What she could do was,
“Protect those she tried to save from harm caused by her own hands.”
And I,
– Maybe, if I help the Hero greatly sometime in the future… could I call you sister?
– …Whenever you wish.
– Really!?
Must kill you with my own hands.
Grinding her tightly clenched teeth, cords of muscles stood out on her jaw.
This trashy fate is something only I need to bear.
…Why?
Her expressionless face slowly raised a hand shadowed by despair.
The target: Hestia.
“Child, blame me.”
This is something I know extremely well, so don’t reproach yourself, blame me.
“Blame me bitterly.”
For failing to protect the brilliant bloom that you have become, blame me — the Hero in name only.
“And then…”
After blaming and hating me for a very long time, and your anger lessens a little,
Then,
“Even if for just a moment, send me that warm gaze you’ve shown me once more.”
Just as a final trace of regret remained, the prepared fastest and strongest attack was aimed at the slim, white neck beyond the shield.
And at that moment,
【<Hestia Gardner(F)>‘s <Balak Gardner(SS+)> descent has been lifted!】
…Rustle.
The moment the worn-out cleric touched her, the vibrant green light surrounding Hestia faded away.
“…!!”
“….”
Immediately after the two spoke, Hestia’s body tilted toward the cleric, and gently fell into the waiting arms.
“…What is this?”
To subdue the Gardner-like Gardner in one move?
Asha’s dumbfounded mutterings reflected everyone else’s thoughts.
However, Asha quickly regained her composure, and once the shock disappeared, only one thought occupied her mind.
“Even though I pushed her away out of concern for the damage, this man has once again saved me.”
…Thump.
A brand-new emotion welled up, and tears began to well in Asha’s eyes.
The priest who swiftly subdued Hestia looked down at her unconscious form in his arms and mumbled,
“Wow, there were really too many stairs… Should I patent an elevator?”
It would probably sell well.
