25-237

EP.237. [The Secret Hobby of the Noble Priestess Charlotte de Sel Oblaing.] 

Eugene Schneider’s greatsword, coated with blood chips, sliced through the air. 

-SLASH!!!- 

A sickening, wet howl echoed. It was the scream of a goblin chief. 

Among dozens of goblins, there had been about five goblin chiefs, and Eugene’s attack had just split the last chief’s head. 

“Phew!” 

In less than ten minutes since the battle began, Eugene Schneider had slaughtered every goblin that had rushed onto the roadside in the middle region. Even as a Sword Seeker with seemingly endless stamina, the scene was so gruesome that he couldn’t help but take a deep breath. 

“With this many, it’s hard to believe these goblins just wandered here from nearby, Priscilla.” 

Eugene shared his analysis with Priscilla, who had come up behind him. 

Recently, monsters appearing on the continent had been pack creatures, so they usually showed up in terrain suitable for group living. But the middle region between imperial domains rarely had such terrain. The area where this battle took place was no exception, which led Eugene to speculate about the source of these goblins. 

“I agree. But that makes it even more surprising. How did this many goblins just appear here out of nowhere?” 

Thud. Thud. 

Priscilla nudged a goblin chief’s corpse with her foot, nodding thoughtfully at Eugene’s words. If these weren’t goblins that had settled here, how did so many suddenly show up? 

“Let’s check the area more. There could be more goblins hiding, or even a goblin lord.” 

“Right, Priscilla.” 

Though Eugene and Priscilla were in a hurry, information was precious in these times. They began searching the area, both to mop up any remaining goblins and to investigate further. 

“-Kkeeeek!!” “-Kkuueek!!” 

-SLASH! -SMASH!- 

Sure enough, as they moved toward a small mountain by the road, they found more goblins and finished them off. 

“What’s this? The number of goblins is definitely decreasing, but the sinister energy around here isn’t. If anything, it feels like it’s increasing.” 

While Eugene was killing goblins, Priscilla kept scanning the area. Using her elf’s sensitive mana detection, she sensed something odd. Her expression grew puzzled; the energy in the area was clearly abnormal. 

“...” 

Eugene’s face looked a bit troubled as he listened. 

‘I can feel it too, the energy Priscilla is talking about.’ 

Even though he wasn’t an elf or a psychic, Eugene could sense the sinister energy. 

Normally, Eugene could only sense the energy of someone he was fighting if they had significant mana. But he couldn’t usually detect energy he had no connection to. Yet Priscilla’s words resonated with him. 

‘It’s over there!’ 

In fact, Eugene was able to pinpoint the source of the sinister energy even more precisely than elf Priscilla. 

“Eugene? Where are you going?” 

Eugene started walking toward it, and since it wasn’t in their planned direction, Priscilla called out. 

“Oh, shit...!” 

Thunk! 

Drawn by something, Eugene stopped, eyes wide. 

‘A spatial rift? What is this rift in front of me???’ 

Whoosh...! Whoosh...! Whoosh...! 

It wasn’t a gate or a warp zone. Before Eugene was a spatial rift, emitting dark purple energy like smoke. 

“A dimensional rift!???” 

Priscilla, arriving late, saw it and cried out in shock. 

“A dimensional rift-doesn’t that mean a distortion that connects to another world? The legendary thing, right, Priscilla?” 

Eugene had heard of the concept. A dimensional rift is a tear created when the world itself, even beyond the realm of gods, undergoes a transformation. Through such rifts, beings from other worlds can cross over. 

“It’s a dimensional rift. Near the World Tree, sometimes rifts connect to the spirit realm. I’ve seen them a few times.” 

Dimensional rifts often occur in places with high concentrations of otherworldly energy; the World Tree is a prime example, being both a tree and a space/dimension itself. 

“If this is a dimensional rift, then the goblins must have poured out from here.” 

Eugene walked closer to the rift, nodding as the mystery of the sudden goblin appearance was solved. 

“Exactly. And these ones are from the demon realm. Sometimes goblins are made in the spirit realm and cross over, but the energy here is totally different. This is from the demon realm.” 

Priscilla agreed with Eugene’s assessment. The monsters they’d just killed weren’t just local monsters affected by demonic energy-they’d come directly from the demon realm. 

“Of course, we can’t say all the monsters appearing now are coming through rifts like this. But what’s certain is that if monsters are pouring through a dimensional rift, just killing the ones you see isn’t enough.” 

“Monsters will keep coming through this rift?” 

“Probably. But this rift seems to be in a dormant state now. Every time monsters cross, the rift uses up energy. When depleted, it goes dormant to recharge, then spits out more monsters. That’s why spirit realm rifts at the World Tree are left alone; since spirits rarely travel between worlds, those rifts close naturally.” 

If all the monsters in recent years had come from dimensional rifts, civilians would have discovered them by now, and Victoria’s side would have mentioned it. Priscilla guessed that rifts were only now starting to appear. 

“This is a headache. If we report the rift to the local imperial guard, we’ll get tied up in red tape.” 

Eugene and Priscilla were in a bind. They couldn’t just leave the rift, but guarding it until it closed naturally would mean being investigated and delayed. 

“Priscilla, to be honest, I came this way because I felt the rift’s energy.” 

Eugene confessed to Priscilla. 

“Really? That’s amazing. It means you can now sense mana at a level above your class. Could it be related to the strange changes Elizabeth the mage mentioned?” 

Eugene’s detailed explanation made Priscilla think it might be linked to his recent rapid changes. 

“But there’s something else I’m feeling, Priscilla.” 

Eugene shared this because he sensed another phenomenon in his body, beyond just detecting the rift. 

“What is it?” 

Priscilla asked, full of curiosity. 

Srrrrng...! 

Instead of answering, Eugene raised his greatsword toward the rift. 

-SLASH!!!- 

With a tremendous slicing sound, he swung. 

-SPLIT!!!- 

Eugene’s greatsword split the dimensional rift in two. 

“!!!?????????” 

He really split it. Not just cutting through the rift’s space, but as if cleaving a living thing in half. Priscilla’s eyes went wide at the sight. 

Moreover- 

Whoooooosh...!!!! 

The rift, split by Eugene’s greatsword, began to vanish. 

-SMASH!!!- 

The sound of a heavy blunt weapon landing cleanly. 

-CRACK!!!- 

“-Kuwaaaaaa!!” 

It was Bishop-Nun Charlotte’s Goddess’s Mace, imbued with holy power, smashing a mutant orc’s head. 

-SPLASH!!!- 

-THUD THUD!!!- 

A fountain of dark red blood. The 2-meter mutant orc toppled like a felled tree. Bishop-Nun Charlotte had just felled the last mutant orc. 

“Huuu...! Huuu...!” 

Fsssh...! Fsssh...! 

Looking at the fallen mutant orc, Charlotte breathed deeply. Her holy power radiated not only from her mace but her entire body, and her eyes were fierce. 

“Then I’ll ask you, Senior Nun Carmen, to take charge as my deputy while I and the high priestess nuns offer prayers of repentance.” 

“Yes, I’ll do my best, Bishop-Nun Charlotte.” 

After the battle, back at the Holy See’s disaster HQ, Charlotte spoke with Sister Carmen about the next steps. High priestess nuns of expert rank or above use immense holy power in battle, which can lead to extraordinary destructive force but also carries risks: their sense of self can become unstable, leading to improper thoughts or impulses. That’s why, after using a certain amount of holy power in battle, they spend time in repentance prayer to calm mind and body. 

“Dear Lord...” 

Clack...! 

After giving instructions to Carmen, Charlotte entered the prayer room next to her quarters, knelt before the symbol of the Radiant Goddess, and folded her hands. 

“By the Lord’s grace, look upon my sinful body and soul...” 

Whoooosh...! 

A faint aura of holy power rose from Charlotte’s body as she began her repentance prayer. 

“I have killed... Even if it was a monster, it was still killing... I kneel before the Lord and repent my sin...” 

She rewound the battle in her mind with her powers, checked her emotional state, and calmed herself through repentance. 

But at that moment- 

Twitch...! Twitch...! 

Charlotte’s lips twitched with a strange smile as she prayed-a smile that was unmistakably improper.