Sophie’s pupils trembled.
After hearing Altes utter the name from her previous life, she instinctively took a step back, staring at the kindly old man before her with disbelief.
“Your Holiness, what did you just say?”
“Have your memories returned?” Altes asked.
Sophie was so shocked that she couldn’t speak.
How could Altes know about her reincarnation?
Her heartbeat quickened.
This was a secret she had never wanted anyone else to discover.
“Your Holiness, I don’t understand what you mean. What does Lady Silver Sword Princess Selina have to do with me?”
“Don’t you truly understand why I allowed you to enter the Hall of Heroes alone, without supervision?” Altes said slowly. “Because I sensed that you had noticed something unusual and were eager to confirm it.”
“Something unusual…”
“When you stood before Selina’s statue in the Hall of Heroes, you felt no trace of the Silver Sword Princess’s heroic soul, did you?”
Altes had hit the heart of the matter.
Any heroic soul that entered the Hall of Heroes could be communed with.
Ellis, for instance, had once entered the hall and received the inheritance of the Radiant Knight, becoming the Holy Radiance Knight.
That was the greatest purpose of the heroic souls: inheritance.
Yet the Silver Sword Princess’s soul was absent, and a statue had still been erected for her?
“Selina’s heroic soul does not exist because it reincarnated long ago—into you.”
“…When did you realize this?”
“During the campaign where imperial soldiers and the Holy Knight Order jointly subjugated the Ironblade Wolves, you displayed swordsmanship far beyond the ordinary. I began to suspect then that you had regained some memories of your past life.”
How could this be…
Sophie felt as though her mind had been struck by a heavy blow.
She had always believed her rebirth as Sylvia’s child was a mere accident.
But from Altes’s words, it seemed that was not the case.
Clearly, the Holy Land had orchestrated everything behind the scenes.
“Your Holiness, did the Holy Land arrange this intentionally?!”
“After Selina’s death, her soul did not enter the Hall of Heroes. It was deliberately guided to be born as Sylvia’s child.” Altes revealed the astonishing truth.
“Sylvia…”
“At first, of course, she knew nothing. Whether she later discovered the truth, no one knows—she has already left this world.”
…Did Mother know any of this?
“Why?”
Sophie’s emotions were clearly spiraling out of control.
She couldn’t understand why the Holy Land would do such a thing.
It had completely disregarded Sylvia’s will—an entirely unilateral decision.
“Why would you do this? I was already dead. I never once prayed to live again!”
“This was punishment for Sylvia. She committed a grave sin!”
Altes gripped his staff tightly, his tone turning angry—an emotion the usually merciful Pope rarely displayed.
“Her past actions were tantamount to betraying the Holy Land.
As a saintess, she violated an absolute taboo.”
“What taboo?”
This was the first time Sophie had heard any of this.
She had always believed her mother was a nearly flawless saintess, without a single blemish.
“You do not need to know the details yet, Selina. You only need to understand that the sin Sylvia committed was something neither the Holy Land nor the empire could ever permit her to live with.”
Altes let out a long sigh.
“However, after receiving divine revelation, we sensed the will of the Supreme One. He permitted Sylvia to give birth to the children in her womb, and thus the Holy Land did not execute her.”
No—it was betrayal of God Himself.
“Then what happened afterward? Why did Mother still meet with that incident?”
“According to the revelation, Sylvia’s inevitable punishment would be suspended after she gave birth to you. Yet the accident still occurred. We are still investigating it.”
“Mother…”
“I believe the Supreme One may have chosen you to prevent Sylvia’s child from straying onto the wrong path in the future.”
Altes stepped closer to Sophie, his voice growing earnest.
“You sacrificed your life for the peace and future of humanity, perishing together with the evil Demon King Ville. Without question, you are a hero of our race.
We believe that a hero with such a pure soul, reborn as Sylvia’s child, will surely walk the righteous path.”
“God… divine revelation…”
Sophie felt all strength drain from her body. Her mind was in complete turmoil.
“Selina, I understand that learning these truths may be difficult to accept.
However, without divine revelation, no human will alone could have achieved this.”
Altes was not lying.
Divine revelation was guidance sent down by God Himself. Through ancient rituals passed down in the Holy Land, certain exceptional clerics could receive messages from the divine.
When guiding the Silver Sword Princess’s soul, the Holy Land had acted according to God’s revelation, leading to the current outcome.
“This is a miracle bestowed by God, granting you another chance to protect humanity.
In a sense, you are a child blessed by God Himself.”
“Then what about Via?” Sophie couldn’t help asking. “She’s my younger sister. Was she part of your plan too?”
“That…”
Altes’s expression grew complicated.
“In truth, Via’s existence was unexpected. We believed Sylvia would bear only one child—you. We never imagined she was carrying twins.”
“Via wasn’t part of your plan at all?”
“No,” Altes nodded. “Via does not appear in the divine revelation. She did not receive God’s blessing. That is precisely why she, born naturally, cannot wield holy power.”
So that’s how it was…
If that were the case, Sophie could finally understand why her sister’s talent had always fallen short of her own.
Even though Via’s reputation was poor, Altes had never expelled her from the Holy Land. Despite the criticism from others, he had kept her as a saintess candidate.
…
It was because from the very beginning, Altes knew Via had not been blessed by God.
“Now, returning to the main topic, Selina. You and Ville were mortal enemies. I’m certain you understand—those demons you encountered in the Demon King’s Castle ruins… were they truly him?”
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