Consciousness fell like a meteor from the boundless starry sky, crashing harshly back into the cold reality.
The sounds of fierce battle in the square—the clashing of steel, the dying wails—immediately filled Irene’s ears once again.
Within her line of sight lay only despair—Bishop Eisenhart knelt on one knee in a pool of blood, the golden flame of his life barely flickering like a dying candle in the wind.
Each breath expelled a gush of blood and foam; the cracks on his body resembled porcelain on the verge of shattering.
August’s young yet powerful figure dragged the demonic sword, Ingrid, forward. Ingrid’s mocking laughter echoed relentlessly, closing in step by step.
The shadow of death had completely engulfed Eisenhart.
Higher up, on the platform of the Tower of Judgment, the scene was even more harrowing!
Regelief’s radiant light had dimmed, her figure pressed into a corner, suppressed utterly.
The Holy Light shield in her hand trembled violently under the furious black flames unleashed by the corrupted Heinrich.
Delicate cracks spread across its surface like a spider’s web!
Rooted to the spot, unable to move, she was trapped by the presence of Rosevither behind her—who was in the critical moment of consciousness fusion.
Although her eyes were open, she had no autonomous awareness.
Not to mention assisting in battle, even moving was difficult!
Each block sent violent shockwaves shaking her body, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth staining her chest.
Heinrich let out a proud, savage laugh.
His cursed claws, wrapped in black flames of destruction, raised high, ready to strike with a force capable of shattering both Regelief and her holy shield!
Eisenhart… Regelief… Rosevither… and Serena—
Irene’s heart was gripped by an icy hand, nearly suffocating her.
Her golden pupils contracted from utter terror.
The future had frozen into a cold image before her eyes—Bishop Eisenhart burning out his last breath, turning to ash beneath August’s demonic sword!
Regelief’s shield shattered completely, consumed by hellfire along with Rosevither, who faded away helplessly…
This was a death sentence!
“No, absolutely not!”
The only one who could change all of this was herself.
What she had just heard atop the Pinnacle of Stars in her vision—
That was the next stage belonging to the Miracle Weaver.
Not a passive denial, but an active choice of the future she desired!
She slammed her eyes shut, then opened them instantly!
Deep within her golden pupils, countless star trails spun and reversed wildly!
What she saw wasn’t the threads of the future, but… the already-realized past!
Fragments of countless “past” moments flickered, stacked, and collided within her consciousness.
She saw every second Rosevither slept inside the Holy Light cocoon, every heavy blow Regelief endured to protect her, Eisenhart’s resolute gaze as he burned his life away…
These “pasts,” set in stone like iron chains, firmly locked the path toward destruction in the present!
But the essence of the Miracle Weaver lay in denying unreasonable fate and creating a hopeful future!
Even if it meant shaking that seemingly unbreakable “past”!
What she had to pry open was only a tiny “point”—
The moment of Rosevither’s awakening!
Not changing the event itself, but moving that decisive awakening forward by over ten minutes!
As this thought arose, Irene’s soul was instantly drowned by an unimaginable torrent!
No longer the possibilities of the future, but the heavy, mountainous wall of “past” realities!
The inertia of billions of “pasts” roared like a star river, bearing the might to crush everything and lash back at her!
Every attempt to rewind or shift the needle of time felt like smashing her very soul against an iron wall!
Excruciating pain!
More terrifying than physical collapse—a tearing from the very foundation of existence!
“Ugh—!”
Irene let out a stifled groan of pain, her body shaking violently.
Her fingers, strained to maintain the Miracle Weaver’s power, turned pale white; blood silently dripped from the corner of her mouth.
“Master!”
A figure flickered like a phantom beside her—it was Lillisa.
The doll girl was heavily damaged in many places, her delicate heterochromatic eyes filled with deep worry and fear.
She keenly sensed the terrifying wave resonating deep within Irene’s soul, powerful enough to destroy her very self.
“Are you insane?! Rewinding an already-settled past—even a little—could completely annihilate you! This is not the fate you must bear! We can leave! The Marquis will not…”
Irene struggled to turn her head, her vision somewhat blurred from pain and the overwhelming influx of information, settling on Lillisa’s anxious face.
She saw Eisenhart burning in the distance, Regelief barely holding on atop the platform amid the demonic flames, and Rosevither still asleep…
A warm smile, stained with blood yet crystal clear, bloomed on her pale face.
“It’s worth it.”
Her voice was hoarse but resolute, like a stone tossed into a deep pool, rippling within Lillisa’s heart.
“They… are my dearest companions. I love everyone the most!”
“You always are like this…” Lillisa murmured softly, as if recalling something faint, her eyes flickering with the tremble of her soul.
The moment her words fell, the last trace of hesitation in Irene’s eyes vanished completely, replaced by an unwavering determination!
She burned her soul, squeezing out every last bit of mental strength.
Within her golden pupils, countless tiny clock hands spun wildly backward!
“Deny it! This settled moment—”
“I refuse to accept this present—”
Silent thunder exploded at the foundation of reality!
The entire square, and indeed all of the land, seemed to freeze for a fleeting instant!
Time, space, and everyone’s movements halted momentarily!
An invisible ripple, originating from the world’s very rules, swept over everything!
The souls of all living beings fluttered with an indescribable tremor and daze, as if something crucial, something that was meant to be, had just been forcibly reversed!
And the price was revealed simultaneously—the cost of summoning a true miracle that even the former Sacred Magus King could not change!
Her body trembled violently, like a dying candle in the wind, her face pale to near transparency, on the verge of shattering and vanishing!
Her hands maintaining the spell fell weakly, blood oozing from her mouth and spreading coldly over the stone floor.
Though her face was deathly pale, appearing close to death, a faint smile lifted the corners of Irene’s mouth.
Because the miracle had already arrived!
With a faint smile, she collapsed into Lillisa’s arms.
The wards were set; the battle to come should no longer be a worry.
But the unconscious Irene felt as though something in her mind was beginning to loosen.
Boom—!!!
An indescribably brilliant and immeasurably vast pillar of holy light, like the very first light of creation, suddenly shot up from the Tower of Judgment’s platform—emanating from Rosevither’s dormant body!
The light was pure, warm, and immense, carrying the great power to cleanse all filth and awaken all life.
In an instant, it tore apart the leaden clouds swirling above the square and scattered the raging blizzard!
The golden holy light surged like a tangible tide, centered on the Tower of Judgment, spreading across the entire square, the distant city, and the boundless sky!
Where the holy light reached—
At Regelief’s feet, the shattered Holy Light shield instantly healed itself, radiating unprecedented strength.
Divine runes flowed across its surface!
In the pool of blood, Bishop Eisenhart’s golden flames of life did not extinguish; instead, under the influx of this vast holy light, they underwent an incredible transformation!
The web-like cracks on his broken body were covered and smoothed over by the pure light!
His dull, old armor melted away in the holy light like ice and snow, replaced by a sleek, perfect full set of armor formed entirely from pure holy energy, gleaming with the silver radiance of stars!
A silver cloak, also woven from holy light, fluttered behind him!
The crooked, plain longsword in his hand was now straight as new, its entire blade flowing with the sheen of liquid white silver.
At the hilt, a pair of tiny, light-cast wings unfolded!
A tremendous, pure power, far surpassing even his peak prime, erupted from within him, accompanied by divine majesty!
“This… this is…!”
Eisenhart stared incredulously at his own hands, feeling the surging, unimpeded, life-filled holy power within his body.
The agonizing pain of burning his life away vanished, replaced by boundless strength and the unwavering will to protect everything!
“The… the goddess’s aura?! No! This can’t be!!”
The demonic sword Ingrid screamed in terror, its crimson single eye spinning wildly in fear.
August’s young and handsome face transformed instantly—his pride, control, and cruelty replaced by incomparable shock and an unspoken terror!
This holy light! This power!
This sacred aura stemming directly from the very rules of the world!
Far beyond the corrupted power granted by Her Majesty Delaruer!
It… it awakened the deepest, most primal reverence for the goddess within all the holy knights’ blood!
“Rosevither… has awakened?!”
He shouted in disbelief, his voice trembling even to himself.
At the moment August’s mind was shaken and his power briefly faltered—
Clad in silver holy armor, transformed into the “Holy Knight of Light,” Eisenhart moved!
There was no earth-shaking roar, only a silver streak so fast it surpassed the limits of vision!
The holy silver sword in his hand sliced through the air, leaving behind a trail so pure it seemed capable of cutting through all darkness!
Time seemed to stretch infinitely.
August barely caught sight of Eisenhart’s eyes burning with divine wrath and deep compassion, rapidly enlarging before him.
He tried to block, to dodge, to activate the demonic sword’s power…
But his body and will lagged fatally behind this pure divine pressure and the opponent’s teleport-like speed!
Psshh—!
A faint yet chillingly clear sound of cutting rang out.
The pure silver streak passed unimpeded through August’s waist and abdomen, and also through his wildly screeching demonic sword, Ingrid!
August’s forward motion froze instantly, his face a mask of ultimate shock and confusion.
He instinctively looked down.
A thin crack emitting a faint silver glow appeared on the ornate corrupted armor at his waist, quickly expanding.
“Ugh… ah…”
Incoherent groans escaped his throat.
With a soft thud, his upper body slipped down.
The cut was smooth as a mirror; no blood gushed out, only dense black mist wildly escaping.
Ingrid also split into two.
The crimson single eye on the blade faded instantly, then, along with the blade, turned to ash like burning black paper.
This was the last phrase left by the Knight Commander of the Crown in the mortal world:
“Th-this kind of thing, no! Why did you lose, old man!!!”
August’s upper body fell onto the cold stone slab.
In his dark red eyes, shock, unwillingness, and madness receded like a tide.
What remained was near-vacant confusion and a faint… indescribable relief.
He looked at the figure standing before him—majestic like a holy war god, Eisenhart.
His lips moved, weak as a sigh in the wind, yet clearly heard by Eisenhart:
“Eisenhart… yo… ha… to prove… that I… was wrong… please go defeat… Delaruer…”
His gaze blurred, his body and the black mist from the wound swiftly turning to ash.
“I… don’t know… what… is right…”
“What an… ir-responsible… teacher…”
His last words and remains vanished into the biting wind, swirling snow, and pervasive holy light, leaving no trace.
*****
Tower of Judgment Platform.
At the instant before the towering pillar of holy light erupted—
Regelief’s Holy Light shield finally emitted the unbearable, shattering cry of glass breaking under Heinrich’s furious final blow!
“Die! Annoying insect!”
Heinrich laughed madly, his cursed claw wrapped in black flames of annihilation striking down hard!
The shield shattered completely!
The violent force threw Regelief’s body brutally through the air.
The icy shadow of death immediately enveloped her.
She saw the huge claw burning with hellfire tear through the broken fragments of holy light, descending to strike her defenseless body!
In that one-billionth of a second before her consciousness sank into eternal darkness—
Warmth! Vastness! Boundlessness!
Indescribable holy light instantly filled her senses, dispelling all cold and shadows of death!
Her severely wounded body felt as if immersed in the fountain of life; the pain rapidly subsided, and strength surged at an unimaginable speed!
What was even more incredible—
Two warm hands gently yet firmly rested on her trembling shoulders!
One palm was delicate skin, containing a vast holy power that made her very soul tremble, carrying a sacred and gentle familiarity—Rosevither, or rather, the goddess incarnate!
The other palm was slender and long, bearing a strange warmth capable of soothing soul wounds, and a faint… weak yet unyielding will—it was Irene!
Regelief snapped her head around!
Rosevither’s eyes, once tightly shut, were now wide open—pure sapphires, deep and majestic, flowing with tangible golden holy light!
She was no longer dressed in the plain robes of sleep, but enveloped in a magnificent and sacred long robe woven purely from holy light.
Her golden hair flowed without wind, radiating divine brilliance that made heaven and earth whisper in awe!
She was transformed utterly into the incarnation of a goddess descended to the mortal world!
On the other side, Irene’s figure appeared somewhat ethereal and transparent, merely a spiritual projection.
But her golden eyes burned with unprecedented bright flames, smiling warmly at her and nodding firmly.
In that instant, Regelief understood!
It was Irene!
At an unimaginable cost, she reversed the already-settled “past” and moved forward Rosevither’s awakening by those critical ten-plus minutes!
Irene, with you here, truly anything is possible—any miracle can be created!
Thank you, and I’m sorry!
Gratitude, shock, and resolve erupted in Regelief’s chest like a volcano!
No words were needed!
With the dual buffs—Rosevither’s boundless divine blessing and Irene’s fate-defying miracle power—Regelief’s body exploded with unprecedented strength!
She didn’t even summon a new shield!
Facing Heinrich’s giant claw, dripping with destructive black flames, descending head-on, Regelief pressed forward instead of retreating!
She swung the Holy Light blade infused with dual great powers toward the surging black flames!
At the sword’s tip gathered no longer a defensive light shield, but pure, ultimate holy light sharpness that could destroy all evil!
The dazzling golden light violently clashed with the tainted curse black flame!
No stalemate! No explosion!
The supposedly all-devouring cursed black flame, when fused with Rosevither’s divine holy light and Irene’s miracle power, sizzled like ice melting under the scorching sun!
It was forcibly pierced, torn apart, and purified by the solidified golden sharpness!
The cruel sneer on Heinrich’s face froze instantly, replaced by unparalleled shock!
He had never imagined that a “little insect” he could crush on sight could erupt such an inconceivable power—one that could even suppress his demonic flames!
What a joke!
Unlike those corrupted inferior humans, he was a true Abyssal Lord descended into the mortal world!
How could mere humans possibly possess power beyond his own?!
In horror, he finally saw Rosevither behind Regelief.
Those sky-blue eyes seemed to have lost all mortal emotion, flowing with divinity, making him realize that the worst had come to pass!
The Saintess had awakened!
Just as the terrifying thought arose—
Behind the torn black flames, Regelief’s figure surged forward with unstoppable momentum.
Her deep blue hair fluttered in the wind like a flying battle standard!
Her Holy Light blade, empowered by dual forces, moved at unimaginable speed!
A flash of sword light!
Psshh—!
A golden arc cleanly swept past Heinrich’s sword-wielding right arm!
“Ugh—!!!”
Heinrich screamed a heartrending howl!
His right arm, entwined with dense demonic energy and bulging muscle, along with the cursed great sword, was severed at the shoulder!
No blood flowed from the wound, only a frenzied spout of filthy black mist trying to heal but constantly purified by residual holy light!
Overwhelmed by pain and loss of power balance, his massive body staggered and nearly fell.
He suddenly lifted his head, eyes filled with malice, terror, and disbelief.
He glared fiercely at Rosevither, who stood like a holy light incarnate on the platform, then at Regelief standing coldly with her sword.
He let out a beast-like roar of unwillingness, slamming his remaining left hand onto the ground, releasing a dense black mist!
The mist exploded instantly, obscuring vision!
Behind him, his pitch-black wings trembled violently, as if blotting out the sun!
“Saintess, this isn’t over yet! And you, traitor! If I’d known sooner, I’d have had Delaruer kill you. Trusting you was her only mistake!”
Heinrich’s hate-filled roar echoed from the sky.
“I’ll be waiting in the Holy Capital! Next time, I will tear you to pieces!”
“Not so easy to leave!”
Regelief lacked ranged magic, but Helga, who had been watching the duel on the platform, was not so kind.
Her hands glowed with magical light as she unleashed a lightning strike toward Heinrich.
Though it hit, it did little damage.
Heinrich glanced at Helga’s subtle expression and snorted coldly:
“Not a bad attack, but for someone who has witnessed the pinnacle of magic like me, it’s still not enough. Train harder. Next time we meet, I won’t be the only opponent you face!”
His voice faded into the distance.
Helga and Regelief, on the offensive side, both let out a sigh of relief.
The blizzard continued, but the despair and death hanging over the square were completely dispelled by that towering pillar of holy light.
The survivors looked at one another in stunned silence, feeling the unprecedented power surging within them, watching the miraculous descending holy light.
Tears of relief and indescribable shock silently fell.
Beneath the Tower of Judgment, the silver-armored knight slowly sheathed his sword, lifting his head to gaze at the platform where Rosevither’s light still shone brightly.
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