From the day we obtained weapons at the church, we spent several days busily preparing for the subjugation.
We crafted a strategy, gathered the necessary equipment, and, most importantly, recruited a team for the mission.
The first person we asked for assistance was the lord.
Fortunately, the lord of Viln generously agreed to provide us with 15 knights and 100 soldiers upon the hero’s request.
To be honest, I wondered if we needed that many people, but since the sandworm is no small creature, the more, the better.
As for other volunteers, Artorius, whom Bliss and I brought along, joined us.
There was also an unexpected volunteer.
“I heard there’s something I could help with, so I came.”
It was a believer from the End Cult.
He introduced himself as Wolf. I wasn’t sure where he heard about us, but he claimed he could also use holy power and expressed his desire to join.
Strangely enough, his holy power felt similar to that of the Origin Cult.
When I mentioned this to Bliss, she reacted with frustration, saying there was a slight difference.
Honestly, I couldn’t tell the difference myself.
Anyway, with the subjugation team assembled, we all headed to the farmland.
Upon arriving at the farmland, the soldiers began positioning themselves according to the plan the hero had previously devised, and once things were organized to some extent—
“Grant us your blessing…”
“Oh, wind…”
Olivia and Bliss cast an area-wide buff on them.
After completing all the preparations, Olivia cast a great spell to lure the sandworm with its attraction to powerful magic and vibrations.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
With the sandworm’s appearance, the subjugation began.
“…Show your majesty!”
—Boom!
As Olivia finished her incantation, a loud explosion and a pillar of fire erupted. Soon after—
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
Amidst the giant cloud of dust, the sandworm appeared.
“Everyone, throw the hooks!”
As soon as the sandworm emerged, Olivia shouted, and everyone threw hooks at it simultaneously.
Ordinarily, the distance and height would be unreachable for a human’s strength alone, but Bliss’s holy power and Olivia’s magic allowed the hooks to reach the sandworm.
“It’s hooked!”
The hooks flew in a large arc and latched onto the gaps between the sandworm’s armor plates.
“Now, pull it!”
The soldiers confirmed the hooks were securely attached and, with loud shouts, began to pull the ropes simultaneously.
The ropes began to tighten with their combined force.
“It’s being pulled in!”
Initially, it seemed that the sandworm was being dragged along due to the sudden force.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
Soon, the sandworm let out a scream and began to resist, starting a fierce tug-of-war.
The sandworm shook its head back and forth, while the soldiers gritted their teeth and held onto the ropes.
The tensioned ropes shook violently, and the soldiers pulled even harder to prevent being dragged away.
And the victor of this seemingly endless struggle of strength—
Was the soldiers.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
With a deafening roar, the sandworm continued to resist, but even it couldn’t withstand the collective strength of dozens of buffed soldiers pulling it simultaneously.
—Thud!
Finally, with a loud sound, its massive body collapsed to the ground.
“Now, Dane, get up there!”
Agnes shouted at Dane when she saw this.
Nodding in response, Dane quickly ran towards the sandworm’s head, throwing a hook at it. Although the sandworm wasn’t fully grown, climbing onto its head without any equipment was too high.
“Throw more hooks! We need to keep it from getting up!”
Behind Dane, others continued hooking the sandworm’s body to keep it from rising again.
Seeing his hook securely in place, Dane started climbing the rope like a rock climber.
But the sandworm didn’t just sit still.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
Once again, it let out a loud roar. Although everyone thought it was the same as before—
“Aaaargh!”
This time, something was different.
“What’s going on?”
Small sandworms began emerging from the ground near the soldiers who were pulling the ropes.
“They’re attacking us!”
Several smaller sandworms started attacking the soldiers.
Unlike the main body, these smaller ones had no armor and were smaller, yet they were still big enough to kill a person.
But they didn’t just sit and get attacked.
Agnes immediately dropped the rope she was holding, drew her sword, and sliced a sandworm in half, watching its body fall to the ground.
‘They’re targeting the soldiers. Annoying creatures, but they’re manageable with swords.’
Quickly assessing the situation, Agnes called out to Olivia.
“Olivia! Protect the ropes and the soldiers!”
Then, slicing through another sandworm, she turned her attention back to the main sandworm to check on Dane’s position.
‘He’s almost at the top. Just a little longer!’
Luckily, Dane was close to reaching the top of the sandworm’s head.
Agnes ordered others to buy more time and rushed at the next sandworm threatening the soldiers.
At the same time, Dane was climbing the rope with all his might.
Although his movements were somewhat restricted, the shaking of the rope continued, and the sandworm’s smooth skin provided little footing.
Yet he climbed, relying solely on his arm strength when there was no place for his feet, never pausing despite the rope’s wild shaking.
He knew that many soldiers below were still holding on with grim determination, so he couldn’t stop as long as their pain continued.
‘Just a bit… just a bit more! I have to finish this as quickly as possible!’
Dane climbed with unyielding resolve.
As he climbed, he finally saw the end of what had seemed like an endless rope, and at last, he reached the top of the sandworm’s head.
‘Where’s the weak spot?’
On top of the sandworm’s head, he began looking for the X-mark.
Once he found it, he balanced himself on the swaying head and moved towards the mark as quickly as possible.
‘It’s hard to keep my balance, but I can reach it soon at this rate.’
Seeing the mark get closer, Dane felt that the subjugation was finally nearing its end.
But then—
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
With another scream, the sandworm’s movements became more intense.
It seemed like the usual scream and movement, but—
“Ugh?!”
Dane suddenly felt a heavy weight on his body.
‘Did Olivia’s magic wear off?’
Without hesitation, he drew his holy sword and drove it between the sandworm’s armor plates.
It seemed he could proceed without further trouble—
But problems started arising elsewhere.
“Hold the formation!”
“It’s too hard to hold on! I’m sorry!”
With Olivia’s buff disappearing, some soldiers began to lose their grip, and the ropes restraining the sandworm gradually loosened.
This had a severe impact on Dane.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
The sandworm’s movements intensified, as if it knew this might be its last chance.
Dane clung desperately to his holy sword, fighting to hold on atop the struggling creature.
‘Damn it! I have to hold on!’
If he let go of his sword now, everything would be ruined. The sandworm would escape back into the ground, and once it burrowed, no one would know where it would reappear.
If that happened, countless soldiers would perish, so Dane held on, inching forward with his sword lodged between the armor plates.
His perseverance finally allowed him to reach the sandworm’s weak spot.
Staring at the X-mark right in front of him, Dane summoned his last bit of strength.
—Thrust!
He struck down.
At that moment, he felt something solid breaking under his hand.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
The sandworm began thrashing with immense force, enough that the soldiers who were holding the ropes lost their grip.
Regaining its freedom, the sandworm looked anything but normal. It writhed as though its entire body were on fire, consumed by agony.
Standing atop the creature’s shaking head, Dane held onto his holy sword, knowing that falling now would certainly result in injury.
After a while, the sandworm’s frantic movements suddenly stopped.
—Thud!
Its massive body fell to the ground.
And that was the last of the sandworm.
“It has begun.”
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
Bliss remarked as she watched the sandworm burst out of the ground, shrieking.
“Indeed.”
I nodded, glancing around at the dozens of soldiers in front of us.
We were standing a bit farther back than the soldiers pulling the ropes.
In this subjugation, Bliss’s blessing was crucial, so she needed to stay in a safe yet accessible position to cast her blessings.
Beside her were Reina and myself.
We were positioned here because we were deemed unhelpful for the subjugation.
Then why were we here?
At first, the hero suggested we remain in Viln, and I intended to do so. However, Olivia insisted otherwise.
So I volunteered to come.
And, after all, it’s always more exciting to watch. Though I could help if I wanted, I had neither the duty nor the desire to do so.
“Everyone, pull!”
Oh, they’re starting to hook it up.
Surprisingly, the way demons and humans capture sandworms is nearly identical.
They prevent it from burrowing, then someone climbs up to attack its weak point.
The only difference is perhaps the number of people involved.
I don’t know why it’s so similar.
Maybe it’s just the way things are everywhere? I heard there are human nations in Shurden too.
As I drifted into these idle thoughts—
—Thud!
With a loud sound, the sandworm’s body collapsed to the ground, and I saw the hero running towards it.
Is this where things really start?
“At this rate, it’ll be over soon, won’t it?”
As I watched the hero run forward, the End Cult believer, who had been silent until now, approached us and spoke.
And, of course, Bliss did not respond. She looked unsure of how to reply.
I understood her hesitation. It’s only natural to be taken aback when approached by a believer who might soon be investigated for heresy.
So, I decided to answer on Bliss’s behalf. It would be awkward to leave him without a response after he had made the effort to speak to us.
“Not yet.”
I answered, watching the sandworm struggle against the ropes.
“Pardon?”
“I said, it’s not over yet.”
He looked at me in confusion, so I repeated myself.
“What do you mean by that…?”
Before he could finish his question, another deafening scream rang out.
—Kieeeeeeeeek!
And then—
—Kuweeeeeel!
Several smaller sandworms began emerging from the ground.
“What is that?!”
“Hmm… judging by the way they look, perhaps they’re offspring of that big one?”
I answered, noticing Bliss’s anxious tone as she watched the sandworms rising from various spots, and hearing the soldiers’ screams as they were attacked.
Seeing this, I thought that it was only a matter of time.
If a few ropes could capture it, the sandworm’s notorious reputation wouldn’t be so high.
One of the traits that fueled the sandworm’s infamy is its ability to summon smaller sandworms resembling itself.
These smaller sandworms have no armor and are dwarfed by the main body. But each one is about as thick as a human, making them more than capable of killing someone.
Yes, I had been waiting for this.
I lightly touched the hilt of the sword at my waist.
What should I do?
While I was contemplating, a sandworm emerged in front of us as well.
—Kueeeeek!
Upon noticing us, it let out a loud noise and began advancing toward us. Bliss raised her mace in front of her and said,
“Ruina, please step back. As a high priestess of the Origin Cult, I’ve trained for situations like this.”
She looked back at us with a reassuring smile.
“So please, trust me. I’ll handle this.”
As if trying to calm us.
But I could see it.
Though she forced a calm smile, her hands holding the mace were trembling.
Seeing Bliss like this, I wondered.
Is this her first experience with such danger? Why is she stepping forward when she seems so frightened?
I already knew the answer. It was simple.
She was trying to protect us.
Despite her fear, she was determined to shield us.
Watching Bliss, I pondered what I should do in this situation.
I have a sword, the skills to wield it, and plenty of experience using it.
The only reason I didn’t use it was that doing so might raise suspicion about my true identity.
If I fled to Agnes, using Bliss as a decoy, I could get through this ordeal without revealing my swordsmanship.
But if I did that, Bliss, who bravely stepped forward despite her fear, would die.
She would die trying to protect me, all because I hid the truth.
What should I do?
Before I could make a decision, the sandworm lunged at Bliss.
“Eek!”
Unable to overcome her fear, she screamed and tightly closed her eyes.
And I—
“Ruina…?”
Stepped forward and swung my sword.
Without a sound, quietly.
The sandworm split in two.
I spoke softly to Bliss.
“Bliss, bless me right now.”
“What…?”
“From now on, I’ll handle these creatures.”
“Then I’ll fight with you!”
She could barely hold her weapon, and yet she wanted to fight?
I shook my head.
“No, Bliss, don’t stop praying. Your role is the most important in this subjugation. And please, watch over Reina.”
“But…”
As she hesitated, I drew another sword from my sheath.
“I told you, I know how to use a sword. Trust me.”
Under my urging, Bliss finally relented.
“Alright…”
And she began reciting a prayer.
Soon, I received her blessing.
As the blessing settled over me, I felt a surge of power.
It felt strangely different yet somewhat similar to magic.
‘So this is what it feels like…’
I was surprised by how much it boosted my physical abilities.
Up until now, I hadn’t understood how demons and humans could be on equal footing.
So, that’s why humans were able to stand on equal ground with demons by using things like this.
I think I now understand why humans could resist the demons.
Not that it compares to my magic.
But for now, this is more than enough.
I shifted my gaze to the sandworms.
No armor. Unlike that massive sandworm that’s currently bound, these ones have smooth skin.
Which means they can be sliced.
I recalled the sensation from earlier at my fingertips. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the thrill of cutting through something.
It seems my instincts are still sharp, so now I just need to fight.
Ah, but before that—
I looked down. The nun’s robe I was wearing, especially the skirt, caught my attention.
It’s uncomfortable.
Extremely so.
Perhaps because it’s designed to minimize exposure, the skirt’s width was narrow, making movement difficult.
It wasn’t much of an issue in everyday life, but in combat, the narrowness made it very inconvenient to move.
Huh?
Even just running a bit earlier had restricted my legs considerably.
What should I do?
The decision didn’t take long. I quickly tugged at the fabric around my waist, placed my sword against it, and sliced straight down.
The skirt split neatly on both sides, so I repeated the process on the opposite side.
I moved my legs. The range of motion was much greater than before.
Perfect, my legs are free.
Isn’t this what they call side slits?
The restrictive feeling was gone, allowing for much smoother movement, which pleased me greatly.
Though, admittedly, as I move, my thighs might be a bit exposed. But who cares about that in the middle of a fight?
Satisfied, I held one of my swords in a reverse grip and lowered my stance. Carefully, I assessed the situation.
Enemies approaching from all sides—ten of them.
And I’m facing them alone.
How nostalgic; it’s just like how things used to be over there.
With these idle thoughts, I dashed toward the nearest sandworm.