In front of the 'Gate of Divinity', the Efnel students who had completed their dispatch mission in the Neutral Zone stood in a long line, waiting to return to the Holy Federation. Lethe and Lirinet were among them.
"Our group was pretty lucky in a lot of ways!" Lirinet said cheerfully.
Ordinarily, losing a direct confrontation with Kizen students would have tanked their evaluation score. However, because their instructor, Figaro, had caused such a horrific disaster, Efnel had taken the stance of completely disavowing any connection to him. Naturally, a gag order had been placed on Lirinet and her team regarding the mission. Lethe had also warned her to watch what she said.
"Still, I learned a lot coming down to the surface this time! It feels like I realized I was just a sheltered frog in a well. Next time, I'll work hard on my faith so I don't lose to the necromancers... Sister Lethe! Are you even listening to me?"
Lirinet turned her head. Lethe's forehead and cheeks were flushed crimson, and she was panting shallowly, drenched in a cold sweat. Lirinet pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Yikes! You're burning up! Are you really okay?"
"I'm fine," Lethe managed, taking another difficult step.
"You don't look fine at all! Did you eat something bad? Or maybe you caught some disease in the Neutral Zone. Should I cast Cure on you?"
"...It's not that."
"Let me help you."
"I said I'm fine."
As the two bickered, the line dwindled, and soon it was their turn. Along with the other Efnel students, they passed through the Gate of Divinity and returned to the Holy Federation.
The moment they stepped through, an astonishing sight greeted them. A company of soldiers, armed with swords, shields, and full plate armor, stood waiting.
'P-Paladins?'
The sudden appearance of armed forces flustered the other Efnel students, whose eyes darted about in confusion.
"Student Lethe Shardena." A man in particularly ornate armor stepped forward. "You are under suspicion of obstructing the Holy Federation's official duties."
A wave of murmurs rippled through the crowd as the Efnel students reeled from the sudden turn of events.
"Do you admit to the charge of preemptively attacking the paladins who were carrying out the Federation's orders?"
However, Lethe was so consumed by her fever that she wasn't properly hearing him. The paladin, assuming she was exercising her right to remain silent, scowled.
"Questioning you here is a waste of time. Take her away."
Two paladins approached with golden chains to bind her. Lethe remained motionless, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
"W-Wait a minute!" Lirinet quickly stepped in front of Lethe, spreading her arms wide. "Lethe is in no condition to be interrogated! At least wait until she's recovered...!"
"Do you think such an obvious excuse will work?" another paladin snapped. "Our orders are to bring her in immediately. Even as an Efnel student, there's nothing we can do until the charges are cleared."
Despite Lirinet's resistance, the paladins closed in. "Move aside!"
"I-I absolutely will not!"
Finally, one of the paladins shoved Lirinet by the shoulder, sending her tumbling to the ground. As she landed hard on her rear, sparks flew from her eyes.
"Sisters, what are you all doing!" she screamed, whipping her head around. "Are you just going to stand there and watch these thugs take Sister Lethe away?!"
The moment her words rang out, a powerful surge of divinity erupted from all directions. The Efnel students standing around the Gate raised their fighting spirit, their collective pressure bearing down on the soldiers. The paladins approaching Lethe flinched and froze.
"Get lost, now!"
"Who do you think you are, daring to arrest an Efnel student?"
"Obstructing official duties? Lethe Shardena?"
As the once-quiet students united their voices, the paladins broke into a cold sweat.
"P-Please calm down!"
"Her guilt hasn't been confirmed, this is just an investigation...!"
But the students didn't back down an inch.
"Get lost!"
"You know how pathetic this looks, doing this right in front of the Gate of Divinity, right?"
"That's right! If you're so righteous, come to Sky Island and try to take her through the proper channels!"
Although Lethe had a cold demeanor and a tendency toward violence, she was still the top student of Efnel's first year, an object of respect and envy for all. Above all, her immense, sea-like divine power was a manifestation of true faith. For students who felt a sense of belonging to Efnel, it was only natural to prevent an outsider from taking their school's best.
"Th-This is a legitimate obstruction of an investigation!"
"Obstruction? This is blasphemy!"
Just as the standoff between the students and paladins reached its peak, a single word cut through the tension.
"Move."
It was a man adorned in mithril-crafted armor and a blue cape, a magnificent 'Drake'—known as the finest of flying divine beasts—at his side.
"...An Arc Paladin!"
The Paladins, alongside the Heretic Inquisitors, formed the main military force of the Holy Federation. Among them, the Arc Paladins were on an entirely different level, so much so that they found it distasteful to even share the title of 'paladin' with the regulars. Only Efnel graduates were qualified to become Arc Paladins. In other words, they were the students' direct seniors.
"I said, move."
'ROOOOOOOAR!'
The Drake behind him let out a bellow. Whether it had a magical effect or not, fear flickered across the students' faces. The Arc Paladin strode forward, pushed even Lirinet aside, and stood before Lethe.
"You must think you're untouchable just because you're a Saint Candidate." His eyes smoldered with menace. "Let's discuss the details inside."
A murderous glare shot straight at her, but Lethe still wasn't listening. As if she lacked even the strength to reply, she collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Her face was a furnace, her breathing even more ragged.
"...R...un."
"What?"
Her white hair spilled across her shoulders as her gaze drifted upward.
"I said... run... away!"
'FWOOOOOOOOSH!'
A colossal pillar of flame erupted from Lethe's body. The Arc Paladin stumbled back, his face a mask of terror. The flames soared toward the heavens, bathing the surroundings in brilliant light. Soon, her body was completely engulfed, hidden from view.
"La-Lady Letheeee!" Lirinet cried out, reaching for her, but her friends grabbed her arms. "Let me go! She's my roommate!"
"If you go, you'll die too, sister!"
At Lethe's sudden, unexpected self-immolation, everyone stared at the inferno in stunned silence. The Arc Paladin's lips trembled.
'Could this be...'
The flames engulfing Lethe were turning a pure, blinding white.
'Fwoosh!'
And then, as if by a miracle, the flames subsided. Lethe stood in their place, her right palm covering her forehead and eyes. Amidst the heavy silence, the Arc Paladin approached with a grim face and extended his arm.
"Hey, are you alrigh—"
At that moment, Lethe's voice thundered through the air.
[Don't touch me.]
She swung her arm, swatting his hand away. The sky flashed, and a path of clouds parted.
"Wh-What is that!"
"Aaaaaah!"
In the direction she had swung, a meteor materialized from nowhere and crashed to the earth.
A fountain of divinity erupted like the World Tree. The enormous shockwave sent wooden crates and cargo carts flying. The surrounding paladins and students dropped to the ground, bracing themselves against the blast.
'Huh!'
The Arc Paladin, also prostrate, forced his head up. Where the star had fallen, a crater so vast it defied belief had been carved into the ground. The very terrain had been altered.
'The-The order was to arrest her by any means necessary. But if this is what she can do...!'
In a matter of minutes, his target had become an entity far beyond his authority to apprehend.
The Arc Paladin knelt on one knee before Lethe, planting his sword in the ground.
"...Гратула ми Кивилис."
At their leader's action, every paladin knelt and proclaimed in unison.
"Гратула ми Кивилис! We greet the Goddess's closest daughter!!"
Chaos erupted. The inspectors at the Gate, the merchants, the administrators—everyone. The Efnel students, who had been frozen in uncertainty, began to kneel one by one. The Efnel faculty who had arrived to resolve the situation did the same.
"La-Lady Lethe..."
Even her own friend, Lirinet, knelt before her. All bowed their heads in reverence.
"We greet the Goddess's closest daughter!"
'WHOOOOSH!'
A wind swept through. A ring of divinity materialized around Lethe as her white hair billowed, and a mantle of white flame draped itself over her shoulders. With every movement, sparks of divine energy crackled in the air. She swept her fringe from her face and stared forward. Faint but distinct, a star-shaped pattern now graced her pupils.
'Finally.'
Looking down at the countless people prostrating themselves before her, Lethe knew.
'I'm on the same level as you now, Simon.'
It was the moment the next vessel of the 'Essence of Purification' was confirmed.
At Livito Village, in the Neutral Zone, a man covered in tattoos ran, gasping for breath.
"Damn it! Damn it! Daaamn it!" he shouted, his voice cracking with tears. "Just stop chasing me already!"
Above him, Simon leaped across rooftops, steadily closing the distance. His pupils darted, assessing the terrain. He spotted a long pole attached to a shop roof, a sign hanging from it. Simon shot out a rope-like strand of Cloud, hooked it around the pole, and swung down.
'WHOOOOSH!'
He descended in a wide arc, kicking the fleeing man squarely in the back with both feet.
"Argh!"
The man flew several meters before tumbling to the ground. Simon landed lightly and approached, snapping a pair of cuffs on his wrists.
'The last of the stragglers are almost cleaned up.'
"Simon," Kamibarez called out sweetly.
Kamibarez appeared from a village alley, her face beaming.
"Ah, Kami! Did you catch a lot... Whoa!"
Behind her floated five gang members, each trapped in a shimmering orb of blood. She clapped her hands with a bright smile.
"Yes! I caught a ton!"
During the operation to annihilate the Sentinel Gang, Kamibarez had become their living nightmare. The mere sight of her sent the gang members into seizures; they couldn't even bear to make eye contact.
"No bad words!" Hearing a muffled curse, she extended her arm, and the blood orbs began to vibrate violently. The men inside, in extreme agony, tumbled around in their narrow prisons. After silencing them, Kamibarez turned back to Simon with a sweet smile. "They were mean to Sasha, so I'm going to work even harder to catch them!"
"...Kami, you're terrifying when you're angry."
The Sentinel Gang was a cellular organization, making it difficult to wipe them out at once. But with Team 7's help, their power had been so thoroughly crushed that they were on the verge of extinction. All the high-ranking members were in jail, with only a few stragglers left. The incident had also significantly boosted Kizen's reputation among the people of the Neutral Zone.
Simon handed his captive over to Kamibarez and stood up.
"Newspaper! Get your newspaper!"
Just then, a merchant with a worn-out bag stuffed with papers caught his eye. Even Agent Block made a point to buy that paper once a day. Curious about what a Neutral Zone newspaper was like, Simon approached the merchant, paid a silver coin, and bought one.
"Ah...!"
His eyes widened as he unfolded it.
[A New Saintess Appears]
News of the new Saintess had sent shockwaves across the continent. The photograph in the paper showed a girl with a very familiar face. Her expression as she waved to the crowd was one of utter annoyance.
'You made it, Lethe.'
Simon's gaze shifted to the headline.
[The Saintess of the Stars, Lethe Shardena]

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