Chapter 5: Pioneer Village(5)

Avalli brought a lantern from the house, but in the darkness of the Great Forest at night, such a light source was no different from a single firefly.

“Extinguish the light.”
“We don’t want to attract any demonic beasts. Even creatures too cowardly to enter the village might change their minds if they see two people moving alone.”

Kyle’s words flustered Avalli.

“But then I won’t be able to guide you.”
“…You said you have no memories. Then you might not know much about Paladins.”

Kyle said so and formed a hand sign.
Chanting a few phrases silently, a golden light emanated from his hand.
Kyle brought the light close to his eyes, then moved it near Avalli’s eyes.

“Basic divine magic. Now you should be able to see somewhat in the darkness.”

She couldn’t see.
Kyle could discern the silhouettes of surrounding objects through the divine magic he had just used, but Avalli, the target of the same magic, felt no change whatsoever.

‘‘…I think I set my magic resistance pretty high.’’

She remembered picking a lot of magic resistance traits, following her friend’s advice that magic was trickier than swords in the later stages of the game.
While Avalli stood there awkwardly, Kyle took the lantern and extinguished the flame.

Except for the faint glow of the bonfire in the village, complete darkness descended, making it impossible to see even a hand in front of her face.

“Let’s set off, then. Is there anywhere that Hans boy might have gone?”
“…I have a hunch. There’s a place he’s been frequenting lately.”

Avalli said so and focused her mind.
She hadn’t used ‘magic’ much since coming to the village, so she was a little worried—

‘Show yourself. Hurry and show yourself!’

As Avalli desperately willed it, her vision suddenly brightened.

‘Phew.’

Unbeknownst to Avalli, it was fortunate that the person next to her was Kyle, who wasn’t particularly well-versed in magic.
If a properly trained mage had witnessed the phenomenon that just occurred… they would likely have lost their mind.

“Alright, I’ll guide you now.”

Now that she could see, all she had to do was silently guide Kyle.
Hans was likely in a dilapidated shack in the woods, a little distance away.
The shack beyond the river seemed to have once been inhabited by a hermit from the pioneer village, but had been vacant since the hermit disappeared one day without a trace.

“I have one question.”
“Yes, Paladin.”
“Arsene told me that when you were first found, you were a girl with dazzling silver hair and beautiful green eyes.”

Avalli’s steps faltered slightly.

“I…Is that so?”
“It must have been a mistake. It’s likely the demonic beast’s wicked magic distorted Arsene’s perception.”

Fortunately, Kyle’s following words weren’t what Avalli had been worried about.

“So, child, don’t be held captive by those dark memories. It’s better for you to forget it, as if it were just a bad dream. That’s why the Goddess granted humanity the blessing of forgetfulness.”
“Understood…”

Avalli quietly agreed.
The fact that the ‘Goddess’s Faith’ was a popular religion was all she knew about this world’s religions.
If she tried to continue the conversation, she might have to hear about doctrines she knew nothing about, so it was better to remain silent for now—

“Avalli.”
“Yes?”
“This way.”

It wasn’t a request for agreement.
Kyle suddenly grabbed Avalli’s waist and lifted her into his arms.

For a moment, the worst-case scenario flashed through Avalli’s mind—

“I smell blood.”

Kyle’s serious voice stopped the ‘magic’ she was about to use.

“P…Put me down, Paladin. I’ll go call the villagers.”
“No, bringing them wouldn’t be of any help. I sense the presence of a demonic beast, and a rather strong one at that. It’s safer for you to stay by my side.”

Declaring this, a holy light enveloped Kyle’s hand.
Not bringing his armor was a mistake, but he still had the sword he always carried.

“Hold on tight.”

Kyle ran through the darkened Great Forest.
As he had warned, his speed was tremendous, so Avalli tightened her arms around Kyle’s neck to avoid falling.

‘…No way.’

But the direction Kyle was running was towards the shack Avalli had intended to guide him to.
Around the time the smell of blood reached Avalli’s nose—

“…Oh…Oh.”

Avalli saw it.
Next to the dilapidated shack.
A boy groaning, his stomach half ripped open, spilling its contents.

The boy’s face was identical to the impertinent brat who always spoke to her curtly.
However, his face, drenched in blood and contorted in pain, looked nothing like the same person.

“Hans!”

Releasing her grip on Kyle’s neck, Avalli ran desperately.
Kyle tried to stop her sudden action, but for some reason, Avalli’s movements were faster than his reach.

“Hans!”

Wading into the pool of blood, Avalli grabbed Hans’s hand.

“Wake up, Hans!”
“…Uh…Uh…It hurts…”

Avalli desperately called Hans’s name, but the boy, with the angel of death already close at hand, couldn’t properly grasp his surroundings.

“Cold…Cold…”

Hans’s vision gradually blurred.
His faint remaining breaths grew shallower.

“…Mom…”

The life of an innocent and pure boy was fading away.
Kyle, maintaining vigilance of his surroundings, made a quick sign of the cross with one hand.

‘…I need to calm her down first.’

It was an incredibly shocking sight for the emotionally unstable girl.
If she fell into a state of delirium, even Avalli’s life could be in danger.

He had to prevent that worst-case scenario.
Preparing to even knock her unconscious if necessary, Kyle slowly walked towards Avalli.

Determined to somehow save this little girl.

“It’s okay.”

And Kyle heard it.

“There’s no need to worry, Hans.”

He heard Avalli murmur in a calm voice.
If it were the usual Kyle, he would have forced the little girl into his arms, telling her to snap out of it.

But in that fleeting moment, Kyle couldn’t take any action.
The girl before him had suddenly transformed into something completely different.

‘I found her in the heart of the Great Forest! A girl lying there, with the very form of a goddess.’

Arsene’s passionate words echoed in his mind.

‘Are you willing to undertake the noble mission of finding the Saintess?’

The words of the old bishop, whose face he could no longer recall, came to mind.

Insight Knight.
A minor, insignificant position, wandering the continent in search of miracles bestowed by the Goddess.

Kyle had regretted his decision that day for his entire life.
No matter where he looked in the world, miracles didn’t exist.
Instead, ugly human realities filled their place.

Twenty years was a long time for a human.
Long enough to shake the deep faith that had resided in the heart of a young paladin.

But at this moment, Kyle could be certain.
Miracles did exist.
The benevolent Goddess had bestowed her grace upon the near-middle-aged paladin today.

“…Goddess.”

Kyle gazed at the girl before him and atoned for his disbelief.

Long, shimmering silver hair reflecting the moonlight.
Beautiful green eyes that seemed otherworldly.
With a sorrowful face that seemed to embody compassion, she placed her hand on the blood-soaked boy’s abdomen—

“Let’s go home.”

As if nothing had happened, Hans’s body was completely healed in the next moment.

Avalli tucked her wind-blown silver hair behind her ear and brought her ear close to Hans’s mouth.
She heard the regular, peaceful sound of his breathing.

‘I managed to save him, but…’

Avalli breathed a sigh of relief, then glanced up at Kyle.

Kyle was staring at Avalli with a stiff, hardened expression.

‘…How do I clean up this mess?’

The new body she had obtained in this world of sword and magic was, by Avalli’s standards, too beautiful.
And having escaped the wilderness and reached the fringes of civilization, Avalli had made the sensible judgment that this appearance could pose a threat to her.

So, she had used the power of ‘magic’ to assume the appearance of an ordinary girl.
Except for the night of the full moon, when her magic fluctuated wildly and she briefly reverted to her original form, she had successfully hidden her true appearance.
There had been the unfortunate incident of running into Hans while hiding in the shack outside the village, but the young boy remembered that encounter as a fleeting daydream.

She had also taken measures to prevent a repeat of the full moon incident.
She planned to create a clone using ‘magic’ and leave it in her bed overnight while she slipped out of the village.

That’s how… she had planned to live quietly…
But the moment she saw Hans dying, she had lost her composure.

“Um… Paladin?”

Avalli spoke to Kyle, feeling a cold sweat on her back.
Just a few hours ago, she had feigned ignorance, pretending to know nothing.

But now, her true appearance had been revealed.
And he had even witnessed her using ‘magic’…

A terrifying thought ran through Avalli’s mind.
And it seemed that terrifying thought would soon become reality.

Because she saw Kyle readjusting the grip on his sword.

“Wait a—.”

Looking at Kyle sprinting towards her, Avalli screamed inwardly.

‘Shield! Defense! Anything!’

Her ‘magic’ faithfully responded to her command—
But Kyle’s sword wasn’t aimed at Avalli.

—KIIIEEEEEEEEK!

A demonic beast with purple fur, resembling a wolf, let out a painful shriek.
Kyle’s sword, swung with lightning speed, had cleanly sliced off one of the demonic beast’s arms.

The demonic beast, groaning in pain, fled swiftly.
Instead of pursuing it, Kyle stared blankly at its retreating form, then shifted his gaze towards Avalli.

Avalli gulped nervously.
She couldn’t predict what words would come out of the Paladin’s mouth.

And Avalli’s prediction of ‘unpredictability’ was perfectly accurate.

“Sinner Kyle, humbly greets the grace of the Goddess.”
“…Huh?”

From Avalli’s perspective, it was truly—
Truly a baffling statement.