"Saint Theodore?"

Overjoyed, Primel dispelled the barrier immediately.

"Saint Theodore! You've c—"

"CATCH THE FIEND!"

"BEAT IT UP!"

"BURN IT IN FIRE!"

As the Adventurers was about to pounce on Primel, an authoritative voice rang out.

"STOP!"

Everyone halted and turned to look at the source of the shout—Saint Thedore. "What do you want?"

Smirking, Theodore huddled them together and whispered, "My Adventurers friends, don't you remember who set up this entire rally?"

"...You, Saint Theodore."

"That's right." He grinned. "Now, I happens to know the governor very well, and I'm sure that he wouldn't want his 'good' to be damaged."

"What do you mean?" A beastkin spoke up.

"You know exactly what I mean. Why do you think nobles purchase Void fiends?"

Everyone stopped talking and connected the dots together. Soon, they released a collective nod of understanding. ""Oh...""

Rubbing his hands together, Theodore continued, "So that's why it is important that she remains unscathed. I'm sure that the governor would appreciate us not ruining her beauty. Then, he might even give us some extra money for all our troubles bringing her back in one piece."

Seeing that they still weren't convinced, Theodore sighed. "Hey, you're all Adventurers, not god damn paladins! Why do you care about vengeance on Void fiends so much? Frankly, money is more important. I'm speaking this from my title as an Adventurer, of course, nothing to do with me being a Saint."

"...I guess you're right."

"Good. Now go on ahead and ensure that no other bounty hunters or Adventurers can get here. I need to interrogate this Void fiend. Before you ask, it's church business, I can't tell you."

The others reluctantly nodded and began to secure the parameter.

Saint Theodore then approached Primel leisurely. Primel, not having been able to hear their exchange, exclaimed, "Saint Theodore! You came for me! Quickly, you must—"

"Shut the fuck up, blasted Void fiend!" Theodore gritted his teeth in anger and struck the ground right before Primel, breaking it.

Gulping, Primel stuttered, "I'm not a Void fiend! Don't you trust me?"

"Your days of deceit are over, Void fiend!"

"B-But you saw my power! And the Goddess, she—"

"Shut up! A vile creature such as you shouldn't utter her name!" Glaring into Primel's golden eyes, he scowled, "Yes, you were a Saintess, but unfortunately, the Goddess revoked the title from you."

Primel gasped in despair. "N-No! I—"

"Face it. As soon as you returned to being a Priestess, you got corrupted. Someone like you shouldn't even hold power in the first place."

"I—"

But Theodore ignored her and glanced over his shoulder. Seeing that the Adventurers were now sufficiently far enough, he sighed. "Sorry for that, I had to trick them."

Primel stared at him with wide eyes and her mouth agape. "W-What?"

"I had to trick them into finding you."

"O-Okay..." Primel nodded with uncertainty. "...Then what you told me before, is it—"

"Yes, I made it all up—"

Before she could heave a sigh of relief, Theodore continued, "—except for the Priestess part. It seems that the Goddess has really abandoned you."

"What?! That's impos—"

"Don't cause a scene," he put a finger to Primel's lips to shut her up, "check your Status if you don't trust me. Frankly, I'm surprise that you haven't checked it at all when your connection to the Light is weakened."

'Wait, he's right!'

That was why she felt so sluggish these days, and why her Healing powers took more Mana out of her than usual. If she was a Saintess, maybe she'd have not failed inside the governor's mansion. However, she quickly shook such thoughts off her mind. She hadn't checked her status yes, so there was still a slither of hope that Saint Theodore was mistaken.

"S-Status!"

=====

Name: Primel Lumen

Race: Human

Rank: C-

Strength: C+

Agility: C

Stamina: C-

Intelligent: D+

Mana capacity: C

Profession: Saintess of Light (Lv.4) —> Priestess of Light (Lv.1)

--

Affinities:

[High - Light magic]

[High - Holy magic]

--

Skills:

[S - Holy hand of dispel]

--REMOVED--

[B - Quick heal]

Heal allies and yourself quickly, at the cost of Mana and Life force.

[A - Quicker heal]

Very fast heal.

[S - Extremely quick heal]

Some says that this Skill can out-heal the pace that lava or acid damages a person's body.

--

Battle arts:

[III - Excerdys minor]

Deprived from the unique Battle art of Saint of Light Excerdys XVII, this battle art focuses on delivering the Goddess' judgment through the practitioner's fists and faith.

=====

Primel choked upon seeing her current profession. She gasped for air and slapped herself, desperate to escape from what seemed like a very, very bad dream. Unfortunately for her, Theodore stopped her.

"What are you doing?"

"This isn't real," she muttered with shaken eyes, "This isn't realThis isn't realThis isn't realThis isn't realThis isn't realThis isn't realThis isn't real—"

"Snap out of it!" Theodore shook her shoulder violently. Now that Primel's attention was wholly on him, he sighed. "Look, I know that it's a bit hard to accept but... I think you'll do just fine."

"..."

"Why did you become a Saintess in the first place?"

Primel closed her eyes to recall a distant memory. Burning houses, screaming children, figures clad in black killing everyone, and her parents shouting for her to get away quickly. Just as she was about to get consumed in rage, another memory appeared. It was of a kind inn owner who took her in when she was still wandering blankly in the streets of the Capital, not having any desire left to leave.

Collecting her thoughts, she answered, "To help people."

Theodore heaved a sigh of relief... and frustration. "When why were you so shaken?"

"...?"

"Can't you just help people as a Priestess?"

"Of course I can! But—"

"But what?"

Primel could have sworn that she had a smart retort, but she couldn't think of anything at the moment. As such, she could only shake her head. "No, nothing."

"Exactly. You can still help people. And your desire isn't to serve the Goddess, but to help people."

"..."

"Look," he sighed, "you can think about all of it after we get out of here. Now tell me, do you still want to live?"

Fierce determination flashed through Primel's eyes. "Of course!"

"Good." Theodore smiled. "I'll need you to tell me everything you saw at the governor's mansion once we get back to the abandoned church."

Primel nodded.

Seeing this, Theodore turned around and muttered, [Silence]. Taking out a sword from a rift in space, he agglomerated Space mana and raised it toward the direction of the Adventurers.

"Sorry, but I can't leave any loose ends."

The Adventurers, blissfully unaware of what was happening behind them, continued to secure the parameter. As Theodore was about to bring his sword down, Primel stopped him.

"Wait! I don't know what you're doing, but you want to kill them, right?"

"Yes. That much is obvious." He then narrowed his eyes. "Do you want me to spare them?"

"I-If possible, yes."

He sighed. "Look, they wanted to beat you up and burn you as soon as they saw you. Are you sure you want to spare them?"

"Even then... I think that it's just one big misunderstanding."

"Let's just say that you're right. However, I still won't change my mind. These... Adventurers, they're actually bandits. They hide behind the protection of the Adventurers guild and plundered as they wished."

Primel gasped. "T-That can't be the case!"

Theodore paused for a moment before answering, "Unfortunately, it is. A lot of lives can be saved if I kill them here." Tapping his foot on the ground, he reassured Primel. "And don't worry about the buildings either. I checked beforehand, they're abandoned."

With nothing to convince Saint Theodore otherwise, Primel sighed. "Fine, but at least make it painless." Then, she sat down on the ground and buried her face in her knees, covering her ears to detach herself from the inevitable.

"Of course I'll make it quick," Theodore smirked. "I don't intend on wasting any more time."

[The fourth movement of [V - World splitter]: Absolute split]