On the street—
“Haah, haah...”
Lin Ling was currently leaning against a nearby wall, panting heavily.
“No offense, but your stamina is way too terrible.”
Ichikawa turned his head and could still see the tavern they had just left, which meant the person in front of him had run less than a thousand meters before ending up like this.
“I... I didn't do any prep, and now I'm thrown straight into the test.”
After speaking haltingly, Lin Ling finally stood up straight and looked at Lina, who was following beside them.
It was hard to believe that her current stamina couldn't even match that of a child who had just recovered from a serious illness.
“By the way, why are we in such a hurry to cause trouble for the Holy See anyway?”
Picking a fight with the Holy See was a novel experience for Ichikawa, who used to suffer from social anxiety, but he still needed a proper reason.
“Do you want to experience what that guy did?”
“Give me your hand.”
With a cold expression, Lin Ling extended her hand to Ichikawa. There was no better way to make him understand why she had been so furious than to let him experience that sensation firsthand.
“What are you doing now?”
Experience what that guy did? What could a member of the clergy even do?
Ichikawa had stayed at the Capital Holy See even longer than Lin Ling, and the books of the Holy See contained no spells designed to harm people.
Indeed, there weren't any, but mana itself could be used as a spell to cause harm.
As Lin Ling's mana began to flow into his body through his hand, Ichikawa felt a violent burning sensation in his magic circuits. The Hero's blessing on his body immediately began to flicker.
His body's instincts warned him that accepting any more of this mana would be highly dangerous.
Seeing the magic surging within Ichikawa, Lin Ling released his hand and looked at him with cold eyes, explaining her action.
“That guy's so-called treatment was nothing more than directly injecting mana into this child's body.”
“So the consequence is...”
Ichikawa thought of the intense burning sensation he had just felt inside his body.
“It's mana devouring itself. Forcing mana inside causes a conflict between the body's original mana and the external mana. That's not treatment at all.”
“...”
As a Hero, Ichikawa had practically read through all the magic books of the Holy See with Karl's help.
Directly injecting mana into a body could indeed act as a boost if accompanied by proper magical assistance, or if the injected mana was moderate in quantity and sufficiently pure.
But if a massive amount of mana was violently and forcefully injected, it would not only cause a severe burning sensation but also inflict irreversible damage on the recipient's body.
In the worst-case scenario, the magic circuits would completely collapse, leading to death.
Human spellcasting relied entirely on chaotic external mana, unlike the demon race, who converted it into pure mana within their bodies.
The so-called therapeutic effect was merely the depletion caused by the mana inside Lina's body devouring the chaotic, forcefully injected mana.
Aside from forcing Lina to endure unbearable pain during the “treatment,” this method had absolutely no therapeutic effect whatsoever.
If the person injected hadn't been Lina, a child of mixed demon blood, there would have been absolutely no chance of survival.
That so-called big brother, when faced with a father and daughter seeking help, had actually used a method that could only be described as hostile...
Standing beside them, Lina noticed the sudden silence. She reached out and gently tugged Ichikawa's hand.
“Big Brother Ichikawa, let's hurry to the Holy See.”
“If we're too late, we won't make it.”
Lina looked up and smiled at the grim-faced Ichikawa.
In the next moment, Lina felt herself being pulled into an embrace.
“Lina, did the 'treatment' hurt a lot?”
“Mm... a little bit. But seeing how worried Papa was, Lina didn't want to be sick anymore, so I had to be a good girl and receive the treatment.”
Just a little bit? Impossible.
When Lin Ling had used this method on those soldiers this morning, their agonizing screams had already proven otherwise.
“You won't need any more treatments in the future. Lina is already all better.”
“Lina is such a good girl. But you mustn't lie next time, okay?”
Having said that, Lin Ling made eye contact with Ichikawa, who was holding Lina.
The slight trace of doubt on Ichikawa's face had completely vanished.
Indeed. If they didn't hurry, he really wouldn't be able to hold himself back.
Niya, who had been standing beside them all this time, saw the grim expressions on Miss Saintess and Ichikawa's faces. She reached out toward Lina.
“Leave Lina with me for now. You two should go do what you need to do.”
Hearing Niya's words, Ichikawa handed Lina over and looked at Lin Ling, who was already prepared.
She had already extended her fist toward him.
“Is the Hero ready to cause a scene?”
“Right now, I'm fully fired up.”
There was no trace of social anxiety on Ichikawa's face as he bumped her fist.
“I haven't even told you two where the Holy See is yet!”
But the moment their fists collided, a golden teleportation magic flashed, leaving behind only the fading remnants of the spell.
With a flash of teleportation magic, the two of them finally appeared safely at the entrance of the border Holy See—
Though the holy cathedral itself looked rather ironic when contrasted with the dilapidated surroundings.
Walking toward the gates, Ichikawa kicked the massive, tightly shut door with great force.
Thud!
The birds nesting in the few trees of the Holy See scattered in all directions, startled by the loud impact.
Hearing the noise, a finely dressed man walked out from inside the Holy See, a hypocritical expression plastered across his face.
“Oh! My, may the Goddess bless you. It is truly the Holy See's dereliction of duty for not welcoming our two guests immediately.”
As the man walked out, the doors of the Holy See were forcefully pulled open from both sides.
The glamorous fellow walked up to Lin Ling with light steps and open arms, his gaze never even lingering on Ichikawa for a single second.
“I am a priest here. You may call me Zakum.”
With a smile on his face, Zakum opened his arms toward Lin Ling, seemingly intending to give her a hug.
But the moment he took a step forward, he felt as though he had been targeted by an incredibly terrifying existence. It felt like if he took another step, his head would be severed from his body, causing his feet to freeze instantly.
His narrowed eyes swept over the cold glares of Lin Ling and Ichikawa. The smile instantly vanished from his face, replaced by a troubled expression.
“It seems you two do not particularly care for such a welcome.”
Zakum shrugged, acting indifferent as he stepped aside to gesture them in.
“Since you have come all this way, why not step inside the Holy See and have a seat?”
“The Goddess will guide you through your confusion.”
Putting on his smile once more, Zakum watched Lin Ling as she started walking, a hint of joy flashing in his eyes.
It seemed this beautiful lady was still a little “confused” after all.
Watching the two of them step completely through the gates, Zakum gestured to the sisters standing on both sides of the door.
A group of weary-looking sisters immediately stood up and began to close the massive doors with great effort.
Had the entire Holy See returned to silence?
Rate on N.U.
