Apostle of the Goddess of War

Chapter 134

Ch.134 Apostle of the Goddess of War

Sion stood holding his sword. It wasn’t a one-on-one duel, but a match where he would face both of them simultaneously.

“Give it your best.”

Sion spoke nonchalantly, lightly spinning his sword. Swish. Both Set and Jien gulped.

‘Incredible.’

Set stared nervously at his brother… the new Apostle of the Church of War. Even when he tried to find an opening, he couldn’t see any.

Even though Sion was just standing still, leaning on one leg. It felt like if he tried to ambush him, his head would fly off instantly.

‘This is my chance. A chance to make an impression. I have to land at least one effective attack so he remembers me.’

Jien held a twisted mix of respect and affection. She also adjusted her grip on her sword and began circling Sion along with Set.

She and Set often worked in sync. Even if their personalities didn’t match, they were a good combat duo.

She had been confident against most opponents.

……That was, until she faced Sion.

Swish!

Set, who had been watching for an opening, charged. He stomped the ground off-beat from Sion’s blind spot.

The first move was a thrust from the blind spot, making the blade invisible. It was an excellent ambush.

But.

Chaeng!

An ambush of this level was a sloppy attack that Sion could parry without even seeing, thanks to his combat sense. He was reading their movements with divine power, and even without it, he would have figured it out quickly.

Sion swung his arm without looking and deflected the thrust.

The moment Set’s body staggered heavily, Jien seized it as her attack timing.

Pahat!

Jien kicked off the ground and leaped into the air.

She performed an acrobatic move above Sion’s head and swung her sword.

‘Precisely and quickly, just like we trained!’

Jien’s blade flashed in the air. But she soon realized she was only cutting through empty space.

The distance should have definitely reached Sion’s head. Yet, she felt not even the sensation of her sword hitting anything, let alone the feeling of cutting.

Jien realized belatedly.

She had been so focused on her own movement that she was late to notice her opponent had disappeared.

Thwack!

The next moment, a dull sensation spread across the back of her neck. Her breath caught in her throat, and then her face slammed into the ground.

As Jien’s body crumpled to the floor, Set’s sword strikes followed in succession.

“Haaaat!”

Tak, chang!

Sion effortlessly blocked those strikes and began instructing.

“Set. You put too much force into it. Your torso is exposed.”

Thwack!

Sion’s kick held no mercy. It was a rough kick, forceful enough to potentially break ribs.

Whoosh!

Set flew past Jien again, and Jien, ducking her upper body to avoid Set, then charged at Sion as if they were switching places.

She was fast. Jien rushed in like lightning, swinging her sword.

Sion narrowly dodged her attacks, again and again. An exchange of blows ensued, always seeming like they might connect but never quite doing so.

‘He’s doing this on purpose!’

He gives hope, only to lead to despair. He induces self-destruction through impatience.

‘No. I have to land at least one wound!’

Jien imbued her blade with a stubborn hope.

Sak!

A swift sword strike.

The blade, swung in a diagonal upward arc, split the wind with a sharp sound.

But Sion’s figure still remained unseen.

“Ah, again?”

“There’s too much distraction in your sword. You’re not even looking at your opponent? What are you doing during a duel?”

Sion’s voice, now carrying anger, was heard.

Bbaak!

Jien also flew far away, just like Set. A mouthful of blood spilled from the impact on her back.

“Kk, ugh!”

Jien trembled as she lifted her head.

This time, it was Set who charged at Sion.

Perhaps because he was a bit excited, even Jien could see he was full of openings.

As expected.

They exchanged less than two bouts. His strike was blocked, his leg got tangled, and he fell flat.

Kiiing.

Sion’s sword lightly touched the back of Set’s neck.

Jien couldn’t get up either. Set had no choice but to admit defeat.

“That’s enough.”

Sion made a ‘Hmm’ sound and sheathed his sword.

His eyes were filled with disappointment.

The two were called over by Sion to receive feedback. Sion was usually a gentle and affectionate Apostle, but when it came to training, he was as merciless as the sword he wielded.

They almost felt it would be better to undergo Kegan’s harsh training.

“Set. Have you been training properly at all? What do you think will happen if you get that excited facing an opponent? It’s like you’re obsessed with wanting to die.”

“……I’m sorry.”

Set hung his head.

Sion grumbled that he hadn’t shown even 10% of his training results.

“It’s not that you didn’t show 10% of your training results; it’s that you have no training results. Training doesn’t betray you.”

“……”

He was cold. Was he being more cruel because Set was his brother? Every word Sion spat out felt like it was breaking bones and chewing flesh to pieces.

As Set nodded, promising to do better, Sion’s eyes turned to Jien.

“Jien.”

“……Yes! Your Apostleship.”

“What’s with you?””Huh?”

“Why was there emotion in your sword? It wasn’t killing intent, nor was it fighting spirit. What was it?”

Sion tilted his head as if genuinely perplexed. But his eyes, which seemed to know everything, couldn’t hide his displeasure.

“……I’m sorry. I wanted to look good.”

“Excuse me?”

Sion asked coldly.

A moment of silence passed.

“I wanted to show you my good skills… to leave an impression.”

Jien said, slightly trembling. Being scolded by her idol. Her heart felt like it was breaking.

“You’ve certainly left a deep impression. A bad one.”

“……”

Jien bit her lip firmly. Sion stared at the still-young war knight with a sharp gaze.

“Is exchanging blows a joke to you, Jien?”

“N, no.”

“Have you ever seen anyone fight like that? Do you intend to go to the battlefield with such a frivolous heart?”

“……”

A thunderbolt seemed to strike Jien’s spine. Her back felt not just chilly but stiffening rigidly.

“I was wrong.”

“In a real fight, you won’t even get the chance to say ‘I was wrong’.”

“……”

“Keep today’s events in mind.”

Sion stood up. It seemed he had decided to make dinner himself.

It was a considerate gesture, giving the remaining two some time to review the match.

Set quietly took a deep breath. His discouragement was brief; he sat in the lotus position and sank into meditation.

Jien, after watching Set, did the same. Thinking that since it was Sion’s brother’s meditation posture, this must also be Sion’s method of meditation.

When she closed her eyes, she felt depressed.

She wanted to cry right away.

Hic.

Far from leaving an impression on her idol, she had only caused disappointment. Her image must have worsened. But—

‘He became even more likable. He’s cool even when scolding someone, hehe……’

Jien liked Sion even more now—the Sion who could be affectionate but also cold and blunt when necessary.

‘Still, I should reflect.’

Jien tightly shut her eyes and replayed Sion’s movements in her head, as if engraving them.

Sion smiled faintly as he chopped potatoes into the soup. Tok, tok. Invisibly, quietly.

‘They’re more skilled than I thought.’

***

Set and Jien smiled even as blood trickled from them.

The sparring continued the next day as well. But now the difficulty level had increased.

Sion gradually intensified it. At moments, it felt less like sparring and more like a real battle.

Set and Jien realized anew just how terrifying the ‘real battle’ and ‘battlefield’ Sion had been emphasizing since yesterday were.

They realized it was on a completely different level from missions undertaken with a group.

Therefore, the two faced the sparring with a much heavier and more serious mindset than before.

They coordinated attacks, protected each other, and barely managed to block the Apostle of the Goddess of War’s onslaught.

“Haaak, haaak.”

“I, I’m gonna die!”

“Let’s stop here for today. We’ll probably arrive in Foils by evening anyway, so it’ll be hard to find more time.”

Set and Jien, panting heavily, bowed with difficulty.

“Thank you for the instruction!”

“We learned a lot! Your Apostleship!”

“Let’s rest a bit before moving.”

“Yes!”

Set and Jien threw themselves into the river, lay in the current, reviewed the spar, and expressed their regrets.

I should have blocked it like this then, I shouldn’t have dodged but countered!

They exchanged opinions, pointed out regrets, and learned.

Sion watched that scene with a pleased expression.

[It’s just like when Garfenn and I first saw you.]

The Goddess Achille, sitting quietly beside Sion, spoke to him.

Sion tried to get up, saying, ‘Ah, Goddess.’

[Sit, Sion. I want to be comfortable with you.]

‘I’m the one who’s uncomfortable.’

Achille flinched and trembled.

[H, has this Goddess ever made you uncomfortable?]

‘No. It’s more that……’

[More that?]

‘It’s nothing. Please sit.’

Sion cleared the spot next to him. Even though there was no physical impact, he took off his cloak and spread it there.

Achille accepted Sion’s consideration with a slightly awkward but grateful expression. Now that she thought about it, this was the first time she received such treatment from an Apostle.

[Sion, you treat me like a human?]

‘Sorry—’

As Sion abruptly stood up to bow, Achille panicked and waved her hands.

[No! No! That’s not it!]

‘Huh?’

Achille smiled gently.

[This Goddess likes that you treat me without formality. I want to be close with my Apostle. I do.]

‘Hmm……’

Sion nodded with difficulty. He added that he thought he understood what she meant.

‘You were close with my teacher too, right?’

[Yes, yes, that’s right. Actually, Garfenn was really hard to get close to at first.]

‘Really?’

Achille stared into the void as if looking at the past. A smile like a blade of grass rested on the Goddess’s cheek.

[He was such a dark child. Well, at that time, this Goddess was also going through a difficult period, so I pretended to be as dignified as possible. I wasn’t really in the mood for it either.]

The Goddess Achille let out a sigh. Hooong. Sion picked up on something else.

‘Pretended to be dignified?’

Achille went ‘Oops!’ and covered her mouth.

She had unknowingly confessed her own persona.

[It’s nothing!]

‘Ahem.’

Sion smiled brightly and thought. This Goddess is more easygoing than I thought.

[Anyway. I want to build a good relationship with you too, Sion. It’s also pleasing to see you leading the children of War well.]

The Goddess Achille uttered these embarrassing words without any hesitation. Perhaps feeling ashamed of being honest with her emotions is a human concept.

‘The honor is mine, Goddess.’

[Huhu, good.]

Sion changed the subject.

‘By the way, any new news?’

[Huh?]

‘Well, information you get from interacting with other Goddesses, or……’

At Sion’s casually thrown question, the Goddess became speechless.

[……]

‘Yes?’

[……]

‘Hmm.’

Sion tilted his head.

‘Goddess?’

Achille’s face was bright red.

[I, I have no Goddess friends to interact with……]

‘Ah.’

[Although I’m running around everywhere alone, I haven’t been able to bring back any significant news yet. I’m sorry, my Apostle.]

‘Ah.’

Sion slapped his forehead! Thwack!

Then he immediately got up and drew his sword.

‘Order me to commit suicide!’

[ Let it be, Sion. It is this Goddess’s fault.]

‘I’m sorry.’

[You have done nothing wrong, Sion. It is because this Goddess is incompetent.]

‘That can’t be. It’s my fault! I should have made friends for you, Goddess!’

The Goddess couldn’t tell if Sion’s words were teasing or not.

Then again, perhaps her inability to discern that was why she couldn’t make friends.

Achille hung her head, then, struck by a sudden thought, spoke up.

[W, well, there’s Emily!]

‘There’s also Goddess Menesia.’

Sion pointed out specifically. They were now in a conditional cooperative relationship with the Church of Wisdom. Even if she had no friends, she had a Goddess to talk to.

[Ahem.]

‘Why don’t you visit them sometimes for tea or something.’

[Are, are you saying this Goddess is bothersome?]

Was she found out?

Sion didn’t show it and spoke, remembering his teacher’s words that an Apostle must get used to the Goddess’s constant, untimely appearances.

‘It’s to prepare for war. Information is important, right?’

Sion boasted. The Goddess agreed, brushed off her seat, and stood up.

[Your words are right. Even though Menesia is quite unpleasant, I must embrace her with my broad heart and magnanimity now.]

‘Well said.’

[Understood! I shall go! I will gather precious information and return!]

‘Please do!’

[Alright! My Apostle, you go to Foils and collect information too!]

The Goddess, full of energy, vanished like smoke, and Sion scratched his cheek.

‘What a cute Goddess.’

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