novelraw Chapter 71 : Sin of Gluttony (1)
Chapter 71 : Sin of Gluttony (1)
Chapter 71: Sin of Gluttony (1)
To judge and punish those who walked the path of evil.
To cast the light of dawn from the East against the darkness that surged from the West.
That was the duty ‘Joanna Siondarc’ had borne from the moment she was born.
—“Sacrifice and endure. The blood and sweat you shed will save hundreds of thousands, even millions.”
A life as a Saintess was never easy.
Torture and execution were accepted as everyday duties.
To perform them well, she herself had to endure countless tortures, learning the essence of pain through her own body.
—“They are heretics and cultists. Do not forgive them—carry out justice. Foolish mercy will only invite greater calamity.”
She studied. She memorized. She carved it into her bones.
Killing the wicked was a sacred deed, a contribution toward the talents of the future.
At the age of six, she executed her first person.
By the time she was twenty, the number of those she had tortured and executed had reached four digits.
As a result, whenever she beheaded someone at the guillotine, or watched those burned alive dancing in the flames, she found herself gradually feeling pleasure—ecstasy even—in the act itself.
Countless screams and wails intertwined.
“Please spare me. Just once. I’m not a witch, nor a heretic!”
‘I wasn’t wrong.’
She had to believe that.
‘The great Saints and Cardinals said that what I do is righteous.’
She could not waver.
‘So, I must continue to fulfill my duty.’
She brainwashed herself—this was the right thing to do.
Otherwise, it would mean denying every step she had ever taken.
The Saintess gazed upon the execution ground.
Moments ago, she had just finished executing the bandits who had attempted a raid.
“Saintess, we’ve located the Apostle’s position.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you. I’ll be there shortly.”
Some embers still remained.
The dying warmth of sinners’ final moments—that was what the Saintess cherished most.
Until the last ash scattered into the wind, she wanted to savor this silence alone.
“Understood. Then we’ll make preparations for departure.”
The Paladin bowed and withdrew.
It wasn’t long after that—
“Chirp!”
A strange squirrel approached.
It dropped a small letter it had been holding in its mouth, then disappeared from sight.
“……?”
The Saintess carefully unfolded the letter.
[This letter began in England and has been passed along….]
As she read the opening line, her delicate eyebrows furrowed deeply.
Whoever sent this—how dare they pull such a prank amidst the grave circumstances of the Apocalypse?
She was about to toss it aside when her eyes caught the next sentence.
[By the way, doesn’t the God of Light become completely useless once the lights are turned off?]
Crack.
A vein pulsed on the Saintess’s smooth forehead.
Blasphemy.
Whoever it was—they had touched the one thing that should never be provoked.
[Ah, then. Would you like to believe in the God of Luminescence, who shines even at night? I just came up with it, but it’s omnipotence itself — unaffected by darkness. As it happens, I’m planning to hold the first gathering. I’ll even tell you the place and time.]
The blasphemy didn’t end there.
“Y-you dare…!”
The Saintess’s cheeks trembled with fury.
O-World.
The time was exactly one hour from now.
The letter also said that acorns would be left along the way — a trail to follow.
[P.S. It’s nighttime right now, so if you’re too scared to come, I’ll understand, lol.]
She made her decision.
She would tear the one who sent this letter into pieces.
＊＊＊
Step.
A burst of divine power illuminated the entire sewer.
Samuel, who had been swinging his spear, turned toward the figures who suddenly appeared.
Paladins and priests affiliated with the Vatican—and…
“Saintess…?”
There was no doubt.
That dignified yet perilous presence—
The beautiful girl radiating terrifying killing intent was none other than the famed Saintess, Joanna Siondarc.
He had no idea how she had discovered this place’s location.
But one thing was certain—
She was absolutely furious.
“Wait a moment, there must be some kind of misunderstanding—”
“Most holy Saintess!”
Just as Samuel tried to speak, Johan hurriedly interjected.
His eyes welled up like those of a wounded deer, his expression pained.
“It’s all him! He’s the one who conspired with the Boss Monster to trap countless innocents! He’s the one who committed blasphemy! Everything—everything was this wicked man’s doing!”
With the Saintess’s Holy Eye, she would easily discern whether he had made a pact with a Boss.
“So, there was yet another who fell for vile temptation.”
The Saintess murmured coldly, her gaze fixed on Samuel.
Of course. She had taken the bait perfectly.
Use barbarians to hunt barbarians.
That was always the most effective tactic—especially when both were savage beasts.
Up to this point, the plan had been flawless.
The problem was…
“Kill them all.”
…Huh?
“They are all sinners who have committed grave sins. I shall skip the trial and declare Judgment of Dawn upon them at once.”
What the hell.
What kind of trial skips straight to execution?
Wasn’t it customary to at least reward the informant?
Curses rose up his throat, but Johan barely managed to compose his face.
Losing his temper here would only mark him as a fool.
Besides, in Lee Jaehwan’s prophecy, three who challenged the Saintess and died hadn’t yet been identified.
“Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but I have a video.”
The so-called Baby Saintess video.
A digital nuclear bomb that could devastate her reputation if released.
“Unfortunately, that issue has already been resolved. An insider handed over the phone where the video was stored.”
“Hi! We meet again sooner than expected!”
A blue-haired girl wearing a snapback peeked her head out.
It was Reina Blades.
“You…!”
Johan’s expression twisted instantly.
He had offered her a place to stay for cheap—and she’d betrayed him in the end.
You’re getting a front-row ticket to the Human Plant Exhibition.
[Seed of Living Spirit activates!]
He wouldn’t kill her—he needed her alive—but he’d make her experience the bizarre sensation of plants sprouting from her nostrils.
However—
Contrary to his confident declaration, Reina showed no reaction at all.
“Sorry, but I didn’t eat that seed. I’ve been through a lot, you know. Did you really think I wouldn’t prepare for poison?”
Using spider threads hidden between her teeth, she had tightly sealed her esophagus.
She had swallowed it, but it got stuck halfway—never reaching her stomach.
Tch. One point to her.
As expected, they weren’t easy opponents.
Next time, he’d need to connect the funnel straight down to the stomach before inserting it.
[The Saintess activates Lv2 ‘Holy Benediction’!]
KUKUKUKUKU!
A roaring wave of golden light surged forth.
“The light that rises from the East shall drive out the darkness of the West!”
“Leave not a single one of these vile heretics alive!”
The enraged Paladins and priests charged forward.
KWAKWAKWAKWANG!
KWAANG!
The sewer turned into a living hell.
Hunters of the Twinsword Guild fought desperately to defend the passageways.
Various defensive skills overlapped, casting blue glows over their equipment.
CRACK!
THUD!
Bones shattered, flesh was torn apart.
The damp air filled with the stench of blood.
SHRRAAA….
Golden chains extended, lashing toward Samuel.
CLANG!
As the chains scraped the ground, trying to snare his ankle, Samuel barely leapt aside in time.
Because of that, another unfortunate comrade was caught instead.
“Uwaaaah! S-save me!”
A grim gallows rose before them.
The man, strangled by the chain, gasped his final breath.
But only for a moment.
Crunch!
His neck twisted at a grotesque angle.
It was truly a dreadful ability.
Every one of her powers was specialized for taking lives.
“Another soul has returned to Your embrace. May they find peace there.”
Seeing the Saintess smile brightly at the dangling corpse sent chills down their spines.
“Rodbrock! Lagertha! This way!”
Johan shouted from around the corner.
“Kahahaha! I nearly went to Valhalla three times already! What a fine place, filled with fierce warriors!”
“They’re all… so strong. Thanks to you calling those fanatics, Brother Johan, we managed to catch our breath for a moment—but what now? Do we keep fighting?”
Lagertha, who had just treated Lee Jaehwan, pulled out a staff made of a ram’s skull.
“No. From now on, we’re getting out of here as fast as possible.”
He had no desire to be the shrimp caught between whales.
Fortunately, since the Saintess seemed more interested in Samuel’s side, there was an opening to escape.
“What! A warrior running away from battle? Such shame upon these muscles!”
“Then I suppose we’ll leave you behind, Rodbrock, while the rest of us go.”
“…But a wise warrior also knows when to retreat.”
You should’ve said that from the start.
The sewer was complicated, but they had roughly memorized the layout.
Led by Johan, the group moved swiftly.
But everyone was mistaken about one thing.
In this damned Forbidden Book, there was always something beneath the floor.
Even the moments they thought were the worst were nothing more than fleeting calm before the next horror.
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWANG!
With a deafening roar, part of the sewer collapsed.
Something from above had smashed straight through the ground.
Thud.
Thud.
Amid the falling debris and scattered stones...
A long, serpentine head slowly descended.
It was fear incarnate.
“So… here… you were…”
Eyes burning with fire.
Drool dripping thickly from its jaws.
An aura that radiated pure hunger and starvation.
Everything about it was unnatural.
Even those who had been locked in battle stopped fighting all at once.
One of the Seven Deadly Sins—Gluttony, the Sin of Consumption.
The Boss Monster of this episode had manifested.
＊＊＊
Before a predator, all life froze.
Even those who wished to flee found their bodies paralyzed, crushed by the overwhelming presence.
“Hungry… soft flesh… hot blood… and brains. I want to taste… brains.”
CRACK!
A thin, withered hand snatched up a Paladin.
What kind of arm stretches over ten meters?
“Ugh… Aaaaargh!”
The captured Paladin stabbed at the hand with his sword, but not a single scratch appeared.
Pleading for mercy was meaningless.
The Paladin’s body slowly disappeared into the gaping maw above.
His head vanished.
Then his torso.
Crunch!
Crack!
A torrent of blood rained down the passageway.
Damn it.
They had to run.
Before everyone was slaughtered.
“Run!”
Johan shouted at the top of his lungs.
Tatatata!
“Get back!”
Even the Saintess and her Vatican followers—
“We’re retreating too!”
Even Samuel and his men scattered in every direction.
[Gluttony has entered a state of ‘Starvation’.]
Indeed, Samuel had the air of a veteran.
Normally, someone who had allied with a Boss Monster would assume they were safe from its attacks.
But Gluttony, once driven into starvation, devoured everything—friend and foe alike.
He must have known that, which was why he decided to flee immediately.
In fact—
Schreeeek!
The sound of the mighty Double-Headed Serpent being torn apart alive echoed vividly through the tunnels.
Was that… something to be grateful for?
It was a pity for the poor serpent, but the creature was quite large, so at least it would buy them a few minutes.
“Heh heh. I was almost about to snuff out its last breath. I suppose I don't need to take that poor creature's soul.”
“Huff huff. Master! Sambok! I fought hard!”
“Could you put me back into the Subspace? Mmm….”
Sambok had already come up beside them.
What on earth was he saying.
It was obvious to anyone that he had been through a brutal fight.
He should have wiped the blood from his nose before trying to act tough.
Johan hastily shoved Sambok back into the Subspace.
“Shouldn't we get out! If we stay in such tight spaces we'll be overtaken!”
Rodbrock kept watching their rear as they ran.
It felt as if Gluttony’s hand could snatch at their backs at any moment.
“Leaving now would be more dangerous.”
The amusement park above had already been fortified by Gluttony.
If they charged straight in, it would be total annihilation.
Without Valentina, their odds were almost zero — they had to inflict damage in the sewer where the creature was less familiar.
‘At least one of its arms.’
If possible, it would be best to take out one of the organs the creature had pulled out of its body for ranged hunting.
They already had a place in mind.
They would set a trap there and then strike back.
Just then.
Glub.
The sound of Gluttony swallowing the last chunk of flesh echoed.
It was the signal that the real hunt had begun.