Youngest on Top - Chapter 185

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 185

* * *

I glanced back over my shoulder, my brow furrowing.
The children were still lagging behind me.

“You’re moving too slowly.”
“Honeybread is just too fast.”

As Dmitri responded, he materialized and swept four monsters away with a single sword strike.

“We’ve been cleaning up as we go, you know.”
“We’re not like Sae, just destroying everything and charging straight ahead.”

Edmund and Ilay landed on either side of me.
Behind them, I could see monsters being torn to shreds.

“Wait! There’s blood everywhere!”

Roana grumbled as she deployed a protective barrier.
They were arriving in succession, but many of the children were still falling behind.
I furrowed my brow.

“Don’t fall behind. Tell the three who arrive last that they’ll be doing extra studies.”
“…!”
“E-extra studies?!”
“But they ran all this way without even sleeping. Do we really have to do that?”
“Besides, the youngest will handle all the monsters anyway, so they came slowly without worry.”
“Sae, think about it again.”

I turned to face the four of them and clapped my hands sharply.

“If you’re all so concerned, then the four of you can do the extra studies instead. Fair?”
“These guys are really something! Even with a forced march, how can they be this slow?!”
“Three people for extra studies isn’t enough? Make it more!”
“How dare they arrive later than the youngest!”
“If others do it for them, they’ll develop bad habits.”

You’re all something else.
Watching the four of them shift their stance in an instant, I shook my head in disbelief.

“You’re all really too much.”

Enrik: Says the one who should talk!

* * *

“It’s the Artemia Temple! They came to rescue us from the Artemia Temple!”
“We’re alive! We’re alive!!”

The people who had fallen into despair embraced one another and reveled in their joy.
Their gazes naturally turned toward one place.
Toward the Sacred Maiden standing at the very front.

“To think that the Sacred Maiden of Artemia would personally grace such a small village with her presence…”
“The only chapel in our village belongs to Badarler.”
“Yet the Badarler priests never came, and the Sacred Maiden of Artemia came herself.”

Awe rippled through the eyes of the people.

“How merciful the Sacred Maiden of Artemia is!”
“Look now! That warm and radiant golden light!!”
“Ah, truly such a holy and compassionate radiance.”

That was when it happened.

“That’s just the light coming out because she’s having fun beating up monsters.”
“Merciful and compassionate fists, I’d say.”

At the voice from behind, the people turned their heads with confused expressions.
The priests of Artemia were standing a short distance away.

‘The explosions were so loud I couldn’t hear well—did they just say something to us?’

“Priests, what did you just say to us?”
“No! That is, our Sacred Maiden is truly merciful, we were saying.”
“Yes! Our Sacred Maiden Saelika is very compassionate and benevolent indeed.”

The startled priests laughed and waved their hands dismissively.

‘It’s a physical attribute, but…’
‘In a way, it’s genuinely merciful. One punch and they’re dead.’

The priests concealed their true thoughts and smiled kindly as they gestured to the people.

“It’s dangerous here. Please move toward the center of the village.”
“Yes, we’ll deploy a protective barrier for you.”
“Oh my, we’re so grateful…”

The people bowed their heads and followed the priests’ guidance.
At their complete lack of suspicion, the priests exchanged glances.

‘Thank goodness they didn’t catch on to the punching. We survived because the effect looked so flashy.’
‘Before they see through the act, let’s hurry them somewhere out of sight.’

As they led the people away, the priests looked up at the sky.
Golden light burst forth majestically, and Saelika’s fist shone more brilliantly than ever.

‘Youngest, please stop beating them up…’

No matter how much time passed, the youngest hadn’t changed one bit from her childhood self.
Perhaps that was only natural.
Saelika’s personality remained unchanged even after a thousand years.

* * *

The villagers treated the priests of Artemia with utmost hospitality.

“We would have been in serious trouble without the Sacred Maiden and you priests.”
“I heard the Sacred Maiden of Artemia was a recluse who rarely appears even at imperial ceremonies, but that’s clearly not the case.”
“They said there was some reason she hid herself like that… but it seems those were all just rumors!”
“Why are you bringing that up now!”
“Well, I felt it was unfair to her…”

Saelika shrugged her shoulders.
From their reaction, it was obvious what kind of rumors this ‘reason’ entailed.

‘Well, I have a rough idea of it myself.’

In any case, I hadn’t spoken with any malice toward these people.

“Come now, Sacred Maiden and priests, do try some of these.”
“These are figs our village takes great pride in. The honey flows like silk.”
“But….”

The villagers’ gazes turned toward the far end of the village square.

“Why aren’t those three priests over there enjoying the feast….”
“Ah, they’re standing guard in case there are any lingering monsters.”

Ilay answered quickly.

“Standing guard? Rather, it seems more like….”

They just looked like they were rolling around.
And so painfully, as if undergoing some kind of ascetic training….

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Clack!

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His voice carried a firm yet gentle resonance.
His lips curved in a gentle arc.

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“Y-yes…. Standing guard….”
“That’s right. What else could it be?”

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Looking at it again, rolling on the ground seemed like he was checking whether monsters might burst forth from the earth.
Of course, none of the monsters that had attacked earlier were the type to emerge from the ground.
In any case, everything this man said was correct.

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“By the way, I heard you all discussing heretical sects during the chaos earlier.”
“That, well….”

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Ilay had already grasped the nature of this village while pretending to enjoy the feast.

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He deliberately redirected the arrow away from heresy and toward Badarler instead.

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“Badarler’s domain? That’s ridiculous! They only sent one old priest to a tiny chapel!”
“Right! They don’t even help when we actually need them.”

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Now the villagers themselves were the ones bringing up the heretical sect first.
Their excitement combined with lowered vigilance had done the work.

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“A cult?”
“Wouldn’t those monsters from earlier flee to avoid the cult members?”
“How powerful must a god be for monsters to fear and avoid them like that!”
“After seeing today, I suspect it’s not a false god, but a forgotten ancient deity.”
“Do you happen to know the name of the god this cult worships? If it’s an ancient god, we might be able to identify it.”
“We don’t know that either. Only the cult members would know, wouldn’t they?”

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Ilay met Saelika’s gaze.
Saelika gave a barely perceptible nod.

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“I’ve asked all sorts of questions out of curiosity. Please, have a drink. I’ll pour for you.”

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A beautiful man could stir the hearts of even other men.

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After the banquet ended.
All the villagers had collapsed into sleep.
Today, events unfolded that they could never have imagined happening in their lifetime.

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“You’re really something, Ilay. You were so skillful earlier, weren’t you?”
“Skillful is…”
“It’s no wonder you became the leader of the underworld before your regression.”
“That epithet is seriously embarrassing.”
“Getting all this love from the older brothers! Wow! I couldn’t take my eyes off you, Ilay. Is this what they call a charming man?”

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Ilay looked at Saelika with a furrowed brow.
Saelika giggled, clearly enjoying the teasing.

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He smiled sweetly and bowed at the waist.

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Silver hair shimmered ethereally in the moonlight.
Ilay had completely shed his boyish appearance, now bearing the unmistakable visage of a man.
Saelika’s face was reflected in his honey-colored eyes.

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“You wanted to say I was handsome, so you went around in circles like that—.”

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A loud voice rang out sharply.

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It was their usual bickering, so Saelika merely shrugged her shoulders.
After some time, the quarrel between the two men began to subside.

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“What about the heretics in the village?”
“Gone. They must have hidden themselves the moment they saw us appear during the day.”

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“Some of the villagers might have even helped the heretics escape.”

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In any case, matters had become troublesome.
We had come to this village in the first place to investigate the heresy.

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At that moment, there came a knock and the door opened.

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“The injured will recover without major complications.”

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The two had just finished examining the wounded once more.

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“Among them, were there any cultists?”
“None. It seems the monsters really did avoid the cultists.”
“Hmm, for a charlatan whose goal is profit, they certainly possess real power.”

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Fundamentally, there was no monotheistic religion on the continent.
Nearly all religions were polytheistic.

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Therefore, different sects did not reject one another or cry out that the other was heretical simply because their doctrines differed.

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“Regardless of their true identity, cults are usually one of two things.”
“A group that follows a god that doesn’t exist. Or—.”

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A group following a non-existent god was almost preferable.
They were simply charlatans.

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A brief silence settled over the room.
Each of us lost in thought.

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“Should we dig deeper into this village? After all, the heretics lived here.”
“Or we could track down the heretics who fled. That might work too.”

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“The bonds between the villagers run deep. If we start digging into the heretics, it’ll create complications.”
“But we saved their lives. They seemed genuinely grateful—surely—.”
“Did you forget? This is Badalel’s territory.”
“We shouldn’t give him any leverage.”

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Just look at how they were spreading baseless rumors about the Sacred Maiden earlier.

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“What should we do, Honeybread?”
“What’s certain is that they’re not just con artists trying to extort money. They’ve caused real upheaval.”
“Then—.”

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The Eastern Artemia Temple Headquarters.
The temple, which had been quiet since Sacred Maiden Saelika’s departure, was unusually bustling.

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“The Emperor himself told Sacred Maiden Saelika that she would be exempted from the summons. Yet you’re saying she should comply? Has she forgotten the imperial decree!”
“This summons is not an imperial decree.”

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An elderly voice echoed through the temple.
The faces of the envoys who had brought the summons turned pale under the oppressive aura emanating from the High Priest.

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“Then, does Artemia intend to defy the summons and refuse to comply?”
“Sacred Maiden Saelika is currently on a pilgrimage, traveling across the continent.”
“No one can interfere with the Sacred Maiden’s pilgrimage.”
“Nevertheless, that pilgrimage must be halted.”

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Debon Elder bristled and stepped forward.

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“Because the Sacred Flame has awakened.”
“…!”

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The Sacred Flame.

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“Did you just say… the Sacred Flame?”

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Savior.

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—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————