Youngest on Top - Chapter 267

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

Chapter 267

“Hehe, now the real show begins.”

A soft voice echoed through the empty air.
And in the next moment.
There was no one atop the bell tower.
As if there never had been.

* * *

I fidgeted with my fingers for no particular reason.

‘What’s this? Why does it feel so awkward?’

I rarely felt uncomfortable around other people.
Yet somehow, when I was with Shuri, I found myself restless and uneasy at times.

Just then, Shuri pointed behind me and spoke.

“There’s an insect over there.”
“Where?”

I quickly threw a punch without hesitation.

‘There’s no insect?’

But why was Shuri spreading his arms like that?
As I looked at him in confusion, he lowered his hands and spoke.

“You’re not afraid of insects at all, are you?”
“Why would I be afraid of that? I’m stronger than any bug.”
“…I suppose so.”

Shuri nodded slowly and muttered.

“…Useless fools.”

What’s that sound all of a sudden?

Shuri, who had been frowning as if displeased about something, caught sight of me and let out a soft laugh.

“Looks like some of that awkwardness has melted away.”
“….”

I wondered why he’d suddenly played such a prank.
My heart felt oddly ticklish.

“Well, I welcome you being self-conscious around me.”
“I-I wasn’t being self-conscious about anything.”
“The way you’re acting so self-conscious makes me wonder if that blessing wasn’t just a simple one after all?”
“I wasn’t being self-conscious.”
“Isn’t it wrong for the Sacred Maiden to bless someone with selfish intentions?”

Shuri laughed.
It was a perfectly transparent laugh.

Shuri’s eyes widened as he looked at me.

“So you really did bless me with selfish intentions?”
“I didn’t….”
“Then why is your face so red?”

A long, slender finger touched my cheek.
His knuckles were firm.
Suddenly, I became aware of how close we were.

“W-wait—.”
“It’s getting even hotter.”
“Wait, something….”
“Something?”

Before I knew it, Shuri’s face was right in front of mine.

“You can feel it too, can’t you?”
“…You certainly are bold.”

Shuri sighed as he spoke.
My spine tingled with unease.

“No, that’s not it!”

I bolted upright from my seat.

“I can feel something beyond the Gate!”

Through the Gate, I sensed an anomaly from the outside world.

‘I’m not sure exactly what’s happening, but…’

Shuri sighed and rose to his feet.

“I thought we’d finally escaped those meddlesome people, but circumstances aren’t cooperating. The fact that I can sense turbidity this clearly means something has definitely gone wrong.”
“We need to find a way out of here quickly.”
“Right, that way the Sacred Maiden can have peace of mind.”

We headed toward where the Gate was located.

‘How did turbidity appear in the middle of the Sacred Realm? There are so many temple branches there that it shouldn’t be easily contaminated.’

But if we’re talking about what’s strange, this place was even more so.
Turbidity infiltrating a space made of sacred power didn’t make sense in the first place.

‘The only one who could penetrate turbidity into this place is Misa… Could it be—is what’s happening outside also Misa’s doing?’

My heart raced with urgency.
I had definitely defeated the mirror demon that Misa was controlling.

‘How is he able to influence the human realm like this?’

Amelia, who had received aid from a high-ranking demon in our confrontation.
The aura of Misa dwelling within Shuellina, who had pretended to be me.
Diana, who had likewise pretended to be me, was Misa’s subordinate.

If something goes wrong with the Grand Sacred Maiden’s Coronation, my very qualifications will be called into question.

‘Is Behemoth really helping Amelia while obstructing me to this extent?’

Is it truly…?

‘I would rather.’

It would be better if this were merely a scheme orchestrated by Amelia and the Parmanase Temple.

My head spun with vertigo.

What was I supposed to do?
If the impending calamity itself were also Behemoth’s doing—

‘—Should I kill Behemoth?’

“Sacred Maiden.”
“….”
“Saelika.”

My fists clenched so tightly that I lifted my head.
Shuri was gazing at me.

“If you force it like that, you’ll only hurt your hands.”
“Ah….”

The turbid energy sealing the gate crackled and coiled around my hands.

“You must have some suspicion about something.”
“….”
“That’s why you’re so agitated like this.”
“….”

How did Shuri know?
I hadn’t said anything.

“Can’t you tell me either?”

Eyes blending golden, azure, and crimson light gazed upon me.
Watching that mysterious symphony of light, my lips parted of their own accord.

“There’s someone I’ve known for a long time—a terrible person, but I thought he at least maintained some basic decency. Turns out I was wrong.”
“….”
“Well, he was always a bad person, so there’s nothing surprising about it.”
“That—”

Shuri’s expression grew quite serious.

“—Is it a man?”
“….”
“It seems like it’s a man.”

No, really.

“What does it matter to the Sacred Maiden what some other man does besides me?”

Shuri grinned widely.

“The Sacred Maiden likes me.”
“…Are you still saying that?”

I turned my head sharply at his absurd words.
But something was strange.
My mood had somehow improved considerably since earlier.
Thanks to that, I could speak lightly.

“The kidnapping I experienced as a child might also be connected to that man. Though the Parmanase Temple was the one who orchestrated the kidnapping itself.”
“…The Parmanase Temple.”
“I defeated the kidnappers and lost consciousness at the scene. I lost a bracelet and a scarf at the kidnapping site—.”
“So the Parmanase Temple had them.”

I nodded.
Zaphrez had the scarf, and Shuellina had the bracelet.
Both must have received them from Parmanase.
Only there’s no evidence.

“It means they arrived at the scene faster than the Perardin Noishurael Duke’s knights. The Parmanase Temple should not have known about my kidnapping at that time.”

The reason Parmanase kidnapped me was clear.

‘It must have been to create irreversible misfortune for the Duke’s House, already reeling from the Duchess’s death.’

So that Amelia could save the Duke’s House from its quagmire!

Getting closer to Ardin by promising to find his daughter was part of it too.
Planting a spy by Demian’s side and handing him the Demon Sword in that opening—
it was all part of the plan.

‘In fact, it succeeded before the regression. It just didn’t work this time because I appeared.’

Shuri asked.

“How is that ‘bad guy you don’t need to worry about’ connected to the kidnapping incident?”

…What a lengthy descriptor that was.

“He arrived at the scene before the Parmanase Priests did.”
“….”
“And he took me to an orphanage sponsored by the Parmanase Temple. While hiding my identity.”

My identity had been concealed by magic that only someone of Mikhail’s caliber as an Archmage could unravel.

“Before the regression, you awakened as a Sacred Maiden in that orphanage. So you experienced such things.”
“I didn’t even know I was a Sacred Maiden back then.”

Shuri’s expression darkened.
It seemed to be because he had just vividly witnessed my past.
I quickly waved my hand.

“But it’s okay! After the regression, I escaped from that orphanage right away!”
“….”
“Thanks to that, I lived well at the Artemia Temple!”
“If— you hadn’t been kidnapped in the first place.”

Shuri lifted his head and looked at me.

“If you had been returned to your family’s embrace immediately, even if you had been kidnapped.”

Meaningless hypotheticals spilled from my lips.
But I couldn’t help but think about it anyway.
What if things had been that way?

“If that were the case— I would have been so very happy.”

The things I directly witnessed and experienced through the bracelet my mother made for me.
Precious, warm, and joyful moments.

“I surely would have been happy.”

I would have been filled with ordinary, certain happiness.
Then at some point, I would have awakened as the Sacred Maiden, and they would have come looking for me at the Artemia Temple.

Randel would have come.
Kaiser might have been with him.
After all, Kaiser had waited for the Sacred Maiden more than anyone.

And the Artemia Temple would have thrived with the massive support of the Perardin Noishurael Duke’s house and the Ekkelan ducal family.

But.

‘If that had happened, I might not have regressed at all.’

I would have had no reason to recall my past life as Artemia’s Messenger.

“…Then.”
“But I had to experience all of it.”

I smiled.

The me from my time as an angel and the me now are not the same.
The me before regression and the me now are different as well.

People said it.
That I, as the Sacred Maiden, made the Artemia Temple strong and led it forward.

‘But that’s not actually true.’

The High Priest, the Elders, the Fathers, and more than anyone else— the Children.

‘They made me strong.’

By guiding me, I became a solid person.
One who doesn’t yield to any past.
So that’s why.

“In the end, I had to go through all of it. It hurt terribly— truly hurt enough to die.”
“….”
“But I went through it all, and that’s how I became who I am now.”

I smiled wryly.
Shuri stared at my face blankly.
Gradually, his expression softened.

“I knew you’d say something like that.”

For some reason, his words made me feel awkward, so I added more.

“Actually, it’s also thanks to Your Majesty.”

Feeling bashful for no reason, I avoided Shuri’s gaze.

“By facing my past as Your Majesty said and breaking it myself, I was able to become stronger.”
“…That’s enough.”
“…?”

What does that mean?
Before my confusion could even fade.

Kuuuuung!
The gate that had been still began to operate.
Shuri had placed his hand on the gate’s core.
The sealed curse responded, rising across his skin.

“…!”

In that instant.
A violent surge of turbidity erupted from within.

“What in the—.”

Then, my body was suddenly shoved.
Shuri had pushed me.

“Your Majesty!”

My body tilted as I was sucked into the gate.
Shuri grinned wickedly.

“I have something I need to do.”

I reached out desperately, but Shuri retreated.

“Don’t worry. I have the Sacred Maiden’s blessing.”

* * *

Beyond the gate lay a landscape like hell itself.

“This way! Come this way!”

The one saving grace was that the Sacred Maidens were present for the Grand Sacred Maiden’s coronation ceremony.
But even that had its limits.

“It won’t work. I’m suppressing the holy power within my body.”
“…Is it because Amelia is trapped?”

Saelika had not yet completed the full ceremony as the Grand Sacred Maiden.
The Sacred Maidens who had sworn oaths of submission to Amelia remained under her influence.

“Deploy the defensive formation!”
“Evacuating the people is our priority!”
“We’ll establish the formation, so priests guide the people to safety!”

At least the Sacred Maidens of the Grand Cathedral—Elizabeth, Dolores, and Anastasia—deployed powerful holy defensive formations.

The enemy wasn’t a demon—it was an ordinary person transformed into one.
No matter how drastically they’d changed, I couldn’t simply kill them.
Deploying a defensive formation was the best choice.

True to form, the demonic beings couldn’t breach the three defensive formations we’d each erected.
But.

“Aaaaargh!”
“No, no way! There’s a monster here too…!”

The people who’d taken refuge inside the defensive formation transforming into demonic beings was unavoidable.

“Ugh! This is so frustrating—can’t I just kill them?”
“I understand the feeling, but they’re still people. People.”
“How are these even people anymore!”

Surprisingly, Helene, Zabelina, and Eyrene were holding their own.
It was because they attacked the demonic beings without hesitation.

“…Perhaps it’s possible because they lack the sacred nature.”

Nelije marveled at this.
Roana, standing beside her, clicked her tongue.

“That’s not what matters right now. We need to analyze this while Kaiser and Randel are holding them back. Edmund, have you figured anything out?”
“…That something’s wrong, at least. Even purification doesn’t work.”
“What?”
“To be precise, I can purify them. But—.”
“It’s useless. No matter how much I purify them, new turbidity keeps rising up.”

Ilay picked up where Edmund left off.

“It’s as if infinite turbidity has been planted within these demonic beings.”
“…!”
“Dmitri!”

Ilay called out to Dmitri.
Dmitri was holding back five demonic beings alone.

“I don’t understand all those complicated things. But it’s definitely different from dealing with monsters. Rather—.”

Clang!
Dmitri swung his greatsword as he continued speaking.

“…It feels the same as when we faced another temple.”
“…!”
“…!”

The faces of the Artemia Priests stiffened visibly.
Dmitri rested his greatsword against his shoulder as he spoke.

“Well, that probably isn’t the case.”

Ilay’s expression grew grave.
He said it probably wasn’t the case, but in battle, Dmitri’s instincts sometimes surpassed logic.

‘If Dmitri’s instincts are correct—.’

That thought didn’t continue further.

“Where is the High Sacred Maiden!”
“High Sacred Maiden!”
“Why won’t you save us!”

People had begun desperately calling out for the High Sacred Maiden—Saelika.
When no response came, their desperation began transforming into anger.

“I knew it! The High Sacred Maiden herself was the problem!”
“Otherwise, why would this happen at the coronation ceremony?!”
“So it was true after all! They said the wrong Sacred Maiden was chosen…!”

Anger spread like a contagion, pushing fear aside.

“The gate is malfunctioning too!”
“Isn’t this happening because she isn’t the true High Sacred Maiden!”
“Bring Lady Amelia!”
“Lady Amelia saved me before!!”

My anger toward Saelika transformed into hope for Amelia.

“The Divine One has shown their wrath!!”
“Amelia was falsely accused through an absurd conspiracy!”
“We must place Amelia on the altar of the Grand Sacred Maiden right now!”

Saelika had not yet become the Grand Sacred Maiden.
Voices calling to rescue Amelia from her prison gathered strength.

“Now listen! That’s complete nonsense—gack!”

There were quite a few who tried to object, but they were inevitably attacked by the Demons.
Among the panicked crowd, no one noticed this fact.
The voices calling out Amelia’s name grew stronger and stronger.

Just as the atmosphere reached its peak.
A clear voice rang out through the air.

“I have come to save all of you in place of Amelia, who is not present here!”

It was the Priest of Parmanass!

“Amelia was concerned about such matters and shared her power with me.”

The priest raised her hand for all to see.
On the back of her hand was inscribed Amelia’s sacred stigma.

“Ooooh!”
“As expected of Amelia!”
“The true Grand Sacred Maiden!!”

The people cried out.
Hope began to bloom on the faces of those who had been in confusion.

“Is, is it really true?”
“So it truly was Amelia, not Saelika….”

The Priest of Parmanass smiled.
In the moment her sacred stigma began to glow crimson.

Crack—!
A deafening roar tore through heaven and earth.
And then.

“What is this? Why are you blocking the path?”

Saelika appeared.
Trampling the Priest of Parmanass beneath her feet.
A radiant halo crowning her head.

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