Youngest on Top - Chapter 54

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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 54

It was a small fragment of a green blade.

‘Carrying something like this only makes her resemble that Reyatan bastard even more. No wonder she’s so irritable and hot-blooded.’

Saelika held up the green blade fragment and shouted.
She reinforced her voice with sacred power, making it ring throughout the Arena.

“Reyatan cheated! (Reyatan used foul play!)”

Foul play?
Cheating in a sacred gathering?
All eyes turned back to Saelika once more.

“Foul play, foul play! Look here! (Cheating, cheating! Look at this!)”

The announcer, quick to catch on, grabbed Saelika’s hand with a magical artifact for broadcast transmission.

Soon, a massive image of a green serpent statue appeared on the display board.
Those who saw what the child held in her hand flinched.

“That, that is!”
“Isn’t that one of the sacred relics of the Reyatan Church?”
“The broken Sicilis!”

The spectators, drawn by the commotion, could immediately recognize what lay in Saelika’s hand.

The broken Sicilis.
That sacred relic possessed two very famous effects.
One was Amplification.
It literally amplified abilities and sacred power.

“Then, did the Sacred Maiden use a sacred relic to perform that ‘Integration’ earlier?”
“Insane! That’s cheating!”
“Did she think it wouldn’t be discovered? She has some nerve!”
“Weren’t the competitors inspected for sacred relics before the match?”
“Then this means Reyatan orchestrated the cheating!!”

The Sacred Maiden is the very identity and symbol of the Temple itself.
The face of the Temple and the will of the Temple.
For such a Sacred Maiden to lead the way in committing a foul—
how could anyone trust that Temple?

“Wait. Then that final attack just now as well….”

The second effect of the shattered Scylla.
It was none other than summoning Reyatan’s Scythe.

“Oh my, that’s right. The Sacred Maiden used Scylla!”
“Using a sacred relic to kill that child? She’s absolutely insane.”

Now that I thought about it, something was off.
From the start, she had targeted that child who sat quietly.
A spectator drew in a sharp breath.

“Didn’t she know beforehand that this child was special and deliberately keep looking for openings to attack?”
“Ah, that’s right. Now that I think about it, Reyatan has to defeat Artemisia to enter the Octagon.”
“So she was trying to kill a special existence!”
“Even if you’re obsessed with status, how could you do that to a child!”

The crowd jeered at Reyatan even more loudly.
A single foul—an unprecedented disgrace in the history of the Assembly.
And to resort to such a despicable tactic to nip the bud of a promising child!

“That’s why Reyatan isn’t in the Octagon.”
“I thought so from the beginning. The greatest among non-Octagon Temples? That’s ridiculous.”
“The greatest non-Octagon Temple is Derteria. Derteria is quietly solid.”
“Reyatan was honestly just a hollow show of strength.”
“And they boasted so disgustingly about it.”
“They must have done it because they lacked confidence.”
“To be honest, I never understood why people compared Reyatan to Artemisia. Artemisia’s history is so remarkable.”

Shedmen trembled with his head bowed low.
Despair, frustration, and overwhelming rage consumed his entire being.
Yet no matter how angry he was, there was nothing he could do.

He cautiously glanced around from the corner of his eye.
The expressions of those seated in the VIP section had turned glacial.

“Pathetic.”

Count Noris muttered under his breath.
The faces of the Reyatan Priests flushed crimson as if about to burst.

Shedmen squeezed his eyes shut.
His anger had already dissipated, leaving only a craven and contemptible core exposed.

“I, well, you see, what happened was—.”

It was the very moment Shedmen hastily attempted to make excuses.

“So then.”

Anatullio High Priest opened his mouth with grave weight.
His silver eyes gleamed colder than ever before.

“It seems there is much that needs to be said.”

Shedmen’s neck shrank under the pressure of Anatullio’s presence.
Not only had Artemia won, but their own rule-breaking had been exposed.

Above all, the Reyatan Temple would not protect Shedmen.
He was the one responsible for this gathering.
They would attack him mercilessly to sever the tail.

Most of all, Anatullio High Priest was a terrifying man.
With justification alone, he could crush someone like Shedmen with a single finger.

“I, that is, High Priest, it all stems from a misunderstanding—.”
“Be silent.”

Anatullio continued slowly.

“The sound of you squealing like a pig only displeases me, so say no more.”

It was completely opposite to what he had said about having much to tell me.
There was only one reason.

‘He’s trying to confess by claiming I said nothing!’

“Ah, ah, Anatullio High Priest!”

Shedmen forgot all dignity and collapsed to his knees on the ground, bowing his head.

“P-please forgive me. This was, that is, the Sacred Maiden did this all by herself…!”

Anatullio High Priest glanced at him.
His eyes were cold, as if looking at an insect.

“Take him away.”

The High Priest’s robes fluttered heavily as he passed by Shedmen.

* * *

After the competition ended.
Trainee Priest Quarters.

“Sae!”
“Our youngest!”
“Man, you really gave us a fright! What was that, what was that!”
“You adorable little sweetie!”

The children rushed toward me with radiant faces.
They practically charged at me, embracing me in their arms.
Then they ruffled and stroked my hair like madmen.

“I really thought our sweetie was going to split in half!”
“Truly the greatest fist…!”
“The mightiest fist that shatters even Reyatan’s scythe…!”

The children, who had been gazing at my fist with sparkling eyes, suddenly flinched.

“Wait, hold on….”
“…our fate of being hit by that fist….”
“Huh? Being the strongest, most supreme fist doesn’t seem all that great?”

The children’s cheerful grins faded quickly, replaced by excited whispers.
But their faces were radiant with joy and pride.

‘We never gave an inch against Reyatan, not for a single moment.’

We had overwhelmingly dominated them instead.
When the Sacred Maiden used ‘Integration,’ the children were admittedly startled.
But even so, we didn’t lose—we converted everything to blue tiles.

We won against the Reyatan Temple with the Sacred Maiden, and we did it without our own Sacred Maiden!

That alone would make our hearts swell, and yet even that Sacred Maiden’s area-wide skill was only possible through a rule violation.
Just a few months ago, we were utterly crushed by Reyatan.
There was no way not to feel proud.

The children giggled and spoke.

“Well, still, having the strongest, most supreme fist is better than being weak.”
“Yeah, it hurts a bit when we get hit! But at least our youngest isn’t out there getting beaten by everyone else!”
“Our youngest Artemia has the strongest, most supreme fist!”
“And that Artemia, who isn’t even a Sacred Maiden, turned the Sacred Maiden into a rag.”

I let out a groan.

“I get it, so let go of me….”

They were hugging me so forcefully that I felt like I’d be squashed flat as a pancake.

“But is Sae stronger than the Sacred Maiden?”
“Not just stronger than the Sacred Maiden. Stronger than the Sacred Maiden using sacred relics. She shattered it with one hand!”

Perhaps it was because I’d never received this kind of attention and expectations from everyone before.
I felt oddly embarrassed and flustered.
This was the first time everyone rushed toward me with cheers.

“I got lucky. Helene had exhausted herself trying to use Integration beyond her ability’s capacity.”

Embarrassment made my hands fidget nervously on their own.
I glanced away into empty space and spoke haltingly.

“Helene received help from the broken Sicilis to summon Reyatan’s sickle, but she could only manifest its form—nothing more.”

The form was massive and imposing.
But the power within it was hollow—an empty shell.

“That’s why Sae was able to shatter it.”

As I spoke, fear suddenly gripped me.

I tried to soothe my own heart.
There was nothing to fear.

It was just that I had expended far too much sacred power.
This feeling came from nearly becoming a child again.
It would fade after proper sleep and food.

But this was the first time everyone had welcomed me like this.

‘What if the children think I’m incredibly amazing?’

That anxious thought kept creeping back in.

Of course, I was stronger than the trainee priests now.
I had been an angel once, after all.

But compared to Amelia, I was ordinary.

Of course, Amelia had used my sacred power.
Yet no matter how much sacred power one possessed, without proper control like Helene lacked today, it was useless.

‘Amelia’s sacred affinity was extraordinarily high.’

She could wield magic at the level of an Elder, or even a High Priest.
And as the Sacred Maiden, she wielded it far more powerfully.

‘…I’m not actually that remarkable. I’m just benefiting from having been an angel in my past life.’

On top of that, thanks to my regression, I simply know more than others.
If that weren’t the case, I would—.

“Idiot!”

Startled by the sudden voice, I lifted my head.

“What do you mean ‘that’s why you could break it’! You just did well!”

A child shouted.
Then the other children chimed in enthusiastically.

“That’s right! You’re amazing!”
“….”
“Really. You’re incredibly amazing!”
“….”

Even Roana spoke with her eyes narrowed.

“Why are you suddenly hanging your head? That’s not like you!”

I quickly lifted my head, which had been bowed.
The children all had their hands on their hips, their expressions fierce and determined.

“Don’t say such things so easily! Can just anyone do that?”
“Who dares belittle our youngest’s achievement!”
“Just summoning the form alone was already a Reyatan’s sickle!”
“Breaking through that is amazing in itself!”
“Sae, you’re amazing!!”

Each child was beaming at me with bright smiles.
I stared blankly at their faces.

The children snorted warmly through their noses.
Their faces brimmed with pride, confidence, and… unwavering faith in me.

‘Ah….’

My throat felt oddly ticklish.
I was happy, but I didn’t know what to do with myself.
My chest, my nose, my eyes—everything tingled.
I had never felt this way before.

During my time as an angel, my brothers scolded me constantly.

“Did you go beat up someone else’s children again?!”
“I’m terrified of letting you out into the world, absolutely terrified! How many protests from other gods do you think we’ll get this time?!”
“Are you hurt?! You’d be better off going around beating people—”
“Teaching good things?”
“—I almost said!”

When I lived off Amelia’s sacred power, everyone treated me as worthless garbage with only sacred power to my name.

“P-please, I’ll use my sacred power directly. I’ll do whatever you ask! So please don’t take it from me…. Extracting my sacred power hurts so much. So please—.”
“Ha, what could someone like you possibly do?”

I had no good memories of being surrounded by people.
They would mock me and roughly grab my hair as they spoke.

“Just because you happened to be born with a lot of sacred power, you think you’re something special?”
“Sacred magic requires affinity too, you know!”
“Do you really think you could ever match the dignity of Amelia, who is blessed by the gods?!”
“A worm like you, so greedy and ambitious.”

—I heard such things countless times.

I tried not to shrink away, but truthfully, old memories would sometimes surge up unexpectedly.
When they did, I couldn’t help but feel like a worthless worm who didn’t know my place.

But the people of Artemisia acknowledge me when I make an effort.
They say I’m the best, that I did so well, that I’m amazing….

I let out a silly laugh.
My eyes felt a little warm.
And I gently patted the top of my own head.

“Sae did well. (You did well, Sae.)”

—Like the moment I heard praise for the first time.

The children cheered loudly in agreement, shouting with delight.
Some of them pushed through the ones in front and thoroughly messed up my hair.

“You did great!”
“Teach me what you did just now!”
“I want to learn first!”
“Hey, that’s a secret technique. You think I’d teach it? I’m not an idiot.”
“I’ll teach you.”

The children’s faces went wide with shock at my words.

“You’ll teach us?”
“Yeah!”
“Why, why…?”
“It’s good when my brothers do well. That’s why Sae likes it when the children grow stronger.”
“…”

Suddenly, silence fell among the children who had been chattering noisily.
They simply stared with wide eyes, saying nothing.

“So all that fierce hitting was because…”
“It was all because we’re brothers…?”

The children coughed awkwardly, clearing their throats.
With embarrassed faces, they scratched their heads and rubbed their necks.
Their actions differed slightly, but they all stared into empty space the same way.

“Well, when did we start thinking of you as our brother? From the beginning…?”
“Well, if that’s what you think, you could call her sister, or, ahem!”
“Ah, no wonder you worked so hard… Our house doesn’t take in adopted daughters, but well, if you want, I could speak to them…?”
“I didn’t know Sae thought that way… Wait, why is adoption being brought up? If anyone should do it, it should be me since I’m closer to Sae than you are!”
“Nonsense. Sae likes me the best. I’m the only one who took three hits to the solar plexus!”
“Solar plexus? Hey, ever heard of the pit of the stomach? That’s a vital point. Why am I mentioning this? Because I got hit there.”
“Solar plexus? Pit of the stomach? Ha, you’re making me laugh again. I literally brushed death’s door!”

What had seemed like a heartwarming conclusion suddenly turned into a quarrel.

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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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