Chapter 16: Chapter 16

Chapter 16: The Secret of the Blessing

Leon had smiled at the voice he heard as his consciousness was fading.

He did not know why Reinhardt — who should have been in the north — was here. No, that had never been the important part.

A savior had shown up at the moment his death had been certain. Leon decided to shove aside every question and cling to the single possibility that he could live.

Even Superbia seemed to recognize Reinhardt.

That meant she knew his strength — perhaps she could have turned tail and fled.

“Do you honestly think you can beat me, brat?”

But what came from Superbia’s mouth was not what Leon had expected. She spoke with full contempt, mocking rather than fearful.

“You may have changed a lot from before, but you’re no match for me.”

Reinhardt neither confirmed nor denied. Instead, he asked the fallen Leon,

“You were badly hurt.”

After that, Reinhardt took a water flask from his bosom. He splashed water over Leon’s body.

Water from the flask dampened Leon’s head. His red hair absorbed the water and fell heavy.

To his surprise, Leon felt the violent turmoil in his body quiet down.

“It’s holy water. A precious thing the Holy Kingdom could only make five or six of a month. It should be enough to reapply the blessing you lost.”

Reinhardt had seen Leon’s condition clearly. The red of his hair covered about half, so it had not been hard to tell.

“Long time no see, Duke of Kellyburn. Have you grown thin? You look leaner than the last time I saw you.”

Reinhardt addressed the Duke of Kellyburn. His tone was informal for speaking to a duke, but the duke seemed not to care about Reinhardt’s manner.

“Long time indeed, Northern Frontier Count. But I’d rather discuss what we should do with that monster than exchange pleasantries.”

“That won’t be hard.”

Reinhardt turned his head and spoke to Superbia.

“Superbia, how about you and I withdraw for now? There’s too much to lose if we fight here.”

Superbia sneered. She smoothed her disheveled hair with her hand.

“You’re dreaming. Reinhardt, if you and I fought now, what do you think would happen to the people behind you?”

“And you still talk to me about what you’d lose?”

In an instant, a threatening aura gathered in Superbia’s eyes. The energy billowed like heat haze in her pupils as she wore a chilling smile.

“If you were going to ask, you could at least show some courtesy.”

“……Is that so? Did my words sound like a request to you?”

A power burst from Reinhardt that dwarfed what had come before. The nearby Duke of Kellyburn and Leon were thrown backward.

The sensation raised goosebumps — a dense murderous intent so thick it felt like the presence of an evil war god.

At the same time, the ground around Reinhardt cracked like a spiderweb.

Rumble rumble rumble—!!

Not only that. Each step Reinhardt took upended the earth, causing successive explosions.

Dust erupted with every step. The dust obscured Reinhardt’s body, cunningly hiding him beneath the sun’s rays.

“You just told me I was dreaming, didn’t you?”

Before she realized it, Reinhardt stood directly in front of Superbia and looked down at her with composed eyes.

“I’ll return your words exactly as you spoke them. Don’t delude yourself, filthy demonic beast. Your neck is still attached because I have people I must keep alive. And yet you dared to say you would kill people in front of me?”

Superbia’s arm fell heavily to the ground.

At the same time, blood spurted from her shoulder.

Superbia widened her eyes. She had thought she hadn’t taken her gaze off Reinhardt — and indeed she had not relaxed in front of him.

Rather, she had sharpened her senses.

That was why she realized Reinhardt’s warning was sincere.

‘Has he really become strong enough to actually kill me?’

For the first time in her life, Superbia felt genuine alarm. No — it was actually the second time now.

The first time she had felt such a threat had been when she was in the north.

‘Humans have become far stronger than I expected. I should tell my kind—’

Superbia frowned at the pain in her abdomen. She brought her hand to her stomach and let out a small laugh.

“So that was it. It wasn’t that you had grown stronger, Reinhardt. I had weakened.”

She looked at Reinhardt with a hint of relief on her face.

“You’re right; now is the time to step back. Next time we meet, I’ll make sure to take your head, so keep it well guarded.”

She left, carrying the arm that had fallen to the ground, saying only those words.

She strode away leisurely, vanishing with unhurried steps.

By the time she had completely slipped from sight—

“Leon, bring that fallen man over here. If we don’t treat him now, he’ll die.”

Reinhardt said in a low voice.

Fortunately, Mikelan’s injuries were not life-threatening. He would need months of recuperation, but considering he had faced a humanoid demon beast, his wounds were relatively minor.

And it was all thanks to Reinhardt.

“I pay my respects to the Empire’s sword! I am Mikelan, captain of the Kellyburn household guard!”

Kellyburn spoke with a voice so military-sharp it made ears sting.

“Good. It seems you fulfilled your duty as a guardian to the end. Well done. Now you may rest.”

Mikelan dropped into a stiff, formal seat. He had many injuries; he probably wanted to lie down immediately, yet simply because a knight stood before him he maintained his upright posture.

He seemed to idolize knights quite a bit.

Reinhardt’s focus soon returned to another matter. He had been worried about Leon, whose blessing had been stripped away.

Reinhardt examined Leon’s body here and there. His face was unusually serious. Reinhardt, who normally laughed loudly and easily, looked stern .

Leon suppressed his anxiety and waited for Reinhardt’s examination to finish—

“Fortunately, there’s nothing wrong.”

Reinhardt breathed in relief.

“The blessing was simply peeled away for a moment by the demon beast’s trickery. Thanks to the holy water, the blessing reclaimed its sanctity; your body shouldn’t break apart now.”

“I have a question about that. Why did my body begin to fall apart the moment the blessing vanished?”

Leon already roughly knew the cause. But he didn’t speak unless he was certain.

So he looked to Reinhardt for a definitive answer—

“Don’t you remember what Superbia said? You were kept alive by the Blessing of Growth Suppression. I once wondered why the gods would give you such a useless blessing, but I never imagined you’d carry that much potential within your body……”

“Simply put, my body couldn’t keep up with my growth rate?”

“You had some idea, then. Your body possessed an exceptionally excellent quality as a warrior. If Superbia had completely erased your blessing, your body would have been ruined beyond my ability to fix. Right now you’re alive only because of my first aid. You’ll need a proper diagnosis from a physician.”

Leon nodded. He still remembered how his body had grown when the blessing had been only slightly stripped.

It was his body, but it was hard to believe. In short, his body had a constitution that never stopped growing, not even for a second.

An unbelievable constitution. How on earth could a human body grow without resting for even one second?

But it was true. As evidence, Leon’s physique had become slightly larger than before.

‘My eye level changed. That must mean I got taller.’

That was not all. The density of his muscles and bones had multiplied. At the instant the blessing weakened, his body had enlarged its own vessel.

It was good in a way, but the thought sent shivers down Leon’s spine.

The process of bodily growth had been horrific. Muscles twisted; bones filled in. ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel•fire.net

He never wanted to feel that again.

Leon felt deep gratitude toward Reinhardt.

What if Reinhardt had not come here?

Everyone here would have died before they could even gather their bones.

Even if he had miraculously escaped the demon’s corruption, he would surely have died because his body couldn’t keep up with the growth rate.

‘It’s an absurd talent.’

A body that couldn’t match its own growth speed—on one hand it seemed like a blessing, on the other it was terrifying.

“Count Reinhardt, I have one question. The Holy Kingdom’s holy water — is that something I could obtain as well?”

Thus Leon asked about the holy water Reinhardt had used.

According to Reinhardt, the holy water had restored Leon’s blessing.

They might encounter demons again. He needed to prepare for that possibility.

“Hmm. I see what you mean.”

Reinhardt nodded as if he understood Leon’s concern.

“But now the holy water would be useless.”

“You can’t restore a broken vessel to its original state. What I did this time was merely to reattach your body at the point just before it would have shattered. Even if the blessing were stripped again, holy water wouldn’t fix it.”

“Because I was forcibly patched together after being on the verge of breaking?”

Leon sighed. He couldn’t express how disappointed he was that the holy water wouldn’t help.

“Still, don’t worry. It’s only that the holy water won’t work. There are countless other methods.”

“Really? What methods are those?”

“The ideal method would be to receive the blessing from the god again. Cases where someone regained a lost blessing from the deity are rare but do exist. If you live earnestly, the god might acknowledge your efforts.”

“‘Ideal’ meaning there are realistic options too, right?”

“Of course. You must become strong enough that your body can keep pace with your growth rate. Every person has limits. I, Zeke, and other knights are no exception. If you push your body beyond its growth limits faster than it grows, you’ll survive.”

Leon’s eyes filled with disbelief.

Reach the body’s end before the blessing is gone. How could that possibly make sense?

Kellyburn voiced Leon’s thought as if representing him.

“You talk nonsense at length, Northern Frontier Count. Enough of that useless chatter—let’s be on our way.”

It was a remark Leon found intensely relatable.