Chapter 42

[Perfect Success! You’ve triggered your Daddy’s emotion!]

[Hidden Skill “Purification” activated!]

I watched the festival of pure white light—only visible to me—and grinned.

‘Come to me, you walking XP bundles!’

Daddy, let’s level up!

* * *

Derek was reminded of the day he became a holy knight at the age of fourteen.

Everyone at the temple had called it a blessing. For over fifteen years after that, he was praised as he cut down enemies in service of the Order.

And among all that time, one moment had never left him.

The day he first became a holy knight.

— My child.

It had felt as though he’d heard the voice of God.

But he’d long dismissed it as an illusion. A moment of hubris. A fantasy conjured in the heat of ceremony.

Yet now, that day came rushing back.

Just moments ago, after sending his teammates out and pausing the trial, Nemesia had whispered to him:

“Daddy… later, you’ll be released when I call for you, okay?”

During the trial, no teammate could approach Nemesia, the designated “defense attorney.”

They were physically bound to their area, unable to leave it.

Nemesia had said that if everything went well, he wouldn’t need to do anything and would be allowed to leave when it was over.

But the problem was when things didn’t go well.

“At that point, the hostages… won’t look human anymore. We’ll need to take them out first.”

She was right.

Things hadn’t gone well, and when one of the monsters—no longer human—grabbed the child,

A bluish gleam flashed in Derek’s eyes.

He stretched out his hand, and a dark blue glow gathered to form his favorite weapon: a greatsword.

He reverently pressed his lips to the pommel.

“O God… Grant me the strength to eliminate the aberration and purge the wicked.”

“…If it comes to that, you’ll have to deal with the two monsters that turned into hostages first.”

“Keep me from being blinded by darkness. Let only the truth fill my eyes.”

Despite having stepped out of the designated zone, no force restrained him. The ground and ceiling were trembling violently, as though on the verge of collapse.

“And this is… a race against time. If this space collapses, we’ll be trapped here… with those monsters.”

From the moment he met Nemesia, her words had never once been wrong.

Derek followed the child’s words as if they were divine commandments.

And so—

“Daddy!”

The moment his child cried out, he was already leaping forward with his greatsword in hand.

“…As you command. My child.”

Shhiing!

Nemesia’s eyes went wide.

The arms of the monsters holding her had vanished without a trace.

The monsters screamed a beat too late.

— Aaaaagh!

— It hurts! It hurts! Hurts so bad! Hurts like hell!

The creatures, who just moments ago had mocked her in human speech, now shrieked in monstrous tongues.

Nemesia quickly stepped back. Curiously, a faint blue barrier began forming around her.

She looked up and saw the back of the man whose sword now dripped with black blood.

She swallowed hard.

‘His performance… is insane.’

That’s the kind of character Derek was in-game.

Hard to care for. Painfully tricky to raise. But if raised well, he could reclaim the glory of his past—an ex-hero Guardian.

And on top of that…

‘Well, he’d better be doing this much.’

Nemesia looked down at her own hands.

Her body—radiant, glowing brighter than ever. Then she turned her eyes to Derek.

The darkness was slowly peeling off his body, replaced by a vivid, blue aura.

Nemesia grinned.

‘I went all-in.’

‘…My body feels light.’

At the same time, Derek thought as he swung his blade.

It wasn’t an illusion.

He had felt brief moments of clarity every time Nemesia used her “Purification” on him, but it had never lasted long.

Still, it made life bearable, so he had never dared ask for more.

But now…

It felt as though that divine energy was wrapping around his entire body.

Derek understood why.

— Aaaaargh!

— I’ll never forgive you!

— I won’t! I won’t!!

He cut down another one of the “hostages.” With each strike, the dark energy on his blade thinned.

He could feel it in his bones.

The corruption was being forcibly subdued…

“And once I’m completely out of energy… I’ll pass out, and the power I gave Daddy will disappear too.”

The objective was clear.

Destroy them all before the space collapsed.

And before… Nemesia’s power ran out and she fainted.

“…Do you really think that’s possible?”

“Uh-huh. I believe in you, Daddy.”

Was this what it meant to be a pope?

He didn’t know. Nor did he believe he had the right to ask.

“For a little while, I’ll bring back your prime.”

“…”

“Be a hero again.”

He saw her bright, smiling face.

And at the same time…

A light—pure and holy—shone even brighter, visible only to Nemesia.

He wanted to protect that smile.

At last, the dark corruption that cloaked Derek’s body withdrew, revealing a dazzling blue aura around his blade.

His now-clear blue eyes locked onto the last remaining monster.

The Judge.

— Oh…?

— You’re its child?

— A knight, huh?

The Judge remained unfazed, even with all the fake hostages gone.

“Remember, Daddy. It’s only for a moment…!”

— You can’t kill us!

— Because we don’t die.

— We don’t!

Derek ignored the monster’s words and tightened his grip on the hilt.

No matter what anyone said, he had once led the vanguard in every war.

He had once torn apart a world-ending phenomenon far beyond this low-grade paranormal anomaly.

And so…

For one brief moment.

He felt what it was like to be free of corruption.

‘I’m aiming for a single, decisive strike.’

Funnily enough, battles between human and non-human were often decided by a single mistake—or a single genius move.

“O Lord…”

Even now—

Shhhiiiing!

His sword slashed through the Judge’s eye.

— Wha!?

— You arrogant worm!

— Die!!!

Derek twisted mid-air, tightening his forearm.

“…Grant me the strength that exceeds all regulation.”

With the divine power fueling his strength and form—far from human—

BOOM!

He exploded with force.

This was his one and only strike.

The moment the vertically cleaved monster’s head hit the ground,

He staggered slightly.

‘The corruption…’

Was it 3 seconds? No, maybe 5 in mid-air?

The full purification had only lasted a few seconds.

But that was enough.

— Aaaaaargh!

— Aaagh! Aaaaargh!

The split form of the monster—the shadowy figure inside—sprayed black blood like a fountain.

* * *

[Unbelievable Feat Achieved! First Ever Paranormal Boss Defeated!]

[Reward granted for first-time defeat!]

‘Holy… he fights like a beast.’

I stood there, jaw dropped.
 

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Translator: Japchae