This was bad. Very, very bad. Honestly, it was a complete disaster.
Inside the medical tent, surrounded by knights who were essentially just waiting for death to take them, Neneva had unleashed her holy power. In an instant, she had healed them almost completely.
Unlike that time with Garon, she couldn't just handwave this away as "a rare type of recovery magic." This was a literal, undeniable miracle.
The knights and the Captain who witnessed it had immediately begun a massive uproar, shouting about the Saint’s Advent. To make matters worse, Garon had jumped right into the fray.
As it turned out, Garon was well-acquainted with members of the Asterion Knight Order besides just the Commander. He used his own restored leg as living proof, practically preaching about Neneva’s greatness to anyone who would listen.
The Asterion Knight Order and the Mercenary Band had been on the losing side of a Monster Parade of unprecedented scale. Now, a Saint had suddenly descended from the heavens—a true beacon of hope.
Word raced to the front lines in an instant, and before we knew it, we were being officially welcomed as the Saint’s Party. There was no going back now. And then...
"Knight Order Commander! The Saint’s Party has arriv—"
"GuGooooo...!!"
"Commander, please wake up! The Saint is—"
"GuGooo, GuGooooo...!!"
A thunderous snore erupted from within the tent, sounding for all the world like a slumbering dragon. The Captain, who had been shouting at the entrance, turned back toward us, scratching his head with an apologetic wince.
"The Knight Order Commander is in there?" I asked.
"Yes..."
"GuGooooo...!!"
The snore seemed to boom in response. The Captain’s expression grew even more awkward.
"Why is he sleeping?"
"The Parade continues day and night. During the night, the Commander holds back the monsters almost entirely by himself... That’s why—"
"GuGooo, GuGooooo...!!"
"So he sleeps during the day?"
"Exactly."
Fighting off a swarm of monsters alone all night, and doing it for days on end? The Commander of the Asterion Knight Order was clearly a freak of nature—a monster in his own right.
"Go... cough, hack... huff, puff..."
The snoring finally cut off, replaced by the sound of the Commander choking on his own breath. Seizing the opening, the Captain poked his head into the tent and shouted once more, "Commander! The Saint has arrived!"
Silence fell for a moment, followed by the metallic rasp of armor scraping together. Finally, the tent flap was pulled aside.
A giant of a man stepped out, the likes of which I had never seen. He had long, wild hair and muscles that looked like they were carved from stone. It was as if the statue of Asterion I’d seen back in the capital had suddenly stood up and started walking.
The Commander swept a sharp, piercing gaze over us, but his expression shifted the moment he spotted Garon.
"...Garon? What the hell are you doing here!?"
It was the genuine reaction of a man running into an old friend he hadn't seen in years.
"Through a series of coincidences, I’ve brought the Saint to you," Garon replied.
"...!? You’ve been yelling 'Saint' this and 'Saint' that for a while now—"
The Commander pointed a massive finger at Neneva.
"Indeed. This is the Saint, Lady Neneva. She’s the one who fixed my leg."
To emphasize the point, Garon stomped his feet firmly on the ground, proving he was fully recovered.
"Is she really a Saint...?"
"There is no doubt, sir!" the Captain added. "Many of our own men were pulled back from the very brink of death by the miracle Lady Neneva performed!"
At that, the Commander drew himself up to his full height. His massive frame seemed to grow even more imposing.
"Saint Neneva. I am Olgos, Commander of the Asterion Knight Order and King of this land. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for saving my men."
Despite being a King, Olgos bowed his head deeply. Startled by the sight of such a mountain of a man bowing to her, Neneva nearly stumbled back, only for Graymond to catch her and gently steady her.
"I... I originally intended to keep the fact that I'm the Saint a secret, but everyone’s making such a fuss that I suppose it can't be helped! I’ll handle the healing, so you just focus on fighting those monsters to your heart's content!"
"That is most encouraging."
Olgos raised his head and flashed a broad, confident grin. The atmosphere of the camp, which had been thick with despair only moments ago, completely transformed.
"My gut tells me the Parade is finally nearing its end."
"Oh? Is that so?" Neneva asked, sounding almost a little disappointed.
Olgos’s expression hardened as he looked back toward a massive opening in the steep cliffside.
"Yeah. At the very end of a Parade, the Monster King who leads the pack always shows its face. Once we kill that, it’s over."
I heard the sound of teeth clenching coming from Garon’s direction. It was likely that he had lost his wife during a battle with just such a King.
"It could be as early as tonight. If I end up at death's door, I’m counting on you, Neneva. I’ll be sure to reward you properly afterward."
Olgos stared intently at her, his eyes serious.
"Leave it to me," Neneva replied firmly.
After the meeting, we were assigned a private tent of our own.
When we left the slums of the Asterion Sword Kingdom, my only plan was to consult the Commander about Bradley. Somehow, we had ended up as core members of the Subjugation Force.
"Neneva, are you sure about this?" I asked, sitting down on a wooden chair. "Letting the secret out like that? Word is going to spread across the entire Kingdom."
Neneva sat opposite me, taking a moment to gather her thoughts before answering.
"I couldn't just think about the consequences while people were dying right in front of me. If I hadn't used my power today, people would have died. If that happened, how could I ever look their families in the eye?"
"Well... you're not wrong."
"I’m done hiding. I made up my mind today."
"The Saint Neneva, huh..."
As I whispered the words, Neneva’s body was suddenly enveloped in a soft, pale light. The interior of the tent shifted, transforming into a holy Sanctuary.
Outside, the shouts of knights and mercenaries echoed as they fought the monsters. But now, those voices were filled with something they hadn't had before: hope.