The Greatest Warrior of All Time Returns-Chapter 401

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Chapter 401

With a terrifying gale of blades, Baril tore through the firmament, its destination set for the very heart of the Holy Kingdom—the Papal See.

Unfortunately, there was no way to determine where Diablo and Luna had gone.

Whooooom!!! Boom!

The moment Baril landed hard in the central fountain of the Papal See, numerous priests and holy knights rushed in.

“Who goes there! Identify— …Huh? Isn’t that Young Lord Leon Cascadia?”

“Is the Saintess here? This is urgent.”

“T-The Saintess is currently in prayer, so—”

“Take me to her. If we’re late, a catastrophe may occur.”

At my words, the holy knights and priests exchanged uneasy glances.

Normally, a Saintess’s prayers were never to be interrupted.

“B-But interrupting a prayer is strictly prohibited—”

“The High Priest is in danger!”

Here, invoking Diablo—the High Priest with unquestionable authority—was far more effective than mentioning Luna.

Especially since the High Priest I referred to—Diablo—was an absolutely indispensable asset to the Holy Kingdom.

“…Very well. Please follow me.”

“Bishop!”

“Given the circumstances, we’ll apply the emergency exception.”

The man called Bishop led me forward swiftly, his face stiff.

And then—

Standing silently before the prayer chamber, waiting for me, was Saintess Nadia.

“Saintess?! What about your prayers—”

“A revelation came to me. Young Lord Leon. I was waiting for you.”

“Where is he? Where did that man go?”

“I don’t know the exact location. But…”

Nadia pulled out a small, worn map from her robes and offered it to me.

“I can roughly guess where he headed.”

She tightly grasped my hand.

Pure white divine power flowed into my body, revitalizing me.

“In the revelation, I saw that something terrible could happen if things go wrong. I’ve never received such a vague revelation before… but now that I’ve confirmed your arrival, I can’t just sit still.”

She spoke carefully.

“This is about Lady Luna, isn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

“I pray nothing happens to her. May the Archangel’s blessing be with you—”

“Ah—no. Not the Archangel.”

At my interruption, her eyes widened.

“If possible, I’d prefer your blessing, Saintess. Not the Archangel’s.”

“…Eh? O-Oh… alright.”

Considering that the ones behind this mess were Archangels themselves, their blessing was the last thing I wanted.

Map in hand, I mounted Baril once more without hesitation.

* * *

An archdemon and two Archangels, who had been investigating information about the ancient Archangel Lucifer, frowned deeply as beings suddenly descended, illuminating the surroundings.

“Those bastards—who the hell do they think they are?”

Lispa reacted first, pulling out her lyre without hesitation and violently plucking the strings.

TWANG!!!

Multicolored melodies surged forth, crushing the armor of the descending Virtue Angels and slamming them into the ground.

“Archangel dogs. You’re no different from Archangels yourselves.”

With icy cold words, Lispa was about to finish them off when Luna and Diablo stopped her.

“Wait, Lispa.”

“First priority is assessing the situation. Archangels aside, it’s clearly abnormal for them to cross into Lazarus like this.”

Snarling, she withdrew her power just before turning the Virtue Angels into dried fish.

Then—

From a warped hole in the ceiling, a pillar of superheated flame poured down toward Lispa.

KWAHHHH—!!!

The searing inferno incinerated everything in its path, erasing nearby ruins without a trace.

“How could they do something so stupid?!”

Diablo cried out in horror at the damage to the ruins, trying to extinguish the fire—but this was no ordinary flame.

It was the Archangel’s authority itself: the Flames of Judgment.

“Bringing Virtue Angels and using Judgment Flame? So you’re serious. Good. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

A male angel with three pairs of wings descended through the shattered ceiling.

Clad in black and crimson, expression cold—

Raguel, Archangel of Judgment and Michael’s most loyal blade.

“Funny. I was just thinking the same.”

Luna cracked her knuckles.

She’d already once been forced to awaken because of Raguel’s power.

Lispa’s fury toward Archangels went without saying.

Raguel, however, spoke as though nothing else mattered.

“Archangel of the Left Hand of God. Archangel of Melody. By God’s will, return to the Heavens.”

He ignored Diablo entirely, staring only at the two Archangels.

“Archangel of Judgment. Do you realize what you’ve done?”

Diablo asked, forcibly suppressing his anger—but the only reply was the tips of the Virtue Angels’ spears.

“First you kick us out, now you’re telling us to come back? What a load of bullshit.”

Lispa spat venomously.

“As I’ve said before—I’ve already fallen. Being God’s Left Hand means nothing to me.”

“Archangel of the Left Hand. Return and fulfill your duty.”

Luna didn’t answer.

She lightly bounced in place, loosening her body.

Then—

BOOOOM!!!

Like a flash of light, she flew forward and smashed her fist straight into Raguel’s face.

“Same as before. Always wanted to punch you at least once.”

The shockwave ripped through space itself, shaking the entire region.

Raguel was flung back, slowly rising as Judgment Flames ignited around him.

But Luna’s blow had landed harder than expected—his body wavered, his casting delayed.

“Brute strength with no finesse. How did she land such a hit?”

“Shut up and prepare.”

At Luna’s icy command, Lispa readied herself as well.

Annoyance flickered across Raguel’s face before he spoke in a controlled tone.

“I enact the greater cause.”

Just as Luna was about to move again—

Crack…

Space twisted violently as something shattered above.

CRASH!!

Like breaking glass, someone leapt down.

“Leon!”

Leon appeared.

He swept his gaze across the scene, then looked at Raguel and the Virtue Angels.

“You really turned this place into a firestorm.”

“I merely execute the greater cause.”

“So kidnapping someone else’s wife is part of that?”

“Archangel of Melody, Remiel. Archangel of the Left Hand, Raphael. And the being Raphael carries will become a crucial pillar supporting the world.”

“So did you ask the person involved?”

“Does individual will matter before the greater cause?”

“What?”

As Raguel stepped forward, a wall of flames erupted around Leon.

“Archangels exist to uphold God’s will. For that, we are granted power—and authority. Neglecting duty is unacceptable.”

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“The entity Raphael carries is no exception. A fusion of Archangel and divine power. Though aberrant, Heaven has judged it fit to become God’s new vanguard.”

A hand thrust out from the flames.

“Do not resist. This is not ordinary fire. You may be gravely harmed. Leon Cascadia—your existence is vital to fulfilling the greater—” 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

CRACK—RIP!!

Ignoring him, Leon grabbed the flames and forcibly tore them apart.

Grasping and splitting formless fire—

The sight sent chills down everyone’s spine.

“Blasphemy…”

“Watch your mouth. Is this really God’s revelation—or just Michael’s idea?”

“The collective will of the Archangels.”

“You’re impossible.”

“For the sake of our goal, as you act for yours, we will accept minor sacrifices.”

RIP—!!

Leon tore through the flames, pulling out his demonic sword from subspace and lightly swinging it.

SLASH!!

A deep gash appeared across Raguel’s body, his form staggering violently.

He had taken it head-on—and couldn’t understand it.

“To directly wound an Archangel’s body? Leon Cascadia… what are you carrying within you?”

Lucifer’s power hadn’t completely vanished.

The same force that made even Michael retreat was devastating to Raguel.

“The thing you’re looking for.”

Leon’s vicious taunt finally twisted Raguel’s expression.

“You will interfere to the very end?”

“Damn satisfying. You bastard.”

Lispa bared her teeth and struck her lyre.

Melodies flew from all directions, targeting Raguel.

Though Remiel—Lispa—was among the weakest Archangels in combat, and much of her power had been stripped—

She couldn’t deal decisive damage.

Raguel casually deflected her attack and roared at Luna.

“Have you forgotten the Primordial Oath?! Raphael! That thing growing inside you—”

“One more word calling my child that thing and I swear I won’t let it slide.”

“….”

Luna’s overwhelming presence forced Raguel into silence.

Then—

A massive pillar of light descended from above, engulfing Raguel and the Virtue Angels.

“Lord Michael?!”

Raguel stared upward in shock.

He seemed to argue silently—

“But that power is necessary—”

His words cut off.

He clenched his teeth, exhaled briefly, then bowed.

“I will obey.”

He looked at everyone.

“For now, we withdraw. Until next time.”

In an instant, Raguel and the Virtue Angels vanished in light.

Lispa clicked her tongue and plucked her lyre.

Hidden magic circles faded away.

“Suppression formations?”

“How else was I supposed to finish him off if he tried to run?”

If Michael hadn’t ordered a retreat after clashing with Leon, it might have worked.

Diablo sighed, surveying the ruined ruins.

“This is unfortunate… most of it is destroyed. Analysis will be impossible.”

At that moment, Lispa ran toward Leon.

“Leon!”

Luna instantly grabbed her by the hair and hurled her back.

“Stop wagging your tail at someone else’s husband.”

She then stepped up and kissed Leon lightly.

He silently pulled her into an embrace.

“Good. I was worried something would happen here when Michael started scheming. Glad I wasn’t late.”

“Michael?”

“Yeah. He said he needed Lucifer’s power and summoned me.”

He explained briefly, omitting details.

“You fought Michael? And you’re unharmed?”

Diablo asked in disbelief.

—Because his so-called ‘greater cause’ doesn’t include his death.

That was when space hummed and a voice echoed.

“Who are you?”

Lispa, Luna, and Diablo all tensed.

—The one you’re looking for. And the master of this place.

Lucifer’s voice was weary.

—Don’t waste your effort, children. There’s nothing about me you can uncover here.

“At least now we know you rebelled against God. And that unlike them, your very records were erased.”

—……

“Just one question. What did you do to warrant erasure?”

Lucifer fell silent.

—Heh. For a demon, you’re awfully curious.

He laughed softly, then went quiet again.

—Do I owe you an explanation?

“No. You don’t.”

Silence followed.

“This guy’s always been like that. Don’t mind him.”

At Leon’s words, Diablo said nothing more.

Then—

—If you find traces of the Progenitor Dragon, you might glimpse a method related to what you seek.

All eyes turned to the necklace.

—Heh. But can you really? Most traces were erased, records nearly wiped out. No ruins should remain—

Everyone exchanged glances.

Then Luna spoke.

“The thing in R’lyeh— isn’t that a Progenitor Dragon trace?”

“Yeah.”

Lispa agreed, and Diablo nodded.

“That exists.”

—…What?

Lucifer’s startled voice burst from the necklace.

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