Irene Decided to Die - Chapter 174
Irene gritted her teeth, trying to shake off Ramiel. She struggled desperately to survive. She tried pinching and scratching Ramiel, but it had no effect. Ramiel seemed impervious to pain.
“Stop making this difficult.”
“Don’t do this. You know what happens to the world if the saintess dies!”
“You’re fine because you’re a fake. The world would just continue normally.”
“Ramiel!”
At the edge of the cliff, she struggled with all her might, clawing at the ground to avoid being dragged over. Her once-healed hands were a mess, but she would do anything if it meant surviving.
“Goodbye, Irene.”
Ramiel finally pushed her off the cliff. She flailed her hands, but there was nothing to grab onto. The clear sky above her became covered in ominous gray clouds.
‘No!’
Irene fought until the very end, but she couldn’t overcome Ramiel. A saintess without her divine powers was far too weak. Even as she fell, she struggled to stay conscious.
At that moment, as she plummeted, she saw someone else descending after her. He had passed by Ramiel and dived straight toward her. He succeeded in grabbing her hand.
“Burt!”
He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her, and then turned his body so that he would take the impact of the fall instead of her.
The cliff that had seemed so high didn’t take long to descend.
Splash!
The sound of their bodies hitting the water was swallowed by the loud, rushing current.
“Oh.”
Ramiel looked down at the bottom of the cliff where they had fallen. The violent splashes made it hard to see them clearly. Were they alive, or had they perished? She pondered for a moment, but then a voice came from behind her.
“What happened?”
It was Luciel, who had switched places with Al and fallen into the village.
“I pushed her off the cliff.”
“I told you to use a knife to ensure the job was done.”
Luciel frowned as he spoke. Ramiel was precious to them as their saintess, but lately, she had been deteriorating, as if she had given up on herself and was falling apart.
She was far too fragile to be a proper saintess, but the goddess had said she would grow stronger after this ordeal. That was the only reason Luciel had tolerated her so far, though sometimes her weakness was frustrating.
“I forgot.”
Ramiel drew a dagger from her cloak. It wasn’t large, but it was enough to kill.
“Still, with the barrier in place, even that mighty northern king shouldn’t survive.”
“The northern king? Wasn’t it the fake saintess, Irene, who fell?”
“The northern king showed up suddenly and fell with her.”
“Really?”
Did he feel obligated to protect the saintess as a king? Luciel looked up at the sky. The once-clear sky had turned a dull gray.
“We should search below the cliff, just in case. If the saintess is still alive, it will be problematic.”
“The fake saintess.”
“Yes, the fake saintess.”
As if dealing with the priests and holy knights gathering nearby wasn’t hard enough, now they had to do this too. Luciel sighed. But it had to be checked.
“In the name of the great goddess.”
Luciel offered a brief prayer and turned away. Ramiel followed closely behind.
“By the way, what happened to Al?”
“Al? The little kid, you mean?”
The child they had taken for this mission had fulfilled their role perfectly. As expected, threatening a child with their family’s lives worked best. Once they brought up his parents’ safety, Al had willingly obeyed them.
Even at the end, he cried as he looked at Ramiel, but it was pointless.
“Why, why?! Saintess!”
As the child sobbed, Ramiel’s expression remained indifferent.
“I don’t know. If he’s lucky, he might still be alive.”
“I hope he’s lucky. Al wasn’t a bad kid.”
“Is that so?”
Luciel answered vaguely and called over some of the other heretic members.
“Start searching below the cliff.”
It would take time since they had to descend carefully, avoiding the dangerous parts of the cliff, but it was the best option.
“If the saintess is alive, kill her.”
“Yes!”
The group set off immediately. Luciel planned to leave this place once they confirmed the saintess’s death. Engaging the priests or holy knights head-on would be foolish.
“Prepare to leave, Ramiel.”
“Is that okay? What about the bad people?”
“They’ll be dealt with later. We’ll have another chance.”
“Alright.”
Ramiel nodded and began to move.
