[Vol. 5] Chapter 320: The Second Light
Philona looked stunned.
Frederica, though frowning, showed a faint expression of realization.
“I see now. Lady Yuna, you thought that by using this thod to save the Holy Empire, you could atone for the lives of the people who died, didn’t you? I’ve told you before, your approach is wrong. And I’m not just talking about specific strategies but about your attitude toward sacrifice and loss.”
She rose to her feet, stepping beside her younger sister.
“Yuna Sumrfield, the value of life cannot be asured by benefits, numbers, or power. I won’t let you continue down this mistaken path… I refuse to let you beco the ‘Wielder of the Sword’.”
“Ah… uh, I… I can’t accept Lady Yuna just dying like this either. The idea that soone *must* sacrifice themselves to save everyone… that’s just too absurd of a rule or notion!”
Even Lady Philona, who usually followed the Bright Light Saintess’s lead without question, now stood in opposition. Yuna, finally recovering from the shock of Edwina’s sudden appearance, turned to look at the three won with a complex expression.
“Edwina, did Miss Dawn help you get here?”
“Don’t try to change the subject. That’s not the point.”
Seeing the Holy Knight refuse to give a direct answer, Yuna could only sigh and shake her head, as if speaking to herself.
“I should have realized earlier. When she had Mr. Dead Soul deliver that ssage, she must have already prepared for this mont…”
“‘The right choice isn’t always the best choice.’ Such an unexpected arrangent and tactic…”
The Bright Light Saintess raised her head, gazing at the infinitely grand and unfathomable [Tree of Creation] before lowering her head in reverence.
“The Holy Primordial Light, if this too is Your guidance, I will try to change.”
Yuna’s gaze shifted once more to the divine sword floating above the River of Ti, then to the three won standing before her.
“Then, since you all wish to forge a path to the future without sacrificing anyone, a choice better than the ‘most correct choice’, let hear it.”
“Edwina Cecilia, have you brought an answer?”
“Of course,” the Holy Knight stepped forward, her expression solemn.
“The answer is—I will wield the sword.”
“Little Nana!?”
“Edwina, you—”
Unlike the other two saintesses, whose expressions shifted noticeably, Yuna rely froze for a brief mont before speaking seriously to the girl in front of her..
“Incredible. Edwina Cecilia, I must admit, you are the most extraordinary prodigy among the descendants of the Three Descendants that I have ever seen. In fact, aside from Miss Dawn, you are the greatest wildcard in my plan…”
“But to claim the supre [Sword of Origin], a power surpassing the Three Holy Artifacts, based on the conditions you’ve shown thus far, I don’t believe you are capable. If your intention is to stake your life, is that truly a better choice than wielding the sword? Your actions are no different from mine.”
Edwina shook her head and raised a hand, signaling for all the people there to remain calm.
Though all present were Saintesses who held positions at the pinnacle of the Holy Empire, Edwina’s presence alone overshadowed them all, making her the center of this debate and decision.
“Of course, I cannot truly command a holy artifact. Nor am I arrogant enough to believe I can, through my own power alone, beco a nation’s pioneer or savior. The power of a God should, naturally, be wielded by a true God, don’t you agree?”
“Gods are not omnipotent, but there are so things that only [God] can accomplish, and if they are willing to grant them, I will willingly offer myself to fulfill it.”
“…?”
Yuna furrowed her brow once more, and the other two Saintesses also showed confusion. However, the Holy Knight did not continue speaking. Instead, she pushed through the crowd and walked toward the supre divine sword floating above ti and the grand, unfathomable [Tree of Creation].
“Hah…”
Taking a deep breath, the young woman knelt on one knee, grasping the golden gem hanging from her neck. Her golden eyes suddenly beca intense and dazzling, as if endless light was emanating from her body.
The light broke through the [River of Ti], transforming into a beacon and lighthouse, intertwining with the young woman’s prayer and the distant beyond!
“Most High Lord, Your humble servant offers this prayer and calls upon Your true na, [Goddess of Radiance], please let Your light, the First Primordial Light, descend upon this body!!!”
“Boom!!!!!!!!”
A beam of light surged from the distant faraway, descending upon this place beyond ti and space, enveloping the Holy Knight’s figure!
It was a pillar of purest, brightest light, interwoven with white and gold.
Endless divinity spread from the light, causing vast ripples in the [River of Ti], and even the leaves of the [Tree of Creation] glimred faintly in that descending aura, scattering tiny brilliant sparks.
“This… How is this possible…?”
The River of Ti exists not in reality but in a realm more ethereal than the soul itself, a void. Except for the [Tree of Creation], which is an embodint of the First Primordial Light, even true gods would find it difficult to reach this place, because this is a space that [does not exist]. Even now, Yuna and the others have not truly arrived here in physical form.
They had rely been called by the Supre Light in a form even more indescribable.
It was already shocking enough that Edwina appeared here, but Yuna could understand it as her true form being near the [Holy Ritual], coupled with so ans of gaining the [Tree of Creation]’s recognition, which allowed her to be summoned as well. However…
No, this is impossible, impossible…
Suddenly, Yuna realized a terrifying truth.
She had initially thought that [Dawn] was an envoy sent by the [Tree of Creation], and everything she had done, including guiding Edwina here, was part of the First Primordial Light’s will and guidance.
But the [Goddess of Radiance] ntioned by the Holy Knight earlier was a na Yuna had never heard of before. It was a strange na that didn’t exist in her mory.
In fact, she had only co across similar nas in so limited materials related to the [Light Worshipper Church].
If… if the [Light Worshipper Church] was an organization different from the predecessor of the Goddess Church, the [Church of the Light Seekers], then what exactly is the god worshiped by so of its mbers, the [Goddess of Radiance], who is said to be the embodint of the First Primordial Light?
If all these pieces are put together, [Dawn], the [Light Worshipper Church], and the [Goddess of Radiance] worshiped by Edwina, there is only one explanation.
This was not the original faith of the Holy Empire, the guidance of the [Tree of Creation]. [Dawn] was not the Holy Envoy, and the First Primordial Light that Edwina spoke of was not the sa as what Yuna had believed.
So many things had been misunderstood from the very beginning.
“Wait! What exactly do you want…?”
However, the towering will of light had already responded to the call and descended from afar in the instant Yuna could not stop it.
A snow-white hand, as pure as jade, reached out from beyond the light.
The light of heaven and earth all converged into its form, and imdiately, its figure appeared before the three Saintesses.
It was still the appearance of Edwina Cecilia, but it was no longer *her*.
It had six wings as pure as white snow, and ten magnificent divine halos that subtly moved behind and beneath its form. Its golden hair flowed like a sky of stars, gleaming with radiant brilliance.
The armor was replaced by a platinum-colored divine robe made of light. Although it had descended through the body of a believer, the boundless divine aura surged up, rivaling the distant [Tree of Creation].
It looked around and smiled.
[It seems like it worked.]
“You… Who are you…?”
Despite the natural instinct to be wary of an unknown deity, the mont Yuna saw it and felt its presence, a sense of boundless closeness and longing arose from the very essence of the holy artifact within her. She unconsciously altered her form of address.
This feeling, she had only ever experienced when facing the [Tree of Creation] and the First Primordial Light that nurtured the three holy artifacts.
What should have been impossible, the absurd and incredible, hit the heart of the Saintess with a profound shock.
“Mother…?”
[She] turned [Her] gaze, previously directed at the distant, indescribable ‘Tree of Light’, toward the Saintess, and smiled once more.
[Yuna, I told you… if there was a chance, I would let you see my true form. In a sense, you have already seen it. And one more thing, I am not your mother.]
The familiar tone and promise made the Saintess instinctively take a half-step back, shaken.
“Miss… Dawn…?”
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