I moved my body lightly in front of the dungeon door.
Unlike my original body, which couldn’t use its strength due to the repeated backlash of miracles, the body in my mental world was completely intact.
Entering the mental world after forcing my body to move felt incredibly light! This is what a body should feel like!
Excited, I jumped up and down, humming with satisfaction, and opened the door.
What greeted us for the first time was a castle that resembled a prison, made of stone.
The castle, which seemed to hold a history of no one ever escaping from it, made it hard to breathe just by looking up at it.
"Is this Ruel’s family’s mansion?"
"...I’m losing my mind. So it wasn’t just showing me the puppet’s memories?"
"Wait a second, old man. This gloomy place is a mansion? Were you not a noble but a prisoner back then? It suits you in a way."
"The mansion from my youth always looked like this. Back then, the concept of a state was loose. With wars always threatening, who had the time to care about appearances?"
I had no words in response to his brutally realistic reason, and I followed behind the slightly somber grandfather.
"Though I say this, I didn’t like this place when I was young. Like you said, it looked barren."
"This is why I chose to become a Paladin. Compared to this dark, grim place, the Church is bright and majestic."
"Don’t steal my words."
"I said it for you since you were too shy to say it yourself."
This was a bit surprising. A man like my grandfather, who was strict with both himself and others, seemed like someone who’d have been a devout believer from childhood.
"By the way, back then, it was normal to think like Ruel. How difficult it was to hold faith when gods and humans were so close."
The time when gods and humans were close—so, back when the pathetic Almighty wasn’t just watching me from the sky but sticking close to me, throwing perverted acts at me?
...That was completely impossible. In today’s terms, it’s like having a shrine of the Almighty on a dumb, loyal fox! How could that work!?
"Back then, it wasn’t about holding faith because of some noble reason. It was simpler. It was pretty, fun, and we liked the power it gave."
"Some even sold their faith, promising privileges for those who believed in them."
"You mean the god of oaths? He was amusing from a distance. Up close, though, just a scammer."
As I listened to my grandfather and Garad casually discuss this backstory, a man appeared in the distance.
He had the youthful appearance that showed his age, but his physique was different. He had the stature of a man who could overwhelm an average adult male—imposing like a general born to command.
"So it’s the younger version of me, huh?"
"Back in those days, you’d just challenge anyone who visited the domain to a fight, right?"
"Sigh. Lucy, take care of that kid quickly. I’m getting sick of the sight."
At my grandfather’s disgusted expression, I tilted my head.
Is that really something to be embarrassed by? It’s normal for any young kid with strength to be cocky at least once.
Well, we’d probably have to fight him to pass, so let’s get it over with.
"What’s with this kid?"
"Oh?"
"If you came to flirt, go home and ask for some milk. Maybe in ten years, you’ll get some interest."
Oh?
"Ugh. What else can I do? It’s a crime to be this handsome."
His every movement, voice, and expression were all obnoxious.
"If there was a woman who looked like me, that’d be nice."
The young version of my grandfather was an extreme narcissist, as if he’d been drawn from a painting.
"Kha! Hahaha!"
"What was I thinking back then?"
"Ugh, heh. Hahaha!"
Barely recovering from the self-loathing tone of my grandfather’s voice and the endless laughter from Garad, I sighed deeply.
"Puhaha ♡ Don’t you prefer your mirror at home? ♡ Saying you’re handsome with that face ♡"
"Baseless slander is ugly, kid. If you’ve been rejected, go home and be quiet."
"What? ♡ I’m not interested in a eunuch like you? ♡"
"...A eunuch? Me?"
"How could anyone not react to a beauty like me? ♡"
"Tch. Your self-awareness is ridiculously inflated. You’re the one who needs the mirror."
"Heh~ ♡"
As I narrowed my eyes and shrugged off the cloak covering my armor, I saw the man freeze for a moment.
"Oh? ♡ Wasn’t I supposed to be ignored as a little kid? ♡"
"Wh-What kind of armor is that?"
"Your movements are starting to seem suspicious. Looks like you're really angry. ♡ Puhahaha ♡ Beast ♡"
As I mocked him, the now-flushed man gripped his weapon tightly.
"What’s this? ♡ Are you going to attack me? ♡ You sure about that? ♡ If you get beaten by me, you’ll look really pathetic! ♡"
"You damn little brat! Fine! I’ll teach you your place!"
The man, having lost his senses, moved in an alarmingly simple manner.
Is this really the Paladin Ruel I know? He’s so bad that even holding a weapon seems like a waste.
Sighing internally, I easily dodged his straightforward attack and moved in close.
How did Rasha throw a punch back in the arena?
I gathered divine power around my fist, remembering the punches I had to endure back then.
And the moment it touched my body, I struck, and with a crisp sound, the man was sent flying through the air.
The man, like a poorly made CGI figure, was launched and slammed into the wall, then crashed through debris, ultimately landing in the street like trash.
Huh? Is that it? I expected him to get back up and come at me.
"Thanks for fighting the idiot I was."
"What? Is this it? The old man really was pathetic."
"Yeah, back then I thought brute strength could crush anything. But after joining the Paladin Order and getting my ass kicked, I realized how arrogant I was."
Grandfather looked sadly at his past self, sprawled on the floor, then wiped his face.
"Lucy, I know you’re excited to be able to move properly after so long, but next time, leave it to me. If we keep going like this, I’ll collapse before we even finish."
"Hmm. It’s fun mocking the pathetic old man, though."
This is the first time, so he’s pathetic, but the grandfather we’ll meet next won’t be.
At some point, he’ll be an opponent that’s hard to beat, even with sincerity. Thinking about that makes me not want to retreat.
While I was pondering how to persuade my struggling grandfather, Garad placed his cloak on my shoulder.
"This time, listen to him. The fun’s in the struggle, but now it’s starting to feel like pity."
"Isn’t that fun too?"
"And besides, if we drag it out too long, the others outside will start worrying."
...Ah. That’s right. I’m still collapsed, unable to explain anything. If I keep dragging this out, I’ll get an earful.
Faivy’s nagging is really long! I was appalled watching her give impromptu sermons that went on for hours!
Thinking back to the time I broke my arm using my strength, I shuddered and decided to accept grandfather’s proposal.
"Then, let’s move quickly."
After that, we moved with lightning speed.
No matter how strong my grandfather was in the past, the grandfather now is but a shadow of what he has become. After going through all those trials, the weapon of the grandfather who has been perfected can’t be rivaled by anything.
"Ruel intentionally allowed that attack. It wouldn’t be an issue to take it with your body. By showing openings like that, you can induce your opponent’s complacency."
As the previous versions of my grandfather fell one by one, Garad stuck close to me and explained the fighting style of my grandfather.
Since the martial arts used by the body are different, it can’t be a perfect answer, but there’s still plenty to learn from it, he said.
Having honed his basics to the extreme, Garad made it to the rank of a hero, and his explanations were easy to understand.
"So much for being a flirt; you sure talk smoothly?"
"Much better than Ruel, right?"
"What nonsense! I’m used to explaining now! I’m not the same as before!"
"After fighting the old you, you sure sound convincing."
As we continued through the dungeon, we eventually reached a room filled with a serene, white atmosphere.
Ruel and Garad looked doubtful, wondering if they had ever been here, but I wasn’t.
This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.
This place was familiar to me. This was the very spot I’d reach when I got to the end of the dungeon just a moment ago.
The puppet, with piercing eyes that seemed to shoot red beams, stared at us for a moment, then silently turned and headed toward the door.
Was it showing us what happened? Telling us to follow?
As we stepped out, we were greeted by Ruel’s puppet, two inquisitors I recognized from earlier—the Cardinal Cesare and the Pope’s direct subordinates.
And the Pope himself.
"Your Holiness, is it alright for us to do this?"
"Of course."
Cesare Cardinal asked uncertainly, and the Pope nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Such puppets are no different from an insult to Paladin Ruel himself. For such toys, their role should be to bite the corrupted, like hunting dogs."
This was different from what I knew. The Pope on the monitor seemed fake, but he was the kind who would command reverence. He would never show such disdain.
"Ah. Please, just leave it. I have urgent business to attend to."
Suddenly, the Pope turned toward me as he gave orders to others.
No way?
It must be a mistake, right?
"It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Lady Allen."
...What?
"I knew you’d arrive here, chosen by the Almighty."
With the innocent smile of a child receiving a Christmas gift, the Pope bowed his head.