I Got a Fake Job at the Academy

Chapter 687: The Desire to Achieve (1)

The entire Galahad Fortress shook violently.

The light emanating from the fortress made of Holy Stone grew more intense, becoming visible to the naked eye even from a great distance.

"Finally, phase one."

Rudger muttered, looking at the faint ancient divine language inscribed on the relic.

With the power of the relic, the Galahad Fortress itself began to operate as a single device.

This was undoubtedly good news.

According to the plan, they had only reached phase one.

There were still many mountains to climb, but the fact that they had taken that first step was important.

Having buttoned the first button correctly meant that the next processes were likely to proceed without failure.

"We can't be too happy about this. If we advertise what we're doing like this, the Crusaders will go crazy."

"I know."

Though they had succeeded with phase one, it wasn't all good news.

It was clear that the Holy Crusaders who witnessed the abnormal phenomenon at Galahad Fortress would intensify their offensive.

"And did you just feel that?"

"Yes. The outer gate has finally been breached."

"What are you going to do? There's still a lot of time before we can move to the next phase."

"We need to stop them, but I can't move right away. You'll have to step in from here."

"Sigh. I guess there's no helping it."

Surna shook his head.

"It was better when you were just my subordinate. Now that we're partners, you're just ordering me around. Well, I still have to do it. For both of us to achieve our goals."

Surna secured the sword at his waist and left the altar.

Rudger watched him leave before shifting his gaze back to the relic.

He still needed more time.

As Rudger and Surna had predicted, everyone saw it clearly.

"Light begins to shine from the fortress!"

"Is the Demon King trying to do something? Any other abnormal phenomena?"

"None so far."

"Then I suppose it's just a precursor phenomenon."

"What would you like to do?"

"Move as quickly as possible. How is the troop formation?"

"Well, due to the tidal wave, we can no longer land from the warships. The ground troops are safe thanks to the magicians and priests, but most of the armor and steam golems have been flooded."

"So we have to make do with the troops that have already landed. Can't be helped."

The soldiers advanced.

Thanks to Catherine clearing away the thorn vines and water flower fields as she passed, they could move forward without hindrance.

The advancing army.

Superhumans fighting here and there.

And the Saint who had opened the gate and arrived inside.

Catherine was about to head into the outer fortress when she stopped in her tracks because of the people who had suddenly appeared around her.

"I wonder what brings you here, people who have been hiding and keeping still all this time."

Three individuals revealed themselves—two men and one woman.

All three, at least in their fifties and with dignified bearing, were wearing elaborate priestly garments.

Their attire clearly showed their positions: Cardinals of the Lumensis Order.

Catherine already knew they had come to Bretus.

She had detected that they were remotely controlling some brainwashed individuals.

Controlling brainwashed people by granting them some holy power was impossible from too far a distance.

So she knew they were secretly moving somewhere on this island, but she hadn't expected them to reveal themselves so soon.

"Is it because I handled that bothersome tree?"

Catherine hit the nail on the head.

The cardinals had been watching and waiting because of the tree guarding the gate, unable to approach the outer fortress.

Then, when Catherine split the tree and opened the path herself, they seized the opportunity to reveal themselves.

"Ho ho. Don't be like that. Isn't it good to help each other?"

The first to speak was an old woman in her sixties.

Smiling kindly, she was Aldre Lily, the only female cardinal in the Holy Nation.

"Indeed. I don't understand why you would disparage us when we're here to help."

The next to speak was Cardinal Joseph Powell.

A stern-faced man in his fifties, he had a sturdy build and angular face reminiscent of a holy knight.

The muscles visible on his folded arms proved that he had not neglected physical training.

"Come now. Let's all calm down. We should be joining forces to defeat the Demon King, not fighting among ourselves. What an unsightly display that would be."

The final speaker was a neatly dressed old gentleman wearing glasses.

Cardinal Sehar Galnia, said to be the most senior among the cardinals.

Catherine silently gazed at the cardinals.

Though they smiled at her on the surface, their true feelings were completely different.

As a Saint by nature, she was bound to have a poor relationship with the cardinals.

The cardinals had built their political standing over many long years to reach their positions.

It wasn't just about politics; they needed innate holy power and talent as well.

But Catherine was different.

She was originally from an experimental background with no family name or lineage.

She was elevated to sainthood only because she showed the highest compatibility in experiments containing fragments of a saint.

The cardinals didn't treat Catherine as a true saint.

To them, she was ultimately an imitation created by exploiting the power of a saint.

Though remarkable for an imitation, the fact remained that she lacked proper origins.

Who would sincerely respect someone who suddenly gained power and achieved an equal or higher position than themselves, someone they had previously ignored?

Moreover, despite becoming a saint, Catherine had gathered children who were experimental subjects like herself and appointed them to the position of priestesses.

The priestesses had failed to become saints but had achieved partial success and possessed powerful abilities.

Catherine argued that leaving them as they were would be a waste of human resources, so she reorganized the position of priestess—a role from a vanished order—and employed them.

Failed experiments had risen to positions equal to cardinals.

That was why the cardinals looked at Catherine with unfriendly eyes.

They were wary of her.

They thought she was deliberately establishing the position of priest to solidify her standing within the Holy Nation.

"Saint, you must have used a lot of power. Please rest for a while. We will take care of the rest."

Cardinal Joseph made the first move.

Though his words were polite, his expression was not, making it seem like he was threatening to use force if she didn't rest.

"That's right. We also need to check on the condition of the heroes trapped by that tree."

"Couldn't you cardinals do that as well?"

"We believe it would be much more appropriate for the Saint, who possesses superior holy power and holy law, to take care of them."

Catherine frowned at Sehar's words.

These people, who usually tried to check her in every way possible, were now lowering themselves and treating her like a saint.

They were probably doing this to push troublesome work onto her.

Catherine was about to say something but then gave up on objecting.

"I'll do as you say. But you should be careful. Inside, there are dangers lurking that are incomparable to what's outside."

The cardinals outwardly acknowledged her warning, but inwardly they scoffed.

Rather than worrying about cardinals of their stature falling to the Demon King's underlings, they thought she was deliberately trying to intimidate them.

"You need not worry. We have brought holy artifacts, inadequate as they may be."

The cardinals entered the fortress.

Catherine considered following them immediately but decided against it.

The thought of bickering with them once inside already gave her a headache.

It was more important to check on her sisters and Rene, whom she had left behind.

'At least the elf who handled the trees seems to be dealt with by Adne.'

More than anything, Catherine had another reason for staying behind.

"Why don't you show yourself already? I already know you're hiding here because I saw you."

"Ah, really. Can't you just pretend not to know and let it go at times like this?"

The empty air rippled, and Helia revealed herself.

She twirled her umbrella playfully in her hand and smirked.

"It's those eyes, isn't it? It's truly an unfair advantage. No matter how meticulously I conceal myself, you can see everything by peeking into the future."

Helia said something, but Catherine didn't answer.

Instead, she prepared to fight Helia.

"I thought you'd be more reasonable than those cardinals who went ahead, but you're taking a stance right away? What's that attitude about?"

"You're deliberately trying to divert my attention with words so you can launch a surprise attack. Did you think I wouldn't know?"

Helia pouted.

"Ah. You foresaw that too? I really don't like this."

Helia lightly swept her raised umbrella from left to right.

The empty air split along the umbrella's trajectory, and terrifying monsters began to pour out.

The creatures more ferocious than beasts and more horrifying than cryptids were life forms created by Helia's authority.

"You know what these are, right?"

"Monsters from the distant past."

"Yes. Then you must also know how vicious and dangerous they are."

The priestesses who were watching the situation from afar tried to come forward to help.

"Sister Catherine!"

"All of you, stay back."

Catherine infused her voice with holy power and conveyed it to her sisters far away.

"You might get caught up in this. So stay back."

"B-but..."

"Don't worry. It won't take long anyway."

At those words, the priestesses reluctantly retreated.

"You really love your sisters, huh? Even though they're not really your sisters."

"Not being connected by blood doesn't mean they're not family. Don't you know that?"

"How would I know? But that was a pretty arrogant thing to say. 'It won't take long anyway.' Or did you foresee that with those precious eyes of yours too?"

"Not really."

Catherine smiled slightly, denying Helia's words.

"For someone of your level, I don't think I need to see the future to subdue you sufficiently."

"...Aha. You really know how to irritate me."

Helia curled her lips into a crooked smile.

"Well then, let's see the skill of the Saint that the Order is so proud of."

At Helia's command, the ancient monsters charged toward Catherine.

The three cardinals who had entered the fortress found themselves at a fork in the road, contemplating their next move.

"Shouldn't we go straight to the inner fortress?"

"Do we need to move together?"

"Then what are you thinking?"

The cardinals were uncertain.

Should they split up or stay together?

It would make sense to join forces having entered the fortress where the Demon King resided, but the cardinals thought differently.

Though they united to keep the Saint in check, that didn't mean they got along well with each other.

The cardinals knew each other too well to trust and stand back-to-back.

"Let's move separately then."

The three reached a tentative conclusion.

They were confident in their own powers and believed they could win even if they encountered demons.

A sarcastic voice rang out toward the three cardinals.

"At times like this, you should be joining forces even if it's not enough, yet you're thinking of splitting up? There's being stupid, and then there's this level of stupidity."

The cardinals turned their heads toward the source of the voice.

On the ornately painted ceiling, a man was hanging like a bat.

"A de-demon?"

"A Great Demon, to be precise."

Surna, grinning widely, dropped from the ceiling and landed lightly.

"I thought cardinals would be smarter, but seeing you trying to compete here, I guess I was wrong."

"Great Demon Surna. You dare show yourself in our presence?"

Joseph bared his teeth and growled.

"You could have waited until we separated and picked us off one by one. Why reveal yourself now?"

In response to Sehar's question, Surna shrugged.

"Well, honestly, it would have been easier for me to deal with you one by one. And I could have attacked without saying anything just now."

"Then why?"

"It was just frustrating to watch. Thinking that the world was ruled by the likes of you for so long makes me incredulous."

"What?"

"So I'm going to show you."

Surna drew the sword at his waist and gazed at the cardinals with a cold look.

"I'll show you what true terror is."