The Cult did not use fire.

Not only was fire considered sacrilegious, but the concept of fire itself wasn’t closely tied to the Cult.

Thus, instead of fire, the Cult filled itself with starlight.

To achieve this, the ceiling had long been removed to welcome starlight, and mirrors were installed throughout to channel the starlight deep into the heart of the Cult.

However, this alone wasn’t sufficient to illuminate the space, so they removed all the flooring and installed glass panels, allowing the starlight to flow through.

More precisely, it was water infused with starlight.

This water, glowing with a blue hue, flowed beneath the Cult.

This water was called holy water by the Cult.

You could see this blue holy water flowing anywhere within the Cult.

And if you traced the flow of this holy water upstream...

No matter where you start from, it would lead to the office of Your Eminence Cardinal.

Creating holy water was one of the capabilities of the holy relic Your Eminence Cardinal possessed, so it was a given.

Bishop Gran traced the flow of the holy water upstream and found his way to Your Eminence Cardinal's office.

“Your Eminence Cardinal, it's Bishop Gran.”

In front of what could be better described as a wall than a door, a thin voice of the Cardinal came from beyond.

“...Come in.”

With the Cardinal's permission, Bishop Gran stepped forward.

The pair of doors, which had been standing still, gently moved aside to accommodate Bishop Gran.

As the tightly closed gap in the door began to open, starlight that had filled the room started to spill out.

Bishop Gran fixed his gaze on the holy relic that floated on the ceiling of Your Eminence Cardinal's office—an orb emanating blue starlight.

Bishop Gran was mesmerized as he looked at the holy relic.

'…It's awe-inspiring no matter how many times I see it.'

The holy relic was placed atop a fountain made of obsidian.

The water flowing from the fountain mixed with the starlight of the holy relic and flowed beneath the Cult.

Just a short distance in front of that fountain, the Cardinal sat on a pitch-black chair, presumably having been attending to her duties.

Bishop Gran, noticing her a bit late, promptly met the intense gaze emanating from between her six wings. He quickly lowered his head and knelt on one knee on the floor.

"I am here to pay my respects to Your Eminence Cardinal…"

Following the ancient formalities, his lips moved instinctively.

Since the Cardinal was conducting her duties, Bishop Gran was even more careful to adhere to the proper formalities. Showing any deviation from these protocols here would be an act of disrespect toward the Cardinal's dignity, warranting even greater caution.

The Cardinal raised her hand in acknowledgment of his greeting and asked, "Bishop Gran? Have you finished the release of the Cradle?"

"Yes, that's correct, but... I came to report something unusual I discovered during the process."

"Something unusual?"

Bishop Gran composed his thoughts for a moment before explaining what he had seen—a human consuming magical creatures while exuding flames of many colors.

He referenced a figure from history who resembled that.

He thought it would be easier to understand that way.

"Your Eminence Cardinal, do you perhaps remember the human who opposed the magical creatures of the Cradle one cycle ago?"

The Cardinal pondered what Bishop Gran was trying to say.

"One cycle ago... do you mean the time when only one of the twelve Cradles had hatched?"

It was a period when humans reclaimed the most land, a time unforgettable indeed. No, it was a period impossible to forget. As much as they had taken land from the humans, so too had they lost it.

"I do remember," she said.

"Your Eminence Cardinal, I have discovered a human identical to the one who wielded the Conflagration back then."

The Cardinal's feathers trembled slightly.

The same one who had set the continent ablaze has been reborn?

"Bishop Gran, could you possibly have seen incorrectly?"

"Judging by the appearance of slaying magical creatures and seizing their power, it seems undoubtedly to be the same type of human."

"...My goodness."

The small mouth of the Cardinal quivered, unable to continue speaking.

"Of all times, now... after only one cycle..."

A cycle ago, the Cult's power was soaring to the skies and managed to subdue that Conflagration, but...

Now, the Cult's strength is extremely diminished. If the Conflagration begins to blaze once more in such circumstances... the Cult may not be able to withstand.

At least if they had one cycle, or even just a year, the newborn Cradle Hatchlings could have grown to handle it, but at present, there was no proper way to respond.

‘...Should we retrench and pull back the Cult's presence?’

Just as the Cardinal was about to sink deeper into her worries, Bishop Gran spoke again.

"Your Eminence Cardinal, from what I have observed, it seems the being has not yet finished maturing."

"What do you mean, Bishop Gran?"

"The force seems much weaker than what we saw last cycle and struggled quite a bit even against the magical creatures released by the Cradle. From this, it appears... it is still a mere juvenile. Additionally, it is currently closer to our Cult’s territory than to the human forces..."

"…"

"Please grant this bishop the military force needed to seize the opportunity to vanquish it."

The Cardinal looked down at Bishop Gran for a moment.

According to his words... if the Conflagration hasn't yet flared up, it could be subdued.

And it's located close to the Cult’s territory...

Is this not the perfect opportunity?

At this moment, whether they can quell the Conflagration or not will determine the future course of the Cult’s history.

The Cardinal made a decision.

"Summon all the bishops... I shall personally lead the operation to eradicate the Conflagration’s menace."

Leaving behind the still-underdeveloped seventh batch of Cradle Hatchlings, as well as the weak demons who would serve as fuel to the Conflagration, the Cardinal and all of the Cult’s elite forces were dispatched.

"I need to summon the entire Special Task Force under my command to go rescue the Academy cadets."

"Division Commander?"

The middle-aged woman slammed the receiver down fiercely.

5th Division Commander.

She spoke heavily.

"I don't entirely understand the situation either, but... His Excellency President has requested the return of that specific cadet?"

"Does that mean..."

"Yes."

A direct order from His Excellency President.

This directive was on a completely different level from those issued in the name of the Central Government.

His Excellency President.

He was the head representing the government, receiving support from all local governments, and was, in essence, the powerful legitimacy of the government itself.

As long as one holds the title of Division Commander, one cannot refuse his orders.

What is a Division Commander?

A proxy who exercises the delegated authority to command military forces from His Excellency President, the supreme military leader.

Therefore, the moment a Division Commander disregards His Excellency President's orders, they cease to be a Division Commander.

They become just an individual.

The Central Government is the same; they are merely proxies executing delegated authority from His Excellency President, and to exaggerate, they don't have the right to enforce orders upon a Division Commander, His Excellency’s proxy.

Thus, a Division Commander has been able to ignore various pressures and recommendations from the Central Government, acting as they pleased...

But an order from His Excellency President is one that cannot be dared to refuse...

The Division Commander spoke.

“I don’t know what kind of relationship that cadet has with His Excellency President, but for him to personally request their retrieval...”

“Even if, by chance, the cadet survives and we find them... we will face significant reprimand just for having summoned them to the front lines during a scheduled monster assault.”

"...You didn’t mention the location in the notice sent to the Academy, did you?”

“We probably just marked it as the 12th Brigade.”

“Destroy all relevant notices and warn the kids to keep their mouths shut. Also... gather the Special Task Force quickly.”

The Secretariat immediately set out to initiate the Special Task Force assembly procedures.

After contacting each agency, the deployed Special Task Forces were ordered to return to the division.

While the Secretariat was busy with its tasks, the Division Commander began packing military gear that was stashed on one side of the office.

The Secretariat noticed and asked, "Division Commander? Why are you packing military gear?"

"Since this is likely to be a high-risk rescue operation, I need to put on at least a show of trying to help..."

The Division Commander struggled for a while to pack the gear, not having worn military attire, let alone packed gear, in years. Usually, instead of military uniforms, they wore formal attire. The uniforms and equipment were simply decorative, hanging in the office, and did not fit well.

Barely managing to squeeze into the uniform, the Division Commander spoke, "Inform them that I will lead this operation personally."

"Yes, understood."

The Secretariat quickly doubled their efforts upon hearing those words, while the Division Commander fell into contemplation.

'How on earth can I persuade that specific cadet to provide favorable testimony to His Excellency President?’

"Sigh..."

The Division Commander pulled out a pipe and placed it in their mouth. With a deep inhale, the tobacco leaves ignited.

Exhaling a puff of white smoke, the Division Commander muttered to themselves, "To think I'd be troubled by a mere wanderer with no background or family."

From the Division Commander's perspective, Gardner was just a lucky individual who managed to enter the Academy despite being nothing more than a wanderer. It was not pleasing to the Division Commander to be so troubled by such a person.

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