CHAPTER 183
You have to counter a variable with a variable.
I already knew that Black Dawn wasn't an opponent you could beat with standard tactics. That was exactly why I tagged along today.

In this moment, that variable began to shine.

"Harua, what are you trying to do?"

Aranseol asked cautiously, scanning our surroundings.
Maybe because she had seen me act impulsively too many times? It seemed she had a bad premonition. I felt sorry for her, but that premonition was probably spot on.

However, we couldn't just sit and watch this situation forever.

"Hmm."

Legolash stared intently at me.
He is the world's greatest Soul Mage. He, better than anyone, would know the shape of my soul. So, as I waited quietly, his eyebrows soon shot up.

"It should be possible."

Exactly.
Wraiths couldn't squeeze into the vessel of my soul.

"Wait a minute. Harua!"

And just like him, there was someone else who figured out what I was trying to do.
Babiyen. She shouted in an urgent voice.

"Are you saying you're going out there right now? Why?!"

She was pale with fright.
The wraiths were frantically pounding their bodies against the barrier. They shrieked incessantly, craving flesh. If anyone went out there, unless they had incredibly strong mental fortitude, their soul would be torn to shreds.

But I'm different.

"Babiyen, my situation is different from normal people."

Possession is ultimately a form of a soul squeezing its head into a vessel. That's why everyone was desperately blocking the souls from entering.

But what about me?
My body is overflowing with Divine Power.
Power directly bestowed by a Transcendent.

It was so much that Lua had to siphon some off because I could have died. My soul's vessel was already so packed with the power of the Transcendent that nothing else could fit in.

This was why I judged myself to be the variable.
Why I thought I was the key to solving this situation.

"A soul ultimately needs an empty space to push its way in. But my vessel already has three Transcendents sitting firmly inside it."

Could a soul crawl in there?
There's a wall that even souls cannot penetrate.
Therefore, I could walk through a field of wraiths without any issues.

"But Harua, what if that's Black Dawn's intention?!"

Black Dawn views me as a highly dangerous individual.
To the point where Asheria Eve hid her identity and approached me as Horizon.
Maybe Black Dawn really did intend for me to move alone. If so, I'd be walking straight into a trap myself.

"You're a Holy Mage to begin with, Harua! You know better than anyone that you should stay in the rear!"

Babiyen cried out in an anguished voice.
Maybe because she almost lost me once during the previous war with Black Dawn? She shouted out of fear of the 'what ifs'.

She had a point.
As she said, I'm a Holy Mage, and if I got caught by the enemy, it would be the worst-case scenario.

"Lord Legolash, let's just hurry and proceed with the Mass Exorcism! And then we can all go together!"

But Babiyen already knew the outcome.
A Mass Exorcism requires a considerable amount of time. If we invest that time, Black Dawn will ninety-nine percent pull something off. If they do something irreversible, it's game over.

At that moment.

"I'll go with you."

Aranseol stepped up beside me.
Babiyen's eyes went round, and so did mine. I didn't expect Aranseol to volunteer to come along here.

"I have Danmyung. If any ordinary soul tries to dig into me, they'll be forcefully dragged into its trial."

She explained her reasoning before I could even try to stop her.

"Harua, you have a purpose for going outside, right?"

She was exactly right.

"I'm going to bring back the ones caught by the wraiths from the outside."

The numerous Regular Army soldiers caught by the wraiths.
I planned to bring them all here.

"When I used Resurrection magic on corpses before, it even blocked the Apostle's disease."

The experience of curing the Apostle's disease in Monghwa Valley.
Through that experience, I realized many things.

"It's the same for souls. While they are in the middle of recovering through Resurrection magic, there is no room for another soul to squeeze in."

Turn them into corpses, cast Resurrection magic, and bring them back inside the barrier.
That's how I can save the Regular Army.

When I looked back at Legolash, he rolled up his sleeves instead of answering.

"We will prepare the Mass Exorcism."

Legolash didn't deny Aranseol's offer to tag along.
That meant her words weren't wrong either.
As always, we each do our best in our assigned roles.

"Babiyen, don't worry. If the situation doesn't look good, I don't plan on digging too deep."

The enemies are Black Dawn and the Great Sinners.
As if I'd be crazy enough to face them head-on. That would be suicide.

What we need most right now is to save the Regular Army.
To protect their forces from being neutralized.
That is exactly the role a Holy Mage should play.
It's a role perfectly suited for me, more than anyone else.

"I'll be right back."

When I gave my final words to Babiyen, she bit her lip with a tearful face, then gripped her staff tightly.

"If you don't come back safely, expect to be scolded to death."

Unfortunately, I have a body that doesn't die.
Still, I decided to faithfully follow her words and stood in front of the barrier.

"Bring the staff back first. We might not be able to bind the wraiths like before, but we'll be able to secure some space."
"Yes, I will."

The barrier would only open for a very brief moment.
It would close immediately as soon as we stepped out.
So, I immediately got into position.

"Let's go."

These disgusting Great Sinner bastards.
I'm going to personally thrash them.

"Go."

With Legolash's word, the barrier opened.
At the same time, Aranseol and I immediately threw ourselves forward.
The two of us dashed out of the barrier.

Then, the barrier closed instantly behind us.
The scale of the barrier had shrunk.
But if we brought the staff, we could push the wraiths away and secure space.

Outside the barrier.
Unlike inside, the outside was incredibly quiet.
An empty space.
The faint smoke still lingering.
A desolate landscape not much different from earlier unfolded before my eyes.

It looked like an empty scene, but an eerie chill swept over my entire body. It was just invisible to my eyes; this place must be swarming with wraiths right now.

I could actually feel the physical resistance against my body.
But it was only for a moment.

The wraiths had to brush past without being able to covet my body.
There was no room for the wraiths to dig into my vessel, which was already overflowing with Divine Power.

The same went for Aranseol standing next to me.
The fierce killing intent flowing from her sword, Danmyung, was not something the wraiths could overcome.

Even if they somehow pierced through that killing intent and made contact with Aranseol's body... they would inevitably be devoured by the trial, lose their will, and be torn to shreds. It was just like the countless swordsmen who had challenged Danmyung and crossed the river of no return.

However, it wasn't as if Aranseol was completely unaffected.
Continuously exuding Danmyung's killing intent was a burden on Aranseol as well. That burden must be steadily piling up on her.

I couldn't put any more burden on Aranseol.
We had to hurry.

"There it is."

I already knew the direction where the staff would be.
The place where a pure white Divine Barrier was deployed.
It was Aigis's Divine Barrier.

Lululio and Aigis were inside it right now.
Since both of them had run to protect the staff, Legolash's staff must be there too.

We ran straight for the Divine Barrier.
Then, I saw the wraiths fiercely pounding on the surface of the pure white barrier.
Aigis was holding off the wraiths alone by deploying the barrier of divinity.

"Lady Aigis!"
"Lord Harua? Did you actually come outside?"

Aigis asked in a surprised voice.
She hadn't expected to hear my voice this close.

"Uh, is this maybe a wraith that jacked Lord Harua's body and is using his voice, sir?!"

Lululio, you've watched too many horror movies.

"Sorry, but that's not it. The vessel of my soul is full, so there's no room for spirits to enter."
"Ah."

Aigis understood immediately.
I'd explain the details to them later; right now, the staff was more important.

"Lady Aigis, do you have Lord Legolash's staff?"
"Oh, I grabbed it, sir!"

As expected of Lululio.

"You need to take that and join up with Lord Legolash's barrier. He said he can expand the Soul Barrier if he has the staff."
"Understood. We should rendezvous immediately."

Aigis answered without hesitation.
An answer befitting the Divine Lord.

"First, I will envelop the Soul Barrier from the outside with my barrier. Lady Lululio, are you ready to run?"
"I'll get it done, sir!"

With Lululio's energetic reply, Aigis brought her hands together.
Then, the size of the Divine Barrier instantly amplified, temporarily pushing away the surrounding wraiths.

I could see the bodies of the wraiths clinging to the barrier being shoved back all at once.
Taking advantage of that opening, Aigis and Lululio sprinted toward Legolash's Soul Barrier.

Making eye contact with the two, I nodded.

"I will bring the other Regular Army soldiers to the barrier. Please watch out for root attacks in the meantime."
"Leave it to me."

With that, Aigis and Lululio reached the front of the Soul Barrier.
Soon, the Divine Barrier shrank down to an area just covering the two of them.

Beyond the barrier, I could see Aigis letting out a short breath.
She was a Paladin, not a specialized cleric. So, using a Divine Barrier like this was quite a burden on her.

Still, thanks to her, the staff must have been delivered.
With this, they should be able to expand the Soul Barrier to accommodate more people.

Fwoooosh—

I saw flames blooming inside the barrier.
Babiyen and Legolash were beginning the Mass Exorcism.
I need to retrieve the Regular Army as quickly as possible so as not to interrupt their exorcism.