“…….”

“If His Majesty the Emperor imposes another trial, I will step forward to prevent that as well. So please don’t go.”

“Why would you go that far for me?”

Erin had always wanted to ask this.

Why he was kind to her. Why he would sacrifice so much for someone like her.

Ferdin opened his mouth.

“In that past you remember, I had something I wanted to tell you.”

The moment he spoke those words, Ferdin realized through his ability what his past self had been thinking.

“I was going to tell you that I love you.”

Hearing his words, Erin’s eyes turned bloodshot.

She doubted her ears. She couldn’t comprehend what Ferdin was saying.

‘He loved me? Ferdin?’

It was something she had never once imagined. But that made it all the more heartbreaking. If Ferdin truly loved her as he claimed, then Corelia had been right.

She had dragged him down into the mire.

Erin struggled to compose herself. What Ferdin was talking about now was what his ‘past’ self had intended to say.

So the current Ferdin would think differently. If what Ferdin said was true, she had even more reason to go west.

“Lord Ferdin, I am a knight. Someone who lives to protect others.”

Erin slowly approached Ferdin and grasped his firm hand. Then she knelt on one knee, assuming a posture similar to a knight making a vow.

Ferdin’s expression grew complicated. Erin’s posture was identical to the one he had taken in the past when he swore to her that he would return safely.

“Until now, I’ve never done anything by my own will. No purpose or direction in life…”

When she was dying by Raymon’s sword, she had firmly resolved in her heart. That from now on, she would choose for herself, whatever outcome awaited.

Whether it led to life, death, or even a path to hell.

Ferdin felt complex emotions watching her. He knew he should stop her. He thought that was the right thing to do.

But her next words made it impossible for him to ask her not to leave.

“I promise I’ll return. This time, please let me make my own choice.”

* * *

Derek was waiting for Ferdin in the office. Amon sat before him in a somewhat slouched posture.

“Lighten up. It’s not like sulking will bring Erin Liserth back.”

“Erin hasn’t left yet.”

“If she goes west, will she meet Hellix? If he helps Erin Liserth, completing the promotion mission might not be impossible.”

“I told you she’s not going west. And who says he’d help her? She’d be the one helping him, if anything.”

Derek felt something off about Amon’s scoffing remark.

“You make it sound like Erin Liserth is stronger than Hellix.”

“What?”

“That’s how it sounds. Hellix is strong. They say he might become the captain of the Central Temple’s Holy Knight Order someday.”

“…”

“His holy power is exceptional, and he uses it with remarkable skill. By regular knight standards, he would easily qualify as a high-ranking knight.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Yet you’re acting like Erin is stronger than Hellix. Have you forgotten how the holy knights from the Holy Kingdom gained recognition from the Emperor?”

Hearing Derek’s words, Amon’s face immediately hardened. He was terrible at lying.

Amon bit his lip as he felt the urge to blurt out the truth. He had always considered himself tight-lipped. But whenever he saw people disrespecting Erin, he wanted to grab them by the collar and shout:

‘Erin is already a Sword Master!’

Amon clutched his head in agony, once again fighting a deep impulse. But he had to endure.

Having suppressed his urge, he looked at Derek and raised one corner of his mouth. Just as Derek tilted his head at Amon’s awkward smile—

Ferdin opened the door and entered the office. At that moment, Amon and Derek’s eyes met.

The atmosphere Ferdin brought with him was unsettling. Both immediately noticed his foul mood.

Derek gave Amon a meaningful look.

‘Hurry up and ask what happened with Erin Liserth.’

At Derek’s intense gaze, Amon sighed and turned to Ferdin.

“Ferdin! How did it go? What about Erin?”

“She left.”

“What?”

At Ferdin’s words, Amon’s eyes widened. Derek also frowned and shook his head.

“Weren’t you going to stop her?”

“I intended to.”

Regardless of his confidence in Erin’s abilities, Ferdin didn’t want her to continue fighting lonely battles by herself.

Moreover, Isis and Hellix were at the western temple. To take the promotion test, she would need witnesses to observe the process.

Usually, people brought along holy knights who couldn’t lie, so Erin would likely request help from the temple.

Ferdin was concerned about the possibility of them meeting Erin without him present.

Derek asked him, clearly confused, “Why did you let her leave? The people in the west will never help her.”

Ferdin understood what Derek was trying to say. People in the west who didn’t know Erin well would show hostility toward her. The west was dangerous territory. A land unsuitable for human habitation due to frequent monster appearances.

The Emperor had relocated people from the Holy Kingdom there. As a result, the western people harbored strong resentment toward imperial citizens.

Ferdin was worried too. But after he conveyed what his past self had wanted to say, Erin’s changed demeanor had been unsettling.

As his thoughts reached this point, Ferdin’s face turned bright red. Derek, standing beside him, was startled by the sudden change.

Even though it was what his past self had thought, he worried whether telling her had been the right thing to do, whether it had only caused Erin more pain.

The image of Erin suffering wouldn’t leave his mind.

He wanted to shout at her not to leave. But even if the same situation happened again, he wouldn’t be able to stop her.

“This time, please let me make my own choice.”

If that was the case, he needed to do what he could from here.

* * *

As soon as she arrived in the west, Erin received piercing stares from the people. Probably because of the Atenz Academy knight uniform she was wearing. Erin pretended not to notice the wary gazes and continued walking toward her destination.

‘Can’t be helped.’

Knight candidates performing promotion missions were required to wear their knight uniforms. It meant she couldn’t hide her affiliation with Atenz Academy.

She could hear the western people whispering,

“Why would she come here?”

“She’s wearing a knight uniform. Must be here for the promotion test.”

“An Atenz Academy student taking the promotion test here?”

“Stop staring and let’s go inside.”

Erin disregarded their stares. She was used to people’s hostile gazes.

‘Hellix will be staying at the temple.’

With a clear destination, there was no need to hesitate.

Erin set off to meet Hellix.

* * *

At the time Erin arrived in the west, Hellix was indeed staying at the temple as she had expected.

Noticing the usually quiet temple’s unusual commotion, Hellix asked a passing priest:

“Has something happened?”

“Ah, Sir Hellix. High Priest Isis has just arrived.”

At the familiar name, Hellix nodded with an expressionless face. Isis was his twin brother and the high priest of the western central temple.

‘So he’s arrived.’

Isis Igzart. At least in the west, he was the most influential person after the Emperor. He was known for his tremendous holy power and was considered a candidate for the next Pope.

Hellix walked quickly.

He could guess where Isis would be. Sure enough, Isis was in the prayer room where priests offered prayers to God.

He was kneeling before a statue, sitting quietly. Isis was a man with short red hair and a pale complexion. His ascetic and beautiful face, befitting a priest whom people looked up to, was striking. Though he resembled Hellix in appearance, their auras were completely different.

“Isis.”

At Hellix’s call, Isis turned his head. Then he smiled brightly at him.

While Hellix tended not to show his emotions, Isis was the type to wear a mask.

Hellix frowned at Isis’s bright smile. He knew what kind of nagging would follow whenever he smiled like that.