The moment Borena fell, Ed's eyes darkened.

His fingers clenched spasmodically on the armrest, and he was so chilled that he couldn't hear what Gilbert was saying to him, or the smug laughter of Kezia beside him, or whether Sercio's small exclamation was joyful or sad. The commotion around him flickered and fell, wave after wave, making him almost want to throw up on the railing.

He should rush down to see if Borena still has a breath. He can save him. He saved him once and saved him a second time...... But deep down he knew that Borena was dead.

It felt as if a part of myself was dying with it.

Naïve, innocent...... The part that his elven friends once called "good".

Beautiful, but stupid.

He always saw only the light in front of him, but he never dared to look back at the real darkness, as if it would not exist without looking at it.

That's not bravery or optimism at all, it's just a cowardly evasion, just self-deception......

The world is vast and beautiful, the world is cold and cruel, and the gods are high above and look down on all beings. They create, then destroy, that's all. They will not show the way for people, they will not judge good and evil, they will not sigh for the weak and they will not smile for the strong......

Horror was followed by cold despair, and sorrow and anger followed. Ed grabbed the pendant on his chest with trembling, stiff fingers - he should have thrown it away, thrown far away, to the far end of the ice, to the end of the world. If the gods don't care about the world at all......

- So what do you want the gods to do?

He heard a distant sigh in a trance. Faint and clear.

They have given us life, and then they have given us freedom, even if it is free to perish. That's our choice.

And they will always be there, waiting for us to go home.

Isn't that enough? Ed Singel.......

"The king-killer is dead...... The Father-Killer is dead!" Gilbert stood beside Borena's corpse and proclaimed, "God's judgment has been given, and the deceased will rest in peace!"

This was supposed to be Ed's task - but the young pastor was apparently stunned, and when he got no response, Gilbert had to do it again.

The cheers from all around made the old man a little drunk, as if justice had been proclaimed in his hands. He didn't understand Behring Gray. Why did the young knight just stand there with his blood-soaked sword in his hand? His face was ashen, without a hint of joy or excitement, as if it was himself who had died, and his soul was standing there......

The thought made Gilbert slightly uneasy.

But all this is over - all the troubles. The possible unrest dissipated with the death of Borena De Juri. Of course, there will be a long time to come, the new king will ascend the throne, the Croifflers' grievances will need to be appeased, and the barbarian threat will need to be dealt with...... Gilbert is confident that he can solve these problems.

After the loud cheers had subsided for a while, the old man spoke again: "Thank you for the judgment of the goddess Nyo......"

A voice interrupted him.

"This is not Nyo's trial. ”

The old man turned his head in astonishment, and looked at the young priest of the water god—he was a little skeptical that he was a priest at all—and stood up, his face not bloody, but his voice was clear: "This is not the judgment of Ni'o!"

Gilbert almost wanted to signal the guards to drag the young man down...... But that's in plain sight. He couldn't do that to a servant of God. Queen Kezia and Sercio in the stands just stared at Ed, as if they didn't react at all.

There was silence throughout the Colosseum, and all eyes fell on the young priest. Listen to his unusually loud voice echoing through the room.

"I know it was Borena who asked for this contest because it was the only chance he had to live, the only chance to prove his innocence...... But how many of the people here today really care if this person is innocent or not, and how many people really believe that this is God's judgment?! If anyone wants the life of Borena Dejury, let his blood be on your own hands! Don't lend someone else's hand...... And don't take the name of the gods!"

People looked at each other in uneasiness. I don't know why the priest of the water god is angry. Kazia began to angrily beckoned the guards forward, but two or three of them fell to the ground for some reason. The rest were huddled together in the cramped stands, and they had to be careful not to injure the distinguished guests.

A lazy, mocking voice came from somewhere in the stands, and it reached everyone's ears as clearly: "I don't understand, you're trying to say that this is not God's judgment? What does the great water god Ni'o want us to do? Are we all wrong about our faith in God's justice and power?"

People turned their heads to look for the unknown man, some nodded in agreement, some pondered in confusion, some were in high spirits, and some were just looking around blankly...... A moment later, the priest's young voice cut through the tidal whispers again, and sounded clearly and firmly:

"If you really want the judgment of Ni'o...... Then listen to her answer!!".

No one could tell what it was. It was as if the distant sound of the waves, or the torrential rain of a summer night, or the sound of a mountain stream as the snow melted, came from the horizon or from the horizon, and permeated the hearts of all, growing more and more rapid in the sound of the priest's incantation that he did not know when, but also more and more distantly. The sunlight near noon suddenly became so bright and dreadful, as if looking up from the bottom of the water, a white light gradually condensed on Borenna's corpse, but the edges shook a gentle light blue.

Gilbert stepped back in confusion, and as the figure of a young girl emerged from the light, her knees went limp, and she fell to her knees in the dust.

Also on his knees was Behring, the young knight who seemed to have lost his soul. He did not look down, but stared blankly at the shadow of the white-haired and blue-eyed girl, which was bright but soft, not stinging anyone's eyes, but also making it impossible to see her face.

All he could see was her leaning down gently, a kiss as light as a drizzle on Borena's cold forehead.

Then all the light and sound suddenly dissipated, and people seemed to wake up from a dream, looking at each other in amazement, unable to tell what had happened.

Only Behring stared at the corpse in front of him, the man who had died at his hands because of a moment's hesitation and impatience......

Borena sat up abruptly, and after a moment of confusion, blurted out, "What the is going on?!".

"Lord Reverend needs to rest!" Naria said loudly, slamming the door on Gilbert's face.

She plugged in the latch, believing that at least no one would dare to break down at this moment.

Not after Ed brought Borena Dejury back from the dead in front of thousands of people.

She still couldn't believe it was Ed - that stupid Ed Singall, who was now curling himself up in the corner of the room......

Alan stood beside Ed, frowning worriedly.

The Colosseum erupted in exclamations that almost knocked the entire building to the ground—and then some fell to their knees, and some began to rush over, as if to be close to the young and powerful priest was to be close to the gods.

The guards began to protect the royal and noble families in the stands, but no one seemed to dare to touch the priest who was still standing in front of the railing. In the midst of the confusion, the young man was falling backwards like a stone as Alan squeezed around Ed, his face blue and his eyes glazed. Alan thought he was unconscious, or worse, but he had barely grabbed Ed's arm when the young man stood on his feet and grinned at him instinctively.

The smile didn't reach his empty eyes at all.

With the help of Lady Greon and Anselm Boomer, the knight who was with her to protect her, Alan half-dragged Edra into the room where he had rested, for the same reason as Naria, and Naria followed closely behind, violently driving away everyone who dared to catch up, whether it was a queen, a prince, a prime minister, or a priest of some other god...... She doesn't care at all now.

"Ed ......"

She crouched in front of Ed, carefully brushing away the black hair that had fallen on his forehead - the hair she had tied for him had already become a mess in the crowd, and the guy who had ripped off the ribbon with a few strands of hair would probably have kept it as some kind of artifact.

There were a few knocks on the door, but they were powerful but not hurried. Naria opened the door at Alan's signal, and it was Selene Grean who dodged in.

"You need to get out of this place as soon as possible, the people outside are going crazy, and the guards may not be able to stop them. ”

Even in this small room, they could feel the vibrations caused by the footsteps and cries of people, which seemed to crash against every stone brick.

"I'll let Anselm clear the way for you—I knew I should have brought a few more retinues. The Countess looked at Ed, who had been cowering in the corner and had not moved: "What's wrong with this child?"

"Scared by himself...... Probably. Naria replied.

The countess was slightly stunned, and the expression on her face suddenly softened.

She walked over to Ed and gently placed her hand on the young man's head.

"You did a good deed—Ed, a right thing, you saved an innocent man, you washed the blood of an innocent man from my son's hands, and I should thank you for that...... And you should be proud of yourself. ”

Ed finally moved. He looked up and smiled weakly, "But that wasn't what I did......"

"Then thank your gods on my behalf, child. Selene smiled and rubbed his hair, "I'm sure your voice can reach her ears more clearly." ”

-- Not really......

Ed opened his mouth, but still didn't say anything.

(To be continued)