— — — — — —
Milan's streets bustled with their usual energy.
Amid the crowd walked a silver-haired knight, slim and graceful, her azure eyes calm yet striking. Known among busybodies as the "Fairy Knight," Liliana Kranjcar was finally enjoying a rare day off.
That peace lasted right up until her phone rang.
"...A sacred relic?"
Liliana's voice slipped out in a half gasp as she stopped at the curb, phone in hand.
"What happened at the ruins in Rome, Teacher Diana? Weren't we only supposed to drive out a group of cultists?"
Her heart mourned the death of her vacation, but she forced herself to straighten up and focus.
In Italy, seven leading societies studied magic in secret.
The Bronze Black Cross—the one Liliana belonged to—was among the strongest. And as the eldest daughter of the Kranjcar family, one of its ruling houses, she carried the duty of answering calls like this.
Finding a relic was no minor matter. She had to support the organization's response, even if it meant personally investigating. With her witch's bloodline and the ability to use Spirit Vision to glean information from the unseen world, she was often on the front line when artifacts of divine origin appeared.
But then Diana's words over the phone froze her in place.
"WHAT—you've already traced it? A fragment of the Mother Earth's divinity?!"
Liliana's face twisted with shock, her mind reeling.
As a witch, she knew very well what divinity meant: the essence of a god.
And if a shard of a Mother Earth Goddess' divinity was involved... then the descent of a Heretic God was practically guaranteed.
Her breath caught. "That's already beyond our ability to contain. We'll have to appeal to Lord... WHAT?"
Her grip slipped, and the phone nearly fell.
For three seconds, she could only stand there in stunned silence before forcing out her words, her voice cracking.
"Lord Salvatore... went to the Middle East because he heard a Heretic God appeared there?!"
The Campione.
The final defense against Heretic Gods. Men who wielded divine Authorities as if they were living calamities themselves.
There were only six in the entire world.
And Salvatore Doni—the "King of Swords"—was one of them. He also happened to be the supreme leader of all southern European magical societies, Italy included.
Liliana's tone grew unsteady, close to collapse. "I knew he was unreliable when I met him, but I didn't think he'd be this bad..."
When the world's strongest protector runs off at the crucial moment—what kind of leader is that?!
No wonder her teacher had sounded so resigned when asking for her help. This was truly a dead end.
Sniffling, Liliana forced her voice into something steady. "I understand. I'll head to Rome right away and assist the witches in sealing the relic. Please don't worry—I'll make sure we finish before the god descends—"
She didn't finish.
A hand tapped her shoulder.
"What?" Her heart lurched. She had cloaked herself in concealment the moment she answered the call. No ordinary person should have been able to approach her, much less touch her.
Instinct screamed at her to counterattack, her knight's training ready to snap into action.
But then a young male voice spoke casually behind her.
"Excuse me, pretty lady. Could you lend me a little cash? I'll pay you back twice."
"Huh?" Liliana froze. Instead of striking, she turned—half cautious, half bewildered.
The instant her eyes fell on him, her pupils shrank violently.
"Ah!"
A wave of nausea hit her so hard she nearly doubled over. She barely managed to clap a hand over her mouth, eyes locked on the figure before her as words slipped out in a dazed monotone:
"The one who commands victory... the embodiment of wisdom... the war-bringer... ancient queen of the heavens, daughter of Zeus... Pallas Athena—urgh!"
Her stomach heaved again. But the hand on her shoulder pressed down just slightly, and suddenly all the sickness vanished. Even the mess on her palm disappeared as if it had never been there.
For a girl as conscious of her image as Liliana, that should have been a relief. Instead, her heart plummeted.
She had seen the godly aura with her spirit sight. Athena Pallas. A Heretic God.
Her expression twisted, tears threatening as she forced herself to look directly at him.
"???"
The man in front of her blinked back and quipped with a grin, "Hey now, even if I'm ridiculously handsome, I can't be so handsome it makes you wanna cry."
Liliana gawked at him, stunned. On instinct, she raised the phone to her ear again.
"Teacher... is Athena... a man?"
"..."
On the other end, Diana fell silent. She'd already been confused when she overheard a stranger's voice asking for money, but this question made her freeze.
"Liliana... did you burn out your brain on vacation? Athena is obviously not a man."
"But..." Liliana's voice cracked, almost sobbing. "But he—"
Diana cut her off, her own breath heavy through the receiver. Then her voice came back, tense and commanding.
"Don't resist. Cooperate fully. And above all—don't give up."
"I... understand."
But Liliana didn't believe her own words. She was certain she was going to die.
Because that guy—no, the male Athena—had just frowned at her question.
It was unmistakably the expression called anger.
His eyes narrowed. "Miss, I know asking to borrow money was a bit rude, but insulting me is a bit much, don't you think?"
"I-I'm deeply sorry... Lord Athena..." Liliana's face crumpled as if she might burst into tears.
"Oh? You're still insulting me?"
The man feigned a look of mock anger, his tone playful. "This isn't over between us."
"I-I really am sorry!" Liliana's voice cracked with panic, trembling on the edge of crying outright.
What do you even do when you've offended a Heretic God? She was on a Milan street corner, begging for her life.
And then—
A cold, elegant female voice cut in.
"I hate to interrupt your little fun... but did I just hear this witch mention the word 'relic'?"
Liliana turned and saw a petite silver-haired girl standing nearby.
Her stomach dropped again.
The ancient, exalted queen of the underworld—Metis.
Liliana broke completely, her eyes vacant as her lips muttered, "So now it's mother and daughter teaming up to bully me... heh... heheh..."
"Has she gone mad?" The man—Ryo Yagami—arched a brow, then smirked. "Well, in that case, maybe I'll just take advantage of the moment..."
"Take advantage?" Liliana's mind flashed to a terrifying yet strangely thrilling thought. Her cheeks burned scarlet.
Then her eyes rolled back, and she fainted dead away.
Before her consciousness fully slipped, she dimly heard the pair's voices drifting above her.
"I wasn't even finished asking questions..."
"Forget that. Help me find her wallet—I've never hit a winning streak on Football betting. Be a waste not to try now."
"Sports betting? Gods gamble on Football too?"
That was Liliana's final thought before everything went dark.
.
.
.