Vivian didn’t know what compelled her to come all the way here.

The only thing occupying her mind was worry for Ren.

Despite the considerable distance between the hideout on the outskirts of the capital and the Schneider territory, Vivian quickly covered that long journey using her ability.

Under normal circumstances, she would never have done this due to the limited time of her ability and the need to distribute her stamina.

However, the thought of Ren being in danger made her body move before she could even make a rational decision.

As soon as she arrived at the Schneider ducal residence, what greeted her ears was the sound of a huge explosion.

‘Over there.’

Vivian had a gut feeling. If she headed in the direction of the sound, she would find Ren.

Her prediction was not wrong, but……

The Ren she finally found was in a state that was hard for her to accept.

Although the black mass, presumed to be his shadow, was twisted around as if trying to stop the bleeding, Ren’s shoulder had a hole in it as if it had been pierced by something.

His entire body was covered in fresh wounds.

In that wrecked state, he was surrounded by and confronting high-ranking demons.

But at that very moment, one of the fallen demons tried to surprise attack Ren from behind.

Her brain froze. The thought of protecting him dominated Vivian’s mind.

She immediately leapt into the midst of the demons and reached out towards Ren.

“Ren!”

At the same time, she called his name in an urgent voice.

Fortunately, despite her sudden appearance, Ren clasped her hand in return.

Vivian quickly pulled him into the air, extracting him from among the demons.

As the distance closed, the strong smell of blood wafted. A smell that contrasted with his refreshing pine-like scent.

It made her realize how much blood he had shed during the battle.

‘And the reason Ren was driven to this point……’

Without even a moment for a moving reunion, Vivian immediately hid Ren behind her as if to protect him.

Her eyes, dyed a vivid golden color, sharply watched the enemies before her.

Behind the high-ranking demons who were grasping the sudden change in the situation, a demon with six wings spread out revealed himself.

It was not difficult to recognize who it was.

Belial. The king of demons.

The very culprit who had made Ren like this addressed her in a low tone.

“Vivian Schmidt.”

At first, his voice sounded calm, but Vivian could read the emotion lurking within it.

The demon wanted to tear her to shreds right then and there.

Her thought was correct.

Belial was consumed by an unusual rage.

The deep bond between Vivian Schmidt and Callys that could be instantly recognized with a single glance.

This naturally made Belial realize.

The one who had been keeping Callys, whom he had only known to be in the hands of Marquis Schmidt, was not the Marquis but her.

It meant that the Apostle of God had dared to steal his pawn and interfere with his grand plans.

Belial approached Vivian, emitting a brutal aura. The sharp tips of his hands, transformed into spears, glinted eerily.

However, anger was not an emotion felt only by Belial.

Vivian met the gaze of the demon approaching her menacingly without averting her eyes.

At the same time, without taking her eyes off him, she approached the fallen Damian.

On the ground lay a sword presumed to be Damian’s.

She picked up the sword and muttered softly.

“I’ll borrow this for a bit.”

In the meantime, the high-ranking demons, who belatedly realized she was an Apostle of God, surrounded Belial, their master and king, as if to guard him.

However, Vivian paid no heed. She simply did what she wanted to do.

Holding the sword, she immediately charged towards Belial, who was wearing Siegfried’s mask.

The high-ranking demons tried to stop her from approaching their king.

But Vivian leaped high into the air and threw herself straight at their king.

The demon who had targeted Ren’s back a moment ago reached out its long arm to grab her ankle as she flew……

Thud.

The demon’s wrist separated from its arm and pathetically fell to the ground.

A black figure that instantly rose from the ground had severed its arm.

The culprit was obvious.

The high-ranking demons turned their gazes from Vivian and glared at Ren.

“……”

Ren tapped his chest with a mocking expression, without saying a word.

His face and actions clearly conveyed what he meant to say. Their opponent was him, not Vivian.

“If you want to die that badly…… Fine. I’ll take you on as much as you want!”

The demons, provoked, rushed towards Ren with a terrifying momentum.

As before, Ren began to confront the demons using his shadow.

He blocked attacks aimed at vital points and took down his enemies one by one.

It was a similar fighting style to when he was surrounded by demons before Vivian appeared. However, there was a clear difference.

Unlike before, when he fought like an emotionless machine, there was now an expression on Ren’s face.

He, who had previously shown no concern for whether his body was injured or not, now tried to minimize his injuries.

After carving out the heart of the demon who had targeted Vivian a moment ago and mercilessly crushing it with his foot, Ren finally realized.

The reason why he had become strange over the past few months.

Vivian. Just her absence had broken him, and her mere return had fixed him.

She was deeply intertwined with all his emotions and thoughts.

No, to be more precise, it felt as if she was his foundation.

It was no exaggeration to say that without her, he too would cease to exist.

‘And yet, after barely meeting her for the first time in months, of all situations, it had to be this one.’

Ren glanced at Vivian, who was confronting Siegfried.

It was no wonder he was called a king; Siegfried was stronger than any being Ren had ever seen.

So leaving Vivian to face him alone was absolutely not a decision the usual Ren would make.

Rather than tying up the high-ranking demons so she could focus on the fight, it might have been wiser to leave this place together.

Nevertheless, the reason he silently watched like this was because of Vivian.

Vivian was often frightened when faced with demons or threatening monsters.

Although she tried to hide it somehow, Ren’s eyes, which always followed her, could not be deceived.

However, there was no such sign in her as she stood before Siegfried.

Rather, she had a determined expression as if she had firmly resolved something.

Even for Ren, who had been with her for a long time, it was the first time he had seen Vivian display such a strong will.

‘I don’t know exactly what Vivian is thinking, but……’

His role had always been to silently support her from behind.

If there was something she wanted to do, it was his part to stop anything that interfered.

His left arm wouldn’t even move due to the hole in his shoulder.

There was not a single uninjured part of his body. Yet Ren continued to confront the demons. Because it was for Vivian.

With Ren’s help, Vivian was able to engage Siegfried alone.

However, the battle with him showed no signs of ending easily.

Vivian unleashed attacks at an unbelievably fast speed.

But the opponent was none other than the king of demons. Even though her speed was clearly difficult to keep up with visually, he adeptly dodged her attacks.

In fact, Vivian knew. That her current actions might not hold much meaning.

What she held in her hand was not a holy sword, but an ordinary sword, so it would be impossible to completely take the demon’s life.

Moreover, she had wasted quite a bit of her ability’s usage time coming all the way here. She didn’t know when her stamina would run out and she would collapse.

Despite being aware of all these facts, the reason she recklessly charged at Siegfried was purely because of Ren.

Vivian could not forgive him. Siegfried, no, Belial, who had made Ren look like that, of all people.

An intense anger she had never felt before in her life.

Swept up in it, she relentlessly charged at Siegfried. She didn’t even allow the demon a chance to attack.

And finally.

Her sword touched the demon’s body.

Vivian squeezed out the remaining holy power and stabbed the demon king’s abdomen with all her might.

Holy power and demonic power were the epitome of opposites.

No matter how easily a demon could heal from ordinary wounds, this blow was sure to be quite painful.

Siegfried’s body, hit by the attack, was sent flying far away.

Eventually, the demon crashed into the wall and coughed up blood.

Vivian wanted to follow up with another attack, but it was too much.

Now that she had exhausted all her holy power, it took considerable willpower just to stand firm on her two legs.

“……His Majesty is in danger!”

The demons fighting Ren must have also noticed this situation, as they stopped their actions and immediately ran to Siegfried.

They tried to support their king and escape.

But Belial seemed to have a different idea.

He persistently stared at the Apostle of God from within the protection of the high-ranking demons.

Realizing that the Apostle’s movements were unusual, he gave a bitter smile.

‘It’s clear she’s reached her limit!’

It was a sweet opportunity that might never come again.

He used his ability to lift a dagger that Ren had once discarded and threw it straight at her.

No matter how dull the blade was, the attack of a dagger flying at high speed would be enough to kill the weakened Apostle.

However, things did not go as Siegfried intended.

Ren threw himself in front of Vivian, blocking her.