High-Rank Angel

The Holy Light Tore Through the Sky.

All eyes, including Belmore's, were drawn to the radiant rift above.

And from that rift, a being beyond mortal comprehension emerged.

A colossal angel, its wings burning like sacred fire. Not four, not six, but eight wings woven from divine light.

Its face radiated majesty, and its eyes gazed downward as if peering directly from the heavens. In its hand, a long sword of pure light gleamed brilliantly.

Belmore instinctively took a step back.

"Wait… could this be… a Seraph?!"

For a moment, his breath hitched.

In the game, Seraphs were among the highest-ranking angels—beings that were considered almost godlike, even among the top-tier NPCs. If this was truly a Seraph…

"No… that's impossible…"

Belmore narrowed his gaze, carefully examining the angel's body, feeling the energy radiating from it…

And then, suddenly, his fear turned into mockery.

"Just a high-ranking angel."

His face showed no expression, but his deep and menacing voice dripped with disdain.

A high-ranking angel, no matter how powerful, was nothing more than trash before someone like him.

If it had been an Archangel, he might have taken it seriously. If it had been a true Seraph… well, defeating it would be difficult, but still possible.

Belmore smirked. "This is your trump card, old man? A mere high-ranked angel?"

Rogar, seemingly expecting this reaction, replied calmly, "Are you afraid?"

Belmore laughed. "Afraid?" He raised his arm and pointed at the angel. "This thing is nothing but an ant."

Rogar sneered. "You speak boldly, blasphemous monster. But fear not. This angel carries the will of the divine. No force, not even you, can defeat it."

But deep down, he knew the truth.

Even this angel would not be enough to defeat this demonic god standing before him.

Because if this monster truly was a god, then killing a god was not so simple.

For a brief moment, Rogar glanced at his enchanted ring, and with the precision only a veteran of the church possessed, he secretly sent a distress signal.

The eight-winged angel, unfazed by their words, raised its sword of light.

Holy power surged from the blade, flowing like a divine river meant to cleanse the world of darkness.

And then—with a single motion—it struck.

Belmore easily dodged.

The sword of light split the ground apart. But he was still standing there, completely unharmed.

Lunaryl and Elise's eyes widened in shock.

How was such an attack… so ineffective?!

The eight-winged angel wasted no time, launching a second strike. This time, Belmore didn't even move.

The sword of light slammed into his dark armor—and vanished without a trace.

For the first time, the angel's eyes widened in shock.

Belmore smirked.

"My turn."

He raised his hand and whispered,

"Chains of the Apocalypse."

The shadows moved.

From the depths of darkness, spectral chains shot forth, twisting and coiling around the angel's body with terrifying speed.

The angel roared in fury, struggling, but the chains only tightened. Its holy power had no effect on them.

Belmore walked forward, standing right before its distressed face.

"Holy angel?" He chuckled. "You don't look so holy from down here."

Then, without hesitation, he gripped the angel's head—

—And crushed it.

CRACK!

The angel let out a primordial scream before disintegrating into divine dust, vanishing into the air.

Absolute silence.

Lunaryl covered her mouth in shock. Elise's knees trembled with fear.

And Rogar?

His eyes were filled with pure disbelief.

"This… this is impossible…"

He refused to accept this reality.

Belmore took a deep breath. His body shuddered slightly.

"So this place is real."

Now, there was no doubt. This was not a dream.

A million questions flooded his mind.

"Where is this place? Why am I here? What is this world?"

Slowly, he stepped toward the two girls and the archbishop.

The girls immediately dropped to their knees.

"P-please… don't kill us…" Elise whimpered.

Belmore paused before speaking. "Where am I?"

Lunaryl, her voice shaking, answered, "T-this… this is the continent of Arkanis… We are in the region of Westgrave."

Belmore narrowed his eyes. Arkanis? Westgrave?

Those names had nothing to do with the world of the game.

No… not even the world itself.

He had never heard of these places in his entire life.

Elise continued, "We… we didn't want to… but we had no choice but to use the Black Holy Scripture… That's all I know…"

Belmore fell silent. His mind was rapidly trying to piece the puzzle together.

"The Black Holy Scripture? What even is that…?"

He turned his gaze.

"And you?"

The Archbishop, for the first time, showed true fear on his face. His lips pressed into a tight line.

Elise spoke in a weak voice, "H-he is Archbishop Rogar… one of the leaders of the Grand Church."

Belmore took a step forward.

"Now it's your turn to answer my questions."

Rogar clenched his fists in anger and growled, "I will not answer to a blasphemous monster!"

Belmore sighed.

"Alright then… I guess I'll have to convince you a little."

He raised his hand.

"Eternal Cage."

Dark lights rose from the ground—shadows that, in the blink of an eye, wrapped around Rogar, trapping him in a cage of endless darkness.

The archbishop's eyes widened in fear.

Belmore slowly approached the cage, gazed into his eyes, and smiled.

"Now, I'll ask again."

"Will you answer?"

"Or would you rather see how this cage works?"