"Exactly!" Rayleigh gritted his teeth and pulled Senbonzakura out of his hand.
Waves of dissatisfaction, sorrow, and guilt radiated from the blade.
He whispered another soft "I'm sorry" before sheathing the sword back at his waist.
To a Zanpakuto, he was essentially their God.
Harming its father was the absolute last thing a Zanpakuto would ever want to do.
Rayleigh felt deep remorse for forcing his Zanpakuto to do something it was so unwilling to do.
A Zanpakuto was the other half of a person's soul, It was not just an emotionless tool.
Enduring the sharp pain, Rayleigh activated Kaidō.
His palm was immediately enveloped in a soft glow of Reiatsu. By using Kaidō to heal his soul, Rayleigh's pale complexion quickly returned to a healthy, normal color.
Alfia watched this process closely and asked, "Is that healing Magic?"
Rayleigh nodded his head.
Then he added, "This is Kaidō, a specific technique that can actually repair souls."
Alfia frowned slightly.
This abandoned church was her late sister's favorite place. She had shared many precious memories here with her sister, which was exactly why she had come here alone before taking any major action.
It was troublesome.
She did not really care if any Adventurers discovered her, because she was simply too strong.
A mere flick of her finger could resolve everything. She just preferred silence.
She disliked being disturbed.
But tonight, this young man had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
He seemed to only be around Level 2, yet he had successfully dodged her attack. What followed was even more bizarre. He had actually seen right through her identity with a single sentence and boldly claimed he could cure her terminal illness.
Even with all of her vast experience, she could not help but think, 'This is truly a miraculous night.'
Alfia examined the young man standing before her.
He had black hair, perhaps indicating he was from the Far East.
His facial features were handsome, and his eyes were beautiful. He did not look like your typical blacksmith at all.
Her frail body, completely ravaged by her inherited illness, was already riddled with holes.
Even though she never showed any signs of weakness in front of others, the harsh truth was very different.
This pain was constant. Even right now, her internal organs were practically screaming in agony.
Especially after losing her sister, her very last shred of happiness had faded away.
That loss left her with only endless sorrow and agony, turning her into something akin to a walking corpse.
After accepting that God's invitation, she had firmly severed her final worldly attachment.
That attachment was the young child her sister had left behind, Bell Cranel.
Zeus had disguised himself as the child's grandfather in order to care for him.
Even though she worried the growing child might pick up some bad habits from the god, compared to her—someone who did not have long to live—that old bastard probably would not be too neglectful.
She did not want that innocent child to become a hero.
A simple, peaceful life was more than enough for him.
She had heard the child had inherited her sister's physical features, especially the striking white hair, which was exactly why she dared not meet him face-to-face.
If she saw the child, she would surely lose her firm resolve.
She would definitely want to stay alive just for that child!
Unfortunately, she had also heard the child's eyes were red, just like the worthless man who had tricked her beloved sister.
'I have severed my final attachment. Yet I still waver at the thought of living?' Alfia stopped her train of thought right there.
Just then, the sound of heavy footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the quiet abandoned church.
A group of people wearing dark robes—no, it actually seemed like two separate groups—had arrived here together.
'The Evilus?' Rayleigh recognized their identities the very moment he laid eyes on them.
But the other group did not seem to belong to the Evilus.
Those people were carrying large, sealed wooden boxes, as if they were transporting some kind of valuable goods.
'What's this? A secret transaction site between the Evilus and underground merchants?'
Rayleigh gripped the hilt of his sword tightly.
The main reason he could analyze everything so quickly was because of Ardi. For his sake, she had shared confidential information from the Ganesha Familia with him.
Orario was the bustling center of the world.
The daily flow of goods was exceptionally fast. Shady underground merchants took full advantage of Orario's current chaotic period to engage in large-scale contraband trafficking, and all of these illegal transactions were conducted right within the city walls.
He never expected to encounter a deal like this right after hearing about it!
Those heavy crates must contain the smuggled contraband!
"Hey! Someone is here!"
"What!"
Members of the Evils walked in and immediately spotted Alfia and Rayleigh standing there.
Without a moment of hesitation, they drew the sharp daggers hidden beneath their robes.
"Tch, Its just two people. Let's finish them off."
"Make it quick."
"Ha, there's no need for your nagging! Dieeee!"
The Evilus members launched their attack.
Rayleigh was just about to make his move, but Alfia's voice, filled with cold anger, echoed out across the room.
"How noisy."
Rayleigh could easily tell from her chilling tone that she was furious.
"You noise-makers, daring to defile this place... disappear."
Hum!
In Rayleigh's vision, Alfia's figure blurred for just an instant. This was immediately followed by the violent vibration of the air, accompanied by deafening sonic booms, as the entire surroundings were engulfed in a massive series of explosions.
In just a single moment, both the Evilus and the greedy underground merchants were instantly annihilated!
Rayleigh stared at the shocking scene of devastation before him, completely unable to comprehend what had just happened.
From his perspective, he had merely blinked his eyes, and all of the enemies had already fallen to the floor, barely clinging to their lives.
Yet there was no bloodshed.
Clearly, Alfia had done this intentionally.
Despite using such terrifying destructive power, she had not damaged the church structure in the slightest, nor had she caused the enemies to shed a single drop of blood.
Yet she had entirely stripped them of their ability to move.
It was not just about raw strength, her absolute control over that power was even more perfect.
One could easily say she had perfectly tamed her own magical abilities.
Rayleigh could not even find the right words to describe this level of power. It had already far surpassed his current understanding of Adventurers.
Since he had not been taken out along with the thugs, it meant he probably was not disliked by her, at the very least.
Due to the intense air pressure from the earlier attack, the wooden lids of the sealed crates had been blown wide open.
After seeing what was hidden inside, Alfia snorted coldly.
Rayleigh cautiously approached to take a look as well.
"Is this... a branch of the Great Sacred Tree?"
The Great Sacred Tree was the sacred holy tree of the Elves, and it was heavily protected.
Even the Evilus could not possibly charge down into the deepest floors of the Dungeon to break off its branches directly.
However, harvested branches of the Great Sacred Tree were safely stored in various Elven villages on the surface.
Judging by the massive quantity gathered here, it seemed their recent attacks on those Elf villages had been quite frenzied and brutal.
Should one say this was typical behavior for the Evilus? They were truly ruthless!
Tap, tap, tap.
Another series of hurried footsteps approached the church.
Rayleigh immediately grew alert. But soon, through his sharp spiritual perception, he recognized the identities of the newcomers.
It was Shakti and her sister, Ardi.
They were accompanied by quite a few other Adventurers, with the weakest among them being at least a Level 2.
They were likely the official military force of the Ganesha Familia.
The two sisters took the lead.
As soon as they rushed through the doors, they saw Rayleigh standing there, confronting a mysterious figure completely clad in black.
"Rayleigh?"
"Huh? Rayleigh, did you find this place too?"
Members of the Ganesha Familia poured into the room.
There were over a dozen of them, all without exception being high-ranking Adventurers or even stronger.
'Of all times for them to arrive.... they choose to come here at this critical moment?'
'This was very bad.'
It seemed his private conversation with Alfia could no longer continue.
Alfia glanced calmly at the armed crowd. Her gaze finally settled on Rayleigh's face, which showed a clear hint of anxiety.
She did not understand why this young man wore such a worried expression for her.
But it was definitely time for her to leave.
"Gospel—"
Hum!
The terrifying, heavy vibrations reappeared in the air.
With just one single strike, the magic swept through the room.
Including Rayleigh everyone was hit.
Whether it was Shakti or the others who were high ranking Adventurers, they were all severely wounded in an instant and fell heavily to the ground!
---
Imagine a healed alfia and a strong zanpakuto.... Minazuki perhaps ?