The Excommunicated Saint Wants to Lose

The main task of the Purple Magic Tower is hunting the Demon Lord’s army.
In addition, they are in charge of biological experiments and torture.

They carry out extremely inhumane acts daily, but no one condemns this.
In a world where anything is forgiven when dealing with the Demon Lord’s army that threatens peace.

As a result, the Purple Magic Tower was considered an ideal magical research institution that magicians dream of.

The soldiers belonging to the Demon Lord’s army are mainly demons or intelligent monsters.
They possess many characteristics not seen in ordinary races, making them perfect for magical experiments.

Demons, in particular, are tenacious, so hunting takes place almost daily.
The relationship between humans and demons has completely reversed.
Of course, the Demon Lord’s army didn’t just sit back and take it.

Continuous raids.
They have made several attempts to destroy the Purple Magic Tower, built not far from the northern front.

However, the Purple Magic Tower specialized in installation-type magic.
They laid countless defensive magic spells, so the Demon Lord’s army was miserably crushed every time.

In addition, the terrain played a big role in defense.

-Are you really going to climb? Maybe you should reconsider once more? Even if it’s you, Clitia-nim…
“Don’t make a fuss.”

I calmed down the worried Sun Catcher while accepting the mana from the surroundings.

“You should prepare to use your skills too.”
-Yes… You’re still as stubborn as ever. I thought you might have grown since then. Ah, of course, that’s why I like you, Clitia-nim. As you know…

Ignoring her chatter, I enveloped my legs in aura.
From now on, I have to climb the notoriously rugged Mount Elpub.

“I wonder how many days it will take?”
-It will take at least half a day to reach the summit.

The Purple Magic Tower is at the top of the mountain.
A location that would make even professional mountaineers shake their heads.
As expected of eccentric magicians, magic towers tend to be built in extraordinary places.
-Ah, considering the security magic installed throughout the mountain, wouldn’t it take even longer?
“Probably.”

I can understand why the Demon Lord’s army just keeps throwing in troops and then retreating.
A fortress protected by magic and nature.
Unauthorized entry is nearly impossible unless the heavy-bottomed Demon Lord comes in person.

-Clitia-nim, why are you smiling?
That’s why it was even more valuable.

“Because I think something fun might happen.”

A sense of challenge welled up.
The more difficult and dangerous it was, the more I found myself grinning instead of giving up in my current state.

“Shall we go?”
-I guess there’s no helping it. I’ll help you!
“Thank you.”

I lightly jumped and passed the entrance of Mount Elpub.

Dense trees and clear air.
Chirping birds and the scent of grass.
Fresh nature embraced me.
For now, it felt as leisurely as climbing a hill behind a neighborhood.
Just as I was about to continue walking with a feeling of taking a stroll.
With a movement close to instinct, I turned my head to the side.
A purple arrow grazed past my cheek.
That was all.
But an unusual energy was strongly felt.
-It’s magic that attacks both body and mind simultaneously!
“No need to explain.”
To think they’d use this level of magic from the start.
I expanded the aura coating my legs to my whole body and focused my mind in all directions.
I wouldn’t fall from just one arrow, but what comes next was the problem.
They probably focused on the interaction and connection between magics.
The moment you’re hit by the first attack, a chain of magic will follow.
One misstep and it could be over from the beginning.
“This is fun.”
I like it even more.
My body was heating up and fidgeting.
-Why do you keep smiling? Are you sick somewhere? Could it be aftereffects of excommunication! I’ll diagnose you! First…
“Shut your mouth before I get angry.”
-Yes, sir.
It finally became quiet.
My senses, which had been disturbed by the chatter, spread out.
There are points where mana is concentrated all over the place.
These are security magic circles installed in nature.
The number I can sense is roughly a thousand.
In reality, there are probably tens of times more.
It was an impossible number to destroy one by one.
It’s unbelievably brutal even though we’re just at the entrance.
Is this the terror of the Purple Magic Tower?
I knew about it, but experiencing it directly was beyond imagination.

While I was thinking this, arrows came flying, aiming for my head.
“Where do you think you’re aiming?”
But if I’m on guard, dealing with them is simple.
I lightly caught and crushed them.
-I blocked them too!
I heard a bouncing sound near the back of my head.
It was a temporary defense technique activated by the Sun Catcher.
“Well done. I’ll leave the back to you.”
-As much as you need!
All I have to do is block about tens of thousands of magic spells while climbing the rugged mountain.
It’s a simpler method of breaking through than I thought.
Still, rushing would only ruin things.
I started the ascent slowly and calmly.

And exactly 6 hours later.
I learned the lesson that even if it’s close to defeat, extreme hardship is not pleasant.

Top floor of the Purple Magic Tower.
A woman was sitting at a desk in a room strewn with all sorts of books and papers.
Purple long hair swaying to her shoulders.
A large eye patch covering her left eye.
A frowning face as if anger had completely settled in.
It was Riella, the current master of the Purple Magic Tower who took office at a young age.
“……”
Riella scribbled furiously with her pen, not relaxing her frowning face.
There are too many documents to process.
Most of them are whining that can be summarized as ‘please increase the research budget generously’, which makes her furious.
They’re not magicians, but money-eating monsters.
It would be one thing if their performance was good, but they all just keep researching without producing results.
Do they spend all their given research funds on meals and snacks?
She clearly provided generous funding, but it’s puzzling why they always say it’s not enough.
She wants to discipline them, but they’re all much older than her.
Riella felt the harmfulness of stress with her whole body again today.
“Done.”
She finally processed all the mountain-like documents.
Now all that’s left is to lie down and take a rest.
“Tower Master, we have a problem.”
However, crisis is an owner of a bad mind that comes when you let your guard down.
“What kind of problem?”
The middle-aged man, the vice tower master, was sweating profusely with a flustered look.
Seeing that something didn’t look right, Riella immediately abandoned the idea of resting.
“An intruder is climbing Mount Elpub alone.”
“Then can’t we just leave them to die?”
“No, that’s…”
The vice tower master hesitated to continue speaking.
As if he was afraid of something.
It meant this wasn’t an ordinary intruder.
“Who is it? Tell me quickly so we can deal with it.”
“It’s the Excommunicated Saint.”

Only then did Riella realize he wasn’t hesitating out of fear.
“I see…”
‘Excommunicated Saint’ Clitia Eluke.
She was Riella’s friend of the same age who quickly became close upon meeting.
And.
She was the comrade that Riella’s dead younger sister, who was the previous sage, followed most closely.
‘How foolish.’
A saint who went mad from the shock of losing her comrades and developed a taste for slaughter.
She didn’t not understand her feelings.
She wanted to embrace her tired shoulders and tell her.
That she too spent nights staying up with tears and longing.
She wanted to share the pain and exchange comfort.
Because then, her sister who still appears in her dreams suffering might find some peace.
“What will you do? She’s already climbed halfway up.”
“Then she must be tired by now. I’ll go handle it myself, just in case.”
But there could never be a compromise with evil.
“Don’t worry and just trust me.”
Riella touched her face with the eye patch and made a decision.
To end her friend’s wandering with her own hands.

-Are you alright?
“Only my body is fine.”
I caught my breath while leaning against the trunk of a giant tree.
This place is crazy.
It’s been a while since I’ve struggled this much.
-Do you regret it now?
“A little. I didn’t know it would be this…”
In the middle of speaking, arrows rushed in and I ducked.
But it was too late, and they grazed my shoulder slightly.
This would never happen if I was in my normal, intact state.
Now, with multiple debuffs stacked, it was difficult to dodge.
As a price for failing to evade, countless magic spells poured down on me.
An assault like a bombardment.
I blocked them with aura and asked the Sun Catcher to check my body condition.
-Decreased reaction speed, partial vision obstruction, weakened strength, etc. A total of 17 curse magic spells are in effect.
“It increased again.”
My body is specialized only for physical impacts.
So I was vulnerable to some magics that are invisible to the eye.

Especially curse magic was hard to react to because it seeps in in an invisible form.
Thanks to the Sun Catcher blocking a lot, it only came to this level.

How can this be called magic and not black magic?
Moreover, due to the continuous climbing without proper rest, fatigue kept accumulating and I was extremely tired.

If I could use holy power, the situation would have been completely different, but that was a meaningless assumption.
-Why don’t you just give up and go down now? Before it’s too late.
For a moment I was tempted, but soon shook my head.

“At this point? No way.”

If I backed out now, I would become a laughingstock.
The Purple Magic Tower, which must be watching me closely, would widely publicize their achievement.

That can’t happen.
To properly educate the hero’s companions, I had to maintain the heavy image of the Excommunicated Saint.

-You’ll really hurt your body at this rate.
“Me? You know my recovery ability.”
-That’s because of the holy power remaining in your body. What will you do if it’s all depleted?

Since it was a valid point, I countered with logic-free emotion.

“I’ll endure with aura and perseverance.”
-Aura maybe, but you’re a bit lacking in perseverance, aren’t you?
“Are you going to keep this up?”

While I was talking with the Sun Catcher like that, I momentarily failed to pay attention to my surroundings.

“Clitia.”

Suddenly hearing someone call me, I raised my head and saw a familiar-faced magician floating in the air.

Riella.
One of my few friends and the older sister of Erin, who was the sage.

It was a reunion I had been waiting for.
Just as I was about to wave my hand in joy, Riella snapped her fingers.

In an instant, the sky was filled with magic circles.

“I’m sorry. You have to die.”

A magical bombardment that suddenly poured down bombarded the area.
“Damn…”
For the first time in recent memory, it was the start of a battle I didn’t want.