My Celestial Ascension

Just as Yuan and his wives were about to leave the throne hall, Emperor Philip suddenly called out to him, a curious expression on his face.

"Yuan. What are you planning to do with her? I'm very curious," he asked.

"It doesn't concern you, so don't stick your nose into something that doesn't involve you," Valeria's voice rang out before Yuan could respond. She stared at Emperor Philip with a stern, unyielding gaze.

"It's something personal, and I believe it's best you don't involve yourself," Yuan added, nodding with a calm smile.

He then turned to Ayumi and signaled her to follow as he and his wives walked toward the massive doors of the throne hall.

Ayumi had no choice but to comply. She didn't want her friends to be hurt just because of her hesitation or selfishness. After witnessing the brutal strength and cruelty of Yuan and his wives, she fully realized her position.

This wasn't her world—a world of rules and laws that protected the weak. Here, she was nothing. In this world, the strong made the rules.

Whether right or wrong didn't matter. Power was justice, and she didn't even have the strength to protect herself—let alone her friends.

"A-Ayumi, it's not safe to go with them… Don't leave us here," one of her friends pleaded, voice shaky. They tried to stop her, but she reassured them with a forced smile.

"Don't worry too much about me. I'll come back soon," Ayumi said gently. "In the meantime, take care of Kael and the others—they're in critical condition. Especially Kael. He needs treatment immediately."

"If you say so…" Though hesitant, her friends nodded and hurried to help Kael and the others. However, just as they approached Archbishop Gregor—who was now barely clinging to life—Valeria stepped between them, her eyes cold and voice deadly serious.

"You can tend to your friends. But this man is not to be touched. He dies today. And once I've made a decision, not even the gods can change my mind," she declared. The weight of her words made the heroes freeze in fear. Even her voice alone carried a force that chilled them to the bone.

As Valeria stood before him, wearing a vicious grin, Archbishop Gregor felt like he was staring into the eyes of the Goddess of Death herself. His death loomed before him, undeniable and absolute.

'Damn it! Am I really going to die now? Me? The Archbishop of the Holy Church? The second most powerful figure in the Church? This is insane!' Gregor screamed internally, unable to believe the nightmare unfolding before him.

He never expected to be forced into a corner one day—let alone face death. To him, it all felt absurd. Every hope of escape had been shattered by Valeria.

Now, with not a single limb left, he was powerless. He was like a butterfly stripped of its wings, grounded and broken.

His Mana Heart had been destroyed, and Valeria had ripped his limbs from his body with merciless precision.

He had been utterly and completely defeated. He could do nothing but crawl like a limbless insect across the cold floor. Never in his life had he imagined that such a day would come.

"Remember this feeling—even in the afterlife," Valeria said, her voice sharp with contempt as she looked down at Archbishop Gregor.

"You've committed countless sins and accumulated an overwhelming amount of negative karma. Now take responsibility for every life you've taken."

"It's time to end this pathetic show. So long…" she said with a wide grin.

A beautiful red sword materialized in her hand, and the very air in the throne hall trembled in response to its presence.

"No… Don't do it!"

Archbishop Gregor cried out, his face going pale as soon as he saw the sword. A chill ran down his spine.

"It's too late to beg for forgiveness. Just die quietly," Valeria replied coldly.

Without the slightest hesitation, she infused the blade with her incomplete Sword Aura. Everyone could sense that something was off—it wasn't just the sword, but Valeria herself who had become even more terrifying.

'What is this sword?! Gregor thought in disbelief. It's magnificent… I've never seen anything like it. It's a shame we don't possess such a weapon… Truly a shame.' With that final thought, he accepted his fate.

Death was unavoidable.

Valeria's eyes gleamed with a sharp, killing intent, and with a single swing of her sword, she cleaved his body in two.

It was a casual strike—yet it tore a massive gash through the floor, cutting deep into the earth beneath the hall.

Everyone present, including the heroes who had once held their heads high, stood frozen in shock.

Their pride, their confidence—everything had been shattered. Disbelief filled their expressions. No one could believe that such devastation had come from a single, effortless attack.

Archbishop Gregor's lifeless body lay split in two, blood pooling beneath him. His severed limbs were scattered across the throne hall like remnants of a broken doll.

Silence reigned.

Not a single soul dared to speak—not even the heroes. Their faces reflected utter despair, a deep fear settling into the core of their hearts.

'This woman is so scary and ruthless…!' Everyone inside the throne hall had the same thought running through their minds, including the Heroes.

"Finally, I can relax. Damn, that was something else," Valeria muttered as she exhaled deeply. "I've hated the people from the Church for as long as I can remember. A bunch of arrogant, self-righteous bastards… hmph!"

She wiped the blood from her sword and stored it back into her spatial ring. "Now that I've taken care of everything here, I'll return to my husband's side. He's probably questioning that girl from the Hero Party by now," she said before walking away, not sparing the others a single glance.

No one dared question her actions. Her earlier ruthlessness had silenced them completely—none were foolish enough to risk their lives by confronting her.

—

Once Yuan and his wives arrived at the living area of the Imperial Palace, he silently signaled the maids to leave them alone. As soon as they exited, Yuan retrieved a paper talisman from his system storage.

He motioned for Ayumi to sit on the sofa across from him, then activated the talisman with a swift flick of his finger. A soundproof barrier formed instantly around them.

Once the barrier was in place, Yuan turned to Ayumi with a calm smile. "Let me introduce myself properly. I'm Yuan, leader of the Hunter Party known as the 'Celestial Blades'. We're fairly well-known across the continent."

"But that's not the reason I called you here," Yuan added.

"In that case, can I know why you brought me here? I'm curious—what do you want from me? Are you after my body?" Ayumi asked while covering herself with her arms, clearly flustered by her own assumption.

"No! Of course not! Do you take me for a womanizer? Seriously, how did you even come to that conclusion?" Yuan replied in disbelief, staring at her with wide eyes.

"So… what is it then?" Ayumi asked again, calming down a bit, clearly relieved he wasn't like the men from the Holy Light Empire.

Yuan's expression turned serious. "I want to know—what world did you Heroes come from? Tell me about it, and I'll let you leave."

"That's all? Are you really going to let me go once I answer that?" Ayumi looked at him, clearly surprised by how simple the request sounded.

"That's right. You tell us about your world, and we'll let you go," Anna Grace said with a gentle smile.

"I see…" Ayumi nodded and took a deep breath. Then she began her explanation.

"I'm from a world called Earth. A peaceful place without any major conflicts. It's truly a beautiful world—no wars, no bloodshed. But unlike this world, we don't have magic. We rely on science."

And with that, Ayumi began to describe her home world in detail.

"With science, we could do a lot of things—" Ayumi began, but just as she was about to continue, Yuan raised his hand to halt her.

"I know all that. Cars, airplanes, smartphones, etc. All I needed to know from you is that you're from Earth, that's all," Yuan said with a mysterious smirk, shocking her with his words.

She stared at Yuan with wide-open eyes, completely stunned. She couldn't believe he knew about all those things from Earth. It should have been impossible for someone from this world to know.

"H-How do you know about all that stuff? How do you know so much about Earth?" Ayumi asked in a trembling voice, disbelief written all over her face.

In response, Yuan let out a quiet chuckle, wearing a mysterious smile as he shook his head.

"There's no need for you to know that. We have our ways. Don't let appearances fool you—believe only what you see with your own eyes," Yuan said, then suddenly his expression turned serious. "And don't trust anyone from the Holy Church. If you do, you'll regret it later because of your foolishness."

He paused briefly before adding, "And a word of advice—don't take part in any battle on behalf of the Holy Church. You don't know their true face."

Yuan's voice carried genuine concern for her safety, his tone hinting at the dark truths hidden beneath the surface of this world. He silently wondered whether she would survive in a world so cruel and twisted.

Moments later, Yuan offered her a smile and said, "You're free to return to your friends now. They must be worried about you. Don't keep them in suspense any longer."

"Thanks… for letting me go." Ayumi nodded, visibly relieved. Without another word, she turned and hurried off, returning to her companions.

Once she was gone, a wide smile formed on Yuan's face. The realization that the Heroes summoned by the Holy Light Empire and the Holy Church came from the same world as he did brought him a sense of joy he hadn't felt in a long time.

Now he knew—if he searched hard enough, there was truly a way to return to Earth. His wives shared in his excitement, equally thrilled by the idea of one day stepping foot in the world where Yuan had lived his past life.

"It's still hard to believe that the Heroes were summoned from the same world you lived in, Darling. I guess it must be fate that we met them," Anna Grace said softly, her smile tender as she wrapped her arms around Yuan and pulled him into a tight hug.