A strong smell of blood entered his nostrils. Bishop Fernando, who had just stepped into the room, frowned subconsciously. His face was solemn.
As a regional bishop who had been on the battlefield and still practiced the creed of the God of War, he would personally go to several dangerous areas every year to assist the local Knight's Regiment to exterminate the magical beasts. He was very familiar with this smell.
The other two priests in the room noticed the arrival of the regional bishop and immediately stepped aside silently. Fernando's gaze swept past the others and slowly swept across the spacious priest lounge.
The scene in the room was clear at a glance — the bed, table, chairs, and other furnishings were as usual. On the north wall, there was a shrine that symbolized the God of War. On the floor in front of the shrine, there was a large pool of blood that had not completely solidified. In the middle of the pool of blood, there was a lump of flesh that was completely mixed together and had no original shape at all.
Many fibrous structures could be seen in the horrifying flesh, as if they were in the process of forming some kind of fascia. Fine hairs could be seen spreading out from the gaps in the flesh. The hairs were thick and hard like thorns. There were also many pieces of clothes that had been completely corroded and scattered on the horrifying scene of death. Specks of blood splattered on the ground three meters away from the pool of blood.
Even the bishop of the God of War, who was used to bloody and strange scenes, could not help but feel horrified in front of this scene.
"Your Excellency Fernando." A priest came from the side. "Salute you. May your heart be as strong as steel."
"Strong as steel, my compatriot." Fernando nodded to the priest and looked back at the scene of death in the center of the room. He asked in a low voice, "When was it discovered?"
"In the early morning, a priest who was patrolling at night was the first to discover the abnormality and at the same time issued the alarm."
"Where is the priest?" Fernando frowned. "Bring him to see me."
"The priest …" The priest on the side had a strange look on his face. "His condition is a bit abnormal. We just used a powerful spiritual calming spell to calm him down. I'm worried that he will lose control again and even attack you."
Fernando shook his head. "It's okay. I'm also good at spiritual calming. Bring him here."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
The priest accepted the order and left. A moment later, footsteps came from outside the door, mixed with a murmur that was full of fear. Fernando looked at the source of the sound and saw two church attendants supporting a young man in an ordinary priest's robe into the room. The latter's condition immediately made the regional bishop frown.
The poor man was trembling all over. His face was as pale as a dead man's. Fine beads of sweat covered every inch of his skin. A layer of turbid and blood-red haze covered the whites of his eyes. He had obviously lost his normal rationality. Along the way, he kept muttering in a low voice. Only when one got closer could one hear those fragmented words.
"May the God of War bless me … bless me … Heart of steel, heart of steel, I will not die after hundreds of battles … May the God of War bless me … I have converted, I have converted …"
The poor man had been muttering from beginning to end, as if he did not notice the regional bishop who was standing in front of him. It was not until a few seconds later that his unfocused eyes suddenly noticed the scene behind the regional bishop. The lifeless flesh seemed to have stimulated the greatest fear in the depths of his heart. He instantly let out a scream that was almost impossible for a human to make. He broke free from the restraint of the two strong attendants and pounced on Fernando, who was closest to him. At the same time, he shouted a prayer that had changed its pitch. "In the name of God! Exterminate the heretics! In the name of God … "
The surrounding priests suddenly exclaimed. Fernando only took half a step to the side. He grabbed the priest's clothes and pulled him back. At the same time, he struck out with his elbow. After a muffled sound, the priest fainted without any resistance and fell to the ground.
It was not until this moment that the priests next to him reacted. They hurried forward. "Sir Fernando! Are you all right? "
"I'm fine, but he may need to rest for a few days." Fernando waved his hand and frowned as he looked at the priest on the ground. "Take him away."
The attendants immediately took the fainted priest away. Fernando sighed deeply. A priest next to him could not help but ask, "Sir, do you think this matter …"
"Has the priest always been like this? He keeps praying and calling for our Lord … and treats the normal people of the church as heretics? "
"Yes, he was like this when we found him," the priest replied immediately. "He was found at the door of the room. At that time, he had lost his mind and almost killed an attendant. But no matter what method we used to check, we could not find any signs of mental erosion or soul curse. It was as if he was doing these crazy things completely according to his own will. "
Fernando nodded solemnly, and then asked, "Who else knows about this?"
The priest thought for a moment and said, "Other than the people in the church, only you have been informed. Oh, the count may have received the news. He should not know what happened in the church, but the fact that we sent a messenger and sealed the church after dawn could not be hidden from the count's eyes and ears."
Fernando's frown deepened. The situation was developing in the direction he least wanted to see, but it was too late. He could only force himself to focus on the matter itself. The pool of flesh on the ground was obviously the deacon who died tragically in the church, the priest of the God of War, Kosto. Fernando knew the priest and knew that he was a powerful Extraordinary. Even if he was attacked by a high-ranking master, he would not die without any resistance. However, there was no trace of fighting in the room except for the blood stains. There was not even a trace of combat magic left after the release of combat magic.
The pool of flesh was in front of the altar of the God of War. There were still some cloth fragments that had not been completely corroded. Other than the clothes, the rest should be the cushion used during prayer. There was only a small candle left in front of the altar, the remaining incense in the vessel, and the prayer book on the table. All of these could only be combined to form a disturbing conclusion.
The dead priest of the God of War seemed to have suddenly been melted by his own flesh and blood in the process of praying to God.
Fernando believed that he was not the only one who had guessed this horrifying possibility. He saw a thick haze on everyone's face.
Thinking of the priest who went crazy after witnessing the scene, the whole thing was so strange that it was even more disturbing.
"Your Excellency," a priest could not help but ask, "what do you think happened to Priest Kosto?"
"A very powerful evil spirit may have raided our temple. It may have interfered with Priest Kosto's prayer ceremony, distorted the direction of the ceremony, and contaminated the priest's soul," Fernando said in a low voice. "But this is just my personal guess. If such a powerful evil spirit really appeared in the town, this matter must be reported to the archdiocese."
"The count should soon send someone to inquire about the situation," another priest said. "How should we reply?"
Fernando pondered for a moment. From the perspective of the local bishop, he did not want this matter to be known to the outside forces, especially the royal family and their vassals. After all, since the coronation of Rosetta Augustus, the royal family of Typhon had been tightening their policies toward the various churches. After countless open and secret confrontations, the Church of the God of War had lost a lot of privileges today. The priests of the God of War in the army had also changed from the original independent representatives of the theocracy to the "auxiliary soldiers" who had to listen to the orders of the noble officers. This was the case under normal circumstances. Once what happened here today was leaked out, it would soon become a new excuse for the royal family to further tighten their policies.
But this matter could not be kept under wraps. They had to give an explanation to the people in charge of this area.
"Clean up the scene and burn these distorted things with holy oil and fire," Fernando said to the people around him. "A soul eater has taken over a human body and sneaked into the church. Priest Kosto found it and fought with it. In the end, both of them perished together. But due to the erosion and corruption of the soul eater, the priest's body could not be shown to the public. In order to maintain the dignity of the priest, we purified the priest's body before dawn and returned it to the kingdom of the Lord. This is the whole truth. "
The priest next to him bowed his head and said, "Yes, Your Excellency."
Fernando nodded and then glanced at the tragic scene in the room. A faint sense of uneasiness and disgust surged from the bottom of his heart again. He subconsciously put his hand on his chest and clenched his right fist as if he was holding a sword. At the same time, he silently prayed in his heart. "May the God of War bless me. My heart is as strong as steel. I will not die after hundreds of battles. Flesh and blood are weak, but steel is eternal. I will not fall into hell.
I have been converted. "As he prayed, his mind gradually calmed down. The power of God silently descended and once again made him feel at ease.
…
That afternoon.
A secret report sent by the communication tower and copied by the intelligence officer was placed on the table. Rosetta Augustus casually opened it and glanced at it. Her face, which had always been gloomy and solemn, suddenly became even more serious.
Mathilda, who was sitting next to him to help with the government affairs, immediately noticed the change in her father's face. She subconsciously asked, "What happened?"
"Another priest of the God of War has died. The cause of death is unknown," Rosetta Augustus said. "The local church reported that a soul eater sneaked into the church. The priest died in the process of fighting against the monsters. But no one saw the priest's body, and no one saw the ashes of the soul eater. There is only a battle scene that is unknown whether it is true or not."
Mathilda frowned slightly and said in a serious tone, "This seems to be the sixth time in half a month."
"Yes, the sixth time," Rosetta said in a low voice. "The cause of death is unknown. The body was destroyed in advance. The evidence is full of doubts."
"Those churches must be hiding something!" Mathilda could not help but say. "Six priests have died mysteriously in different churches. The news has been leaked to a certain extent, but they have not responded to the inquiry of the royal family. What the hell is the Church of the God of War doing?"
"That's right. Six churches in different places … The two furthest away are even at the northern and southern borders of the Empire. This is no ordinary 'attack' … There are no forces in the Empire that could carry out such a large-scale attack, and it can't be a coincidence caused by a monster's surprise attack."
"The most suspicious thing is that the churches are obviously hiding something," Mathilda said. She then shook her head. "Unfortunately, under the current laws of the empire, we can't search the churches based on suspicion alone."
Rosetta nodded. "We have to uphold our own laws. This is the basis of maintaining the authority of the royal family. But … the necessary investigation is still necessary. Go to the Great Cathedral soon and talk to Malcolm. He probably won't say anything to you. After all, as the pope of the God of War, he has not taken the initiative to talk to me about the strange deaths of the priests. But I believe that with your keen senses, you may be able to find out something. "
Mathilda nodded. "Yes, father."
Rosetta then pondered for a moment. He bent his finger and gently tapped on the table. He whispered to an empty direction, "Diana."
A dignified woman in a black maid's uniform then walked out from an unnoticed corner. She looked calmly at Rosetta Augustus.
Rosetta nodded to her. "Send rogues to the place mentioned in this secret report. Remember, do it secretly. Do not clash with the church, and do not contact the local officials."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The woman in the black maid uniform bowed slightly and took the note from Rosetta. Then, she returned to the depths of the shadows as silently as she had appeared.
When the room was quiet again, Mathilda broke the silence. "Father, what do you think is going on?"
Rosetta Augustus sat quietly on his high-back chair. He fell into deep thought under the setting sun. It was not until half a minute later that he sighed softly. "I don't know. But I hope that all of this is just an 'attack' against the Church of the God of War."
Mathilda glanced at her father in surprise.
In her memory, she could count the number of times her father showed such a helpless expression.
But in the end, she did not say anything. She just nodded gently.
… …
In the evening, Daniel returned to his mansion.
The young apprentice, Mary, was tidying up the living room. When she saw her mentor appear, she immediately greeted him with a smile. "Mentor, you're back so early today?"
"There's nothing going on in the lab for now, so I came back." Daniel looked at his apprentice. "Didn't you bring the technicians to the Church of the God of War to modify the Weave? Why are you still at home at this time? "
"I did, but the clerics of the church suddenly said that the area we were working on was temporarily sealed. The project was postponed until next time."
Daniel frowned when he heard the apprentice's words. "So, they suddenly chased you out?"
"You could say that," Mary said casually, but she soon noticed that her mentor's expression seemed to have a deeper meaning. "Mentor, is there … a problem?"
Daniel muttered to himself for a moment. His expression was serious. "I'm not sure yet, but I've heard some rumors recently. The Church of the God of War seems to have encountered some problems. Perhaps I need to report this to master."
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