The words were written under the small prayer altar. The blood had been wiped away, but the fluorescent imprint was clearly visible to Diana. She saw the lines trembling and twisting, and every stroke seemed to have seeped out of the writer's full strength. It was as if she could see Malcolm Dunnett's intense emotions when he wrote it —
It was close to madness.
Diana withdrew her gaze from the crazy handwriting, and then searched the entire room again. This time, she did not find any more — the priests in charge of cleaning up the mess were still very conscientious.
The black-haired head maid blinked, turned around, and was ready to leave the scene.
But the moment she turned around, a strong magic wave suddenly condensed in the room — no, it appeared in the room out of thin air!
Diana turned around instantly, and the next second, she felt an invisible magic wind sweeping through the prayer room. Wisps of black and red aura emerged from the air and gathered around the small prayer altar like a vortex. It was as if the blood that had been spilled here had flowed back to a body that no longer existed. The dim little altar suddenly burned fiercely, and in the suddenly bright light, a tall, translucent figure that seemed to be a mixture of smoke and shadow formed and floated in the air!
"Blasphemous heresy!" The illusory and twisted figure stared at Diana standing in the prayer room and roared angrily. The face that was shrouded in smoke faintly showed the appearance of Malcolm Dunnett. With this roar, he suddenly opened his hands and prayed loudly as if he was embracing and dedicating himself. "Lord! Please send down the punishment of the soul and destroy this heresy that blasphemes the sanctum! "
The moment the illusory figure appeared, Diana was already in a defensive posture. Her eyes glimmered, and pale white halos appeared all over her limbs and torso. A layer of invisible shield covered her entire body, and in the next second, Malcolm Dumont's prayers summoned a hazy phantom. The phantom looked like a giant in black armor. Its face was shrouded in black fog, and only a pair of scarlet eyes filled with murderous intent shone from the depths of the fog. It appeared above Malcolm, took a step in the air, raised its flaming battle axe high, and brought it crashing down on Diana! Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The battle-ax seemed to be unavoidable. Just as Diana's body moved, the illusory blade had already landed on her head, and then from head to torso, the battle-ax pierced through the black-haired maid's body without delay.
Nothing happened.
Diana lowered her head to look at her unscathed body, and then her entire figure quickly faded, disappearing from the room in the blink of an eye.
The illusory armored giant paused in midair for a moment, and then started to fade and dissipate as well. Malcolm Dunnett muttered to himself in confusion in the prayer room, "… A pile of steel … without a heart?"
Hurried footsteps came from the direction of the corridor, mixed with hurried and low voices. Then, the door of the prayer room was pushed open, and a team of fully-armed Knight of the Holy See and a large number of battle high priests surged into this small room.
The room was empty. There were no intruders, nor were there any strange phenomena. In the eyes of the confused high priests, there was only a small lamp that was quietly lit not far away, sprinkling a dim light into the prayer room.
…
Ferdinand Wendell's expression was solemn. His eyes slowly swept across the huge map of the entire Empire. On the map that had been painstakingly drawn by countless cartographers, large and small rust-colored spots and patches could be seen everywhere, covering the entire Empire.
"… This is the first time I've clearly realized that, without any of us noticing, the power of the Church has already infiltrated into the secular world to such an extent …" This former Wolf General, who rarely frowned on the battlefield, now had his brows tightly furrowed. His tone was unprecedentedly solemn. "It's shocking."
"This is the result of the continuous suppression and checks and balances by the royal family over the past decade or so." Rosetta glanced at the old duke beside him. "The faith of the God of War is tightly bound to the military power of the Empire. This has indirectly caused a large number of military nobles to be believers of the God of War at the same time. The influence of the Church of Holy Light in Ansu is much deeper than the influence of the Church of Holy Light in the past. For hundreds of years, the people of Typhon have been used to seeing the high priests of the God of War as reliable protectors and guides. This has made the checks and balances even more difficult for the royal family to suppress."
"… I know of the resistance you've faced. For a long time … even I couldn't understand some of your actions towards the Church." Ferdinand's expression was complicated. "If it wasn't for Bard …"
"Speaking of which, I still want to confirm something." Rosetta suddenly said, "You once saw the illusion of Bard being abandoned by God and burned by the Fire of Faith during an enlightenment. That enlightenment happened several years after he went missing … Based on these reasons alone, do you really think that Bard was still alive at that time?"
"Malcolm once said that it was a 'warning sign'. Bard had turned his back on God, so God used the enlightenment to warn me. However, I know Bard. He's not someone who would turn his back on God. He …"
Ferdinand suddenly found it a little difficult to continue speaking, as if he didn't know how to express his conflicted and wavering feelings. Rosetta didn't let him continue. "That's enough, Ferdinand. I understand how you feel, just like I understand Bard. No matter what, you had doubts about the Church because of this and didn't let Andesha receive baptism. This choice clearly seems to be the right one now. The 'faith' that humans have always deeply relied on … isn't as safe as humans think. "
"I wasn't thinking about that at that time. I just hoped that before I figured out what exactly happened to Bard, I wouldn't let Andesha walk down the same path as him …" Ferdinand shook his head as if he didn't want to recall the past. He looked up again, and his gaze returned to the map in front of him. "You reminded me a long time ago to keep a certain distance from the Church. Now, your warning has finally come true …"
As he spoke, the old duke's expression gradually became especially serious. He waved his hand as if he was holding an invisible sword. "Your Majesty, the truth behind God is really as you said …"
"I know it's hard to believe," Rosetta said in a deep voice. "However, Gwen Cecil has already sent us a large amount of evidence and information, and those things … are completely consistent with the phenomenon of the Church of the God of War."
"… I understand, Your Majesty." Ferdinand nodded slowly. He straightened his body and saluted like a Knight. "Then, this is a war. Allow me to take my leave and prepare for this war."
The former Wolf General, who was no longer young, turned around and walked out of the Emperor's parlor with steady and powerful steps. Only Rosetta Augustus was left in the large and brightly lit room. The ruler of the Empire quietly watched in the direction Ferdinand left. After a few seconds, his gaze suddenly froze.
Not far in front of him, the floor that should have been completely illuminated by the light was actually imprinted with a hazy shadow. That shadow seemed to have substance as it expanded, shrank, and squirmed on the surface of the floor. Meanwhile, at the edge of the shadow, a large number of rust-colored lines that were almost invisible to the naked eye had unknowingly spread all over the place. They had spread to the surrounding walls, the door not far away, and even the ceiling!
The moment Rosetta's gaze landed on that shadow, an indescribable murmur suddenly sounded in the room, and a rust-like bloody smell rushed into Rosetta's nostrils. Immediately after, a hazy human figure quickly took shape in the air. Those rust-colored lines and the shadow on the floor faintly connected with that human figure. A hoarse and indecipherable voice sounded from "its" body, tearing at Rosetta's eardrums. "Augustus …"
"Malcolm Dumont." Rosetta's face was as cold as ice. His black eyes stared fixedly at the strange figure that had appeared. He rubbed his fingers slightly, but the magical warning did not cause any movement outside the room. None of the guards who should have rushed into the room immediately upon sensing the abnormality appeared. Even so, he did not show any signs of panic. His gaze was even colder than before. "I really didn't expect that we would meet under such circumstances, old friend."
"I also didn't expect that you would go so far on the path of defying God …" The hazy shadow said hoarsely, and his figure became more solid. "I thought that you were just doing it on a whim, just like the previous few times, just doing some 'checks and balances' tricks. But I didn't expect that you have been completely blinded, and can't even see the guidance of the right path. It's a pity, my old friend …"
"This is not the same as the 'checks and balances' of the past, Malcolm," Rosetta said in a deep voice. "This is no longer a matter of earthly rights and interests. There is a problem with your church, your faith, and your Lord. You are sliding into the direction of strangeness and darkness. To the Empire, you are no longer a threat, but a danger."
These words completely enraged the shadow. He suddenly raised his body, and a large number of indescribable murmurs and layers of rust-colored halos instantly filled the room. He shouted angrily, "Enough! You have fallen into a pathetic heretic. My guidance to you is indeed a waste of time. Let the power of the Lord help you regain your sanity! "
In the face of the sudden increase in pressure, Rosetta just stared coldly ahead. He did not retreat, but instead stepped forward. "That's true … Looking at your condition, you have most likely transformed into something like an evil spirit or a soul of the dead. Expecting you to retain your sanity in such a situation is indeed a wishful thinking."
Malcolm Dunnett's shadow did not seem to hear the sarcasm. He just raised his hands, and the rust-colored wave in the room came crashing down on Rosetta. "Sinner! Face the punishment of the Lord! "
"You are wrong about one thing." Rosetta looked up at Malcolm's shadow and said calmly. "The Augustus who have been cursed by God for two hundred years have never been afraid of any so-called 'Lord'."
He closed his eyes slightly, and when he opened them again, there was an endless amount of starlight in his deep black eyes.
In the next second, everything in the parlor was drowned in the surging starlight. The walls, the roof, the furnishings … everything melted and dissipated in the starlight. An extraordinarily dazzling starry sky that seemed to only appear in human dreams and fantasies consumed everything, including Malcolm's projection who was summoning the divine power of the God of War. The latter only had time to let out a shrill cry and a roar of disbelief. "… How dare you!"
The bright starry sky drowned out Malcolm's words, and the bright spots of light began to slowly spin in the purple-black smoke, presenting a bizarre, disordered, and confusing scene. Rosetta Augustus stood in the middle of this' disordered starry sky ', and became the center point of all the stars.
Listening to the last roar of Malcolm's projection, Hao Ren sighed. "Killing a monster doesn't take much courage."
In the next second, the illusion of the disordered starry sky quickly shrank and disappeared, and the things in the room that had been swallowed returned to Rosetta's sight. He frowned and shook his head gently. "Just an insignificant shadow …"
"It's okay, a shadow is enough to prove your sincerity." A hoarse and deep voice suddenly rang in his ears. It was a voice that he was very familiar with. It was the voice that every descendant of Augustus would hear, the voice that echoed in the deepest part of the nightmare palace. "I have indeed tasted … the power of divinity and faith. This is a good appetizer."
"I have shown my sincerity, now it's up to you to show your attitude." Rosetta said coldly. "Don't forget what you promised."
"Of course, of course — we have enough of this relationship of mutual torture. This is what we have in common. You use yourself as a springboard for me to return to the 'outside' world, and I end the curse on the Augustus family and never come back … This is a fair trade, and both of us are looking forward to it. "The voice said cheerfully, and with a sincere tone." I will keep my promise more than the mortals, you can rest assured. After all, I am the eyes of God, and I don't care about lying and cheating. "
"That's for the best."
…
Gwen came to the spacious terrace of Melita's house. Under the bright night sky of the Arctic region, he looked up at the direction of the summit where the Council headquarters was located.
Although it was still dark here, according to Cecil's time, it was already morning.
Gwen's face was a little serious.
For some reason, a faint sense of uneasiness had been haunting him since last night. At first, he thought it was because he had talked too much with the Dragon God about the secrets of the Voyager, the gods, the tide reversal, and the Black Pit. It was the psychological pressure brought by these things that made him uneasy. But as he gradually cleared his mind and rested for a night, this uneasiness did not diminish at all.
And last night, he had vaguely felt something similar to the aura of the Voyager's relics. Although the feeling was very weak and lasted less than three minutes, he was sure that it was not an illusion.
Tarlonde had some of the Voyager's relics, which were the result of the Dragons' continuous "recovery" from various places. But they just sealed those relics. Under the absolute rule of the Dragon God, no Giant Dragon would touch or even activate the Voyager's relics. But last night, Gwen was sure that he felt the aura of the Voyager's relics being activated … This was no doubt abnormal.
Something might happen. The feeling in his heart was getting stronger.
(End of Chapter)
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