Chapter 284
Sweating profusely, the Holy Knights formed their battle lines.
Some tried to protect Pope Benedict by her side.
‘It’s beginning.’
Despite the clear harbinger of tribulation, there was no sign of agitation in the Pope’s eyes. This couldn’t be explained by the mere composure of an experienced elder. It was as if all struggles were futile.
And there was someone watching the situation with a similar attitude.
It was Cardinal Cattleya, the owner of the Life-Death Eye.
“……”
“……”
Knowing the impending future, albeit vaguely, yet trapped in helplessness—the eyes of the two met by chance.
Their gazes, which had been straight for a moment, soon diverged.
It was because Cardinal Cattleya looked above Pope Benedict’s head.
It was then that the Cardinal’s eyes settled coldly.
BEEP—.
“……!”
A ringing pierced everyone’s ears.
The surroundings became silent in an instant. Thanks to this, the eerie noise echoed even more clearly.
CREEEEAK.
The old hinges screamed as the council chamber doors were torn open, left and right.
A chilling wind pushed countless petals through the opened passageway.
Elongated petals with a sinister, deep-crimson hue. It was Deadly Bloom.
Tap, tap, tap.
Jingle.
Bare feet slowly scuffed against the marble floor, and the ornamental metal pieces of the staff chimed like clear bells.
Everyone’s gaze turned towards the girl who appeared inside the council chamber.
“Th-that person……!”
“Hic!”
A ceremonial robe mixed with gray and purple. Golden hair, which turned mint green towards the ends, rippled in waves, and strange blue eyes, unusual for a demon, sparkled like starlight in the beautiful girl.
Human breaths caught in their throats under the immense pressure.
The world called this being thus:
“I am Chaos’s Apocalypse Seer, Abyssinis. From this moment forth, I shall use this place as a base to spread the gospel of the Chaos Evil God.”
*JINGLE! *
The staff emitted a clear chime.
It was at that moment. Drops of blood splattered amidst the fluttering red Deadly Bloom petals.
“Kuaaagh!”
“R-run… Cough!”
“O, God, Aaaagh!”
Pandemonium erupted. The Order Religion’s greatest and most sacred sanctuary was unilaterally trampled.
The opponent was the Demon King of the First Rank in the Demon Realm. Resistance was futile.
“O-oh, no, please……!”
“Oh, my God! O, Strict Order and Goodness!”
“G-God! Please protect Your lambs……!”
Jingle, jingle.
With each sway of the staff, one by one, the wailing prayers died out.
The surviving Order Religion followers finally realized.
Prayer would only kill them faster. They stifled their sounds in a corner.
“Oh, did everyone hide?”
Abyssinis’s bare feet leisurely stepped through the puddles of blood, playing hide-and-seek with the living.
“Hic, hic! God, why…… why us…….”
Maghram, crawling on the floor, trembled as he entered under the altar.
Only then did he realize. No matter how much he prayed to God, salvation would not descend.
Everyone here today would die. Before a being of such immense power and stature, humans were nothing more than insects.
If there was anyone who could oppose the Demon King, it would be the heretic Holy Saint and the Holy Sword’s Master.
However, those two powerhouses had turned their backs on the Order Religion.
As that thought reached him, a regret equal to the fear and despair that now surged to his head washed over him.
‘If only I had known……’
They should have held onto those two.
They should have coaxed them by any means and kept them within the Order.
Such thoughts were not only in Maghram’s mind.
‘We shouldn’t have ostracized the Holy Saint and sent her to Peronsa……’
‘We should have kept the Holy Sword’s Master bound to the Pontifical Palace, so both of them would be here……’
‘The Order……! Why did we treat them like that……!’
Everyone who still clung to life was now letting out belated lamentations.
*Jingle—! *
Death loomed over someone’s head.
“……Found you.”
“……!”
The hide-and-seek continued.
Only 5 minutes after the massacre began, the Order Religion’s Pontifical Palace was occupied by Abyssinis.
The exterior of the Pontifical Palace transformed.
The pristine white marble was stained black, and thorny black bushes and red Deadly Bloom covered everything. This place was no longer worthy of the name Pontifical Palace.
It was a place to prepare the Birthday Ceremony to summon the Chaos Evil God’s true form.
It was the Great Temple of Chaos Evil.✠
The anomaly was not confined to the Pontifical Palace.
Eltorini, a coastal city located in the Far East of the Elfenheim Holy Theocracy.
This was also where the S-rank dungeon, ‘Fallen Angel’s Sky Fortress,’ had previously caused a Dungeon Sink.
The wealthy merchants of the city attributed their survival during that Dungeon Sink to the enormous donations they had offered over the years.
Thus, they had continued their devout religious life ever since.
On this day too, the merchants were attending worship in the grand cathedral, built splendidly with massive architectural donations.
An expensive pipe organ resonated with heavenly sounds, and a choir of beautiful voices, more skilled than most singers, praised God.
After a time akin to appreciating an art performance, an eloquent archpriest came out to preach the gospel.
The biblical anecdote about God praising those who grew their wealth through business after taking out loans always resonated with the merchants.
And then came the time for prayer.
“O, ‘Strict Order and Goodness,’ Your servants have gathered here today after diligently completing their day, and……”
*BOOM! *
“Oh dear, an earthquake? ……Hmm, it seems to be nothing. Let’s close our eyes again and pray. Faithful workers who diligently live in the secular world to uphold Your will have gathered here. May ‘Strict Order and Goodness’ bless them and bestow upon them talents of boundless wealth……”
Blessed prayers adorned the conclusion of the worship service.
What followed was a delightful social activity.
It was also a time for them to boast about their cumulative donation amounts, asking who had sponsored the cathedral’s pillars, how many windows, or how many keys of the pipe organ.
Thus, the merchants eagerly awaited the end of the prayer.
Expectation makes people energetic. Thanks to this, the occasional ‘Amen’ and ‘Hallelujah’ exclamations were fervent.
And so, when the prayer was almost at its end.
“In response to the faith they have proven, please look upon Eltorini alone amidst this harsh tribulation. We have prayed in the name of ‘Strict Order and Goodness.’ Amen…….”
Amen.
With that one word, the prayer would conclude.
Everyone waited, their eyes tightly shut and hands clasped, wishing for the Archpriest to finally say ‘Amen,’ when suddenly—
‘Huh? Archpriest?’
‘What? Why isn’t he saying Amen?’
They waited for a long time, but no concluding words were heard.
At this, some merchants dared to open one eye and look forward.
“Hic?!”
A shocking sight unfolded on the pulpit.
“Hoo! I’ve been assigned a place befitting this Demon Archpriest Tezrihal! It’s wonderful to have so many stained souls gathered here! I shall now immediately spread the gospel of the great Chaos Evil God to you humans!”
A goat with massive horns crowning its head.
An animal-shaped demon, as if drawn from a picture, was emitting an evil aura and gripping the human archpriest by the throat.
“A-a demon!”
“Hiiieek!”
The merchants turned pale and tried to flee to the exit. Of course, Tezrihal would not allow it.
*TA-DA-DA-DAN! *
A massive pipe organ slammed heavy scales into the humans’ ears.
Soon, a hellish hymn suitable for the accompaniment began to resound.
“Kuaaaaaagh!”✠
In a small city located in the northern part of the Winchester Kingdom.
A solemn funeral was underway in a medium-sized church.
Lying in the black coffin was a young woman in a pure white dress.
The loss of a bride, on the verge of marriage, was utterly heartbreaking.
The family, who had lost their only daughter prematurely, and the young baron, who had been robbed of his beloved partner, cried themselves hoarse.
Close to exhaustion, the baron was supported as he barely moved away from the coffin.
A white veil covered her face, and the coffin lid concealed her body.
“Ah, no, Hebnia……”
In despair that felt like the world was crumbling, it was the moment the baron called out his lover’s name for the last time.
*CRUMBLE—! *
“……!”
A heavy tremor shook their bodies.
Had his heart fallen to the ground, affecting the world?
The young baron dazedly lifted his head. It was then.
Creak.
The heavy coffin lid opened on its own. The bride, who had been a pristine white corpse just moments ago, began to rise on her own.
A miracle unfolded before their eyes. But it quickly turned into a nightmare.
“He-Hebni…… Huk!”
When the veil was thrown aside, the bride’s face was revealed to be a perfect skeleton.
Clatter, clatter.
“Kyaaaah!”
“Uwaaagh!”
Those attending the funeral were struck with terror.
Amidst the chaos, darkness seeped from the bride’s shadow, taking shape.
Finally, what materialized in the present world was the upper body of a gigantic skeleton adorned with numerous jewels.
“This church is of a fairly decent size! O, wretched mortals, if you wish to preserve the flesh clinging to your bones, then worship the Chaos Evil God!”✠
Thus, the disaster that arrived with the night enveloped the entire Serentra Continent.
Ominous meteors poured down from the dark sky, which had instantly turned as deep as the abyss, and buildings bearing crosses became corrupted by demonic energy.
This phenomenon was occurring simultaneously, without discrimination between bustling cities and remote villages.
Residents of these areas looked at the crosses, blackened and entwined with Deadly Bloom, and felt uneasy at the ill omen.
“Oh, no! What’s wrong with our village church?!”
“It’s the end of days, the end of days has come…….”
“Mom, pretty flowers have bloomed at the church. What’s that flower’s name?”
“Don’t go near it!”
Meanwhile, the places where demons infiltrated were solely churches. If this condition was met, the demons did not discriminate as to which denomination the building belonged.
Therefore, the current situation was being experienced not only by the Order Religion but also by the Incantation Cult.
“Insane! What happened again?!”
“How long has it been since we subjugated Inferinos……!”
As soon as the eerie vibration occurred, Hestio and Iphail rushed out to the front yard of Saint Agnes Church.
The unending ominous meteor shower stimulated their ominous premonitions.
However, the situation on the ground was also dire, too serious to leisurely gaze at the stars.
“Brothers, something strange is growing in the church front yard!”
“Th-this is Deadly Bloom……! Why are demonic flowers in our sister’s church……!”
“Huh? Hilde, look! The outside of the church is perfectly fine?!”
“What, Iphail? So you’re saying only the church is being demonized right now?”
Saint Agnes Church, which was effectively the Incantation Cult’s Pontifical Palace, began to be corrupted by the Demon Realm’s energy.
Normally, given that divinity has resistance to demonic energy, this should have been impossible.
However, there was no time to question the reason. The members of the Silver Citadel were busy cutting and burning the vines that tried to cover the outer walls.
Every time Hilde poured out her 7th Divine Power Tier, the Deadly Bloom turned to dust and withered away.
But the hell-corrupted ground continued to sprout.
“Damn it, it’s endless!”
“At this rate, Hilde will collapse, brothers!”
It was then that Hestio and Ash raised their voices.
“Purify.”
Privilege for Possessors