Shaun had just stepped over the threshold when a roar erupted from behind him.
“You will surely face the wrath of Elios!”
“You shall suffer eternal condemnation!”
Cole, who was pinned to the ground by several burly men, suddenly struggled violently. He snapped his head up and cursed at Shaun.
Elios was the deity who held authority over the Light and served as the guardian god of the Valorian Kingdom.
The Glimmer Church, which worshipped Elios, was the only orthodox religion in the kingdom. At the same time, many popular legends about him circulated throughout the land. Even Vivian, who had only been in this world for three months, had heard them more than once from Priest Derek.
According to legend, Elios was a renowned knight during his time as a mortal. Approximately 2,000 years ago, he put an end to the Cloud March initiated by necromancers and personally beheaded the Death Archon, Layla. This brought an end to that turbulent dark age.
Under the cheers of ten thousand people, Elios ascended to become one of the gods. Consequently, he was also the guardian deity of knights.
***
“You’d better pray that actually happens,” Shaun said without looking back, his nostrils flaring as he exhaled a heavy breath.
He couldn’t be bothered to waste words on Cole, who was already a prisoner. Leading a team of guards, he disappeared directly through the doorway.
In the second-floor hallway, Shaun unconsciously slowed his pace. As he walked toward the first-floor lobby, he pondered how to handle the Demon Hunting Squad. His brow was furrowed, the skin between his eyes bunching into deep wrinkles. His face was filled with uncontrollable anxiety and unease.
Because… in a sense, he really was a “cultist” right now.
Just a few months ago, a man in a black robe calling himself a “Deep Diver” from the Church of the Holy Advent had secretly come to Shaun’s Trading House. He had hoped to strike a deal with Shaun. Shaun didn’t refuse and instead met with the man privately.
Then, Shaun and that Deep Diver reached a pleasant consensus. Shaun was willing to provide a significant amount of sponsorship money for the Church of the Holy Advent’s activities. In return, the Church of the Holy Advent would eliminate Shaun’s business rivals.
The demon attack outside Marny City was their first operation after starting their partnership.
However, what he hadn’t expected was for those cultists to be so sloppy and inefficient. They actually left several survivors from Blue Whale Commerce! Those survivors managed to escape back to the city and reported the demon attack to the Glimmer Church. Eventually, it became a massive scandal that everyone in the city knew about.
The cultists’ lack of professional competence made Shaun feel ashamed for them.
But that wasn’t even the most ridiculous thing. Just two nights ago, those brainless fools actually… they actually summoned a demon inside the city! They wanted to destroy the cathedral directly.
And now look… the people from the Demon Hunting Squad were here.
‘I’m finished…’ Shaun thought, his teeth itching with rage.
Suddenly, his chest began to heave violently. He only hated that he wasn’t a Holy Knight himself so he could strike those incompetent fools down with a single sword blow! At the very least, he wanted them to spit back the money he had sponsored.
‘Damn them all!’
Shaun rubbed his temples, trying to calm himself down. He needed to think about how to distance himself from those cultists in a moment.
***
“So, Nolan, how did you know they were cultists?”
Vivian pulled over a chair and sat down, casting a confused look at Nolan beside her.
“I didn’t. I just had a feeling they were.”
Nolan shook his head gently. He had stated an incredible answer as if it were nothing.
“Huh?” Vivian tilted her head, her eyes wide. Then, her voice rose a few notches as she cried out, “Then… what if we hit the wrong people?”
Vivian was full of confusion and doubt. How could this be right? They had beaten people up based on nothing more than a suspicion. And here she thought Nolan had some kind of ironclad evidence.
Vivian looked at the guards lying on the ground, feeling a sudden twinge of guilt.
“Please trust the intuition of a Holy Knight. This is the guidance of the Light.”
Nolan closed his eyes, pressed his palms together, and began to pray fervently in a low voice.
Vivian suddenly caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye. She rubbed her eyes in disbelief. Through her dark red pupils, she watched Nolan, who looked as pious as a holy icon.
‘Why does it suddenly feel like he’s glowing with a faint golden light?’
Nolan finished the last part of his prayer and slowly opened his eyes. His originally blue pupils had turned golden, and a holy aura unconsciously radiated from his body.
“Just now, the great God of Light, Elios, told me the answer.”
“Are they cultists then?”
Vivian’s large eyes sparkled instantly, and she stared at Nolan without blinking. Her face practically screamed, ‘I’m curious!’
‘A deity actually responds to a believer’s prayer? Then why did I go to the cathedral so many times and bow to the holy icons so often, yet He never responded once? I even donated several copper coins! Is it just because I’m a vampire? Is the God of Light discriminating against my race?’
“He said He doesn’t know either…”
“He also said we should just go ahead and do what we need to,” Nolan said, dropping his prayer stance.
Vivian suddenly felt a giant drop of sweat slide down the back of her head.
‘Isn’t this just pure nonsense…?’
She forced a stiff, awkward smile. “Ah… haha. Our God of Light is certainly… humorous.”
Vivian racked her brain but really couldn’t find a better word to describe this somewhat humorous God of Light. She felt like those were just words Nolan had made up himself. She could only offer a casual, perfunctory response.
After speaking, she turned to look at the Orc, Black. Black had overheard their entire conversation. Vivian wanted to see what he thought. But unfortunately, there was no change on Black’s green face.
‘Could it be that this kind of scene—where you can just take enforcement action based on suspicion—is a common occurrence in this world? So he’s already used to it and doesn’t find it strange?’
Fine, fine. Vivian gave up on pursuing the matter further. She chose to compromise with this scene that clearly conflicted with her own values. After all, she didn’t have any grand ideas about changing the world.
‘Just don’t disrupt my daily life one day.’ But Vivian still made a mental note to be careful.
***
*Tap, tap, tap.*
A series of rhythmic footsteps against the stone floor echoed out. “Fatty” Shaun arrived from the second floor with a squad of guards.
Before long, the lobby—which wasn’t very spacious to begin with—was crowded with people. Shaun looked at the scene before him, unable to make head or tail of it for a moment.
A large hole had been smashed where the main door used to be. Stone bricks from the building were scattered all over the floor. The desks and chairs at the reception in the lobby were overturned, and products from the display shelves were strewn randomly across the floor.
And in the very center of the lobby, the more than ten guards he had left outside as sentries were piled together like corpses. The “corpses” were stacked into a small mound, and it was impossible to tell if they were alive or dead.
In front of the mound of bodies stood three chairs. Three figures in various poses were sitting upon them.
On the left was an Orc wearing a chef’s uniform and a toque. He was tall and broad, his exaggerated muscles stretching the fabric so much it looked as though it would burst at any moment. He sat with his legs spread wide in a commanding posture.
On the right was a human knight in heavy plate armor with a sword hanging from his waist. He sat perfectly upright, his back straight as a rod, with a faint golden shimmer surrounding him.
And in the center was a girl in a black skirt. Her arms were spread out against the back of the chair in a lazy posture. Two small fangs could be seen peeking out from the corners of her mouth. She tilted her head slightly, her dark red eyes looking them up and down with curiosity.
This…
Shaun’s brain really couldn’t process this.
‘Is this… the Church’s Demon Hunting Squad? It doesn’t look like them at all!’