Chapter 403 (2): Palis x Black Axiom Sect
May tenth.
Prussia waged an all-out war. The next day, Winston became the new Prime Minister as his predecessor resigned amid harsh backlash.
Wayne took a flight to Palis with Mona. As soon as he set foot on Palis’s soil, his keen sense picked up a gaze—from the Headless Knight!
The Headless Knight once said that he would know as soon as Wayne arrived in Palis, and that he would try to take Shadow Nightmare back immediately. Wayne left the airport as quickly as he could and found his way to the sewers, waiting for the Headless Knight to show up. However, nothing happened after thirty minutes.
Wayne never doubted the Headless Knight’s integrity. He was a real man. Even if he weren’t known as the strongest chosen knight—which he was—his actions alone would make Wayne feel inadequate.
Being cuckolded was difficult. Having to thank the one responsible for the infidelity, even more so. At least Wayne could never do it.
When Wayne climbed out of the sewer, Mona came over with a briefcase. “Boss, you said that there would be an intense fight, but it seems that the Death Knight has forgotten his promise.”
“It’s the Headless Knight.”
“Of course, the Headless Knight.”
“Someone like him wouldn’t just go back on his word. He must have failed to show up because he couldn’t come...” Wayne looked at the downtown area. Just like Londan, there was a distinct lack of high-rises, so with his super vision, he could take in the entire city from any vantage point.
“Should we look for him, Boss?” Mona frowned. The Headless Knight’s absence was likely due to the demons’ restriction, which could be related to the Gate of Hell. Something had to be done as soon as possible.
“Patience. The situation in the catacombs is complex. If we just barge in, both of us will go to hell.” Wayne shook his head. “The Papal State has already sent the reincarnated angels. Given how much time has passed, they should be here anytime. Let them take the lead, and we’ll fall back just in case.”
Wayne wouldn’t object to going to Hell. He’d heard about the culture there and the absence of a supreme existence. In his plan, becoming god in Hell was one of the possibilities. He didn’t know how one’s divine fire could be ignited, but it probably had something to do with the Seven Deadly Sins.
The Seven Demon Lords ruled over all other demon lords and were also known as demon gods. They were in control of the Seven Deadly Sins and held influence over the entire Hell.
No demon’s power could stray from the framework of the Seven Deadly Sins; they only differed in the amount of knowledge they had accumulated. The ambitious demons all wanted to become the leading demon, but they were helpless against the Seven Demon Lords because of the restriction.
Wayne guessed that the God of Hell would be the combination of the Seven Demon Lords. By mastering all seven sins and becoming the greatest sinner, one would be the true demon god of Hell.
The demon god might have trouble dueling the Heavenly Father, but it should be possible for them to overpower the goddesses.
Wayne decided to follow his plan. It was a good thing that he hadn’t run into the Headless Knight as soon as he landed. Speaking in authentic Francan, he hailed a taxi and headed straight to the best hotel in the city.
That night, he booked a candlelit dinner and invited Mona to enjoy the local cuisine.
“It’s not authentic enough, at least not as authentic as the Francan cuisine in Londan.”
Wayne complained to Mona in the taxi. Not only was the food not good, but it was expensive. The white flag raisers were so greedy that even he, a native Windsorian, had to say something.
Mona rested her head on his shoulders. She cared more about the person she was dining with than the food on the dining table. She liked being alone with him tonight. She could still feel the sweetness in her heart.
“Young man, you’re from abroad, aren’t you?” said the taxi driver. “If you want the best Francan food, you should head to Londan. I’m only telling you this because you look like an honest man. Don’t tell anyone else.”
“This truly is an international city. You speak Francan so well, Sir. What do you do?”
“Hahaha—” The taxi driver laughed, enjoying Wayne’s joke. He cracked a few popular jokes about Windsor. “If you’re going to Londan for a honeymoon with your wife, be careful. The Londan men do not go down the orthodox path. They prefer handsome young men like you.”
Well said. Keep going! x2
Wayne and Mona nodded. They considered the taxi driver a good man, too. His eye for people was especially keen.
“Wait, please pull over there, by the curb.”
“Oh, are you not returning to your hotel?” The driver looked at the dimly lit cathedral outside the window, offering a friendly piece of advice. “The Holy Mother Cathedral has experienced frequent fire lately. There are also stories of hauntings at night. It’s closed off. I’d advise against visiting it.”
“Oh, no. I’m just getting off to greet an acquaintance. I saw them.”
***
The Holy Mother Cathedral was a prominent church that was the most well-known in the Chosen Land. Where the ‘Holy Mother’ part came from was still a mystery.
Usually, the term would mean the Heavenly Father’s mother or the reincarnated angels’ mother. As for the Anointed One... Just look at the empty cross. That part of the story hadn’t been written.
“Boss, there’s a barrier,” Mona spoke under her breath, looking at the dark cathedral. “They should be the clergy of the local Church of Heavenly Father, here to investigate the fires at the Holy Mother Cathedral. Are you going to engage them?”
“They don’t belong to the Church of Heavenly Father, but the Church of Nature.” Wayne felt the barrier and nodded. “Stay here. I’ll be back after greeting my old friend.”
“Old friend?” Mona was reminded of who her companion was. “Forgive my bluntness, are you talking about a female friend?”
“How did you know even that?”
“You forgot about every man after meeting them, and you’ll never get out of a car to greet them,” Mona said with a hint of jealousy.
One second, he was having a candlelit dinner with her, and the next, he was chatting with an old friend. The bastard was a good juggler.
“Um...” Wayne broke into a sweat. He couldn’t help his forgetfulness. He would try to stop doing that.
Seeing the unhappy look on Mona’s face, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her, chuckling. “Don’t worry. This one is the type that Kael likes. My relationship with her is pure, and she isn’t as beautiful as you are. She’s just a regular friend at a high weight class.”
“You swear?”
“I swear.”
“...”
Mona stepped aside. She wondered if Wayne was telling the truth.
***
Clocktower, Holy Mother Cathedral.
Moonlight shone through the barrier, casting the weathered bricks in silver light. The clock tower rose through the clouds, its spire reaching toward heaven like a straight arrow. Under the gaze of the moon, the clock tower dressed in a layer of silver stood mysterious and dignified, giving off a heavenly aura.
In the shadows, a few figures moved in stealth. Prompted by their thoughts, the vegetation around them stirred and took in the environment like they had grown countless eyes, transmitting the view inside the barrier to them.
The surgical strike unit of the Palis branch was the organization that Isabella, the friend Wayne was talking about, belonged to. His master, Silvia, had been the head of the Scalpels, always leading the charge and managing to win the role of the District High Reverend of Londan with her own fist.
Isabella had been Silvia’s subordinate and a Scalpel, adept at infiltration and intelligence work, as well as decapitation operations.
The Londan branch had been crippled by the Darkness Knight, and it still hadn’t fully recovered. The surgical strike unit, on the other hand, had maintained its strategic competence and elite members, excelling in all aspects of their work.
While Wayne was in Enrod, he had met his first angel investor, the Lord of the Void. The evil god had established the chicken egg sect and attempted to sacrifice the entire town. At the time, Wayne hadn’t even lit up his hexagram. He was far from powerful enough to face such a formidable enemy, so he called Silvia, who summoned her previous subordinates from the surgical strike unit from Palis, including Isabella.
It was a breach of jurisdiction, so Isabella had gone to Enrod as a tourist, her train ticket paid by Silvia.
Two years later, Isabella seemed like a different woman. Not only had she reached Gold rank, but she had also lost weight. She now stood tall and slim, losing excess fat while maintaining the curves in all the right places. The voluptuous figure made her an appealing sight both from the back and from the side. She could compete for the title ‘Lust incarnate’ with Hestia.
Having pushed herself to use divine art in the fight two years ago, a strand of her bangs remained a deep green, giving her righteous appearance a different allure.
“Captain, we found it. The monster of the Black Axiom Sect is on top of the clock tower.”
“Flank it and don’t get close. It has formidable power...”
Isabella made a few gestures. Those around her blended into the darkness and moved with shadows as their cover. Two of them flanked the clock tower and climbed up, while the others set up an ambush below.
Roooar—
Two minutes later, a furious roar shook the air. A massive black figure plummeted and slammed into the lawn below the clock tower.
Under the moonlight, the figure stood around two and a half meters with an entirely grey body and bulging muscles, resembling an oversized human. It was hideous, with randomly smashed together facial features that did not fit together.
Vegetation surged around it and wrapped it like a rice dumpling. Parasitic spores streamed down its esophagus and trachea, extracting its stamina and making it lose the power to struggle.
“Seal it!”
Isabella pressed her hands to the ground. Her five teammates each got into positions, and their mana connected with the guidance of their thoughts, drawing a hexagram on the lawn.
The sphere of vines closed around the monster and hardened like cement, forming an unbreakable, dense barrier. It went as smoothly as it ever did.
Boom!!
But then the monster leaped out with a furious roar, opening its large hands and lunging at Isabella with drool flying off its hideous face. She calmly detonated mana to activate the parasitic spores inside the monster. It wasn’t a serious problem. Things would go as smoothly as they always did.
It was just a shame that they wouldn’t be able to capture the monster alive.
Roooar—
The monster breathed out black flames with black smoke swirling around it, burning the spores taking roots in its body and under its skin to ashes. Not only had it not slowed down, but it became even faster, reaching Isabella like a burning fireball.
How?
Isabella looked at it in surprise. The intelligence they collected wasn’t accurate. This wasn’t a simple mutant from the Black Axiom Sect.
Following the gust of wind were the monster’s two large hands, already close to reaching her. Isabella had no time to dwell on her questions. Eyes narrowed, she conjured a vitality field.
Bam!
Despite the audible collision, the monster continued to force its way through the barrier. Its raw power was so terrifying that the barrier began to crack. A wisp of black mist seeped through the crack, lunging at Isabella.
Thud!
Isabella was about to transform into a nature elf when an unassuming black dress shoe flew past her and hit the monster right in the face. Time seemed to slow then. The distorted, big face morphed with lumps of flesh bulging out. Then its neck elongated, and its massive body flew away.
Boom!!!
Waves of dust rose and rippled.
“Hey, it’s been a long time.”
“Mind picking up my shoe for me?”
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