Chapter 132: Executors and Demon Lords

In the distant past...

ROARRR—

A humanoid bull with red glowing eyes wreaked havoc in a fortress.

It was massive, spanning about 10 meters tall as it waved the giant axe on its hand, destroying everything in the vicinity.

"H-Help—!!!"

"Please... help us!!"

...

The distressed citizens shouted for help, but the knights weren’t able to pierce the black scales of the monster.

At this moment, a young girl with blonde hair and golden eyes arrived.

She killed the numerous monsters that impeded her path with a swing of her sword that was shining with golden light.

"Come! I’ll take you to a safe location!!" The girl said with an urgent tone.

The scared crowd looked like they found their hope as they hurriedly ran towards the girl.

"You must be a holy knight of Lemetina! Please save us!!"

"Save us right this instance!"

"Yeah, the Goddess has sent you so you must do your duty!!"

...

"W-Wait! Just calm down!!"

The girl was flustered as she tried to gently push the hands that were trying to grasp her armor.

Seeing the crazed and desperate light in the crowd’s eyes, the girl felt anxious.

"C-Calm dow—"

"Save us, please!"

"You’re here to save us, right!?"

"Save us!!"

...

She wasn’t able to protest as the desperate shouts of the crowd deafened her.

Wooong—!!!

At this moment, a wave of heavy pressure suddenly assaulted the crowd.

"W-What is this!?"

"I thought you were here to save us!?!"

...

The pressure pushed the crowd to the ground as they let go of the girl’s armor.

"What do you think you’re doing?"

A voice filled with authority sounded, scaring the crowd as they hurriedly raised their heads.

"A-An Executor!!"

Someone shouted, making the citizens’ eyes grow wide in shock.

Standing beside the girl was a tall man with pointy ears, holding the young girl’s shoulder as he glared at the people on the ground.

He was handsome, breathtakingly so. His golden hair and eyes were just like that of the young girl.

The pure white cloak with golden engravings that adorned his armor was a testament of his position: an Executor.

Meanwhile, the young girl flinched slightly before looking at the elven man beside her.

As soon as she saw his features, her eyes brightened while she called out with an excited expression, "Sir Mehar! You came!!"

"That minotaur has been demonized! It’s currently in the Middle Stage of Five Star Realm!! I’ll evacuate the civilians so you can go ahead and kill it without worries!!!"

The girl reported promptly as she pointed in the distance, where a giant humanoid bull that was covered in black scales wreaked havoc with its axe.

However, the elven man, Mehar, didn’t spare the minotaur a glance as he stared at the young girl in the eyes, "You... are really quite something."

"Ehhh?" The young girl tilted her head in confusion as she heard him.

Mehar sighed, "You’re really... too kind. Too kind for your own good."

He had seen everything that happened earlier where the desperate citizens made the situation more difficult for her.

He then crouched in front of the young girl as he patted her head, "You don’t need to always be this kind, okay?"

"B-But, isn’t that our duty as the knights of Lemetina?" The young girl answered.

"Well, you’re right, but... not all of them are innocent anyways." Mehar spoke as he glared at the crowd, making them flinch.

"Although you should save people, you must never let yourself be trampled by them."

After speaking, Mehar stood up and pointed his sword towards the crowd, "Try what you did earlier again and I will have to exorcise the demons living inside your bodies."

’Isn’t that just a roundabout way of saying you’ll kill us!?’ The people who were making a fuss earlier didn’t dare raise their heads.

There was something that they couldn’t help but think, ’Is he really the Executor of Benevolence...?’

"Anyways..." Mehar smiled as he looked at the young girl, "I shall do my duty as an executor now."

"Remember what I have said, Anna."

Leaving those words behind, Mehar immediately moved.

The young girl’s eyes sparkled as she saw him instantly turn into a streak of golden light.

What followed in the next second was the minotaur’s head getting severed from its body without being able to put up a fight.

***

In the Grand Hall of the Temple of Light...

The woman kneeling at the center opened her eyes as she heard the Pope’s words.

It was none other than Anna.

Pope Hagios kept speaking, "As you all know, Mehar had died valiantly and took the life of one of the Demon Lords with him."

That was a fact that everyone in the Grand Hall was aware of.

Mehar was the Executor of Benevolence.

The strongest out of all the current executors of the Temple of Light.

He was the only one in the Seven Star Realm, the highest realm achievable for mortals.

However, during an excursion, 3 of the 7 Demon Lords serving the Devil of Darkness and Sin ambushed him.

The Demon Lord of Sloth, Kimon, and the Demon Lord of Gluttony, Asuom, who were both at the Peak Stage of Six Star Realm.

And the Demon Lord of Wrath, Irato, who was at the Middle Stage of Seven Star Realm.

Pope Hagios spoke serenely, "Although Executor Mehar died, he was able to deal massive damages to the demon faction. The Demon Lord of Sloth died, while the Demon Lords of Gluttony and Wrath were heavily injured."

"I believe that it will take at least a hundred years for them to recover from the wounds caused by Executor Mehar and his Tinateria."

Hearing his words, all the executors nodded in agreement.

However, there was something that made them worried deep inside their hearts.

Mehar was the strongest executor of them all, meaning that they had now taken a huge decrease in power without him.

Pope Hagios solemnly looked at the current executors before him.

The Executor of Charity, Madoc. A dwarf with large muscles who was at the Middle Stage of Six Star Realm.

The Executor of Chastity, Levada. An elf woman at the Late Stage of Six Star Realm.

The Executor of Humility, Vineta. A woman with black cat ears and a tail on her back who was at the Early Stage of Six Star Realm.

The Executor of Diligence, Idar. A tall humanoid lion with golden mane and large body as well as a greatsword on his back who was at the Middle Stage of Six Star Realm.

The Executor of Temperance, Damiana. A slim dwarf woman with daggers on her side who was at the Early Stage of Six Star Realm.

Lastly, the Executor of Justice, Anna. The only human woman among the executors and the current strongest at the Peak Stage of Six Star Realm.

Pope Hagios could relate to the pressure she was feeling because like her, he was also the first human to be the Pope of the Temple of Light.

Of course, it was not just a matter of whose faith towards the Goddess was superior.

The selection of the officials largely depended on the individual’s prowess.

It was common knowledge that among the many races, humans have the weakest natural affinity towards anything.

Therefore, the fact that two humans held two of the highest positions in the Temple of Light could only be said to be a miracle.

However, even with the seemingly overwhelmingly strong executors, Pope Hagios still couldn’t be at ease.

He looked at the executors one by one and said, "Although one demon lord died and the other two were incapacitated, there are still four other demon lords who could be used by the Cult of Darkness and Sin."

"Your Holiness." Numerous pairs of eyes were directed over to Anna, who raised her hand while calling out to the Pope.

"Yes, Executor of Justice. You may speak."

"I suggest that we call the other temples in order to have a meeting with them. Due to the recent summoning of Agaroth, the Devil of Despair and Destruction, we must keep alert as the demon lords from the other cults might also be planning something..."

Pope Hagios nodded as he listened to her words, "It certainly is a possibility that the demon lords of the other cults might also make a move. Don’t worry as I will also contact the other temples."

The reason for their cautiousness was due to the sheer fact that the weakest of the demon lords were at the Peak Stage of Six Star Realm.

This meant that in comparison to their current power, they would lose in an all out war.

"As for the Saintess..." Pope Hagios had a tender expression on his face, "She must not hear any of this yet. As of this moment, she’s only a ten year old child that must still grow before shouldering such huge responsibility."

A pleasant expression appeared on the executors’ faces as the image of an innocent looking child appeared in their minds.

The meeting continued as they discussed a variety of agendas concerning not only the Temple of Light, but the world as a whole.