Chapter 156: Divine Judgement

Finally, after a full week, Lea arrived at the central city of Empire's Edge.

Conlun sprawled before her like a fever dream of ambition and violence.

The main city of Empire's Edge lived up to its reputation, a chaotic blend of architectural styles looted from a dozen conquered territories. Pagoda roofs sat beside western saloons. Marble columns held up wooden beams. Everything was temporary, everything was stolen, everything was wrong.

Perfect place for a God of Justice to go berserk.

The city teemed with people despite the early hour. Banners hung from every building, red and gold fabric emblazoned with dragons and swords. Music drifted through the streets, drums, flutes, the occasional explosion of firecrackers.

The Phoenix Rising Tournament...

Lea had heard whispers of it through the minds of the people here. An annual event where young "heroes" from across Empire's Edge gathered to prove their worth. To fight, to kill, to climb over corpses toward glory. They called it tradition and honor. Lea called it what it was - sanctioned murder dressed in ceremony. Not that she could complain; she was doing exactly the same thing.

She stood on a cliff overlooking the city, The Plague Garden bouncing contentedly in her arms. Below, the tournament grounds sprawled across the city center, an arena large enough to hold thousands, surrounded by vendor stalls and gambling dens.

"Mm?", the slime squeaked questioningly.

Lea spoke quietly, "This is the place."

She could feel them. Hundreds of young Pathstriders gathered in one location, their mystical signatures blazing like beacons. Second Step, Third Step mostly.

But there are some Fourth Step Pathstriders, but there is only a single Sixth Step Pathstrider... All of them drunk on power. All of them convinced their strength made them righteous.

Let's see how righteous they feel when facing a real monster...

Lea set The Plague Garden down gently, "Stay here. This won't be pretty."

"Nn...", the slime seemed concerned but didn't protest.

She gripped the pendant on her arm, "Ouis Marei."

Lea walked to the cliff's edge, her form shifting. The human disguise melted away, replaced by the horned, shrouded figure of the Executor. Black and gold constructs spread across her body like living armor. Transforming her into the form of The Faceless Twilight.

She raised both hands toward the sky, unleashing her pent-up malice and rage. Her silent roar at this world's endless trials.

"From shadow and nightmare, from the depths where light dies, from the spaces between thoughts—"

Her voice carried across the distance, amplified by Malediction and Judgement's power.

"I call upon you. Rise."

The Cursed Constructs erupted from her body.

An explosion of black crystal that splintered into thousands of fragments, each piece twisting, reforming into birds.

Hundreds of them. Then thousands. Ravens and crows made of darkness and curse, their feathers gleaming with golden light. They poured from Lea's form like a plague given wings, filling the sky above Conlun.

The music stopped.

The laughter died.

People looked up and saw the sun disappear behind a living storm of black wings.

Lea's birds circled once, twice, their movements synchronized perfectly. Then they dove toward the tournament grounds, not attacking yet, just blotting out the sky, casting the entire city into artificial twilight. Admittedly, Lea cannot control this many perfectly; she can only give them general commands.

In the arena, young warriors who'd been preparing for their matches froze, staring upward at the impossible sight.

Lea appeared above them. Not through flight. She simply was there, standing in midair above the arena's center, her shrouded form visible to every person in the city.

Silence fell like a guillotine blade.

"People of Empire's Edge.", Lea's voice dragged, spoken by every bird simultaneously, creating an echo that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. "Warriors, heroes, hypocrites."

She spread her arms wide, her shroud billowing.

"I am The Faceless Twilight. And I have come to judge you all."

Panic erupted across the city; the festive mood had officially died at that declaration. Though a few drew weapons, mystical power flaring as they prepared to fight.

Lea continued, her voice cutting through the chaos.

"You call yourselves righteous. Call yourselves heroes. But I have walked through your territories. I have seen your 'justice'."

The birds descended lower, their presence oppressive.

"I hear cries for heroes, yet wishing retribution upon those very same heroes. Was it the common folks' ungratefulness? Or was it because no one here deserves the title of hero?"

For the first time, humanity witnessed the Executor open her eyes. Two cracks formed, shattering to form two golden eyes with a blue glow to them, then a mouth, glowing gold, cracked open.

"You hide behind titles. Behind tournaments and traditions. Behind the lie that strength makes you good..."

One of the Fourth Step warriors, a man with flames dancing on his fists, shouted back, "Who are you to judge us?! This is Empire's Edge! Might makes right!!"

Lea tilted her head, the gesture somehow menacing despite her faceless mask.

"Yes.", she agreed, "Might makes right."

Her birds spread wider, forming a dome over the entire tournament grounds.

"So let me show you what real might looks like."

She clenched her fist. The birds let out a psychic shriek that bypassed ears and struck directly at consciousness. Then the curses spread. Not the overwhelming barrage she'd used on the vagabonds. This was precise and personal.

Warriors who'd burned villages found their flames turning inward, consuming them from within. Those who'd murdered children felt their bones grow soft, collapsing under their own weight. The proud, the cruel, the falsely righteous, each one afflicted with curses tailored to their sins.

"I've heard the people's cries, their agony behind smiles... and I responded."

"In a land where might is right...", Lea declared, descending slowly toward the arena floor, "I shall crush you all with my own justice."

"Pray to your gods.Beg for mercy. Run if you can."

She landed on the Conlun Temple, Cursed Constructs spreading from her feet like cracks in reality. A beautiful work of art, like an eye formed from thorns, looking down at the world.

"To all innocent, you are safe, the weak shall not be judged. To cowards who dare to run from retribution, I will come for you."

Then, through the minds of all, her lullaby played loudly in their mind. None was an exception to this.

"None of it will save you."

The Phoenix Rising Tournament had begun. But there would be no rising today.

Only falling.

Common folks believed this darkness was their salvation, while the swordsmen believed she was their annihilation. Through Veil, their perception strengthened Lea to the level of a full-blown god. Unknowingly signing their own death warrant.

However, she still has loose ends to tie up. So that she won't be perceived as an evil god.

She split half of her consciousness into a body, leaving the statue on top to keep growing. Forming her body on the ground, she ran straight into the temple, with its walls cracked because of her tendrils.

Lea saw people slowly being evacuated, so she rushed to the monk who was guiding them.

"The Faceless Twilight is going berserk!! We need to evacuate the entire city, now!!", she yelled out her command, holding out the emblem she took from her shadow.

The monk, an older man with gray in his beard, turned sharply at her approach. His eyes widened at seeing the Sacred Flame's emblem gleaming in her palm.

"You're—"

"The Envoy of Flame.", Lea cut him off, her voice urgent but controlled, "Listen carefully. That entity above is enacting divine judgment. We have minutes, maybe less, before her full wrath descends."

The monk paled. "The tournament!! There are thousands—"

"Which is why we move NOW.", Lea grabbed his shoulder, forcing eye contact, "The Sacred Flame sent me ahead. He knew His twin was coming. Now we save who we can."

Above, her birds circled lower. Through her split consciousness, Lea commanded them with precision, using the newly gained false powerup. Each raven found a target, young warriors who'd been boasting moments ago, heroes with blood on their hands hidden beneath smiles.

The birds landed on shoulders. Gentle, almost affectionate. Then the curses flowed.

A swordsman who'd executed prisoners for sport felt his blade hand wither, muscles atrophying in seconds. A Pathstrider who'd burned rival schools alive found flames erupting from his lungs with every breath. A merchant prince who'd funded banditry to eliminate competition watched his gold turn to ash in his pouches.

None died immediately. That would be mercy.

They suffered spectacularly in the eyes of the public. The common people watched with growing understanding. The curses were specific and personal. Seeking out those who are guilty.

This wasn't random destruction but Divine Judgement.

Even if it was false.

"Everyone!", Lea's voice rang through the temple courtyard, "Follow the monks! Move toward the eastern gates! Stay calm but move FAST!"

Families scrambled, parents clutching children. Elderly supported by younger arms. The monks organized them with practiced efficiency once they understood the situation.

"What about the warriors?", someone shouted, "The tournament contestants?"

"They made their choices, unfortunately., Lea said coldly, "The Faceless Twilight came for them specifically. If they're innocent, Her curses won't harm them. If they're guilty..."

She let the implication hang.

More birds descended to spread curses. The arena had become a nightmare of writhing bodies and screaming combatants. Some tried to fight back, hurling mystical attacks at the ravens.

The birds simply reformed when destroyed, multiplying from the constructs Lea continually fed into the swarm. Unknowingly let their delusions feed her.

A young mother grabbed Lea's arm desperately, "My son! He's competing! He's a good boy, he wouldn't—"

"Then he'll survive.", Lea interrupted, not unkindly, "The Faceless Twilight judges by action, not association. If your son is truly righteous, the curses will pass over him."

The woman's face crumpled, but she nodded, allowing herself to be guided toward the evacuation routes.

Lea moved through the crowds, directing traffic, reinforcing the monks' efforts. She presented herself as calm, controlled, a representative of divine order trying to minimize collateral damage. Inside, she monitored every construct she had deployed. Ensuring the truly innocent felt only mild discomfort, a warning. The guilty received exactly what they'd earned.

It was tiring, but Veil was helping her manage it.

A Fourth Step warrior stumbled from the arena, half his face covered in boils.

He grabbed at Lea, "Help me! Make it stop!!"

She examined him with feigned clinical detachment, reading his surface thoughts. Saw the villages he'd razed, the families he'd slaughtered for their resources and to achieve his ritual...

"I can't," she said simply, "This is Divine Judgement. Only genuine repentance might save you now."

She pushed past him, leaving him to collapse. Of course, she knew he would not survive.

Thirty minutes later, most of the civilian population had cleared the immediate danger zone. The monks gathered the refugees at a safe distance, confusion and fear mixing with morbid fascination as they watched the arena's destruction.

Lea climbed onto a raised platform where a senior monk stood addressing the crowd. She raised her hands for attention.

"People of Conlun! Hear me!!"

Thousands of eyes turned toward her. She let The Sacred Flame's emblem shine brighter, catching the light. Then she raised her own goat skull emblem high.

"What you witness today is divine will made manifest. The Faceless Twilight has come to Empire's Edge because your cries reached the heavens. Your prayers for justice were heard."

She gestured toward the city where her birds still circled.

"She is the Malice that aims at injustice. Goddess of Justice, the Shadow of Order. She who hunts down evil. That is her purpose, her nature, her function."

The crowd murmured, some in awe, others in terror.

"The Sacred Flame and The Faceless Twilight are twin aspects of divine justice.", Lea continued, weaving the lie with complete confidence, "One brings light and warmth to the righteous. The other brings shadow and judgment to the wicked."

She let that sink in for a moment before delivering her final message.

"So pray. Pray that your goodwill is genuine. Pray that your deeds match your words. And hope that She who wanders through the darkness does not find you guilty."

Lea raised the emblem high.

"For she is watching. She is always watching. And she will come for those who hide their sins behind heroic masks."

A child's voice cut through the silence, "Will she come for me if I'm bad?"

Lea looked down at the small boy clutching his mother's hand. She knelt to his level.

"Are you planning to hurt people? To steal? To lie? To call yourself a hero while doing a villain's work?"

The boy shook his head vigorously.

"Then you have nothing to fear.", Lea said gently with a smile, "The Faceless Twilight punishes the false righteous. Those who claim goodness but practice evil. Be honest, be kind. And you'll never meet Her judgement."

She stood, addressing the crowd again.

"That is Her covenant. Justice without compromise, Judgement without mercy for the guilty. Protection without condition for the innocent."

Behind her, in the arena, the last of the cursed warriors finally collapsed. The birds began to disperse, their work complete. The statue of The Faceless Twilight on the temple roof remained, a permanent reminder carved from living curse-energy.

Lea turned back to the monks, "The immediate danger has passed. But mark this day, remember what you witnessed. And spread the word."

She began walking toward the city limits, her task complete.

"The Faceless Twilight watches Empire's Edge now. Let those with clear consciences sleep peacefully."

"And let the guilty tremble."

The crowd parted for her, some bowed, others simply stared.

Lea disappeared into the streets, already dissolving the Cursed Construct body, preparing to reclaim her main body and assess the damage.

Behind her, a new legend was born. Not of a hero nor of a villain. Just a spirit of vengeance.

She merged her consciousness into one, retracting her tendrils. She concealed herself and wiped away her presence with Cloak and Silence.

"Honestly, this turned out way better than I thought. I can feel the ritual slowly completing."

All Lea needs now is time to let the world know how dangerous she is. Let her lullaby attach itself to the back of the people's minds.

She has loot to check out now, to see if something useful for her was here. Maybe she could sell some in Lacrosa.