Chapter 81: Chaotic mind

Cardinal Marcellus remained silent for several seconds. Those standing beside him frowned, nearly losing their composure. However, Cardinal Marcellus’s usual calm brought them back to their senses.

"There are some things it’s better not to know, Lord Khan. Some of them could kill you."

Khan smiled. "I’d say it’s better to know everything, so you can understand what might kill you."

"That’s bold. I like it." The Cardinal laughed and turned toward the sky.

Everything was dark. Not a single star was in sight. Nor was the moon.

"It’s about to begin, Lord Khan. Wouldn’t you like to witness what the Seventh Night means when the Prophet is with us? I assure you, it will be very interesting."

Khan immediately gripped his sword and raised it to his chest. Seeing his movement, his companions did exactly the same.

"The only thing I’ll witness is the moment you let my comrades go. Especially now that I know what you want." He didn’t let the words finish coming out of his mouth before he swung his sword horizontally at Cardinal Marcellus. "I’ll hold him off—you guys run forward!" he shouted.

However, his body was suddenly shaken from within. His eyes narrowed, and his peripheral vision darkened. He felt completely dizzy from some unknown force.

His sword strike flew forward and struck Cardinal Marcellus, but it only shattered a remnant of wind. The Cardinal was no longer there.

In fact, he was right in the middle of the group, standing impassively as if nothing had happened.

At the mere sight of him, the C-Rankers and those of lower ranks succumbed, a stream of blood spurting from their mouths. They didn’t understand what had happened; to them... nothing had happened at all.

On the other hand, although Khan had some trouble enduring it, he turned to strike as soon as the dizziness passed and spotted his enemy.

His sword missed by just a few centimeters... As he turned, Cardinal Marcellus smiled at him.

"The difference between a Rank B who is just beginning to understand Holiness will never be comparable to that of a genuine Saint, Mr. Khan. The difference between the two of us is as vast as an abyss."

He struck him in the chest, and the pillars engulfed him and his friends until they vanished, leaving only the echo of Khan’s furious scream, which fell on deaf ears.

"Phew, I hadn’t moved in months. Should I start exercising again?" Cardinal Marcellus laughed and walked toward the Great Temple, carrying each of those pillars along with the guys he’d just kidnapped and his entire group, which hadn’t moved a muscle.

’Even a B-Rank as strong as that is child’s play for the Cardinal...’ they thought, and a chill ran down their spines. Several of them were B-Ranks, and they found themselves materialized there...

Fortunately, they belonged to the same side.

--

In a room decorated with religious ornaments and a huge statue of a woman covered in dark bandages and a tattered cloak, Zaid sat at a desk and wrote a few things down on a piece of paper.

They had brought him here about 30 minutes ago, after showing him around the entire Sacred Temple.

His writings were not addressed to anyone in particular, but rather to himself.

He was afraid of something.

His mind began to fail him from the moment he came into contact with Cardinal Marcellus, and it grew worse when he set foot in this Temple. But it wasn’t that he was forgetting things. He remembered everything very well and in great detail.

The problem was that all those details he remembered were focused on extolling this religion...

’Although it’s not bad, their goddess is benevolent and an extraordinary being. From what I saw, they even help everyone on the street, too...’

As his hand moved, writing down some important points to help him remember certain things, his mind wandered, and in an instant, what he was thinking materialized through his hand onto the page.

He frowned immediately, feeling a slight jolt to his spirit. That jolt had been Valia.

’Is this mind control?’ he asked.

’As I was walking through the city, I realized that this place isn’t what they told me it was. In reality, they perform cursed rituals here. The aura of all their followers is the aura of some kind of beast... The guards are wolf-like. There are some that look like tigers and even bears—or even more terrifying creatures. So they’re surely performing some kind of cursed ritual. That’s why they’re so strong. They’ll probably do the same thing to you,’ Valia replied.

Even though she sounded relaxed, the vibrations of her spirit told Zaid that she was a little worried.

’That’s what Kevin saw.’

’What could the Strangers be after, then? They’ve kidnapped so many people, and if I’m not careful, I’ll surely end up as one of them.’

’You’re not that different from one of them.’ Valia laughed. ’If you tried to run away, you’d surely become one of them.’

Zaid knew that, so he sighed.

Valia continued. ’Perhaps as a sacrifice.’ She stepped out and sat on Zaid’s shoulder, but kept her gaze fixed on the center of the room.

’Perhaps a sacrifice for this woman.’

Zaid stopped writing and turned around. ’Could it really be a god?’

’Do gods exist?’ Valia asked him.

’I’ve heard that the Monarchs are human gods.’

’I don’t think they’re really gods.’

’Well, actually, they’re called ’human gods’ because they don’t have what it takes to be a real god... that is, if we’re going by the true concept of ’god.’ But there’s no denying that they have the power to rule the world.’

Valia nodded and fell deep in thought.

Zaid looked back at his written notes and crossed out that last line he’d written. Glancing up and down the page, you could see that this wasn’t the first time he’d had to cross something out.

He was about to start writing when suddenly there was a knock at his door.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Zaid immediately put away his papers and stood up.

He opened the door, and there stood Cardinal Marcellus with a smile.

"I heard you were assigned this room for the start of the program, so I came to see you. It starts in 15 minutes, so I came to pick you up," said the Cardinal.

Zaid nodded. "Of course, sir. I hope you don’t mind if I bring my kitten. She’s very curious, but well-behaved."

The Cardinal smiled. "Don’t worry, we love cats, too," he said, glancing at the statue in the middle of the room. He made the sign of the cross and smiled. "The goddess’s pet is also a cat, so we can’t help but love them."

Zaid glanced at the statue out of the corner of his eye before nodding. "All right, let’s go then."

Cardinal Marcellus proceeded to lead them toward the center of the Sacred Temple...

As they walked, he told them a few things to keep in mind—general topics.

Valia was doing a thorough job during that time. She relayed every conversation she overheard to Zaid or reported the key points to him.

From a distance, Valia overheard a conversation.

"They say all the Strangers have already been brought here. I heard that some agreed to do it without fear—to give their lives for the greater good..."

"Praise be to the goddess. I’m sure any of the Strangers will lead a fruitful life when they are reborn, within the church of our goddess."

"You can say that again. The goddess is merciful... I heard they were in Cell 13 on Route 14. Don’t you want to stop by and see them? We can preach to them a little."

"Sounds good... Let’s do that before the ceremony starts. We still have plenty of time."

While talking with Cardinal Marcellus, Zaid listened intently to everything Valia told him. At that point, he felt the pressure.

He didn’t know where they’d been taken, but his companions and friends were being held captive.

For starters, where the heck is Alice? He hasn’t heard from her since he asked her to give Valia to Martin so he could pass on some information—he’d noticed some strange things.

She was supposed to join him. But at that time, he heard that his colleagues were being captured while on the job, and he saw them from a distance. In the end, he didn’t go to meet her right then, and by the time he arrived, she was already gone.

That was eating away at him from the inside... so he had to take action.

"Cardinal Marcellus, don’t you have a restroom?" Zaid smiled sheepishly as he asked the question. "I think the food, my nerves, and all the liquids I’ve consumed are making me need to use the restroom."

Cardinal Marcellus frowned but nodded. "We have a fairly large one here. I’ll show you the way."

After two minutes, they arrived at a restroom resembling a public restroom that clearly hadn’t been there when this temple was built.

The cardinal led him inside and seemed as though he would stay with him at the door.

"Look, Cardinal... I don’t mean to be rude, but you’re not planning on staying in there, are you?"

"Is there a problem?" The Cardinal didn’t seem to grasp the seriousness of the situation...

"Um... I guess so. This isn’t exactly a modern bathroom, you know?" Zaid smiled with genuine embarrassment... or perhaps he had become an extraordinary actor.

The Cardinal understood his words immediately, so he nodded and left. However, he didn’t let his guard down for even a second...