Chapter 171: The Executioner of the Holy Throne

—Moon Heart’s POV—

The darkness was suffocating, and visibility was almost nonexistent.

The cathedral of Old Ashvarn was distinguished by its colossal scale and intricate interior, making it feel more like a labyrinth than a place of worship. Getting lost here would be effortless, and one wrong turn could send us completely off course.

Fortunately, we had been making steady progress under Jackson’s lead.

He seemed strangely familiar with the place, almost as though he had spent years wandering through the cathedral himself. Either way, thanks to him, our pace had never slowed.

Our group consisted of five Hunters. Jackson was by far the strongest among us, followed by Gustav and me, along with two surviving members of his team.

As for our opponent, it was a King-rank monster.

One even stronger than the Iron Devil we had faced before.

We had no choice but to win with what we had. Grandfather had already separated from us and headed toward the final boss arena to face his opponent alone.

Grandfather was the strongest. I was certain of that. He was so absurdly powerful that I had never truly worried about him before. No matter where he went, he always returned alive and victorious.

But this time was different.

I found myself worrying about him because of how powerful his opponent was. And at the same time, I couldn’t stop thinking about the members of my team who had gone to face the Knight Commander earlier.

My sister Luna, Raiden... Chai, Alicia... and Ethan.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that every person important to me was in danger of dying somewhere inside this damned cathedral, and there was nothing I could do to prevent it.

Maybe... maybe I should have gone with them.

"There’s no point worrying about the others, Captain of the Third Team."

Jackson’s rough voice came from beside me. He gave me a brief glance from the corner of his eye before turning his attention forward again.

"They’re fighting their own battle right now, giving everything they have to give us a chance to survive and win. So we need to focus on the battle in front of us as well, or everything they’re doing will go to waste."

Apparently, my emotions had shown clearly enough on my face for Jackson to notice, and he had chosen to say those words as a form of encouragement.

’What the hell are you doing, Moon?’

Gathering some strength into my hands, I slapped myself across the face hard enough for the sound to echo around us.

Feeling the heat spreading across my cheeks, I reminded myself of what I needed to do, and of my responsibility as captain of the Third Team.

"You’re right. We’ll win, no matter what it takes."

My voice was firm this time, my mind completely focused on the task ahead.

Jackson, Gustav, and the others, however, were staring at me strangely, probably because I had just slapped myself in front of them.

I must have looked insane.

But their stares didn’t last long. Jackson suddenly burst into loud laughter.

"Hahaha! There’s something wrong with your head, girl. You’re just like that young man from your team." His laughter grew even louder. "But I don’t mind! At least that makes you interesting, unlike all the boring ones."

I frowned slightly at his words.

Was that supposed to be a compliment, or was he making fun of me?

I honestly couldn’t tell.

He was probably comparing me to Ethan. He was the only lunatic on my team, after all.

’Ethan...’

Ah, damn it.

I didn’t want to think about him. I always lost my composure whenever it came to him.

"Just how strong is the boss we’re about to face? I heard you say he was stronger than the Iron Devil."

Fortunately, Gustav asked the question at exactly the right moment, allowing me to ignore my thoughts and focus on their conversation instead.

In response, the smile vanished from Jackson’s face, replaced by a far more serious expression.

"I don’t know much about what he can do now because I’ve never fought him after his transformation. But I knew him before he became a monster."

Jackson’s eyes took on a distant look, as though the past itself had appeared before him.

He fell silent for a while, lost in old memories.

I imagined many of those memories had been buried deep after spending hundreds of years trapped inside this city. It was honestly a miracle that he had managed to preserve his sanity for so long.

Anyone else might have gone mad or surrendered to despair long ago.

His mind seemed every bit as resilient as that monstrous body of his.

"His name is Morgus. He was a clergyman who served the faith of the Holy Throne."

Jackson finally broke his silence, revealing the name of the boss we were about to face.

"He was a fanatical believer from our clan and spent many years preaching the teachings of the Holy Throne from within this cathedral... until the curse spread and turned him into a tyrannical monster."

"Was he a Priest?" Gustav asked, trying to determine Morgus’s Class.

Jackson shook his head.

"No. A Paladin... and combat was his specialty."

Everyone’s expressions stiffened the moment we heard that.

Paladins were essentially holy Knights. They could wield miracles designed for killing while fighting on the front lines without any difficulty.

It was a Class somewhat similar to mine, considering I could wield both magic and the sword at the same time.

"Morgus was always one of the strongest Kings in our clan, so don’t lower your guard against him for even a second. If you do, I won’t be able to save you."

Jackson’s warning came in a heavy voice as we continued deeper into the cathedral.

We were no longer running through narrow corridors.

We had entered the main hall.

The chamber was enormous, its ceiling towering so far above our heads that it nearly vanished into the darkness. Ancient statues filled every corner, most of them shattered and horribly disfigured, with the majority missing their heads entirely.

Broken benches were scattered across the floor as well, making me assume that this had once been a prayer hall.

Faint light slipped through multicolored stained-glass windows positioned throughout the chamber. Images of humans had been depicted across them, some completely naked, while others wore nothing but flowing white robes.