Chapter 471: Dark Demon and the Church of Knowledge (4k)
Chris Diemond.
She was one of the six maids who bore the surname “Diemond” as the head maid of the “Scorpio Palace Maids.”
“I’m back already? I thought you’d be even later.”
Dark let out a lazy yawn.
The days in the Duke’s mansion were too comfortable, making him feel lethargic.
Thinking about it, Alvaraite’s “summer tutoring” didn’t seem so bad after all.
At least it kept him in good habits of self-discipline.
Otherwise, he might have indulged in sloth, gluttony, and other sins.
Seeing his curiosity, Trina reached into her pocket, pulled out a faintly golden Magic Card, and waved it in front of him, saying, “The twelve ‘Golden Holy Armor’ have mutual感应. The closer they are, the clearer the感应 becomes. She has already returned to the mansion.”
“So that’s it.”
Dark nodded slightly and decisively said, “Then let’s go back.”
He also had a keen interest in the “rangers” he encountered on the magic train.
…
Despite the Golems being reluctant to leave, they quickly rushed back.
Not long after, the group crossed the mountain behind and returned to the backyard of the Duke’s mansion.
A maid had been waiting by the pond, and she immediately approached them upon their arrival.
Dark looked at her and asked, “What?”
“Yes, Young Master,” the maid replied instantly, “Lady Chris has returned, and His Grace is waiting for you in the manor.”
“Understood.” Dark nodded at her.
Afterwards, he did not immediately head to the manor but pointed at the Golems and said to Aurora, “Could you please keep them company for a while?”
Aurora obediently nodded, “Okay.”
“That’s good.” Dark smiled.
Then he found the Mana Spirit among the Golems and said, “Mana Spirit, come with me.”
“Yomimi—”
The Mana Spirit happily called out and immediately flew over.
The Imp Beast, not wanting to fall behind, also flew onto Dark’s shoulder.
Dark patted its claw without saying anything.
Then, he quickly headed towards the manor with Trina.
Inside the manor, Alvaraite and Claire were chatting leisurely, and Lady Montiel Farley was standing nearby.
When Dark appeared in sight, Alvaraite waved at him and said, “Back so soon?”
Dark nodded and asked, “Where’s Chris?”
“Follow me.”
Alvaraite glanced at the Mana Spirit floating around Dark and led the way inside the manor, then exited through the back door.
After turning a few corners, she casually slapped the air, and a door appeared out of nowhere, “Let’s go.”
Alvaraite pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Although Dark knew there was a basement in the Duke’s mansion, he had never known how to enter until today.
The stairs leading down were clean and smooth, and the magic lights on the walls illuminated the underground passage brightly, without any of the expected eerie atmosphere.
“What’s down here?” Dark asked curiously.
Alvaraite’s lips curled slightly, “Cold storage.”
“Cold storage?” Dark exclaimed, “I thought…”
“Thought it was a dungeon?” Alvaraite couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh, “How could I set up a dungeon in my own home?”
Dark remained silent, “True.”
But the embarrassed look on Lady Montiel Farley’s face made him feel less isolated.
It seemed no one would think this place was just cold storage.
As they went deeper, the temperature indeed dropped noticeably.
Due to wearing light summer clothes, Dark felt a slight chill.
Instinctively, he moved closer to Lady Montiel Farley, and sure enough, it wasn’t as cold anymore.
Alvaraite noticed this and continued descending.
Finally, they arrived at another door at the bottom of the stairs.
Alvaraite placed her hand on the door, infused it with mana, and the door slowly opened.
Immediately, an extremely cold breeze hit them.
But the warm wind that followed formed a flowing barrier, blocking the cold air outside.
Lady Montiel Farley smiled at Dark and gestured for him to proceed.
Dark accepted the gesture and stepped inside.
Instantly, he discovered that the sides of the cold storage were filled with a large number of frozen beasts!
This was different from what he imagined a cold storage to be like.
As they continued forward, more and more frozen beasts came into view, each seemingly undamaged, as if they were perfectly preserved “corpses.”
Even Dark couldn’t be certain whether they were actually “corpses.”
“Surely they weren’t made to ensure species diversity?”
But as Dark pondered this, Alvaraite slowly explained, “These beasts were all captured by me personally. Each one is a leader-class beast, not dead but completely sealed from soul to body. They can only be revived if the sealing ice is completely melted.”
Lady Montiel Farley then asked curiously, “What’s the point of such a troublesome task?”
Alvaraite shook her head and said, “We know that beasts were initially created by demons turning wild animals into magical creatures. Now, with the near extinction of demons, although the number of beasts hasn’t visibly decreased, many species are already endangered.
For magi who require specific beast materials for their magic formations, this is a severe threat.
That’s why I built this cold storage to capture and preserve some of the rare, endangered beasts, ensuring there’s still a spark of hope. It also prevents the magic cards that require these beasts from becoming extinct.”
“It really is a gene bank!”
Dark felt both shocked and awed by Alvaraite’s foresight.
With the advancement of magic technology, magi’s power is increasing, and once ferocious and terrifying beasts may become vulnerable, becoming targets.
In the current era of explosive magic technology development, expecting magi to have a sustainable development mindset is impossible.
In fact, these signs are already evident.
Some previously common materials are now unavailable, and only in Saint Maryan can almost all materials be bought.
The underground cities outside Saint Maryan don’t have the same refresh mechanism.
…
Following the corridor, Alvaraite slowed down after walking a distance.
And Dark saw Chris standing ahead.
After returning from a long trip, Chris showed no sign of fatigue, as if it were effortless for her.
Her small, youthful body exuded a vast, web-like “aura” in silence.
Only when everyone arrived did she instantly retract, suddenly losing her presence, as if disappearing.
“Chris, where is he?”
Alvaraite broke the silence.
Chris did not move, “Inside.”
In the compartment originally used to store beasts, a person bound from head to toe was huddled.
The cold air turned into thick fog, forming layers of frost on his face.
If it were any later, he would have been frozen like those beasts.
Dark quickly approached and carefully examined him, asking the Mana Spirit, “Is this the person?”
The Mana Spirit immediately entered and circled the person before flying back, calling out loudly, “Yomimi!”
“It seems so.” Dark couldn’t help but feel impressed.
Given the limited information, Chris had managed to accurately capture a powerful magus in such a short time, which was truly awe-inspiring.
But both Alvaraite and Chris seemed accustomed to this.
Alvaraite simply praised, “Well done, tell us about this person’s background.”
Chris began, “He belongs to the Church of Knowledge.”
“The Church of Knowledge?” Alvaraite frowned, “Isn’t that not an evil sect?”
Chris nodded slightly.
Seeing this, Dark couldn’t help but ask, “Wait, what exactly is the Church of Knowledge?”
Claire took over, “A sect that deifies knowledge and purely worships it. They emerged about three years ago, with core members mostly experienced magi, including mages.
They haven’t shown any harmful tendencies in these three years, and even established schools in remote villages to teach basic knowledge to poor children free of charge. Thus, even the Church of the Saints cannot classify them as heretics.”
“Is that so?”
Dark frowned instinctively, sensing the difficulty of this sect.
Claire made a “4” gesture on her chest, “This is their prayer gesture, similar to a cross, making it hard to distinguish.”
Dark remembered this feature and asked, “So, how did Chris find him?”
Chris turned her head and looked at him, saying, “I first went to the Gray Mist Forest as you suggested, and found that ranger. But he didn’t know anything, so…”
Dark asked curiously, “So?”
Chris couldn’t help but smile slightly, “So I knocked him out.”
Dark: “? ?”
Chris pointed to her heart and said, “My ‘Scorpio’ armor can shoot poison needles. One of them can control the mind. When he fainted, he lost his resistance. I inserted a needle into his temple, turning him into a puppet, making him spill everything…”
As Chris recounted, Dark felt a chill.
The ranger, controlled by the poison needle, revealed every detail of what happened in those few days.
Based on this, Chris compiled all the doubts, conducted detailed analysis and speculation, and finally narrowed down thirteen suspicious individuals.
Then, the “Scorpio Palace Maids” dispersed to search, gathering all traces of the thirteen suspicious individuals.
Through rigorous screening, they finally narrowed the suspects down to one.
Then Chris acted directly.
She didn’t wait for nightfall; instead, she emerged from the man’s shadow at noon, striking him with a speed he couldn’t react to, inserting a needle into his neck!
The sudden burst of toxin rendered him unconscious instantly.
Another maid then dressed him in a robe that restrained his mana.
Chris again used the terrifying poison needle to make him reveal everything he thought.
The method was simple, but the fear lay in the “Scorpio Palace Maids'” efficiency and Chris’s poison needles!
Without prior protection, nothing was secret against those needles.
This was different from torture, a kind of terror in another sense.
But thinking carefully, this was normal since it was a unique ultimate skill of the “Scorpio Holy Armor” among the twelve Golden Holy Armors.
Without such a level of ultimate skill, it wouldn’t deserve the name “Golden Holy Armor.”
…
After accepting this reality, Dark asked again, “If that’s the case, there should be no need for further interrogation. What was his objective?”
But as he spoke, he noticed a strange look in Chris’s eyes, causing a sense of foreboding.
Chris then said, “His name is Ignatz Cooper, a magus, but not from the academy. He has been with the Church of Knowledge for six years and was part of the original foundation.”
“Wait.” Dark interrupted, “Does this mean the Church of Knowledge has existed for six years?”
“Exactly.” Chris replied, “It’s not a secret. They founded the church six years ago, initially focusing on knowledge exchange. Later, they grew and started activities three years ago.
In the Church of Knowledge, there is no leader, only thirteen elders, all decisions made collectively. This Ignatz Cooper is a disciple of one of the elders.”
“His position is quite high?” Dark asked.
Chris nodded, “Quite. Otherwise, the Church of Knowledge wouldn’t have given him that task.”
Dark pressed on, “What task?”
Chris looked strange again but couldn’t help smiling, “After six years of development, the Church of Knowledge felt the need for a spiritual leader, so they planned to introduce a divine child.”
Dark hesitated, “Divine child?”
Chris nodded, “Yes, divine child!”
She continued, “Each of the thirteen elders nominates a candidate, and then one is chosen from among the thirteen candidates to become the true divine child!
Ignatz Cooper’s teacher saw potential in the young master. However, after learning about the young master, Ignatz Cooper developed some greed.”
