Chapter 650: The Sixth Soul Judgment
In the late night, the moon hung high and the stars filled the sky. On a small forbidden balcony, a mature woman with long golden hair sat gracefully in a simple white robe. In front of her on a small tea table lay a stack of documents, one of which she held, her expression serious as she scrutinized it carefully.
Amanda stared at the document in her hand for a while, then took a deep breath and placed it on the table. Turning her head, she looked towards the semi-transparent, ethereal nun standing quietly nearby and spoke slowly.
“Is that all?”
“The preliminary investigation report regarding the St. Hymn Cathedral attack is all there is. What is written basically consists of results that can be confirmed,” replied the ethereal nun Evi, her hands crossed in front of her, continuing with a calm demeanor.
“It can now be confirmed that the organization behind this attack is the Wolf bl**d Association, one of the three sects of the Amniotic Teaching. The personnel involved in the attack included a Fear-eating Demon Wolf of the Red Tier. The Wolf bl**d Association used some means to create a puppet that could almost perfectly simulate a Red Tier Extraordinary Being under Tiered Vision to lure the Despenser away.
“However, due to the caution of Acting Archbishop Vania Chavilain, the two Red Tier Despensers were not completely drawn away at once. Prince Harold remained at the St. Hymn Cathedral during the attack, as Vania suggested he stay behind. As a result, he was able to respond promptly when the attack occurred. Ultimately, with Vania’s support, he successfully killed the invading Fear-eating Demon Wolf, and the remaining members of the Wolf bl**d Association were nearly eradicated.”
Evi reported slowly, summarizing the investigation of the recent St. Hymn Cathedral attack. Amanda listened to her words while rubbing her temples.
“Vania Chavilain… it’s you again… it hasn’t been long since the Gramorn incident, right? Hah, this pulls in issues related to other secret societies again; this time it’s the Wolf bl**d Association. What will the next one be?”
Amanda said with a slightly helpless smile in her tone, seeming somewhat accustomed to Vania’s troublesome nature. If this trend continued, it appeared that all large societies in the Secret World would have some relation to her.
“However… I did foresee that something might happen at the St. Hymn Cathedral recently. With the original Archbishop not present and the new Archbishop delayed in coming, such news is an opportunity for some people with nefarious motives. That’s why I proposed Vania as Acting Archbishop to prevent incidents while they engaged in their schemes.
“I suspected something could happen there in the past few days, but I didn’t expect it to escalate to this level. An attack led by a Red Tier cultist on a cathedral of the capital city hasn’t occurred in a long time.”
Amanda continued speaking, overall finding the incident within her expectations, yet the severity and malice of the event exceeded her predictions. Such occurrences of a cult attacking a major cathedral in the capital usually only happen during grand holy wars.
“According to existing investigative findings, just days before the attack occurred, news about the vacancy of Red Tier personnel at the St. Hymn Cathedral was circulating in the Secret World of Tivyán. The instigator may be the Eight Pinnacle Nest, seeking revenge for their involvement in the Gramorn incident.”
Evi continued in a calm tone, while Amanda, after listening, placed the document on the tea table, picked up a cup of tea, took a sip, and then slowly continued speaking.
“I’ve heard that the Tribunal people want to use this incident to accuse Vania of serious suspicions?”
“Yes, there is indeed such a matter. Their accusations stem from discrepancies in the initial report submitted by Vania regarding the combat process with the Fear-eating Demon Wolf, where some parts differ from past records of encounters with the creature.”
“In Vania’s report, she stated that the Fear-eating Demon Wolf, after leaping from a distance to invade the St. Hymn Cathedral, opened the forbidden book repository to search for something and, upon discovering it, encountered Prince Harold, who had been stationed there. A fierce battle broke out; Prince Harold, due to carelessness, inhaled miasma and became weakened, yet the Demon Wolf was almost entirely drained of energy. In the end, a weakened Prince Harold managed to k*ll the Demon Wolf with Vania’s timely support.
“However, records from the Scripture Tribunal indicate that Fear-eating Demon Wolves should have the ability to go into a violent frenzy before dying, yet such content does not appear in Vania’s report. The Tribunal’s investigation team has used this as grounds to accuse Vania of the report’s authenticity.”
Evi calmly continued to report to Amanda. Listening to Evi’s words, Amanda closed her eyes for a moment to reflect, then opened them and said thoughtfully.
“The Scripture Tribunal has recorded over seventy encounters with Fear-eating Demon Wolves over the past eight hundred years, with more than twenty direct confrontations, most of which occurred during the Miasma Wars. In these twenty-plus conflict records, the Fear-eating Demon Wolf demonstrated nine distinct abilities, each exhibiting different traits based on the characteristics of what they consumed.
“To this day, the exact number of abilities a Fear-eating Demon Wolf can possess remains a mystery. There is no definitive way to ascertain what abilities a Demon Wolf has in a given state. To accuse frontline warriors simply because a Fear-eating Demon Wolf lacked previous abilities is indeed consistent with the madmen’s style.”
Amanda continued, indicating her research on the Fear-eating Demon Wolf gave her some authority on this matter. She was dissatisfied with the Tribunal’s casual accusations.
“However… among the twenty-plus records of direct confrontations with the Fear-eating Demon Wolf, there are only three k*ll records and one record of a near-d*ath escape, all of which detail the emergence of rage abilities. Under certain circumstances, this seems to indicate that the frenzy is an inherent ability of the Fear-eating Demon Wolf at d*ath’s door. Currently, these four kills also represent the first instances without a frenzy taking place. This does count as a point of suspicion, yet it’s merely a suspicion… an issue to question but not enough for formal accusations.
“After all, there are many instances when abilities fail to activate… or when their effects are subpar and insufficient, often related to the state of the Extraordinary Being. Without firsthand combat experience, one must tread cautiously with statements.”
Amanda continued. She did not deny the existence of doubts within Vania’s report, but the extent of these doubts did not warrant a specialized investigation. At that moment, Evi began to supplement her response.
“Speaking of the state of Extraordinary Beings, it seems the Tribunal has also confirmed that the Fear-eating Demon Wolf’s condition during the battle was suboptimal and indeed possesses the possibility of a power deficiency.”
“Oh… new investigative developments? Tell me more?”
Hearing Evi’s words, Amanda’s expression turned curious again as she prompted Evi for more information, to which Evi calmly replied.
“Regarding the St. Hymn Cathedral incident, after the Fear-eating Demon Wolf was killed, Vania didn’t remain idle. After initially treating Prince Harold’s wounds, she immediately reorganized the cathedral’s defenses and contacted Prit to initiate a large-scale hunt for the remnants of the Wolf bl**d Association throughout the city. They eliminated or captured many cult remnants, and those captured were subsequently taken over by the Tribunal’s investigation team.
“Upon receiving these cult remnants, the Tribunal’s investigation team immediately began identity checks and interrogations. Most were low-level apprentices with little intelligence value. However, one significant catch was a high-ranking member who, along with another high-ranker, resisted capture. The latter died in the struggle while the former was successfully detained. Among the three high-ranking cultists that attacked the St. Hymn Cathedral, the outcome was one d*ath, one capture, and one missing.”
“Oh… capturing a mid-level cadre in such an operation, even if they are all acting as deputies or executing certain key tasks as Red Tier members, could yield quite a bit of useful information… But given the resilience of Beast-Walkers, using interrogation to make them talk is difficult…”
Amanda mused thoughtfully. After hearing her words, Evi nodded and continued to respond.
“Yes, the Tribunal employed various tortures on that werewolf but were unable to break his resolve. He instead taunted the interrogators. They intensified their methods and subjected him to six consecutive hours of torture, but he still wouldn’t relent. Once his language abilities returned, he continued to mock them, indicating his unwavering loyalty to the Devourer and the Wolf bl**d Association.
“After determining that the werewolf was a d*e-hard subject resistant to interrogation methods, the Tribunal’s interrogation team resorted to their final means. After setting up a Soul Binding ritual at the St. Hymn Cathedral, they executed the werewolf and then interrogated his soul directly. Since the investigation team previously failed to summon higher-ranking Wolf bl**d Association members who died during the incident, they believed that the cult had provided a high level of soul protection for their Red Tier members during this operation. Therefore, they arranged the Soul Binding ritual at the highest level they could achieve.”
Evi stated quietly. Listening to her words, Amanda expressed her feelings after some reflection.
“Soul interrogation… this truly is the Tribunal’s fail-safe final interrogation method. After all, the souls of the dead will undoubtedly speak, incapable of lying, and whatever is said is the absolute truth as known by their own will. However, sometimes the cost can be high and it occasionally creates awkward situations for those in the Tribunal… But fortunately, clear-cut cultists generally don’t lead to such scenarios…”
Amanda stated, referring to the awkward scenes as wrongful convictions. In the era when religious tribunals were rampant, judges could convict anyone based on fabricated charges, leading to a high rate of wrongful accusations. Those wrongfully accused underwent terrible tortures and most confessed under duress, while a small percentage maintained their innocence despite severe torture. This group sometimes coerced the Tribunal into the final interrogation phase: the soul interrogation.
After execution, the Tribunal would directly interrogate the criminals’ souls. If successful in verifying heresy, it was manageable; however, if they misjudged, then even if the soul insisted on its innocence, it would mean overturning the entire case. The judge responsible for both the investigation and interrogation would not only lose all progress but also be accountable for the unjust execution. Although the convicted’s innocence would be restored posthumously, their lives would be lost. While the judge would be punished later for such cases, the damage to the Church’s reputation from wrongful deaths was often irreparable.
In the past, such examples had frequently appeared during trials involving lower-class Extraordinary Beings, both nobles and commoners, leading the Tribunal, during the Miasma Wars, to abolish trial procedures entirely and directly execute, causing even more severe consequences.
Returning to the balcony, Evi continued to respond to Amanda with a steady demeanor.
“The soul interrogation of that werewolf yielded results quickly; he disclosed everything he knew. His name is Bill Max, also known as Vorn Hunt, and he acted in Tivyán. His commander, the deceased Red Tier Fear-eating Demon Wolf, is named Duval, one of the elders of the Wolf bl**d Association.
“Through this werewolf’s testimony, we have roughly understood their motive. They attacked the St. Hymn Cathedral to seize a secret transmission that had been sealed in the forbidden book repository. Upon hearing of the Red Tier power deficiency within the St. Hymn Cathedral, they had been preparing for several days, readying themselves until the day of the attack when their plans were completed.
“According to the werewolf, a key aspect of their preparations was the bait; those puppets that could almost perfectly simulate the extraordinary reactions of a Red Tier Fear-eating Demon Wolf were the latest technological product of the Wolf bl**d Association, created by corrupting and transforming ordinary Beast-Walkers through fresh essence and bl**d of Fear-eating Demon Wolves. However, this technology is not yet mature, containing certain flaws, causing this fastidious need for fresh essence and bl**d.”
“In the course of the attack, the one supplying bl**d and flesh for the bait puppets was the later-involved Fear-eating Demon Wolf Duval himself. As the flesh had to remain fresh, he couldn’t undergo prior surgical excision and then fix his injuries gradually; he could only continue operating with damage, thinking that in their original plan, this operation would not incur a Red Tier battle, so Duval’s issues wouldn’t profoundly affect the main situation. Nevertheless, he still bore some reluctance about employing this technology and even privately negotiated with other elders of the Wolf bl**d Association, but ultimately accepted the outcome, with Duval performing the excisions personally while Bill handled external emergencies.
“Based on the latest interrogation intelligence, the reason the Fear-eating Demon Wolf failed to exhibit violent capabilities before d*ath was likely due to the immature technology used in extracting essence and flesh, while unforeseen circumstances led to Duval’s d*ath.
“Once this information was extracted, it seemed the Tribunal had no further intentions to pressure Sister Vania, and Prince Harold, who had just barely recovered, corroborated his testimony with the investigation team, aligning perfectly with Vania’s report. Bill Max and Prince Harold’s statements support each other, leaving no issues with Sister Vania’s account. Due to face-saving issues, they might not retract their accusations immediately, but they also will not pursue further investigations.”
Evi continued reporting to Amanda. After pondering her words, Amanda nodded, then continued speaking.
“New technology, huh? A bunch of latent berserker syndrome patients developing technology is indeed inspiring; it’s no surprise there are so many issues in the process… If all this is true, then the Wolf bl**d Association deserves their lessons; immature technology shouldn’t be rushed into practice. However, knowing their nature, they likely won’t learn from their mistakes.”
With a slight smile, Amanda continued, looking at Evi as she spoke.
“Since we’ve progressed to the soul interrogation stage, that werewolf must have provided more information than just this.”
“Yes, according to Bill Max’s testimony, their operation was also aided by another faction within the Amniotic Teaching… the Rotten Sect was involved, not only sending a Red Tier member to join the action but also providing Duval with a ‘gift’… a parasite…”
