### Chapter 146: The Arrow is on the Bowstring
“May all heroic souls rise from d*ath and never extinguish… George Vita Grand Williams.” After finishing the final line, I lifted my head to look at Carlos.
For a long time, neither of us spoke a word.
Until the man’s sigh broke the silence. He suddenly half-knelt, facing the stained glass window, gazing in the direction where a wisp of green smoke floated after St. George’s body disintegrated into nothingness, and began to pray.
“May the souls of heroes rise from d*ath and never extinguish…”
He repeated the last words from Saint George’s letter, and I quietly closed my eyes. After a moment, Carlos stood back up, staring at the letter in my hand and the Pope’s staff resting on that chair, lost in thought.
“We must take these two items out as quickly as possible.”
“Mm-hmm.”
I nodded, understanding what he meant.
The old man named Saint George had kept the letter and the staff here safely until his d*ath. Perhaps, deep down, he still held a glimmer of hope that before disaster truly descended upon the land, someone would risk everything and rush here, whether that person was Margaret or not, was bound to be someone who wanted to do something.
Because only such a person would dare to risk d*ath to enter the Holy City at this time.
His letter, rather than being addressed to Margaret, was more like a message to those people in his heart—it was for me, for Carlos—so he had said earlier that it was better as long as it was yours.
He recognized me; he knew who I was.
And the old man understood perfectly that at such a moment, the information that needed to be urgently conveyed to the outside world, other than that the Holy City had been destroyed, and the spirit he believed in, had one last crucial point.
He had to make the powerful figures of the Western Continent believe that the Temple Church had met its end, that the high-and-mighty believers who once ruled the Western Continent—their power and the main structure of this authority, the Council of the Temple, had been thoroughly dismantled.
The Church could no longer stir up any waves, couldn’t withstand the invasion of disaster, and couldn’t pose any threat to the nobles of various nations. They could do whatever they wanted, and if someone could resolve the crisis and seize the Holy City, that person would become the new “overlord” of the Western Continent; no one could stop such ambition.
So, cast aside all concerns—either redeem the Western Continent and become the new king of this land, or d*e in humiliation. There are no more mountains in front of you, no one can stand before you now; this is your era.
He wanted to tell everyone this; thus, he left the staff of the Pope—symbolizing the supreme power of the Church—here, hoping someone could take it out.
I looked at the staff and immediately picked it up. “Carlos…”
“I know what you want to say, but I have a different opinion. Just hear me out first.”
Before I could finish, the man suddenly interrupted me. He pondered for a moment. “I can’t leave right now, but the staff and the letter indeed need to reach Queen Elizabeth and your father as quickly as possible.”
“Next, the most critical moment is here. If the emperors of both nations wish to mobilize the entire country, you are the Empire’s prince or princess and have a close relationship with Elizabeth. You going out can accomplish far more than I can; I’m just a fleeting knight. Besides, you are faster than me.”
“…”
I didn’t speak, just stared at him.
Carlos seemed to feel guilty under my gaze. He turned his face away. “I can’t leave right now.”
He repeated this, then said, “You know, I’m here for my goal. I haven’t seen my teacher yet; the Holy City is already like this, but I believe in my teacher’s abilities; he must still be alive somewhere in the city, fighting against the Mother Deity or doing what he can with all his strength.”
“I want to find him and help him. I’ve been searching for him all this way to get here. I still have things to say to him. I’ve been his disciple for many years; staying back is the better choice, while you continuing deeper in here wouldn’t have too much significance, or rather, compared to what you can do outside, it’s not significant at all.”
“The situation in the city has truly exceeded expectations; we haven’t made any preparations. So you stopping here and leaving is the best option. Otherwise, if something happens to you here, the entire Western Continent might pay an extremely heavy price for it; we might have to see many more people d*e, many, many people. More seriously, we could completely lose our chances of victory, but I won’t let that happen no matter how much I risk; maybe I could save my teacher and turn the tide for humanity. You understand what I’m saying.”
“No, I don’t.” I shook my head firmly, “I’m the Abyss; I’m powerful. You’re human; you’re weak. Others call you the Abysswalker, but they don’t know that if you encounter dead smoke, you’ll d*e too, but I won’t. I can achieve more if I stay and retreat safely. If you stay, there will just be one more corpse, one that isn’t even identifiable; that’s what makes your insistence meaningless.”
I paused. “Your teacher, Sword Saint Ryan, I’ll go rescue him. If he’s in the city and alive, yet doesn’t respond when we arrive, it can only mean one thing—he’s facing a massive crisis with no time to respond. If that’s the case, I have a high chance to resolve the crisis; if you go, you’ll d*e with your teacher.”
“…”
This time, it was Carlos who fell silent.
But we stared into each other’s eyes, neither willing to back down. After a while, I heard him suddenly say, “You don’t want to leave; unless you came here for revenge.”
Those words made my expression change all of a sudden.
“Carlos, what are you saying?”
“I’m saying unless you came here to take revenge on Angel or the Choir of Saints, otherwise, knowing that leaving would be a better choice, why insist on making me stay.”
“Carlos, is that really how you see me?” I feigned a hurt expression. “Or do you plan to d*e here and not care about anything at all—a simple end to everything?”
That’s what you really think, isn’t it—
I sensed that the man wanted to say this, but he opened his mouth, ultimately swallowing the words. Continuing this conversation would only serve to aggravate each other, and that would truly be meaningless.
Just as we were locked in a stalemate, suddenly, a sound emerged in the hall.
Carlos and I quickly turned our heads; he unsheathed his sword with a ‘clang’. We glanced toward the sound.
It sounded like someone was gasping, just waking from a dream, a moaning voice came from a side door in the hall—only then did I suddenly remember the side door that Saint George had opened with his last bit of strength before dying—was there a living person behind that door?!
Carlos and I exchanged a look, stopped speaking, and quietly moved toward that direction, lowering our footsteps and breathing.
The sound echoed for a moment before it vanished; I realized that the other party had heard our movements and was on guard.
So Carlos wanted to give me a signal, but I completely ignored him, and in the next moment, I activated Moon Step, dashing into the room in the blink of an eye. At the same time, thunder crackled as a long sword lunged towards me, the tip aimed straight at my face. Clearly, that person had been lying in ambush in the side room. I didn’t blink; I quickly raised my hand, intercepting the sharp sword with my fingertips.
In the next moment, I recognized that sword.
It was the Mourner…
“Wait!”
The electricity surged through my body, tingling but not painful; no matter how fierce the lightning coiled around the sword’s edge, I stood firm like a mountain. The moment I spoke, it seemed the other person recognized my voice; the electric sparks retracted, and the dim room suddenly brightened again. Carlos, enveloped in thunder, moved around behind the person, pressing his long sword against their neck.
“Stop—”
I frowned and softly called out, “Carlos, it’s our person!”
Of course, Carlos didn’t aim to k*ll; he looked at me and then at the small figure in front of him. After confirming it wasn’t someone he recognized, the thunder around him gradually dissipated, yet the aura on the sword still crackled. “Who? Do you know them?”
“Anna.”
I released my grip and called out her name.
Sword Demon Anacelis lowered her sword, her expression unchanged. She first glanced back at Carlos, reached out, and pushed his sword away. Her fingers touched the lightning, and it had no effect on her. Seeing this, Carlos backed off but still remained on guard, sword in hand. “Sword Demon Anacelis?”
Sword Demon Anacelis ignored him.
“Pei… Peilo…”
Another voice rang out from the side room. I had sensed there was someone else when I entered; now looking over, I could see this was a small meeting room with a table. Behind a display cabinet, a shadow slowly stepped out—it was Sharman.
“You—”
Sharman looked at us, seemingly injured, her hand clutching her abdomen. I caught a whiff of bl**d; she looked at us in disbelief. But soon after, her expression turned ecstatic, almost to the point of tears. “You finally came…”
This was the first time I saw an expression on her face; it turned out she wasn’t just an emotionless machine.
“What happened?”
I asked, glancing at her before turning my attention back to Sword Demon Anacelis. “I’m glad to see you still alive, but how did you end up here?”
“Miss Peilo, listen to me!”
Sharman hurriedly stepped forward; perhaps the movement affected her injury, causing her face to pale from pain. “The Mother Deity is about to awaken! The Holy City has completely turned into a dead city. We risked our lives to get in here, intending to stop those from the Meteor Society, but… I didn’t expect it to turn out like this. Our survival depended entirely on Mr. George’s divine miracle; he’s out in the main hall, he didn’t dare to be with us, he…”
The voice of Viki’s maid was hoarse; she was evidently frantic, spilling everything to me. Suddenly she realized something, turning to look out into the main hall. “He…”
“He’s dead.”
Carlos suddenly spoke up. Having seen Sharman, he sheathed his sword. “He was the one holding the barrier here. The moment we entered, he…”
No need to continue; the rest was obvious.
Sharman froze, revealing a hint of sadness on her face.
“But he left a letter.”
I immediately said, “An important letter, and the Pope’s staff. He must hope someone can take these out and deliver them to Viki or my father.”
As I spoke, I glanced at Carlos, and he quickly understood my meaning.
“Yes, yes, I get it.”
Sharman nodded. This woman was indeed Viki’s most trusted subordinate. In just a few seconds, she had completely calmed down. As she spoke, her thoughts became clear, and her tone steady. “He intended to entrust us with delivering the items and messages, but the situation changed suddenly. Dead smoke surged from the northern part of the city, and Saint George hurriedly tried to stop it but failed, being overwhelmed instead. At that time, we were all badly injured and had no opportunity to leave the city…”
She suddenly recalled something. “Oh, the underground prison! There’s an entrance behind the Temple Church; there should still be many people there—ordinary citizens of the Holy City. We… Mr. George did everything he could to rescue them. They might still be alive!”
Upon hearing this, Carlos immediately said, “That’s perfect! I’ll go check it out.”
“Anna.”
No time to hesitate or chat; I immediately instructed the Sword Demon. “You go with him, be cautious of any surprises; you—”
Suddenly, I noticed the Sword Demon’s left hand was bandaged simply, bl**d seeping through as if two fingers were already gone.
“Are you okay?” My brow furrowed as I looked at her, who stood there dazed and nodded without saying a word, tightly clutching her sword. She turned to leave with Carlos, and a sharp pain hit me in my heart. “Are you badly injured?”
“Injured?”
The Sword Demon seemed taken aback, as if just realizing she was hurt. She lifted her left hand to look at it, and then shook her head at me. “It’s nothing serious; it won’t affect holding a sword.”
Implied meaning: Since it’s my left hand that’s injured, I can still fight.
“Well…”
Before I could say anything else, she had her back turned and followed Carlos out.
“… Sharman.”
I sighed, helping Sharman sit at the table, and seriously asked, “Tell me what happened.”
I then listened to her recount the gist of the entire incident.
This had been a scenario that was almost predictable: the Mother Deity, sealed deep within the underground prison, was about to break free nearly half a year ago. To stop it, Pope Angel hastily made the decision to seal the city without regard for anything.
The blinding golden light surrounding the Holy City was the result of them releasing the divine power of the “Chain of Divine Lock,” at the cost of sacrificing nearly a thousand lives of the Faith Organization in the city. Pope Angel, Cardinal Elena, and several pillars of the Choir of Saints went to the depths of the prison, repeatedly claiming they had a way to deal with the impurity, but since then, they had never reappeared.
This incident led to the Temple Church being fundamentally divided and dismantled. Based on current results, there was no doubt that Angel and the others had clearly failed. The chaotic power of the Mother Deity spread throughout the entire Holy City, devouring almost all the living within the city—but before that, some high-ranking members of the Council who wanted to survive had established a teleportation node leading outside the city through Saint George. Some of them managed to escape, but many were already corrupted by the Abyss and wouldn’t last long.
While fighting in the city, Sharman had caught one of them and learned about this.
At that moment, the people brought by Saint George were already fighting in a frenzy, and the Williams family descended into chaos. With the help of Saint George’s grandson, Beiyard, meteor shower Magipanny was the first to lead people in through the teleportation, followed closely by Beiyard. Once they entered the city, they destroyed the teleportation node within the city, cutting off Saint George’s route while also severing their own escape.
Before long, fierce combat erupted in the city, so loud it was visible from outside. Magipanny unleashed fire meteors, and the one facing her was clearly Sword Saint Ryan. Their battle reached beyond the city, and the barrier cracked open. Seeing this, Sharman discussed with Saint George, Tarlasya, and the others.
Then Saint George, along with his loyal saints, entered the Holy City through the crack in the barrier, heading straight for the Temple Church. Sharman and Tarlasya followed suit. At that time, the chaotic power in the city hadn’t fully erupted yet, but the Temple Church was already occupied by the Meteor Society. Sharman didn’t know when the Sword Demon entered but got swept up in the subsequent battle. After a bloody fight, the defenders of the Church were annihilated, and the people with Saint George suffered heavy casualties as well.
It was only at this point they learned that Angel and the others had already entered the depths of the underground prison and had never reappeared. But it was too late; the battle between Magipanny and the Sword Saint concluded, and no one knew the outcome. They wanted to rush over to check, but the chaotic power exploded completely at that moment.
Sharman spoke quickly. The injuries she and the Sword Demon had sustained were during the battle with the Meteor Society. Fortunately, at the last moment, with Saint George there, they hadn’t been overcome by dead smoke, so they returned to the Temple Church, hiding here. Saint George could no longer hold on; he forcibly thrust them into the side room while he remained in the hall, writing a letter and quietly waiting for d*ath.
As for Tarlasya—he chose to pursue his teacher alone; whatever happened to him afterward, Sharman said he likely fell victim to the dead smoke as well.
Apart from him and the Sword Demon, perhaps everyone else had faced that fate.
I took some food from my pack and gave it to her, then offered her some water. After a brief wait, Sharman slightly recovered, just as Carlos and the Sword Demon returned.
They had indeed discovered living people in the underground prison, including clergymen and Simon, the leader of the Claw disciples who had already been in prison. They all survived, thanks to the sturdy dungeon door at the entrance and the ample food supplies within. However, counting those survivors amounted to just under two thousand.
But the original population of the Holy City was two hundred thousand.
Carlos didn’t rashly let them out; dead smoke still roamed the skies outside, lurking like a predator. He told those people to stay put for now and assured them that once the sealing holy light was broken, he would take them away immediately.
He thought to explore the prison with the Sword Demon, but Simon informed them that there were three entrances to the underground prison, none of which led to the so-called “depths” of the prison. The “depths” were classified as highly secretive, housing only one “prisoner”—the deranged Mother Deity.
The only access to that place was to reach the top of the Tower of Divine Grace and cross the sky bridge to another church at the end of the bridge. The entrance to the deepest prison, where Pope Angel and the others were located, lay beneath that church. Perhaps, the teacher Carlos was searching for, Sword Saint Ryan, was also there.
That place was, of course, also where the Mother Deity was sealed.
“Carlos.”
After quickly piecing everything together, I pondered for a moment, then made a decision. “Since I know you won’t listen to what I say, it’s you and me. We’ll go see the Tower of Divine Grace. As for Sharman—you’re injured; just stay here. Anna, I need you to take Saint George’s letter and the staff and deliver them to the Order Royal City, to Queen Elizabeth. The subsequent matters will be fully entrusted to her.”
With such a clear division of labor, both of them shook their heads.
“No.”
The Sword Demon spoke first. “I promised you I would stay with you.”
Sharman followed, “Miss Peilo, it seems you have a misunderstanding of me. I am not just the head maid given to Her Majesty; I am also her most elite guard. My skills and strength are no less than any Pope Knight.”
Like Carlos, both held on to their beliefs, but ultimately, Sharman was more heavily injured. Her abdomen had taken a severe blow from a Meteor Society Pope Knight, and the flaming fist had severely burned a large area of skin. The injury wasn’t too serious originally, but after staying here for days without proper treatment, inflammation had set in. If she didn’t get treated soon, she would undoubtedly d*e here.
Understanding now that she was indeed the one who most needed to leave the city, Sharman reluctantly agreed.
After a brief organization, Sharman took the letter and staff and left the Temple Church, racing towards the crack in the holy barrier. She launched herself like a cannonball into the sky—she was also of the Order of Wind. While she hadn’t reached the point of flying, she definitely soared beyond Rect’s talents, this deeply cunning maid.
I thought about this while looking up at the Tower of Divine Grace, took a deep breath, and said to the two beside me, “The arrow is on the bowstring; let’s go face the true face of this disaster.”
