Chapter 184: The Curtain Falls (Part 1)
“So what about you guys?”
Selamus didn’t answer; instead, he shot back a question: “Lord Tarlasya, do you have a better plan? Or does Saint George have one!?”
The young commander had already mentally categorized the other party as one of Saint George’s followers, and Tarlasya made no effort to deny it. At this point, their conversation was nearly pointless; neither could sway the other.
The tall figure of the Pope Knight was the type who didn’t argue much. After figuring out what Selamus was trying to express, seeing his emotions spiral out of control, Tarlasya opted for silence.
But Selamus shouted, “No, you guys have no plan at all!”
“With disaster looming, the Pope is willing to do anything, even commit acts that would provoke widespread anger, just to avert the worst outcome. And you, too, are willing to do anything, but only to destroy all the sacrifices and efforts of everyone else!”
“Your actions are making it impossible for those who truly intend to combat the disaster! In the end, what do you think you’ll gain from it? Power or fame? No, you’ll gain nothing! You’re just marching both continents toward demise and ruin!”
“Lord Tarlasya, don’t you think your actions are akin to those of the traitor Leslie who betrayed the Church and ultimately founded the Gate of Truth? Aren’t you and the heretics doing the same thing!?”
“……”
Tarlasya fell into a complete silence.
After tonight, he certainly needed to find a way to understand more of the truth. But faced with this emotionally charged young commander, Tarlasya decided it was time to let him quiet down.
Tarlasya took a step forward and shook his hand.
Suddenly, they heard a third voice from above: “Using helplessness as an excuse, so that no matter what sins are committed, one can comfort oneself by saying ‘it couldn’t be helped’…”
Bang—
Mud and snow flew everywhere, stones tumbled.
I stepped out with a Moon Step, abruptly appearing in their line of sight.
Tarlasya’s expression changed drastically, and with a “clang,” he instinctively drew his sword!
Selamus trembled, turning to flee back into the snowy valley. My eyes narrowed, and I bent down, “Whoosh!” I sprang forward, grabbing the back of his neck like a chick and flinging him back, causing him to crash and roll several times, ending up at the feet of the Pope Knight.
“I’ve been listening to you guys for a long time now.”
Breath steaming, I turned back. Once Tarlasya recognized me, he hesitated for a brief moment before sheathing his sword again.
However, the way the man looked at me now had shifted from earlier; there was now a hint of wariness, a nervousness that unavoidably arose in the presence of someone overwhelmingly superior.
He looked down and slowly helped the knight commander back up.
“I have something to say to this knight commander who echoes the nonsense that Tarlasya can’t argue against.”
“d*mn it…”
Selamus struggled to get up from the ground, immediately attempting to draw his sword for a fight. Tarlasya was quick, pinning down the hand that reached for the sword and snatching it away, tossing it aside.
Ah, just trying to save that guy’s life…
“You—”
But the knight commander wasn’t grateful; he tried to grab Tarlasya’s sword back. However, the difference in their abilities was worlds apart. Tarlasya quickly subdued him, holding his hands like a prisoner, kicking him at the knee so he went down with a “thud.”
I walked over.
Selamus lifted his head, panting heavily, his red eyes glaring daggers at me.
“Did you know?”
I looked coldly back at him: “I’ve seen two other people with ideas similar to yours.”
“k*ll me!” the knight commander yelled in anger.
“One of them you might know well: Sister Teresa.”
“k*ll me—”
“She learned the unbearable truth before you did, chose to join the Gate of Truth, and went undercover at the orphanage in Cataloma. She believed the Church had constantly profaned the deity and refused to use the power of faith again, yet she harmed many innocent children, walking down an irreversible path for what she thought was ‘right.’”
“She once said she loved children, but after killing so many, she told me it was ‘unavoidable’…”
“Stop talking! A traitor like Teresa—”
I drove a knee into his chest.
He let out a muffled grunt, his face turning red, then pale, unable to breathe or speak.
“Two years ago, I visited a remote little town in the Eastern Continent, where I truly learned about the Gidales family.”
I continued coldly: “There was a woman who hid there since childhood to avoid persecution. I read her journal and had a heart-to-heart with the elder who knew her best in the town.”
“The elder praised her as a good kid who did what no one else dared to do, even if it cost the lives of countless civilians. The elder still saw her actions as mere helplessness.”
“The elder viewed that woman as an admirable hero willing to resist oppression, face despair, and confront danger alone, and thought her actions couldn’t be judged solely on good and evil; her killings, her cold-bloodedness and cruelty were all to save those who hadn’t yet been born into this world.”
“Don’t—”
Selamus’s voice started to grow hoarse, “Don’t say anymore…”
“The woman’s name is Ailna, the last leader of the Gate of Truth.”
“Two years ago, she orchestrated the heretics’ massive western expedition, sending the Jester and others leading thousands of lunatics to breach the Mosley coast defenses, advancing straight to Alectine City, defeating and annihilating the Third Knights Order, wreaking havoc in southern Silgaya, creating countless tragedies, and at the last moment, unleashing the evil god’s form from Woodward Forest you mentioned.”
“k*ll… me…”
“Go ahead and k*ll me…” he choked out.
I grabbed his hair, forcing his ugly face up.
“So, how does it feel to hear something so familiar?” I asked.
Selamus’s lips trembled, slowly closing his eyes.
“Come on, tell me. Who is doing the same thing as the heretics?” I persisted, yanking his head up and down, “Why aren’t you talking?”
“We… the Pope… I and those two you mentioned, we’re different…”
“How are you different?”
“……”
“Can you even explain it clearly to yourself?”
“……”
The commander’s hair was a bit greasy with snowmelt on it. I slipped a little and loosened my grip, then wiped my hands on Tarlasya with disdain.
“Forget it.”
Tarlasya looked at me with something to say, but I ignored him: “If you could explain it clearly, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”
“Spare him.”
Tarlasya, thinking I was going to k*ll him, mustered the courage to plead.
The man didn’t seem to think he was someone who deserved to d*e…
Or had he been swayed by the commander’s earlier words?
“Ha.”
I let out a laugh, causing Tarlasya to take a step back.
“Don’t be nervous.” I said to him, waving my hand dismissively, “I also think it’s better to let him live; it’ll make him more miserable than killing him.”
I glanced at the still-nervous Pope Knight, who seemed to doubt my words. Suddenly, I noticed the commotion from the battle in the distance seemed to have ended, so I tilted my head in thought and added, “Let’s not k*ll him, but we can’t just let him go like this; hand him over to my father for handling, and you take the rest of your people first.”
Tarlasya nodded in agreement, visibly relieved.
In the next moment, I ignored the two of them, enveloped in frost, and leaped into the night sky.
……
Clang—
Sword Demon Annasiris sheathed her sword and leaned against a stone in the snow, panting for a rest.
After a while, she looked down at her injuries—aside from the swelling at her ankle being worse, her clothes were in worse shape, torn and dirty. Her left arm was broken, twisted, her hand almost turned backward, the arm hanging limply, slowly turning an ugly purple-green.
These injuries didn’t really matter to a Sword Demon.
Though sweat continued to pour down her face, she’d long grown accustomed to the pain; her expression was calm, but she still hoped the fracture could be treated in time; otherwise, the arm would go to waste—if it truly did, then oh well, she would be happier to save it.
As the zen-like older girl pondered, she suddenly heard a loud thud nearby and turned to see a girl shorter than her land fiercely. However, the girl didn’t look at her right away but stared at a nearby horrific corpse lying in the snow, silent for a while.
That was the corpse of Old Pope Anseier.
But…
As I stared at the corpse, my face beneath the mask almost crinkled in disgust.
In a pool of bl**d, the body lay on its back in a bizarre position, half of the face was gone—sliced away by a sword—but frankly, the other half was almost entirely gone as well; the whole head was charred black from electric current, the eyes burst, the sight was utterly grotesque. If it weren’t for the frail form dressed in a papal robe, I could hardly recognize this as the old man.
Absolutely unrecognizable…
So horrific it was hard to bear.
But if that was all, I wouldn’t have been left speechless for so long.
While trying to identify the corpse, I noticed the old man’s pants were nowhere to be found, only a few rags hanging from his legs. Due to the way the robe was flipped up, it was very conspicuous. One quick glance revealed something sprawled between his legs.
But that thing had exploded too.
It looked like it had been hit hard, but I felt it was a killer kick from the Sword Demon—an extremely vicious kick, even the pelvis was noticeably caved in; the small thing was a bloody mess, no, it was just mush, with excrement mixed in… I glanced at it and could no longer stand to look.
Hiss—
“You…”
I opened my mouth, pointing at the corpse and stammered, “I didn’t expect you to be so perverted when you actually got serious with those thick brows and big eyes…”
“?”
The Sword Demon seemed not to understand what I meant.
“How did you k*ll him?” I covered my face.
“Can’t I k*ll him?” She countered, looking confused, “You didn’t say I couldn’t.”
“I didn’t say that?”
“No.”
“Didn’t I?”
“……”
Forget it, forget it…
I had initially planned to capture the old man as well and ask him a few questions.
How did Anna manage to end the battle so quickly? In the blink of an eye—this is so far from the original snow slope, it must have been the old man trying to escape while Annasiris was chasing after him. Even then, she still pulled off a quick k*ll…
I clearly remember that this old man once became my psychological shadow, making me feel that anyone wearing that kind of golden-white robe was about to ring bells on my head… wasn’t he very strong? Isn’t the Sword Demon a bit weak?
How did he end up like this… so pitiful.
Uh.
I couldn’t help but glance back at the old man and quickly turned away.
What a stench…
The smell wafted over; with my mask on, I couldn’t even pinch my nose.
“Let’s go, let’s go.”
Waving my hand, I hastily wanted to leave: “Let’s go back and fetch that little nun; we’ll reattach your arm first.”
“Wait.”
The Sword Demon stood up and said calmly.
I raised an eyebrow and turned to look, only to see her walk over to the corpse, lift it up on her shoulder with one hand, looking composed, not bothered by the smell.
“What are you doing?” I asked her.
“Taking it back.”
“Taking it back for what?”
“Burning it.”
“…Why?”
“Because I want to burn it.”
I stared at her and suddenly understood.
“Oh, go ahead… wait, don’t get too close to me!”
The night grew darker.
Figures transformed into icy crystals of lightning, flying fast from afar.
