Chapter 45: Assassination Operation!
The quiet night breeze caressed the garden.
In a magnificent hall, strange noises faintly echoed.
They seemed like suppressed and painful moans, mingled with joyful whispers, and mixed in were sharp sounds resembling claps. Outside, two fully armed guards were visibly distracted, occasionally peeking into the hall. When scantily clad maidens emerged with trays, they chuckled and playfully touched each other’s behinds. The exposed maidens, not angered by the advances, smiled at them enticingly before quickly heading toward the kitchen.
The hosts and guests inside were likely wrapping up, and they needed to prepare snacks and food since the activities inside were quite physically demanding.
In the shadows not far away, Chouhou silently observed everything before him. Beside him was another half-elf, whose well-groomed eyebrow featured a scar that ruined his delicate appearance, adding a touch of fierceness.
“These nobles know how to have fun,” the half-elf whispered. “One high priest, three officiating priestesses, one senior knight, and a few others who are not worth mentioning.”
“Should we act now?”
Chouhou shot him a glance and replied softly, “Let’s wait a bit longer.”
“The goddess Lavita is merely a lesser deity, all she does is toy with people’s hearts.”
“Let’s wait until their ceremony is over.”
At this, Chouhou disdainfully curled his lips. He really looked down on the Whip Maiden Lavita because he had been lurking in Talon City for quite a while. The followers and priests of the Whip Maiden spent their days indulging in shameful play, as if all were masochists. The ceremony inside was nearing its end, and a rather beautiful priestess was casting divine techniques to heal the wounds of the nobles participating in the ceremony. Of course, there were also some attractive maidens inside, some kneeling under the nobles, and what they were doing goes without saying.
As an active deity in the Underdark, the Church of the Whip Maiden had numerous means to attract these nobles.
After this time of observation, Chouhou had figured out the routine of Lavita’s church, and as an evil god, Lavita’s operations couldn’t compare to the power of the Lord he believed in.
In summary, the Church of Lavita operated under one principle—”Corrupt the nobles, then take them to play degradation rituals; corrupt the merchants, then take them to play degradation rituals; corrupt the civilians, then take them to play degradation rituals.”
The only difference was in the methods of corruption and the scale of various abusive rituals.
Nearly seventy percent of the nobles in Talon City had been corrupted by the Church of the Whip Maiden. As a master of manipulating hearts, Lavita’s priests were adept at fostering human submission, bolstered by numerous beautiful women in the church. Thus, both the perpetrators and victims could find satisfaction in their hands. Once the mind falls into the abyss of desire, escaping becomes very difficult. This is how Talon City became corrupted, affecting everyone from officials to civilians; nearly every profession had individuals under Lavita’s church’s control.
As evil gods go, the difference can sometimes be this vast.
Unlike Soren’s actions in Modo, Lavita had sunk into the pleasure brought about by her divine profession. She enjoyed inflicting pain on others, be it physical or mental, and reveled in the process of others’ suffering.
The timing was nearly perfect.
As the beautiful half-elf priestess withdrew her whip to heal the nobles who had just experienced pain and pleasure, Chouhou and the other half-elf took action.
“Let’s go.”
As the cold words fell, Chouhou vanished from his spot, appearing behind the guards in the hall. Accompanied by a silent glint, one guard was dead in his hands. The other half-elf moved swiftly, and together they efficiently dispatched the two guards at the entrance.
—”Shadow Travel!”
After acquiring the divine authority of Shadows, Soren’s divine power began to grant his followers more unique abilities, especially in the extension of Shadow Plane capabilities, greatly enhancing the strength of many Wanderers under his command.
Chouhou’s chosen target was the priestess. As a spellcaster, once Chouhou stealthily approached her from behind, the fate of this Lavita priestess was sealed.
With no mercy!
Chouhou ruthlessly plunged his dagger into her heart. At that moment, the nobles, just regaining their senses from the mix of pleasure and pain, screamed in terror; a few noblewomen, entirely exposed, fainted upon seeing the blood spewing from the priestess’s chest.
The slaughter did not stop.
Chouhou continued to reap lives, and seeing the once high-and-mighty nobles now trembling in fear made him want to laugh.
“Strip away their power’s cloak, and these guys are truly disappointing!”
The entire process was swift. When Chouhou withdrew, the hall was filled with corpses; at that moment, the guards outside began to react, and hurried footsteps could be heard from afar.
“Go!”
Without hesitation, Chouhou vanished from his spot, followed closely by the other half-elf.
………………
This night in Talon City was anything but peaceful.
For the attack was not confined to just this one place. That night, at least ten locations in Talon City experienced similar assassination attempts, with almost all targets belonging to the city’s aristocratic class, and nearly all undoubtedly had Lavita’s priests present.
Soren had taken action.
Before confronting the Whip Maiden Lavita, his church members had already launched attacks against opposing churches. Numerous assassins used ruthless tactics to cut off Lavita’s wings while severely damaging the corrupt noble forces they had infiltrated. This indicated that the secular power in Talon City would be intimidated. Those nobles needed to weigh the consequences of their heads before considering whether to involve themselves in the struggle between two divine churches.
However,
Everything had only just begun.
The abuse church had poured a lot of effort into corrupting this city, and many guards and troops were secretly under their control. Although Soren’s church was stronger, overpowering the local powers was not an easy task.
To utterly crush Lavita’s forces, an even more formidable thunder strike was necessary!
………………
(PS: There’s another chapter coming.) (To be continued ~^~)
