CA – Chapter 29
Chapter 29
It was an extremely dangerous thing for a priest to be caught in close-quarters combat. Some priests with weaker mental fortitude couldn't stop their voices from trembling when faced with the ferocious and imposing bodies of the Half-Human Monsters, causing their incantations to become intermittent and delaying their light magic.
The Holy Knights reacted swiftly to this sudden event. They immediately split into two groups; one guarded Priest Monica, while the other was responsible for gathering the scattered priests.
As for those outside the Holy See… the Holy Knights had no energy to spare for their protection.
Under the Holy Knights' guard, Tang Qiu arrived at Monica's side. She frowned, searching for Erin's figure amidst the chaos. When she saw that Erin was well-protected by the two young female swordsmen, her brow slowly relaxed.
Monica's expression was grim as she looked at the priestly ranks, which had fallen into disarray from a mere attack by Half-Human Monsters. Although the Holy See's status on the continent of Statu was still at its peak, and the position of priest was still one of envy and aspiration, Monica had long since seen that the Holy See's power was gradually weakening.
During the Holy See's golden age, not a single Black Witch on the continent of Statu dared to show her face. Darkness was firmly suppressed by light, and monsters had no opportunity to appear on the continent.
Yet now… the Black Witches were even brazenly attempting to create panic on the continent right under the Holy See's nose.
She looked at the blonde priest beside her, who was calmly observing the situation, and asked in a low voice, "Where are the Black Witches hiding?"
Tang Qiu raised her staff, and a white light landed on a Half-Human Monster trying to break through the Holy Knights' encirclement. After watching it get cleanly decapitated by a Holy Knight, she turned back to Monica and said, "To the east."
The ambush by the Half-Human Monsters made it clear that the Black Witches had prepared many "grand gifts" for their arrival. With them on alert, Tang Qiu disagreed with Erin's plan to split up and search for the Black Witches directly.
They certainly couldn't handle these gifts on their own. It was better to travel with Monica and the others and adapt to the situation as it unfolded. After all, no one knew what else the Black Witches had prepared after the Half-Human Monsters.
Monica took out her staff and began chanting in a low voice. The element of light gathered at the tip of her staff, and waves of heat could be felt even by Tang Qiu, who stood several steps away. She gazed at Monica, who was enveloped in white light, her eyes deep in thought. This was an intermediate spell that only a Priest could use: Light Flame.
Tang Qiu had flipped through the intermediate spellbook countless times and was thoroughly familiar with the light magic within, but she was frustrated that she couldn't practice it without having undergone the Light Baptism.
Monica had studied intermediate magic for many years, and the power of her Light Flame could even rival that of a bishop. The white light, wrapped in flames, flew toward a massive Half-Human Monster. The monster's body stiffened slightly, and before it could even let out a scream, it was instantly consumed and turned to ash.
The Light Flame devoured the Half-Human Monsters completely before slowly dissipating into the air.
Monica withdrew her staff, her tone cold. "Let's go." She turned and headed east, continuing deeper into Vandent.
The other two priests were uninjured. Seeing that Monica was somewhat angry, they didn't dare say much and followed behind her with their heads lowered. The uninjured priests were also in this group, while the wounded were stopped by the Holy Knights to be sent back to the Holy See.
Unlike the injured priests who were sent away, Linda was spared this fate and remained in the advancing party. She held her injured arm behind her back, following beside Priest Cecia. Her face was a little pale, but she was very composed, without a trace of fear.
Cecia was very fond of this attendant priest of hers. Seeing her calm demeanor, she was quite satisfied in her heart. She turned her head slightly and said earnestly, "If you perform a little better this time, I will recommend you to Priest Monica again when we return."
The position of Priest had been almost within Linda's grasp, but it had been postponed and remained unconfirmed until now because of Tang Qiu's sudden appearance.
Cecia knew the blonde priest was excellent, but in her heart, she was more inclined toward Linda, with whom she had spent more time.
Linda raised her eyes slightly and gave Cecia a grateful smile, her tone humble. "Thank you for your guidance, Lord Priest."
Cecia was pleased with her respectful attitude. She smiled and patted her on the shoulder, offering a few more words of encouragement.
While Linda responded with a smile, her gaze drifted to the blonde priest standing beside Monica. Emotions churned in the depths of her eyes, brewing something unknown.
Vandent was once the second most prosperous city in the Bill Empire. It was originally three small and medium-sized cities that were merged and built into one. The three different architectural styles filled Vandent with an artistic atmosphere, making it a favorite place for bards to live. Although it had now been reduced to a dead city, one could still glimpse its former glory in the surviving ruins.
But glorious as it may have been, the city's complex layout was not very friendly to their search for the Black Witches.
Monica had just been born the year Vandent fell, so she was also unfamiliar with the city. Heading east, they entered Vandent's central street directly. A square that could accommodate tens of thousands of people for rest and entertainment appeared before them. The pool had dried up, its bottom covered in dark stains. The stone pillars standing in the four corners had fortunately survived, but the white stone was mottled with marks.
In the center of the square, several lions with dull-colored fur were lying down, gnawing on bloody corpses. Hearing the commotion, they lazily raised their heads to look at Monica, Tang Qiu, and the others, their tails swinging leisurely behind them.
On those lion faces, one could vaguely see human features.
The sight of the Lion-men feasting on corpses made everyone present frown in discomfort. Monica stopped in her tracks. Tang Qiu scanned the surroundings and discovered some hidden Lion-men, their numbers several times greater than the Half-Human Monsters from the earlier ambush. She took out her staff and prepared her light magic in advance.
"It seems we're heading in the right direction."
These Lion-men looked as if they had been waiting here for them for a long time.
The Holy Knights, holding their gleaming silver shields, crouched slightly and formed the first line of defense at the front. The priests organized themselves into three groups behind the three Priests. Monica raised her staff, and a barrier of light enveloped everyone, forming a second line of defense.
The Lion-men dropped the corpses, which were now almost bare bones, and walked toward them step by step with their blood-soaked maws wide open. With every step their sturdy bodies took, a heavy footfall echoed. The one in the lead stopped, threw its head back, and let out a beastly roar. More Lion-men emerged from all directions, roaring as they completely surrounded them.
A dozen young Lion-men leaped out and bit down on the light barrier, only to be instantly repelled. A white light then shot out from the barrier and landed on a Lion-man that had fallen to the ground and couldn't dodge in time. The Lion-man let out a miserable roar as a bloody hole was burned into its body by the light magic.
The Lion-men were generally much more intelligent than the Half-Human Monsters. Aside from the poor creature that had fallen, all the subsequent light spells that flew out from the barrier were nimbly dodged.
The Holy Knights guarded the rear with their sharp swords. They moved outside the barrier's range. Some managed to slay Lion-men, but others were surrounded and torn apart. There were simply too many Lion-men. By the time the light barrier could no longer withstand the pressure and began to shatter, they had eliminated less than a quarter of them.
A portion of the priest group was broken off. Monica timely cast a new barrier, but the separated group was already cut off by the Lion-men and couldn't get back inside.
Erin was unfortunately in this group. Eva and her companion, disliking priests, had run off somewhere again. There were about seven or eight people in their separated group. In their panic, Erin, who had been huddled in the middle, was pushed around by the priests and unknowingly ended up on the periphery. When she looked up, she was met with the foul-smelling maw of a Lion-man.
Erin: "..."
A skeleton mouse burrowed out from underground and climbed onto the Lion-man's foot. It wrapped its hands around the creature's front leg and began to gnaw rapidly. In a matter of seconds, the Lion-man's front leg vanished into thin air.
Its heavy body crashed to the ground. Although the Holy Knight protecting them didn't know why this Lion-man had suddenly fallen, he seized the opportunity and sliced off its head with a single stroke.
Erin's gaze unconsciously searched for the blonde priest's figure. Seeing her standing right next to that exceptionally strong Priest, perfectly safe and protected, she couldn't help but sigh. Comparing her own situation, she felt a bit down.
Tang Qiu, the object of Erin's envy, was not having an easy time at all. Their position was directly facing the swarm of Lion-men. Although they had two layers of defense with the Holy Knights and the light barrier, cunning Lion-men would still find opportunities to slip through and tear at the defenseless priests who were useless in close combat.
Tang Qiu's mind was in a state of high tension. The hand holding her staff was perfectly steady. Even though two priests had already fallen behind her, her voice didn't tremble in the slightest as she recited her incantations.
This was a battle of attrition. The priest team, with three Priests capable of using intermediate magic, had the advantage, but they were still held up by the Lion-men for a long time. When they finally assisted the Holy Knights in slaying the last Lion-man, all the priests breathed a sigh of relief.
Monica slowly lowered her staff, her voice hard. "Rescue the wounded."
The priests, whose spirits had just begun to relax, scattered again to search for their companions trapped under the bodies of the Lion-men. The casualties on the Holy See's side were still within an acceptable range. Only a few priests who had been torn apart and dismembered by the Lion-men could not be saved; the rest were almost all healed by healing spells.
Tang Qiu consumed a bottle of Holy Water of Light to replenish her over-expended Power of Light. She looked for Erin's figure, then walked over and looked her up and down. "Are you hurt?" she asked.
Erin expressionlessly held up her hand to show her a scraped palm.
Tang Qiu blinked and teased with a smile, "The Lion-men were too gentle with you."
"It wasn't a Lion-man that hurt me." Erin shot a sideways glance at Eva, her furtive look holding a hint of complaint. The Lion-men hadn't hurt her at all. This happened when Eva suddenly appeared while she was surrounded by Lion-men, pushed her away, and she fell and scraped it.
Eva noticed her gaze, and her face darkened. "I saved you," she said, displeased.
"That's why I didn't dock your pay," Erin muttered under her breath, then took out a pile of miscellaneous materials and began to arrange them seriously on the ground.
Tang Qiu's gaze shifted from Erin to Eva and the brown-haired girl standing nearby. Seeing that they were neither injured nor disheveled after facing so many Lion-men, but instead looked relaxed, she felt a little surprised.
This was not the strength of a swordsman.
She walked over, a warm smile on her face, and asked in a friendly and cordial tone, "Are you two swordsmen alright?"
Eva ignored her with a dark face, and the brown-haired girl glanced at her without speaking either.
Erin, who was looking down and using witchcraft, reached out and tugged on Tang Qiu's clothes. "Grace."
Tang Qiu turned her head, and Erin said in a low voice, "They don't like priests."
Don't like priests… Tang Qiu thought about which races on this continent disliked priests and then realized that, aside from humans, it seemed no race was particularly fond of the Holy See.
Eva and the other's aversion was obvious, so Tang Qiu wouldn't go looking for a snub. Just as she was about to leave, as she passed by the brown-haired girl, the girl suddenly spoke. "Your name is Grace?"
Tang Qiu paused for a moment, then nodded imperceptibly and said with a smile, "Grace Barton."
The brown-haired girl looked her up and down, then introduced herself in a flat tone, "Jillian."
Tang Qiu nodded in acknowledgment and walked past her. Eva, seeing Jillian's gaze still fixed on the blonde priest, frowned and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Jillian shook her head slightly. "I was just reminded of some rumors within the clan."
"Rumors within the clan?" Eva thought for a moment, then it dawned on her. "Are you talking about the name Grace?"
Ever since the Wolf Race had run into problems with reproduction, a rumor had suddenly started circulating from the mouths of the older generation. It had no context, just a single, baseless sentence.
It said that only Grace could solve their clan's extinction crisis.
However, no one could say who this Grace was. It was such a ridiculous rumor that many "Graces" had appeared within their clan, though most had since changed their names back.
The name Grace was not a rare one on the continent of Statu, so in Eva's view, this rumor was simply something the older generation had fabricated to appease the young.
"How could the clan's crisis possibly be solved by a priest?" Eva scoffed at Jillian's thought.
Jillian frowned but didn't argue.
Tang Qiu left the square and stood by a ruin, gazing at the people recuperating in the square, slightly lost in thought. A familiar scent approached her. She turned to see Lucille emerge from behind her. Lucille grabbed Tang Qiu's wrist, brought it to her lips, and opened her mouth as if to bite.
Tang Qiu struggled a little, calling out in a low, warning tone, "Lucille."
Lucille's movement paused. Her lips pressed against Tang Qiu's wrist, her sharp fangs resting against the warm, soft skin, but she hesitated to bite down.
She took a deep sniff of Tang Qiu's wrist, then straightened up. Her face showed no emotion, but Tang Qiu could see a shadow in her dark red eyes.
Tang Qiu knew that Lucille had the urge to drink blood periodically, but… wasn't the interval a bit short this time?
Tang Qiu remembered that when she met Lucille in that small town, she had been in this state. Not much time had passed since then.
As if she knew what Tang Qiu was wondering, Lucille leaned against the wall. She didn't let go of her wrist but gently caressed it with her fingertips. She tilted her head back slightly, swallowed, and her voice came out low and hoarse. "The scent of light is too strong."
Three Priests and over a dozen priests casting light magic all at once had caused the surrounding light elements to increase significantly. Her body sensed the danger, instinctively awakening Lucille's vampire side.
She fixed her gaze on the blonde priest's face and said, word by word, "I need to feed."
Tang Qiu: "..."
This was too willful!
She tried to calm Lucille down first. "Endure it for a little while. Once we find a chance to separate from them..."
Before she could finish, Lucille couldn't hold back any longer and pulled her over. One hand pressed against her waist, while the other brought her wrist to her mouth.
As she was pulled into Lucille's embrace, Tang Qiu could still spare a sliver of her mind to think that Lucille's scent was really pleasant.
A familiar stinging pain came, and Tang Qiu frowned. She sensed that Lucille's actions were a bit urgent, and the words of refusal on the tip of her tongue went unsaid. She raised a hand to Lucille's shoulder, her eyes fixed on the area to her right front, extremely worried that someone might pop out from there.
Their position was right behind a ruin. As long as no one came close, the Holy See personnel in the square would never discover them.
That being said, Tang Qiu was still highly tense. Here she was, just a few dozen meters away, feeding a vampire behind the backs of the Holy See's Priests and priests.
Just thinking about it felt as dangerous as licking blood from a blade's edge.
The sound of swallowing was very clear in her ear. Tang Qiu squeezed Lucille's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "That's enough, right?"
Lucille's hand on Tang Qiu's waist tightened, then slowly relaxed. Although she stopped sucking, she didn't raise her head. Instead, she licked the blood from around the wound clean, again and again.
Every time her soft tongue licked over the wound, Tang Qiu couldn't help but tremble slightly. The mix of pain and the strange sensation made her feel extremely uncomfortable.
After her emotions stabilized a bit, Lucille asked in a hoarse voice, "Did you come here specifically to find me?"
She had only revealed herself after seeing the blonde priest come to the ruins alone, looking around as if searching for something.
However, the moment she felt her body heat, Lucille's self-control had simply vanished.
She could have endured it. Lucille had firmly believed that before she saw Tang Qiu.
Unable to free her wrist, Tang Qiu simply let Lucille enjoy the occasional "dessert" that welled up and asked, "Have you found the Black Witch?"
"No." Lucille licked away a bead of blood that had emerged from the wound, her voice cool. "She's not in this vicinity."
Tang Qiu frowned and briefly explained her and Erin's plan. "The Black Witch is very well-prepared this time. Later, Monica will definitely continue to head east. When we encounter the next wave of monsters, we'll find a chance to separate from the Holy See's people."
They would let Monica and her group draw the Black Witch's attention at the front, while they would try to circle around to the back, get close to the Black Witch's lair, and find an opportunity to get what Erin wanted.
It would be even better if she could snatch a Black Witch's corpse along the way to bolster her credentials.
While Tang Qiu was behind the ruins placating a hungry vampire and contemplating her next move, an unexpected change occurred back in the square.
A priest who was recuperating was suddenly pounced on by a black shadow without any warning. A monster, smaller than a Lion-man and part man, part beast, bit down on the priest's neck and tore his head clean off. Fresh blood stained its fur. The monster threw its head back and let out a wolf's howl.
As if summoned, monsters swarmed out from all directions, baring their teeth and growling. Their numbers were several times greater than the Lion-men.
Monica's eyes widened slightly. She gritted her teeth, her face filled with fury. "So it was the Black Witch who attacked the royal palace too." These monsters were clearly the same group that had attacked the palace in the capital city.
Cecia chimed in from the side, "It seems so."
Monica didn't get a response from the blonde priest. She paused, then glanced over, somewhat surprised that Tang Qiu wasn't by her side. She wanted to look for her, but just then, the monsters lunged in a surprise attack. She had no choice but to give up the search, take out her staff, and focus on dealing with them.
This time, the monsters' attack wasn't a chaotic swarm like the attack on the palace. This time, they were disciplined, as if someone was commanding them from behind the scenes.
Eva and Jillian were also surprised to see these monsters, but their surprise quickly turned to anger. Eva clenched her fists and said hatefully, "Just let me find out which tribe the traitor belongs to. I'll kick their groins in."
To dare to collude with Black Witches, Eva was so angry she wanted to transform and tear all these monsters to shreds.
Jillian was much calmer than her and thought more deeply. In her view, the men of the Wolf Race were not so bold.
There might really be a traitor within the clan.
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