CA – Chapter 34
Chapter 34
"What is this?" Tang Qiu grabbed the fur ball by the scruff of its neck and lifted it, studying it for a few moments before asking in confusion.
For it to appear in this Dark Array was far too suspicious. Tang Qiu looked at Erin, waiting for the Black Witch to provide a reliable answer.
Erin looked completely bewildered. She took the fur ball and held it in her palm, examining it from every angle. Finally, she said hesitantly, "Maybe it's the cub of a magical beast?"
After all, the Dark Array was a conduit connecting the continent of Statu to the Dark World. The Dark God hadn't been awakened, but it was possible that something strange had been transported over.
The little fur ball turned around in Erin's hand, lifting its head to meet her gaze. Its gray eyes, the same color as hers, lacked a certain spark. They were a hazy gray, like a barren, lifeless wasteland—as still as an ancient well.
Erin froze for a moment. Just as Tang Qiu was about to take the fur ball back for another look, Erin dodged and hastily stuffed it into her sleeve. "It might really be a magical beast cub," she said, her voice betraying her guilt. "I'll study it."
Those eyes were exactly like a magical beast's.
She hoped she hadn't just transported something extraordinary over. Erin's heart pounded with anxiety.
"...If it's a dangerous creature, we can hand it over to the Holy See to deal with," Tang Qiu suggested after a moment's thought.
Erin nodded in agreement, but she was clearly distracted, her mind elsewhere.
Seeing that she remained lost in thought, Tang Qiu couldn't help but remind her, "Erin, Monica and the others are still trapped by the witches."
Erin snapped back to reality. She temporarily pushed the matter of the fur ball to the back of her mind, took a deep breath, and pulled out her materials to locate Monica and the others.
Only by finding the people from the Holy See could she find Vera, and the Dark Key was in Vera's hands. Erin lowered her gaze, concealing the complex emotions in her eyes.
Tang Qiu keenly sensed Erin's unusual mood. She glanced at Laurel's corpse and asked abruptly, "Erin, did you get what you came for?"
"I got it," Erin replied without looking up.
Tang Qiu watched her thoughtfully, her expression unreadable as to whether she believed her or not.
In the north corner of Rose Manor, the ruins had been deliberately cleared and a simple chapel had been built. In the center of the chapel stood a broken, mutilated statue, so dark and grimy that its features were completely obscured.
Monica and the others were trapped inside this crude chapel. The space was so narrow that they could only huddle together. Monica and two other priests continuously cast light barriers, barely managing to protect the clerics. The Holy Knights, however, had not been so fortunate; they had been almost completely wiped out protecting them.
Although the monster siege within the chapel had ceased, a three-meter-tall Gorefiend—immune to low-level light magic, immensely powerful, and proficient in dark magic—was giving them a world of trouble.
The Gorefiend seemed to possess an endless supply of power. Even when Monica's light magic struck it, it only sustained minor injuries that would slowly heal after a short time.
The situation was still a battle of attrition, only this time, they were the ones being worn down.
Monica's expression was grave as she softly chanted an incantation, once again casting a healing spell on those around her to help them gather their scattered spiritual energy.
Cecia asked in a panic, "Lord Monica, what should we do?" As a priest, her power of light and spiritual energy were a level higher than a cleric's, but even she was finding it difficult to cope under these circumstances.
Moreover, they were under immense mental pressure. Besides the threat of the Gorefiend, they also had to face a depraved Black Witch.
The Black Witch, Vera, seemed to be in no hurry to kill them. While the Gorefiend attacked, she stood by and watched quietly. When a Holy Knight fell, she would walk over, drag the not-quite-dead knight to the platform behind the statue, and then expressionlessly take out a small knife and dismember him, as if offering a sacrifice to the Dark God.
She hadn't spoken a single word, yet she had successfully earned the furious hatred of Monica and her group, as well as an unspoken but very real sense of dread and fear.
Monica's gaze passed coldly through the barrier, staring in the direction of the statue. The Black Witch's white robes, stained red with blood, seared her eyes. She closed them for a moment, bit her lip, and said, "I'll hold off the Gorefiend. You all leave this chapel."
"Go find Grace," Monica said in a low voice. "The swordswomen with her are very skilled. They might have a way to get out of here." Monica had noticed Eva and Jillian's extraordinary skills when they were fighting the half-human monsters and lion-men.
"But..." Cecia hesitated. The words to stay behind with Monica were on the tip of her tongue, but she didn't know if she should say them. Another priest was more resolute and had already declared her determination to Monica.
Monica paused for a moment before agreeing to the priest's request. With another priest helping her, her chances of holding back the Gorefiend would be better.
"When you get back to the Holy See, ask Bishop Ralph to personally come and exterminate the Black Witches here." With these cold parting words, Monica stepped out of the barrier, raised her staff, and began to chant softly.
White light spilled from the tip of her Staff of Light, and milky-white flames instantly enveloped the Gorefiend. She shot Cecia a look, signaling for them to leave quickly.
Trapped by the flames of light, the Gorefiend let out an enraged roar and slammed its fists on the ground, causing the very earth beneath their feet to tremble.
Monica steadied herself and met the gaze of Vera, who had stopped what she was doing and was now looking over. Her eyes were icy, filled with rage.
Vera looked back at her, her expression blank. Her fair little face was splattered with blood. If one hadn't seen it with their own eyes, no one would believe such an adorable young girl could commit such cruel and bloody acts.
This was the nature of Black Witches. Monica's grip on her Staff of Light tightened.
Cecia followed Monica's orders and led the clerics toward the chapel exit. Halfway there, however, she grew hesitant. Her steps slowed, and she couldn't help but look back to check on the situation. Monica's identity was simply too special. Although she and Archbishop Reese didn't get along, they were twin sisters after all. Cecia was worried that if Monica really died here, a dead end would be waiting for them when they returned.
It was because of this glance that her eyes suddenly lit up. She had noticed something unusual about the Gorefiend.
"The Gorefiend's power seems to be weakening..." Before, the Gorefiend would have torn the flames of light to shreds with just a few struggles, but now it was still trapped within them.
Cecia stopped completely. Just as she was about to raise her staff, a thought occurred to her. She turned her head, searching for Linda. This was a rare opportunity to earn merit.
However, she scanned the faces of all the clerics beside her and couldn't find Linda. Frowning, she looked toward the figures who had already reached the chapel door. Linda was among them, not even sparing a single glance back.
Cecia was displeased, but she couldn't very well call her back. She could only turn around and go support Monica herself.
Cecia wasn't the only one who noticed the change in the Gorefiend; Monica and Vera had as well. The former was delighted, while the latter frowned.
The change in the Gorefiend was definitely related to the Dark Array. Vera's eyes grew dark. She casually tossed the knife aside, summoned a skeleton, and hopped on, directing it to leave.
Because the Gorefiend's power was weakening, Monica and the others were focused on fighting it and didn't notice Vera's stealthy departure.
By the time Erin led Tang Qiu and Lucille to Monica's group, the Gorefiend was still struggling stubbornly and had managed to claim the lives of three more clerics.
Tang Qiu assessed the situation, motioned for Erin to tend to the injured clerics, and then joined Monica and the others in the fight.
Disgusted by the thick stench of blood and the aura of light, Lucille simply vanished from the spot.
With Tang Qiu's help, the pressure on the Gorefiend increased significantly. It didn't last much longer before it collapsed to the ground, unwilling to accept defeat.
Tang Qiu raised her Staff of Light and cast several healing spells on the group. Seeing that their spirits had improved, she stopped and asked with a frown, "Is the Black Witch gone?"
Monica nodded. She took out a bottle of Holy Water of Light and drank it down before giving Tang Qiu a meaningful look, gesturing for her to come closer. "What happened outside?" she asked.
Tang Qiu had anticipated this question and already had an answer prepared. She first glanced at the priests and clerics gathered around Monica, saying nothing.
Monica frowned and dismissed the others.
"...After you were teleported here, we found the other Black Witches and learned their purpose for hiding here." Tang Qiu revealed the existence of the Dark Array but didn't mention its purpose was to awaken the Dark God. "There was a Dark Array here, its function unknown, but it has now been destroyed."
"Except for the witches who escaped from here, the rest are all dead."
Monica looked at Tang Qiu in silence. Exhaustion from depleting her spiritual energy made her voice a bit hoarse. "...Did you kill them all?"
Tang Qiu shook her head slightly. After a moment's hesitation, she said softly, "Actually... it was werewolves who killed them."
Killing three Black Witches and destroying the array—these were not accomplishments a mere cleric could claim. Tang Qiu had long ago decided who to credit without raising suspicion.
"Those two swordswomen with Erin are actually werewolves," Tang Qiu said with a sigh, her tone laced with faint surprise. "Thanks to them, we were able to kill all those witches."
No one would question the combat prowess of werewolves. Besides, Monica would certainly not go out of her way to confront them. As long as she could suppress her hostility toward werewolves, Tang Qiu's lie would surely hold.
Monica's expression changed slightly. "Werewolves?" To the people of the Holy See, werewolves were perhaps no different from Black Witches.
Tang Qiu subtly observed Monica's expression and deliberately boasted about Eva and Jillian's abilities. "They are indeed werewolves, I saw it with my own eyes. Their fighting strength is comparable to that Gorefiend just now."
Seeing Monica's grim silence, she tested the waters again. "However, it seems they left without permission and don't want to cause any trouble."
Only then did Monica's expression soften. Their group was in no condition to deal with werewolves now.
"Don't mention the werewolves to anyone else," Monica instructed Tang Qiu in a low voice. "For the sake of the Holy See's reputation."
Tang Qiu nodded and said gently, "Yes, I understand."
Monica looked at the golden-haired cleric, recalling how she had gestured for her to dismiss the others before speaking. Her trust in her deepened by another fraction.
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