Drip, drip, drip—
Berren City, perpetually rainy, was once again enveloped in a downpour as dawn approached.
Grayish-white clouds obscured the sun, casting a gloomy shadow over the city streets.
A troop of fully equipped riders moved through the rain, heading towards Creek Hill outside Berren City, disappearing into the woods.
“Whoa—”
The lead rider in black robes yanked hard on the reins, bringing the sturdy brown horse to a halt. He dismounted swiftly and hurried to the carriage being escorted in the middle of the convoy.
“High Priest, we have arrived.”
The neighing of horses filled the air. So horses, despite their riders pulling the reins, continued to rear up on their hind legs, screaming and fighting against their riders’ control.
Soon, several strong horses threw their riders off and bolted back down the mountain.
It was as if sothing hidden within the rain-shrouded manor ahead instilled in them a primal, instinctual fear.
Creak—
The carriage door opened, but the first person to erge wasn’t the High Priest ntioned by the black-robed figure, but soone with long black hair.
“Is this the place?”
Avena jumped down from the carriage, ignoring the muddy water splashing onto her expensive boots. She took two steps forward, taking in the information within her line of sight.
Many chaotic footprints... all leading away from the manor. It seed that not long ago, many people had noticed sothing amiss and fled.
Two corpses up ahead caught Avena’s attention. She walked between them, knelt down, and turned over the body lying face down.
As she moved forward, Nia, clad in silver armor, followed closely behind Avena, her right hand already resting on the shield-sword strapped to her back, ready to draw at any mont.
“Did you... discover sothing, Miss Avena?”
A slightly breathless voice ca from behind Avena. She turned to see High Priest Uris, who had co up behind her, with Adele’s silver-haired head peeking out from beside her shoulder.
“Both killed instantly by a short sword or dagger, no signs of struggle,” Avena glanced at Adele hiding behind Uris and asked with a hint of exasperation, “Didn’t I tell you just giving her so dicine was enough? Why did you follow?”
Adele wasn’t close to Ciel; they had only t once when Adele vouched for her. Adele had every reason not to participate in this operation. Avena couldn’t understand why she had co along.
She was clearly terrified.
Avena’s blunt words seed to wound Adele’s pride. She glared cautiously at Avena.
“Do you think I’m stupid?!” Perhaps hiding behind Uris gave Adele so courage, as her voice was no longer faint and breathless, but firm and defiant. “There are hardly any transcendents left in the city. Isn’t it safer for to follow you?”
Avena, taken aback by the retort, drew a sharp breath but couldn’t think of a coback.
Adele was right. Here, they had the third-tier “Crown Guard” Nia, the second-tier “Missionary” Uris, and seven or eight first-tier transcendents.
If the people here couldn’t handle Ciel, the situation would only worsen if an out-of-control Ciel road Berren City.
“We only have one day.” Uris interrupted the potentially bickering pair. “I have already sent an urgent request for aid to the Church using a ritual. I ntioned Ciel and the Divine Advent Church information.”
“If we can’t restrain Ciel within today, by the ti Church reinforcents arrive, I cannot guarantee whether the arriving Bishop or Archbishop will spare her life.”
Hearing this, Avena’s heart tightened slightly.
Only one day...
More than two hours had already passed since Uris said Ciel drank the potion. Ciel might not even be in the manor anymore.
There was no trace of her in the city. If she had fled elsewhere, finding her would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
If they couldn’t find her, they might only learn of her fate after she lost control completely, caused so major incident, and was dealt with by another church or organization.
“I’ll split up with you. Let’s search Deton Manor quickly,” Avena said to Uris and the others.
With Nia’s protection, she wouldn’t be in danger even if they split up.
“Don’t!” Adele quickly interjected, stopping Avena’s impulsive plan. “Don’t split up! In knight novels, those who split up usually end up dead!”
“Adele’s concern is not unfounded.” Uris nodded and addressed Avena, “You... haven’t seen what she was like. For your own safety, and for the safety of others, let’s not split up.”
“...I understand.” Avena took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down slightly.
She didn’t understand why she felt so anxious; she just wanted to find Ciel quickly.
Now, Avena could only pray that Ciel hadn’t been completely assimilated by the potion.
Thump-thump-thump—
Frantic footsteps echoed from the direction of the manor, drawing everyone’s attention.
Nia instantly drew her sword and shield, holding the sword in her left hand and shield in her right, stepping forward to shield Avena.
It was a woman wearing a red chip mask. She wore only an ill-fitting shirt, nothing below the waist.
Seeing Nia in her knightly attire outside the gate, she looked as if she had seen a savior and quickened her pace. However, she tripped over a stone, tumbled forward twice, covering herself in mud, looking utterly disheveled.
“Help! Help!!!” the woman scread, crawling towards Nia.
“An ordinary person,” Uris said slowly after carefully sensing her. “Not a mber of the Divine Advent Church.”
Uris walked forward, four white shadows erging from her own shadow, surrounding her protectively.
She crouched before the weeping woman and spoke gently, “It’s alright now... Can you tell what happened inside?”
Uris wore her white mask, and her ethereal voice seed to possess a mysterious power, gradually calming the frantic woman.
“Dead... so many people are dead inside...” the woman looked up at Uris, sobbing. “I was about to start my night shift. I just went into the changing room, and when I ca out, my new uniform was gone.”
“At first, I thought soone was playing a prank. I kept waiting for soone else to co into the changing room to help get another uniform... but I waited a long ti, and no one ca.”
“Later, I vaguely heard many screams outside, so I hid in the changing room and didn’t co out. When it got quiet outside, I ca out... and saw so many dead people!”
“Then... then I just kept running outside. I felt like sothing was chasing from behind, but when I looked back, I couldn’t see anything... And then, I saw you all...”
Felt sothing invisible chasing her...
Behind, Avena and Adele exchanged glances, both seeing the answer in each other’s eyes.
It was likely the “Judicator’s” black shadow. Ordinary people with higher sensitivity, under extre fear, could indeed vaguely sense it or see a faint phantom.
However, if an ordinary person actually saw it, they would likely go mad... Perhaps the woman before them was too panicked and hadn’t truly seen the black shadow.
That had inadvertently saved her life.
After comforting the woman and having an “Ascetic” hand her a long robe, Uris headed directly into the manor.
Avena and Nia followed closely. Adele wanted to shrink behind her sister again, but her sister was too far ahead. She reluctantly followed Avena, maintaining a subtle, ambiguous distance.
Physicians normally stand at the back... No, Physicians should stand at the back! Adele thought, overcoming her fear and openly hiding behind Avena.
“This way. We went up this way before.” Uris recalled the route she took with Ciel earlier, ntally counting steps, and headed directly towards the reception hall on the right side of Deton Manor.
Another corpse... the sa thod of death, a single fatal blow, clean and efficient.
Could Ciel really do sothing like this?
Avena found it difficult to reconcile the corpse before her with the calm, intelligent, cooking-adept, sister-caring, well-behaved Ciel she rembered.
This wasn’t just a contrast; it was like she was a completely different person.
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