Chapter 71
[Ah, no!! No!! I can’t die like this!......Aaaagh!!]
With a final gunshot, the last remaining Abomination on the surface burst apart.
Without a word, a Quattuor operative reloaded his magazine and approached lomene.
“There are no more demon worshippers left on the surface.”
“I don’t sense any either.”
Not even her finely tuned detection abilities picked up anything. The stench still rising from the underground was now the concern of Grandmaster Al-Madai and his team.
lomene turned her eyes to the pillar of light shining across the city.
The hidden ones had lost the ability to hide. Everything had become far too easy.
Even in collapse, the Saint was still protecting the people of the city.
She stood in reverence for only a moment before her ears were assaulted by harsh noise—screams and shouting.
“Filthy, disgusting laborists!! Reactionary scum!! You sickening, worm-like filth!! Look at what you’ve done to the city! Look!!”
Armed with pistols and submachine guns, the police were screaming as they pointed their weapons at citizens and workers.
“Demon worshippers were hiding among you!! You goddamn bastards! I knew it!! You’re trying to bring down Scrap Yard!!”
The workers began to murmur and back away, but it was clear the police had no intention of letting them go.
“What are you waiting for?! Fire!! Shoot them all and throw these laborists into the camps!!”
Tension at its breaking point.
“Stand down.”
At lomene’s command, the Quattuor operatives sprang into motion.
The thunderous sound of their approach caused the police, who had been just about to pull their triggers, to hesitate at the sight of the towering figures.
“Temple of the All-Gods! You’re just in time! Help us arrest these people!! There were demon worshippers among them!!”
The Quattuor soldiers turned their gaze toward the workers.
Under their cold, piercing stares, the workers trembled with fear.
“According to the Codex Prorelirium, all of them are subjects of arrest. They must be detained and examined for corruption by black magic.”
The operatives subtly gripped their pistols.
“Lady Saint, give the order. We will begin arrests immediately.”
lomene felt a headache coming on.
These lunatics.
They say a person who’s read only one book is the most dangerous kind. And these paladins-cum-battle-priests were the very definition—they had read only one book their entire lives: the Codex Prorelirium.
Part of her wanted to scream at them to get underground and go kill some actual demon worshippers—but then who would maintain order in the city?
“Holster your weapons! I’m not authorizing any shooting!”
The Quattuor operatives stared at lomene as if they couldn’t comprehend her words.
“But that contradicts the Codex Prorelirium. It clearly states that all suspicious individuals must be eliminated.”
“And doesn’t that same codex also say you must obey my commands?! Then obey! No shooting!!”
“But Lady Saint, the Codex Prorelirium...”
lomene wanted to cry.
When it came to slaying the wicked, they were unmatched. But when it came to maintaining public order or mediating between conflicting social groups, they were utterly useless.
Right now, Scrap Yard was a powder keg ready to explode.
The festering conflict between laborers and capitalists had only been delayed by the demon worshipper incident. It was burning again—and fast.
It wouldn’t be surprising if, right now, somewhere in the city, a police officer was killing a worker, or a laborist was killing a capitalist.
And yet, the only external force capable of preventing such bloodshed—Quattuor—were these blockheaded zealots.
“Your Highness!! These are laborists!! They’re violating imperial law to its core! They’re disgusting elements threatening to undermine society! You must have them arrested, not protect them!!”
A high-ranking police officer stormed forward, protesting furiously.
“We must detain them all! Please, lend us your strength!!”
Unable to hold back, one of the laborists stepped forward and shouted:
“If that’s how you see it, then are you claiming your factory lords are innocent? Weren’t there demon worshippers among you, too?! I saw them!! I saw the monsters fleeing from your mansions with my own eyes!!”
At those words, the Quattuor operatives now turned their gaze to the police.
“It’s true. There were demon worshippers among the factory owners as well. The workers are subjects for investigation—and so are you.”
“Lady Saint, give the command. We will detain all suspicious parties and investigate.”
The moment the police realized the Quattuor operatives were turning their aggression toward them, they turned pale and began to raise their weapons halfway.
“Y-You’re going to investigate us?!”
“So, the clergy reveal their true nature at last!!”
The Quattuor operatives also began to raise their pistols slightly.
“You would be wise to choose your next actions carefully. One of us can face down a hundred of you. Do you think your bullets can pierce our miracles and armor?”
“Stop!! I said stop!!”
lomene shouted, but the operatives moved to block her.
“They raised weapons against us. Lady Saint, stay behind us. You could be struck by a stray bullet.”
A powder keg. Ready to blow at the slightest spark.
The police, terrified of the consequences of attacking an imperial princess and members of the Temple of the All-Gods.
The workers, afraid of being gunned down by the police or Quattuor.
And the Quattuor operatives—completely capable of killing everyone here—stood restrained only by the order of the princess.
But all it would take was one wrong move.
And this place would become hell on earth.
“Please. Almeine. Hurry, for heaven’s sake!……”
The White Order was never suited for maintaining public order.
What they needed now was a different external force—one that could pacify the chaos, investigate the truth, and restore peace.
And just as lomene was anxiously praying for a miracle, her face lit up with relief.
“They’re here.”
She looked up to the sky.
Everyone else followed her gaze.
With a thunderous vibration, the air above Scrap Yard split apart—and through that rift, a massive airship emerged.
On its hull, clear as day, was the insignia of a skull biting down on a sword.
It was the emblem of the Black Fortress—the Empire’s elite intelligence and special operations unit under direct command of the royal family.
The airship wasted no time. It began descending rapidly.
As the citizens of the city gawked at the massive metal vessel slowly lowering from the heavens, shouts rang out.
“Stop this at once! What do you all think you’re doing?!”
The airship’s doors burst open, and a contingent of figures leapt from it into the city below.
Paladins and priests of the Order of the Sun, worshippers of the god of justice, Rophus.
Paladins and priests of the Order of Grace, followers of the goddess of mercy, Lilia.
Silent priests of the Order of Silence, servants of R’Nery, god of darkness and secrets.
Troops from the Temple of All-Gods surged into the streets, spreading rapidly throughout the city.
And they weren’t alone.
“In the name of His Imperial Majesty, lay down your arms immediately! Refuse, and you’ll all be investigated for treason!”
“You dare point your weapons at Her Highness the Princess?! Disarm yourselves! Now!”
“Unless you want the airship to open fire, disarm immediately!”
Inquisitors from the Black Fortress descended alongside them, quickly identifying and heading to potential conflict zones, acting as mediators.
Unlike the Quattuor zealots who had read only one book, these inquisitors had read many. And they were adept at handling this kind of civil strife.
lomene finally let out a breath of relief.
“What took you so long?”
She grumbled playfully in Almeine’s direction, then turned to the Quattuor operatives to issue new orders.
“Leave only a minimum unit for my personal guard. The rest of First and Fourth Companies are to support Grandmaster Al-Madai in purging the demon worshippers underground. And listen carefully! No more combat on the surface. Leave that to the Temple of All-Gods and the Black Fortress inquisitors!”
“As you command.”
All but five veteran soldiers from First and Fourth Companies thundered away. Shortly after, inquisitors from the Black Fortress moved in to surround lomene.
“We’ll escort you to the airship, Your Highness.”
Surrounded by both Quattuor and inquisitor guards, lomene was led aboard the ship.
With an exhausted face, she stepped into the airship’s interior—where Almeine was already waiting.
“……You know, right?”
“I know.”
No further words were needed between the twin sisters.
After that brief, wordless exchange, lomene made her way to the back of the ship while Almeine headed straight to the command room.
“Disarm both the police and the workers immediately! I don’t want this situation escalating any further! Priests of the Order of Silence, begin with the factory owners! The rest of you inquisitors, begin interrogating the workers! Paladins of the Order of Grace, you’re on protection detail for the Saint!”
Issuing real-time orders through magical comms distributed among the Temple of All-Gods and inquisitors, Almeine worked swiftly to stabilize the city.
Meanwhile, lomene made her way to a secluded corner of the airship.
There, she found a familiar figure.
“Erfa.”
But Erfa wasn’t her usual laid-back self.
Her face was expressionless as she cleaned her wand—and yet, even in her silence, a seething hatred radiated from her.
“Lady lomene.”
“The remaining demon worshippers have all fled to the underground mines. You’re coming with us, right?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go together. I have to go too, to lead the Quattuor units.”
Erfa gave a silent nod.
But she wasn’t the only one preparing for war.
Nine elite battle mages selected from the Tower Temple were also getting ready.
And even that wasn’t all.
With curious eyes, lomene observed others preparing for deployment—people even she had never seen in person before.
The Black Fortress’s most classified strike force.
She had only heard of them. Now, she was seeing them with her own eyes.
The Soulless.
Encased in strange black restraints, they moved with eerie efficiency as they readied for deployment. And even though she was staring straight at them, they seemed to flicker and disappear from her vision—unnaturally difficult to perceive.
The moment their restraints were released…
Ordinary people wouldn’t even know they were present. Even seasoned mages and paladins wouldn’t detect them unless they possessed exceptionally heightened senses—and by the time they did, it would be far too late.
They were faded beings.
And for that very reason, they were the deadliest assassins in the Empire.
“Calibrations complete.”
“Ready for immediate deployment.”
The mages inspecting their restraints backed away.
An inquisitor overseeing the Soulless turned to lomene.
“Please issue the command.”
Battle mages from the Tower.
Celestial Hundred from the White Order.
Assassins from the Black Fortress.
This was a force few enemies could withstand.
“Do I even need to say it? These are the ones who harmed the Saint and tried to destroy Scrap Yard. There’s only one fitting end for them.”
Grinding her teeth, lomene gave the order.
“Extermination. Kill every last one of the demon worshippers hiding in the tunnels. Leave none alive.”
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