The Slaying

"Pavaro, I'm giving you one last chance. It's not too late to turn back now." "It is too late, because you already know very well that I am not your kind. Even if I were to say I submit to you now, would you dare accept my surrender? "Faith is the greatest thing in this world. It can unite different genders, regions, ethnicities, nations, and even different races like family. "Yet to those who once walked the same path, apostates who betray that faith become enemies with whom coexistence is utterly impossible!" "You misunderstand, Pavaro. What I mean is that if you take your own life right now, we will spare your family." Pavaro shook his head. "No need." "Can you bear to let your family be dragged down by your stubbornness?" "If I am gone, the supply of blood spirit powder for my two daughters will cease. The contamination within them will run rampant, and they will soon die from severe corruption. "I know my wife well. She appears strong on the outside, but her heart is exceedingly fragile. After losing me and our two daughters, she will lose the will to go on living and choose death. "Therefore, your threat is entirely meaningless to me." "You could have received plenty of blood spirit powder every month. Your two daughters could have lived lives resembling those of normal people. You were the one who threw all of that away." "To uphold the dignity of Order, the God of Order cast His own daughter into the jaws of a ferocious beast. "That is the Light of Order. "Pity that in your eyes, the light has long gone out." Tyers raised the leather whip in his hand and ordered the four subordinates beside him, "Suppress him!" The four Order squad members immediately closed their eyes, crossed their hands over their chests, and began to chant. Slabs of black walls coalesced before them, instantly morphing into an open cage that plunged down over Pavaro. The twin clusters of black flames in Pavaro's palms erupted, but not toward his surroundings—instead, he blasted them into the ground before him. The recoil propelled him backward, throwing him clear of the cage's perimeter just before it shut him in. Yet Tyers was already behind him, a sneer curling on his lips. "Still thinking of running." The whip lashed across Pavaro's back, setting off a string of detonations and scattering dense showers of sparks. In the next breath, the whip coiled tightly around Pavaro's waist. "Order — Incineration Curse!" Black runes surfaced all over Pavaro's body and began snaking up the length of the whip. Just before they reached the hand gripping the whip, Tyers hesitated, then released his hold. For this was a curse cast at the cost of one's own life. Once the runes established a link with the target, Pavaro would perish instantly, but the curse would take hold. Tyers naturally would not be killed by it, but purging it completely would be excruciatingly difficult, and it might well haunt him for the rest of his days. Freed from restraint, Pavaro was suffering the backlash of having his spell interrupted, but he paid it no heed. Slapping both hands onto the ground, a black astral burst flared. "Order — Black Mist Forest!" Thick black fog billowed outward in an instant, shrouding Pavaro's figure. The four Whip of Order members reassembled their formation and resumed chanting. Waves of power capable of cleansing all illusion and concealment washed over the fog, forcing Pavaro—who had barely managed to conceal himself—back into plain sight. Tyers locked onto Pavaro. He clawed downward with one hand, then jerked upward. In an instant, a black vine ripped through the earth, its razor-sharp tip thrusting straight toward Pavaro. Pavaro could not dodge in time. The vine pierced straight through his left shoulder and continued to surge upward, hoisting him into the air. The four black-robed men broke formation, but their chants continued. A dagger manifested in each of their hands, and a ward shimmering with black light enveloped their bodies like an empowering blessing. They charged directly into the dispersing mist, intent on executing the impaled Pavaro, and in the process destroying the vessel to thoroughly annihilate any lingering spirituality. Yet at that exact moment, the foremost black-robed man stepped on fragments of glass and looked down in shock to see a faint green vapor spreading out. Suspended in the air, Pavaro gave a low chuckle. "That is the source of contamination I extracted and purified from my two daughters—a toxin that erodes the soul. I scattered it into the fog earlier." Hearing this, all four black-robed men came to an immediate halt. They sealed off their bodies and began chanting to perform purification on themselves. In truth, this poison was not nearly as horrifying as it sounded. Pavaro's daughters were in their current state only because treatment had been delayed after the contamination. For priests, as long as it was dealt with in time, there was virtually no real danger; theoretically, they could have finished off Pavaro first and taken their time detoxifying afterward, as there was plenty of time. In reality, each of the four black-robed men had assumed his companions would step forward to slay the target while he stopped to purge the poison first. To their mutual embarrassment, all of them had the exact same thought. Seeing this, each assumed his companions would abort their purification to strike down the target while he continued cleansing himself. Even more embarrassingly, all of them thought the same thing again. And so, the four Whip of Order squad members stood rooted to the spot, glowing with soft black light as they purified and detoxified themselves, entirely neglecting Pavaro hanging in midair. Pavaro was not in the least surprised by this spectacle. How could men who had lost their faith ever look death in the face without flinching? The next moment, Pavaro slapped his palm against the black vine, attempting to burn through it with the flames radiating from his hand. Tyers clawed downward again and jerked upward. A second vine erupted from the ground, thrusting at Pavaro once more. Pavaro had no room to dodge. He could only force his body downward, tearing his own wound wide open in exchange for freedom. He dropped down, narrowly evading the impalement of the second vine. Upon hitting the ground, the left side of Pavaro's upper body was soaked in blood, his left arm hanging limp at his side. Yet he immediately pressed his right hand to the center of his brow, releasing another cloud of black mist that drifted into the distance. Tyers took several swift strides forward, overtaking the mist, and intoned in a low voice, "Order — Cage." ... "Woof." (This Inquisitor is no good.) "Meow." (Compared to the Inquisitor who sealed you, of course he's no good.) "Woof." (He follows the civil administrative track; combat is his weakness.) "Meow." (True enough. What he studied and mastered basically serves an Inquisitor's daily duties.) "Woof." (Yeah. Whip of Order folks basically only know how to fight.) "Meow, meow, meow." (So when picking spells for Karen this time, we need to choose more practical armor-reinforcement magic. It boosts physical conditioning and reflexes, which works wonders in situations like this. Among the Church of Order's spells there's Armor of Order, though it doesn't match the Church of Light's Armor of Light in performance.) "Woof." (I have something better. I can teach it.) "Meow?" (Armor of an evil god?) "Woof." (Not my own creation. I know Sea God's Armor. Stole it in the past.) "Meow." (That's very nice. Karen's deep foundation matches the fluidity of Sea God's Armor perfectly; he can continuously replenish the water.) "Woof, woof." (Still missing a close-quarters offensive spell. For mid-to-low-tier brawls, that combo works best. This Inquisitor is suffering because he lacks that; he's getting completely suppressed.) "Meow." (Dark Moon Blade?) "Woof?" (A spell of the Dark Moon family? You even know that?) "Meow." (Back then, a silly boy from that family wanted to court me and gifted me the spell.) "Woof." (And then?) "Meow." (I accepted the gift, told him I was deeply moved, then rejected him. He left heartbroken.) "Woof." (No matter how powerful the family, they inevitably produce fools like that.) "Meow." (Dark Moon Blade paired with Sea God's Armor—both consume massive amounts of spirituality, but that fits Karen perfectly.) "Woof, woof." (Yeah. Besides, if he has the two of us by his side and still loses fights, it won't just be his grandfather who's disgraced—we'll be disgraced first.) "Meow." (Still, what suits him best are the Church of Order's orthodox spells. But he has to truly grow before their real power can show.) "Woof." (What suits him best is actually... his own Order Knights.) "Meow, meow?" (This Inquisitor is about to die. Wait, someone else is here.) ... The Order Cage locked down the fleeing black mist. Once the mist dispersed, Pavaro's form was revealed within. Tyers raised his arm and said in a heavy voice, "Spear of Punishment." A Spear of Punishment hovered above his head, radiating an aura of destruction. "It's over, Pavaro." Yet just before Tyers swung his arm forward, a pink halo of light suddenly rippled open before him. From within emerged the phantom silhouette of a woman, chanting: "God said: I shall choose to walk into the freezing sea, leaving the warmth to my sisters." Seawater materialized out of thin air, suspended in midair to envelop Tyers and everything around him. Tyers did not panic much. He merely conjured three defensive walls around himself in silence, then chose to detonate the Spear of Punishment on the spot. Boom! Tyers dropped back to the ground. The explosion left him dizzy, though thanks to his preemptive defenses, his body was unharmed, and the barrier meant to trap him had been shattered. However, Pavaro had vanished from ahead. The four black-robed men caught up behind Tyers. Tyers swept a glance over them. Just as he was about to reprimand them, Pavaro's earlier words flashed through his mind: "We are not your kind..." "Someone from the Mills Faith. His accomplice has shown up." Tyers looked up at the moonlight. Rain veiled the moon deep behind the clouds. The night was very quiet, save for a cat and a dog running across the distant eaves, which brought a faint stir of life. "Keep pursuing." "Yes, Captain." ... "Annie, you shouldn't have come," Pavaro said. "Those people aren't the only ones hunting me down." "I'm already here, so say something useful." "My plan failed because the Jurist who tried me is the very person backing them." "Is that useful to say now?" "Put me down and leave York City right now. You still have a chance to live." "More nonsense." "I'm out of options." "Truth is, you ran out of options long ago—ever since you first chose to report this up the chain." "Yes." "The wisest move would have been to leave York City and report it to a diocese in another country. But that wasn't realistic either. Your investigation had already spooked them—yet if you hadn't investigated, what could you have reported?" "Annie, you're starting to talk nonsense too." "The chapel ahead belongs to the Church of the Abyss. I'll take you there." "It's useless. The Church of the Abyss wouldn't dare meddle in the internal affairs of the Church of Order." "Why do I hear a hint of pride in your voice when you say that?" "Is there?" "Yes, there is. Besides, what was your goal in breaking out? Did you have another plan?" "The stated reason was to try escaping and find a chance to report to an overseas diocese." "You already admitted earlier that reason was nonsense." "The real reason... is probably that I just didn't want to sit there waiting for the end. Even if breaking out meant certain death, death might also be a release. That is why you shouldn't have come out. I'm sorry, Annie." "I have a feeling we don't have much time left, so I want to stick to what's useful." "Go ahead." "I gave our investigation notes to the person you sent." "The person I sent?" "Yes, a very handsome young man." "Oh, him. I didn't send him, but I knew he was no ordinary person. I still owe him thanks for his lighter." "Doesn't matter. At least we know that after we die, someone will still be investigating. Even if the hope is slim, a sliver remains." "You're right." The Church of the Abyss chapel lay just ahead, across a city river spanned by a footbridge. Supporting Pavaro, Annie made her way onto the bridge. As they reached the center, a figure dressed in a black uniform appeared ahead. Emblazoned upon the fabric were black thunderbolts and various ferocious beasts sealed and suppressed by the Church of Order throughout history. This was... an adjudication uniform. Pavaro spoke: "Lord Adjudicator Ruke." Ruke raised his hand. A black sword materialized in his grasp. His hoarse voice followed: "Is your accomplice this Mills Faith believer?" Annie smiled and said, "Yes. I work at a pastry shop. Because I'm getting older, while others charge forty riels, I only charge twenty. Even so, business isn't great, so I have to help sweep and clean the shop to earn a little extra on the side. "Lord Adjudicator, have you ever been to a pastry shop? "We're only half a soul, you know. Except for direct penetration, every other service is negotiable." "Heh." Ruke gave a low chuckle, and the sword in his hand floated into the air. Pavaro chimed in, "What are you thinking, Annie? How could Lord Adjudicator ever visit a place like yours? He would find it base and beneath his station." Annie nodded. "Indeed. How careless of me to offend his Lordship. My, our place is filthy, but the question is—why would a clean Lord Adjudicator appear here to block our path?" Pavaro said, "Because Lord Adjudicator himself is far filthier. Your small measure of dirt is so clean compared to him that it would offend his obsession with filth." "Pavaro, do you know why I came out, even knowing full well I'd almost certainly die with you? "Because unlike you, I always believed that inside the Church of Order, beneath all that darkness, lurked nothing but filth. "Until I met you." "Don't worry. Order will pass judgment on them," Pavaro said, his gaze resolute. "I firmly believe it." Ruke wasted no words, intoning in a deep voice, "Order — Sword of Adjudication!" The black sword instantly split into numerous phantom blades. Pavaro placed a hand over his chest and chanted: "With my absolute loyalty, I recite Your great name, praying that at this moment, You open Your eyes and let Your gaze descend upon this realm; "Forbidden — Eye of Order!" A black vortex manifested behind Pavaro. Deep within, a tightly shut eye was faintly discernible. This same scene had played out in the auditorium of Allen Manor, but far more vividly then, stopping just a hair short of opening. Ruke was entirely unfazed. He even deliberately paused, waiting until the vortex behind Pavaro slowly faded away... Pavaro collapsed to his knees, slumped against the bridge deck as blood poured continuously from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. Even uninjured, a forbidden curse of this caliber was something he could never have completed, let alone in his current state. "Pavaro, you truly are a fool." Prostrate on the ground, his voice slurred, Pavaro could only reply, "I only wanted to wish for a miracle. And... leave no regrets." Annie began to chant: "God said: When this world is submerged by the sea, all filth shall be buried deep within!" Water on both sides of the bridge was instantly drawn upward, forming two massive barriers that surged toward Ruke. Ruke merely gave a light push of his hand. The sword phantoms instantly pierced through the barrier and impaled Annie's body. Pierced along with her was Pavaro, kneeling on the bridge. Holes burst through both their bodies. The aura of the Sword of Adjudication tore through their flesh while simultaneously tearing their souls to shreds. This was a confrontation with zero chance of turning the tables. From the moment Ruke appeared here, the outcome had been sealed. With Annie's death, the water curtain she had summoned lost its anchor and crashed down, washing across the bridge deck. A black halo formed around Ruke, keeping the water at bay so that not even his clothes were dampened. However, Annie and Pavaro's bodies were swept off the bridge by the deluge, drifting downriver with the current. Ruke reached out, a black chain materializing in his grip. But before he could cast it to haul up the corpses from the river, an elderly voice sounded from behind him: "There was an agreement back then that for the peace and stability of the world, all the churches would yield one step to the Church of Order. "Yet now, the Church of Order has pushed straight to our doorstep?" Ruke turned around, facing the old man in a two-toned red-and-black robe standing ahead. "The Church of Order is purging apostates. If we have disturbed you, please forgive us." "Hah, so that's it. I didn't intend to step out, but then I felt the aura of a forbidden curse and worried that if I didn't show myself, this chapel wouldn't survive to see sunrise. "Should something like this happen next time, would Lord Adjudicator be so kind as to send an official notice beforehand to give us a heads-up?" "Certainly." "Good." The old man turned and walked back toward the chapel. That was all he could say; nowadays, the Church of Order was just that domineering. Ruke looked toward where the bodies had been washed away; by now, no trace of them could be seen. Tyers appeared on the bridge and asked, "Lord Adjudicator, where are those two?" "Dead." Looking at Tyers, Ruke made no attempt to conceal the disgust in his eyes. "And the corpses?" "Fell into the river and drifted away." "Why didn't Lord Adjudicator—" "I killed the people. As for the bodies, find them yourself." "Hiss... Very well." A shroud of black mist wrapped around Ruke, then dispersed. "I really despise his lofty, righteous act." Tyers glanced back at his four subordinates. "Still standing there? Go retrieve the bodies!" ... Farther down along the riverbank, Purr was perched on Kevin's back as Kevin sprinted with all his might. "Faster, faster, faster! They're drifting just ahead! Right up front! Charge! Meow!" "Woof!"