Chapter 135

Haltos was a cautious man. Though he had now become an agent of extraterrestrial forces, in a biological sense, he could no longer be called human.

In his judgment, the best course of action available to him was to deploy immediately upon detecting an enemy in Amimone City.

To destroy the enemy, he needed to strike at an unexpected moment with unforeseen strength, creating a decisive situation where no stratagem could intervene.

Haltos once again reflected that the operation known as the Golden Desert Operation had been the one to precipitate such a critical moment. During that operation, the two enemies were driven into a corner like never before. They had to fight against monsters whose shadows hadn’t even been seen until then.

The operation wasn’t fully completed due to an unforeseen natural disaster. That storm, which had revealed the greater cause to him, intervened.

Haltos felt no regret about being swept up by the storm. He had renounced earthly glory and grasped the true higher purpose in his hands. But if there was one lingering thought, it was the possibility that the storm might have arrived just a little later, providing a brief window to finish off the enemy.

Yet, neither during the Golden Desert Operation nor in Algus City, did the battle against the enemy reach its conclusion. Instead, the enemy seemed to flaunt their involvement more openly.

It was like a bullfighter provoking a bull with a red flag, inciting it to charge in a frenzy.

Haltos had no intention of playing along with such provocations.

A decisive blow was necessary.

A very decisive blow.

As Ortes had anticipated, Argeyirion had already laid groundwork with several branches of the Amimone Magic Tower. Some of them followed the true cause with sincere hearts after learning the truth, while others didn’t even know that Argeyirion was their sponsor.

The dividing line between these groups lay in dignity. Those too base in character to accept the greater cause. To those who were corrupted, Haltos offered the chance to serve as scapegoats, cleansing their sins.

Haltos separated these people solely out of caution against the enemy. He suspected that the enemy might be able to see into the hearts of men as clearly as they could their own palms.

The trap prepared to eliminate the enemy utilized both types of people.

This trap targeted the final trial of the Magic Tower Master selection process. According to information painstakingly gathered by Argeyirion, this final trial took place within a special barrier installed by the Ten Towers.

The mages who knew they were Argeyirion’s collaborators and responsible for setting the trap actively demonstrated their skills during the Magic Tower Master selection.

The enemy would undoubtedly take great interest in the Magic Tower Master selection. They would surely observe the standout candidates carefully.

Eventually, they would perceive the preparations for the trap by reading the minds of the participants. Naturally, they would attempt to mock them from a position where no trap was set.

At the location the enemy would go to mock Argeyirion, there would be individuals lined up who were unaware that they themselves were bombs.

Even if, by some chance, the enemy walked right into the trap, it would still be fine. All that would need to be done then was to activate the trap.

However, the news that reached Argeyirion was a series of explosions that began on the eve of the Magic Tower Master selection.

In the last paragraph of the report, sent through spatial magic instead of Ethereal Space communication to avoid interception, there was an odd sentence.

“We share the same enemy…”

The gradually darkening brown text was undoubtedly written in blood. Upon investigation, it matched the blood of the dispatched member of Argeyirion, but the magical traces left behind were somewhat alien.

Haltos glanced behind him. A black shape was bubbling up from the shadows. It was Nastiorn.

“Do you have any idea who it might be?”

“…”

Nastiorn, who had long acted in secret to bring the greater cause back to the world, also had things he couldn’t understand. First among them was the irrational, almost fanatical obsession that the officers of Argeyirion had with “the enemy.”

But this mystery was simpler than that obsession.

Nastiorn possessed knowledge passed down since ancient times, and the method used by the entity that proposed a joint front against “the Great Enemy” was very familiar to him.

The unique magical residue of those who couldn’t ascend was also something Nastiorn was well acquainted with.

“The biological components of the blood are identical, but the change in the magical traces indicates that this member underwent possession or a similar state, resulting in a distortion of their mental structure.”

“They shouldn’t be so weak as to fall to mere ghosts.”

“They surpass ghosts. The ones who wrote this are like me.”

“You?”

Haltos scanned Nastiorn. This ancient being, who had taken on the role of servant to all of Argeyirion, had a strange history that made it difficult to tell whether he was a mage or a monster.

Because of his deep belief in the greater cause, he was respected within Argeyirion, but many secrets about Nastiorn remained hidden even from them.

“One of the servants scattered by the Greater Cause to fulfill His will in the world. I didn’t expect any of us to still remain in this era.”

“Hmm?”

“I shall go myself. Though my power may be limited, my experience makes me most suitable to deal with these beings.”

Thus, Nastiorn headed towards Algus City.

***

As expected, the representative of the spiritual parasite quarantine force sent by the Theistic Order was Demos.

They must have calculated that sending someone familiar would make things easier for both sides.

“It’s good to see you, but we don’t have time for idle chatter. Have the requested materials been prepared?”

Demos pulled a document envelope from his robes. It was quite heavy, but the crucial information was neatly summarized for quick reading.

“Once you’ve finished reading, dispose of it appropriately using proper means. It’s confidential.”

“Of course.”

What I requested was the suppression records of the heretical cults labeled as traitors by the Theistic Order, particularly methods for dealing with spiritual parasites.

Though I’ll do my utmost to handle them before possession occurs, should they succeed in possessing someone, the Theistic Order’s experience combating false gods will provide valuable lessons.

“Binding them with clever rhetoric to the sacred vows of Aegio and then breaking those vows to kill them… That’s beyond my abilities.”

Deceiving a creature that has lived for hundreds of years is beyond my capability.

“Once they possess a relic, a nucleus forms, opposite to their previous incorporeal state, allowing destruction centered around that point… Damn, most of the methods deal with handling them post-possession.”

When successful possession occurs, the vast mind of the spiritual parasite condenses into a focal point, or “center of gravity.” Most of the Theistic Order’s methods for dealing with false gods involved destroying this focal point.

Conversely, during their incorporeal state, they lacked a central body, making the most reliable solution to brutally destroy all bodies they had possessed.

Though the practicality of this approach is extremely low.

What was needed was an ability that could act directly on the soul or spirit itself, like the most effective method involving Aegio’s vows, assuming they worked.

“Oh!”

There was a perfect candidate for the conditions I described. The power of Pluto, the god governing souls.

Come to think of it, I met a priest of Pluto at the Pluto Temple last time.

“By any chance, are there any priests of Pluto here?”

Demos shook his head solemnly.

“It’s not ‘priests.’”

His explanation followed when he sensed my confusion.

“There is only one active priest of Pluto now. And unfortunately, circumstances prevent them from leaving the temple.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

I glanced around absentmindedly, hoping the shrine maiden who secretly followed me from the Pluto Temple might be lurking nearby. But as expected, the shadows in the alleyways remained empty.

“If we can’t use the power of Pluto….”

I quickly skimmed through the documents, focusing on early suppression methods from the period when the heretical cults first emerged.

Suddenly, Demos interjected.

“It will be hard to use methods that awaken the spirits of those ensnared by heretical beliefs. The Ersia Cult, originally responsible for restoring minds, lost its influence long ago and was removed from the Twelve Orders. As for the Bacchus Cult that replaced it… You know better than I.”

“Yes?”

“If the heresy is still in its early stages, it’s possible to awaken confused spirits and prevent further corruption. Weren’t you looking for that section?”

Demos shook his head regretfully.

“You’ve been protecting the last survivor of the Bacchus Cult, haven’t you? Kine, wasn’t it? If I recall correctly, she’s young enough that while she can wield divine power, she likely hasn’t received a clear ordination yet. Handling spirits requires at least the skill level of a bishop.”

I recalled Kine’s grumbling from last night.

She cursed the wizards’ brains by massaging them and then stripped their spirits away with a holy rite, didn’t she?