Chapter 300

Chapter 86 Wounds

“Hold on! What are you doing—”

The melodious voice of the Holy Maiden, usually as soothing as the sounds of a forest stream, suddenly cried out in alarm from behind. It was filled with shock, anxiety, and disbelief, causing her voice to unconsciously rise several octaves, piercing my eardrums sharply.

My head buzzed.

!?

In that instant, my first reaction was that something must have gone wrong.

What’s happening…

But mostly, I felt bewildered and confused. My mind hadn’t caught up yet, and instinctively, I wanted to turn around. The next moment, a dull chime echoed above me.

Ding—ding—ding—

Golden light poured down before my eyes, dazzling and blinding. A sudden overwhelming pressure came over me, like carrying a mountain on my back, momentarily freezing my breath. Before I could react, I lost balance and fell to the ground with a thud.

Bang!

“Cough, cough!”

So heavy…

I can’t breathe!

My limbs became sluggish and numb, my body seemingly glued to the ground. The suitcase on my back felt incredibly heavy, and choking dust flew up as I fell, causing me to cough uncontrollably, making breathing even more difficult.

This is that Golden Bell…

My head was still muddled.

What’s going on… Who… Why…

Could it be that the Abyss appeared nearby… The golden light is too blinding to see clearly, stand up first…

Faintly, a chaotic argument sounded behind me.

“Lord Nuluck!”

“Knight Commander, obey orders!”

“Do you know what you’re doing—!!”

“Stop all attempts by the Holy Maiden’s group to rescue her!”

“You dare?!”

“You’re crazy!”

“Prepare to release the Sacred Spear—”

“She is not our enemy! She is not the Church’s enemy! She helped the Royal City! She saved countless lives!”

“Revoke your miracles!”

“That monster is extremely powerful! This is our only chance! Otherwise, everyone will die!”

“Act, act, act—”

Within the Sin, under the Golden Bell, I clenched my teeth and widened my eyes, using my elbows to push against the soft black ground, struggling to get up. Each time the Golden Bell chimed overhead, the pressure on my body increased, causing intense dizziness that made me feel nauseous. Breathing was hard, and my vision was filled with flashing gold stars, making it hard to see clearly.

It’s him… That bishop wants to harm me!!!

So uncomfortable…

Uncomfortable, uncomfortable… Hurry up and leave here…

“Aaaaaah——”

The pressure from the Golden Bell was heavier than when that long-robed old man had used it on me in Woodworth Forest. I could barely stand up, and before I could straighten my back, a series of sharp whistling sounds tore through the air above me.

Not good…

“Aaaaah!!!”

Instantly, the Order Power within me burst forth without reserve. Blue light bloomed around me, the air turned cold, countless ice-blue crystals floated before my eyes, and frost mist quickly spread from beneath my feet, covering the scorched earth with a layer of silver-white.

Boom!

A massive curved ice wall rose from the ground, instantly blocking most of the space behind and above me. Almost simultaneously, an attack from above descended.

Boom—boom—boom—boom—boom—!!

Crack.

After a series of explosions, large cracks rapidly spread across the ice wall, ice chunks falling and hitting my head.

I struggled to lift my head.

Swoosh…

Next moment, the ice wall shattered in front of me. Several golden spears with intricate carvings, their sharp tips breaking through the scattered ice shards and white mist, carrying a violent wind pressure, whistled towards me in an instant.

Move!

The only thing I could do was slightly shift my body.

But this slight movement allowed me to dodge the most fatal attack aimed at my head.

The giant Sacred Spear almost grazed my neck, its unbreakable body colliding with my right shoulder. Even with Captain Gray on my back, my body was flung away uncontrollably, flipping several times in mid-air before landing on the ground.

“Cough!”

When I fell, I landed face-first. The suitcase on my back pressed heavily down, making me unable to even groan. It felt like all the air in my chest was suddenly sucked out, leaving me feeling deflated. Even if I tried to gasp for air, I couldn’t take in another breath.

Boom—boom—boom—boom—

Several golden Sacred Spears deeply embedded themselves into the surrounding black soil, sending black mud and dust flying onto my head and into my mouth.

But I dodged it…

I didn’t dare stand up again. Ignoring the dirt, I gritted my teeth and pulled the straps of the suitcase, rolling aside to avoid the next wave of attacks.

“Don’t let her recover! Don’t give her a moment to breathe—”

“Nero Brown Telford!!!”

“Subdue them!!!”

“Powerful and righteous bishops! Prepare to release the Angel Feathers! Let us end this monster here for the eternal peace of humanity—”

The air distorted, the Golden Bell roared.

Voices outside the Sin echoed like hallucinations, light slowly streaming before my eyes, like snakes spreading around, floating upwards.

Buzzing…

I lay on the ground, covered in a mixture of black mud and frost, the suitcase on my back blending with the scorched earth. My dirty face turned red from lack of breath, my body trembling slightly under the weight. The pain in my shoulders and neck was ignored as I struggled to open my eyes wide, reflecting the azure sky above and the layers of quivering air in the golden light. Amidst the transparent waves, a white feather drifted down, followed by a second, third… in an instant, it seemed like a snowstorm.

They want me dead…

What a joke.

I came here to eliminate the Abyss… Why kill me…

The golden light above grew brighter, accompanied by faint humming sounds. Dense circles of light condensed and shone from between the feathers, forming countless fist-sized white orbs in mid-air.

“Margaret! I bind you in the name of the great deity, please do not move recklessly!”

“I won’t…”

In the next moment, the blackened soil beneath me began to stir, countless tender green sprouts pushing through the ice and frost, growing visibly into new leaves and flower buds. White flowers bloomed across at least a hundred meters of land around me.

The entire process took no more than two seconds. As I sat up, divine power akin to a miracle transformed the terrifying scorched earth into lush life. Flowers and young leaves burst forth, thick thorny vines twisted and rose, striking the Golden Bell hanging above.

Clang—buzzzzzz—

The heavy, dull sound nearly pierced my eardrums. I hurriedly covered my ears, watching as the Golden Bell cracked under the impact. With the cracks spreading, the pressure on my body suddenly eased.

I could move freely now…

“Ha—ha—”

I scrambled to my feet, gasping for breath.

Margaret is helping me…

Thinking this, I turned to check the situation outside the Sin. Suddenly, the golden light around me intensified, blinding me so much that I had to shield my eyes with my hand, squinting.

What…

Before I could understand what this meant, a semi-transparent light barrier rose from the ground, merging with the flowing light to form a half-circle shape, instantly enveloping my body and keeping the falling feathers out.

I was startled.

Immediately after, the sky above flashed with glaring white light.

Those lights emanated from countless white spheres in the sky, instantly connecting to form a white sun overhead, pouring down blinding white light. The dark earth was instantly covered with a bright layer, ice crystals and feathers swallowed by the white light, disappearing as if they never existed.

The whole world turned white.

In that instant, it seemed as if the entire world had lost its sound and color.

Even with my eyes closed, I saw nothing but pure white.

Whizzing—

A faint, dense, continuous sound filled my ears. The noise seemed to come from the light barrier, but I couldn’t open my eyes to confirm what it was. I vaguely realized that the light barrier, similar to the Sin, might be protecting me from a deadly attack… The light barrier must be a miracle cast by Margaret or the Holy Maiden’s group.

… My understanding of miracles was far too shallow.

Although I learned much during my time at the academy, understanding the differences between natural, punitive, and healing miracles, those basic concepts were insufficient to help me grasp what I was facing now.

After a moment, when I felt the white light gradually dissipate, I slightly opened my eyes.

The light barrier surrounding me,

The faint golden light dissipated into wisps and drifted upwards, transforming into star-like specks. After the white light receded, the luminous sphere and feathers above my head vanished as if they had never existed.

From the beginning to the end of the attack, there was no earth-shattering rumble, no heart-stopping explosion. The entire process was silent. Only the numerous small holes still smoking on the ground, the disheveled white flowers with scorched leaves, and the petals swirling down in front of me conveyed the terrifying and all-encompassing nature of the attack I had just faced.

The sins that had shrouded me had completely dissipated.

Clang—

A deafening sound echoed again from the direction of the Golden Bell.

The massive thorny vine struck the Golden Bell for the second time, and the enormous suspended bell made of divine signs could no longer bear the impact. It shattered into fragments of light with a loud explosion.

The pressure on my body instantly disappeared.

I moved my shoulders, which were still in excruciating pain, and took a deep breath.

“Silvija—”

In the distance, Margaret stood at the edge of the sin barrier, shouting loudly towards me.

“Go! Get away from here—”

Due to the distance, I couldn’t see her expression. Behind her, the nuns from the Holy Maiden’s class and the knights were facing each other, arguing angrily and anxiously. The bishop in purple robes stood not far from them, waving at several elders beside him. His sharp gaze, like an eagle’s, pierced through the sin barrier, tightly fixing on his prey.

…Kill him.

As this thought flashed through my mind, I already stepped out with Moon Step, crossing over twenty meters in an instant, rushing toward the edge of the light barrier.

Anger, hurt, confusion, extreme bewilderment, and extreme unease… Complex emotions surged like a flood, gushing from my heart, flooding my brain, extinguishing my reason.

Gale winds roared tumultuously by my ears, unbridled and defiant.

Just like how I felt right now.

Why…

I came to kill the Abyss. I feared the monsters would destroy the capital city, feared countless innocent people would die. I didn’t do anything wrong.

Then why are you hurting me…

Why!!!

“Aaaahhh!!!”

My weak voice let out a hoarse and high-pitched roar.

…Eat him.

I must eat him.

If the scythe and ice cannot break the sin barrier, then I will use the power of the Abyss to fly over.

“No! Don’t come over here—”

Margaret screamed.

She waved to warn me from the other side of the sin barrier, but I ignored her, deaf to her words.

Because I had to eat that old fat man.

I had to eat him… or he would keep hurting me…

Unconsciously, wisps of black smoke rose from beneath my feet. The little white flowers cultivated by Margaret with natural miracles quickly withered when I stepped on them, their leaves turning black and crumbling into ashes, scattered in the air.

The distance to the sin barrier was rapidly closing.

Seeing the purple figure getting closer, I could clearly see his face.

And the smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

What was he smiling about…

I immediately became wary, slowing my pace unconsciously, trying to circle around from the side. But before I could act, a bright golden arc flashed before my eyes.

?

What…

In the next moment, light suddenly burst forth before my eyes.

Crack—

Countless thick, irregular arcs instantly obscured my vision.

“Mmm…”

I heard my own muffled groan.

My body still maintained its forward momentum, my legs seemed to be still stepping, but I could feel nothing. My entire body became rigid, limbs unresponsive, as if every muscle had turned into hard stone. Sharp buzzing filled my ears, and my consciousness plunged into a blank state.

Crackling… Zzz… Crackling…

The smell of burning filled my nostrils, and my vision began to blur after the blinding light.

Faintly, I saw a golden sphere fall to the ground beside me, still emitting golden arcs… Then the surroundings started to spin. The black soil underfoot, the light barrier ahead, the bishop and Margaret behind the light barrier, about forty to fifty meters away, the nuns and knights, those detestable old men… All of this appeared like a dozen frames of a game with motion blur, swaying into a kaleidoscope of colors in my vision.

It seemed as if I was half floating, spinning in the air… Not yet landing, but my body couldn’t move.

Whoosh—

In the next moment, black flames surged, flowing out from within my body.

Fly up…

Don’t fall, fly up…

With a hazy consciousness, I desperately controlled the black flames, trying to stop the forward momentum, attempting to stabilize myself in mid-air, then fly out of the sin barrier.

My limbs remained stiff, unable to move, my mouth unable to open, tongue unable to move, hearing only the ringing in my ears. It felt as if this body was no longer mine, unable to drive even a single finger, already numb to any sensation. I could only exert all my effort to control the black flames, finally stabilizing my body just before landing.

The forward momentum abruptly stopped, black flames swirling in my blurred vision.

“Black…”

“Her body… black flames…”

“That’s chaos power…”

“Do you see… do you see… she is not human…”

“It’s a monster from the Abyss…”

“…Nero… foolish… even resorting to… means… to…”

The chaotic and panicked voices nearby reached my ears like hallucinations in a dream.

But they gradually turned real along with the images before my eyes.

“You will become the sin of the Church and humanity.”

“No. You and your Pope will be the sinners… And I will be remembered for centuries, millennia! I will be sung by countless future generations as a sage.”

In my gradually clearer vision, the bishop in purple robes wore a cold smile, one hand on his forehead, the other raised in front of him, pointing directly at me with his index finger, a dazzling white light blooming from his fingertip, creating a hole the size of a head in the sin barrier.

Time slowed down.

I saw, about five to six meters to the left of the bishop, the Holy Maiden in white nun’s clothing trying to push aside the knights blocking her way. Among these knights were faces I had recently memorized—the knight commander Alexander had already taken off his helmet, his expression showing pain, as if he was struggling intensely inside, though he looked like he might cry at any moment… but he did not move aside; instead, he slowly drew his sword from his waist.

The nuns of the Holy Maiden’s class were surrounded by knights. Someone tried to cast a miracle, but was stopped by two knights with swords, the golden light just revealed fading away.

But Margaret disappeared in a burst of golden light, appearing behind Bishop Nero in the next moment. Her face was pale, remnants of golden smoke still lingering after using a miracle, her nun’s headscarf fluttering in the wind, blue hair curling slightly dancing with her violent movements.

“Stop—”

Margaret raised her hand to press down the bishop’s raised arm.

But she was too late.

A radiant white beam shot out from the bishop’s fingertips.

There was no reaction.

Because there was no chance for a reaction.

The slender beam, bursting from the bishop’s fingertips, penetrated my throat and beyond in an instant.

I didn’t feel pain.

I just felt a chill.

The black smoke rising from my body extinguished, leaving only wisps of smoke in the air.

My body softened in an instant, I didn’t even realize what happened, I just knelt on the ground, feeling unable to breathe. My hands instinctively reached for my neck, touching the two-finger-wide hole, the sensation sticky, right at the throat.

There was no blood.

Cold liquid dripped onto my face… Ah, it’s rain.

I lifted my somewhat dazed eyes to look outside the sin barrier ahead.

How…

How did this happen so suddenly…

“Silvija—!!!”

Margaret looked at me in horror, then grabbed the bishop’s collar, the dazzling golden light once again shining from her. But I didn’t have a chance to see what happened next.

So sleepy…

An unprecedented drowsiness overwhelmed me, and I closed my eyes uncontrollably.

Whoosh—

A holy spear shot out from outside the sin barrier, piercing through my side with a shrill whistling sound.

I seemed to be flying…

I flew very far.

“She hasn’t died… don’t let your guard down… continue the attack…”

Accompanied by the howling wind, Bishop Nero’s voice gradually faded away in the distance.