Watching as the cavalrymen of the Austine Empire charged toward them under the veil of the night, Executive Francis finally stumbled upon the ‘truth’.

  It had become clear to him that this was a trap laid by the enemy. All of the earlier fighting amongst the various parties was just an elaborate bait to lure them out!

  The Saints Convocation’s Executive Council knew that Roel Ascart was likely to be in a severely weakened state, so they predicted that he would lie low and avoid trouble until his recovery. To avoid news from leaking out, he would terminate communication with most of his allies and keep the guards around him to a minimum.

  However, it would appear that their prediction was off the mark.

  They were right to deduce that Roel Ascart was in a weakened state, but he didn’t terminate communication with his allies. Instead, he chose to pull strings from the shadows. He must have guessed that the Saints Convocation would come after him, so he chose to set up a trap here to capture them.

  So the fights we have seen earlier between the church and the heretics, as well as the Austine Empire and Rosa, were all just damned lies to bait us! That blasphemous sinner even put on a harmless appearance and acted as if he was all innocent!

  Staring at the boy standing innocently alongside four female guards, Francis suddenly felt goosebumps on his arms.

  Good lord, how in the world is he able to hide his true intention so deeply? Just how scheming and vicious must a person be to pull off something like this? I have really underestimated him!

  Francis quickly reassessed their situation, and he soon concluded that it was no longer possible to escape without suffering catastrophic losses. A battle was inevitable. So, without any hesitation, he charged straight for Roel. He thought that he should be able to curb the others as long as he held their leader hostage.

  Things didn’t go as he had expected. He soon realized that he had underestimated the prowess of the four female guards too.

  In the night sky, little birds manifested from mana and life force had descended from the moon and were starting to cluster in the vicinity. With each wave of Alicia’s hand, a bird would transform into a devastating spell and bombard the evil cultists. The sheer killing intent she emanated made her feel like the devil herself, striking fear in the hearts of her enemies.

  As Carter’s protégé, Alicia had been inculcated with the decisiveness of military magicians from a young age. It was one thing if she chose not to make a move, but once she decided to strike, she would go all out to devastate her enemies, not giving her enemies any space to catch their breath at all.

  What made this even more frightening was her bloodline that allowed her to withstand the side effects of most spells. This meant that she could afford to unleash her strongest spells right from the get-go without worrying about wearing herself down, thus bringing the concept of a burst magician to its very limit.

  She was like a tsunami that swept her enemies away with its torrents, leaving them helplessly gasping for air until the inevitable.

  “Stay away from my Lord Brother!”


  The next moment, Francis was horrified to find that he had over a dozen of Origin Level 3 spells locked on him. It would be hard for him to tank all of these attacks despite being an Origin Level 2 transcendent himself, so after quickly weighing his options, he decided to back off.

  Little did he know that his choice to retreat here had robbed him of his best chance at getting rid of Roel.

  While Alicia was forcing Francis back, Nora had finally finished her preparations.

  Light wings unfurled from her back as she took out a container holding a mysterious crystal teardrop with multiple seals on it. She placed her hand on the container, and countless rays of brilliant light began wrapping around her body, seeping through her skin.

  By the time she opened her eyes once more, a tint of golden could be seen in the middle of her sapphire irises. Her body began emanating a faint glow as her aura rose to an unprecedented level.

  Judging from her mana pulsation, she had managed to overcome her limits to reach Origin Level 3, albeit temporarily.

  With her enhanced might, she began leading the clergymen of the church on a charge against Francis and the other disciples of the Saints Convocation.

  “Darling, come to my side!”


  Meanwhile, Charlotte gestured for Roel to head over to her side while channeling her mana into the Golden Soul.

  The Golden Soul began to expand immensely as it shaped itself into a resilient dome around Roel, protecting every single inch of his body. No attack could hope to injure him without breaching the tight defense of the Golden Soul.

  The quantity of Golden Soul that Charlotte utilized here was already abnormal, but it seemed like there was something unusual about its quality too.

  The Golden Soul appeared to have lost a bit of its color and opacity, looking less viscous than usual. Yet, even with Roel’s current weakened mana sensitivity, he could still sense the overwhelming mana it harnessed.

  It was only at this instant that Roel finally understood why Nora and Charlotte dared to confront Lilian.

  It was true that Lilian was powerful, but that was precisely the reason why Nora and Charlotte made thorough preparations to deal with her. Who could have thought that the means they had prepared would end up being used on the Saints Convocation instead?

  However, it was worth noting that Lilian showed nary a reaction to the extraordinary prowess displayed by her rivals, or rather, she knew better than to get swept into their tempo.

  There was no need for her to worry in the first place, for she was a real Origin Level 3 transcendent. What the others were doing only barely allowed them to match her level.

  Not to mention, her true strength lay not in her Origin Level.

  Under the blaring of war horns, a platoon of light-armored soldiers emerged from Lilian’s glowing mana. As soon as they materialized, they charged at the evil cultists who had already been forcefully separated under Alicia’s destructive bombardment.

  Unlike typical military platoons, these light-armored soldiers displayed exceptional flexibility and maneuverability on the battlefield. They brandished a myriad of different weapons, ranging from poisoned flying darts to venomous spears. Their diverse choices of weapons made it hard for them to maintain battle formations typical of well-trained platoons, but there was no need for that.

  The result spoke for itself.

  A dead evil cultist was a good evil cultist. Was it really that important how they died?

  Lilian hadn’t forgotten the purpose of this battle.

  In truth, the fate of the evil cultists was already decided from the moment that all four of them had chosen to fight alongside one another. However, her goal here wasn’t just to eliminate the evil cultists but to take Roel away with her.

  For that purpose, she chose the more underhanded Nighthawk Company instead of the orderly Lionheart Division. The Nighthawk Company had little scruples when it came to dealing with its enemies, so it was definitely much more efficient in eliminating its enemies.

  Seeing how Lilian had thrown out her ace to kill steal, the other women narrowed their eyes sharply.

  “This despicable woman!”


  Nora clenched her fists tightly. She charged with even greater fervor, determined to be the one to take down the most enemies. Alicia’s bombardment also grew in intensity.

  At the backline, Charlotte continued standing beside Roel, seemingly not doing anything at all. However, those who were familiar with the Golden Soul would know that it was currently undergoing transmutation.

  The fluid Golden Soul grew more and more vigorous before finally transforming into an inconspicuous golden wind that blew toward the disciples of the Saints Convocation. The disciples who were panting from their exertion breathed in the golden wind, inhaling it into their bodies.

  Just like that, their bodies slowly accumulated the gaseous Golden Soul. When it finally reached a sufficient concentration, it automatically invoked a spell that crushed their hearts.

  “!”


  It was a silent yet frighteningly deadly maneuver. Some of the weaker disciples lost their lives within moments. Francis was appalled by the viciousness of the move.

  A shameless trap, vicious weapons, and a scheming curse. Aren’t you all the evil cultists here?!

  “Goddamnit, I’ll bring you all down with me!”


  The infuriated executive released a powerful outburst of mana, further intensifying the battle.

  Meanwhile, a fair distance away, two figures hid inside a building as they watched the commotion.