Lane was looking at the brochures and flags prepared around the city for the Saint's arrival tomorrow. Everywhere, the flags of the Holy Empire and the Empire of Solarin were hanging.
After a while, he reached the Holy Church on foot. He opened the map in his hand, leaned calmly against the wall of one of the houses, and began observing the church from a distance.
The church was truly enormous. It was nearly twenty-seven meters tall. At the very top, two monks could be seen standing right beside the bell. Made of gold plating and white marble, the structure was quite magnificent. In front of the church stood a statue of Goddess Arianna, and around it was a neatly arranged garden.
Lane could not hide his surprise.
"They built the place well. I would have liked to meet the man who designed its architecture."
Holding the map in his hand, he began carefully examining the surroundings. He was looking from afar at how many guards there were, who was on duty, and all the rest one by one. The number of soldiers guarding the church was quite large.
Lane thought to himself:
"Tomorrow, I'll probably only be able to watch from a distance. Getting close to the Saint is going to be very hard. Especially if the empire sends someone like the Sword Saintess to protect her, then I'll really be screwed."
Then he lifted his head and looked up at the sky. He let out a light sigh.
"Whatever. Let's head inside now. Let's see what it looks like in there."
He folded the map and put it into his bag, then walked toward the church with heavy steps. There were monks around. They were talking among themselves and occasionally glancing at Lane.
Lane thought to himself:
"Why are these people staring at me like that?"
He ignored it. He reached the church's main gate and stepped inside.
The moment Lane entered, he sensed something strange.
"Ugh, what is this mana density in here? Everything is mixed together."
He started walking forward with slow steps. The people of the city had lined up to drink the holy water. Lane also joined the line and, as he slowly approached the holy water, he began examining the surroundings.
Inside the church there were rows of seats. At the very bottom of the section where the bell was located stood another statue of Goddess Arianna. Beneath the statue was a seat, and next to it was a wide area reserved for people to prostrate themselves.
Lane thought to himself:
"Is this what someone who devotes himself to religion becomes like? A man capable of thinking would not cling this blindly to religion. Religion is beautiful in its pure form, but where humans are involved, there is no such thing as purity."
At last it was Lane's turn. A church priest handed him a cup.
"Take your share of the Goddess's blessing. Come, drink this holy water."
Lane took the cup. The holy water was extremely clear. It had a pleasant scent with a faint aroma. Lane was briefly captivated by the smell and paused for a moment. Just then, someone from the back called out:
"Hey, hurry up. There are so many people waiting in line."
The man shoved Lane by the arm. At that moment, Lane failed to keep hold of the cup. It fell to the ground, and the holy water spilled everywhere. But the moment the water touched the floor, something on the ground began to melt.
The holy priest suddenly shouted:
"Infidel! How dare you spill the holy water on the ground? Aren't you ashamed to show such disrespect to the Goddess?"
Lane first looked at the priest, then lowered his gaze to the ground. He silently began watching what was happening. Fear suddenly appeared on everyone's faces.
At that moment, someone from the back stepped forward and approached.
"What is happening here?"
The priest, the moment he saw the approaching man, immediately bowed respectfully before him.
"My respects to the Cardinal."
At those words, everyone's eyes widened. To see a Cardinal in the city was a great blessing. In an instant, everyone dropped to their knees and began praying to him.
Lane's attention, however, had been completely drawn to the holy water. The water spilled on the ground first burned the floor, then began turning black as if it were festering.
He thought to himself:
"A sweet-smelling water turned into something like this in an instant. I was just about to drink this."
Then he quickly collected himself and looked at the priest. The priest instantly shouted:
"Show some respect at once. There is a Cardinal before you!"
Then he grabbed Lane by the arm and tried to force him to kneel. Lane did not kneel. He grabbed the priest's wrist and shoved him away.
"I think you've got something mixed up, priest. You think I'm going to bow to a Cardinal? Don't overstep yourself."
The priest staggered back.
The Cardinal, meanwhile, was watching everything calmly. Then he broke his posture and spoke:
"Hoo, look at that. There's someone here acting older than his age."
After that, he released his holy aura into the surroundings. Lane felt that pressure down to his bones. The mana he possessed was equivalent to that of a fifth-level mage. Lane felt the pressure directly, but he protected himself with his own mana and did not reveal his dragon mana.
The pressure was truly heavy. But what caught Lane's attention the most was the Cardinal's eyes and his mana. There was a strange corruption within his holiness. Something felt wrong. He became suspicious.
At last, Lane spoke through clenched teeth:
"Alright, alright. Enough."
The Cardinal replied in a contemptuous tone:
"So, have you learned your place now?"
Lane did not answer. He suddenly turned around and ran away from the place. The priest immediately shouted:
"Catch that boy!"
But the Cardinal stopped him.
"He will not harm us. Continue with your duties. The Saint will arrive tomorrow."
Lane rushed out of the church. Muttering to himself, he said:
"Does something always have to happen to me in these churches?"
But his mind was still stuck on the Cardinal's mana.
"There was something strange about that Cardinal's mana. It was as if they had mixed something else into the holy energy. Where had I seen that energy before? Where had I seen it..."
Lane suddenly remembered. It felt as if scalding water had been poured over his head.
"No... impossible. Something like that can't be. It's impossible for the Cardinal to be a shape-shifting demon. How did they not notice until now? Something is seriously wrong here. I need to secure myself."
Lane ran back toward the inn, glancing over his shoulder. The moment he arrived at the inn, he went straight up to his room, drew his sword, and, sensing it, asked:
"Dragon Sword, is it possible to mix demonic mana into holy energy?"
The Dragon Sword suddenly spread a bloodthirsty aura around the room and spoke:
"Yes, it is possible. But the method has been lost since ancient times. Why are you asking something like that?"
Lane told it everything that had happened. After a brief silence, the Dragon Sword replied:
"The reason you could sense it is because you come from dragon blood and because you know the scent of blood... If you are going to use me tomorrow, be careful. Demonic mana and dragon mana repel one another."
Lane nodded. Then he set the Dragon Sword aside and threw himself onto the bed.
"Tomorrow is a very important day. If I can meet the Saint, that would be very good."
After muttering this to himself, he placed his head on the pillow and went to sleep.
The next morning
Lane woke up early and got ready. After wrapping his sword in cloth, he set out toward the church. The streets were full of joy as they awaited the Saint.
Lane also approached the church, then climbed to the top of one of the rooftops and concealed himself with magic. There he silently began to wait.
After a while, sounds began rising from everywhere. Accompanied by music, the Saint had entered through the castle walls and was making her way toward the church. After that flamboyant entrance through the city, Lane finally saw the Saint. But beside her stood the last two people he wanted to see. On one side was Roney, and on the other stood the Sword Saintess, assigned as her guard.
Lane immediately dispelled his spell and climbed down from the roof.
"Damn it. Both of them have seven-star auras. How am I supposed to get close to the Saint?"
He blended into the crowd and tried to move to the front, but he could not because of the people. So he slowly made his way toward the back of the church.
At that moment, the Saint was giving a grand speech to the people in front of the statue of Goddess Arianna.
Lane slipped around to the back of the church and tried to enter secretly. He silently took down the two guards standing in his way and killed them on the spot. Then he put on the uniform of one of them, slipped inside through the church's rear entrance, and began waiting while acting as a guard.
The Saint finished her speech and entered the church. After that, she ordered that the doors be closed in a way that would allow people in only one by one. Lane calmly watched everything that was happening.
In the first minutes, all the priests took their places, sat down, and began to pray. Lane's eyes, however, were on the Saint. With her shining blonde hair, she was a very beautiful woman. Lane could not take his eyes off her.
After a while, the doors began to open again. Lane silently watched everything until the end. The people entering were being blessed one by one. This procedure continued for hours.
Lane muttered inwardly:
"How long is this going to take..."
It was nearly evening. After everyone had been sent away, the doors were closed and the crowd had completely dispersed. Roney and the Sword Saintess had also left and gone to the city palace. Only the people of the church remained.
Lane watched silently.
The Saint sat on her throne and suddenly spoke in a loud voice:
"There is a rat hiding among us. Find it. Its smell makes me sick."
Lane was stunned for a brief moment.
"So this is how the Saint talked? What the hell?"
The priests suddenly gathered themselves and seized one of their own. Lane, meanwhile, continued silently observing everything.
The captured priest began shouting:
"Bastards! Did you think you could stain the Holy Faith like this...?!"
The Saintess gestured as if to say, bring him to me. They dragged the priest over and threw him at her feet. Then the Saintess ordered her own forces to keep the doors shut. Lane also moved together with the soldiers and held the door.
The Saintess rose to her feet and approached the kneeling priest.
"It's going to taste disgusting, but I'm hungry."
In an instant, the Saintess's face split open as if tearing apart, and she swallowed the priest whole.
Lane froze at what he had just seen.
The priests ran toward the door in terror, begging the holy soldiers to open it, but it was already too late. The holy soldiers suddenly shoved them back. Lane, without giving himself away, joined those pushing the priests back.
The Saintess and the Cardinals beside her suddenly transformed into demonic creatures. They began tearing the priests apart and devouring them.
Lane's mind locked up for a moment.
"What the hell am I witnessing right now? Was the Saintess a demon...?" No, something is wrong. If the Saintess had died, the planet should have lit up at once. That means the real Saintess is still alive. This demon is keeping her somewhere."
Lane watched everything until the very end. The horror he witnessed was beyond description. In Arianna's temple, demons were tearing priests apart and devouring them.
When morning came, Lane left the place under the pretext of going to the toilet.
But what he had seen would never leave him.