Chapter 127: The Heavenly Father
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"I thought things could be calmer, that I could just kill him without any problems and leave... but the people of this city..."
It wasn't just one or two, it was many, many "products," and most of them... Children, orphans taken from shelters, temples, and found in the outskirts, as well as those exported. Literally, a slave trade.
"I will sink this empire... I will erase every evil being from this world, I will destroy them all, even if I have to rule the underworld to keep every soul subjected to eternal torture."
Ziriel's murmur turned into such a deep feeling that her body warmed with fury...
"Calm down!" Aaralyn slapped Ziriel's face, who looked at her confused. "Why did you hit me?" Ziriel questioned like a child.
"You were about to blow this place up! Control yourself, kid!" Aaralyn said, pulling Ziriel's cheeks.
"Ow, ow, ow! Alright!" Ziriel said, trying to remove Aaralyn's hands from her cheeks.
"Let's get out of here, we'll take this." Aaralyn said and went to the window, so both followed.
After both left Ethan's old room, as it was impossible for that room to be used nowadays, they descended to a dark place, where the trees covered the view.
"Analyze this information and tell me what you found out." Ziriel ordered, and Aaralyn nodded, disappearing with the ledger.
Ziriel sighed lightly as she looked at her hands, they were slightly burned, yet she clenched them and ignored the pain.
So she returned to her room. There was about a week left until the long-awaited event of marriage proposals for the princess. She only had this time to investigate Ethan and to make time to deal with Velryna, who was extremely tired.
So, after a night of much thought about every step she would have to take, she woke up in the morning.
As usual, she had her coffee with Velryna, who soon returned to her room and locked herself in there, preparing to confront Emperor Adam again. Meanwhile, Ziriel decided to pay a visit to the Temple. She had never been to a Temple before, but she needed to know about some children who had disappeared months ago, especially the six girls who were sold as... Sexual Objects.
Ziriel now walked through the cobblestone streets, cloaked in a dark hooded cloak, her long white hair flowing in the wind. Silent and calm steps, almost undetectable, as she finally saw the Sacred Temple, an imposing church that stood among the buildings.
She had finally arrived. First, of course, she entered the ornate gates, feeling a solemn atmosphere of the place, but it bothered her, why?
The God she was visiting, in fact, was the one who ordered her death.
She entered the interior of the church. There was no one, or employee nearby. She saw sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows, projecting spots of soft and vibrant colors on the polished stone floor.
A sovereign silence hung in the air, as if a spell had been cast on the place, but it wasn't that, it was simply the calmness, the peace... but Ziriel was increasingly uncomfortable. At the same time, she couldn't help but find it interesting that the church was so calm.
The rows of dark wooden benches stretched along the space, each meticulously aligned, waiting for the faithful who were not present at that moment.
At the back, the main altar rose majestically, adorned with golden ornaments and carved crosses. An image of the divine, a representation of something, or rather, someone. With gentle eyes and hands extended in blessing, it presided over the sanctuary, emanating a sense of peace and protection...
at least that's what the faithful could say, but for Ziriel, the representation before her was simply sad.
His eyes were droopy, as if suffering every day to exist. His feet were slightly rough, proving that the luxury of shoes never came, and the mantle he wore seemed more like reused rags. She understood that luxury and material possessions were not really necessary for a faithful, but for someone who must worship such a statue, the sight was simply disgusting.
In addition to all these things that any faithful would adore, the smell of incense hung in the air, leaving a sweet fragrance.
Despite this, she was not just any unfaithful; she believed in gods. So, she revealed her face to the being that might be watching, with courtesy, even though she knew she shouldn't be polite to such beings.
Kneeling before the altar, Ziriel closed her eyes and began her prayer in a soft whisper.
"I have come to report to you what your follower, blessed by the divine, has been doing, your celestial grace," Ziriel murmured.
"It wasn't enough to kill me; you also helped a vile being like him to traffic children. I hope you redeem yourself from your sins, insignificant god," Ziriel said and felt something, but ignored it.
"I've been reborn twice; killing me wasn't enough. So, please, do not attempt on my life, your grace," Ziriel said, as she opened her eyes and looked into the statue's eyes.
"It wasn't my choice."
The sound came from the statue, Ziriel stared at it with disdain, once again pondered everything, but ignored it.
"You must already know who I am, Medes, so you must know that I know your story, at least the version from my previous world. You and Lucifer are the same, Heavenly Father," Ziriel said, gazing into the depths of the statue.
"Your choice affected the lives of millions. I'm not even telling you about my death, thanks to that I can now be the strongest person in this world, but what you have done disappoints me," Ziriel said, but never received a response.
"If you truly don't care about everyone's lives, ignore what I said. But if you truly want everyone to be okay, please lend me your power to end Ethan."
Ziriel's words were complicated; she truly never expected the creator himself to speak with her. In fact, she only came to give him an ultimatum. What would she say?
"If you don't have a good reason for my death, you'll be next on my list."
Ziriel was proud, but this time she knew she would need to ask for help in some way, as this was a bigger problem than just a childish fight, a foolish revenge; it involved an entire continent and it was already affecting the world she lived in.
She didn't have an army to deal with Ethan. Killing him inside the Imperial Palace was almost impossible; even killing him inside a ballroom was futile, the knights who personally followed him were all experts, almost reaching the Master Realm. Compared to him, who was still a measly cultivator of the Advanced Realm, it would be a battle between cultivation vs. skill, and cultivation would prevail.
So she made a risky move.
"Lend me the power of Longinus."
Longinus, the sacred spear that pierced Jesus Christ's chest on the cross, to ensure that his death was finalized. Something that, well... Let's not talk about religion.
A relic considered sacred for being bathed in the blood of a Demigod, a truly risky move by Ziriel, who didn't even know if the weapon existed.
However, nothing was seen and no response came from the statue, it simply ignored her. Ziriel already understood that this could happen, but unfortunately it was what she could try. She turned slowly and took the first step.
"Ethan's Holy Power has been Removed for Six Years."
These words passed through Ziriel's ears, and she smiled. 'Four years in? It seems we can't let the liars win, you're weaker than I thought, you piece of crap.' Ziriel's thoughts made her happier.
She didn't receive anything from "God," but she received confirmation of her suspicions. Ethan had been abandoned long ago, he just keeps pretending to be blessed. Inside, she was really happy, although she couldn't get a new spear; one of her goals had been fulfilled.
When she opened her eyes again, she was faced with one of the bishops of the place, he smiled back at her and said gently, kindly, and calmly, "You seem to have found solace here, my daughter."
"Yes, Reverend. I received guidance from God," she said gently. The bishop chuckled lightly and said, "It is important to keep faith in difficult times like these. If you need further guidance, do not hesitate to seek me out."
"In fact... I have something to ask you, Bishop. My name is Ziriel Azure, I am one of Her Majesty the Princess's Knights, I came on a mission," she said, and the Bishop was slightly startled, members of the royal family usually ignored this place.
"I am Bishop Agnus Miha," he replied introducing himself. "I think it's best if we talk alone," he said and led the way for Ziriel.
Not long after, Ziriel entered the Bishop's room with a serious and determined expression. She needed to inform him about the disappearance of some people close to the church.
"Reverend, I need to speak with you about something urgent." She handed him a kind of copy of the notebook from earlier; the Bishop raised his eyes reading the document in front of him, realizing the seriousness of what Ziriel was reporting.
"Where did you get... No, that's not relevant. How can I assist, Lady Ziriel?" The bishop's sudden change was quite... suspicious.
"Can you confirm for me about these six children?" Ziriel questioned, and the Bishop looked at her for a few seconds and read the names of the little girls...
"I'm not sure, their names are too common, thousands of children pass through here every week, some stay for a day or two and vanish into the streets, I can't give complete certainty," he said. However, Ziriel didn't want to accept this answer too well.
"Are you sure, Reverend? It's not common for children to disappear like this, especially in... batches." Ziriel tried not to give subjective references to products for the children, but the situation couldn't be avoided.
"I understand how you feel, but it's not something within our control. I could ask the other staff and nuns who live nearby, but that's it. Since we don't have the authority to register residents with the precarious governmental system, it's really hard to identify the disappearance of orphans," he replied. This time, Ziriel felt sincerity coming from his voice.
Like Valentina, her perception of others' emotions was very high. It was almost like normal to know what was going on in the faces of weaker people than her. Well, she could hardly use that since she was always among the most absurd beings, even in Kryoris, but now, in the Empire, it's very easy to use this ability.
"Alright, Reverend. If possible, investigate around here. I'll come back after the princess's party," Ziriel said and bid farewell to the Bishop.
"What do you think?" From Ziriel's shadows, two small dragons appeared, one white and one black.
"Eldrax finds it suspicious!" she said, the little black dragoness.
"Indeed, a bishop... he seems more like a kidnapper wearing that robe," Voralith said.
"We shouldn't judge a book by its cover, right?" Ziriel said.
"Eldrax likes books with pictures, they're cool!"
"I thought dragons were intelligent, Voralith."
"She's trying to gain favors from you."
"Oh."
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