Chapter 143: To The Church of Light (3) |
TL/Editor: Rungir
Schedule: none
Illustrations: none
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A crew member's headless body stumbles and falls to the ground. Even as this happens, Olivia, with eyes wide open, fails to fully grasp the scene unfolding before her. It's not until the crew member's body hits the floor with a thud that she finally speaks out.
"What are you doing? Why did you suddenly kill someone?!"
This was not just harsh; it was the level of a psychopath. No matter how noble, no one had the right to kill a citizen of the empire at will. The events unfolding before Olivia's eyes were beyond her common sense. However, Zion's eyes remained as calm as they were from the start.
"You know there are various types of monsters, right?"
The same calm tone flowed from Zion's mouth as his gaze.
"Among monsters, there are beings called 'Evil People'. They devour humans from the inside out and hunt other humans while wearing their skins."
As Zion continued, a horrific scream erupted from the headless crew member's body, and dark magic began to seep out. At the same time, the twitching hand of the corpse turned into a blade and shot towards Olivia, attempting to fulfill its mission even in death.
However, this attack from the 'Evil Person' did not reach Olivia. Before it could, Zion's darkness burst forth once more, completely destroying the monster's body.
"Is that... the 'Evil Person' you mentioned?"
Olivia, looking back and forth between the dissipating corpse of the 'Evil Person' and Zion with a confused face, murmured.
"What in the world is going on here...?"
It was hard to believe, but she had to accept that the crew member Zion had killed was a monster. The energy she felt and the grotesque transformation of the crew member's body were unmistakably those of a monster.
"So... who are you?"
"Now's not the time for that."
Before Olivia could finish, Zion stood up and opened the door leading to the train's corridor, stepping out.
At that moment,
"What's the matter? Is there anything uncomfortable?"
As if noticing the commotion inside, three first-class crew members immediately approached Zion.
"It seems you'll be more uncomfortable than me."
With a slight smile towards the approaching crew members, Zion lowered his right hand.
With a natural motion, the Gigapheres wraps around Zion's hand like a glove.
"You're wearing things that don't even fit."
"What?"
At that moment, when the crew members sense something ominous in Zion's laughter and stop in their tracks, there's a loud blast! Suddenly, Zion vanishes, and at the same instant, the head of the crew member in front disappears.
Shortly after, Zion reappears in front of them, having just thrown a punch.
"What...!"
The other crew members, finally reacting, let out voices of shock.
Before the body of the headless crew member even hits the ground, there's another blast- Zion has disappeared again. Not really disappeared, but moved at a speed beyond perception.
Bang! Bang!
With two explosions, the upper bodies of the remaining crew members are obliterated.
Thud.
The bodies of the crew members, or rather, the 'Evil People', fall to the ground almost simultaneously with the first. This time, Zion had destroyed their cores in one hit, leaving no chance for them to rise again.
'Using it this way isn't so bad.'
Looking at the disappearing bodies, Zion tightens his grip on the Gigapheres wrapped around his right hand.
Given the confined space of the train and the need to conceal his identity, using the least known weapon, the Giant Destroyer, was the best choice.
Then,
"Isn't it wrong to just kill them outright? They could have been people."
Olivia, who had followed Zion out of the compartment, asked with a slightly pale voice.
In the meantime, she seemed to have somewhat accepted what was happening, as her eyes had calmed down a bit from before.
However, Zion's response once again stirred Olivia's eyes.
"It doesn't matter. Anyway, there's nobody else on this train but us two."
Although no magic was felt, the unpleasant sensation unique to 'Evil People', similar to what was experienced in the Angeloche territory, was present throughout the train. This made it possible to detect them without using a sensory array.
If it had been any other type of monster, even Zion himself might not have known.
"What did you say?"
Olivia asks in disbelief.
How could this man know that?
And if what he says is true...
That's when it happened.
"Miss! Are you all right?"
Had the sounds of combat been heard?
Olivia's knights, who were in the next compartment, rushed over to her location, urgently calling out.
"Alphon...!"
Olivia, about to run towards her lead knight by calling his name, hesitated for a moment and then took a step back.
"You do catch on quickly."
Zion, looking at her with a smirk, slightly twisted his fist wrapped with the Giant Destroyer.
The Black Star once again spun violently with a screeching sound. There were only two people present in this train. This meant that the knights running towards them had already been consumed.
'Whether they were consumed after boarding the train or were already in that state from before, I do not know.'
With that thought, Zion's form shot down the corridor in a straight line.
"Who are you! Who dares to target Miss Olivia...!"
With a crash, Zion continued forward, smashing the heart and core of the first 'Evil Person' still playing the role of a knight without understanding the situation.
Bang! Bang!
-This guy knows our true identity!
After a total of three cores were destroyed, the remaining 'Evil People' finally realized the situation, transformed their appearances, and charged at Zion all at once.
The 'Evil People', embedding their claws into the walls and ceiling of the narrow train compartment, attacked from all directions.
'Was it done like this?'
Zion, watching the approaching 'Evil People' calmly, stomped down forcefully and threw a punch into the air, channeling his power.
A wave of darkness emanated from Zion's fist, spreading out and engulfing the space.
The bodies of the 'Evil People' touched by it were torn apart without leaving a trace.
This technique was used by Utekan during the battle against the giant hordes. Zion had closely observed its principle with his keen eyesight, allowing him to replicate it to some extent.
After ending the battle in an instant, Olivia was seen staring blankly at the aftermath from behind Zion.
Her mouth agape as if she had received a shock. It was a natural reaction, considering she had just witnessed the knights she had been with for over ten years transform into monsters and get destroyed right before her eyes.
'When did it start...?'
When had her knights been replaced by 'Evil People'?
Why were they targeting her?
She couldn't understand anything.
The mix of anger, sorrow, and questions in her mind turned into confusion, but she suppressed it.
The situation was not over yet.
'But thanks to that man, my life was saved. If I hadn't been in the same compartment as him from the start, I would have definitely died.'
That's what Olivia thought as she turned to look at the man who was turning his head towards her.
Other than his name, Zion, she knew nothing about him.
Well, there was one more thing she had learned.
He was a martial artist with skills beyond imagination.
Even she, who prided herself on her deep knowledge of sacred martial arts, couldn't fully grasp how he moved during the battle.
'Who exactly is he?'
A martial artist of his caliber should have been well-known throughout the empire.
Especially with his appearance and unique weapon.
Yet, she had never seen nor even heard of him before.
'Surely, "Zion" must also be an alias.'
Olivia really wanted to ask about his identity, but she suppressed that desire as well.
After all, as the man himself had said, that wasn't what was important right now.
"First, let me say thank you."
Olivia slightly bowed her head towards Zion as she spoke. For a high noble like her, bowing was extremely rare, but it was natural for her to show such gratitude to the person who saved her life.
"And I'm sorry. For dragging you into this mess because of me. I'll make sure to compensate and reward you for your troubles once all this is over."
After finishing her words, Olivia raised her head and asked Zion.
"So, what will you do now? I will follow whatever you say."
Although the 'Evil People' were targeting her, she was ready to leave all decisions to the man before her. He seemed to have a better grasp of the situation and was making more sensible judgments than she could.
"I don't like waiting around."
Responding in a low voice to Olivia's statement, Zion turned his head to look down the corridor of the train that stretched beyond the first-class compartment.
At the opposite end of this corridor, near the engine room, he felt the strongest malevolent energy.
There must be the entity that planned all this.
"So..."
"We'll strike first before they come to us."
Running away and jumping off the train was an option, but it didn't suit Zion's personality.
Even if he was dragged into this, they had clearly targeted his life, and thus, it was only right to completely crush them, leaving no trace behind.
Moreover, it would be the icing on the cake to also destroy their malevolent plan.
'This should also settle the matters from the last battle.'
With that thought, Zion, whose eyes briefly flared with darkness like flames before extinguishing, began to walk slowly.
---
In the engine room of the Solar Train.
"I wonder if they've been killed by now?"
A man, who was not human, flicked his long fingers next to the dead engineer with an unnaturally twisted neck, murmuring quietly to himself.
Kaindal.
He was an 'Evil Person' of the same caliber as Kezarus, the top aide of the King of 'Evil People', endowed with the power to carry out special missions directly from the malevolent forces, unlike other monsters.
Kaindal's mission was straightforward this time: to kill Olivia Bright on her way to Lezero for the Saintess competition.
Thus, Kaindal had taken control of the entire Solar Train Olivia was aboard and had his subordinates positioned around in advance.
"I wonder if I've prepared too thoroughly."
Indeed, it felt excessive for the task of killing just one of the saintess candidates, who wasn't even a saintess yet.
But given his meticulous nature and the direct instructions from 'The Vision of the Future', he was even more attentive.
'Additionally, it serves to divert people's attention.'
A plan was underway in the City of Light, orchestrated by them.
To ensure this plan's success without any hitches, it was necessary to divert the city's attention elsewhere for a while.
"But I don't understand why there's such a rush."
Originally, this plan was scheduled to take place much later, right before the onset of full-scale war with the empire, to maximize chaos.
However, 'The Vision of the Future' suddenly advanced the timeline significantly, causing the demons involved in the plan to scramble.
'Could it be because of the recent events in the capital?'
More precisely, it was due to the actions of one individual in the imperial palace.
Prince Zion Agnes.
In less than a year, he had slaughtered two of the Omarei and foiled their plans countless times, an unprecedented feat in the last century. His name was frequently mentioned in the malevolent realms.
It's likely that 'The Vision of the Future' changed the timeline of the plan, judging that his actions could derail their grand scheme.
"What kind of person could change 'The Vision of the Future's plan... I'd like to see them in person someday."
With that murmur, Kaindal finished his thoughts and looked towards the door puzzledly.
"But... why haven't they come to report?"
Since he had given the order earlier, the killing should have been finished by now.
Yet, the absence of any report was strange.
Just as he was about to leave the engine room,
Clang!
The door swung open violently, and one of his subordinates appeared, exclaiming urgently,
"We've been attacked!"
"What?"
"The ones we sent to kill the target have all been taken out!"
His subordinate shouted again in response to his questioning.
At that unexpected news, Kaindal's face twisted bizarrely.
Boom!
A massive explosion was heard from the direction of the first-class section, and the entire train shook momentarily.
Boom! Boom!
The explosions continued, one after another, and they were getting closer.
"This is..."
With a puzzled look, Kaindal hurriedly expanded his senses.
As his senses spread instantly and enveloped the entire train,
"!!!!!!"
The question in Kaindal's eyes turned into sheer horror.
The presence of the 'Evil People' that filled the train was diminishing at a frenzied pace with each explosion.
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