Only God

As Eden was about to press the attack, it seemed as if a tremendous pulling force emerged from behind the two devils, instantly sucking them into somewhere. Immediately after that, amid the darkness, as if something flashed by, the two devils turned into a puff of green smoke, merging into the pitch-blackness, and vanished in an instant.

Watching this scene, Eden slowly withdrew his hand,

"What a pity, they got away."

Witnessing the devils' escape, Eden felt regretful.

If only he were a wizard skilled in magic, surely he would have found a way to leave some traceable marks on those devils.

Within the group of tents, Eden saw, Arsia and Nun Cassandra were hurrying over.

Rushing to the spot and seeing Eden unharmed, both of them gasped for breath heavily.

"Phew... It seems you're alright."

Arsia said, panting.

Eden nodded, then turned his gaze towards Nun Cassandra,

"They got away, is there a way to lock onto them?"

Nun Cassandra hesitated, looking in the direction Eden was pointing. Her aged face, after pondering,

"It's not that there's no way."

Eden's eyes lit up.

Those devils, they all came for him.

If he could lock onto their location and wipe them out in one fell swoop...

"However, that requires witchcraft."

Nun Cassandra said as such,

"The Church certainly does not encourage witchcraft."

Eden sighed, unable to help saying,

"Is it not possible?"

Arsia thought of something,

"Hey, although witchcraft isn't encouraged, the Church does encourage alchemy!"

Nun Cassandra sternly glanced at the Princess.

Arsia didn't shrink back and said:

"Many Nobles do so, they won't say they've hired a wizard, but they will say they've hired an alchemist."

Eden, far from the Imperial City, was not clear about the intricacies. Arsia's words opened his eyes; it turned out there was such a loophole to exploit.

Nun Cassandra sighed, then slowly offered a plan,

"I don't know anything about alchemy, but... I know of a wizard, no, an alchemist."

Saying this, Nun Cassandra showed a reminiscent expression.

Eden sensed something, could it be that Nun Cassandra had some unusual relationship with that wizard? This went against a nun's heavenly duty, but given the current situation, it wasn't his place to comment.

Although Eden was a priest, he wasn't a rigid man.

"Then, I'll leave it to you."

Saying so, Eden looked again towards the direction the devils had fled,

"These devils, they all came for me."

Arsia raised an eyebrow and asked:

"Isn't assassinating me their top priority anymore?"

Nun Cassandra also spoke:

"Come to think of it, the ritual to probe for the devils was actually arranged for the Princess. It's unexpected that they were discovered by you. Guess it's a stroke of luck."

Eden said softly,

"This is a stroke of good luck bestowed upon us by God."

Nun Cassandra repeated as well,

"This is a stroke of good luck bestowed upon us by God."

Arsia wrinkled her nose, hesitated for a moment, and then whispered:

"Praise Him."

Nun Cassandra said,

"Then... we should get back, you need to be more careful, and stay with the other Night Watchmen."

Eden nodded, the nun was right; in such frequent attacks from the enemy, it was better to remain with the other Night Watchmen for mutual support.

After bidding farewell, the figures of Nun Cassandra and Arsia disappeared into the night, and some late-arriving Guards appeared. Eden had them take the two unconscious commoners on the ground for interrogation, then allowed them to leave.

Eden exhaled deeply, crouching down.

"Did these devils come for the Stone Pendant?

But if it was for the pendant, why didn't they act directly..."

Although unclear whether it was for the pendant or something else, it was evident that he had become a target for the devils, somehow, unwittingly.

It's easy to be a thief for a day, but difficult to guard against one for a lifetime, Eden found it hard to breathe for a moment.

He needed to find a way to strike first to get out of this predicament.

Just as Eden decided to stop thinking and lay back down, a silhouette quietly approached from the darkness.

Eden immediately opened his eyes, looking in that direction with heightened alertness, but after seeing the newcomer's face, he widened his eyes.

"Your Highness, why have you come back?"

It was none other than Arsia.

"Hey, keep your voice down."

Arsia made a shushing gesture.

Eden was puzzled, why had she come back again.

"I sneaked out."

"For what reason?"

Upon Eden's inquiry, Arsia didn't respond immediately; she carefully took something out of her bosom, and in the faint moonlight, Eden could barely make out the object.

On the paper was drawn a half-naked crone with a hood on her head, holding a Crystal Ball enveloped in evil spirits.

"Is this... a Witch Gathering's wanted poster?"

Eden exclaimed.

"Look at the back."

Eden did as Arsia instructed.

On the back of the wanted poster was listed a series of alchemy materials, along with some ceremonial steps.

Eden was shocked,

"This is... a ritual to contact witches?!"

Arsia looked up, smiled, and said:

"I found it while browsing the market today.

Hey, those witches even put a ritual to contact them on the back of a wanted poster! Who would have thought of that? Truly audacious!

So, what do you say, shall we spice things up?"

Eden countered,

"You mean, we should initiate contact with them?"

Arsia seemed to try to convince Eden, continuing:

"Of course, you wanted to track those devils, right?

Maybe the Witch Gathering has some means.

If you are to wait for Cassandra's old flame to arrive, you might have to wait for ages!

Instead of that, why not take the initiative?"