NOVEL NEXT Chapter 334- Hell Marshal
"You are right, even though most of the upper echelons are completely under the demon's influence, if the latter themselves are not continuously leading them and distorting their thoughts, it is impossible for the oddities of the church not to be revealed in front of the world". Vaerion agreed.
The questioning continued. Soon, the puzzle seemed to be on the verge of getting solved.
"What should I do from now on?" The saint asked, emanating a dreary and remorseful aura
"Even if you were under the influence of the demon, the actions that you committed are atrocious. I cannot just allow you to leave like that. And besides, the church has ordered to dispose you off. Even if you go out there, you will only get killed."
The dark knight ordered the man to be imprisoned here until they decide on his punishment.
With the questioning over, the two heroes walked out.
"It looks like the situation is more dire than we thought," Vaerion furrowed his brows in consternation. The demons basically held hostage hundreds of thousands of believers across all branches of the holy grounds of the Kingdom.
The pious believers from villages and cities who come inside the hallowed ground every day to receive blessings, unaware that they are instead being corrupted and mind controlled. It was not only the Luminous church, the same was with the Temple of Thousands Stars and other holy institutions.
"They seemed to be collecting negative energy for something," Reinhardt muttered his observation. If only he could break into one of the headquarters of these places, everything would become clear to him once he used his [Eyes of Divine Clarity].
However, doing so would foil Vaerion's plans, and they would never be able to lure the true mastermind, the Twelfth Heavenly King, out.
"Anyways, you were a big help. I'll be counting on you if I get any more clues and on the fateful day". The dark knight sighed and thanked the Divine Paladin for his help.
"There is no need for thanks. Exterminating demons and freeing this world of them is a common goal that we both share. Look for me anytime if you need me".
.
Days remaining for the wedding, three. Inside the hallowed hall of the Luminous church, a person could be seen beating someone in a manner of releasing one's anger.
"You bastard, you dare ruin the reputation of our church? Lusting after the Queen of Solaris and even branding her as demonically possessed. Do you know what kind of position this puts our church in? Bastard!"
He continued to beat the man on the ground. If Reinahrdt were here, he would be able to recognise the latter as the person getting beaten was none other than the saint candidate of the Luminous church. The goon who tried to lay his hands on the Queen.
Seemingly satisfied after knocking all the teeth out of the saint candidate, he then ordered one of the subordinates to get rid of him.
"Tch, useless piece of shit. If you attract the Dark Knight's attention so early. It will make things difficult for us."
It was for a vague second, but a trace of vile, unsettling energy released out of him, who was the most hallowed and revered person in this institution.
"Did Sir Willcock wake up from his injuries?" he questioned one of the subordinates waiting for him.
"No, lord Bishop". As it turned out, the man was the highest authority here and the head of the group of parishes.
"Although Sir Willcock recently levelled up, he is still a level 9 extreme knight. For the latter to be defeated, I want to know who the other person was. I don't care about the means you use, but find out who did that to our knight".
"Yes!" The subordinate nodded and left to carry out his order.
With everyone gone, the bishop pulled a hidden lever. Immediately, the wall around one corner of the room shifted, revealing a secret passage that was otherwise hidden from vision.
Inside was a secret chamber with two giant doors that was protected by a powerful dark magic at the end. The man extended his hand, his skin morphing into the claws of a demon. The next second, a swirling gate appeared on the door, and the bishop stepped through it.
Inside, there was a gigantic dark space, and in the centre were two huge magic circles enclosing what looked like a heart. From the makeup and constitution, it was easily discernible that it was not the heart of a human but rather of a being much gigantic.
The heart pulsed with a powerful crimson light, and a deep gurgling noise echoed out of it from time to time. The bishop glanced at the heart chained by a powerful magic and laughed.
"It's almost time, the energy is nearly about to fill. I must inform that lord".
The next day, nothing of too importance happened. More and more guests arrived from various parts of Aetherion and from foreign kingdoms.
Reinhardt drank tea with the Queen. Joining them were another couple, Vaerion and Diana.
"How are the wedding preparations coming along?" The Queen questioned.
"Almost everything is prepared. Now all we have to do is wait for the big day," The princess of Aetherion replied.
"I see, that is good news".
The princess was not aware, nor was everyone. Only a few trusted inner circle people of Vaerion were privy to the plan.
"By the way, where is His Majesty?" The ones joining them for tea were only the Queen and the Divine Paladin. The king was nowhere to be seen.
"He is a little busy," The Queen spoke, drinking her tea. As her face was hidden by the veil, it was impossible to see what kind of expression she was making.
Not everyone knew what the king was doing right now. However, as a level 10+ knight who was currently sharing the same mansion with them, Reinahrdt knew exactly with what the king was busy with.