Blood Priest

The church's ranks could not possibly have been a monolith. If there were problems among its people, someone would surely report them. With the matter branded heresy, the Disciplinary Court and the Inquisition should have dispatched people to deal with it at the same time.

Yet Clili had already received the letter in Exar and rushed over from there, while the church still had not made a single move.

Even though the conflict between the royal family and the church still remained, the suppressed church could never ignore such a hidden danger. Nor could the royal family turn a blind eye to the fall of an entire city.

If a city's population died, it would mean I had completely lost this region's economy. Everything in this country belonged to the king. The First Princess would not sit by and watch her property drain away.

"This damned situation again. Neither the royal family nor the church can be relied on at all!" Clili's expression gradually darkened as she recalled some unpleasant memories.

The three hurried through the city and rented rooms at an inn near the church. What they did not know was that from the moment they entered the city, every movement they made had been under surveillance.

Standing high atop the church, the cold-faced priest slowly set down the smooth wineglass in his hand. The clear crimson liquid inside rotated gently from inertia, like human blood.

Inside the church, the clergy were conducting their scheduled prayers. After the uplifting chant ended came a long silence. As the manager of the local church, he did not pray to the Goddess of Light like the other believers, because he was about to fall into darkness.

"The ascension has begun." The cold-faced priest drained the red liquid in his glass in one