Furious Cassilius

"A bunch of good-for-nothings!"

Cassilius's voice boomed through the church like thunder. At some point, he had quietly appeared before them, his face so dark it seemed ready to drip.

His gaze burned as it swept over every worshipper's face, filled with both disappointment and anger.

"Look at yourselves! A mere demon has thrown you into a panic and left you utterly disgraced!"

Cassilius's voice was cold and forceful. Every word struck the worshippers like a heavy hammer.

The worshippers lowered their heads, not daring to meet Cassilius's sharp gaze.

Cassilius was even more furious. He hadn't been gone long—he had only just reached some unspeakable understandings with those politicians before rushing straight back.

Yet when he returned, he found a scene like a battlefield. Several Priests had been killed, the streets were in ruins, and many buildings had been destroyed. The only good news was that the church remained intact.

Otherwise, Cassilius truly wouldn't have known how to handle the situation, much less answer to the faithful.

If a church couldn't even stop a demon from tearing down its own building, what reason would its followers have to worship its god?

"This is humiliating! You let a mere demon beat you this badly, and then you let him escape?"

Cassilius's chest heaved violently. His emotions had clearly reached a boiling point, yet even so, he struggled to maintain the dignity and composure expected of a leader.

The Priests below him didn't dare so much as breathe. Evans was sweating profusely.

Cassilius watched their faces, paused, then said, "I'll let you off this time, but there won't be a next time. Understood?"

His gaze, sharp as a blade, swept over them. Everyone it fell upon lowered their head.

"This matter ends here. Effective immediately, all worshippers are to go on high alert, step up patrols, and repair everything that was damaged. I've reached an agreement with the government. We'll need to cooperate with them in eliminating the demon."

Cassilius walked up to Evans, his gaze like a sword as he looked him straight in the eye. "Evans, as my second-in-command, you bear a particularly heavy responsibility. I expect you to lead by example, guide everyone out of this slump, and earn the faithful's trust again. Are you ready?"

Evans took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Yes, High Priest. I'm ready. I'll do everything I can and won't let you down."

"Hahaha, so you criminals are working with the government now."

A mocking laugh rang out. Cassilius frowned and looked toward its source: Daredevil Matt, who was struggling to get back to his feet.

"So we have an uninvited guest tonight. Tell me, the famous Daredevil, what brings you here?"

Cassilius's eyes instantly sharpened. He slowly turned, his gaze shooting toward Daredevil Matt like twin bolts of lightning.

Despite his injuries, Matt managed to force himself upright.

"I'm here to stop you from hiding behind the name of faith while carrying on your sordid business. Cassilius, do you think colluding with politicians can cover up the filth behind your church?"

Cassilius's expression darkened, and the air around them seemed to freeze.

"Daredevil, your ears are quicker than your fists. But remember, this isn't a place where you can cause trouble. Your so-called justice is nothing more than your own prejudice and conjecture."

"Prejudice? Conjecture?" Matt scoffed, struggling to straighten up.

"You exploit your followers' devotion to make filthy deals with politicians behind their backs. You're even willing to sacrifice innocent lives to protect your power. You're no different from the demon that just appeared!"

Ever since the monster had appeared that night, Matt had believed the Church of Dagon was up to no good. Otherwise, why would something like today have happened?

"Then where were you when people were getting hurt, Daredevil? Don't tell me you were too scared to move."

Evans suddenly cut in. He had spotted Daredevil earlier, but Bronksky's overwhelming pressure had kept him too busy to bother with a small-time hero.

"I..."

Matt fell silent, a jumble of emotions welling up inside him.

He had fought Bronksky once—no, it couldn't even be called a fight. He'd been defeated in a single blow. Could that really count as a fight?

"You're nothing but a weak, pathetic loser."

Evans's words were like a sharp dagger thrust into Matt's heart. His tone was full of disdain and contempt, as if he meant to shatter every last bit of Matt's resolve and courage.

Matt's face turned deathly pale. He clenched his jaw, his throat working as he tried to say something, but in the end, no words came. His legs gave way, and he slumped back onto the ground.

"High Priest, let's kill this self-righteous Daredevil right here. No need to let him come back after the battle and annoy us."

Seeing Matt sitting there in a daze, Evans grew bored and decided to simply kill the street-level hero. But Cassilius had other plans.

"No. We've already reached an agreement with the government, and this man is a special employee of S.H.I.E.L.D., a government agency. Let him go for now. We may find a use for him later."

Cassilius's gaze shifted between Matt and Evans before finally settling on Matt's pale but resolute face. A meaningful smile tugged at his lips.

He beckoned for the others to leave with him.

The matter had only just ended. There were plenty of problems left to deal with.

"W-wait."

Matt's weak voice rang out. Cassilius turned back impatiently and said, "What is it? We're busy. We don't have time to take you home."

"No, that's not it. I want to know—how did you know I worked for S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

Matt was a little nervous, though he hadn't been willing to join S.H.I.E.L.D. in the first place.

But he had joined now, and he might have to rely on S.H.I.E.L.D. to fight the Church of Dagon in the future.

Not many people should have known he was a special employee. If the Church of Dagon had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D., that would be bad news.

"Your Director told me himself."

"What?"

Matt froze. He'd thought there was a problem inside S.H.I.E.L.D., that it had been infiltrated. But it turned out to be this?

"Your Director was worried we might accidentally kill you, so he went out of his way to tell me who you were. If not for him, you'd be dead here today.

Your Director is a good Director. You'll never repay him for what he did for you!"