May Your Lord Bless You

Bang bang bang bang bang bang!

Royale pulled the trigger at the sleeping Hanass. Six silver Demon-Hunting Bullets, carrying the power of the Evernight Goddess's prayers, thundered into Hanass's corrupted body.

Aaargh!

Hanass jolted awake from his sleep and let out a heart-rending scream. The skin struck by the Demon-Hunting Bullets instantly turned black and did not recover. Like rotten wood blasted by lightning, it rapidly spread and crumbled. He clutched his abdomen and fell to his knees, curling into a ball without moving.

That got him, right...

Klein thought nervously.

Royale deftly ejected the spent casings and reloaded, then moved closer to Hanass, aiming her gun directly at his head. She had no intention of taking chances. While Hanass was weakened, she would fire another round of Demon-Hunting Bullets!

Yet, just as Royale pressed the muzzle against Hanass's head, he suddenly raised it.

"Praise the Lord."

Hanass spoke with a crazed smile.

Something hidden beneath his black robe stirred. Only when she was close enough did Royale see what it was—it was actually two human faces! One large and one small, embedded directly in Hanass's chest and abdomen. Beneath the black robe, the two faces twisted and convulsed, their frozen agony almost tangible!

At Hanass's prayer, the two faces opened their mouths at the same time:

"Praise You, my Lord,

May Your will be done upon the earth,

As it echoes within our flesh and blood..."

They were indescribably depraved words. The two mouths opened and closed without pause, forming a duet as blasphemous, crazed prayers poured forth!

Boom!

Klein felt his head buzz, as though a bomb had exploded inside it. His consciousness went blank for an instant. When he came to, he was already lying on the ground, blood flowing from his nose to his chin, dizziness and pain filling his mind.

What the hell...

The piercing blasphemous language still echoed. Klein barely raised his head and saw Royale collapsed on the ground, bleeding from her nose and mouth, unconscious. She had been closer to Hanass and had suffered a greater impact. In the hall carpeted with bullet wounds and flesh, only Hanass remained standing. The two faces beneath his black robe were still chanting, and the wounds caused by the Demon-Hunting Bullets had already healed amid the depraved words.

His face was filled with fervor and piety as he spread his arms.

"This is the Lord's supreme power! In my dreams, I received His revelation!"

Fuck...

Klein cursed silently. He tried to struggle to his feet, but his body was completely beyond his control. That depraved voice constantly assaulted his mind, leaving his limbs weak. If he had not already adapted to the whispers from Above the Gray Fog, he would likely have fallen completely unconscious like Royale.

The two faces under the black robe prayed, but between their words came desperate pleas and sobs.

"Darling, please stop..."

"Daddy, it hurts so much..."

Klein noticed that Hanass, who had been ecstatic all along, suddenly froze upon hearing the woman and child's cries. Pain flashed across his face. Yet those traces of emotion soon faded, and he smiled again.

"Ha ha ha... This... this is the Lord's gift! This way, our family can stay together forever!"

Tears streamed down Hanass's face, which was filled with joy and despair. He had utterly discarded his last shred of humanity and immersed himself completely in faith in the evil god. He gently stroked the two faces on his abdomen, ignoring their screams and wails. He merely offered his "Lord" the purest, most frenzied prayers, forcing those two faces to keep uttering depraved words amid extreme torment.

This madman sacrificed his wife and child?!

Klein's scalp went numb as disgust and fury surged through him. He had never seen this side of Hanass before. Sure enough, once someone became a believer in an evil god, no matter how normal they acted, they were essentially monsters wearing human skin!

Hanass muttered to himself for a while before suddenly moving again. He looked at the fallen Royale, hunger and greed gleaming in his eyes. His mouth split all the way to his ears, his gleaming white teeth coated in bloody mucus.

"Daddy, I'm so hungry..."

"Darling, let's eat her..."

The two faces on his abdomen also spoke together, urging him to continue.

Oh no!

Klein jolted. This bastard was going to eat Ms. Royale! He had to stop him!

But Hanass's blasphemous words continued, and Klein could not even stand. Seeing the other man crouch and open his mouth toward Royale, he gritted his teeth and murmured:

"Blessed..."

Bang!

Just then, a crisp sound drowned out Klein's murmur. He saw an exquisite teapot fly across the hall, strike Hanass squarely on the head, and shatter with a crash.

"Die!"

An angry roar came from behind him. A figure swiftly crossed the distance, rushed in front of Hanass, and swung a hard cane held in both hands in a full arc, smashing it viciously into his face.

Splat!

It sounded like smashing a watermelon or crushing a bug—just that satisfying. Hanass fell backward, a deep cane-shaped dent carved into his face. Klein stared at the figure in surprise. It was Luther Rondal, the man they were supposed to protect!

"Shut up! Shut the fuck up!"

Luther's eyes were bloodshot, and blood ran from his nose and ears. He ground his teeth as he cursed Hanass, his cane raining down upon Hanass's head. Splattered blood landed on his face and hands, hissing as it burned and gave off smoke, but it could not stop him from striking with lethal force.

"Aah... Praise the Lord..."

Hanass mumbled as he was beaten. Then, the two faces on his abdomen opened their mouths at once.

"Watch out!"

Klein hurriedly warned him, but it was already too late. A shrill howl accompanied by depraved words erupted from the two mouths once more and crashed toward Luther. Klein, receiving only the aftershock from behind, felt as though his head had been struck hard again, leaving him dizzy and in pain.

Through his blurred vision, Klein saw Luther stop moving and stand frozen in place.

"Heh heh..."

Hanass looked at Luther, who seemed to have fallen into a stupor, and gave a chilling smile. "There is something of the Lord on you, ooh ooh ooh—"

Before he could finish, Luther raised his foot and viciously kicked him between the legs!

Crack!

Something seemed to shatter, and even Klein, watching from the side, felt a chill down below.

"What, you screamed so loudly, but your Lord didn't bless your balls?"

Luther sneered and kicked him again. Blood gushed from his nose and ears, but his mind remained clear. Though his face was fierce, his thoughts raced as he considered how to deal with this monster.

First, why had Luther appeared at this moment?

Because from the very beginning, Luther had never intended to entrust his life entirely to others. After hiding his younger sister Cecilia, he had slipped out of the lounge and hidden behind a partition to observe the scene. The battle had been fierce, and neither of the two Nighthawks had noticed him. Hanass seemed to have discovered him, but had been beaten until he could no longer act.

Thus, at first, Luther had been relatively safe as a bystander.

Until Hanass awakened the two faces beneath his black robe and used them to amplify himself and contaminate others. The filthy, depraved words had struck Luther hard at first, but just as his mind was about to collapse, the Illusory Sea he had felt when drinking the potion appeared again. It was as if nonexistent tides gently supported his mind, shielding him from the chanting.

But this power seemed limited. As it resisted the corruption, that cool sensation gradually faded. If he did not deal with Hanass, madness would ultimately await him as well.