Aftermath

Luther had no idea he had nearly been dismembered. After returning to his bedroom, he quickly concealed himself and lay in wait. Only after confirming there were no pursuers did he feel relieved and emerge from the shadows.

"Meow"

Luna the black cat seemed to have guessed what he was thinking and jumped onto the windowsill to look down at him.

Did my sudden appearance startle you?

He spoke to Luna, reaching out to stroke the fur on its head. Luna endured it for a few seconds, then finally broke free, leaping from the windowsill onto the higher wardrobe, and glaring at him reproachfully.

Luther smiled at the black cat.

He didn't bother the cat anymore. Instead, he created Wall of Spirituality in the bedroom to separate the inside from the outside, and then took out his haul for the day—the tarot card. Now that he was in a relatively safe place, he could finally examine it properly.

With a light touch of the finger, imbuing the card with Spirituality, the "Card of Blasphemy" transforms into something resembling a book, which can be flipped through one by one.

Luther gently turned the pages of the book.

On the first page, on the left, is Portrait of Roselle, holding a weapon and with a fierce expression. The card reads, "Sequence 9, Criminal."

"His body and mind are filled with malice, making him more ruthless than normal. He is extremely strong, with keen senses, skilled in all kinds of crimes, and proficient in all kinds of weapons, including both melee and firearms."

On the right is the complete Potion recipe.

Luther merely glanced at the recipe, making no attempt to memorize it, and continued reading to the next page.

On the second page, Roselle on the left has a broken wing behind him, a cruel, cold laugh, utterly devoid of humanity. The description above reads:

"Sequence 8, Unwinged Angel."

"Those extraordinary individuals in this Sequence were known in ancient times as 'the Coldblooded.' They have completely lost their conscience and humanity, their bodies are Distortion and Devil Transformation, and they may also possess some Devil magic."

Luther flipped through the book to the third and fourth pages. Each page had a similar structure: on the left pages, Roselle was either standing amidst piles of corpses, looking back in madness, or transformed into Devil, dominating humanity. On the right pages, there were corresponding Potion recipes. Among them, Luther also saw the familiar descriptions and recipes for Sequence 6 "Devil" and Sequence 5 "Desire Apostle".

"Sequence 9, Criminal; Sequence 8, Unwinged Angel; Sequence 1, Filthy Monarch; Sequence 0, Abyss."

He read aloud as he flipped through the pages, and just as Roselle's diary had said, the "Card of Blasphemy" contained the Potion recipes and Advancement Ritual for the entire Devil Pathway.

I have successfully mastered a complete Pathway!

The book closed, Card of Blasphemy automatically reverted to its original form as a playing card, which Luther, with a delighted expression, grabbed in his hand.

Although this Pathway is extremely dangerous, and the extraordinary individuals involved are not good people, it is, after all, the first complete Sequence I have obtained, which even contains Potion and Ritual to become True God. Its value is immeasurable!

That Demon must be furious if he's still alive.

Luther thought to himself.

Cherwood Borough.

The streets were ablaze, the glowing blue flames gradually dying down. The Demon's grotesque corpse was torn to pieces and scattered across the street, the only intact face still frozen with visible terror and rage.

Replace him immediately!

"The Soul Assurer," Soest said in a deep voice.

A group of Nighthawks immediately rushed out and pushed a bathtub full of hot water to the side of the street, in front of the silver-white armor.

"Kara."

The silver-white armor moved, and the person reached out and pushed aside the visor, revealing a handsome face with black hair and green eyes, exuding the air of a poet.

Leonard Mitchell.

He's inside the armor!

Leonard didn't waste any words. He quickly removed his armor and then immersed his entire body in hot water, not even his nose was exposed. His skin quickly turned bright red, and at the same time, strange silver ripples appeared on his body surface—just like the invisible blades that appeared when he cut through the ground.

The silver patterns spread from his body to the outside, merging into the hot water. The rising steam from the bathtub quickly dissipated, and the silver patterns transformed into cold air, forming a thin layer of ice on the surface.

Leonard didn't get out of the bathtub until the silver light had completely dissipated.

"Hoo, hoo, Captain!"

He gasped for breath and said impatiently, "I just encountered a [Blood Bishop]."

Why aren't you back yet?

Audrey Hall paced back and forth in her home, glancing out the window at the yard every now and then. She was waiting for her father to return to the mansion and tell her the outcome of the events.

The Storm over Empress Borough had ended hours earlier, and West Palace, at its center, was under martial law, monitored by the Kingdom's army and MI9. Even well-informed nobles were unable to obtain any information; instead, all sorts of rumors circulated.

It can only be said that people are people; even nobles enjoy watching the excitement and gossiping just like ordinary people.

Audrey didn't participate in these pointless conversations because she had a more reliable source of information—her father not only possessed immense wealth but also held a pivotal position in Loen's political circles.

Of course, Audrey's father supported the New Party and disagreed with Duke Negan's political views, but both of them had the aristocratic pride and would not resort to such despicable means as assassination.

After waiting for a while, she finally saw her father's carriage enter the courtyard through the villa gate.

A dozen minutes later, Earl Hall walked into the room, looking utterly exhausted.

"Dad!"

Audrey came over immediately and asked anxiously, "How is it?"

"I'm sorry."

Earl Hall shook his head solemnly. "Cons has died in the line of duty, and his family has also suffered misfortune."

"Ah"

Audrey opened her mouth, but said nothing. She felt as if her heart had been plunged into icy water.

"Duke Negan"

After calming down a bit, she asked again.

"Even Duke Negan could not escape the assassination attempt."

Earl Hall spoke with very complicated emotions, and before his daughter could ask any more questions, he waved his hand, "Alright, my dear daughter, please let your poor father rest a little. He still has to meet with the Emperor later and report to the Prime Minister."

"Okay, Dad."

After seeing her father off, a look of confusion appeared on Audrey's beautiful face as she slowly sat down.

Cons is dead.

My friend left this world without warning, simply because he was caught up in a high-level assassination attempt. Even though I tried my best to notify all the forces involved, and even though I prayed to Mr. Fool, I still couldn't save his life.

This extraordinary world, which she had once longed for, gradually revealed its cruel and insane side to her.