Volume Four: Withering in the Mortal World - Sin Annihilation, Strike!

The underground of the Cathedral of the True God--

" In the In the Name of God, authority is given to you, and your left arm is freed."

In the depths of darkness.

" In the In the Name of God, I bestow upon you the sword, and free your right arm."

At the center of countless chains.

" In the In the Name of God, I bestow upon you a strong shield and liberate your left leg."

On the enormous cross.

" In the In the Name of God, I bestow upon you the crown and liberate your right leg."

Four clanging sounds rang out, and four thick nails fell to the ground, the densely engraved Divine Word on them gradually losing their luster.

"Thanks be to God for His protection, granting you the temporary authority to act."

With a clatter, the chains binding the cross came loose. Without the nails to hold it in place and the chains to restrain it, the petite body fell heavily to the ground under the pull of gravity.

The chanting continued.

"Yet you have neither freedom nor self; you are destined to live in darkness, forever bound by invisible chains, forever a servant of God..."

A large hand covered in strange tattoos grabbed the girl's long gray hair and pulled her head up, but the girl remained asleep with her eyes closed.

"The time has come! Awaken, you who should never have existed, Fourth Goddess — Sin Annihilation!"

"..."

The girl's body trembled slightly, like a machine that had been idle for a long time being plugged back in. The four large nails that had been used to secure her had left four shocking round holes in her limbs, filled with dark red bits of flesh and blood, but these wounds healed in an instant.

She slowly stood up, her limbs still a little stiff from not moving for so long, but this stiffness was only temporary. Her long gray eyelashes trembled, and her tightly closed eyelids finally opened completely at this moment.

"Um..."

Her eyes were a rare silvery-white, not the cloudy silvery-gray of cataracts, but a dazzling silvery-white. Her already angelic face was made even more beautiful by these eyes, but the frightening scars on her face and body also seemed even more glaring.

She stretched her limbs and tilted her neck, seemingly to confirm that her body was functioning properly, then stood still without making any further movements or showing any expression.

"You're awake? Sin Annihilation?"

"..."

The tattooed man wore a mocking smile, while Sin Annihilation showed no reaction.

"Hmph... While being obedient is nice, not saying a word still gets me bored—ha!"

Without warning, he suddenly launched a kick, but Sin Annihilation neither dodged nor avoided it, letting the kick land on her face. The kick was heavy; the tattooed man could even feel the girl's upturned nose through the sole of his shoe. However, when the foot moved away, there wasn't a single scratch on the girl's face, not even a mark.

"... Aren't you going to dodge?"

"..."

"I'm asking you a question!"

"... There's no need."

"... Tsk, how boring... Never mind."

The tattooed man shook his head, forcibly banishing his displeasure, and said seriously—

"Never mind that. I woke you up because I had a task for you. Listen carefully."

Listen carefully--

"Is this an order?" This was the first time Sin Annihilation had spoken on his own initiative.

"Nonsense."

"Oh..."

So, Sin Annihilation grabbed her two cute little earlobes with both hands and then—lifted them upwards.

His movements were almost like those of a comedian.

"... What are you doing? You've even learned to act silly while you're sleeping?"

"Execute the order, 'listen carefully'."

"... That's just an exaggeration, meaning you should 'listen carefully'."

"Oh, I understand."

Sin Annihilation released his earlobe again, his expression remaining unchanged, completely oblivious to how funny his actions had been.

"Then, what about the mission?"

"Mission... oh right, mission! I almost forgot! Listen up, you should know about those annoying Rebel Army, right?"

Shaking his head.

"Oh right... You always automatically filter out anything related to the mission whenever you go on a mission, I almost forgot... In short, they're a bunch of idiots who dream of overthrowing the Divine Law Cult, just remember that."

"Um..."

"Here you go. As before, this satchel contains a map marking the execution location and some emergency supplies. Your mission this time is: to completely eliminate the highest levels of the Rebel Army, avoiding everyone's notice! Don't come back if you don't succeed!"

The Sin Annihilation, carrying a satchel, blinked, and after confirming the mission objective, responded in an inorganic voice.

"Understood, I'll go and carry it out."

She was about to leave--

"Wait." "Hmm?"

"I almost forgot to mention, it's still that ironclad rule—under no circumstances should you have contact with clergy members who hold the rank of bishop or higher. This must be absolutely adhered to."

"... clear."

And so, the monsters appeared.

Three messengers were sent down to the mortal realm, where they transformed into three Goddess.

They possess divinely bestowed power and govern the human world in place of the gods.

The first Goddess was named Prayer, who was the spokesperson for the gods and conveyed divine pronouncements to the world.

The second Goddess is named Tianlu, the sword of God, who sweeps away sins that are intolerable to doctrine.

The third Goddess was named Ji Ling, a servant of the gods, who comforted the spirits of the deceased in heaven.

This is how it is recorded in the Book of Creation.

But this is only what is said to outsiders.

When MacArthur, the founder of the Divine Law Cult and a peerless genius, created a certain system using the Truth Incantation, he actually designated four Goddess.

Prayer, divine laws, sacrifices to spirits, and a fourth person known to only a very few.

The hidden Goddess, the darkness of the papacy, the imprisoned monster, the bloodless and tearless crusaders— Sin Annihilation.

"Ugh!!!"

A burly man was sent flying, tracing a graceful arc as he crashed heavily into the wall, howling in pain.

"Next!"

"Look at my... look..."

"Ughhhhh!!!"

"Next!"

"Take this sword!!!"

"What an awful feeling~~~"

"Next!"

"My drill bit is groundbreaking—"

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!!!"

"Next... huh? Is no one here?"

Xiao Wu looked around and saw soldiers writhing in pain everywhere, mostly men and a few women.

"Get up, all of you! I didn't break any bones or muscles; you can easily bear this level of pain!"

Upon hearing her words, about a dozen soldiers groaned and moved closer, then pounced on her together.

Thump thump thump bang bang bang bang!!!

""""""Ughhhhhhh!!!""""""

--The next second they were both sent flying again.

"Sigh... this is completely unacceptable, at this level..."

Xiao Wu shook her head in annoyance, then glanced at the defeated soldiers scattered on the ground, but no one dared to attack again.

"Hey, you guys were the ones who asked me to help with the training, so how come you're all failing so quickly?"

"Uh... um, Xiao Wu..." Dorothy stammered weakly.

"Um?"

"I think it's not that the Revolutionary Army members are too bad, it's that you, Ms. Xiao Wu... are too strong, and your demands are too high."

Strict?

Xiao Wu blinked in surprise.

"'To find a way to kill the enemy when all four limbs are crippled'—that should be the most basic thing, right? Can't you even do that? Besides, I didn't cripple their limbs, I just dislocated them."

"... Miss Xiao Wu, what kind of training did you receive back then?"

"Tie them up securely and throw them into the monster's lair—that's the bare minimum."

"That's terrifying!"

"Is there?"

"Who exactly is your master?!"

"My mom."

"What a miserable childhood!?"

"Let's not talk about that anymore. Where are Ye and the Qipao Woman? I haven't seen them."

"His Majesty the Blood Emperor has gone to visit and comfort the soldiers, guided by Senior Brad."

"..."

Xiao Wu suddenly felt incredibly lucky to be training with a group of soldiers who were like babies to her.

She was well aware of Ye's true nature and knew that his seemingly sophisticated speeches were fabricated or copied. Her identity and various tricks did help her win the trust of the Revolutionary Army, but they also dug a hole for herself.

They dug their own hole and jumped in; there's no way to help them now.

"... But who is this 'Brad' again?"

"That's the vice-commander of the 1st Division, Nid's Direct Subordinate. Knox Brad, that tall and muscular guy who's like a giant elm stake."

"I vaguely remember her... Where did that Qipao Woman go?"

"Uh, well..."

"What's wrong?"

"She is in charge of... torturing the Saintess."

When she awoke, Torres Saintess was completely shocked.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that she found herself completely naked instantly jolted her drowsy mind awake.

From childhood to adulthood, she had never allowed anyone other than her mother and maids to see her naked body, not even her father or brother.

What made her wish she could disappear into a crack in the ground was that she was currently bound by many rough ropes, restrained about a meter off the ground. The way the ropes were tied was strange; logically, if they didn't want her to escape, they would only need to tie her hands and feet, but these ropes were also tied to her thighs and torso, slightly digging into her flesh, clearly squeezing out her breasts and buttocks, which was quite provocative.

Looking around, he saw a dimly lit stone house, cold and damp, a stark contrast to his usual warm and cozy room. Why was he in this prison-like place?

By the Highest God, what on earth has happened?!

Oh, right...

If I think about it carefully, I can still remember it.

That day, feeling uneasy, she went to chat with the Archbishop. They drank tea together, and then suddenly—

"A pretty girl with light brown hair..."

Yes, I remember now! That light brown-haired girl, despite her pretty face, was actually the worst enemy! She attacked me and the Archbishop but failed, and then reinforcements arrived...

"Reinforcements..."

I remember she was an incredibly beautiful girl with long, straight black hair, wearing a cheongsam. She completely destroyed the church's ceiling, and after that, I can't remember anything else...

A wave of despair washed over her, leaving her feeling utterly exhausted. If she wasn't mistaken, she was now imprisoned in the Rebel Army's headquarters! What was she to do...? They were said to be a group of ferocious thugs, like a raging flood, causing unrest across the continent, bullying men and women, committing atrocities, and indiscriminately killing innocent people.

And since she was Saintess of the Holy See, if she fell into their hands—

She shuddered. Although she had lived a life completely isolated from the filth of the outside world since childhood, she still knew a little about basic matters between men and women. If, if those Rebel Army had any improper intentions and wanted to defile her pure body...

"Oh dear? Are you awake, Saintess? Did you sleep well?"

A sound suddenly rang out in the darkness.

It sounds somewhat familiar.

The sound of shoes clicking on the stone bricks grew louder as they approached, and a beautiful girl with long black hair, so beautiful that even she felt a little ashamed of her own appearance, emerged from the darkness.

Her smile was sweet and gentle, very charming, yet the Saintess instinctively felt a terrible sense of crisis, like a frog being watched by a snake.

Who... who are you?

"Someone who wants to be your good friend."

She chuckled softly.

"Saintess is Saintess after all; she is protected by many layers of protection. Even in your defenseless slumber, your Mind Reading ability is useless against you."

So--

Haoyue was also pulling a box, which made a jingling sound as she dragged it.

"I'll use traditional interrogation methods to extract information from you."