Under the one-sided onslaught.
Though Bishop Terry still had enough strength to put up a fight, he had no desire to keep fighting in vain. He desperately rushed toward the window.
Get out! He had to escape and call for backup!
But...
A powerful magical barrier blocked his way.
Cecilia sneered. A flurry of smaller Shadow Bolts shot out, piercing Terry's palms and feet and pinning him firmly to the wooden floor.
Bishop Terry let out a pig-like squeal.
As he watched her approach without a trace of emotion, cold sweat covered his forehead, and his expression grew increasingly desperate...
But then Ansu suddenly called for Cecilia to stop.
"Wait!"
From where he stood, he could see what was happening outside the door. He realized the time had come.
Cecilia immediately understood what he meant, and the black Shadow Bolts vanished.
Ansu strolled over to Terry and stopped in front of him. "Bishop Terry, well... it's not as if we absolutely have to kill you."
Bishop Terry was startled, and hurriedly waited for Ansu to continue.
"We work for Bishop Samantha. We came here to stop the plot against her, but that's only one reason. The other is..."
Ansu glanced discreetly at Cecilia. She had evidently noticed what was happening outside, too, and quietly dispelled the spell that had muffled the room.
"We want to expose the traitors within the Order. Elder Simon isn't the only one. There are clearly plenty of other traitors on the Council of Elders. As long as they remain, they'll threaten Bishop Samantha."
"You mean..." Terry's eyes widened. His despair suddenly gave way to hope.
"Right, right! Catching the traitors is what matters most!" He clutched his chest, coughing up blood as he begged in agony:
"There's no need for our cooperation to end! All I want is to earn credit! Whether we deal with Samantha or catch other senior members of the Echo of Truth, either one would be a great achievement!"
With hope within reach, Bishop Terry no longer cared about his dignity. Staying alive was what mattered most!
"How about this?" he hurriedly suggested. "I'll help you catch the Order's traitors, and you let me go. Deal?"
"That depends on how sincere you are," Ansu replied with a smile. "If you can't give me a list I'm satisfied with, I won't be able to explain myself when I get back."
"Let me think, let me think..." Terry immediately racked his brain. "Darren and John. Those two were the cultists I met with before... I mean, the Echo of Truth members!"
"That's not enough..." Ansu shook his head, looking troubled. "They're just low-level operatives. I need the names of the traitors on the Council of Elders."
"But..." Terry begged, "I only know those few names. After my first meeting with Elder Simon, those two were the only ones who contacted me... Isn't that enough? If I really knew the Echo of Truth that well, would I have risked ruining my reputation by conspiring with traitors among you to lure Samantha into a trap and kill her?"
"So you knew you were risking your reputation?" Ansu sneered. "I thought you were completely oblivious!"
"You're a high-ranking bishop of the Church of Holy Light, yet you've gone this far for power. Do you have any idea how many innocents at the Royal Academy would have died if your plan had succeeded? How many families would have been left grieving?"
Ansu stepped forward and planted his foot firmly on Terry's palm.
Bishop Terry screamed again. His whole body trembled with pain as blood poured from his palm.
Ansu looked at him and still didn't feel satisfied. He pressed down harder, twisting his foot a couple of times.
"Enough, enough! Stop, ahhh...!"
Bishop Terry was nearly out of his mind.
One moment, this kid wanted to cooperate; the next, he was putting on this high-minded act. What the hell did he want?
"If the Church is full of people like you, then maybe it has no reason to exist." Ansu kicked him in the face, sending him sprawling. Several of Terry's teeth flew out. "You're a disgrace to the name of Holy Light!"
"Damn it!" Bishop Terry felt as if he'd gone from heaven straight back to hell. He cursed like a madman:
"You worthless cultists! What gives you the right to lecture me? As long as I achieve my goal, what does it matter if a few more people die? As long as I remain a bishop, I represent the name of Holy Light!"
As Bishop Terry cursed, an old voice suddenly came from outside the door.
"He's right. You're a disgrace to the name of Holy Light."
Bishop Terry froze. That voice...
The door slowly swung open, revealing Bishop Paul standing outside.
He gazed at Terry, who was covered in blood, with disappointment. "Terry, we've worked together for more than twenty years. I never thought you'd become this kind of person. Has the fervent, devout ascetic you once were truly died?"
"Paul?" Bishop Terry's eyes widened. "You... What are you doing here? Don't tell me..."
As if he'd suddenly realized the truth, his furious face twisted with rage. "So it was you! You set me up! I knew it... How could the plan have gone wrong? You old bastard deliberately lured me here!"
Terry's face grew paler from blood loss, and his voice grew weaker.
But his fury still drove him to roar in resentment.
"Paul! At a time like this... why the hell are you still pretending? Drop that saintly, compassionate act! You must be thrilled, aren't you? You finally got rid of a rival!"
Paul looked at Terry and sighed helplessly.
"You're beyond saving..."
Ansu heard a carriage outside the inn. A large group was approaching, presumably the people Paul had brought with him.
At the same time, hurried footsteps sounded on the stairs.
Freya pushed the door open. Her pale golden eyes were full of worry. "Ansu! Are you all right?"
Seeing the anxious Saintess, Ansu smiled and shook his head. "I'm fine. It's over."
Freya stared at Bishop Terry, who was sprawled in a pool of blood and ranting. She gasped and hurried to Ansu's side.
"So... the bad guy in the Church really was Bishop Terry? Ansu, how did you take him down?"
Freya had known that Ansu sent her to fetch Bishop Paul because he needed backup, so she'd hurried all the way there, afraid of wasting time...
But by the time she'd brought everyone back, it was already over?
Ansu was incredible!
Admiration welled up inside her. Freya gazed excitedly at Ansu's calm expression, thinking, No wonder he's the one destined to change the world in the oracle! This is exactly what the Chosen One I've always imagined should be like!
But Cecilia noticed Freya's expression, too.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, a trace of barely perceptible gloom flashing through them.
"Um... that's a long story..." Ansu searched for a new lie, then glanced subconsciously at the Witch nearby, only to find her staring right back at him.
Cecilia's expression changed in an instant. In the Saintess's very same tone, she walked over with an enigmatic smile. "Ansu~ You two sound awfully close!"
"Won't you introduce me to this pretty girl?"
The moment Ansu saw that expression, he started sweating bullets...
Oh, crap!
He'd been so focused on setting Terry up that he'd nearly forgotten: the possessive Scum Witch hated seeing him spend time with Freya.
"Um, this is the Saintess of the Church," Ansu replied with an awkward laugh, answering Cecilia's deliberately obvious question.
"Ansu..." Freya blinked curiously and leaned close to his ear to whisper, "Who is this lady? Is she someone you asked to help?"
"She..." Ansu stole a glance at Cecilia. "She's my boss."
"Your boss?" Freya was even more confused. "Is she from the company where you work part-time? What's your boss doing here?"
Cecilia smiled as she watched the young man and woman standing almost cheek to cheek.
Though she was smiling, her voice was ominously cold.
"So you do remember I'm your boss?"
"Uh..."
"Come here!"
Under Freya's astonished gaze, Ansu obediently walked back to Cecilia's side.
Only then did Cecilia give a satisfied snort.
Before you continue