342 The Madly Dark Pain of Three Bishops' Bond

Ikatinos, Empress of the Empire, and currently the strongest ruler of the Empire.

She not only possesses formidable strength at the ninth level, but her strategic acumen and cunning are also unmatched.

She will stop at nothing to achieve her goals.

Although she often found herself trying to maintain a degree of kindness that seemed out of character, she didn't know why.

But when faced with an enemy who will stop her no matter what, she will become ruthless and indiscriminate in her violence and consequences.

However, few people can imagine what this cold-blooded silver-haired empress's childhood was like.

Or perhaps no one in the Empire would believe that she was once a little girl who would cry all afternoon because she wet the bed.

But Mie, who grew up with Ikatinos, knew.

"If I hadn't taken you to the temple of the Sun God Church that day, would everything be different now...?"

Mie put down the picture frame and murmured.

Mie had always been resentful of Ikatinos's change.

Whenever Mie felt distressed by the war raging between the Salon Empire and the various kingdoms, she couldn't help but recall the day that changed her and Ikatinos's fate.

It was an afternoon when the sky was gradually darkening.

Seven-year-old Ikatinos wet the bed after having a nightmare and, fearing being laughed at by her family, secretly ran away from home.

But with nowhere else to go, she could only turn to Mie, a classmate who lived not far from her own house.

Compared to Ikatinos, who always did things in a conventional way, Mie could be called a genius. He could easily be the best among his peers in everything, so Ikatinos naturally became dependent on Mie.

However, Mie didn't actually have much affection for Ikatinos, this cowardly, timid, and useless noblewoman.

She distrusted this nobleman from the bottom of her heart.

She knew that once the aristocracy grew up in that decadent environment, it would be difficult for her to maintain such an innocent and naive appearance.

However, Mie, who was mature beyond his years, knew that in order not to cause trouble for his parents, he should get along well with this noble lady, even if he was unwilling.

Mie spent the entire afternoon comforting Ikatinos eyes were almost swollen from crying, but still couldn't persuade her to go home.

Finally, Mie, who was almost at his breaking point, started lying:

"Ikatinos, perhaps this is a trial given to you by the Goddess, a test of whether you can overcome the most difficult nightmare. Why don't we go to the temple and pray to the Goddess, asking for a protective amulet? Perhaps tonight you will receive her protection and turn this nightmare into a sweet dream!"

Mie had no other choice but to deceive Ikatinos in this way.

"Really?"

Who knew Ikatinos would believe it?

So they followed Mie toward the ancient temple in the capital.

The temple is ancient and simple, yet it is like a work of art.

Since it was late, there were hardly any people left.

The young priest left behind was Mie had never seen before, and he looked drunk, with a wine bottle casually placed beside him.

"Priest, are you sure this is alright...?"

Mie called out to the seemingly unconscious young priest with some suspicion.

"Hmm...? Two little ones?"

Startled awake, the drunken priest fell into a deep sleep once more.

"Priest, could you sell us two amulets before we go to sleep...?"

Ikatinos mustered her courage and spoke softly.

She clearly believed Mie's words.

"Amulets? It seems they're all sold out..."

The young priest let out another hiccup and stammered,

"But I can also make them for you on the spot. Look, I'll make you two..."

The priest looked around, then strolled over to the Goddess. He knocked a gem off the back of the book Goddess was holding, broke it in half, and then took some tools from the pulpit. It took him more than ten minutes to make two amulets, and he didn't seem very skilled at it.

"Here, pay up."

The priest stumbled back to the two little girls, handed them the amulet, and stretched out his other hand to ask for money.

"You actually dare to make money like this...?"

Mie said with an incredulous look on his face.

She dared not accept the amulet from Ikatinos, fearing divine retribution.

"No problem... The teachings of the Sun God Church are inherently unconventional and make the most of everything. Besides, have you two heard the legend of the Reincarnation Gem?"

The priest spoke, swaying unsteadily.

"What?"

Mie asked, frowning.

She was clearly filled with curiosity about these things she didn't know.

"The Reincarnation Gem, also known as the Sigh of the Goddess of Reincarnation and Fate, may just be an ordinary gem, found in amulets obtained through sincere prayer in the Sun God Church. However, if someone with the right affinity holds it in their hand, it will become the Reincarnation Gem, perhaps even giving them a vivid dream. Therefore, it doesn't matter which gem our amulet uses; as long as you are destined, it will manifest its power."

The young, drunken priest offered a rambling explanation.

"Don't try to fool me. My father is a scholar, and my mother is a priest..."

"Don't worry... If anything goes wrong, I'll take the blame for you, even if it's divine retribution..."

"Real?"

Before Mie could question the priest further, Ikatinos, standing nearby, asked in her soft voice, with a hint of doubt.

She seemed quite intrigued by the legend the priest was telling.

"I swear to the Goddess..."

"That's what the drunken priest said."

Ikatinos glanced at Mie, Mie hesitated for a moment before nodding.

Mie didn't want to be tormented by Ikatinos for another day.

Let this drunken priest make some ill-gotten gains.

I'll ask my parents again if they'll be punished by heaven.

If there really is a problem, just throw these two amulets back into the donation box.

Mie thought to himself.

As a result, Ikatinos still refused to go home and followed Mie back home again.

Mie was on the verge of tears; she was truly exhausted.

However, her father was away traveling and studying for many years, and her mother was away carrying out missions for the Sun God Church, so there was no one else at home to take care of her.

So the two of them leaned against the sofa and fell asleep.

They both had a very long dream.

From that night on, their personalities changed.

Later, Mie learned about it from his father's ancient books.

Legend has it that after touching the Reincarnation Gem, one will recall some of the most memorable fragments from a past life or even earlier.

In most cases, it is only when certain emotions such as fear, anger, hatred, suffering, sorrow, and doubt reach their extremes that they leave an unforgettable memory.

Although it is a legend whose veracity cannot be verified, Mie, who experienced it firsthand, was absolutely convinced of its authenticity.

She also felt it was hard to say whether this was a blessing from the Goddess of Reincarnation or a trial before being given a great responsibility.

In that unforgettable dream, Mie was born in a cruel era. She deeply hated the devil but was powerless to resist. She was even captured and imprisoned in a hopeless and Terror prison.

Ironically, she was eventually rescued by a gray-haired, golden-eyed demon.

For some reason, when Mie woke up, he felt an overwhelming sense of guilt that he couldn't express.

The only thing that kept echoing in her ears was that sentence: "Even though there is a risk of betrayal, if neither side changes, the relationship will never improve. Even if you might be betrayed, you must still believe. Over time, you will make true friends."

Years later, when Mie saw the Shadow World record of Dekan's passage through the Demon Realm Prison at the Havenlit Academy in the Norton Kingdom, she finally believed the truth behind her dream...

Mie also remembered what Ikatinos looked like when she woke up.

She clutched her head in terror, tears of anger streaming down her face.

He gritted his teeth and muttered the ambiguous word, "Chaos God... Chaos God..."

It's like being afraid of forgetting something.

From that moment on, Ikatinos's personality completely changed.

Ikatinos, who initially seemed to have no particular talent, became incredibly diligent and earnest.

She quickly revealed her true talent, like an infinite container with a funnel, and began to evolve at Terror rate.

Later, Ikatinos's ambition seemed to grow infinitely, and she even became the strongest in the Salon Empire, using every means at her disposal to finally seize the imperial power!

But even Mie didn't expect that Ikatinos's ambitions were far from over.

After gaining complete control of the Salon Empire, she began years of preparation for her plans within the Kingdom Association and the Resurrection Church.

It seems that to achieve her ultimate goal, she must unify the world.

No matter how much Mie inquired over the years, Ikatinos refused to tell Mie what she saw in the cycle of dreams.

"Dekan, what exactly happened in your fifth Shadow World...?"

Mie leaned back in his chair, looking exhausted, and muttered to himself.

After witnessing Dekan's four Shadow World, Mie, despite having learned much about the stories of the Holy Kingdom and the Demon Realm, and being convinced that she was the reincarnation of the Saintess of Darkness Milia, had...

But Mie still couldn't recall or deduce who Ikatinos was in her previous life.

It has never appeared in Dekan's first four Shadow World.

In her hazy memories, Mie was fairly certain that when she was the Saintess of Darkness Milia, she would have crossed paths with Ikatinos's past life in a timeline long, long after the Demon Realm Prison.

Presumably, Ikatinos's dreams also converged there.

But that memory, close to the moment of waking, was too hazy.

"Dekan, have you seen Ikatinos's past life? Is the Icardines you see innocent and naive, or cold and ruthless...?"

Mie believed there must be a story she didn't know that truly led to Ikatinos's transformation.

"No matter what, we can only ask you to stop her now..."

Mie sighed.

After being placed under house arrest, she would occasionally become melancholic and sentimental.

Just as Mie was feeling melancholy.

"Boom!!!"

Suddenly, she heard a loud bang outside the tower!!

Mie rushed to the window and looked out; smoke was rising from the direction from which the loud noise came!

Mie frowned. Although she could usually pinpoint the direction of the sudden change from the sound, she wasn't sure until she saw Mia clearly.

That's the direction of the Salon Empire's palace!!

"Is it Dekan?"

Mie was first puzzled,

"Wrong!!"

Mie quickly realized that it wasn't Dekan who had done it!

Since her clock showed no signs of turning again, it was clear that Dekan hadn't used a portal to teleport to the palace a second time to launch a surprise attack!

Instead, someone took advantage of the fact that the First Army Corps Commander had gone to the front lines, leaving the capital without a crucial ninth-tier expert, to attack the Imperial Palace!

Although Pritzker, the abyss mage of the Empire, is not as good at overall exploration as Sion, the Astrologer of the Kingdom Association, Pritzker's ability to directly investigate and see through disguises within a smaller area is far superior to Sion's.

If Pritzker were still within the Empire, no madman would dare to invade the capital!

In an instant, Mie arrived using his detection magic.

Beneath the bustling capital, Terror undercurrent has already begun to stir.

Their original whereabouts seemed to have been concealed by some unknown means, only becoming fully apparent when they made their move.

Outside the palace castle, a large number of figures dressed in black robes were still silently approaching.

As if protected by darkness, they swiftly stormed into the palace!

The exact location of the earth-shattering explosion was the palace where the Empress usually resided!

The Terror Magic Power fluctuations that emanated from time to time filled Mie with dread.

Who dared to challenge the Empress to a life-or-death duel?

Logically speaking, Mie wouldn't be worried about Ikatinos losing in a one-on-one duel.

But at this moment, a sense of foreboding fear welled up in Mie's heart.

Mie was all too familiar with the strange Magic Power fluctuations emanating from the attackers!

"Ikatinos!"

Mie had no time to think about anything else; she leaped out of the window and rushed towards the palace...

Meanwhile, on the other side...

The Wilderness Temple in the northern part of the Empire.

In the dim and chilly chamber, corpses littered the floor, and blood stained the black temple tiles. The most powerful priest was still desperately protecting the half-dragon girl.

The half-dragon girl trembled, looking extremely pitiful.

The seemingly harmless red-haired half-dragon girl was actually inwardly sneering.

"I'll make good use of these foolish Calamity cultists."

Although Dekan couldn't understand for a moment why this large and powerful group of Calamity followers, apart from the seventh-level leader, had such Calamity Cult fighting ability among the other believers, they were all like misfits.

However, given a good opportunity to launch a sneak attack, Dekan could easily defeat the Imperial Army by commanding this group of Calamity Cult!

Dekan had also considered whether he should continue pretending to be a hostage and infiltrate the Imperial Army.

However, infiltrating the Imperial Army's forces obviously caused a lot of trouble.

Even if this female officer seems to be quite upright, he will definitely be suspected, questioned, and investigated for a long time.

More importantly, infiltrating the Imperial Army would restrict freedom and waste a lot of time.

It's better to have a group of fanatical believers who are willing to risk their lives for you.

However, just as Dekan was about to take action to eliminate the enemy's strongest combat force, the eighth-tier female officer...

Suddenly, an Imperial soldier who had been cut down on the ground silently crawled to a position very close to Dekan.

Then, as if resurrected, he pounced on Dekan and rescued Dekan from the host's side!

"I※!"

Dekan almost cursed aloud. How could some foolish Imperial soldier risk his life to rescue hostages, interrupting his perfect opportunity for a sneak attack!

Even more deadly was the soldier's extraordinary strength. While grabbing Dekan, he also perfectly locked Dekan's wrist, preventing him from recklessly using Magic Card.

Otherwise, it's very likely to be blocked by Card Disarm.

And.

You're taking advantage of me!

Just as Dekan was filled with shock and anger.

"Don't speak. If you infiltrate the Imperial Army with me, the capital might be in serious trouble."

The Imperial soldier whispered those words almost imperceptibly into Dekan's ear, then feigned serious Severe Injury and collapsed to the ground again.

Dekan was stunned for a moment.

That familiar voice...

Dekan immediately recognized the Imperial soldier, even though the man's face was perfectly disguised.

Excuseme? Mr. Cray? Whyareyouhere?

Dekan could understand Clay, a bishop-level fighter and a top intelligence agent of the Kingdom Association, would be present in any location related to the war.

For example, fighting on the front lines, infiltrating enemy camps, or preparing for a big operation in the capital, etc.

Even if we assume that Clay infiltrated the Church of Calamity to orchestrate a grand scheme, Dekan wouldn't be surprised.

But why would this guy go to some remote corner of the empire disguised as a lowly soldier to apprehend cultists?

Are you playing Terror games here again?!

******

Author's Note:

Bounty Settlement: Last month, I received 6272 monthly tickets and 1417 blades. Based on 500 monthly tickets per chapter and 300 blades per chapter, rounded up, the bounty is 13 + 5 = 18 chapters owed. The total owed chapters have now increased from 138 to 138 + 18 = 156. 71 chapters have been repaid so far. Any remaining owed chapters will be converted into free bonus chapters upon completion, allowing me to continue writing this book.

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