Atop the tower, the two faced each other calmly, silent for a long time.
Just as the man in black was about to speak, Isabella before him coldly questioned, “Why are you helping us? Is it for the Church, Lin Yue, or… Valiana?”
Seeing Isabella’s frosty gaze fixed upon him, a sharp pain surged within the man in black.
She was the family he cherished most—how could he bear to raise a blade against her…
“Not willing to say…”
Magic began to overflow from Isabella’s eyes.
Though she looked fierce, she hesitated to unleash it.
Just as the two were about to make a move against each other, a shout suddenly echoed from below the tower: “Hey! You two! Avilena forbids private duels! Get down here!”
A high-ranking mage.
In an instant, both halted their magic and exchanged glances.
Suddenly, the man in black leaned back, leaping from the bell tower in a pose resembling a leap of faith.
Isabella’s pupils widened sharply.
She hurried forward a few steps, only to find he had already disappeared.
“……”
She glimpsed the man in black catching himself with vines and wind magic, vanishing into the shadows of Avilena’s streets.
Without absolute confidence in his magical control and power, no mage would dare jump from such a height.
“I’ll tell you… At least, once everything is over.”
The man in black muttered to himself, as if hiding another secret.
Isabella looked anxiously in the direction the man had vanished, sighing, “The handwriting on the note, and that plant-type binding magic… if you told me it was someone else, I’d never believe it…”
“Sister…”
…
Several days passed, and daily life in Avilena remained as calm as ever.
The professors lectured as usual, the protagonist’s group thrived, Airella had recovered, and the Valiana sisters sat at the very front.
Strangely, the sisters ignored each other with rare tacit understanding, hardly speaking recently.
Overall, it was as if nothing had happened.
After the Saintess left, all was as before.
Lin Yue had been rather busy these days—not only analyzing intel, but also looking for a chance to return what he’d borrowed.
He had sought out Mapel to return the token she’d lent him, but she was nowhere to be found.
That token had much more than “a little” to do with the Kris Chamber of Commerce.
When he found her, he’d have to get to the bottom of it.
Perhaps by accident, he’d stumbled on a solution to the problems of Act Three and Four.
“Class dismissed.”
The professor tidied up his notes on the desk, sweeping a glance over the students below.
They were as outstanding and spirited as always, with rare exceptions.
Looking at Lin Yue and Airella by the window, he keenly sensed a change in their demeanor.
It was something unique to the young, an aura shift that was easy to spot.
With the recent flurry of meetings and the shortage of top combatants, he couldn’t help but feel that Avilena truly was on the brink of change.
Airella hadn’t come to the camp for meals these past few days.
Instead, Liya had been eating out of spite, stuffing herself round as a ball and returning the next day for more.
He’d almost fed back all the money he had, making Lin Yue seriously suspect her stomach might contain a spatial law grinder—no matter how much she ate, she just ground it away.
Just as Lin Yue wondered if he should give Airella some more psychological support, Airella suddenly stood up beside him, silently packing her things to leave.
“Are you coming for dinner tonight?”
Lin Yue glanced out the window, asking with casual concern.
“Mm… I’m busy these days. I’ll go another time… I feel bad mooching food every day…”
Since when were you ever this self-aware?
Lin Yue grumbled inwardly.
He still worried Airella might collapse, losing even the will to activate the forbidden magical beast.
That would be troublesome.
Until he found another way back, keeping the main storyline intact remained his greatest insurance.
It seemed she was also planning something now.
“Charles, let’s go.”
Just as Lin Yue was thinking about whether he could run into Mapel again, Airella, who’d just said she was busy, suddenly walked over to Charles and spoke.
“?”
What’s that supposed to mean?
Charles seemed to understand, standing up slowly and saying, “Excuse me.”
With that, the two left the classroom one after the other.
How did the final boss of Act One and a minor antagonist suddenly connect?
In the original work, the two barely interacted.
He couldn’t imagine why they’d suddenly team up.
A faint, irksome feeling surfaced in Lin Yue’s heart, but he quickly suppressed it, unwilling to let such trifles ruin his mood.
Better prepare for the coming plot twist.
And maybe… figure out a way to make some money.
…
Liya walked out of the council hall with a grim face.
Avilena had received a secret letter from the Church—the merchant caravan had been attacked by unknown individuals, and, most crucially, the “cargo” was damaged.
Though it wasn’t completely destroyed, the vines’ shaking had sapped its vitality and caused many cracks in its shell.
Liya rushed to the scene at once.
Though it was well-hidden, she could feel that the space nearby had been forcibly torn open.
“Lin Yue…”
…
The chimes atop the cathedral’s dome had just faded, their echoes swirling through the empty sanctuary, carrying a biting chill.
A knight knelt on one knee, the fire of vengeance nearly overflowing from his eyes.
He’d only been healed by holy magic yesterday, but his face and limbs still bore irreversible scars.
Even his eyeball had been scorched by Lin Yue—beyond salvation.
The priest sitting on the steps was his immediate superior.
The priest stared at him coldly, not a trace of concern in his eyes—only undisguised contempt.
He snorted, voice like poisoned ice: “Lord Modikai has given you a chance to redeem yourself, yet you shirked your duties and let them all escape—a disgrace to the Church!”
The knight jerked his head up, bloodshot eyes locked on the priest.
“I… it was all because that heretic’s magic was too bizarre! Give me one more chance, I swear I can catch them!”
“Chance?”
The priest sneered.
Two knights behind him stepped forward and grabbed the knight’s arms.
“What are you doing? Let me go!”
“You can’t even complete the most basic task, and you still dream of earning Lord Modikai’s favor? I must’ve been blind to pick a failure who couldn’t even protect his own right eye as vanguard!”
“You call me a failure?!”
The knight struggled, trying to resist, but the priest raised his hand and struck him in the chest with a beam of holy light. Instantly, he vomited blood and his strength was drained away.
“You let a few low-ranked mages escape in the heart of the Church’s domain, even let them rescue the witch? Keeping you is just wasting the Church’s resources. Just wait—once you’re back at headquarters, you’ll learn what real pain is.”
He’d been arrogant even before believing in the gods, earning the resentment of many he’d once suppressed.
Now, gravely wounded and weakened, retribution was inevitable.
Seeing those who once were beneath you stepping on your head—that is a pain greater than any torture.
These words stabbed into his already tattered dignity like countless needles.
He remembered once being a knight held in high esteem by the Church, remembered the awed gazes of others, remembered being only a step away from Holy Knight Commander…
But all of it had been destroyed by Lin Yue!
Destroyed by that wretch who ruined his right eye, ruined his plans, made him a laughingstock!
Writhing on the floor in pain, he suddenly felt a gentle divine power healing him again.
He opened his eyes to find the once-cold priest and knights kneeling with utmost respect.
He turned and saw Modikai in white robes, strolling leisurely into the cathedral.
Casting him a glance, Modikai casually brushed his finger across the altar and said to him, “Sir Keller, I hope you are well.”
Keller immediately fell to his knees in terror, cold sweat pouring down.
“Lord Modikai… I failed in my duties…”
“Stand up.”
Modikai signaled for the priest and the two knights to leave; he wanted to speak privately with Sir Keller.
The priest nodded, leading his men out and shutting the door behind them.
Clack.
The cathedral instantly grew silent, leaving only Modikai and the knight.
“I’m already aware of the details. The witch is a core student of Avilena. Now that she’s been exposed, neither side wants further negotiations.”
Modikai spoke first.
Though he regretted missing this opportunity, they were about to set things in motion in Avilena, paving the way for the god’s descent.
“It’s all my fault! All my…”
“No need to blame yourself. Everything is destined by fate.”
Hearing that Modikai didn’t blame him, the knight sighed with relief and echoed, “Are we just supposed to swallow this? These heretics!”
Sir Keller slammed his fist onto the floor.
The pain still seared through his body.
Since returning from Hawk Territory, he had lost face for failing to capture the magical beast witch.
Even his superiors now looked at him with disappointment.
“Steadiness is a virtue, Sir Keller.”
Modikai gazed up at the statue, his eyes narrowing.
“Besides, you still have a chance to set things right.”
Upon hearing this, the knight’s eyes widened.
Like a servant, he knelt and said, “If you let me destroy Hawk and that witch, I’ll do anything!”
Modikai didn’t answer immediately, but continued in his own time: “Avilena, the alma mater of the continent’s top mages, gathering the best magical talent from across the land. When the Demiurge descends, it will be the power that guards this corner of the world…”
“And the Kris Chamber of Commerce, the nexus of continental trade, the empire’s right hand. Seems everything’s about to upset the delicate balance… But…”
Modikai glanced at the letter from Avilena, tore it up at once, and said, “The gods don’t care.”
Hands behind his back, he walked behind the knight and continued, “I’ve already set things in motion in Avilena. With inside and outside working together, using [Divine Domain], I will surely achieve my aims…”
Whether the orders came from the Church or from himself, both objectives could be accomplished at once this time.
Only, he still needed someone to serve as a suicide pawn, to stall any unpredictable elements.
“I’ve lingered at the peak of Fifth Rank for years, the only bishop yet to touch the Sixth. If I can obtain the [Gospel] through this incident, I can advance further.”
A strange smile spread across Modikai’s face as he placed a hand on the knight’s shoulder.
“This matter is crucial—can I entrust it to you?”
Sir Keller shuddered violently.
He knew Modikai wanted to use divine magic to make him into a puppet, serving his will alone.
Becoming a puppet was the last thing he wanted.
But worse was Lin Yue’s expression—the look of death itself.
Not even a full Second Rank, yet he suppressed Keller, a Second Rank pinnacle believer, like an ant—shattering his will.
With that black hair, he was the heretic of heretics, the villain among villains.
If he couldn’t kill him in this life, Keller would never advance again.
“I… accept!”
He gritted his teeth.
As long as he could kill Lin Yue before being forced into that fate, it would not matter.
He had to gamble—gamble that he could take his revenge!
Modikai sneered coldly.
He hadn’t expected this man to be pushed so far.
“Come. I’m not quite a Sixth Rank Divine Envoy, but my ‘Descent’ will be more than enough for you to eliminate those two.”
“The magical beast witch is yours to deal with. But Lin Yue Hawk… I need him as leverage.”
“He’s the Hawk family’s first heir. If he dies, those unbelievers won’t sit still. Even a mad dog is troublesome if it bites at random. Use him, then do as you please…”
“You will be the Church’s vanguard—don’t let me down again. As for Liya Card, I have my own ways to buy time.”
As Avilena’s only remaining Sixth Rank Archmage, she was the sole unstable factor.
“And as for the ‘cargo’ incident—you needn’t worry about the fallout. There are plenty of scapegoats. The empire just won’t give us another chance to touch it.”
He clenched his fist and continued, “But… I’ve already found the perfect replacement. In fact, she’s more suitable for the Church’s plans than the original item…”
Not far away, Sephina hid in the shadows, clenching her fists and letting out a breath of relief.
It seemed everyone was safe.
Her real body remained kneeling in penance near the statue, not daring to risk exposure, but she could still gather information through her avatar.
Now that Modikai was moving against Avilena, all she could do was pray for the few she’d met in the Academy, hoping they would not be caught up in the chaos—especially Lin Yue and Airella…
“May the gods watch over you all…”