As time passed, Red and the other three wandered through the Sacred Heart Monastery for a long, long while.
Before long, the anticipated program was about to begin.
In the central courtyard of the Sacred Heart Monastery, an open-air stage had been set up for the day’s event, and the Open Day was steadily reaching its climax.
Red and his companions arrived on schedule and gazed at the stage in the distance, bathed in the gentle light of the Magic Lamp.
Tos couldn’t help but speak up.
“I wonder when Litt is going to appear.”
Just as Tos spoke, the lights on the stage began to shift, quickly converging on a single spot.
And at the very center of that light, stood Litt.
At this moment, the young girl had set aside her usual nun’s habit and donned a pure white ceremonial robe.
Her hair was lightly tousled by the wind, making her look like an angel descended to the mortal realm.
Just her appearance alone drew the attention of countless people.
“Ah….”
Tos sucked in a sharp breath, elbowing Red beside him, lowering his voice, his tone brimming with mischievous excitement.
“Tsk… Red, do you think if I shouted right now that this ‘angel’ shares a roof with you every day… would you make it out of this courtyard alive?”
“Shut up.”
Red’s mouth twitched as he forced the words out through clenched teeth.
He knew Tos all too well; nine times out of ten, the guy was just running his mouth.
But even knowing it was a joke, the phrase “shares a roof with you” still made a chill run down his back.
On stage, Litt couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
She glanced around the stage.
To be honest… she didn’t like this atmosphere at all.
All these flowers, the spotlights, the role of being an angel admired by all—none of it really mattered to Litt.
What she cared about more were the rats lurking in the shadows, their eyes fixed on her.
Just as Otto had said, the moment she stepped onto the stage, she was watched not only by the audience, but also by some cold, snakelike gazes.
If she was right, these people were from the Black Church.
“Mm…”
As Litt pondered, she suddenly felt a sharp pain stab through her mind.
That all-too-familiar sensation… returned once more.
The “script” unfolded vividly in her mind.
A stage collapsing with a thunderous crash, a panicked, chaotic crowd, nuns lying in pools of blood…
Damn…
This script sure came a little late, didn’t it?
If she’d seen it earlier, maybe she could have checked what went wrong to cause the collapse.
But now, there was no time.
With so many eyes on her, she could only grit her teeth and push forward.
Even so, Litt slipped a hand behind her back and took out a Communicator Crystal, sending a message to Red…
In Letia’s name.
Then, she cradled the thick Pseudo Codex in her hands and slowly flipped to the section prepared for the hymn.
She hadn’t practiced much in advance, but as a nun from the Heretic Tribunal, she had at least some musical talent.
“My Lord above…”
What Litt sang was in an unknown ecclesiastical tongue, but even this obscure, difficult language became ethereal and pure in her voice.
It was as if her song pierced through the soul, gently cleansing every heart present.
The song, entwined with the magic leaking from her, spiraled above the courtyard, echoing throughout.
The very air seemed to become thick and sanctified.
Motes of light drifted down as the audience held their breath, fully immersed in the deep serenity and sacredness that reached into their hearts.
Even Litt herself was astonished by the unexpected effect.
Between verses, she felt a distinct sense of surprise and disbelief.
This effect… was just too good.
She was well aware of her own ability—her voice was passable, but her technique was nothing special.
In truth, she was a slacker at heart, so it shouldn’t have sounded this good… in fact, it was almost as if someone else was singing.
Seeing the Magic Halo spiraling above and hearing the echo resound, Litt glanced down at the Pseudo Codex in her hands.
This thing… there’s no way it has amplification abilities, right?
A new possibility slowly surfaced in Litt’s mind.
Could it be that she was lip-syncing, and the real Litt was secretly singing for her from the shadows?
***
While Litt was on stage, Red suddenly received a message below.
“Beep beep beep!”
He pulled the Communicator Crystal from his pocket and focused on the screen.
It was a message from Letia.
“What’s she up to now?”
Though a bit confused, Red clicked it open.
Three very brief sentences.
“You’re watching Litt’s performance, aren’t you?”
“Seems like someone’s planning to harm her.”
“As a Battle Priest from the Tribunal, just a heads-up… keep an eye on the stage.”
After reading these three short lines, Red’s pupils shrank.
He immediately looked up at the sky above the courtyard:
The Chanting Troupe’s performance was essentially a legal showcase, but… the flow of magic leaking from above didn’t look right.
As a Creation Mage, Red was very sensitive to the flow of magic.
Even though the changes overhead were subtle, he noticed them instantly.
It was as if someone was secretly collecting all this magic.
What were they planning?
With Letia’s hint, Red’s mind raced at full speed.
The other three beside him noticed his expression had changed and asked,
“What’s wrong?”
“No time to explain,” Red stood up and told them, “Keep an eye on the crowd for me. Something might happen soon.”
With that, Red quickly dashed toward the back of the stage.
The other three still didn’t understand what was happening, but they nodded, preparing to find good vantage points to watch the movement of the crowd.
“Excuse me, sir, is there something wrong?”
“No, nothing, I’m just resting by the wall.”
Although blocked by a nun from the White Church, Red didn’t lose heart.
Meanwhile, four or five Blood-Hunting Spiders managed to slip through the gaps into the interior of the stage.
Just as he thought, a significant portion of the magic leaking from the Chanting Troupe’s performance was being drawn to somewhere below the stage.
Using the images relayed from the Blood-Hunting Spiders, Red searched around the supports beneath the stage.
At last, he found where all the magic converged.
A Crimson Magic Circle.
It was nearly saturated, had stopped absorbing, and was now… overflowing.
“Damn!”
BOOM—!!!
A deafening explosion and tremor cut off the Divine Song.
The crowd realized the source of the blast was not above the stage, but right beneath it!
As if something deep underground had triggered a massive burst of energy!
The main support structure holding up the stage was destroyed in an instant.
Magic Turbulence visible to the naked eye sliced through the sturdy timber and heavy stones.
With a thunderous crash, the entire stage collapsed, a cloud of dust mingling with shattered wood and stone billowing skyward!
“Ah—!!”
“It’s collapsing! The stage is collapsing!”
“Run!!”
Shrieks of terror instantly replaced the earlier peace and reverence!
The crowd scattered in panic like a kicked hornet’s nest, shoving and fleeing in chaos!
Red didn’t have time to think; he rushed into the swirling dust.
Right now, it didn’t matter what the culprit lurking behind the scenes wanted—saving people was the first priority!
After a moment of confusion and panic, the clergy of the White Church sprang into action.
“Rescue the injured!”
“Protect Sister Litt!”
“Evacuate the crowd! Hurry!”
But they were still a step too slow.
Braving the dust and debris, Red, with the help of his Blood-Hunting Spiders, quickly found Litt’s location.
The girl had already fainted, one hand resting unconsciously against her face, her forehead red, as if she’d struck it or been hit by something.
Red hurriedly checked her condition.
Aside from the bump on her forehead, she was otherwise unharmed.
After checking Litt, Red looked around.
The explosion had been mostly suppressed by him, so there were no casualties—a surprising outcome.
The members of the Chanting Troupe seemed to have been caught and gently set down by something.
In the air lingered a familiar magical aura.
Red also noticed that in the center of the ruins was a deep indentation, about the size of a fist.
As if something had been driven into the floor.
Red remembered the message he’d received.
Could it be that Letia had been here?
The indentation was clearly left by a cross being driven into the ground, and as for why no one was injured, it was obvious:
Letia used Chain Manipulation to catch everyone as they fell and set them down safely.
As for why everyone was unconscious…
Well… maybe she used Memory Erasure to knock them out?
After all, she was from the Holy Church, and her relationship with the White Church was complicated.
Appearing privately at such a major event would cause quite a stir if word got out.
To avoid unnecessary trouble and gossip, making the witnesses “forget” this episode was the simplest and most efficient solution for Letia.
And knowing her style, she’d absolutely do something like this—without even batting an eye.
“Don’t move! Seal off the area!”
A voice filled with anger and authority suddenly boomed, interrupting Red’s thoughts.
Turning around, he saw an old man in high-ranking priestly robes, face stern and severe, standing before him.
Surrounded by religious knights, the old man fixed Red with a cold, penetrating gaze as a nun beside him whispered something.
Though it was a bit far, Red still caught the gist.
The person closest to the stage—the greatest suspect—was none other than himself.
As expected, after a brief silence, the Father spoke in a chilling tone.
“Was this your doing?”
Lip syncing.