“Your Holiness, Buzaki has already returned to provide reinforcements.”
Luxurchi followed Muxuan as they walked toward the civilians.
After ensuring that the Church was no longer burdened by the presence of the Saintess, Luxurchi informed Muxuan of the events that had transpired at the stronghold.
Luxurchi truly had not expected the final outcome to deviate so much from his plans.
The number of suppressed anomalies had far exceeded Luxurchi’s estimates. Out of necessity, he had been forced to step in and exterminate a large portion of them before sending Buzaki back to reinforce the base.
Now that “He” had fallen into a deep slumber and the source of pollution had been purged, the tide of anomalies should finally come to a halt.
Muxuan frowned, feeling a growing headache.
No wonder such a massive amount of Faith had suddenly been credited to his account; it turned out something of this scale had happened.
“Do you know the extent of the losses?”
“I am not certain.” Luxurchi wore a bitter smile.
His attention had been almost entirely fixed on “Him,” making it impossible to keep a close eye on the stronghold.
Muxuan sighed, irritably driving the base of his scepter into the ground.
Being trapped in this place, he had been powerless to act.
If he hadn’t come here, a crisis would have eventually erupted that might have wiped out the Church entirely. Yet, by coming here, he had triggered a wave of anomalies that likely inflicted heavy casualties on the stronghold.
Neither outcome was ideal — it was simply a matter of whether the losses were great or small.
‘There truly is no way to have the best of both worlds,’ he thought. ‘Now, I’m left with another mountain of troubles.’
Looking helplessly at the civilians who had been divided into four groups, Muxuan cleared his throat and announced, “Next, I—along with the Silver Moon Knights and forty newly appointed knights—will escort the first group of believers back to the stronghold!”
As soon as Muxuan finished speaking, the forty knights immediately lined up along the outer perimeter of the crowd. They followed Sistine in an orderly fashion and came to a stop before Muxuan.
Muxuan nodded in satisfaction and continued, “To the believers in the remaining three groups, please do not worry. The Light will ultimately protect you!”
Then, Muxuan raised his scepter above his head. A magnificent surge of holy power instantly formed a luminous arc, enveloping everyone in the first group.
“Praise the Goddess!”
“Goddess be praised!”
“His Holiness’s strength is truly incredible…”
Seeing the massive protective shield of light surrounding them, the crowd erupted into exclamations of awe. At the same time, their reverence for Muxuan deepened.
In this moment, Muxuan’s image became towering in their eyes.
If the previous rewards had ignited their hope for the future without giving them a clear understanding of the Pope’s power, then this miraculous scene was now deeply etched into their minds.
“Now, begin the march!”
Following his command, the crowd hurriedly followed Muxuan forward.
“Your Holiness~ are you sure about this?~” Sistine whispered. With a glowing shield like this, they were practically a mobile target.
It was as if they were worried the anomalies wandering in the black mist wouldn’t be able to see them.
“I am certain!”
Muxuan’s tone was resolute.
Even if this would indeed attract the attention of wandering anomalies, it was the only way to keep the group stable and prevent panic.
Without this shield, even a single ordinary anomaly breaking into the ranks would cause chaos, leading to even greater casualties.
As long as the shield existed, the people could see the path ahead. Furthermore, compared to the pitch-black mist, Muxuan believed the citizens would much rather stay within a shield filled with light.
“I leave the rest to you, Sage Luxurchi.”
As the shield drifted further away, Muxuan’s voice quietly reached Luxurchi’s ears.
Luxurchi narrowed his eyes, plucked a tuft of wool from his shepherd’s staff, and turned his gaze toward the remaining civilians.
“Teacher…”
Morson sensed Luxurchi’s intention and couldn’t help but try to stop him.
He knew that his teacher’s magic had entirely dissipated, and he didn’t want him taking such a risk. More importantly, he didn’t want his teacher to play the part of the villain.
“A villain, eh… This old man has played that role more than a few times. Once more won’t hurt.”
“But…”
Stopping Morson again, Luxurchi looked at the crowd, which was already showing signs of restlessness due to Muxuan’s departure. His shepherd’s staff let out a sharp *creak*.
“Silence!”
“And who do you think you are!”
The moment Luxurchi’s voice rang out, someone shouted back in annoyance.
They had seen Morson and knew he was a Great Archmage of the Mages Association. They also knew that Muxuan’s strength was unfathomable and that he was the Pope of the Church of Light.
Both were figures they usually couldn’t even dream of meeting, so they didn’t dare provoke them.
But Luxurchi? They had never seen him before, and naturally, they didn’t take him seriously.
As for Luxurchi talking to the Pope?
Maybe he had just arrived earlier than them and managed to suck up to the Pope first. Besides, he was holding a ragged wooden stick; it wasn’t like he could be another Lord Mage, right?
In short, some people were so caught up in their past status that they acted as if they had no brains left.
“You—”
Morson stepped forward, about to say something, but Luxurchi blocked him.
Luxurchi didn’t mind cleaning up people like this. Since they didn’t know who he was, he had no reputation to worry about losing.
However, everyone knew Morson, so he absolutely could not let Morson’s reputation be tarnished.
Thinking of this, Luxurchi lightly lifted the shepherd’s staff and pressed down with one finger.
Instantly, the staff shot out like a homing arrow, flying into the crowd and precisely piercing the man’s head.
Blood sprayed, immediately sparking a panic. Luxurchi was in no rush; he simply walked over slowly.
Seeing him approach, the terrified civilians scrambled to make a path for him.
When Luxurchi reached the body, he pulled the staff from the man’s skull, wiped the blood off the wood, and looked around at the people.
Anyone met by Luxurchi’s gaze couldn’t help but lower their head and take a step back.
It was too terrifying… He had killed someone over a single sentence.
“Saizinu, Chairman of the Kamizi Merchant Guild. He sold contraband, leading to the ruin and death of several households, and secretly captured lone individuals for the slave trade.”
“He arranged for the assassination of several people and used threats and bribery to seize three women.”
“He embezzled…”
As Luxurchi listed Saizinu’s life of crimes as if he were reading a menu, several people in the crowd suddenly panicked.
They were more or less connected to Saizinu… and they had participated in those shady dealings as well…
Hearing Luxurchi’s words, many people snapped out of it and finally recognized that the dead man was indeed that scum, Saizinu.
Upon seeing Saizinu dead, several people who had been victimized by him burst into tears.
“That scum is finally dead!”
“Praise the Goddess! Let that fellow rot in hell!”
“A wolf in sheep’s clothing!” Seeing others confirm Luxurchi’s words, the crowd began to cheer.
A man like that deserved to die!
Otherwise, who knew if he would climb his way back up and continue to torment them?
With this, the crowd’s attitude toward Luxurchi shifted slightly. He didn’t seem to be the type to kill the innocent indiscriminately.
However, there were still a few people hidden in the crowd, constantly exchanging glances.
They seemed to be plotting something.
Luxurchi merely rubbed his shepherd’s staff, watching them with a cold, piercing gaze.