Chapter 29: “Traitor Halo”

Chapter 29: “Traitor Halo”

Woo!

A gale burst from Bishop Miller’s body, billowing out his deep-blue clerical robes.

Crack! Crack! Crack! The branches of the trees lining the nearby road snapped and were swept into the air.

Donna’s body lifted involuntarily. She was thrown several meters away and landed heavily on the ground, pain spreading through her entire body.

It was not only her. Cecile, Denton, Dimodo, Harris, and the others were likewise carried away by the wind, falling in different places. Only Cleeves, Teague, and Urdi, either because years of training had made their bodies sturdy and heavy, or because of excessive weight, merely staggered, toppled over, and rolled a few times.

Elland, who had been directly facing Bishop Miller, retreated and flipped backward in succession, avoiding the blast of wind pressure that struck straight toward him.

Klein and Danitz did not try to withstand it head-on. They rode the force backward, drifting like kites. Although they seemed about to crash to the ground, they ultimately preserved their balance.

The hurricane had only just shown signs of stopping when six figures emerged from the fog that had been scattered by the wind. Each wore a black cloak. Each had lost its head, leaving only a neck that gurgled with fresh blood. Only the swirling breeze held up their hoods.

Hah! Hah!

From their throats came low, beast-like growls, the sound of predators gathering strength before pouncing.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Thin and sharp wind blades shot out one after another, leaving obvious, deep cuts in the places where Klein rolled.

Thud, thud, thud!

On both sides of Bishop Miller, whose deep-blue clerical robes lifted gently as he carried a lantern, the six headless beings charged toward Klein, Elland, and the others, making the ground tremble beneath their steps.

One headless monster was already hard to deal with, and now there are six at once… plus a bishop who has obviously been corrupted! Seeing this, Blazing Danitz felt his scalp prickle.

It was at that moment that a brass-colored gleam flew past before his eyes, arcing into the distance.

Clang, clang, clang. Azik’s copper whistle fell to the ground and bounced a few times.

With a whoosh, all six headless beings simultaneously changed direction, charging toward the spot where Azik’s copper whistle had come to rest, leaving Bishop Miller standing all alone where he was.

Seizing the opportunity, Klein raised his left palm, tore the Sun Brooch from inside his coat, and tossed it to Captain Elland, who was closest to him. He shouted tersely, “Inject spirituality. Five seconds. Holy water.”

After saying this, he paid no attention to the silk top hat blown away from his head. He half crouched, his body leaning forward, and rushed toward Bishop Miller, sometimes veering left, sometimes right.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Wind blades shot out densely, all aimed at Klein.

In an instant, the ground was covered with countless marks as if carved by knives and axes. Klein rolled, threw himself sideways, or pushed off the ground with one hand to vault backward, dodging the first round of focused attacks.

The dark-red glow in Bishop Miller’s eyes intensified, and he raised both hands.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

At that moment, the barrage of wind blades became like a machine gun sweeping across the area. Klein only had time to dodge most of it before his body was torn apart, turning into thin, light scraps of paper that scattered through the air.

Klein appeared in another direction and continued rushing toward Bishop Miller, trying to close the distance to a range suitable for him to unleash his abilities.

…

Elland, having caught the Sun Brooch, immediately felt the taste of scorching heat. He wished he could strip off his clothes and leap into water that was nearly freezing.

After briefly pondering the words Gehrman Sparrow had left him, he took out a tin-colored square flask from inside his clothes, unscrewed the cap, and poured out all the strong Liege liquor within. A rich alcoholic fragrance rapidly spread through the surroundings.

Blazing Danitz swept his gaze around and grasped the general state of the battle.

Grimacing, he knelt on one knee and slammed both palms onto the ground.

Two crimson fire snakes appeared out of thin air, spreading along the surface toward the place where Azik’s copper whistle lay, building four walls of blazing fire around it.

He had originally wanted to throw a fireball at Bishop Miller, allowing Gehrman Sparrow to use the flames to easily leap close to the bishop and launch an attack. But after glancing at the still-sharp gale around that bishop, he rationally abandoned the idea and prepared to first clear away the headless monsters so they would not interfere with Gehrman Sparrow’s true strength.

Cleeves, Cecile, Teague, and Harris had already stood back up and recovered their guns, placing Urdi, Donna, Dimodo, and the others in the middle and guarding against any other monsters that might appear.

Their experience told them that, when they had not trained for teamwork in advance, it was best not to recklessly interfere in a battle that no longer belonged to ordinary humans.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The six headless beings paid no attention to the flames burning them. They rushed through the crimson walls and fought over Azik’s copper whistle like starving dogs lunging for food.

That gave Elland time. He could calmly infuse spirituality into the Sun Brooch and wait for holy water to condense and flow into the square flask.

Seeing the headless beings fighting in a mass, Danitz’s heart stirred. He bent his back slightly, his face flushing red, as he condensed a flaming spear with a blazing white tip in his right palm.

He stepped forward, twisted his waist, swung his arm, and hurled the spear of fire. It whistled through the air, struck one of the headless beings, and nailed it to the ground.

Blazing white fire rose. A small half of the headless being’s body turned directly to ash, while the rest burned as well, constantly giving off black-green gas.

Seeing the attack succeed, Danitz was about to press the advantage when he suddenly sensed a crazed, terrifying hunger.

In that instant, it was as though he stood before an abyss. One more step, and he would fall in.

He knew that Gehrman Sparrow was no longer suppressing the mad soul within him.

After using three Paper Figurine Substitutes in succession, Klein finally entered the planned distance.

The glove on his left palm suddenly erupted with the hunger it had suppressed for so long, writhing as dark-golden scales grew from it one after another.

Klein’s pupils became pale, as though they had turned vertical.

Immediately afterward, Bishop Miller, in his gently rippling deep-blue robes, was reflected in his eyes.

Silently, the middle-aged man, who was just about to create a large number of wind blades, suddenly threw his head back. His body froze for one second.

The eyes glowing dark red had lost reason, filled with a sense of madness. His skin became smooth and mottled, like the outer hide of certain aquatic creatures.

He released a gasp that seemed to come from the depths of the sea. From beneath his blue robes, slick, disgusting tentacles abruptly drilled out one after another!

Psychiatrist—Frenzy!

Klein had originally only wanted to interrupt the other party’s attack and create an opportunity for subsequent control. He had not expected that, once frenzied, Bishop Miller would directly lose control!

The man had long ago fallen or been corrupted. Once reason, that final shackle, was lost, he immediately stepped into the abyss of losing control!

Seeing this, Klein’s pupils constricted. No longer hesitating, he switched the soul he was driving.

While the other party raved madly, the glove on Klein’s left palm turned golden. His expression grew dignified, and his gaze locked onto Bishop Miller once more.

Within his pupils, two rays of light like lightning instantly lit up.

All at once, Bishop Miller let out a scream. His palms, along with the tentacles, all retracted, covering his head.

His mind had been pierced, producing indescribable, extreme agony.

Interrogator!

Klein pressed his right palm against the ground and stood up. Immediately, his left hand shone with resplendent light.

Next, he leaned backward and spread his arms, as if embracing the sun.

A thick, pure, blazing radiance descended from the sky, falling upon Bishop Miller and completely enveloping him.

The surroundings seemed to turn into daytime. The fierce gale came to an abrupt stop.

Sequence 5: Priest of Light!

Bishop Miller’s body began to evaporate. First his skin, then his tentacles, then his flesh and blood.

By the time the brilliant pillar of light vanished, he was no longer human in shape. He had become a monster made of white bones and flesh, his aura extremely weak.

However, he was not yet dead!

The vitality of one who had lost control was unprecedentedly tenacious!

Klein’s expression did not change. In a few steps, he rushed to what remained of Bishop Miller, dropped to one knee, leaned forward, and pressed his left palm onto that mass of flesh.

The reason he did not continue using the Priest of Light’s abilities was to leave food for Creeping Hunger!

At the center of the glove’s palm, a slit silently opened. From within grew two rows of illusory, ghastly white teeth, madly gnawing at flesh, bone, and spirituality.

But Bishop Miller was still struggling. He stabilized his flesh, growing several new tentacles in an attempt to coil around Klein and pull him into his embrace.

Klein threw away his cane, drew his revolver, aimed at the monster, and fired five shots in succession.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bullets of pale gold, brass, and silvery white struck Bishop Miller, igniting flames of different colors.

Bishop Miller once again released a scream from the depths of his soul. He no longer had the strength to resist Creeping Hunger. Flesh and soul alike transformed into a torrent and poured into that greedy mouth.

In only two or three seconds, all that remained on the ground were fragments of clothing, remnants of banknotes, and tiny points of deep-blue light tinged with green slowly condensing.

This was the difference between “devouring” and “grazing.”

Klein preferred the latter, but there was no other food here.

At the same time, Captain Elland had already produced two waves of holy water into the square flask.

Danitz hurriedly shouted at him, “Throw it over!”

Elland did not hesitate and flung the flask toward the headless beings fighting over the copper whistle.

Ahem. Danitz cleared his throat and straightened his body.

His left hand slid casually into his pocket, while his right hand pushed forward levelly. Around him, one crimson fire raven after another rapidly condensed.

The half-illusory fire ravens flapped their wings and flew out. Following different paths, they struck the square flask at the same time, right above the group of headless beings.

Rumble!

The square flask shattered, and the Sun holy water sprinkled down in a wide spray.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle! The remaining headless beings were all drenched. Screaming and convulsing, they collapsed to the ground.

They melted rapidly, turning into pools of blood, while Azik’s copper whistle lay quietly in the clean area at the center.

Resolved… Gehrman Sparrow really is strong. Even if he ran into the captain, he would have the ability to contend with her… Unfortunately, I did not see what Beyonder powers he used just now… Danitz turned to look at Klein standing before Bishop Miller’s remains and silently sighed.

Then he saw Gehrman Sparrow sweep a cold glance over him.

Almost subconsciously, Danitz ran over in grievance and picked up Azik’s copper whistle.

Donna rubbed her bruised arm and saw Uncle Sparrow, dressed in his black long frock coat, walk back a few steps, bend down, and pick up that half top hat of silk. Silently, he patted away the dust and put it back on his head.