Chapter 1146: The Old Order had returned [Part 2]

Chapter 1146 – The Old Order had returned [Part 2]

Aurelion turned toward him. "You defend him?"

"I am describing what occurred."

"You have taken his side."

"No." Vizreel descended one step from the raised platform. "I have taken the side of the process you claim to defend."

The temperature of the room seemed to drop.

"Lux requested a meeting. We held one. He proposed terms. We examined them." Vizreel’s eyes narrowed. "King Kaelmor, by contrast, has attempted to influence our decisions through channels that have not been disclosed to this court."

Aurelion’s expression went still.

But there was a very small reaction.

Celestaria saw it.

So did Selena.

Vizreel continued. "The Old Order has maintained communications with the King of Hell. Despite you keep mentioning about purity."

Aurelion lifted his chin. "Communication is not forbidden."

"Correct."

"Then you have no accusation."

"I haven’t made one." Vizreel clasped his hands behind his back. "I am asking whether those communications involved commitments concerning the current negotiations."

The court fell silent.

Aurelion’s smile returned. "You are suggesting that we have made a deal with a demon king?"

"I am asking whether you have."

"Absurd."

"Then disclose the correspondence."

The smile disappeared.

Celestaria almost admired the simplicity of it.

No shouting or dramatic accusations.

Just a request for records.

Aurelion’s gaze hardened. "Those communications are matters of ancient authority."

"Then identify the authority under which they were conducted."

"You would subject the Old Order to an audit?"

Vizreel regarded him calmly. "You have objected to undisclosed influence over this court. Transparency would resolve the question."

Selena lowered her head.

Not in submission.

To hide her smile.

Aurelion’s wings flared. "You have forgotten what the Light Realm stands for!"

Celestaria stepped forward. "No." Her voice rang beneath the stained-glass dome. "We are trying to ensure that its principles are applied to the souls entrusted to us."

She looked across the gathered Custodians.

"This council has not approved a final agreement with the Lower Realm. We have opened negotiations. We are reviewing procedures, evidence requirements, and safeguards against wrongful judgment."

Her gaze returned to Aurelion.

"If you believe those proposals violate a specific law, identify it. If you believe they create a risk, present the evidence."

She paused.

"But invoking purity does not answer whether an innocent soul has been wrongly condemned."

Aurelion stared at her.

Then smiled again.

A colder smile.

"You have made your position clear."

Celestaria felt the warning beneath those words.

So had he.

The Old Order had not come merely to debate.

They had come to force the current council to retreat.

And with Kaelmor moving against the Sin Houses below, the timing was far too convenient to dismiss.

Aurelion watched Celestaria for a moment.

Then he smiled. "Your confidence is admirable, High Custodian."

Celestaria regarded him calmly. "And your objections have been heard, Preceptor."

"How reassuring."

His three-ringed halo rotated.

Once.

A thin line of white light appeared between his fingers.

Celestaria noticed it immediately.

So did Vizreel.

"Aurelion—"

The light vanished.

Then the space in front of Celestaria exploded.

A spear of condensed holy power tore across the court, splitting the marble beneath it. The attack was fast enough that several Custodians saw only its afterimage, a brilliant white streak aimed directly at Celestaria’s chest.

She did not flinch.

She lifted two fingers.

A translucent sigil opened before her, no larger than a dinner plate.

The spear struck it.

For one impossible instant, the entire court seemed to bend around that tiny circle.

Then Celestaria turned her wrist.

The spear reversed direction, plunged into the empty floor between the two factions, and detonated.

Marble shattered.

Dust erupted toward the painted dome. The nearest angels stumbled backward as a shockwave rattled the benches and sent loose documents spinning through the air.

Someone screamed.

Several Custodians gasped.

One elderly angel dropped his ceremonial staff.

It struck the floor with a lonely little clatter.

For a heartbeat, nobody moved.

Through the settling dust, Celestaria remained exactly where she had been.

Her robes were immaculate.

Her expression was unchanged.

Even the strand of silver hair resting against her cheek had apparently decided that reacting would be beneath its dignity.

She lowered her hand.

"Aurelion."

Her voice was quiet.

That made it considerably worse.

Vizreel stepped forward, his wings unfolding as the balance sigils beneath his feet ignited.

"You..."

He stopped.

Not because he had run out of words.

Because there were far too many available, and most of them would have ended with Aurelion being forcibly removed from the court.

Aurelion looked at the crater.

Then at Celestaria.

Then he laughed.

"Oh, relax!"

He spread his hands, his smile broadening.

"I was merely joking."

Silence.

Selena stared at him.

"A joke? You fired a holy spear at her!"

"And she countered it beautifully!" Aurelion exclaimed. "Surely we can still appreciate a little humor in this solemn chamber?"

Celestaria glanced at the crater.

A crack crept across the marble.

Another piece of the floor collapsed.

She looked back at him.

"Your humor requires repairs."

Aurelion chuckled. "Send me the invoice."

Vizreel’s eyes narrowed.

"An attack on a presiding High Custodian is not a joke."

"An attack?" Aurelion pressed a hand to his chest. "Guardian of Balance, must you interpret everything so dramatically?" He gestured toward Celestaria. "She’s unharmed."

Celestaria held his gaze.

"Yes," she said. "I am."

The words were simple.

The warning beneath them was not.

Aurelion’s smile lingered, but he did not summon another spear.

Instead, he turned toward the gathered angels.

"Then let the court decide whether these negotiations should continue."

The chamber erupted.

Custodians rose from their seats. Voices overlapped. Halos flared. Ancient legal texts appeared in the air as competing factions demanded recognition.

Selena leaned toward Celestaria. "Well."

Celestaria watched the chaos spread. "Yes?"

"Lux is going to owe us an explanation."

Vizreel looked toward the enormous doors.

"And perhaps," he murmured, "we should ask what has frightened Kaelmor enough to make him move against every Sin House at once."

Celestaria’s eyes narrowed.

Far below, Hell was preparing for war.

And here, beneath a ceiling painted with eternal peace, the Light Realm had begun choosing its battlefield.