Chapter 154: By Order of Pope Selena… I Sentence You All to Death!

Translation by: Weebsread👹

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“The Duke is as paranoid as ever.”

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“It’s just two insignificant villages—yet he insists we take care of it personally?”

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Night draped itself over the land, and darkness rendered the border villages eerily still, as though the world itself was holding its breath.

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Beyond the slumbering settlements, elite personal guards slipped silently into formation, assembling as meticulously as a clockwork mechanism set to strike. The commander at their forefront—his confidence edged with disdain—regarded the quiet cluster of houses as if suppressing a yawn.

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His unconcerned speech and almost languid posture made it plain: he found tonight’s errand laughably beneath him.

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The guards flanking him mirrored that attitude. This was no ordinary squad, but Duke Ous’s secret blade—handpicked loyalists, masters in violence and obedience. Each stood leagues above common soldiers, armed with nothing but the best: armor and weaponry forged for war, not common pillaging.

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Such a force could have razed minor kingdoms a decade ago. And now? They were ordered to erase a couple of border villages. Anyone would see the irony—a waste of true power.

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“Enough griping, Carlos,” muttered the more even-tempered Transcendent at his side, shooting a warning look over his shoulder. “The Duke’s already at the Tribunal, letting the Holy See question him.”

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“While he keeps the Church occupied, we raid the villages and take the taxes. It’s all a diversion. If there’s trouble, he’ll ‘heroically’ intercept the transport convoy by the City-State of Brook.”

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He cast a sweeping gaze over the assembled troops, then barked the first orders:

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“We clear out three villages tonight. Swift. Thorough.”

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“Hold formation—three charges through every target. I want every living soul accounted for. Leave no survivors.”

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“Once it’s done, you get five minutes—grab anything of value. Then we move. Stay alert: if anyone is ambushed, you answer to me.”

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His voice was so cold it was as if they weren’t about to massacre people, but simply sweep away the autumn leaves.

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And yet, not a single guard objected. Instead, anticipation flashed in their eyes—a feverish, dark excitement ignited by the promise of bloodshed.

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Behind their visors, every stare glimmered with unconcealed bloodlust.

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Carlos—the other Transcendent, and one graced with a Legacy—shrugged, utterly relaxed. “I get it, Randy. But come on, it’s just some backwater villagers. Most of ‘em probably aren’t even level forty. What could possibly go wrong?”

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Even if it turned out to be an ambush, what could threaten them here?

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Not with two Transcendents who had long since outgrown human frailty.

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And among the guards, several had reached LV70—the very summit of mortal power.

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Forget this backwoods village—if even the princess remained, if she summoned all her so-called Heroes—

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Carlos would slaughter them here and now, for the world to witness.

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“Keep two alive for questioning. The rest, follow my lead. Get ready!”

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“Whichever one of you racks up the most kills, I’ll see to it you get a feast fit for a king when we get back!”

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“Charge!”

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A deep, resonant war horn shattered the silence, vibrantly alive, and every soldier’s pulse leapt in response.

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The sound was answered by guttural, savage war cries as the guards surged forth, their pent-up bloodlust unleashed like a breaking dam.

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Layers of dazzling energy flared along their bodies—vivid halos of power lighting the night as they descended.

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The entire troop moved as one, pounding forward with the might of an avalanche.

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Within the village, which had been wrapped in stillness just moments before, the world exploded to life. The earth trembled under a stampede of armored feet—an unstoppable deluge, remorseless as floodwaters.

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In an instant, the attackers poured from the treeline, thundering toward the outermost homes.

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“What’s happening? Are we under attack?”

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“The demons—they’re back!”

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Villagers who hadn’t yet dozed off reacted first, voices trembling as they glimpsed silver armor flaring against the darkness—no hiding place, no chance for escape.

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“Didn’t the Imperial Guard go after the demons? Why have they come back for us?”

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“Run—warn everyone! Scatter!”

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“Doctor Kinson, quit standing there! Come, hurry!”

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Panic erupted all at once. Doors slammed, cries and shouts filled the night. Lantern flames guttered in the chaos, plunging the village back into the night’s grip.

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Sheer terror pressed on every soul.

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Yet, in the square, one figure stood unmoving: Kinson, silent as his neighbors pulled at him to flee. His eyes remained locked on the horizon.

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Not long ago, a royal princess—and an envoy of the Holy See—had come here with a solemn pledge.

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This very night, they’d sworn, not a single villager would lose their life. The Holy See would ensure their safety—no matter what.

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But... would they truly keep such a promise?

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The horns of war blared again, the very earth trembling with each call.

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It was as if some invisible beast bared fangs from the shadows, making fear all the sharper.

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The raiders drew near, about to smash through the rough barricades—preparing to pillage a village already scarred by past torments.

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“STOP—THIS INSTANT!”

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No one anticipated the voice that split the night.

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A thunderous command ripped across the darkness—heralded by a pillar of blinding radiance at the far edge of the sky.

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It was as if holy light itself had torn the night asunder, banishing fear with its sheer, overwhelming brilliance.

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Villagers and soldiers alike faltered, frozen and transfixed, their gazes drawn irresistibly upward.

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In the sky hovered a solitary figure, shrouded in resplendent light—a presence so majestic and absolute, he seemed to have descended from myth.

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Bathed in shining brilliance, a titanic Blade of Judgment floated at his back. Its sacred aura banished the shadows, etching his form in stark relief against the heavens.

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“What… what is that?”

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He shone with golden luminance—solemn, mighty, godlike.

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His burning gaze swept over the earth, the Blade of Judgment behind him coalescing to solid form as if to answer his silent command.

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In that instant, he was the incarnation of divine wrath—a god descending to judge the sinful.

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The vanguard ground to a halt, transfixed by the miraculous sight. The arrogance that suffused the guards moments before was obliterated—left only with confusion and terror. Not one had anticipated that their mission would run aground against a force like this.

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“In the name of Pope Selena—!”

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The radiant apparition’s voice thundered across the field, his gaze locking upon the massing darkness below—a living stain fouling the land.

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Lin Wei stared down, his eyes blazing with a purity that bordered on inhuman. In that moment, the light around him was so fierce, so untainted, that he seemed the living avatar of holy wrath.

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“The Duke of Ous, blinded by avarice, has violated the Empire’s laws—levying cruel, arbitrary taxes, and sending his own men disguised as demons to slaughter innocents and plunder their homes!”

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“The Holy See knows all. The High Council has been informed, and justice is already underway. Moreover, I am authorized as the Holy See’s envoy to execute the will of the divine on the front lines!”

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The revelation fell like a thunderclap. The two mighty Transcendents—so unassailable a moment before—gaped in utter disbelief. But by then, it was too late for regrets or defiance.

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“The truth is plain: It was Duke Ous who commanded these slaughters, cloaked as demon attacks, to subjugate the villages and strip them of their meager wealth.”

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“Therefore, by order of Pope Selena—”

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He raised the radiant Blade of Judgment—

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Before the last syllable vanished, the colossal blade descended in an arc of searing, blinding light.

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Its power was so overwhelming that even the night itself seemed to burn away in its wake.

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Thunder split the heavens. Meteors rained down—a furious storm of divine fire cascading toward the earth, as if all of heaven had delivered its verdict upon unforgivable sin.

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“I declare your sentence… Death!”