Chapter 96: God's Monster
"But Father Anderson, this is a meaningless sacrifice!"
Heinkel and Yumie Takagi couldn't help but exclaim.
They didn't want to see Father Anderson die here. It was obvious that Chang Wei wasn't someone they could deal with. A monster like him couldn't be defeated with their current firepower.
"No, it still has meaning."
Father Anderson could already feel the Angel Dust within him burning away as his power erupted, leaving behind only a wreck of a body.
Go back just like this?
Return to the Vatican in disgrace, after the Ninth Crusade was utterly annihilated, a cardinal was killed, and he himself fled, broken and battered, from the claws of a monster?
A mere death—what was there to fear?
"Turning a blind eye to the heretic before us—what kind of traitor would that make me? What kind of Vatican would that be?"
His trembling, weak hands reached into his robes and pulled out a long box.
It was a holy relic that had recently come into the Vatican's possession, a gift from a certain Christian believer.
In truth, however, it was the final holy relic uncovered after the Millennium Organization had nearly bathed all of Europe in blood. Originally, it had been meant for Alucard's River of Death—to force the Vampire King into a desperate situation where he would have no choice but to drink blood.
But now, watching Alucard continuously perish before Chang Wei, Father Anderson made his decision.
He didn't know how much longer Alucard could hold on, but he couldn't just lie there any longer.
"The Fragrance of Miracles"—Helena's Holy Nail!
The last missing holy relic from Rome, aside from the Shroud, the Holy Grail, and the Spear of Longinus.
And the most ominous of them all.
For Helena's Holy Nail possessed the power to harm even the divine—just like the nails that pierced Christ.
Long ago, a female missionary named Helena spread the teachings of Christianity, only to be captured and tortured by four kings, nailed to a cross like Christ, and endlessly tormented.
Yet, because she was under God's protection, she could not die. No matter how much they tortured her, she remained alive.
Seeing this miracle, the doubters and kings converted to Christianity.
And the very nails that once pierced her became holy relics, symbols of torment and suffering. To use them was to invite agony and affliction—and to become a monster of God.
It was said that Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine I (the one who named Byzantium "Constantinople"), discovered the True Cross and built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. But she also brought these nails back to Constantinople. [Note: Historical reference sourced from a certain Baidu forum post.]
Originally, Father Anderson had prepared this relic for Alucard, just in case. But he never expected to be defeated so swiftly and decisively by another monster—forcing him to use the relic himself.
"No, Father Anderson!"
Heinkel and Yumie, realizing what he intended to do, rushed to stop him.
"Don't try to stop me. Take everyone and leave this place…"
Father Anderson smiled at them.
"We are the agents of the Lord! The earthly representatives of divine punishment! Our mission is to eradicate those who defy our God—to destroy them utterly, down to the last scrap of flesh! I am nothing but a gun and sword of God—a weapon that carries out His divine wrath!"
"I was born a storm. I was born a peril. I was born destruction itself. Bloodless, tearless, a merciless hurricane—if this is what it takes to fulfill my purpose, then so be it!"
"A——MEN!!!!!!"
The two battling monsters suddenly froze, turning toward Father Anderson.
"Out of bullets already, vampire? Got any more tricks?"
Chang Wei smiled as he spoke to Alucard.
"Christian Catholic, Stop!"
But Alucard, furious, roared at Anderson.
His fight with Chang Wei was a battle between monsters, and he had come to understand the true terror of his opponent. Chang Wei could directly devour and steal his life and soul—he didn't even need to destroy his heart to kill him. Against such an enemy, even Alucard's high-speed regeneration and River of Death resurrection were barely keeping him alive.
Still, he was confident he could win. After all, his River of Death contained millions of souls. But Chang Wei?
He was strong—unbelievably strong. So strong that Alucard suspected not even an angel could defeat him.
But even monsters grew tired. And Alucard firmly believed he would be the last one standing. Because he was the ultimate monster.
Yet he couldn't allow Father Anderson to abandon his humanity.
That was unacceptable.
After all these years, he had finally encountered a human he admired—how could he allow him to become a monster?
His belief, his conviction, his obsession… had always been: "Only humans can defeat monsters!"
Because "if monsters fight each other, the last one standing is still just a monster. Only a human can truly defeat a monster!"
But it was too late.
Father Anderson had finished his preparations.
With one final, human cry, he drove Helena's Holy Nail into his own heart!
A few drops of blood dripped to the ground—but the rest was completely absorbed by the activated relic. And from his chest, thorns began to sprout.
These were not ordinary thorns.
They were the Thorns of Passion and Suffering.
Anyone ensnared by them would experience agony and torment beyond imagination—making escape nearly impossible.
He had become a monster.
A monster with the power to harm even the divine.
In the original storyline, he could even burn away Alucard's River of Death with a single strike!
Chang Wei felt both wary and exhilarated.
Physically, Anderson had only been able to overpower Alucard in the original story—he was no match for the Captain. After all, the Captain had once kicked Alucard in half, and in a face-off, had torn him into pieces.
But against the newly transformed Anderson, Alucard—who only had one life—had still managed to hold his own.
So Chang Wei wasn't too concerned about raw physical strength.
His only worry was the holy fire that could incinerate the River of Death—or whatever it was.
"You fool!"
Alucard was furious, but there was nothing he could do.
Chang Wei shattered him again, devouring another fragment of his life.
And then—Father Anderson rose.
"Th-Thorns… Anderson, what have you become?"
The members of Iscariot were horrified, unable to believe what they were seeing.
But Anderson could no longer answer them.
Now, he had only one thought left:
To kill the heretic before him.
To kill the monster before him.
To kill everything.
A Monster of God.
The wreckage of a miracle.
And miracles had no mercy—not even for the faithful.