The underground cathedral was in utter chaos.
Duanmu Huai and his puppet army had clashed fiercely with Ivel and his subordinates in a wild and disorderly melee.
For Ivel, the situation had spiraled far beyond what he had anticipated. What was supposed to be a clever trap to lure his enemy in had turned into opening the door to a wolf. But for Duanmu Huai, everything was going exactly as planned!
Sure, the boss hadn't been dumb enough to monologue about his true intentions before the battle, but that didn't matter to Duanmu Huai. The evidence—both physical and testimonial—was already in hand. Who needed a confession? It's not like he was bound by the Miranda rights. You have the right to remain silent… but I still have the right to haul your ass to prison!
By the way, while the battle kicked off, Lorena had followed the plan. Alongside the mechanical soldiers Duanmu Huai had summoned, she smashed open the doors and broke out to rendezvous with the cathedral reinforcements. When they arrived, Duanmu Huai wouldn't need to explain a thing—instead, it would be Ivel who'd have to explain why the hell he was building a cathedral dedicated to an evil god underground.
As for reasons?
Who cares! Just beat him up!
What, he's gonna tell a tear-jerking sob story and expect mercy? Yeah right! For an Inquisitor, motives don't matter—only results. So save the redemption arc—no matter how tragic your past is, if you've built a dark god's cathedral and are secretly murdering people, you're getting roasted at the stake.
"You damned bastard!!"
Ivel was clearly cornered. The massive mechanical hand emerging behind him repeatedly blocked Duanmu Huai's attacks and those of the mechanical soldiers, but the moment he saw Lorena break through the gates and escape, his face turned pale with rage.
Duanmu Huai had pinpointed his weakness—whatever Ivel was planning, he clearly couldn't afford to have it exposed. If the Church discovered this, he was finished.
By all logic, that should've been impossible. Ivel was the Church's Tech-Priest Archbishop. He'd earned their trust and had even taken control of part of the Church's power using his mechanical expertise. Under normal circumstances, no one would dare touch him—even if they suspected something, they wouldn't dare invade his sanctum like this...
Yeah right!!
What the hell is with this guy?!
Ivel was on the verge of losing his mind. Duanmu Huai had summoned an endless wave of mechanical soldiers and puppets. He had no idea how, but Ivel simply didn't have the manpower to counter it. Maybe if this had taken place in the city streets or the wilderness, he could have escaped in the chaos.
But this? This was his own enclosed lair. He had intentionally lured Duanmu Huai and the others here to prevent their escape—and now he'd trapped himself instead!
In a confined space, enough quantity nullifies any quality advantage. That's exactly what was happening. The overwhelming flood of puppets gave him no room to maneuver. Each strike from the massive mechanical hand could crush dozens of puppets, but every gap was instantly filled by more, pressing forward without pause.
"Damn it… damn it… Javey! Get over here and help me!"
The masked puppet-women were completely useless now. Ivel could only hope Javey could turn things around—but she, too, was locked in a fierce fight. Her AOE combat capabilities were powerful, but Olgis had anticipated that, and was keeping her pinned down, giving her no chance to assist her master.
And then…
"Sir Knight, we're back!!!"
The cold, clear voice made Ivel's heart sink. He looked toward the gate and saw Lorena charging in, leading a squad of Paladins.
At that moment, all hope drained from Ivel's face.
Credit where it's due—the city's Church had actually shown up in time. Unlike in so many games, where the authorities arrive just in time to claim the glory after the protagonist does all the work, the reinforcements here actually showed up during the fight.
With the Church's help, Duanmu Huai successfully defeated Ivel—though Ivel's mechanical augmentation made him formidable, he simply couldn't withstand the overwhelming numbers. And the Church didn't care about honor or duels. The Paladins piled onto him in full force. Ivel had no choice but to surrender.
Javey fared no better. Her puppet was shattered by Olgis, and she herself was bound by silk threads and suspended in midair. Unlike the utterly defeated Ivel, she snarled like a rabid dog, eyes full of hatred, baring her teeth at anyone who dared approach.
"Sir Knight!!"
As the Church's reinforcements pinned Ivel to the ground and restrained him, Lorena ran over excitedly. Behind her stood Melodie.
"Yo, good work. Everything go smoothly?"
"Yeah, mostly. Thanks to Miss Melodie. If she hadn't rushed to alert the Church, I don't know how things might've turned out."
Lorena glanced at Melodie, who shook her head gently.
"It's nothing. It was simply my duty as a priestess."
As she spoke, she gazed sorrowfully at the demonic statues lining the cathedral walls.
"I just never imagined Archbishop Ivel would worship a demon…"
"It really is shocking. But fortunately… it's over now."
Lorena nodded as she looked around and spoke softly. But…
"No. It's not over yet."
Duanmu Huai stared at his system interface. The quest tracker was still there.
[Special Quest: 'Hunt the Killer']
[Objective: Uncover the true culprit behind the string of murders.]
[You've been drawn into a mysterious murder case. Find the real mastermind and uncover the truth.]
The true culprit.
Liam had created Javey, but he wasn't the real mastermind. He'd just been manipulated and deceived by Ivel.
So was Ivel the real killer?
He looked like it. He used Liam's talents to acquire Javey and the puppet-women, then carried out a string of murders under cover of night. He'd built a cathedral to an evil god, clearly aligned with dark powers. But according to the system, he still wasn't the true culprit.
That only left one possibility.
Duanmu Huai stepped forward, grabbing Ivel by the collar and yanking him upright.
"Wait, what are you doing?!"
The nearby Paladins were alarmed, but Duanmu Huai ignored them. He stared straight into Ivel's eyes.
"Who ordered you to do this?"
"I-I don't know what you're talking about!"
"Massacres in the Holy City… building a cathedral to a dark god… who told you to do it?! That thing you worship—what is it?!"
As an Inquisitor, Duanmu Huai was well-acquainted with the tricks of evil god cultists. These lunatics usually held depraved rituals for one of two reasons.
One: the "Daddy-look-at-me-I'm-so-awesome-please-praise-me" reward-seeking type. Most cultists fell into this category—begging their patron gods for attention, hoping to earn power through worship.
Those ceremonies were disgusting but common. They rarely caused a major disaster—unless they escalated.
The second kind was far worse.
The "You've-been-given-a-mission-from-upstairs-now-complete-it" type.
And if Ivel wasn't just a needy, attention-starved cultist…
Then he had been acting on orders from the dark god.
That meant Ivel wasn't the final boss.
But before Ivel could answer, he never got the chance.
Splurt.
A massive metal hand burst from Ivel's shadow. Its fingers pierced through his chest like lances. At the same time, a sickly sweet voice rang out.
"Hehehe, I didn't expect you all to get this far. Seems Ivel wasn't as impressive as he claimed…"
Duanmu Huai and the Paladins looked up toward the voice. There, hovering in the air above the cathedral, was a small, floating figure—none other than the "nun" who had led them into the sanctuary.
But now, she looked nothing like her previous pure, innocent self. Crimson horns curled from her forehead. Her modest habit was replaced with a tight, nightclub-style mini-dress. A red tail swished behind her, and leathery bat wings flared from her back. Her true identity was obvious.
"A… a demon?!"
Lorena gasped, but the "nun" simply raised her hands and smiled brightly.
"That's right! There are no gods in this cathedral! We shall welcome the Lord of the Frozen Abyss, and reshape the world into a dark, cruel fantasy!"
"Attack!!"
The Paladins reacted quickly, raising their bows and firing at the airborne demoness—but the arrows passed straight through her, striking only air. She shimmered like a ghost and drifted back, merging into the wall and disappearing.
"Even though you were fast… sadly, it's already too late. The blood and souls of the innocent have soaked this city… and the Lord of the Frozen Abyss is about to awaken!"
As her voice faded…
The entire cathedral began to shake violently.
(End of Chapter)