Moprheus's invisible slashes were swift and precise, closing in on Kanzaki in an instant.
At the critical moment, Kanzaki seemed to sense the unseen attack and leaped aside, narrowly dodging Moprheus's assault.
Moprheus nodded appMoprheusngly. Not bad—she was, after all, a Saint from the original story.
The mere fact that she could detect and evade his attack was already impressive.
But unfortunately, she was still too weak.
Moprheus snapped his fingers, and the gravity around them shifted in an instant.
An invisible pressure descended like a collapsing mountain. Kanzaki, still airborne from her leap, hadn't even processed it when she felt the crushing weight bearing down on her.
With a thud, she landed, staggered, and fell to one knee before Moprheus.
The invisible force pressed evenly across her body, nearly suffocating her.
As for Stiyl, he was already sprawled on the ground, his face pressed hard against the pavement, unable to even lift his head.
"Who… who are you?" Kanzaki gasped.
She had confidence in her own strength, but facing Moprheus, she was effortlessly crushed.
This was absurd—was this guy even human?
Kanzaki was starting to doubt it.
"You don't need to know who I am," Moprheus said leisurely, strolling up to her. He reached out, hooked her chin, and tilted her face up.
"Now, you have two choices. First, I kill you both, and we're done with it."
"Second, swear loyalty to me, become my ally, and we'll be on the same side. I won't hold your earlier defiance against you."
Having seen the original story, Moprheus had always been fond of Kanzaki.
He wanted to bring her to his side.
Kanzaki hesitated. Her loyalty to the Anglican Church wasn't particularly strong.
She had been born blessed, destined to be the Supreme Pontiff of the Amakusa-Style Remix of Church even before her birth—a prodigy who could succeed without effort.
She effortlessly earned the admiration of those around her, standing at the center of attention.
Every day brought unexpected joys she hadn't anticipated.
Even when targeted by assassins, she'd miraculously survive—bullets would inexplicably miss, and bombs would detonate nearby without harming her.
Yet Kanzaki couldn't forgive herself for this "lucky" life that brought "misfortune" to those around her.
Fearing her immense power would endanger her Amakusa comrades, she had once chosen to leave them.
But the tragedies weren't caused by their weakness. The true culprit was Kanzaki herself, who saw her comrades as "weak" and didn't trust their strength. Unable to fully commit to them, she abandoned the power at her fingertips and fought alone with half-honed skills, giving her enemies openings.
It was this arrogance—this sense of "I'll protect you all"—that caused those tragedies.
Later, the Amakusa group became entangled in the Book of the Law incident and eventually aligned with the Anglican Church.
Though nominally independent, they were effectively pawns used by Laura Stuart to control Kanzaki, who lived in London's Japanese district.
However, the Book of the Law incident hadn't yet occurred, so while Kanzaki was currently a member of the Anglican Church, she could leave at any time.
This was why Moprheus extended his invitation.
Faced with his threat, Kanzaki hesitated briefly before agreeing.
For one, she didn't want to die. For another, she didn't want Stiyl to die.
And most importantly, she couldn't abandon Index. Those who knew the story understood the bond between them.
Seeing her agreement, Moprheus nodded appMoprheusngly.
"Good. From now on, you're my follower."
He extended a finger and tapped Kanzaki's forehead, infusing her with a surge of radiant power.
With this energy, Kanzaki's strength multiplied several times over.
Previously, she ranked among the top nine of the world's fewer than twenty Saints.
Now, she could undoubtedly claim the top spot, capable of facing even a Campione.
Kanzaki found it unbelievable but realized one thing: Moprheus was no ordinary person.
He was a true deity walking the earth.
It was almost too absurd to believe.
No wonder he had no interest in the 103,000 grimoires—it made sense now.
But speaking of absurd, wasn't Index's luck just ridiculous? A random collision, and she'd bumped into a deity?
It was beyond comprehension.
After learning Moprheus's identity, Kanzaki's first reaction was disbelief.
Her second was relief—Index could be saved.
A deity would surely know how to help her. Without hesitation, despite Index's astonishment, Kanzaki explained the issue of Index's impending memory erasure.
"That's a lie," Moprheus said calmly. "Anyone with a basic education wouldn't fall for such nonsense. It's a fabrication meant to deceive you."
"But… but…" Kanzaki stammered, recalling the agonizing moments when Index suffered at the appointed times, her heart wrenching.
"It's just a petty trick," Moprheus said.
He crouched down in front of Index. "Open your mouth, Index."
Trusting him, Index complied. Moprheus beckoned to Kanzaki. "Come look here, and you'll understand."
Kanzaki crouched beside him and saw a strange symbol in Index's mouth.
"That's a Collar," Moprheus explained. "It uses Index's life as leverage, requiring an annual memory erasure ritual to bind her and prevent betrayal."
"If she doesn't have her memories erased when the deadline arrives, the ritual activates automatically, endangering her life."
Kanzaki stared at the eerie symbol, at a loss for words.
Moprheus continued, "The one who set up this Collar was clever. Anyone trying to destroy it triggers Index's defense mechanism… the John's Pen Mode."
"It can freely wield the 103,000 grimoires, fully protecting the knowledge of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum from those who'd steal it. It's the ultimate defense system."
"Normally dormant, it activates automatically when Index faces a life-threatening crisis or external attack, taking over to handle or repel the threat."
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
***
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