Chapter 322: The Reliquary
"...More than ten years ago, a gruesome murder occurred in a residence somewhere in Nerima Ward. The victims died in a terrifying manner, and no signs of forced entry were found at the scene. To this day, the police have yet to find the main culprit of the case.
Furthermore, in recent years, everyone who has had any connection to the case has died bizarrely one after another, forcing the police to suspend their in-depth investigation into the matter.
According to reports from the local church, they had dispatched seminary students to handle it, but the commissioned individuals completely vanished thereafter. For a period following that, monks, onmyoji, and other such figures went to investigate, but it yielded no results..."
Reading the contents of the file, William's brows knitted tightly together.
"Nerima Ward... this shouldn't be Miss Sadako, right."
The file contained no descriptions of videotapes or televisions, so it was unlikely to be that God of Slaughter. But William actually found himself hoping to meet her.
After all, during their time in the Land of the Holy War, this famous ghost had also been captured by the Evil Spirit. Although the two didn't have much interaction, he had indeed destroyed the Evil Spirit's setup, which allowed the Sweepers who hadn't been controlled in advance to escape its demonic clutches.
Regardless, he had saved Sadako's life; perhaps she would be willing to cooperate for the sake of that favor.
This way, there would be no need for fighting and killing, and everyone could easily complete their tasks. But whether Miss Sadako had returned home was still unclear, so he could only treat it as wishful thinking for now.
The commission indicated that the handover with the local church was scheduled for three days later, so they wouldn't depart until tomorrow. Therefore, after finishing the file, the group had a brief discussion and went their separate ways to prepare their field gear.
That night.
The Vatican, the Holy Clans' residential district.
Inside a certain secret underground passage, Ambo Roshu walked alone, clad in a black robe.
Over ten minutes later, he arrived in front of a wooden door.
Knock... Knock... The door slowly opened, revealing a burly Holy Clergy Member.
"Raise your hands," the man said in a muffled voice.
Ambo did not speak, slowly raising both hands. After being thoroughly searched, he passed through the wooden door.
Beyond it was a luxuriously decorated house, where warm yellow lighting illuminated thick carpets. Ambo followed the burly man all the way to a certain room, where several people were currently seated.
The former didn't dare to look up, immediately bowing low: "My Lords, may the Lord bless you."
"You're here," one of them spoke. "We were just talking about it. To think Jolan would actually give the position of Priest Order Vice Commander to an outsider. That should have been yours."
Ambo said in a low voice: "Perhaps that Lord has his own arrangements."
"Hmph, what arrangements!" the man snorted coldly. "Since returning from the Land of the Holy War, that guy Jolan seems to be getting a bit too out of line."
Another person chimed in: "Rules that have stood for millennia cannot be broken just because he wants to."
"Bishop Ambo, it is time to make that Lord face reality."
Ambo's bow deepened: "I will strictly obey Your Excellencies' commands."
The next day, in the afternoon.
The Vatican, Priest Order headquarters.
William arrived here early.
Ever since being forced into the position of Vice Commander, in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, he hadn't left his room from yesterday until today. He even entrusted Sid and the others to purchase his consumables.
Therefore, up until now, he had no idea what this position actually entailed.
And Jolan hadn't sent anyone to look for him; in fact, the guy himself had vanished without a trace, so William had been left entirely to his own devices.
Fortunately, no one came looking for trouble during this time. Now that they were about to leave the Vatican, William could hardly wait.
Before long, a metallic clinking sound echoed in the corridor.
Kerson appeared at the doorway, his iron chain still wrapped around his waist, carrying a cloth bag on his back.
"Sid and the others aren't with you?" William asked.
Kerson shook his head: "We haven't seen each other since dropping off your things yesterday. Maybe they are still on their way."
Thus, the two could only continue to wait.
But gradually, William felt a bit puzzled. Logically speaking, these two days should be a peak period for Priest Order squads departing for missions. Why were they the only two people here?
Just as he was about to ask, a figure appeared at the doorway.
"Bishop Roshu, what brings you here?" Kerson's tone was surprised.
Ambo smiled slightly: "I have been commissioned by the Holy See to deliver sealing instruments to the squads heading out for fieldwork."
As he spoke, he produced a wooden box. Opening it revealed a metal crucifix inside.
"This is a Reliquary. A special sealing magic array is inscribed on it, capable of restraining the power of formidable evil entities."
William looked at the wooden box. The item was exquisitely crafted; its surface indeed bore many special runes and exuded a pulse of Holy Light power.
"Once you find the evil entities, you must seal them inside. Only then can you ensure the materials aren't polluted."
Hearing this, a look of confusion flashed in William's eyes. Do evil entities even need to be polluted... those things were never clean to begin with, right?
However, Kerson beside him didn't show any abnormal reaction; it seemed this was common practice within the Priest Order.
"Because the danger level of commissions has suddenly spiked, the Reliquaries distributed this time have been blessed with a secret art, allowing them to unleash three times their usual power," Ambo continued.
"But this power can only be released once, so please remember, only use it when you have truly located the evil entity."
Seeing the two carefully stow away the Reliquary, his tone shifted.
"Alright, you two should hurry and set off. Don't miss your flight."
"We still have three teammates who haven't arrived."
Hearing this, Ambo lightly tapped his forehead: "Apologies, did no one inform you? This is my oversight."
William raised an eyebrow.
"Innocent, Sid, and Calvin. Due to a temporary reassignment by the Holy See, these three Holy Clergy Members will not be able to participate in this commission."
William frowned slightly; this came rather suddenly.
"Oh, Lord be praised, it's fantastic that guy Innocent isn't coming." Kerson, on the other hand, looked entirely relieved.
"Bishop Kerson, I'm still standing right here..." Ambo laughed helplessly.
The two immediately began teasing Innocent, the atmosphere seeming very relaxed.
"Is this kind of thing also common..." William's gaze was full of doubt; he just felt there were too many sudden changes within the Priest Order.
"Father William," Ambo suddenly spoke up.
"You must have heard some rumors, but Lord Jolan surely had his reasons for making such an arrangement. Your performance in the Land of the Holy War was obvious to all. I believe you are much more suited for the Vice Commander position than I am."
Looking into the other party's sincere eyes, William was genuinely somewhat surprised.
He had expected some cliché "forced provocation" trope to play out. But since the other party showed such magnanimity, William naturally wouldn't deliberately look for trouble.
Therefore, he said, "I personally also have some reservations about this decision. Once this commission is over, I will go speak with His Excellency again."
Ambo smiled slightly: "Your humility is admirable. May the Lord bless you both."
William also drew a cross on his chest.
Subsequently, the two bid farewell to Ambo and left the Priest Order's headquarters.
After they were gone, the corners of Ambo's mouth slowly dropped, his face turning exceptionally placid. After waiting for another moment, he vanished into the corridor.
A day later.
Northwest Tokyo, Nerima Ward.
A taxi pulled up to the curb, and William and Kerson opened the doors and stepped out...
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