Chapter 294: The Church of the Edjurl.

Chapter 294: The Church of the Edjurl.

And dont forget, the best loot is always at the bottom of the bandit lair, Sensei!

With the threat of the situation clear to us, it also meant that Daichi couldnt continue inside with us. It was too dangerous for him.

As such, we had to send him back to the subspace with a portal, telling him to inform Hestia about everything and to have her get ready in case we ran into a problem. It would be best if she didnt simply come over here now, otherwise it might blow our cover. Besides, scouting was my duty in Aurora.

Before he left, he handed Grimnir the equipment he was holding onto. Aside from his blasthammer which he had with him all this time, Grimnir also equipped his prototype gauntlets and sabatons. The rest of his attire was his newly made armor made from Hestias scales.

Im sorry the dream isnt done yet, Daichi said, motioning to the still unfinished armor piece and helmet he took out from his storage.

Stop worrying, lad. That project can wait for us later. The lass also needs more time to work on it, so go on and wait for our return. Grimnir patted Ellaines shoulder, causing the latter to feel ashamed at how little time she had to work as an artificer lately.

Yeah, I get it. Still, sorry for being the weakest link. Good luck and come back alive!

And with that, we were four, one shy of the original members of the Aurora.

[In and out. Quick. Lets try not to fight the demonkin contractor if we dont have to. Weve faced worse, so lets do this!] I encouraged everybody as Varya returned with her scouting report.

Cloaking everybody in my [Shadow Armament], we sneaked inside the fort through a blind spot in the sentries she found. Before we entered though, KleaHatma warned us there was a mana barrier surrounding the place and that we should enter the facility with [Shadow Dash].

She might be untrustworthy, but wisdom denied was not smart. After we made it in undetected, we began looking around, where Ellaine noted how a couple of the guards inside looked like the people who came to the grand opening of the bistro and confectionery and were causing a ruckus with their dragon bigotry crap.

[I only arrived there at the end with Tatsuya and Kyouya, but I still remember the guy Hestia humiliated. The tall and burly one.] Ellaine pointed at a man with a greatsword.

This means the Resurrection emblems they had on them on that day were false. Hestia was right, this gang was trying to frame the Resurrection and have us destroy their rival for them. So, is the slave bandit ambush also related to these people?

If so, then we have some talking to do

After we found our way into the stone hideout, Grimnir noted how there probably was a basement around, noting how there was evidence on the stone walls that there was something below the ground floor.

Splitting up was an option here, but it was too risky since we didnt know who our enemies were. We knew there were at minimum two demonic contractors of some kind around after KleaHatma warned us. As a four-man group we were easier to detect than if I was alone, but our fighting potential was higher. Also, it wasnt as if it was that bad if they found us.

Four Auroras were here. I had full trust in our coordination together.

We decided on leaving the upper floors for last, going with Daichis advice despite how I found it too unreliable of a tip. And, what did you know, his intuition was correct.

The ground floor had mostly barracks with a few facilities where the gang members could relax and eat. However, the floor below? An alchemist cave full of people experimenting on slaves with their concoctions and other items. Some of the said items were even manatech, but the most horrendous part was when they transformed a person into the same monster from the slave bandit attack.

Grouuuuuahkkkk!

Ahh, I see Damn, we still cant reproduce Davisons recipe. What the hell are these last two ingredients?

Argh, whatever. We still have enough time to find something to beat out that bitch Resclave. Taking over the guild for her damn fucked up ambition! Not even acknowledging the people bringing in the money!

Hmm? Reajaen is the alchemist guilds master? I placed that information in the back of my head for now, as I was too occupied scowling at what these humans were doing to other members of their race.

The alchemists were absolutely indifferent to the agony and fear they were inflicting on their test subjects. It was absolutely stomach wrenching. I felt disgust lingering in the back of my throat as I watched them perform their cruel acts.

Mhrm! Grimnir suddenly grabbed my arm, surprising me.

When I looked down at what he was pointing at, I noticed black thunder was surrounding my hand. I clenched it into a fist and stopped the mana surging around my arms. I also noticed my eyes were glaring again, emitting red mist. Reflecting on my emotions, I had to admit I wanted to attack them right at this moment.

While I was contemplating on what to do, Ellaine pointed at another entrance at the end of the basements hallway. Sneaking passed all the alchemists and their guards, we went down another set of stairs until KleaHatma warned us to Look out. We instantly readied out weapons.

As we opened the door, the deep booming voice of a man burst right into our ears.

My fellow Olden Money! Long have we waited for our revenge. To enact our grudge onto that wrench Resclave. A random commoner beastmen coming into our country and attempting to ruin us by taking the foundation of our organization down!

A grand hall like a churchs nave could be seen as we opened the door, where seven people were seated at a large round table placed upon a giant wolfs pelt.

Hold on?

I felt Quatre suddenly growling from inside my shadow, but told him to stop. To stay quiet as I inspect the seven humans in the room, each flanked by two guards and an attendant of sorts.

Four of them were wearing gaudy-looking golden suits with jewelry and other accessories to flaunt their incredible wealth. While most of the men at the table were built leanly, there was one I wasnt able to take my eyes away from as he gorged himself on a ton of pastries like a pig.

Today, our order has received another message! that very man announced. A stain on our masters glory was inflicted in Artorias, land of the Griffons. He has called for us to prepare for war. As such, it has become paramount that we retrieve our masters gift from the damn beastmen! His orb of power that they have stolen from us. Our scouts have confirmed it is hidden in a village east of here!

And then the bomb dropped.

Our master has sent us help! A help most wanted. Please, welcome with me our war power! Sir HeeRlak!

And from a room, a person with red skin and bright yellow hair appeared. With red eyes looking like life was unappealing to him, he shuffled into the room with little to no enthusiasm.

Our very own demonkin of wrath.

I took out my daggers out of instinct.

Mhmm. Grimnir grabbed my arm and I shook him off. I gave him a thumbs-up, gesturing to him that I wouldnt be attacking them just yet. There was still information to be gained and we still havent found the stuff from the Resurrection.

I just wanted the others to get their guards up. One of the targets KleaHatma warned us about was here, and it was the second worst case possible: a demonkin. Why couldnt he only be a demonkin contractor?

The others nodded to me, understanding my intentions. As such, we continued watching with our hands on our armaments. We stared down the balcony we stood on, watching the procedures. Outside of two of the three gaudy-looking senators, all of them were gazing at the red-skinned person with eyes of wonder. The overly obese one was even laughing with joy.

A demonkin of wrath. Who was he?

The demonkin stared at them, sighing after inspecting them before showing his disinterest. For someone encompassing the sin of wrath, he sure was calm. Even his build wasnt what I expected. I imagined a wrath demonkin to be more muscular, like a bodybuilder viking, but this man was lean, like an MMA fighter.

There was an unnerving silence in the air, to the point the demonkin started to look even more bored. He gazed around the room, even glaring at the guards protecting each senator before looking over at the balcony. We didnt move. I was confident he couldnt find us while I was around. And as expected, he didnt react to our presence.

My fellow senators! I have learned from our master that the recent attack on Griffonpeak was a success! Our master, the demonkin prince of pride, took down the Kingdom of Griffons true king! He snapped their wings! the fat man spoke, spitting out pieces of pastry as he chortled while his sycophants clapped. However, in the process, we lost Hamil. Slain by Shaturein. As you might have noticed, their pawns are in the process of integrating themselves into our beautiful city! No more, I say! For when we become Estralias rulers, we need naught the plague of another country!

Did Hamil really die? I thought he escaped according to Tasianna and Pestrodus.

What about the saintess, Senator OBloom?'' One of the others brought up, confirming for us that the fat one was Senator OBloom. She might be dead, but the Empire still hadnt taken its move. Do our masters have a problem in Folschreck?

Nay, Senator Plymeir. Our masters managed to slay multiple blessed of the Light Goddess, but controlling the damn heroes without them noticing has been a problem. Damn otherworldly brats!

My eyes widened. Blessed? Slain? As in saints and champions of Aurena were murdered in the Empire? If that was the case, then maybe this was the reason for Aurenas silence to Hestias questions? If so, then this was starting to look bad.

Then how are we supposed to attack Artorias then? another senator asked. Outside of ourselves, the other countries Master Envy tried to cajole to our side have been unsuccessful. Our masters other pawns are imbeciles. Unable to rise in power like us.

Oh? OBloom stopped eating, grinning with a mocking frown. Like us? Ha! Senator Urlandor. You must be jesting! You and Senator Plymeir were fortunate to have me sponsor you, otherwise your brothers wives would have taken over the senator roles of your houses. Without me, you would have never known the grace of our master. If I hadnt approached you, you two would have turned into mere fodder once our masters gift us Estralia to rule.

Gahaha! One of the less gaudy senators laughed out loud as his right arm began to turn into what looked like Ellaines [Claw]. He bashed the table with that arm, showcasing it to the shocked Plymeir and Urlandor. The gifts of our masters. In this place, its not your wealth that matters, but your faith in our masters. Your loyalty! Our order has been here before the two of you joined to get revenge on the Resurrection.

[Aho, my blood is in him] KleaHatma noted. [I guess its similar to that Charleslyt boy. Instead of forming a contract or pact, someone just injected my blood into him. Not a very good alternative if you want to stay human. Or sane.]

[Its what Goddess Kronnaz wanted to warn me about. The more I used Kleas abilities, the more Im prone to fall into her sin,] Ellaine added. [If five out of the seven senators were similar to that person, then we have one demonkin and five with demonkin blood inside them.]

I frowned. That still wasnt ideal at all. We were outnumbered, and the laughter of the senators sounded to me as if they were mocking us, despite it being directed at Senator Plymeir and Urlandor. The two named senators could only look at their colleagues in shame and fear.

Regardless! Soon you may join us, though OBloom showed a greedy smile at the two men, twisting his body like a beast eyeing its prey. However, before that can happen, we must first acquire what is needed for the future. Our invasion of Artorias will happen soon, but first, our master, the demonkin prince of envy, requests us to hand his orb back. We must reacquire it from that damn Resclave!

The attention then shifted to Plymeir, who gulped as he took out a sheet of parchment. As mentioned, my spies managed to look into the situation in that beastman village. The orb is definitely there, hidden inside a dungeon created from all the onnikai.

Ah? Fighting a dungeon with its master around might be difficult. Hire as many black mercenaries as possible. I heard there are a few former Yanderu members around after the local group broke apart, right? Send your messengers with pouches full of coins! OBloom announced.

Senator OBloom. One of the lower senators raised his arm. What about that dragon princess? Have you forgotten about the news we received?

Aye, never! She and Resclave are currently our most problematic issues. A champion of Aurena, I heard from my contacts. That she fought against the creatures there and also possibly responsible for the death of the hero who killed that saintess. He threw his jam-filled bread on the table, looking too irritated to continue eating. The Church of the Edjurl cannot falter. We will succeed and become beings beyond humans. Once the demonkins have conquered the world and the Edjurl gods rid Peolynca of the Origin Gods, we of the chosen elite shall rule the world. The world will be back in the hands of its inhabitants!

I didnt understand what they were talking about. Grant themselves freedom by getting rid of the Origin Gods? What is that supposed to mean? Wouldnt the Edjurl gods or some tyrannical demonkin prince just take over? In all of history, when there was a power vacuum, some god would appear to goad the people to put him on the throne.

Louis XIV, the sun king, had a megalomaniac personality and thought he was the God of France simply because his advisors led him down the correct path to secure his control as king. Robespierre of the French Revolution took down Louis XVI to liberate the common man from the nobles and rich, only to fall into the delusions of a tyrant while trying to bring out his ideal republic. A path of blood was his legacy with the first usage of the guillotine.

Sir HeeRlak! OBloom called out to the dozing demonkin, waking him up before he fell on the ground. What say you? We have many enemies of your master in this city. Not only must we regain the orb, but there is a person here who managed to kill a demonkin, weakened after he defeated one of the blessed! You must wish revenge!

Hrmm He looked sleepy before speaking in a demotivated voice. Whatever. USkaie knew the risks and still managed to fulfill one goal. Lord Pride is probably happy about it. I dont know why you humans are glorifying us demonkins so much, anyways. Cool, he killed one of our top enemies. Hell go down in history, or whatever. Not like I knew him or something.

Is he really a demonkin of wrath?

The mood dampened as the demonkin showed no interest in their scheming. Instead of continuing their interactions with him, they turned back to their original plan, talking about how their attack would happen in a week. They needed time to gather the necessary mercenaries and bodies. Afterwards, they would attack the Resclaves mansion and beastman village.

They also talked about attacking us and Hestia, but quickly understood doing that wouldnt be good since it would invite retribution from the various dragonkin. As such, they decided it would be better to go for their plan B drive Hestia out through dissent from the people.

Attacking anybody from the Aurora would only bring about political drama, but theyve learned from their spies and rumors in Artorias that Hestia was more kind-hearted than they initially thought. As such, to defeat somebody that was nice, it was best to stay in the shadows and manipulate people to vilify her. To make her unwanted.

They planned that bigotry moment during the grand opening of our pastry shop and bistro by specifically buying out mercenaries who had bad experiences with wyverns or any dragonkin. There were already quite a few humans who only thought of beastmen as lesser people or slaves in this city. Narrow-minded, I must say.

To the senators, the money theyve earned in this city was meant for this moment. In a week's time, the people theyve hired to come to Gleisvale to launch another propaganda movement would arrive. They knew Hestia supported Artorias from the dinner, as she had pleasant interactions with King Drangleic and his dukes. They didnt want her to get her claws around their city.

How boring the demonkin complained as he left the room with a loud yawn. In the perfect moment, too, as the senators were done with their attack plans and were now discussing how to control the senate.

However, that was more than we thought we would learn today. We now knew even more people were associates of the demonkin and that this group was even working with the prince of envy, the one posing as the pope.

The Church of the Edjurl was a name not even Muraina knew about, and if this was a proper secretive organization, then this might become a real threat if humans actually supported the demonkin. Like moss or a fungus slowly destroying the foundation of a building. This was probably part of the rot Aurena was talking about.

They eventually also talked about the loot they got from the Resurrection base and how the attack on the slave auction was meant to retrieve all of that in addition to saving the slaves. Apparently, the Resurrection has been targeting any place where beastmen were sold, evident of how the street auction I saw was so heavily monitored.

Once the discussion went to what they would do with the loot, we managed to learn the location of it. Second floor, in the storage room. I could probably assassinate the senators right now, but Tasianna told me we shouldnt with the demonkin around.

Quatre protested, of course, since his pelt was right in front of us. I also thought getting rid of the problem now was better than waiting for later. Still, I acquiesced. I didnt want take the gamble of appraising the demonkins status now, since we didnt know if he had countermeasures. No information, no go.

[Identity Blocker Lv. 5] [Terror Aura Lv. 6]

[Battle Mind Lv. 8] [Dismantle Lv. 8]

Ability List:

Unarmed:

[Warbringers Body] [Bloodreapers Tearing] [Power Punch]

[Emotion Surge]

Elemental Meisterweapons:

[Myriad Slasher] [Hammer of the Elements] [Flashdrive Ever-Piercer]

[Shield of Lions Bane]

Spell List:

Custom Spells:

[Create Flame]

Fire Spells:

[Fire] [Firebolt] [Imbue Fire] [Fire Ball] [Strengthening Flame]

[People, meet your first demonkin of wrath. The sin of the unending anger. The everliving emotion that can drive even the sanest people into insanity.] KleaHatmas voice echoed through our heads as the four of us looked at each other, already forming a plan on how to fight him. [The power of the demon of wrath is their uncontrollable emotions. Calm and collective at its lowest, but all-consuming once they reached their peak. Their racial ability is to manifest their mana into elemental weapons. Only one element can be chosen, and this one chose fire as his companion for life.]

Emotion SurrrrrrrgGEEEEEEE!

Mana exploded around him like an aura, creating a wind pressure as his hair began to flare up and grow in length, starting to look like a stream of fire once it reached its maximum length. The four horns grew in size and twisted into the forms of shotels, shining a bright orange. Another set of eyes opened up at his forehead, moving around the area as they adjusted to everything.

Hammer! He cried out before stomping the ground. That outburst showed the most emotions Ive ever heard from this person.

[Do not allow him to reach 100% with all three of his emotions. At that point, even if hes not a Prince of Sin, this demonkin could prove too much for the four of you to fight.]

Identify!

Effects: [Excited: 61%] [Anger: 0%] [Fear: 12%]

My name is HeeRlak! An apprentice of the third Warbringer of Lord Wrath! To honor Master VifiYoks name, as her squire I shall grant you a glorious battle and honorable defeat! We reap, to water the blood lilies!

Now, its time to die, asshole! Humanization!

AhrwooOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH!

A note from AbyssRaven

The pin is rolling, it is time for this arc to get moving. Time for Saori, Tasianna, Ellaine, and Grimnir to fight against a demonkin and his bandit allies!

If you guys want to support me, Hestia and "A Dragon Idol's Reincarnation Tale" (or just read up to 20 advance chapters + any Patreon-only chapters) please check out my Patreon: Rawr!

For two dollars, for the cost of a coffee, you can read up to four chapters for the whole month! You will have my eternal gratitude for any support you can give me! Please.

Thank you for reading this chapter.

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1 Fictions 7 Posts 1 Threads

Tuesday, May 3, 2022 12:11:11 AM Germany [Member of Zard Skwad]

Bio: Hey there, AbyssRaven here. I'm just an avid Light Novel and Fantasy story reader who randomly thought of a story and began writing about it.

I eventually found out that I've been spending a bit too much time with building, planning, and researching for the story, that I've decided to just share it with others.

Writing is mostly a hobby for me, but I would still love any kind of criticism to improve on it.

I'm also german, so please excuse anything that sounds a bit weird...I wouldn't mind you pointing it out though.

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