Chapter 355 Cap 354: Prayer To The Dead(Chapter Preview)

It was strange when I saw Érica and Freya entering accompanied by a woman with clothes similar to those of the enemy, the strangest thing was when the woman stared at me before kneeling down and lowering her head towards me.

"(Who is this woman.)" (I)

Before I can say anything Vanessa looks at her as confused as I am at first, but then seems to notice something and walks over to this woman's front.

"I am Vanessa, Daughter of Zenos and Priestess of the Blood Goddess, Selene."  (Vanessa)

"Raise your head and present your blood believer name."  (Vanessa)

"My name is Lilian, daughter of Gabriela, servant of the Black Empire and devout believer in the Goddess of Blood."  (Lilian)

"I kneel before Priestess Vanessa and ask for her blessings."  (Lilian)

"May my blood light your way in Selene's name."  (Vanessa)

"..." (I)

Suddenly something like a religious ritual started in front of me, in front of me with Vanessa introducing herself before the woman also introduced herself.

After that Vanessa pulls out a knife cuts her fingertip and smears her blood on the woman's forehead, Vanessa's blood briefly glows before being absorbed into the woman's body.

"But how...?"  (Érica)

Soon purple smoke comes out of the woman's body, for some reason Érica is surprised by something about it.

"Stand up, Lillian."  (Vanessa)

"Yes, Priestess Vanessa."  (Lilian)

"Can you explain to me what's going on, Vanessa?"  (I)

"I can, Father."  (Vanessa)

"As a Priestess recognized by Goddess Selene herself, I can know if someone has a Goddess blessing on their bodies, I can also know if they are Goddess believers, I can feel their faith in their Auras."  (Vanessa)

So this woman is a believer of the Goddess Selene, she also spoke earlier about being the servant of a Black Empire.

"(Is she not part of this extremist faction?)" (I)

I couldn't make a decision about her right now, we still have a lot to do, so I'll try to wait a bit before dealing with this woman.

"Is this woman trustworthy?"  (I)

"Yes, she won't dare do anything against me or you Father."  (Vanessa)

"Then don't worry, alright Lilian?"  (Vanessa)

"Yes, Priestess Vanessa."  (Lilian)

"I trust you Vanessa, but just in case I want Diana and Layla to stay close to this woman for now."  (I)

I trust Vanessa, but I won't take any chances with someone so suspicious we've just met.

"< Cure > ×2" (Vanessa)

"< Blood Empowerment >" (Vanessa)

I drink a few bottles of blood while Vanessa heals me so I'm able to stand on my own, I still feel very weak but at least I can walk on my own.

"I feel a little better now, thanks Vanessa."  (I)

"We should go back now."  (Freya)

"Before we go back we have one thing to do."  (I)

"Before we didn't have time because of the extremists being invoked, but now that we've dealt with them we can do that."  (I)

"What are you thinking of doing now, master?"  (Diana)

"The people of this town are dead, we weren't able to save them."  (I)

"This isn't our fault."  (Sophia)

"I know it's not our fault, but it's still sad that so many people are dying for no reason."  (I)

"The least we can do is pray that they at least rest in peace."  (I)

"Vanessa, you are the only Priestess we have, can you do that?"  (I)

"I'm glad to do that, the teachings of the Goddess Selene say we should pray for the innocent bloodshed."  (Vanessa)

"So we'll do it now, the town square is the best place for that as it's in the center of town."  (I)

Everyone followed me to the center of the square that was not far from where we were, arriving there I let Vanessa go ahead as she will know what to do, I don't know how people in this world pray for the dead.

Vanessa steps forward and cuts her own hand letting her blood flow.

"I am Vanessa Blood Priestess, I use my blood to cleanse those who lost their lives in this city, I use my blood to guide them to their next life."  (Vanessa)

"Today I pray to the great Goddess Selene to watch over those who are gone and judge those who misused her gift."  (Vanessa)

"May the innocent receive the gift of the Goddess in their next lives."  (Vanessa)

"May those who have committed crimes to be judged by their name, may crimes be paid for in blood."  (Vanessa)

"Today I let my blood flow along with the blood of the innocent."  (Vanessa)

Vanessa nods her head showing that we should follow what she just did so I use my own claws to slash my palms and see everyone else doing the same even the Rogue by the name of Lilian.

"Today I let my blood flow along with the blood of the innocent."  (I)

"Today I let my blood flow along with the blood of the innocent."  (All)

After letting a few drops of my blood fall I feel a little better like a weight has been lifted off my back.

I know it wasn't my responsibility to save this city, I also know that it wasn't me who killed the people of this city, but this was the first time I saw genocide like this, these people didn't even have the opportunity to fight or flee.

All I could do was pray that they would find peace in the world after death.

"With that, we end the ceremony of the dead."  (Vanessa)

"Let's head towards the mansion that Freya talked about earlier."  (I)

"I was there before, I will guide you there."  (Vanessa)

Vanessa guides us all to the mansion, on the way I could see how this city had been destroyed by our battle, everything was a mess and there were bodies everywhere.

After everything that has happened to me in this world, I feel how much I have changed, a moment ago I was sad about the death of the innocent in this city, but now seeing the bodies of the enemies that the people next to me killed with my help, I almost don't feel anything.

As much as I don't like to admit it, I've changed, but I still can't know if for better or worse, maybe I'll never be able to answer this question myself, all I can do is keep walking down this path that with every choice I make is the best possible and with the hope that the person I will become is not a heartless monster.

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After I arrived at the mansion I saw the several wounded, they were resting with bandages on the wounds, I also saw Irina and Lyra talking on a couch.

I greet everyone as I go to a dining room that has a table big enough for everyone to sit down.

"The others should take a while to get here."  (I)

"In the meantime let's hear more about you Lilian, who are you?"  (I)

For some reason this woman didn't stop looking at me the entire way, she didn't say anything before because her gaze didn't seem to be malicious, but that was already starting to bother me.

"First of all thank you for keeping me alive until now, I've said this before to the Demon woman who captured me, but I'm not part of the extremist group."  (Lilian)

"Why would I believe you? As far as I know you were summoned along with them and your clothes bear the same symbols."  (I)

"I was a spy who has been infiltrating their organization for the past 50 years, I have served the Black Empire for over 800 years."  (Lilian)

She claims to be a spy, plus she seems to be the undercover type, that means she's good at lying and manipulating people, I must be careful.

"What is the Black Empire?"  (I)

"The Black Empire is the oldest and largest nation on the Dark Continent."  (Lilian)

"Why were you undercover among these extremists?"  (I)

"Perhaps you don't know, but many extremist groups on the Dark Continent, no matter how many are eliminated, in a few years others appear."  (Lilian)

"The biggest reason for this is that there are always Demons who hate humans, or worship some Heretic God, or have a lot of greed wanting to usurp the throne of some nation, etc."  (Lilian)

"Most of them are weak organizations with little influence, they are eliminated as soon as they are discovered, but there are also organizations that manage to hide well while they spread."  (Lilian)

"This organization has a leader who left the Dark Continent 50 years ago with a plan that few people in the organization knew about."  (Lilian)

"Because of that I couldn't do anything but wait until the summon symbol on my body started to glow and I was brought here."  (Lilian)

"If you're a spy as you say, then why are you telling your secrets so easily?"  (I)

"I've always been a blood believer, I would never lie in front of a Priestess like Miss Vanessa."  (Lilian)

I look at her as I try to see through what she's telling me, I want to know if what she says is true or if she's lying to me, I want to know if she's telling me everything.

Then I look at Vanessa wondering if what Lilian has said so far makes sense.

"She really is a blood believer, she is even someone with a strong faith in the Goddess, she even has a blessing from the Goddess Selene."  (Vanessa)

"What she said about lying in front of me is more a custom of those who believe in some God, if you believe that lying to a priest is the same as lying to God, moreover telling the truth to a priest demonstrates your sincerity and faith."  (Vanessa)

"For someone with a faith like hers, I imagine that even if she wanted to, she wouldn't dare lie in front of me, but she could keep silent and say nothing."  (Vanessa)