Chosen One

In the center of the barren forest, turbulent remnants of magic permeated the scorched earth.

Celia watched Ansu with concern as he continued to speak to the empty air.

"That demon... has it still not disappeared? Ansu, what exactly does it want?"

Ansu gently squeezed her hand and spoke calmly to Zak-Eos, "Demon, are you saying that if I don't ask for your help, Freya will die?"

"Of course!" Zak-Eos's laughter slowly echoed. "That clergyman has already developed an intent to kill; no one can stop a transcendent powerhouse capable of performing God-Descent!"

"I have not only foreseen her end but yours as well. Every mage here will die under the holy light! The Goddess will purify everything, and all of you will be turned to ashes!"

Just as the demon finished speaking, Ansu noticed several flashes of blinding holy light from the direction of Maplewood Town.

To buy him time, Freya had already begun her battle with Seance.

Seeing this, the demon's voice continued to urge him, "Hurry! Ansu, you have no more time to hesitate!"

In the next moment, a scene of the future suddenly surged before Ansu's eyes.

The holy light descended, the power of a deity 'purifying' everything in sight.

Including himself, Freya... Celia, and even every cult executor, all were struggling in agony. Finally, their figures dissolved under the intense light, turning into pools of crimson blood...

"Sign the contract and offer me more souls, and you will obtain the power to turn everything around."

"Only I can save you!"

The vision vanished, and the demon's whispers echoed in his ears. Ansu subconsciously glanced at Celia.

Celia did not know what the demon had said; seeing his strange expression, she blinked in confusion.

Ansu pondered for a moment before letting out a scoff.

To pull off a scam, the demon had even started fabricating illusions.

If Zak-Eos had only said Freya would die, Ansu might have let his worry cloud his judgment and almost believed it... but it had just told him that Seance would kill both him and Celia together?

That was simply nonsense.

Anyone here could die, but Celia was the exception; in one of the simulations, she had even tanked God-Descent while carrying him away from the Church's pursuit.

The demon's little trick was no different from "Buy now or you'll miss out forever!"

Ansu did not answer the demon and even stopped paying attention to it entirely.

He asked Celia, "Has Vera been safely evacuated?"

Celia paused for a moment then nodded. "Your sister has already left Maplewood Town. Don't worry, she has her teacher by her side."

"And the cult executors?"

Celia continued, "Before the Church's people arrived, David had already successfully evacuated them. The executors will disguise themselves as townspeople leaving and eventually meet at the Black Forest stronghold in the north."

Ansu breathed a sigh of relief. "I'll contact Freya immediately. We should leave too."

Celia looked at Ansu with confusion. "Are you... not planning to get rid of this demon?"

Although she could not see the demon, she keenly sensed a cold, prying gaze lingering around them.

"No need to pay it any mind." Ansu shook his head. As long as he didn't fall for the tricks or make a deal with the demon, it would have no chance to harm humans.

"Heh... fine!"

Perhaps because of Ansu's continuous ignoring, the demon finally lost all patience, its voice suddenly turning ice-cold.

"I admit defeat! I didn't expect to encounter such a difficult prey today... Ansu, you win!"

Ansu raised an eyebrow. This fellow finally decided to stop performing.

"However..." Zak-Eos said gloomily, "I have been asleep for so long; how can you just dismiss me so easily after calling me forth? Since you are unwilling to sacrifice others, then..."

That cold, prying sensation felt like maggots on a bone. Celia looked around warily and immediately gripped Ansu's hand tightly.

"Ansu... something isn't right. What did that demon say to you now?"

The demon's whisper came again.

"Your soul looks quite delicious too!"

The demon laughed darkly. "A mere human, thinking they can walk away unscathed after provoking us demons? I will carve a mark deep into your soul and treat you as my reserve food!"

"One day, when you encounter a problem you cannot solve, you will think of me... at that time, you will sell your soul, hahaha..."

Although the demon's tone was incredibly sinister, in the next second, just as it was about to peer into the depths of Ansu's soul, it suddenly let out a cry of confusion.

"Hmm? Wait..."

"Why... you are clearly a mage, yet you have a mark of holy light?"

"Could it be that you are also a God-Awakened of the Church of Holy Light? Just like that lover of yours? No... how could black magic and holy light coexist in one body? This is too strange!"

"Oh?" Ansu also felt a bit of curiosity upon hearing this.

Because of the demon Zak-Eos, this was the first time he had examined himself from a soul level.

So he actually had the talent to learn Holy Light divine arts? Perhaps this was because... of his status as the Chosen One?

Actually, for so long, despite holding this title, Ansu had never truly felt any miracles.

Freya could sometimes even see divine revelations in her dreams, yet he had no special sensations at all. Sometimes he even felt that the 'Chosen One' was just a setting for a 'player,' a status to fit into the world-building, and that the Goddess herself would not personally guide him...

But looking at it now...

There was indeed concrete evidence proving that a certain connection existed between him and the holy light.

As the demon peered deeper, its tone became even more astonished. "You... who exactly are you? Why does the depth of your soul possess..."

Before it could finish, pure holy light suddenly erupted from within Ansu.

"Ansu!?" Celia cried out in alarm, noticing that Ansu's eyes were gradually losing focus and his entire body was enveloped in an increasingly intense white light.

A bad premonition surfaced in her heart.

This scene was also the first time Celia had witnessed the connection between Ansu and the holy light with her own eyes, making her gaze incredibly complex.

She felt afraid.

Afraid that after this scene, the holy light would snatch Ansu from her hands and force him back to his original destiny...

On the other side, Ansu's perception was instantly elevated to infinity, and he felt as though he had arrived in a vast, boundless world of pure white.

At the same time, the demon's prying was like a tide hitting a reef, instantly shattering.

The divine power dispelled all darkness with an overwhelming force.

Zak-Eos let out a painful roar, but soon, its voice came to an abrupt halt...

In Ansu's consciousness, where only a pure white mental space remained, a warm, soft voice filled with compassion suddenly spoke.

"My Chosen Agent, my selected one..."

"This is a world marching toward its end."

"Listen to the wailing of all things, witness the eternal night that is about to shroud everything..."

Ansu's thoughts momentarily froze, and he then realized that this scene and these lines...

Were clearly the opening cinematic of 《Sword of Evernight》!

The Chosen One selected by a deity, listening to a divine decree, burdened with a world-saving mission, descending into this peril-filled world...

"Even if hope is as fleeting as a candle in the wind..."

"Please lift your sword, ignite that sole spark, and purify this world eroded by darkness."

"Chosen One, gather your companions."

"It is time..."

The warm and soft female voice continued. The initial lines were the same as in Ansu's memory.

But it was this final sentence...

As he listened, he began to frown.