Bai Xuan looked up at Phoebe. She was still her usual self, her golden eyes quietly gazing back at him.
The golden light grew increasingly dazzling, and a notification immediately popped up on his status panel:
【Contract Successful!】
【Phoebe Xi】
【Class: None Lv.3】
【Race: Glay Royalty】
【Life: 340/340】
【Mana: 90/130】
【Trait: Emotional Resonance】
Combat Skills:
【Unyielding Bastion Lv.2 (66%): Defense is vastly increased.】
Passive Skills:
【Strength Enhancement Lv.3 (68%)】
【Potential: 5-Star (Skycrown)】
【Subordinate Contract:
Subordinate kills also yield Pleasure and EXP.
Shared EXP (minor EXP bonus).
Consume Mental Strength to transmit messages.
Allows borrowing one skill from each other.】
Bai Xuan looked at the information on the panel, then looked back up at Phoebe, unable to help but chuckle.
So Phoebe's passive skill was Strength Enhancement, and it had already reached Level 3. No wonder she could easily lift that heavy battleaxe.
At this thought, Bai Xuan reached out and gently patted Phoebe's head.
Phoebe did not dodge. Instead, she leaned in slightly and rubbed against his palm, a fleeting trace of shyness flashing in her eyes.
“Let's go.”
Bai Xuan withdrew his hand and turned to walk in the direction of the dungeon.
Phoebe followed closely behind with light steps, her black skirt swaying gently with her stride.
...
Calais Town's church was located in the center of the Inner Town, its grayish-white stone walls covered with lush green ivy.
The crucifix atop the spire shone brilliantly in the morning sun, gleaming with a holy golden light.
Today was the Church's Inspection Day. By custom, the Church would send an inspection envoy to hear reports from each church.
Many townspeople had also gathered to attend the Mass, and the square outside the church was already packed with people.
Jesse and his guards, dressed in plain clothes, blended into the crowd.
Although they had daggers hidden at their waists, their faces looked no different from those of ordinary townspeople as they secretly observed the movements inside the church.
Halfway through the Mass, Father Clement stood before the altar, reciting the prayers in a resonant, bell-like voice.
He was around fifty years old, with a benevolent face and an expression filled with “holiness.”
However, his gaze occasionally drifted toward Edmund in the back row of the church. The holy chalice in his hand was slightly tilted, the dark red wine sloshing gently within.
Edmund sat on the bench in the very back row, his eyes fixed on Clement from beginning to end, not letting a single subtle movement slip past.
Once the prayers were finished, Clement was about to announce the end of the Mass when Edmund slowly stood up.
His bench creaked softly under him, prompting several townspeople in the front rows to instinctively look back.
“Father, please wait,” Edmund said. His voice was not loud, but it carried clearly throughout the entire church.
The smile on Clement's face stiffened for a fraction of a second before quickly returning to normal.
“Lord Edmund, do you have any instructions?”
Edmund did not walk up to the altar. He simply stood where he was, his voice suddenly rising to ensure every townsperson present could hear him.
“I have no instructions. I only have a few matters I would like you to explain clearly, Father, in front of all the townspeople.”
As he spoke, he drew the secret letter from his breast pocket and held it high above his head.
Seeing this, a man who looked like a merchant in the back row panicked and quietly took a step toward the exit.
“This letter was written by you to the Cross family, wasn't it?”
Edmund's gaze locked onto Clement.
“The seal and signature on it are both your doing. Do you dare deny it?”
“You helped the Cross family delay dealing with the pollution in the mining area. How many miners did you cause to die?”
“You helped cover for their informants and sold Calais Town's confidential intelligence to our enemies. Is all of this true?”
As his words fell, the church plunged into a sudden, dead silence.
The townspeople exchanged looks, their faces filled with shock and disbelief, and quiet murmurs gradually began to rise.
Clement's face instantly darkened, and his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.
The holy chalice in his hand wobbled, spilling a few drops of dark red wine onto the white cloth of the altar, resembling striking splatters of blood.
“Lord Edmund, this is slander!” Clement suddenly raised his voice, attempting to mask his panic.
“As a priest of the Church, I pray wholeheartedly for the townspeople and have no connection with the Cross family. Do not spit venom and make baseless accusations!”
“Slander?”
Jesse walked out from the other side of the crowd, holding a stack of receipts.
“Then what about these? These are your private accounts outside of town. The smallest transaction is for a hundred gold coins.”
“As a priest, where did you get so much unaccounted money?”
Clement's face grew darker and darker. He stared at the receipts in Jesse's hand, his lips trembling a couple of times, before he suddenly let out a low laugh.
The laughter grew louder and louder, eventually turning into a hysterical, wild cackle. The corners of his eyes twitched uncontrollably, giving him a hideous and terrifying appearance.
“Edmund, you think you can catch me with just this?”
He took two steps back, pulled a yellowed scroll from the sleeve of his robe, and tore it open.
“Today, no one is leaving this place!”
The scroll instantly burst into a blinding white light, transforming into a barrier of light that enveloped the area around the altar.
Golden runes flowed continuously along the edges of the barrier, keeping Clement firmly protected within.
“Calais Town isn't the only place where your White family has people!”
He raised the gem-encrusted staff in his hand, and the tip lit up with a soft yet eerie white light.
“Come out, all of you!”
No sooner had his voice fallen than over twenty men in plain clothes rushed out from the side halls on both sides of the church.
Each of them held a sharp weapon, their expressions fierce and brutal.
They were all hidden operatives planted in Calais Town by the Cross family, who had long lurked in the church under the guise of believers, and now they suddenly launched their attack.
The townspeople screamed in terror and rushed toward the church doors, and the scene instantly devolved into utter chaos.
Edmund waved his hand, and the guards behind him immediately drew their daggers and charged forward fiercely.
The men Jesse had already stationed outside the church now poured in, joining forces with the guards inside the hall.
The White family's guards held the numerical advantage, and they were all Class holders Edmund had recruited with hefty sums.
Their levels were generally above Level 3, and two of them had even reached Level 5.
The sounds of clashing blades, battle cries, and agonizing screams instantly echoed through the church, with blood splattering onto the stone floor.
A guard swung his sword and cut down an operative.
The operative's shoulder was slashed open with a wound deep enough to show bone. Blood gushed out, and he looked as though he was on the verge of death.
Clement immediately raised his staff, casting a white light upon the operative. The wound instantly stopped bleeding and began to heal slowly.
Gritting his teeth, the operative climbed up from the ground, picked up his weapon, and charged forward like a madman once more.
However, this single heal also consumed some of Clement's mana, causing his arm to tremble slightly.
After healing several people in succession, Clement's arm shook even more violently, and the white light on his staff was almost on the verge of extinguishing.
He was forced to pull a small vial of mana potion from his belt, biting off the cork and drinking it down in one gulp.
Only then did some color return to his face.
Rate on N.U.
