“Unem… What have you done?”

Mita was shocked by the actions of her colleague. That was an attack with the intention to kill. She and the other valkut people didn't even bat an eye at involving the hostage in Viers’ hand or other collateral.

They were still in the city. The attack of a Level 4 and tens of Level 3s simultaneously was a significant force. The area surrounding Viers was reduced to a cloud of smoke and smithereens.

“Paina–!” Rose screamed in a panic.

“Th-this is…”

“What is going on?”

The rest of the Silver Legion had no idea either. But the Valkut forces, the original residents such as Unem, Archie, Hubert, and their subordinates, cold-bloodedly launched a killing blow. Even Archie, who was serving House Wright, didn't hesitate to involve Pinaca.

All to stop Viers from taking a peek at her soul.

“Aaaaahh!”

“My leg, my leg!!”

“S-someone help! My brother is bleeding!”

“Mommy! Wake up!!”

Civilians were involved in the destruction. It happened in the blink of an eye.

“W-we should help them,” Wendy said, seeing a child shaking the body of his mother. Only half of her remained.

“R-right…”

The Silver Legionaries were shaken but their first thought was to aid the people.

“No!” Damon stopped them by extending his arm.

“But-”

“Captain’s orders! Stand down!” Damon invoked his authority. After Mita, he was next in the chain of command. As the leader, it was his duty to keep his cool and make the rational decision.

This was a highly unusual situation. Moving carelessly was most unwise.

The smoke cleared a little with the wind and Viers’ form was revealed. He, Pinaca, and Paina were uninjured because of the protective barrier surrounding them.

Wordlessly, Viers starred daggers at Unem.

“He’s still alive. Second volley!”

Unem raised her hand as a signal, the Valkut forces obeyed her command without question even though they belonged to different camps.

Mita wouldn't tolerate it any more.

“You’re not Unem,” Mita said threateningly. “Who are you?”

Mita had conjured a small bell in her hand. She emitted a fierce fighting spirit.

“What are you talking about, Mita? I am Unem. I have not changed since the day we met.”

Mita almost believed her. All her senses told her that this Unem was not a fake.

“Then you’re being controlled. Let me help you.”

“I’m not, so it is unnecessary.”

At that moment, Viers made a mad dash. He had no intention of watching the cutscene, not when time was a luxury he couldn't afford. The longer he stayed here, the more pursuers would come.

“Don't let him escape!” Unem commanded the two priests that came with her, priests Baker and Moloney. Archie and Hubert said similar things to their men.

Another barrage of Artes streamed through the air like a meteor shower through the night sky but it was less intense than the first one because Mita stopped Unem’s Arte and sent it skyward.

Loud blasts rocked Valkut city once more. Houses broke, streets gouged, fires spread-

And screams.

“You would side with a kidnapper and murderer? How the righteous have fallen,” Unem reproved.

Half of her face was illuminated while the other half was shadowed by the Arte explosion above. It was the same with Mita.

“The Estellian Church condemns Viers’ action in the strongest possible terms. But you have no intention of saving Lady Pinaca. Even going so far as to disregard civilian casualties. You have to be stopped!”

Despite her small stature, her aura was gigantic.

“I hoped it would never come to this.” If Unem held any regret, it didn't show on her face. “Arte - Fourth Sky’s Cloud!”

“Arte - Sound Storm!”

The two Level 4s from the Church exhibited their skills in the art of fighting in a spectacular fashion.

***

After shielding her eyes from the dust and light of the second volley of Artes, Ciel tried to ascertain Viers’ condition. As she expected, Viers was fine. Viers’ life-saving treasure was clearly a high-quality one. It even managed to withstand a Level 4’s blow, but the last series of attacks had finally broken it. If the loss of the very valuable magical item bothered Viers in the least, Ciel didn't see it on his face. While Mita and Unem were busy, he tried to break through the encirclement of the Valkut forces and continued to run outside the Hidden Boundary.

As if Fate was playing a joke, the roles were now reversed. Viers was protecting Pinaca from those who wanted to do her harm.

Viers was doing well in his attempt to escape despite being vastly outnumbered and protecting Pinaca. His battle strength slightly awed Ciel. Paina was with them, warding off some of the attacks with skillful water arts.

“Damon, what should we do?” Rachel asked. The rest of the Silver Legion also had the same question. The situation had gone well out of hand.

“Eeeyy!” Damon said frustratedly. “Pursue Viers! Our objective is to take back the hostage!”

“But what about-”

“No buts!” Damon cut Bryan mid-sentence. “To know what’s what, we can't let Viers escape! Rescue the hostage and detain him!”

“Roger!!”

Like professional soldiers, the Legionaries plus Max firmly replied.

“Nonono, stay away!”

“Uaaagh!”

“Heeeelp!”

While the pursuers chased after Viers, they paid no regard to the residents’ well-being.

In just a few minutes since the first Arte came out, the number of victims had exceeded seventy people!

“Goddess’ tears! Silver Legion, protect the innocents!!” Damon’s blood boiled after seeing the atrocity in front of him.

They raced after Viers, participating in a chaotic race.

The Valkut forces couldn't stop Viers. He was too agile and too strong to be stopped even with Archie, Hubert, and the two priests. Even as a Level 3 low Pathseeker, Viers was superior!

Since Mita kept Unem out of the race, the threat to Viers was reduced considerably but against twenty Level 3s, he didn't have it easy either.

That was why he only hesitated slightly before weaving and running through places with many people.

As the common folk fell victim to the attacks from the pursuers wanting Viers and Pinaca dead, the good guys were spurred into action.

Just as he hoped.

When he weighed his life against strangers, he honestly and unashamedly prioritized his own life. He was not like other people who would pick their own life in a crisis but said otherwise in front of others.

A vassal of House Wright was about to release his earth Arte. It was a big one that he had prepared but between him and Viers, there were people running away from the carnage. Viers maneuvered himself so. The man still opted to release his Arte but before he could do so, Ciel swooped down from above, bashing him with her shield.

“Legionary, step aside,” he said.

“Like I can do that! Don't involve innocent people, you idiots!” Ciel shouted while incapacitating him with a smack to the temple.

“Thanks, darling.”

Viers did a flyby and whispered before speeding up again.

As a result, Ciel was fuming.

“Stooop! This is all on you! Release her! Wife-napper! Blackguard! Deceiver! Thief! Villain! Pervert!”

Ciel threw a whip of light which Viers swatted away. She vaulted through obstacles like an Olympic athlete while chasing after Viers and calling him names.

Viers admitted to himself that he was all of them save the last.

Not only Ciel, but the other members also did something similar. The Silver Legion’s ‘assist’ was very helpful. They too tried to slow Viers down by using non-lethal Artes but the three-sided battle benefited him the most.

Viers charged head-on and pierced the Hidden Boundary. Paina followed close by; her ability to fly as a ghost helped tremendously. Everyone else was in hot pursuit.

Unem, the creator of the Hidden Boundary, realized Viers’ exit but it didn't matter.

To the unqualified, meaning ordinary people and weaker Pathseekers, Viers and the others came out from thin air as the explosions, sights, and sounds from inside the Hidden Boundary were unknown to them.

Immediately, Viers expanded his senses to determine the path forward.

…No Level 4s in the vicinity. I must go out of the city before-

An Idler male, not even a Level 0, jumped from the third floor right on top of Viers.

What?

Viers evaded and he landed on his chest, resulting in a medium injury. Before Viers could make sense of what was happening, pedestrians, shop owners, housewives, and many more; Pathseeker and Idlers, male and female, young and old, ordinary people stopped what they were doing, assaulting Viers en masse!

The hell is happening? Is everyone suddenly an assassin like in John Wick?

Within the edge of his vision, he had seen that not truly everyone went after him. They looked as confused as Viers about why someone they knew suddenly changed.

If Viers was a hero, then this swarm tactic might work but Viers was a bona fide villain. He had no qualms using lethal force against the people that attacked him.

“Viers, don't hurt them! They are being controlled against their will,” Rose’s voice entered Viers’ ear.

Even an idiot knows that, but so what!?

He knocked them away using his Victa and jumped to the rooftop, less living obstacles that way.

Or so he thought.

These people behaved like a horde of vicious zombies and kept chasing Viers. They had lost all reason and simply threw themselves at Viers.

The craziness was too much and Viers bolted.

“What the hell is happening…” Max said after seeing the chaos. His sense of normalcy was quickly crumbling down.

***

First, it was hundreds, then it was thousands. They were like zombies from World War Z or other movies. If Viers was a normal human then this would have been it.

Viers had stepped into the realms of the superhumans.

Since there were no Level 4 yet, only the Level 3 drones were somewhat dangerous. The Idlers provided the numbers but they couldn't really stop Viers. He massacred those that barred his way like a hero unit in Musou-type games.

Although, that didn’t mean the mooks were useless. Every drop of Victa that Viers used against them meant less Victa for the truly strong enemies. Still, at this rate, his escape was assured.

Just like xianxia MCs, Viers thrived in a chaotic situation. That was why he muddied the waters. He trained for this, after all.

Heh, doing all those zombie swarm and battlefield simulations in the Grid is so worth it!

Not only because it was fun. It made Viers have first-hand experience in doing battles while escaping.

Fang Yuan, his hero, had been chased like a dog by people stronger than him more times than Viers could count before he achieved ultimate strength.

Not only him, practically every xianxia MC went through something like this.

Sooner or later, Viers would experience it too. So he trained in advance.

Batman’s superpower was his richness.

Viers’ superpower was his genre-savviness.

Even though the situation was far from ideal, since he could still have such thoughts in his mind, Viers wasn't truly desperate yet.

Paina had been recalled. The swarm was too much and she had reservations about killing innocent people. Running solo was better for the current situation.

However, carrying Pinaca was a burden during the chase. Viers couldn't simply throw her away because she was both evidence and key to unlocking the mystery of Valkut. Killing her and putting her in a storage item was out too because he still tried to keep her safe and sound.

What a pain.

***

“Khh! What a savage!” Bryan cursed.

The Legionaries still chased after Viers, stepping on his wake of carnage. A trail of severed body parts and blood.

“Stop it…” Rose was having flashbacks as she saw entrails, lungs, and severed heads. “STOP ALL OF THIS!!!”

The attack came at the moment of Rose’s outburst such that Viers thought it was her doing at the start, but it was not.

It was a spear of gray ash, thrown from an incredible distance. Viers’ eyes widened as he gasped. In the nick of time, he managed to defend himself against it with another life-saving item.

He was able to preserve his life and Pinaca’s but the attack had flung him through walls and objects for almost thirty meters from the force.

Not only did the spear decimate the hundreds of people-turned-drones in his immediate vicinity, but it also made him crash through a family of three pedestrians and involuntarily flatten them. Their blood stained the streets like a manner of roadkill.

The child was not even ten years old.

…Fuck.

Viers closed his heart and sharpened his mind to the new adversary.

The attack was of the ash element and had a Level 4’s strength. Viers knew one person fit the bill.

Paina’s and Pinaca’s father, the goatee villain, Jerrold!

Not only Paina, that attack was meant to kill Pinaca too. Why? Viers couldn’t wrap his head around it.

What he did know was a Level 4 was loose and determined to kill him. The threat level had increased and he could no longer afford to play around.

Jerrold was still far but he would arrive soon.

So be it…

Realizing escape with Pinaca on his shoulders was impossible, there was only one thing to do.

“Wait!”

Paina tried to stop him but he disregarded it. His mind was made up.

Arte - Your Soul Is Mine!

It was an Arte to forcefully take another’s soul!

For his first use, he couldn't say the word and pose like Shang Tsung, which was a damn shame but with the Church’s uncorrupted personnel around, Viers wasn't about to stupidly leave clues that he was an otherworlder.

“Kyaaahh—!”

Along with a soul-piercing scream, Pinaca’s body twitched as streams of green came out from her eyes, nose, and mouth. Her body soon turned limp and Viers held a green sphere in his left hand.

It was noisy outside but Viers’ attention was on the soul so he did not process any of the voices.

Finally, he got a grasp of the mystery's edge.

What he had in his hand… was not a human soul.

-

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Chapter 257 - Excommunicado