Redfall Valley, The Global Azakin Empire(North-East)

The Light Cathedral, also known as the Holy Temple, was the base of the Holy Church. It was a sacred place of worship, though most of it was inaccessible by normal folk.

It was there where most of the high-status members of the church were stationed. That included the Pope, the Bishops, the Cardinals, and the fearsome Paladins.

After being away from home for a long time, Rein Goldstar had finally returned to Redfall Valley.

He had failed in capturing the runaway demon named Lucy and even sustained heavy injuries. Were it not for the help of the villagers of the Pig Farms, he would have died from blood loss.

Even then, Rein had to stay there and recover for more than a month. Not even the blessing of Holy Magic and his tenacious body as a Holy Knight were enough for him to quickly get back on his feet and continue the case.

Unfortunately, by the time he was healthy enough to travel, his quarry had long since fled.

Rein had no leads to follow, so he had to return to the Light Cathedral and report his failure.

As soon as he arrived, he was called by his direct superior, Bishop Amara.

Rein had not been a Holy Knight for as long as his peers, but due to his strong affinity with Light-aspected magic, he was accepted into the church from a young age and achieved his goal of becoming a Holy Knight.

He was wholly indoctrinated by the Holy Church, which strengthened their beliefs of justice, harmony, and peace.

His first task as a Holy Knight was to capture or kill Lucy, which he had failed to do despite his long and arduous pursuit.

Rein was guided to one of the inner rooms of the Light Cathedral, where Bishop Amara was waiting.

The room was almost entirely white, whether it was the furniture, the ground, or the walls.

Amara turned around and looked at him with an expression of displeasure and disappointment.

“I’ve been notified about what happened.”

Rein, ashamed, knelt on one knee and lowered his head.

“I offer no excuses.”

“...”

The Bishop thoughtfully looked at him for an indeterminate amount of time before asking,

“You stayed in Wilsden town for a while, yes?”

Although surprised by this random question, Rein nodded his head.

“So you must be familiar with the new Baron. Julie Lernon.”

“Yes. She’s a good friend.”

“A good friend?” Clearly, Amara didn’t like his answer as she raised her voice and frowned.

“She is a Vampire. A non-human that feeds on our race’s blood. It is a disgrace to us that she rules over a territory and is also an aristocrat.”

“I-I talked to her. She’s not dangerous. She doesn’t drink bl-”

“Of course she won’t tell you about her evil acts. Such is the way of all abominations. I have tried to bring her here but that didn’t work out.”

The Bishop snorted, her eyes turning glacial.

“On paper, you have officially become a Holy Knight, Rein Goldstar. But that isn’t enough to win any recognition. Only by removing the filth from our world will you truly live up to your status. That is why I have another task for you.”

“What about the Demon?” He hesitantly asked,

“Her whereabouts are unknown, therefore, it would be a waste to send you on another goose chase when you can do so much good to our world. Your new task will be to go to Wilsden Town and eliminate Julie Lernon.”

The blond-haired Holy Knight knelt there, stupefied by what he had just heard.

“She and her territory is under the protection of the Aeternus Family. The Holy Church can no longer go there… not if we want to avoid any confrontation with the Masked Queen. You’ll go there not as a Holy Knight but as Julie’s friend.”

“I…I cannot…”

“Cannot what? Get rid of a monster like her? You have no idea what she’s up behind the watchful eyes of the public. A Vampire like her cannot survive without sucking the blood of the living! Do this right and I guarantee that you’ll be eligible to become a Paladin.”

“Paladin?” Rein got even more surprised.

Paladins were the strongest forces of the Holy Church. They were far superior to Holy Knights, but they were very few in number.

“You must know that Paladins are the purest beings. They are blessed by the Light Mother herself and are given the most important tasks.”

Rein seemed to be struggling with himself as he kept his head lowered. After a bit, he gritted his teeth and spoke,

“Julie isn’t a monster. Please reconsider.”

“This is an order, Rein Goldstar. You are the only person that can do this. If you’re hesitant about her true nature, then go there and see for yourself.”

“You’re back!”

As soon as Arthur returned, the worried Chris ran up to him.

“It’s just as I suspected. It was that Gargoyle. I couldn’t beat it.”

“It’s fine. What matters is that you’re okay!”

Chris smiled and patted his friend’s back.

“Welcome back, Master.”

Evelyn bowed and refrained from asking any questions.

“Ah! Aerin had left. He had something urgent to do but he didn’t deign to clarify.”

Chris paused for a second as he glanced at Evelyn, “He did say some cryptic things to her, though.”

“I can still hear you, you know.” She retorted while narrowing her eyes.

“As for what he had said... It is irrelevant, Master.”

Arthur scrutinized her and knew that she was hiding something, but pressing her for answers wouldn’t work. Evelyn wasn’t the type of person that could be convinced to speak the truth. When she was ready, she would reveal everything, or so Arthur hoped.

“Let’s rest until morning then discuss our next step.”-Arthur

Arthur wasn’t particularly tired, but he thought it better to stay in the village. For now, he had no leads to find the Gargoyle or the Devil Doctor.

The former would appear only in the Full Moon, which wouldn’t return for a while.

It was better to head to Raml Asfr City and start searching from there. There was bound to be someone that might know about the Devil Doctor or the Circle of Damnation there.

..

2 days passed before Jader returned. The trip took longer than usual as he had to discuss the details with the Sultan’s man and wait for them to send soldiers to investigate what really happened at the Armis Village.

Arthur, Evelyn, and Christopher remained at the village.

Chris loitered around and unexpectedly became friends with the old mage living in the tent.

Arthur did something productive with his time: He entered the underground sulfur mine, not only to find unique hosts but to obtain more skills and stats.

Admittedly, the creatures found there were weak and not that variant. However, all of them were able to dig underground at high speeds. Furthermore, their bodies were resistant to cramped and high temperature environments, thus facilitating the ‘hunt’.

A couple of hours before Jader had returned, Arthur finally made a decision and evolved into a Multi-Skill Parasite. Naturally, he was bombarded by a long chain of System Notifications that would be seen during every major power-up.

“It’s up to you to find the exit. This underground labyrinth has existed way before Blackcrest was built.”

Halric escorted Emil Red to a tunnel hundred of meters underneath the Duke’s castle.

The place was dirty and filled with cobwebs, insects, and a combination of foul and nauseating scents.

“A labyrinth?”

“It’s a combination of tunnels that stretches beyond Blackcrest. There are many exits. My job here is done… goodbye.”

The stoic boy didn’t stay there for any longer. Vines crept from the ground and pulled him in it, thus leaving the Painter alone in that creepy and gloomy place.

“This is great! Absolutely fantastic.”

Emil grumbled as he looked around: He saw many paths to take, all looking exactly the same and filled with nothing but darkness and an eerie coldness.

Although the Duke and Halric agreed to let him go, he didn’t think he would be thrown into this place and expected to find his way out.

“Heh! It’s still better than staying there.”

After coming to terms with his unfavourable circumstances, Emil shrugged and started walking toward a random tunnel.

At that point, he didn't think that he would be stuck in those dizzying tunnels for a very long time.