In that instant, Sefina’s magic was already unleashed.
Green light surged at the tip of her wand, and countless razor-sharp Wind Blades compressed to their limit tore through the air like a raging storm, converging from all directions to shred the Pope who stood motionless.
Fifth-rank magic—【Wind Pressure Slash】.
Yet, the Pope’s face didn’t even lose its gentle smile. He casually raised the wand in his right hand and lightly tapped it forward. In that instant, a translucent pale-green barrier, like a giant fan suddenly unfurling, steadily blocked in front of him.
The Wind Blades struck the barrier, producing a dense sound like rain beating on banana leaves, but they only stirred ripples on its surface before dissipating without leaving even a single crack.
Sixth-rank defense magic—【Aegis of Wind God】. And it was nearly instant cast.
Sefina’s ice-blue pupils constricted sharply.
‘He’s at least a Seventh Tier Mage… and probably more than that.’
But what made a chill of terror run down her spine was that the moment the 【Aegis of Wind God】 unfolded, the Pope’s benevolent human face began to twist, revealing the hideous true face hidden beneath—
His skin tone turned dark red, his facial bone structure became more ferocious, with cheekbones and jaw jutting out like chiseled blades. Two curved dark horns pierced through his white hair, clearly visible.
The Pope was extremely similar to the sealed monster on the ground, which inevitably led Sefina to wonder if they were of the same race.
Or perhaps the Pope was a higher-level individual? Not only could he perfectly disguise himself as a human, but he could even use high-level magic…
At that time, Sefina’s power was around the mid-sixth rank. And the spellcasting ability displayed by this “Pope” before her made Sefina initially judge his strength to be at least seventh tier, possibly even higher.
Thinking back now, a few years later, he could kill the mid-seventh-tier Fourth Seat without a trace—his true level had likely already reached the terrifying eighth rank.
Sefina should even feel a hint of belated relief. ‘Thankfully, back then, he hadn’t grown to the hopeless extent he would later.’
In a flash of thought, Sefina suppressed her shock, swung her wand, and switched to hit-and-run combat.
Ice Spikes, Fireballs, earth spikes, Wind Blades… All kinds of low-to-mid-rank magic poured out like they cost nothing, not aiming to wound but only to interfere and delay, and to create as much noise as possible.
The light of magic flashed and clashed wildly in the church corridors.
Stained glass shattered, sacred statues toppled and cracked under the shockwaves, and sturdy stone pillars were scarred with cracks. The entire building trembled slightly from the violent magical oscillations.
Sefina’s breathing grew rapid, fine beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Mana was draining like water through an open sluice gate. But Sefina persisted, her eyes still sharp as ever. Because she was waiting.
Waiting for the commotion to alarm the entire church district, even the neighboring streets, and thus attract others.
Outside guards, clergy alerted by the strange sounds, even the patrol team roused… As long as someone burst in and witnessed everything here—the frozen monster, the non-human Pope’s true face—the situation would be completely reversed.
In broad daylight, the mastermind behind the missing persons case would be exposed.
‘Almost…’
Sefina could faintly hear chaotic footsteps in the distance, rapidly approaching.
Just as Sefina’s spirits lifted and she prepared to launch a wave of pinning attacks, the “Pope,” who had been responding with a cat-and-mouse attitude, suddenly ceased all offensive motions. His non-human lips on his dark red face seemed to curl into a mocking smile.
Sefina’s mental alarm screamed. Forcing down the discomfort of overexertion, she also temporarily stopped her assault, breathing heavily and watching him vigilantly.
The “Pope” lightly tapped his black wand, and an invisible force field lifted a “body” that had long been hidden in the distance.
‘High-level Levitation Spell? What is he trying to do?’
In the next second, the object was violently accelerated by the force field, like a stone hurled from a catapult. With a thump, it slammed heavily onto the ground less than three steps in front of Sefina, dust and the smell of blood flying up.
Sefina instinctively looked down.
One glance and she was struck as if by lightning. All the blood in her body seemed to freeze instantly, and her vision went dark.
It was a long-dead body, wearing the familiar robes of a Sheng Nü. Her brown hair was messily spread out, and her once-gentle, delicate face still bore traces of terror and pain, her eyes staring blankly at the dome.
And the most shocking thing was the huge hole in her abdomen, piercing through her body. The blood at the wound had long since clotted and blackened; not a drop of fresh blood flowed out.
It was the Sheng Nü…
She…
She was already dead!
And judging by the state, she had probably been dead for some time…
‘How could this be…’
‘How could this be…’
Sefina’s throat went dry, her heart suddenly clenching. ‘We were only apart for half a day, and the Sheng Nü is already… Save her? This fatal wound that pierces the torso, and this blood that clotted long ago… Everything is too late.’
Yet there was no time for Sefina to grieve or think.
Almost at the exact same moment the Sheng Nü’s corpse hit the ground, the “Pope’s” dark red skin receded like a tide, instantly reverting to a kind-looking human elder. But the “kind” smile on his face was long gone, replaced by unparalleled “grief” and “fury.”
He suddenly pointed at Sefina and announced in a voice nearly roaring—
“Seize that woman! This cruel heretic! She killed the Sheng Nü!”
His voice exploded in the smoke-filled, ruined corridor and traveled far.
Sefina jerked her head up, her ice-blue eyes filled with disbelief.
‘Framing! This monster—not only is he powerful, he also has such a cunning, treacherous mind!’
‘He must have prepared everything in advance, including the Sheng Nü’s body as “irrefutable evidence.”‘
‘In the moment before the “reinforcements” arrived, he completed the switch of identity and transfer of guilt…’
‘It’s over.’
Sefina instantly understood her situation.
When the first wave of fully armed church guards burst into this wrecked area, what they would see was a battlefield of ruins, a horrifically murdered Sheng Nü’s corpse, an outsider of unknown origin who had infiltrated the church late at night, and…
A beloved, respected Pope.
Who would they believe?
The answer was obvious.
Sefina tried to defend herself fiercely, pointing at the Pope who had reverted to human form.
“No! It wasn’t me! The murderer is him! He’s not human!”
But no one present believed her.
Magic arrows, binding halos, holy light blasts… All sorts of attacks and capture spells descended on Sefina without hesitation. The eyes of those guards and clergy held only anger at the “assassin” and absolute trust in the Pope.
Any defense was feeble at this moment.
Sefina gritted her teeth, took one last deep look at the Pope who was putting on an excellent performance, then glanced at the Sheng Nü’s unclosed eyes on the ground. She suppressed her boundless rage and frustration deep within.
Helpless, Sefina used every means she had, and finally barely escaped this cannibalistic place.
In the nations of the western continent, defiling the Church Court and assassinating a Sheng Nü were as serious as treason.
From that moment on, “Holmes”—once a somewhat famous detective and magic teacher—officially became one of the fugitives on Sarkax and its allies’ wanted list.
This was the beginning of Sefina’s life of flight, disguise, and severance from her past.