“Wuu wuu wuu… Don’t look at me… So scary… Don’t look at me…”
Anna faced the wall, crouched with her head in her arms like a startled ostrich, her body trembling uncontrollably as she muttered broken words under her breath.
“Lord… please help me… that Outsider… I can’t defeat it… there’s no way I can defeat it…”
Anna’s abnormal behavior made Victor furrow his brows slightly.
What’s going on? This isn’t like her at all.
However, in the next second, a massive wave of fear, a terror that struck at the very core of life itself, crashed over him.
It was the most primal reaction humans had when confronted with the incomprehensible, the unnameable!
Something had arrived!
Right here! Close by!
Without thinking, Victor’s sharp gaze swept toward Allen de Laval.
Then he saw Allen, too, seemed trapped in some kind of stupor: drenched in sweat, his face ashen, his body trembling uncontrollably as if under an unimaginable weight.
Victor had never seen Allen look like this before.
What on earth happened?!
As the “Sword of Humanity,” Victor had endured the Inquisition’s rigorous Inspiration Training, which allowed him to sense and even “see” traces of certain hidden presences to some extent.
He forced himself to concentrate, focusing on the empty space beside Allen—
And then, he saw… that existence…
No!
Don’t look don’t look don’t look don’t look don’t look don’t look!!
!!!
What is that thing?!
Victor’s face turned deathly pale in an instant, an icy chill leaving him almost immobile!
That indescribable, utterly terrifying presence stood right beside Allen de Laval!
Damn it!
Today’s Triumphal Procession was too grand; the Inquisition’s Armed Forces were scattered everywhere on guard duty.
Anna, with sharper inspiration than him, sensed it even earlier and was already on the verge of a mental breakdown!
If this kept up, even he wouldn’t be able to hold on!
Forcing down the trembling of his soul, Victor’s hand shook as he fished a Special Potion—a Delirium Potion—from his medical pouch.
This was an emergency drug developed by the Church to counteract spiritual contamination and cognitive hazards, able to rapidly stabilize the mind and block out low-intensity psychic shocks.
The Church strictly forbade the use of weapons beyond their era, but lifesaving potions were not restricted.
This was precisely why the Inquisition could rely on flesh and blood to contend with those Heretics twisted by evil gods!
Without hesitation, he injected himself first.
The cold liquid flowed into his veins, bringing a fleeting moment of clarity. Immediately, he administered a dose to Anna, who was nearly limp.
Anna sucked in a sharp breath, as if yanked out from drowning.
She looked at Victor in panic and muttered, “Allen… Allen’s in danger! We have to save him!”
“Anna! Calm down!” Victor lowered his voice, speaking urgently, “You go and send the Highest Emergency Signal right now! Have everyone available in the vicinity converge on us! Tell them… it’s Threat Level Two, maybe even Level One!” His voice trembled, though he didn’t realize it.
“Eh? What are Threat Levels One and Two again?” Anna’s mind clearly hadn’t fully recovered from panic.
“Idiot! You don’t have clearance for that information yet! Go!” Victor growled.
“Oh, oh, oh! Right, I remember now! I’m going!” Anna finally came to her senses, scrambling through the crowd toward the designated Contact Point.
Now only Victor remained. He dared not move recklessly, simply placing his hand on the short sword hidden beneath his black Blessed Robe, nervously observing the situation.
The Judge’s Blessed Robe was woven from special fibers and enhanced through a complex Blessing Ritual.
Its defense far exceeded ordinary armor, not only effectively weakening Emblem Energy attacks but even able to withstand direct shots from Bow and Crossbow.
However, Victor knew all too well that even such advanced gear would be as fragile as paper before that kind of terrifying existence.
Within the Inquisition, humanity’s enemies had long been meticulously classified according to the scale, nature, cognitive hazard, and required response.
To guard against possible Mimetic Contamination and psychic corruption, all classification information was strictly regulated by Knowledge Restriction Protocols.
Higher levels could only be accessed by Inner Circle members after rigorous review. The current classifications were as follows:
· Threat Level Five: Relic/Taboo Knowledge carrier. Not living beings themselves, but objects, locations, or information fragments containing supernatural powers or knowledge.
· Threat Level Four: The Ignorant/Fallen of Mind. Humans or other intelligent beings fallen or mutated under the influence of supernatural forces. For example: Pseudo-Mark Knight, or out-of-control Apostate Experiment Product.
· Threat Level Three: Abominations/Filth Constructs. Lifeforms or entities directly twisted, altered, or created by supernatural forces. For example: Heretic Blood Priest and Abyss Walker, or the legendary Demon.
Above these, Threat Levels Two and One were basically entities even the Inquisition—and humanity itself—could not directly confront.
· Threat Level Two: God-eaten/Shadow of the God. Major extensions, avatars, or direct creations of the Heretic, possessing part of their original power, and among the most destructive entities in the universe. It is believed that the Star Listener has reached this level.
· Threat Level One: Heretic/Twisted Source. The true body of supernatural threats, the ultimate origin of all anomalies and disasters. Their very existence utterly negates the laws of physics and logic. The “Star Choir” of legend is such a terrifying threat.
For these two kinds of beings, the supreme operating principle was always: absolutely forbid any form of contact, communication, or observation!
All related documentation was classified as the highest taboo. Any incident required immediate initiation of the Memory Erasure Procedure and Isolation Procedure at the highest level.
When facing such horrors, humanity’s core strategy was “avoidance” and “forgetting”—never direct confrontation.
Victor was painfully aware that the dreadful thing beside Allen de Laval, judging by the aura it radiated, had certainly reached Threat Level Two, perhaps even touched Level One!
He knew the end was near, but he never expected that these enemies, spoken of only in top secret archives, would so brazenly walk the mortal world and appear at this bustling Triumphal Procession!
While Victor waited anxiously for reinforcements, that suffocating, mountain-like terror… suddenly vanished.
As if it had never appeared at all.
He saw Allen de Laval nearly collapse from exhaustion, only to be caught in time by Marianne at his side.
The enemy… has left?
Victor didn’t have time to think, immediately pushing through the crowd to rush forward.
At this moment, he was even more certain: Allen de Laval was definitely under some kind of Divine Power’s protection!
He had just faced such an unnameable presence and had not died instantly or been twisted into a monster like an ordinary Heretic.
He wasn’t lying—he might truly intend to destroy humanity’s enemies.
Could it be that terrifying threat was driven away by his Divine Power just now?!
Countless thoughts flashed through Victor’s mind, but at this moment what mattered most was Allen’s condition.
This dreadful crisis, sensed by only a handful, caused no ripple in the lively Triumphal Procession.
After a brief silence, the crowd erupted in passionate cheers; flowers and applause continued as always.
The Triumphal Procession proceeded smoothly.
Only, some things had subtly changed.
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