LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 47
Sofia Sub-priest took a deep breath.
It wasn’t because of the rotting dog carcass she had witnessed in front of her, nor the three-headed snake that grotesquely twisted its body before dying, nor the large centipede that had breathed its last with dozens of legs dangling.
In her line of sight was the Head Priest of the Caldera Imperial Academy’s Main Chapel and also a professor in theology.
“…You, false offspring. There is nothing left to protect you now.”
Yes. It was because of Head Priest Antoinneri’s appearance.
In his eyes, filled with sorrow and pain, certainty and faith had surged forth like a tidal wave.
His voice was strong, and the overflowing grace of the Lord filled the air around them.
So, yes.
For a moment, Sofia Sub-priest felt as though a halo was shining behind him.
However, despite it being such a blessed moment, a joyous occasion propelled by the Lord’s grace, having driven three evil spirits back to hell beneath the Lord’s name, the path to save the two siblings, Priest Peter and Priest Camilla, had opened.
“Head Priest….”
His expression was so sorrowful.
Why was that?
* * * * *
I looked down at Priest Peter, who had quieted.
The dark red bloodstains on his face were unsettling, but I steeled myself.
“Sofia Sub-priest. Please take out the censer and bell.”
Our fight was not yet over. I thought, carefully watching Sofia Sub-priest as she slowly retrieved the sacraments.
In fact, one could say that the real battle against the devil was just beginning. The three evil spirits we had exorcised were practically minions, and the chief devil still lurked within Priest Peter’s body.
However, exorcising the dog-shaped devil that lay dormant in Priest Camilla was an unexpected gain. I wondered if the holy water had been that effective; perhaps the Lord’s grace felt abnormally strong.
In any case, that was not what mattered right now.
“Head Priest.”
Sofia Sub-priest handed me the sacraments. As I received them from her, I asked:
“Sofia Sub-priest. How many voices did they have?”
“Uh… just a moment.”
Sofia Sub-priest flipped through her notebook. The notes filled with conversations with the devils were already somewhat ragged.
“There were a total of four forms.”
“Three have been exorcised, so one remains. It is likely the chief.”
“What should I do?”
“Please continue recording. And fill this censer with consecrated frankincense.”
After confirming that Sofia Sub-priest nodded, I emptied the remaining holy water from the bowl.
The opponent we were about to face would undoubtedly be formidable. I was painfully aware of this, and I intended to approach the battle against evil with a renewed resolve.
– I know your sins. Benedict the 891,366th.
The voice I had heard at first must be that of the centipede-shaped devil, and the sly, thin voice that followed belonged to the three-headed snake.
The growling voice of the dog must have belonged to the rotten dog that died in front of the entrance.
This left me with the particularly grating voice that sounded like metal scraping. I was certain it belonged to the chief devil.
– Want to know something else? I killed that woman.
I recalled the words the devil had hurled at me.
A vile remark from the demons, boasting of having contributed to Helena’s death. If they thought such a statement would provoke my anger, they had made a gravely mistaken choice.
It would not simply ignite my anger but would also render me immune to any threats and intimidation that followed.
Far from hiding, the devil had revealed itself, sacrificing its own anonymity to rattle my composure, which was admirable in its foolishness.
“That will be your downfall.”
Yes. The chief devil had been far too arrogant, and now the time had come to pay for that arrogance.
I poured fresh holy water into the bowl. The clear water flowed in like a strong stream, reassuring me.
“Head Priest. Right here.”
Just as I was almost done pouring in the holy water, Sofia Sub-priest handed me the censer filled with frankincense. I carefully took it from her and opened the lid of the censer.
“Lord, guide me.”
I lit the frankincense with a burning match. The fragrant smoke began to rise and settle onto the floor of the living room.
I carefully placed the censer, which was now exuding a rich scent, on the nightstand right next to the bed. My role was separate.
I took hold of the heavy bell made of brass. Despite the passage of many years, its simple carving and indented grooves showed no signs of wear, and there was not a trace of rust.
“By the grace of the Lord.”
The ancient human kingdom named Terea, mentioned in the Bible.
It is said that the archangel Michael, who descended from heaven leading the heavenly army to protect that place, rang this bell to drive back the barbaric forces that sought to destroy Terea, falling into Satan’s deception.
It is a precious and noble relic, and it would undoubtedly play a vital role in this exorcism ritual.
I set Terea’s bell on the nightstand for a moment and traced a cross in the air. I felt a surge of fullness in my heart.
“Deliver us from evil.”
Then, I took the Terea bell in my right hand. With my left hand, I covered Priest Peter’s eyes with a bandage.
Priest Peter appeared to be unharmed, just as he had been before being possessed.
However, this was all mere deception by the chief devil. I was aware of the ugly demon trying to hide within the Son of Man.
I gestured at Sofia Sub-priest. She nodded and began flipping through her Bible to find the scroll.
The dimly lit room, now illuminated by more than half-melted candles, was beginning to glow faintly. We moved toward the final battle against the beast of all evil, relying on that feeble light.
“Sofia Sub-priest. Please read from Terea Chapter 4, verse 13.”
“Ah, yes.”
I quietly closed my eyes, pulling my hand back while solemnly opening my mouth.
“Behold, O children of Terea. Although I once made their grain plentiful and the land fruitful, you have made your walls perilous, for they have turned to the whisperings of that perverse beast.”
As I finished speaking, Sofia Sub-priest followed immediately.
She, too, had her eyes closed, her right hand resting over her heart.
“I had made a covenant with you before; they shall not pass over the walls of Terea.”
“And furthermore, hear this. By my word, I will cast their leader into the sulfurous flames of hell; this is the holiness of the Lord.”
Priest Peter’s body began to shake. I remained unperturbed by the stirrings of evil crawling beneath the bandage.
“And then the people of Terea shall answer, saying that though those who stray from the commandments seek to cross over, the walls of Terea shall remain steadfast.”
“The Lord said to the people of Terea, ‘You, people of Terea, shall not fall to temptation, and your acts of righteousness shall not be spoken of as salvation; rather, your hearts shall be renewed to follow my mercy.’”
“Ah, aaah!!”
Priest Peter began to writhe in pain. I pressed down hard on the bandage.
“Stop! Stop!”
“As heaven opened and light poured forth, the Lord’s servant, the great army Michael, appeared with the heavenly forces.”
“I will kill you! I will kill you! I will chew up the heart of that sub-priest you care for!”
“The sight of this caused the barbaric nation to exclaim in astonishment, for the heavens truly were cleaved, signifying the upheaval of all creation.”
“Did you miss that whore’s death so dearly? I killed her! I killed her! You, too, will die the same way! A year from now, you will die from a stab to the heart! Your insides will…!”
I stopped speaking. Sofia Sub-priest remained silent as well.
And even Priest Peter, who had been shouting, finally fell silent.
Deng—!
It was the resonance of the soul. A clear and bright sound, as the heavenly forces manifested the grace of the Lord accompanied by the trumpet’s call.
Deng—!
The Terea bell rang out with a crystalline sound.
Deng—!
“Then the great army Michael raised the brass bell and spoke, ‘You barbaric nation, if you trace your roots, you are the children of the Lord; how then have you been ensnared by the schemes of Satan?’”
Deng—!
“Ugh, uuuu…! Ughhh…”
“The sound of the brass bell cleansed the souls of the sins and delivered mercy to the people of Terea. This is the blessed grace of the Lord.”
Deng—!
“Kaak—!!”
“Then the barbaric nation turned and fled. The great army Michael spoke to the people of Terea, who were bowing in reverence.”
Deng—!
“Terea! I have consecrated the walls of that lowly being! Do you monkeys not understand grace?!”
“…Those who follow Satan shall not dare to surpass the will of the Lord.”
Deng—!
The longest and clearest sound of the bell echoing so far filled the room.
I quietly looked down at Priest Peter lying on the bed. Although I could not see his eyes behind the bandage, blood was still flowing from his ears, and tears made of blood streamed down from the corners of his eyes.
“…There is a voice calling from the Lord. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I ask you: O beast of all evil, what is your name?”
Priest Peter remained silent. I asked again.
“Speak. What is your name?”
Priest Peter’s lips parted. From the cracked, blood-caked lips, a weakened voice emerged from the dark cavern.
“I was the thirteenth offspring of the radiant light….”
“……”
“I venerate wisdom….”
I built the lofty crystal palace of heaven with pride.
I did not want the nation marked by heaven to receive favor.
I despised your worthless creatures.
All of your beings’ wickedness was loathsome to me.
I fell the day that the most radiant celestial being fell from heaven.
“I shall one day… reclaim my wings burnt by fire….”
“For one born of the primordial lie, there shall be no path to salvation.”
“……”
Priest Peter’s eyes… no.
The eyes of the demon turned toward me. They were not white but horrifyingly glowing red.
“Now, speak your name.”
The demon’s irises rolled about. The twitching eyes soon fixed on me, glaring silently as they murmured.
“…Malphas. My name is Malphas.”
Seemingly in anger, Priest Peter’s lips were tightly clenched. I set the bell down on the nightstand and grasped the holy water-saturated sacramental vial in my hand.
“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I command you. Malphas, reveal your true form.”
The holy water was splattered in the shape of a cross. I slowly lifted the bandage.
In the blink of an eye, the form of Priest Peter suddenly transformed.
It was a crow’s face stained with blood, a bizarre visage with crimson eyes bizarrely shining, and a body that appeared to have human limbs attached to a crow’s torso.
Sofia Sub-priest covered her mouth upon seeing Malphas’s true form, barely stifling a scream.
I gently closed my eyes. For the demon to speak its name and reveal its true form meant…
“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I command you.”
In other words, it signified that the demon had given up everything.
“Malphas, come out from that body. Return to the hell where you belong.”
Slowly, I opened my closed eyes.
What greeted me was the sight of Priest Peter, peacefully lying on the bed, soaked in blood.
“……”
And Sofia Sub-priest, staring blankly at that scene.
“Is… it over?”
Sofia Sub-priest asked dazedly, tears gradually welling in her eyes as I quietly gazed at her.
“Yes. It’s over.”
I answered.
“…Huh!”
As she cried, Sofia Sub-priest fell into my arms, and I simply embraced her silently.
“It was… really scary… I wanted to run away….”
“You did well.”
“When the Head Priest suddenly choked Priest Peter… I….”
“I’m sorry.”
“Still, I believed in you….”
Sofia Sub-priest lifted her head. Though her face was heavy with fatigue, tears flowed continuously from her eyes.
“Really, you did a great job…!”
How could she smile so brightly?
Suddenly, something flickered before me. Realizing what it was, I…
– Truly, you did a great job.
“Ugh…!”
I desperately covered my mouth. The emotions I had bottled up burst forth like a dam breaking.
You, who had even been called a whore by the filthy existence because of me.
Even though your death was sullied because of my clumsy handling.
You do not blame me. You do not hold it against me.
“Ugh, ugh…! Sofia Sub-priest….”
Rather, you embrace me.
“Ugh, ugh…! Really, truly… you have suffered greatly….”
Even if this moment stemmed from my delusions, I shall never forget your smile standing against the radiant scarlet light.