Chapter 95: Sacrifice Everyone Present, Summon the Mother Goddess?

Sacrifice Everyone Present, Summon the Mother Goddess?

Tap, tap, tap...

Under the night sky, a horse galloped outside Berren City.

A knight fully encased in silver armor sat atop the fully equipped steed, with a red-haired girl seated in front.

The girl’s small body bounced with the horse’s gallop, her face wearing an expression of utter despair.

Finally, the reins were pulled, and the horse stopped at the foot of Creek Hill.

The knight on horseback skillfully dismounted, reached out, and gently patted the horse’s neck.

Meanwhile, the girl, thoroughly shaken from the ride, tentatively reached out her toes, but even her shoe tips couldn’t reach the metal stirrup.

In the end, the girl gave up, adjusted her posture, and jumped directly off the horse’s back, landing steadily.

This red-haired girl was Ciel, and the knight behind her was, naturally, the “Crown Guard” Nia, whom she had instigated.

“Couldn’t you have just brought the carriage? Do you know how hard your armor is...” Ciel complained, rubbing her back with the back of her hand.

Horseback riding wasn’t as fun or cool as Ciel had imagined. Besides being unable to sit steadily, every jolt resulted in a painful collision with the armor behind her.

Ciel suspected Nia was doing it deliberately as revenge.

After Ciel dismounted, Nia loosened the reins, and the horse trotted back along the path towards Berren City.

Nia looked at the dark mountain path ahead, didn’t reply to Ciel’s words, but said, “We agreed. My task is only to prevent anyone inside from coming out. I won’t intervene no matter what happens inside, even if you die in there.”

“Of course. If you acted, wouldn’t it expose Avena’s involvement?” Ciel smiled and patted Nia’s arm guard. “We both wouldn’t want Avena endangered, right?”

Nia stood motionless for a long moment before finally walking step by step up the mountain path.

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If Nia’s armor could show expressions, the helmet part would likely be flushed red.

Ciel followed behind Nia, curiously observing the stone path Nia walked on.

Whether walking on dirt or stone slabs, Nia’s armor made no sound, nor did it leave any footprints.

As if the armor weighed nothing at all.

Clang, clang—

An empty metallic sound rang out.

Nia stopped and looked back to see Ciel tapping her back armor with her finger.

“Is this really silver? Or some alloy made from transcendent materials?” Ciel looked up and asked curiously.

Nia silently turned back to face forward and continued walking, though her pace quickened slightly this time.

After about five minutes of walking, under the moonlight, Nia could already see the outline of Deton Manor ahead. She stopped, walked directly into the nearby bushes, and concealed herself. Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

Throughout the journey, she had barely spoken to Ciel, knowing that the more they talked, the more likely she was to be unknowingly influenced by Ciel’s terrifying ability.

All she could do was minimize conversation and maintain her current unaffected state.

“Thanks~ I’m heading in then.” Ciel waved at her and smiled. “Remember not to let anyone out, okay?”

“Oh right, thanks for the mask and adhesive. If I come out, I’ll pay you back.”

With that, Ciel raised the silver wolf mask that covered only the left half of her face and slowly placed it over her face.

The mask gradually merged with the flesh on Ciel’s face. Ciel’s transcendent aura began to weaken, even her life force becoming faint and difficult to detect.

Having done this, the girl continued walking towards Deton Manor under the moonlight, while Nia’s gaze remained fixed on Ciel’s back.

What... does she truly intend to do?

Knowing Deton Manor was infiltrated by cultists, she still dared to go alone. What gave her the courage?

But none of this concerned Nia.

What she hoped for most right now was for Ciel to die inside and expose her intelligence network, diverting the cultists’ attention away from Avena.

Later, she could spread some rumors claiming Lady Roswell was attacked by an instigator, post a bounty on Ciel, and clear Lady Avena of suspicion.

Within Nia’s enhanced vision, she saw two attendants wearing green chip masks approaching Ciel.

Ciel, meanwhile, reached into her satchel, seemingly retrieving something.

A membership card?

Nia shook her head and looked away from Ciel.

In her view, Ciel’s actions were undoubtedly suicidal.

Even if perfectly attuned to the potion, she was still only first-tier.

Trying to investigate the Divine Advent Church single-handedly?

Impossible even with a hundred lives.

Even if she could gain some information by instigating non-transcendent cultists, her actions would quickly be discovered by the cult leader here.

Heaven knew what bizarre sealed artifacts that cult leader possessed. Even Nia wouldn’t dare claim she could walk in and out unscathed, let alone a first-tier girl.

Suddenly, Nia perceived a faint silver flash in the distance.

An inexplicable palpitation arose from the depths of Nia’s heart. The buzzing that had constantly plagued her mind intensified at this moment.

Huh?

Nia looked up in astonishment towards Ciel’s previous location, only to see Ciel still standing there.

But before her, the two attendants wearing green chip masks had already knelt down fearfully.

Flocks of crows erupted from the woods with terrified cries, adding a more oppressive noise to the night-shrouded mountain forest.

Seemingly sensing Nia’s prying gaze, the girl wearing the half-face silver wolf mask slowly turned her head and looked towards Nia.

The half-mask, at some point, had become covered by a layer of paper inscribed with terrifying blood-red characters.

The paper, thanks to the adhesive, perfectly adhered to the silver wolf mask, conforming to every contour and bump. The originally solemn mask now radiated an endless eeriness.

Almost instantly, the darkness before Nia devoured the surrounding scenery in her peripheral vision, forcing her focus solely onto the masked girl.

The darkness nearby churned restlessly. Numerous frantic, crimson eyes with black vertical pupils opened within the darkness, madly scanning the surroundings, seemingly searching for prey.

Nia abruptly lowered her head. If she had a heart, its beat would have reached an unprecedented speed.

The black tide before her slowly receded. Nia raised her trembling hands and saw a pair of tattered, blood-stained girl’s hands.

But when her hands lightly touched, they produced the sound of metal clashing.

Nia was horrified.

What is this...

After an unknown amount of time, when everything returned to normal and the surrounding sounds quieted, Nia slowly raised her head and looked towards the entrance of Deton Manor.

The attendants and the girl were long gone. The entire area was empty, as if nothing had happened.

Yet the previously ordinary-looking Deton Manor now appeared sinister in Nia’s eyes.

What exactly happened... I just glanced...

My spirit was almost contaminated?

An unknown fear spread through Nia’s heart.

It had been a long time since she last felt this sensation. Just one look made her want to flee.

Nia slowly clenched her fists.

If there was any further disturbance inside, she would definitely run away... She didn’t want to experience that feeling again.

That girl named Ciel... was not simple.

-

Unlike Nia’s trepidation outside the manor, Ciel had just entered the familiar reception hall of Deton Manor.

“You two, be sharp, understand?” Ciel looked at the two attendants leading the way. “If you see any glass or mirrors, remember to warn me in advance.”

Just moments ago, Ciel had used adhesive to stick the somewhat damaged “Other Side Page” from her inventory onto the mask Nia gave her.

After this use, the page would likely be impossible to remove from the mask.

Forcibly tearing it off would undoubtedly damage the “Other Side Page” due to the adhesive, rendering it useless.

If she wanted to use it again later, she would have to redeem the entire mask.

Hopefully, this mask wasn’t too expensive. If it was, Ciel would just have to get another “Other Side Page”...

A rookie mistake due to lack of experience.

Perhaps she could have her simulated self draw another one? Directly on parchment or cloth, or even engrave it onto an iron plate or gold coin, making it less prone to damage.

By the time she reached the secret passage leading to the underground sanctuary, Ciel had four people following her.

To prevent anyone from learning of her arrival and informing other cultists, Ciel made every cultist she encountered walk ahead of her.

Soon, she arrived at the underground sanctuary and stopped at the secret passage leading to Kitty’s office.

She had just advanced to “Instigator” without saving yet, and this body lacked the Sadhana mark.

Fooling other cultists was simple, but Ciel didn’t know if this mask, combined with her instigation ability, could actually bluff Kitty.

But regardless of success or failure, Ciel had to try. It served as trial and error for her real self.

Anyway, advancing to “Instigator” felt quite easy. Even if this save file wasn’t secured, she could easily save it on another attempt.

“Wait here for me a moment. I have tasks for you later.” Ciel spoke to the three men and one woman bowing before her.

Then, she walked past them, directly into the secret passage, ascending the spiral stone stairs towards Kitty’s office.

As the surrounding temperature gradually rose and the chilling cold completely faded, Ciel saw the bookshelf before her.

Gently pressing the stone switch beside it, the grinding sound of gears echoed. The bookshelf parted from the middle, revealing Kitty’s back to Ciel.

“Who?!” Kitty shot up abruptly, the black skirt pulled up to her waist instantly sliding down. She turned her head angrily, then instantly lowered it.

A drop of cold sweat slowly trickled down her temple.

Meanwhile, under the desk in front of Kitty, a woman with short, flaxen hair emerged from underneath, standing behind Kitty, head bowed, trembling. A glistening strand of liquid seemed to hang from the corner of her mouth.

“You are...” Kitty spoke slowly, her heart filled with uncertainty and suspicion.

She couldn’t sense any transcendent aura from the person before her, but just that brief glance had nearly scared her soul out of her body.

The Mother Goddess’s whispers in her mind began to boil. She feared that just one more look would send her to meet the Mother Goddess.

Is it the Bishop?

But why was there no trace of the Mother Goddess’s aura on the person before her?

“You, go to the underground sanctuary, wait with them.” Ciel looked at the woman behind Kitty and spoke slowly. “Georgine.”

The woman whose name was called trembled violently. After a moment, she nodded shakily and walked step by step towards the person before her, whispering, “Yes, milord...”

Only after Georgine descended the passage did the bookshelf behind Ciel slowly close.

Before Kitty could figure out how the person before her knew Georgine’s name so easily, she saw the person take a step forward.

Smack—!

A slap landed solidly across Kitty’s face.

The sudden, heavy slap snapped Kitty’s head to the right. Her ears rang, and she was somewhat stunned by the blow, not even thinking to wipe the blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

Anyone pulled from that state, startled, then slapped, would be stunned.

“You still have time for this kind of thing now! Kitty!” Ciel’s voice rose steadily, filled with disappointment. “The plan failed, yet instead of finding a way to fix it, you’re indulging yourself here?!”

“I... I...” Kitty finally reacted.

This person is... the Bishop?

A wave of fear washed over Kitty from the depths of her heart.

“Lord Bishop, it’s not like that, please listen to my explanation.” Kitty knelt down abruptly without any hesitation, shuffling forward on her knees to Ciel’s feet.

Prepared for this, Ciel took a step back, her back hitting the bookshelf behind her, her face filled with disgust.

Trying to lick my shoes again...

“Don’t call me Bishop.” Ciel spoke slowly, her tone gradually calming. “That one will arrive at Deton Manor at 1 PM on the 23rd... If you want to live, you must clean up this mess before that ‘Radiance Bishop’ arrives, understand?”

Don’t call her... Bishop?

Right, this lord must have come in disguise. Even her life force was faint; no wonder she couldn’t sense the resonance of the Mother Goddess’s mark.

But she could still passively sense whether this lord’s words contained lies. Perhaps it was a side effect of the artifact suppressing her power, allowing her uncontrollable passive ability to function.

She could feel that, so far, the mysterious lord before her hadn’t lied.

“Aibai, Marcello, Georgine... are they all still here now?” Ciel recited the names of the other transcendent cultists like reading a menu.

Hearing this, Kitty felt slightly more at ease.

Knowing even these confidential details... it seemed this really was a Bishop from the upper echelons, possibly even an Archbishop.

Kitty just couldn’t figure out the purpose of this lord coming here to remind her.

“Yes, milord. They await your command at any time.” Kitty kept her face towards the red carpet on the floor, maintaining her kneeling posture, and spoke respectfully.

Everyone’s here... not bad.

-

“You don’t need to investigate Adele further. Investigating her is useless.” Ciel shook her head gently. “Sherlon died at the Roswell estate. Do you know how he died?”

“Subordinate... currently only knows Sherlon is dead, his body returned to the Redemption Society, but subordinate did not know the Roswell family was involved...” Kitty spoke, her tone somewhat weak. “That young lady of the Roswell family dismissed her servants before the incident. The person I planted couldn’t bring back any information, unaware of what happened there.”

Avena hasn’t been exposed yet?

This surprised Ciel somewhat.

Then, in the simulation where Avena was attacked by Kitty, it was likely traced through Adele.

It might also be related to Avena and Adele going to Uris to report the matter together.

Kitty, kneeling before Ciel, also felt a wave of bitterness.

Her painstakingly established intelligence network in Berren City, which she believed was flawlessly rooted, turned out to be completely transparent before this lord.

This lord knew everything, even about her investigation into Adele.

“The Roswell family didn’t do it,” Ciel shook her head. “You don’t need to investigate Avena either, lest you invite trouble... Avena is currently under my control. Her guard, the third-tier ‘Crown Guard’ Nia, has also been influenced by me. They won’t pursue this matter further.”

Ciel’s words sent shivers down the kneeling Kitty’s spine.

The young lady of the Roswell family was controlled so easily? How long has it been since the incident...

And that third-tier “Crown Guard” was also influenced... Has she become an ally too?

A third-tier dealt with so casually... the power of the lord before her was unfathomable.

But Kitty still didn’t understand.

“Subordinate doesn’t understand...” Kitty spoke slowly, probing, “Why did Sherlon die at the Roswell estate, but the Roswell family wasn’t involved? Didn’t they participate?”

“You... cannot comprehend matters of this level yet.” Ciel shook her head gently.

Cannot comprehend this level?

A sliver of confusion arose in Kitty’s heart.

She was about to be promoted to High Priest, yet her level was still insufficient?

Then what level was required to know the truth behind this?

Was this even something she could meddle in?

“If I speak the truth and her name directly... she will know immediately.” Ciel spoke. “But I can use a special method to convey half the truth to you.”

“Please enlighten me, milord.” Kitty lowered her head even further, feeling deeply uneasy.

Deeper secrets of the Church... could someone of her level really know?

Why was this lord telling her?

Wouldn’t revealing such things invite punishment?

Or did she have a compelling reason to speak?

And also...

Just mentioning the name and truth would let the other party know instantly?

That sounded... just like the Mother Goddess?

Was the other party... the offspring or avatar of some deity?

Fear of the unknown began to envelop Kitty’s heart. She feared hearing news that could lead to her demise, yet dared not refuse to listen.

“Originally, I wouldn’t have sought you out,” Ciel looked at Kitty, whose head was deeply bowed before her. “But this matter involves the Church’s plans, so I had no choice but to find you.”

“A mysterious intelligence organization has arrived in Berren City. Currently, only I and that young lady of the Roswell family know of their arrival...”

Ciel paused slightly, seemingly choosing her words carefully, then spoke slowly:

“That organization has been constantly disrupting the Church’s plans. I was ordered to investigate it. And that Miss Roswell was unknowingly instigated by that intelligence organization into doing certain things...”

Is this... true?

An intelligence organization constantly sabotaging the Church’s plans, right here in Berren City?

And I didn’t notice at all?!

A wave of guilt washed over Kitty, causing her to lower her head even further.

No wonder her plans kept failing... It turned out she had already stepped into a realm beyond her comprehension.

Suddenly, the lord before Kitty stumbled back abruptly, hitting the bookshelf behind her. Several books fell to the floor.

“Damn it... she heard our conversation... she knows again...” The lord’s voice became urgent. Kitty’s heart leaped into her throat.

The lord wasn’t lying... Despite not mentioning any names, the person from that intelligence organization knew about their conversation!

“Quick! Kitty! Gather everyone in the sanctuary!” Ciel turned, pulled open the door, and commanded, “Those who aren’t congregation members too, bring them all to the sanctuary!”

“Milord... this stronghold...” Kitty wanted to say more but was cut off.

“Gather those people in the sanctuary! Don’t make me repeat myself!” Ciel raised her foot threateningly towards Kitty’s head, saying angrily, “Everyone!”

“I need... to attempt to call upon the Mother Goddess in the sanctuary, to confront her... Quickly!”

“Remember to bring more high-tier materials to the sanctuary for sacrifice!”

“Yes! Yes! Milord!” Kitty felt her mind explode. Hearing the plan to summon the Mother Goddess’s avatar, she quickly pulled her head out from under the lord’s foot, foregoing any further enjoyment, and dashed past the lord straight towards the underground sanctuary.

Summon the Mother Goddess...

The extreme excitement and fanaticism from having her head stepped on and the possibility of seeing the Mother Goddess now filled Kitty’s heart.

She would follow the lord’s instructions and bring everyone to the underground sanctuary!

Meanwhile, Ciel disgustedly lifted her right foot, rubbing the sole against the sharp edge of the bookshelf.

Gathered everyone without a fight...

Might as well try the summoning directly.

If successful, she would have leverage against that “Radiance Bishop”...