We only confess our little faults to persuade people that we have no big ones.

Zane wished for confessing and that too when Coin was about to order Milo’s presence in the Cathedral as well.

Naturally, all eyes stared at the Gutterborn in silence but the gutterborn only focused on the Emberlord.

He had stood with his head hung low during the whole event but when it came to Milo, his head rose on its own as with no fear, he looked deep in Coin’s eyes.

The Emberlord stared back, he already had no fear inside him so he simply scoffed.

"What makes you think you have the right to confess? There is no confession for a filth of your stature."

The Emberlord straight out refused Zane’s wish to confess.

Xavier gritted his teeth as he couldn’t endure the injustice happening with his friend.

But now Zane had been snapped.

As soon as Milo came into play, he had let go of everything.

He wasn’t the same anymore.

The chains might weigh him down but his back would not bend.

He didn’t avert his eyes from Coin.

"I am standing in the Cathedral of the First Flame. I am in the embrace of the God you all preach and pretend to obey. By the authority of that God, I wish to confess."

Murmurs spread in the hall.

Not once did Zane’s voice wavered.

His knees that had turned to mud found bones in them again.

The Emberlord shifted his body towards Zane.

Now instead of the audience, he faced the gutterborn.

Both men stood face to face with each other as Coin raised his hand.

Murmurs came to a stop and Coin began:

"You stole the Relic that was made from the Amnesty cube which came from the Haloheart and the Haloheart has been bestowed to us by the First Flame. What makes you think you have the right to wish for something by taking the name of our benevolent god after stealing from him?"

Zane jerked his hands, producing the clanking of the chains.

"Are you so afraid of a chained gutterborn that you won’t even let him confess?"

Gasps rang out as Coin’s brows shot up.

"Don’t forget your pla—" 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"Look at the podium." Zane interrupted Coin and everyone did what he said.

The Emberlord too.

All eyes went to the podium and on the top of it, they noticed a black plastic bag.

They weren’t sure if it was there before.

They were so focused on the situation that no one paid attention to Zane placing the bag on the podium before standing at the center of the stage.

Nevertheless, now that they saw it, they again looked at Zane.

"What is that?" Coin asked.

Zane coughed before answering.

"Open the bag and see it. I thought you would already know. But it seems you forgot."

Coin turned his head at the priest behind him.

He gestured with his eyes to see the bag.

The Priest nodded and dashed towards the podium.

He lifted the plastic bag and when he saw inside it, his eyes widened.

All eyes glued to the priest with bated breaths and the priest didn’t keep them waiting.

He held the black bag with his left hand and after wiping his right palm on his clean robe, he shoved it inside the bag.

Then with extreme care, he took out the item that the bag carried.

In one glance, everyone recognised it as all heads jerked at Zane.

The Priest threw the bag and held only the item with both his hands.

He placed it on the podium again and pressed his head at it as if taking blessings.

And there was only one thing from whom a Priest would take blessings from.

God.

The First Flame.

The idol of the First Flame.

Zane had walked to the stage with the black bag but had placed it on the podium before standing before Coin.

And Coin should have known what was inside the black bag because when Zane had returned the relic to the Emberlord, he had deliberately shown Coin the black bag with the idol inside it.

Nevertheless, even if Coin had forgotten about it now that he saw it, he remembered it again.

As he remembered it, he jolted his eyes at Zane just like everyone else.

Zane felt the countless eyes on him as he coughed more.

The blood had gone inside his mouth and his new white shirt was also stained crimson.

But that won’t stop him.

"Do you see that? You called my faith fake. Tell me then, why is someone with a fake faith walking around with an idol of the First Flame? Why am I walking around with the same god which you are accusing me of rebelling against?"

Zane’s voice picked up volume but Coin simply shook his head.

"To show us all that you believe in him. To make sure no one suspects you. Why else would someone walk around with an idol? Out of all the believers present here only you brought the idol with you. The more a person pretends to be religious, the more fake he is."

Zane gritted his teeth.

"The same goes for you too then."

The Emberlord’s jaw tightened.

"You are going out of your lin—"

"I am demanding my right from the Benevolent God you all believe in!" Zane erupted. "If the First Flame is kind, if the First Flame is really kind, then I, who have already been judged guilty and a sinner, I, Zane Atlas, urge, behest, challenge the First Flame, the God protecting us, the God protected by you, to make my voice heard. I, the filth of Dwarkam, challenge the kindness of the First Flame to accept my wish. My wish..."

Zane had gone past his survival instinct, he went past all the fears as he bellowed his wish. His wish to...

"To Confess."

Silence reigned in the Cathedral.

Zane Atlas’ voice reached to the end of the hall and the Gutterborns at the back, whose heads were low during the full event, slowly raised it.

They slowly dared to look at the stage.

They dared to look at the Emberlord.

Unknown to the effect of his voice, Zane only glared at the Coin and the Emberlord, he closed his eyes.

He inhaled deep.

He could kill Zane in a blink of an eye but that wasn’t the death Coin wanted.

Zane had brought the First Flame and his kindness to the scene and such a thing needed a conclusion now.

The Emberlord opened his eyes again.

"Very well." He said. "The First Flame is kind. He will protect even the worst sinners as well. You want to confess? So be it."

The Emberlord shifted to the side and Zane saw the confession box in front of him.

"Stand inside that and make your confession in front of all of us."

Zane said nothing and simply dragged himself.

The weight of the chains around his neck did its best to make his head bow.

But he held on.

The wish for Milo’s safety supported his entire body.

His vision had turned blurred.

He only saw outlines and red.

Chains crackled under his feet and after a minute, they stopped.

Zane finally dragged himself inside the confession box.

Two barricades were on his left and right and one was in front of him.

It was made of wood, the height of the barricades were to his waist.

Nevertheless, now that Zane was finally inside the confession box, the Emberlord walked and stood in front of the Gutterborn.

"You got your wish. Now tell everyone what do you want to confess?"

Zane rested his hands on the barricade in front of him.

His back bent but his head remained up.

"Tell us. What do you want to confess?" The Emberlord asked again.

Zane glanced at all heads present in the Cathedral and while slamming the chains on the barricade, his eyes stopped at Coin.

"What do I want to confess, Emberlord?"

Zane leaned towards Coin and stared at the man with his blood red face.

"All of it. From all the Gods laughing in heaven down to all the maggots rotting in hell. I want to and I will confess all of it."