Witch, Fireball and the Evil God of Steam-Chapter 935 - 199: Horrific Echoes (Part 2)

Carlo nodded reluctantly, no longer aggressive, as if accepting her explanation.

Veronica helped Carlo free himself from the entangling magical vines while also surveying the not-so-spacious room. Apart from a mirror placed in the center, there was nothing particularly unique. In the dim light, their figures were reflected in the mirror, perhaps due to the dirtiness of the mirror, their faces were blurred, always giving off a sinister vibe.

"What brings you here?"

Unable to hold back, Veronica asked.

"I'm inspecting the integrity of the barrier to prevent those heretics from finding a loophole."

Carlo's tone was authoritative, and his answer was impeccable.

"There's a question I'm unsure whether to ask or not."

After a moment of silence, Veronica made up her mind to speak.

"Don't ask more."

"...I think it's better to ask."

Before Carlo could continue to refuse, Veronica quickly interjected, "I want to know, what did Lord Darrant say before he started bleeding from his nose?"

"Why do you ask that?"

"Because by this pattern, I'm close to dying too."

Veronica's attitude was firm, and she showed an air of "wanting to die with knowledge," "I don't want to die in vain, maybe there's some connection here."

"He mentioned Ave-Margaret."

"Ave? What's happening to her?"

"Darrant was the greatest mind-binder in the world. He planted a switch in Ave's head, and once activated, she'd become no different from one of those puppets controlled by a mind-binder."

So that was it!

Veronica suddenly realized why the leaders of the sects felt so assured during the meeting. They had all, to some extent, witnessed the means of a mind-binder. These people always lurked in the shadows, influencing the transfer of power and sect transitions from places unseen.

"His death is a severe blow to us!"

Veronica automatically filtered out Carlo's indignant complaints, which she felt introduced a new issue.

If Darrant wasn't bluffing at the meeting, how did he manage it?

A mind-binder's spells were powerful, but planting a "seed" in someone's mind was not easy, especially with the opposing empire's head from the Far West. How could Darrant enter the new cabinet openly and cast a spell on Ave in plain sight?

Savia!

Veronica felt closer to the truth, this name appearing alongside Ave-Margaret became the key clue; there had to be an extremely important connection between them.

What was it?

Sisters or mother and daughter?

Thus, even before the empire and the Far West opposed each other, Darrant had ties with the Margaret Clan. So when the visitor mentioned Savia's name, Darrant met them immediately, dropping his guard against the murderer because it was a secret known to very few.

"Veronica!"

Carlo's stern call pulled her back to reality, "I'm talking to you!"

"Sorry, I suddenly thought of some important clues!"

Veronica fully immersed herself in her world. With direction, she instantly thought of a new point of entry.

First, Darrant's few surviving guards were his confidants, although they didn't know about Savia, they knew Darrant's whereabouts. They should know when Darrant went to the empire, or at the very least when he was away from the Far West for long periods.

That's when he met with the Margaret Clan and cast a spell on Ave's mind!

After the joy of gradually reaching the truth, came long perplexity.

Investigating the past of the Life Divine Teachings and the Margaret Clan seemed beyond her duties. As a Judge of the Life Divine Teachings, her current job should be finding the killer and preventing further murders.

"Return!"

Carlo gave her a sidelong glance, "This is the Praise Sanctuary. As long as you stay with others, you won't die."

It seemed to respond to what she had just said.

With a heavy heart, Veronica retraced her steps back to the hall. In the deep corridor, only her footsteps echoed, and she seemed to faintly hear the sound of a mirror shattering from behind.

Stay with everyone.

Carlo's instructions echoed in her mind.

The murderer wouldn't be crazy enough to kill in the hall. As long as no one was alone, they could spend a relatively peaceful night in the hall. By tomorrow, she planned to leave the Praise Sanctuary to meet those surviving guards.

Veronica silently contemplated her plan.

Ahead came the light and people's voices.

She pushed open the door; after being in darkness for so long, the hall was a bit glaring. She stopped in her tracks, overlooking the sect leaders in the hall. However, when she saw the figure in front of the Goddess statue, all her thoughts instantaneously collapsed, and an indescribable fear crawled up her spine.

This made Veronica feel cold and breathless.

She clearly saw Carlo, who had just completed his prayer, in front of the Goddess statue.

The Pope, with a dignified face, stood up and walked towards the crowd, about to deliver another rousing speech.

If Carlo had never left the hall from the beginning, then whom had she met in that strange room?

Veronica instinctively glanced back, seeing the path she came from swallowed by darkness.

The murderer had infiltrated.

Yet those in the hall were still oblivious, gathered by Carlo, listening to his speech.

But before Veronica could inform everyone of her findings, a disturbance arose in the hall below.

The sudden change frightened many into falling where they stood.

It was the statue of the Goddess of Life in the hall. At this moment, the eyes, once full of compassion, were weeping blood. Almost simultaneously, the energy crystal in the hall flickered intermittently, accompanied by an eerie, broken, woman's laugh—sharp, terrifying, and filled with despair.

Even Carlo, who was mid-speech, stood frozen.

After that sharp laughter continued for about ten seconds, a dull crash sounded behind Carlo, forcing him to flee into the crowd awkwardly. The next second, the broken upper half of the Goddess statue smashed where he had been speaking.

The statue representing the Life Divine Teachings shattered before them, finally causing someone to scream uncontrollably.

For the devout believers, what unfolded before their eyes was more than mere visual horror.

The broken statue of the Goddess of Life and the blood flowing from its eyes matched the description of the "Day of Destruction" in the Holy Scripture.

It symbolized the fall of the True God and the revival of the Evil God.

Different sects shared an almost identical interpretation of the "Day of Destruction."

All signs pointed to the same "future."

The apocalypse was imminent.

In the last moment of fading light, Veronica heard the terrified masses flee, rushing out of the Holy Hall and into various parts of the circular hall.

Anywhere, as long as they weren't in the place of the Evil God's arrival.

All around her was darkness, and Veronica dazedly sidestepped to evade, occasionally sensing people brush past her, fleeing to the corridor's depths—the very direction where she had encountered the murderer earlier.

"Carlo's" parting words suddenly echoed in her ears again.

——This is the Praise Sanctuary. As long as you stay with others, you won't die.

Both a warning and seemingly a forecast of the imminent slaughter.

For, fragmenting people was precisely the scenario the murderer most hoped to see.

She had a premonition, a bloody carnage banquet was about to unfold.