Chapter 39

Chapter 39: The Villain

Amidst a wave of cheers, Bishop Mofu of the Holy Alliance in Pato City strode grandly up to the temporarily erected altar, raising high the monster's head that Dave had brought back. With a smile, he declared, "Praise the gods!"

After a brief silence, overwhelming cheers erupted from all directions. The citizens were beside themselves with excitement at this moment. After all, the rumors of a man-eating monster outside the city had kept them anxious for several nights. And now, one of the monsters that had cruelly killed four young trainees was reduced to nothing but a head, held high in the hand of the revered Bishop!

This was undoubtedly a tremendous encouragement to the townsfolk.

What's more, Dave had personally confirmed that aside from the two Red Ridge Beasts that had already been slain, there were no other threats outside the city. This was the best news imaginable!

"Praise the gods!"

"Praise the gods!"

...

The influence of the Holy Alliance in this small city was undoubtedly immense. Not only were the clergy, who had long dedicated themselves to healing the wounded and rescuing the dying, highly popular here, but even the Knight Academy, which everyone took pride in, had been established with the Holy Alliance's help. Thus, nearly everyone here was a believer in the gods of the Holy Alliance, and praising the glory of the gods at this moment was only natural.

No one noticed the profound mockery hidden within Lord Lang En's smile as he stood quietly behind the City Lord. Nor did anyone notice the puddle of water at his feet, slowly seeping into the ground.

Of course, even if they had seen it, people would likely have assumed that the Interior Steward was so overcome with emotion that he had wet himself on the spot, and they would have used it as a topic of conversation to pass the time in the days to come.

In any case, no one would have guessed that it was the Water of the Gods, originally intended for the 'Hero's' baptism...

"There is a young man," Bishop Mofu began, as if chatting casually with the crowd. "He lost his happy family at a young age and grew up alone within the church. Despite the company of many devout believers, for a child, this cannot be called a particularly joyful childhood."

The crowd gradually fell silent.

"Praise the gods, the tragedies of the past did not leave an indelible shadow on this child." Mofu smiled and glanced at Dave. "He still grew up healthy and strong."

A few individuals in the crowd quietly shed tears, though whether they were sincere was anyone's guess.

"His name is Dave. Dave Sager." The Bishop extended his hand toward Dave, who stood below the altar. "He was once a second-year student at Parding Knight Academy and a devout believer of the God of Courage and Justice. Yesterday, he was granted the title of Temporary Temple Knight and went alone outside the city to face the brutal murderer. Come, child, let everyone see you clearly."

A shy smile on his face, Dave walked over to stand beside Bishop Mofu.

"And today!" The Bishop grasped Dave's right hand. "He is one favored by the gods. His character and faith have earned the recognition of all. He deserves a reward!"

"He is our hero!!" City Lord Naji roared at the top of his lungs, then scratched his neck with some confusion, grinning foolishly at the enthusiastic crowd responding to him.

The bishop's expression turned solemn, and he said softly to Dave, "Your god is watching you. Kneel, my child."

Dave obediently knelt on one knee.

"Your deeds are worthy of your heart, worthy of your god, and worthy of those comrades who have gone ahead," Mofu said with a smile. "So I believe you can bear some even heavier glory. Are you willing?"

"I am willing," Dave nodded firmly. "To prevent more tragedies, for all the innocent, and for my own faith."

A burly little priest clattered over, respectfully presenting a crystal vial to Bishop Mofu, muttering under his breath, "By the gods, I'm so damn jealous."

Nearly half the square heard him...

But the bishop pretended to be deaf, smiling as he took the vial of 'Water of the Gods' and declared loudly, "Then... I shall bestow upon you—"

Dong!! Dong!! Dong!!

Deafening bell tones erupted, accompanied by a burst of laughter dripping with mockery and ridicule.

"You shall bestow upon him the glory of a Holy Church Knight!" The voice came from the air not far away. "And let this beast, suspected of premeditated murder, secretly laugh at the blind gods in his heart~~~"

Boom!

The scene erupted into chaos. Everyone stood frozen, a huge clamor rising as each person wondered who dared to slander their newly minted 'hero' and the gods above!

"Who!" Bishop Mofu bellowed, his face ashen. "Who dares to blaspheme the gods in public!"

"Over there! On the bell tower!"

Among the crowd, sharp-eyed individuals had already spotted that flash of white.

Everyone looked up at once.

"Good afternoon, everyone." Standing on the bell tower built at the very center of Pato City, adjacent to the grand square, Mo Tan performed a hat-tipping gesture to the crowd below, even though he wasn't wearing a hat. "I'm delighted to add some entertainment here~"

Bishop Mofu stared coldly at him. "In the name of the gods, do you know what you're saying?"

"Of course~" Mo Tan rested his chin on his right hand, a magic pattern etched into his white glove—enhanced by Leiduo with an Amplification Spell—and replied with keen interest, "Those gods you're always flattering under every pretext will thank me, since I'm about to destroy a heretic with a promising future~"

Dave snapped his head up and roared, "Who are you calling a heretic!?"

"Ah, seems you like kneeling while chatting with others." Mo Tan spread his hands, his eyes brimming with malice and coldness. "I'm obviously talking about you~ Comrade Sager, since personally killing off your comrades from the same academy is hardly befitting a believer of the God of Courage and Justice, is it?"

Everyone was stunned. What was this seemingly unhinged man talking about?

"Killed fellow students from the same academy?"

Dave Sager?

What the hell!?

"Nonsense!" Dave stood up, his face pale, and roared, "You are questioning the noble faith of a man who has devoted everything to the gods!"

"No, no, no~" Mo Tan shook his head. "I'm only questioning whether your brain has ever taken a hard blow from some solid object. As for your faith, I don't question that—but that's a topic for later. For now..."

He stood atop the high bell tower, his white robe fluttering gently in the breeze, and sneered, "Let's talk about how you drove those two adorable pets to kill Rona Moonlight, personally pierced Rada Dona's heart, and believed you had killed Cole Shulen and the Holy Alliance's clergywoman, Ai FanYe~"

These four names, so familiar to everyone lately, undoubtedly stirred a huge uproar among the crowd. Everyone knew they were members of the Warm Sun Squad, the very reason Dave had gone alone to avenge his comrades against those two monsters!

What is that person saying?

It was Dave... who killed them!?

"Utter nonsense!" Bishop Mofu was so angry his beard bristled. "Temple Knights! Take him and—"

"Wait!" Unexpectedly, the very person being 'maliciously slandered' suddenly spoke up: "I am willing to confront him!"

[It really is him!!]

But Dave, who spoke these righteous words, still had a somewhat pale face. He was now almost certain that this guy was the same person he had met in the forest last time. Naturally, he had reported this to Lang En immediately upon returning, and after a detailed interrogation of their conversation, the Interior Steward, far more cunning than Dave, had already prepared several backup plans. He hadn't expected them to actually come in handy!

"I want to know, do you have evidence for slandering me like this?" Dave looked up at Mo Tan and said solemnly, "If this is just a prank, I am willing to forgive you on a personal level, but you will still face the consequences of speaking disrespectfully of the gods—a one-on-one duel with me!"

Well done! What a man!

The onlookers were utterly captivated, and the Bishop revealed a faint, gratified smile.

After all, unlike Dave, they had no idea of Mo Tan's true strength.

But...

"Evidence?" Mo Tan nodded. "I do have it. Didn't I just say that two of the four people you intended to kill are still alive, and I happened to save them? As for it being a prank..."

He turned his back to Dave, clasping his hands behind him.

Pfft! A loud fart rang out!

The popping sound from the small air sac crushed in his sleeve echoed across the entire square, amplified by the Amplifying Magic Pattern.

"Now that was a prank~" Mo Tan turned back, grinning, and wagged his finger. "That earlier part wasn't."

An eerie silence lasted for several seconds...

"You bastard!" Dave finally managed to compose himself. "If my comrades were truly saved by you, then where are they now?"

If Lang En's judgment was correct, this guy had once said that those two were as good as dead and wouldn't be able to come forward to testify for a while. As long as today passed, everything would be settled, and handling the rest would be easy!

Sure enough...

"They can't come out just yet," Mo Tan said with a light chuckle. "So you're planning to deny everything to the end, huh?"

This remark immediately stirred up an uproar, with many in the crowd already shouting things like 'Kill him!' and the like...

Unexpectedly, Dave shook his head. "I have nothing to deny. Exposing your malice and lies doesn't require such trouble."

He stepped forward and said solemnly to Bishop Mofu, "Please allow me to request an early baptism for myself, so that this man's lies will be shattered at once!"

The bishop quickly caught on, stroking his beard with a light smile. "Very well, then let us all bear witness together with the gods."

But Mo Tan took half a step back, pointing a trembling finger at the crystal vial in Mofu's hand, stammering, "This... this is..."

"The Water of the Gods," Dave said gravely. "I am a believer of the God of Courage and Justice. If I had truly done the despicable deeds you described, not only would I have long since suffered divine punishment, but during the baptism, I would inevitably be chastised as a blasphemer. But if you are lying..."

He knelt gently before Bishop Mofu, closing his eyes. "Then when I become a true Temple Knight, I will surely punish you!"

"Wait!" Mo Tan cried out, his face pale with shock. "Wait! I... I still have more to say!!"

But no one was willing to wait for him...

Dave, outwardly as steady as a mountain, was inwardly panicking as he lowered his head, signaling Mofu to begin.

The holy Water of the Gods poured from the crystal vial, wetting Dave's hair and trickling down his temples...

"May the gods look upon me favorably..."

In the next instant, as if a hymn echoed, a halo of light, white with streaks of red, radiated from Dave's body—this was the unique divine light of Haimer, the God of Courage and Justice!

At the same time, a red holy emblem of a sword and scales blazed behind him, then merged into Dave's body within seconds.

The bandages fell away, and Dave's previously heavily injured arm was completely restored as if new, even the unhealed scars on his face slowly fading...

A God's Favorite!!!

A once-in-a-century God's Favorite!

In an instant, cheers erupted from countless corners of the square. The crowd was in a frenzy, as if they were witnessing history. No one had expected that Dave would trigger all the signs of a God's Favorite during this baptism...

This was something that only happened in stories!

"Praise the gods!" Bishop Mofu declared loudly. "Praise all the gods!"

Dave smiled too, a very happy smile.

Lang En also smiled, even more happily, and as he smiled, he stared like a viper at the white-clad man on the bell tower, who seemed like a jumping clown.

"No!" Mo Tan covered his face in despair, roaring, "It shouldn't be like this! I... I still have something to say! Yes... yes... I still have something to say!"

"Bastard!" the Minister of Internal Affairs roared, "You have no chance left!"

Lang En stepped onto the altar and declared loudly to the countless citizens in the square, "Forgive my presumption, but my dear people, what have you just witnessed?!"

"A God's Favorite!!!"

"Yes, a God's Favorite!" Lang En nodded. "Not only that, but he also eliminated the threat outside the city for us! He safeguarded our safety! Am I right?!"

"Yes!"

"That's right, Lord Lang En!"

"Exactly!!"

The crowd thundered in agreement.

"Despite being severely wounded and not yet recovered, he still thought only of avenging his comrades with his own hands!" Lang En said with deep emotion. "And he succeeded, and moreover, he received the recognition of the gods!"

Dave exchanged a knowing smile with him.

"He is our hero! The hero of Pato City, the hero and role model of countless students at Parding Knight Academy!" Lang En shouted. "Am I right?!"

"Yes!!!!"

The people responded with frenzy.

In most cases, they were so easily swayed, so quick to change their stance, so adorable, so... foolish...

"And our hero..." Lang En said gravely, "is at this moment being slandered and defamed by a blasphemous villain! Can we forgive that man?!"

"No!!!"

Mo Tan's face grew even paler...

"Soldiers!" Lang En waved his hand grandly. "Seize him!"

"Temple Knights!" Bishop Mofu also appropriately sought to assert his presence. "Go!!"

Instantly, seven or eight City Guards and three Temple Knights, amid the roar of the crowd, drew their weapons and charged toward the bell tower, determined to make the villain who had already lost everything face his deserved punishment.

Unexpectedly...

Bang! Crash!

Two loud explosions erupted at the base of the bell tower, and the foremost few were sent flying backward like kites with broken strings, crashing heavily to the ground.

"What's the rush..." A middle-aged man in a blood-red heavy armor, with disheveled hair, staggered out from under the bell tower. "He said he still has something to say~"

Two massive hammers slammed into the ground, leaving two craters in the thick Salt Crystal Stone floor.

"That's right..."

Mo Tan, who had been pale-faced on the bell tower, suddenly flashed a mischievous grin. "I still have something to say~~"

He snapped his fingers lightly...

"Little Ai! Give our 'hero' another wash~"

Chapter 39: The End