CHAPTER 74 (1): I COME TO LONDAN FOR THREE THINGS ONLY

The Great Cemetery.

The cold moon hung dimly overhead against the backdrop of the dark sky while mist enveloped the earth. In this shadowy realm, tombstones stood like heavy silhouettes under the pale moonlight. Surrounding the cemetery were towering trees. Whenever a wind swept through, the mist howled, and the branches and leaves rustled, breaking the deathly silence.

The center of the cemetery was where the mist was thickest, and phosphorescent will-o’-the-wisps flickered. A group of black-robed figures stood holding lanterns, adding a touch of eeriness to the stillness.

The followers of Death had arrived as instructed, waiting for the Death Knight to deliver the divine oracle.

The gathering was incredibly unwise. If the Three Goddess Alliance’s mages ambushed them, or if the gathering was a trap to begin with, all of the leaders of the Death sect in Londan would be caught in one fell swoop.

But they came anyway, driven by devout faith and faith’s folly.

It was approaching midnight. In the woods around the cemetery, numerous pairs of eyes opened, awaiting the Death Knight’s arrival. This gathering had attracted many participants, not just Death’s followers. Several churches were paying close attention, and even the mysterious Darkness Knight had come to the cemetery.

As midnight’s bells chimed and the fog grew so thick one couldn’t even see their own fingers, the followers heard before seeing the one they had been waiting for. The crisp sound of hoofbeats echoed from the depths of the cemetery.

The undead hound parted the dense fog, and an undead servant in a cream-colored coat and black top hat led the reins as the Death Knight rode his warhorse before the followers.

“Under Death’s watchful eyes, we come to hear the Knight’s teachings with a reverential heart.”

The followers bowed and praised the goddess and her knight. Some even tried to kiss the Death Knight’s boots, but were scared away by the undead hound’s angry growl.

To ordinary people, the Death Knight appeared in tattered, grotesque armor filled with resentment and rage for the living. His sword thirsted for blood and brought death and plague wherever he passed, making him the embodiment of despair.

In the eyes of Death’s followers, though, the knight was noble and mysterious, radiating elegance from head to toe.

They held their breath, so thrilled to be in close proximity to the knight that they clenched their fists, feeling like their lives were complete—they would have no regrets even if they were thrown into an asylum right now.

“I’m the Death Knight, here in the Goddess’s name to spread the faith of Death and relay Her oracle. You’re all Her most devout subjects. I’m glad that you’ve come.”

Wayne scanned the group as a booming voice came from his skull, “As for the others, although I didn’t invite you, I’m willing to treat you as guests since you’re here. Come out. There’s no need to hide.”

At that, the Death’s followers became agitated, clamoring to drag out the heretics and bleed them. In the Death Knight’s presence, they felt fearless and brimming with power since they now had powerful backing.

Wayne interrupted their chatter with a scoff, his piercing white gaze shifting to the distance as he placed his hand on his sword. “I said there’s no need to hide. You’re only bringing shame to your faiths.”

Rustling footsteps accompanied the emergence of over a hundred figures from the woods, clearly divided into different factions with varying degrees of closeness to each other. Seeing the enemy’s overwhelming numbers, the Death’s followers fell silent and retreated behind their knight in unison.

Wayne grunted. Now that he was on their side, the followers’ cowardice no longer amused him; he found it deeply embarrassing.

The uninvited guests could be roughly divided into four factions: the Church of Heavenly Father, the Free Mage Alliance, the Three Goddess Alliance, and the Church of Darkness, here to support their allies. Among them, the Three Goddess Alliance could be divided into three sub-factions: Nature, Sun, and Moonlight.

Wayne saw two familiar faces in the ranks of the Three Goddess Alliance—his master, Silvia, and Head Trainer Dick from the fitness center. Since he knew more people here, he paid some attention to the representative of Moonlight: a well-dressed woman around fifty, with a lean face that showed signs of age, but she was in good spirits, her sharp eyes giving an impression of competence.

There were still people hiding in the woods who hadn’t shown themselves, but he ignored them. He was here to preach tonight, not to fight.

He surveyed the scene and ordered Death’s followers to stand in the front. It was unbecoming of them to hide behind him.

Even if you have no shame, the Goddess does!

“I bring Death’s oracle. Londan has become corrupted once more...” Wayne said calmly, turning a blind eye to the disturbances around him. “Some live in poverty their entire lives, some are born hideous, and others are born into comfort and beauty. Individuals differ greatly, and injustice abounds in the world, but...”

“Everyone is moving toward death and will one day meet death. Whether one resists or rejects it, they will part from this world and enter an eternal slumber all the same.”

“Death is fair and serene. Before death, all are equal. No matter who you are, you will die someday. This is the gift of fairness the Goddess grants everyone.”

The followers listened to the oracle and had their faith reaffirmed. The Goddess of Death spoke truth, and Her knight’s words struck a chord.

The guests, on the other hand, were puzzled. What exactly was the Death Knight getting to with the platitudes? If that was the oracle, it was rather empty. He could repeat the lines for a lifetime, and he wouldn’t attract new followers for his goddess. They were sure they could show him what a professional salesperson was like.

“The Goddess told me that Londan has gotten too corrupted. Evil runs rampant, and criminals gather, making an already unjust world even more depraved. Rather than the mortal realm, it’s more like hell.” Wayne lowered his head to glance at Bo. “A few days ago, I awakened my servant by the Thames. In life, he was an upright and fearless Londan police officer, killed for exposing injustices...”

“After awakening, he continued fighting evil and succeeded in destroying... succeeded in upholding justice and making sure the evil deeds didn’t go unpunished, slightly recovering the unbalanced scales.”

“The Goddess’s oracle is fairness. You, as Her followers, must uphold this principle. Any bullying of the weak or abuse of power for personal gain is blasphemy against the divine. Not only must you restrain yourselves, you have to monitor others, too...”

“She requires you to establish bases in Londan’s five districts and create an organization open to the public, helping them secure the fairness they deserve. Justice may be late, but never absent.”

He spoke slowly, leaving the followers slack-jawed and the guests stunned, wondering if they had heard correctly.

Planck, hidden among the members of the Darkness Church, suspected that the Death Knight had gone mad.

Wayne’s master felt similarly. Silvia was at first stunned. It was her first time hearing such radical doctrine from Death. While the intention was good... what did that have to do with Death?

Rather than wasting their manpower and resources, they should spend their time trying to attract more followers. As for fairness, there were too few followers in Londan; even if they worked themselves to death, they couldn’t possibly...

Silvia’s heart skipped a beat. Now she understood.

The Death Knight’s oracle seemed like empty words with a prospect that could never become reality, a possibility that wasn’t probable at all considering the opposing forces. However, wasn’t that a clever way to attract followers?

People yearned for light and craved fairness. If the Death Knight managed to achieve results, the Goddess of Death’s reputation in Londan would undergo a complete reversal. Even if people still didn’t believe in Her, they wouldn’t allow others to slander the fair and just Death.

It didn’t matter if Death’s followers succeeded. What mattered was that they tried!

Silvia broke into a cold sweat, realizing the Death Knight’s sinister intention. How troublesome. As expected of an agent of Death who had long established himself, he was masterful in manipulating human hearts.

She didn’t believe that the Death Knight was sincere. The reformation now had to be preparation for a large-scale sacrifice in the future. Even if not that, this would be an open conspiracy to deceive the public with kindness in order to push the belief in Death to new heights, thereby driving the other faiths out of Londan.

Planck, on the other hand, just thought that the Death Knight had lost his mind.