CHAPTER 299: 299

As Ariana disappeared into the dark with the flame torch, silence returned to the tunnel. Shadows crept up the wet stone walls, and for a moment, it felt as if Kael stood in a void. But in that void, the heads of the five cultists began to glow with bloody red eyes and lips emitting an eerie, unnatural light. Even without the torch, they were visible. Symbols carved into their flesh pulsed like breathing wounds.

Kael narrowed his gaze. He could feel the magic build in the air.

They opened their mouths in unison, ready to sing again, their lips twisting into the opening verse of a dark chant—but before the sound could even form, Kael was gone from where he stood.

With a flash, he appeared before the closest cultist. The man smirked.

"You haven’t learned any lesson from our last engagement. You—"

SWISH.

His words cut off as his head lifted from his shoulders and hovered midair for a second before plummeting with a wet thud.

The remaining four froze, their expressions frozen in a mixture of horror and disbelief.

"...How?" one managed to whisper, voice trembling.

Kael flicked his sword to the side, scattering dark blood in an arc.

"I can’t hear you," he said calmly, his tone unnerving. "But from your faces... It looks like you’re surprised. But this isn’t enough."

He moved again,leaving behind a blurry image across the murky floor.

His steps barely touched the ground, each footfall calculated, deadly. The second cultist thrust his hand forward, dark chains of smoke shooting toward Kael. The chains wrapped around Kael’s legs, hissing and tightening like venomous serpents.

The cultist laughed, "You’re too late!"

But Kael, instead of resisting, shifted his stance and twisted midair. Using the chains’ pull, he spun and accelerated forward. His blade slashed across the cultist’s chest in a single arc. The man’s body split diagonally, his final scream choking in his throat.

The remaining three reeled back. The leader, trembling, raised the artifact book high above his head. Blood dripped from its pages as he began a thunderous chant. From the book, an immense aura burst forth—a crimson wave of mental pressure meant to consume minds and drown willpower.

Kael staggered slightly, his eyes going unfocused. His breathing slowed. The hymn echoed in his mind, trying to swallow his consciousness.

But then Kael clenched his jaw and struck his own ear hard. A sharp burst of pain followed by muffled silence. Then the other.

Blood trickled down, and the world became previously he used counter mana to deaf himself but he stuck himself now.

Now,he couldn’t hear any chants, nor songs. No invasion of thoughts.

He had made himself deaf.

With balance slightly compromised, Kael still surged forward. His steps weren’t as fluid, his blade slightly off but his intent never wavered.

The third cultist stepped forward, fingers glowing as a serpent-like spell formed from his palm, meant to bind Kael’s body and lock his limbs. The coils wrapped around Kael’s arm—only for him to snap the bind with sheer force. A roar trembled the air, but Kael couldn’t hear it. He thrust forward, skewering the cultist through the gut and raising him off the ground before pulling out clean.

The man collapsed with a muted cry of agony.

The fourth tried to run, screaming a desperate plea but Kael’s sword severed his leg in a single stroke. He collapsed, dragging himself back with bloody palms, eyes wide. Kael didn’t hesitate. He plunged the blade through the heart with precision.

All that remained was the leader.

He stood frozen, book trembling in his hands, sweat pouring down his face.

Kael looked straight into his eyes and charged. The book erupted again with a new chant, this time a direct soul strike. Symbols swirled and clawed through the air, latching onto Kael’s temples.

Kael gritted his teeth. His sword glowed—he infused it with a burst of pure will. Slashing through the symbols, he lunged. The leader tried to dodge but stumbled. Kael’s blade pierced through his chest, shattering ribs and exiting through the back.

The man gasped, mouth opening in shock, blood pouring out in wet gurgles.

With a final push, Kael yanked the sword free. The body crumpled, spasming before it fell still.

Kael stood over the corpse, face grim, blood dripping from his blade and staining his boots. The humming in his head had faded slightly, but the silence remained.

He pulled out a healing potion and gulped it down.

He exhaled, wincing. "I really need to train while being deaf. This completely threw off my balance... If these guys weren’t B-rank and below, things might’ve ended differently."

One by one, he dragged the corpses toward him, storing them into his ring. But as his hand reached the last body, he paused.

The book.

Its cover pulsed faintly, almost... alive. A sinister presence curled around it.

Kael studied it for a moment, eyes narrowing. Then, without a word, he slipped it into the ring as well.

He glanced back once before moving into the drainage leading to the upper part.

.......

Kael emerged from the grime-laced tunnel beneath the city, pushing aside a rusted iron grate as he climbed out into a secluded corner between two worn-down buildings. The scent of mildew and rot clung to his cloak, his boots dripping sewage water as he stepped onto cracked stone. The faint sounds of laughter and drunken voices spilled out from the distant pub just a few alleys away, his target now within reach.

He straightened his coat and flicked his hair back, calmly adjusting the cloth around his sword’s hilt. But just as he stepped into the open, a sharp voice halted him.

"Stop right there."

From the mouth of the alley, a man clad in layered crimson robes stepped forward. Gold emblems shaped like sunbursts shimmered across his chestplate, and behind him, three other clergy in similar garb emerged, their spears leveled and eyes burning with suspicion.

"You came from the sewage tunnel. That’s a forbidden zone monitored by the Church of God. State your identity and purpose, now."

Kael’s eyes narrowed slightly, hands relaxed by his side as he gauged their strength. His lips parted—but before he could say a word, a shrill voice rang from the adjacent rooftop.

"Priests of God, kindly lower those toothpicks. You’re going to poke someone important."

Ariana stood at the edge of the roof, her flame-colored hair fluttering behind her. Gare followed closely behind, his cloak fluttering as he leapt down, landing near Kael with a solid thud. The priest flinched slightly at the sudden appearance.

"Ariana... you brought reinforcements?" Kael muttered with a small smirk.

Ariana grinned. "The leading priest from the Church of God frowned. "You dare intervene—"

"You’re talking to us now?" Gare’s voice rumbled, cracking his knuckles as he stepped forward. "We heard there might be whispers of the Crimson Choir nearby. You should confirm that first?"

The moment the words "Crimson Choir" were uttered, something strange happened. The tension shifted—but not in fear. Rather, the priests of the God of War grinned. Their eyes gleamed with anticipation, almost delight. One of them stomped his spear against the ground like a war drum.

"Praise the bloodlust," the lead priest murmured with fervor. "An evil group is truly active... We’ve been waiting for this day!"

Another priest started dancing in place, spinning his weapon in excitement. "We get to crack their skulls again?! By the war gods, I haven’t felt this alive in years!"

Ariana blinked, completely thrown off by their reaction. "...Are you all... masochists or something?"

The priests laughed, full-throated and wild. "We are the fists of righteous destruction, lady. And the Crimson Choir is our long-lost hymn!"

Kael couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. "Freaks."

The war priest leader suddenly turned to Kael and bowed slightly. "My lord, did you manage to get proof?"

Ariana, recovering from her shock, winked at Kael. "Lord, you have the proof right."

Kael smirked faintly and pulled something from his ring. A severed head wrapped in a pale cloth, straw stuffed into the cracked eye sockets and blood dried around its twisted mouth.

The moment the Church of War priests saw it, their laughter halted. Their expressions stiffened, and a heavy silence followed. Even the crazed dancer paused mid-step.

The lead priest gulped. "That’s... a Straw Herald. We thought they were extinct..."

Kael stepped forward and tossed the head onto the ground. "That’s not all. I cleared a nest beneath the church."

The priest knelt beside the head and bowed his head in respect. "Lord Kael... you’ve done a great service to the Church of God of War. With this evidence, we can demand an inquest. You’ve truly helped us a lot."

Kael whispered, "Didn’t think a rotting head would earn so much gratitude."

Ariana leaned back, folding his arms. "Now that you have seen it.Can we go?"

The war priests began preparing a small seal, drawing sacred circles around the Straw Herald’s head, beginning a preservation rite.

Kael looked toward the pub entrance ahead. "Let’s finish this quietly. I want to be gone before dawn."

Ariana nodded. "Amen to that, preacher."