Only God
Chapter 412 - 365 Nothing Left but Pity

Chapter 412: Chapter 365 Nothing Left but Pity

A young boy lay upon the altar, his hands and feet bound, his mouth gagged. His parents stood by—one fanning the flames, the other stirring a pot of golden liquid.

That was molten gold.

The molten gold was hoisted up by a huge wooden mechanism, and the red-hot cauldron stood above the boy. The orange-red liquid appeared even hotter than molten lava.

Mira watched in disbelief as the Priest on the platform chanted Scriptures. As the suspended cauldron drew ever closer to the boy, the scalding gold poured down from midair before the onlookers could react.

Splash.

Heavy white steam rose from the altar.

Mira covered her mouth, her eyes filled with horror.

What was the boy thinking just before death?

What flashed through his eyes? His father’s stern face while teaching him a craft, his mother’s complaints as she carefully tended to him, the heretical Scriptures recited day and night, the piety of daily prayers...

Mira did not know.

She was not the boy; she did not know his thoughts.

The girl only knew

that a life had passed, a sacrifice was complete.

Everywhere cheers swept like a tidal wave. The frenzied kneeling filled every nook and cranny.

Mira stood dazed, unable to snap back to reality for a long time.

Anos watched the girl, then sighed softly.

Though her feelings were sparse due to the Golden Heart, beyond her initial astonishment, she felt nothing.

Even her rationality told her that she should be grateful for the scene before her.

This stemmed from a kind of hostile retaliatory psychology.

The Primordial Church had always been a termite gnawing at the foundations of the Empire. As Princess Anos, she relished seeing their chaos.

She despised those who persecuted her own people, yearning for their misfortune, hoping the world would oppose them, punish their sins, even taking matters into her own hands—in the name of revenge—to retaliate against the living of that faction, against their kin, against their tribe...

If the True Believers were to witness this scene, perhaps they would feel a sense of satisfaction.

It was the satisfaction of a great vengeance being fulfilled.

Mira silently turned in the crowd, gave an order to old Parker, and then moved to step out of the throng.

Old Parker hastily followed them.

Anos’s gaze remained on Mira, and she discovered that Mira’s eyes held no trace of that vindictive satisfaction, only pity in her pure blue eyes.

After witnessing that sacrifice, her heart felt empty, with nothing left but pity.

Anos did not know how to comfort Mira.

As Princess of the Empire, accustomed to cruelty, she could not empathize with this innocent girl.

"Clouds fall as fog, fires rise as smoke..."

For some reason, seeing Mira like this made those words from Vina Kana resonate within Anos’s heart.

When would this prophecy come true, and what did it mean?

The Princess could not be sure.

All she knew was that, to God, the so-called unknown fates of all beings did not exist; everything was visible and known.

Therefore, at this very moment, within Anos’s heart, there suddenly arose a fear of God.

...

Old Parker found them a dwelling. The residents of the undercity rarely left, and this city did not trade with other cities of the Mortal World. Outsiders were even rarer, so there were no inns or hostels.

But old Parker had prepared. He entrusted a friend to find an empty residence and helped Mira and Anos temporarily settle down there.

Mira stepped onto the balcony, lifting her face to see the endless river of light before her eyes.

Anos followed her out.

"Mira," she asked, "what kind of city could it be, that has never been touched by sunlight?"

Faced with Anos’s question, Mira could not answer.

The girl herself did not know.

She had heard angels say that in the Mortal World, at the far north or the far south, there would be places with perpetual day or night, but she had never heard of a Land of No Light like this.

It seemed that this city without light was located underground, yet Mira saw the firmament above, a genuine sky, not the uneven rock walls.

"Forget it, Anos, let’s not think about these things anymore."

Mira turned around and said with an unwavering tone,

"Right now, the most important thing is to unravel the conspiracy of the Primordial Church and free the people here from their sufferings."

Anos smiled and asked,

"Do you have the resolve?"

"Of course."

Mira nodded decisively,

"I am Mira after all."

Anos gazed at the city before her, her eyes resting on the highest point of the city below.

It seemed like a church, yet not like a church, but there was no doubt it was a Temple, majestic and tall, like a Divine being overlooking the Mortal World from the starry sky.

This Temple was so resplendent it was hard to imagine, completely clad in Gold, as if every brick and tile were crafted from gold. It was hard to know how many craftsmen had toiled and sweated over such a Temple.

"Is that... the ’Golden Hall’?"

Anos said uncertainly,

"But... wasn’t the Golden Hall turned to ashes in the murals of the Primordial Church?"

Mira also noticed the most splendid building in the whole city, she rubbed her eyes and carefully scrutinized the Temple from top to bottom.

"Could it be... rebuilt?"

Mira said incredulously.

Anos nodded slightly, this assumption was the most likely.

"Do we have to go there? No, we can’t be so reckless, it would very likely expose us."

After a while, Anos said as she bit thoughtfully on her finger,

"Mira, I have a plan."

Mira turned around, focusing intently on Anos,

"What plan?"

Anos lowered her head and whispered into the girl’s ear,

"I’m afraid you might disagree."

Mira blinked,

"Tell me, Anos."

Anos began slowly,

"This is the inspiration brought to me by Vina Kana.

Mira, the people here are so devout and yet are being used by those with ulterior motives, led astray under lies.

So... perhaps we could do the same, spreading a benevolent falsehood.

The lie would be..."

Anos paused,

"Mira is God’s Messenger.

They must follow her teachings and walk the path of the Prophet to be saved."

Mira was stunned.

Anos continued,

"Mira, with so many Ancient Languages at your disposal, only you can pose as God’s Messenger. Only in this way can we make contact with the upper echelons of the Primordial Church."

Mira scratched her head.

She almost thought Anos had guessed her true identity.

Turns out it was just like this.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.