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Chapter 343 - 340: "So What Did She Do Wrong?

Chapter 343: Chapter 340: "So What Did She Do Wrong?

Hearing the voice, the blond man in black turned his head and saw Su Ming’an covered in blood.

"Su Rin?" He glanced at Su Ming’an, "What are you doing here? Are you... coming to accompany Sherrod?"

"Aelas?"

Su Ming’an did not expect that the leader of Soul Hunt would come to the territory of the Church in Cloud City.

"What happened to Sherrod?" he asked.

"Nothing serious, just a necessary punishment," Aelas said. "He let go of a soul from the Soul Clan that should have been purged, and this is his punishment. This is the Church’s Flame of the Soul, which can lead people to reflect through pain."

"This is the Church’s territory," Su Ming’an emphasized, meaning that the leader of Soul Hunt shouldn’t be in such a place.

"Hmm, I know. But I also have a responsibility to maintain the safety of Pulaya," Aelas said. "Before each Maritime Banquet, the Pope will seclude himself. Hearing the news, the Cardinal acting in his place seems irregular, so I came to check. Sure enough, the nearby knights have all been reassigned... Hmm?"

He looked up, gazing into the distance, "Why is the Hall of Light on fire over there?"

"The irregular Cardinal you mentioned did it; he burned foreigners for a sacrifice, and I killed him," said Su Ming’an.

"Hmm... well done," Aelas said. "Su Rin, you remain my most trusted sword."

Having said that, he showed no further interest in conversation and started to clean his shiny silver handgun with a cloth.

Behind him, Sherrod screamed miserably in the transparent flames, the screams unbearably harsh, as if tearing at his vocal cords to come out.

The deliberate movements of Aelas formed a stark contrast with the heartbreaking scene behind him.

Su Ming’an glanced at Sherrod, who was in extreme agony, and moved his gaze away.

"How long will this punishment last?" he asked.

Looking at this terrifying scene, if it continued like this, it would probably pain someone to death.

Aelas stopped his actions, seemingly pondering:

"... Until the Force of Light bestowed upon him by the Church is exhausted," he said. "About... until tomorrow morning?"

Su Ming’an glanced at the time, it was two o’clock in the morning, "Tomorrow morning, will he still be alive?"

"Su Rin, the Church’s regulations are different from Soul Hunt’s. Even if it is a usable and living force once someone violates the rules, they will be abandoned without mercy," Aelas said. "They strictly forbid the occurrence of any acts of favoritism, especially knights, who must lead by example... Sherrod, he let go of someone who shouldn’t have been let go, and he should accept the punishment."

"Where do these Church regulations come from?"

"The Oracle," Aelas said. "Do you intend to defy the Oracle of the Cloud City God?"

Su Ming’an did not respond.

He and Sherrod were not very close; at best, the other party was just an NPC with high favorability, not worth tangling with that deity for him.

"Then I’m going back to sleep," Su Ming’an feigned leaving.

As he turned, his footsteps suddenly halted.

He saw at the gate, two Soul Hunters escorting a person with trembling steps into the Sanctuary.

She was wearing a black coarse cloth short robe and slowly swaying before his eyes.

"... Before you leave, perhaps witness her end," the voice of Aelas came from behind him.

Su Ming’an anticipated this scene.

He knew that if Soul Hunt wouldn’t let Gerald go, she couldn’t leave even if she boarded a merchant ship.

Sherrod was just a Knight of Light, under the Church; he simply couldn’t protect someone that Soul Hunt was determined to capture.

Su Ming’an had never imagined that the Soul Hunt could actually go to such lengths.

——They would rather punish Sherrod, rather board that merchant ship themselves and forcibly bring back the old lady than let the person escape.

...They actually intended to go so far as to completely annihilate their target.

He looked towards the door.

The elder’s figure was still frail, appearing to be on the verge of collapse, just like every time Su Ming’an had seen her.

In her hands, she clutched that photograph, slowly grinding it under the watchful guard of the Soul Hunt, bathed in the golden glow of the light.

Then Su Ming’an met her gaze.

She was looking at him, her eyes like thin shards of broken porcelain. The light froze in her pale, muddied eyes, like a tide that was slowly melting away.

Her face was reddened by the cold night wind, her cheekbones high, wrinkles stretched across her face, and the corners of her mouth turned up as if comfort him.

"Su Rin," Aelas’s voice came slowly from the side, "My use of people has never been particular. I can tolerate those with ambition, those with malicious intent. I can also... trust an outsider whose nature and leverage are unknown, as long as he has sufficient strength.

"...As long as he is human.

"Only if he is human.

"So.

"I can trust an outsider who suddenly rushes back and an unknown Soul Hunter from outside.

"...But I cannot trust a member of the Soul Clan."

"So, what did Gerald do wrong?" Ming’an asked.

"Her mistake is being a member of the Soul Clan," Aelas replied.

"Who told you? Did she kill someone, injure someone, or get discovered by other members of the Soul Clan? Did she attack someone, eat someone, or commit any act of evil?" Su Ming’an didn’t believe for a second she was a member of the Soul Clan.

Having never had even the slightest hint of the Soul Clan’s scent on her, how could she possibly be one of them.

"...Your disbelief is appropriate," Aelas said as he watched Ming’an, "because she was indeed once human."

"Once?"

"Because, to support her home after losing her husband and then her son, she made a deal with the Cloud Sanctuary... She made a shocking and outrageous decision," Aelas explained. "...This is a long story.

At that time, her daughter and granddaughter had not yet grown up, and the family had only one person able to work.

Later, she also fell ill.

To wait for her husband to return from Cloud City, she signed up for the human experimental trials by the Church up in the clouds.

——The Church successfully transformed her into a member of the Soul Clan."

"You’re making up stories?" said Su Ming’an.

Aelas laughed softly.

A raspy wail echoed behind him, the two Soul Hunters escorting the old lady passed by him, and he stroked his scarred hand with a faint voice.

"...Su Rin, then what evidence do you have to disbelieve this story?" he said. "Because she was a transformed member of the Soul Clan, her scent wouldn’t attract the attention of other members of the Soul Clan. Yet, even if she was a failed product of the transformation, we still cannot afford to let our guard down around her."

"So now, with the Soul Clan becoming more and more restless, you can’t stand it anymore, wanting to ditch your responsibilities after crossing the river." Su Ming’an continued his words, "Sending me on a second sweep mission was your way of getting me, an outsider, to kill someone who is clearly human but classified as a Soul Clan member?"

Under his cold gaze, Aelas slowly nodded.

"That’s right," he said.

Su Ming’an laughed, "——But what you didn’t anticipate was the most ironic thing, that the Church Knight acting with me, who’s supposed to be the epitome of righteousness, would have his own agenda, deceiving me, and even attempting to send her away."

Aelas nodded.

"That’s right," he said.

"Then, has she ever harmed anyone?" Su Ming’an asked.

"..." Aelas fell silent.

"Without the Soul Clan’s strength, without the Soul Clan’s speed, incapable of harming people, not consuming human flesh and blood—even so, you can’t tolerate her existence?" Su Ming’an asked again.

Aelas remained silent.

"—So, she really won’t harm anyone. Was the report of numerous deaths in Thirteenth Street in the mission briefing also a lie to incite my killing intent, and then have me kill her?" Su Ming’an asked.

"...Yes," Aelas answered.

"You guys are quite amusing," Su Ming’an concluded.

He finally understood why Aelas stubbornly insisted that there was a presence of the Soul Clan in Thirteenth Street, where there was no trace of them.

...Because the Soul Clan was Gerald herself.

Even if she wouldn’t hurt or harm anyone, didn’t consume human souls, just because her body was altered by the Soul Clan, she had to die.

No matter what the essence of her soul was.

No matter whether her thoughts were that of a human.

...

[Sherrod, his son was a sacrificed Soul Hunter, right? By all accounts, he should receive financial support. Why is he living in such hardship?]

...

[Sherrod, this is supposed to be a cleared area, it shouldn’t be possible for the Soul Clan to appear again, so why are there any fish that escape the net?]

...

Su Ming’an understood why Aelas had assigned him this mission in the first place.

Aelas wanted to make an example of Gerald, to tell him after he killed her: Su Rin, you’ve killed a member of the Soul Clan who was once human, but because her body is of the Soul Clan, you must kill her—this is the way of things between humans and the Soul Clan. The distinction between races isn’t in the mind, but in the physical differences.

Aelas wouldn’t even disclose to him that she hadn’t harmed anyone. He only allowed him to believe that he had killed a Soul Clan member who deserved death.

...Simply because he had expressed dissatisfaction with the racial divisions.

...Simply because he had hesitated over the differences between the two races.

To better control this foreign blade that was him, Aelas was using this cruel and absurd manner of teaching to make him understand who "deserved to be killed."

Even if she was his kindly old neighbor, she was no exception.

Such a Soul Hunt leader, who prided himself on justice, seemed to be no different from the pure Soul Clan extremists like Lucia whom he had encountered.

Aelas had even deliberately assigned a Knight of Light to follow him, hoping to cut off any mercy he might show. However, ironically, the first to betray him was the Knight of Light who should have enforced the law rigorously, making Aelas look like a joke.

...Even the Knight of Light didn’t approve of such an act of execution.

How ridiculous.

"Su Rin, her body is no longer human, its internal organs are all composed of Soul Clan material," Aelas said: "In this critical moment, we need to research the power within her body. Even if she is a failed experiment, she should be reclaimed by us."

"Is that so? I accept your view," Su Ming’an said: "So, Aelas, in this critical moment, as the strongest Soul Hunter, you should also be reclaimed for further study, and if the Cloud City Church could transform you into a member of the Soul Clan, perhaps you could become a better combat force."

"...Su Rin," Aelas glanced at him: "Your behavior was not like this before, are your emotions perhaps too agitated?"

Su Ming’an paused, calming his thoughts.

It was undeniable that the world of Pulaya was excessively real.

So much so that he felt empathy for a character that was like an NPC.

But his rational knowledge also told him that an S-rank mission couldn’t just be completed by watching Gerald die.

"Then, Aelas, what would you like to do now?" he asked after pondering for a moment.

"Let everything proceed in its rightful order," Aelas narrowed his eyes: "Sherrod deserves to be punished, but since Gerald has returned, the result hasn’t deviated, so according to the rules of the Cloud City Church, his punishment can be halved.

As for you, Su Rin, now return to the Eastern District, go back to your room, and I will overlook your overstepping your bounds—everything in Pulaya is constituted by the proper order, there’s no need for you to play hero here."

"..." Su Ming’an was silent for a moment.

He didn’t move, just stood there, showing no intention of leaving.

If he were to back down here, then everything he had done since the rollback would go down the drain. Nothing would be different from the previous loop. The mission would remain incomplete.

The mission required achieving a "happy ending" for all parties.

...So what exactly counts as a "happy ending"?

To save Gerald? Or...

He looked towards Aelas.

The Soul Hunt leader stood there looking at him, carrying an oppressive aura as deep as the sea.

His strength should be comparable to that of Sevya.

Normally speaking, Su Ming’an was completely no match for Aelas. But...

"Playing the hero is when the person in question lacks the ability, that’s when you can call it playing the hero," Su Ming’an spoke up: "...But what if my strength is sufficient?"

Aelas was momentarily stunned.

The next moment, a pitch-black figure emerged by his side.

Sevya, cloaked in black and with electricity shimmering around him, appeared behind him.

Before Aelas could come to his senses, Sevya pressed his hand on the back of Aelas’s neck, slamming him fiercely to the ground.

Electric sparks crackled; tiny silver snakes danced on his body. It seemed that Aelas wanted to resist, but then another figure emerged next to him.

An old man with white hair wearing a tall top hat and leaning on a cane materialized slowly from the shadows, his wrinkled face smiling at him.

And at the same moment Archilev appeared, a flash of white light occurred, and the two Soul Hunters responsible for the escort suddenly passed out without warning, falling to the ground.

"...Archilev, it’s actually you," Aelas, pinned to the ground, strained to lift his head.

He had not anticipated this at all.

...Two high-ranking members of the Soul Clan, known to be at odds with each other, were actually loyal to the same person.

What was laughable was that, just ten minutes ago, he still regarded that person as his most trustworthy sword.

Suddenly, his face darkened: "Su Rin."

Su Ming’an looked at him.

Aelas’s gaze toward him was now exceptionally icy.

"—Su Rin, by gathering these two... do you intend to lead the entire Soul Clan faction to officially declare war on Pulaya?"

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