If it weren’t for Olovice having read so many books and Father Andre imparting all his knowledge to him, Olovice might not have recognized this soul-devouring scarab from the River Styx. As Olovice watched it gradually become transparent, as if it were returning to another world, he quickly enveloped it in the gentlest and most harmless holy light to stabilize its anchor in the real world.

This world isn’t just the tangible, visible reality that people perceive; there’s also the soul world that people enter after death. Everyone has a soul, and it’s said that after burial, through the connection with the earth, souls enter the underground world governed by the Goddess of the River Styx. There, a river flows, and human souls return to the embrace of the goddess, enjoying eternal rest. However, from what Olovice has learned, ordinary souls are weak and often dissipate before reaching the river. Not every soul can enter the River Styx.

The author of “The Legend of the River Styx” was a grand mage, and the book subtly hints at the decline of the Goddess of the River Styx and provides an analysis and understanding of soul bodies. Olovice always felt that the Goddess of the River Styx wasn’t good at marketing herself. As the only true god associated with death, souls, darkness, and slumber, her authority had been largely usurped by the Radiant Church, evidenced by “The Book of Rest,” which replaced many of the goddess’s functions. The most devastating blow was that souls were no longer solely hers.

The heavenly blueprint constructed by the Radiant Church for its followers far surpassed the restful world of the River Styx. Heaven or the River Styx? The people made their choice. The followers of the Radiant Church are vast, and with the domineering style of the Radiant Lord, how could these souls be touched by the Goddess of the River Styx? Even in rest, they must rest in his heaven. The power of the followers’ souls further solidified the Radiant Lord’s authority, even if it was seized.

Thus, Olovice felt that the Goddess of the River Styx was somewhat unfortunate, as her true god religion had fallen to a third-rate small sect. However, the Goddess of the River Styx remains a true deity, and the soul-devouring beetles born by the river are still called sacred scarabs. These ethereal spirit creatures from the underground world possess the power to devour and gnaw on souls, feeding on them. Olovice dared not let it eat indiscriminately.

He observed it, noting its small size. If his guess was correct, the purpose of this soul-devouring scarab was to cause the Holy Son’s soul body to be incomplete, leading to an accident during the Holy Son’s descent or preventing the Holy Son from exerting his original power when descending into his body. In short, it was to sabotage the church, and Olovice suspected this was the true intention of the Enchantress Bely.

Logically, he should immediately report to Bishop Ulrich and Captain Prine, exposing the Enchantress’s plot and making the baron realize that her help was counterproductive and malicious. It’s very likely she intended to release or take away the Black Tower demon. In any case, she was on the side of the Black Tower demon. Yet, in the end, he didn’t speak up.

“Olovice, you’re really letting your teacher down,” Olovice whispered to himself. Initially, Olovice hadn’t noticed the presence of Bishop Ulrich and the others. Later, realizing the Enchantress’s words were sowing discord, he adhered to his cautious and disguised approach, siding with the Radiant Church. But he didn’t want to be a vessel for the Holy Son’s descent. Unfortunately, Bishop Ulrich and Captain Prine didn’t give him a choice. If it weren’t for the Enchantress revealing the hidden truth, Olovice wouldn’t have uncovered their plan in such a short time.

He was small and insignificant, and the Enchantress was right about one thing: his profession, status, and identity were the lowest. A rural priest steward. Reflecting on his journey from Montpelier to Morito City, his activities were within the sphere of influence of the bishop, Captain Prine, and the church. They were likely monitoring him. However, the Enchantress’s anger was certainly feigned, as Olovice didn’t immediately hand over the soul-devouring scarab to Ulrich and report the witch’s actions.

Not wanting to tear things apart with the church or be a diligent tool, what should he do? Olovice had a basic understanding of the Black Tower demon’s danger, possessing the ability to regenerate flesh and blood and an absolute domain, akin to a protected source of pollution, with the shield continuously expanding. The church used a larger shield to contain it, preventing any movement. One could imagine the disaster that would ensue if the church’s magic array failed and Samuel broke free.

“It’s really hard to choose,” Olovice murmured, gazing at the soul-devouring scarab in the holy light.

September 1st. The night always passes, and a new day arrives. Lily woke up early, climbing out of her warm, soft bed. The first thing she did was look for the priest steward. She was so happy today. From now on, she would mark September 1st as her lucky day.

“Mr. Olovice, didn’t you sleep well last night?” Lily asked with concern, looking up. The steward had faint dark circles under his eyes today. Olovice covered his face with holy light, and when it dispersed, he was radiant again. He yawned, sat in a chair, and pinched the red-haired little witch’s cheek, feeling a bit better. “You were talking in your sleep last night and kept me awake.”

Lily covered her mouth, eyes wide with surprise, feeling both embarrassed and excited. “Really? Maybe I was too happy.” She scratched her short hair. “I think I dreamed of my sister last night. Is she this tall now?” Lily raised her hand to indicate.

“A little taller,” Olovice lifted the little witch’s hand a bit higher, then got up to wash up. Lily followed him, brushing her teeth and washing her face together. Finally, she pinned on the butterfly hairpin the steward bought her, pink with moving wings, which she loved. She changed into a new dress, also bought by the steward. Lily secretly glanced at Olovice, thinking he was the best person she had ever met.

The welfare at Morito City’s church was quite comprehensive, with dedicated staff delivering meals that were rich, varied, nutritious, and delicious. Olovice leisurely finished his breakfast, tidied himself up, drank his sunflower tea, and then went downstairs. Lily had been waiting impatiently, rushing down the stairs first, then quickly retreating behind the steward.

“Olovice, let’s go,” Captain Prine said. “Alright,” Olovice replied, taking Lily downstairs and telling her to play in the villa. He had already informed Lilia that Lily was in the villa area, and Lilia would definitely come to find her.

The weather was nice today. Captain Prine glanced at the quiet and obedient Olovice and said, “I’m glad you have this awareness. To ensure your safety, Bishop Ulrich and the others discussed last night and will cast a protective spell on you later.”

“Additionally, we’ll entrust you with a sacred relic from Morito City,” Prine continued. “That relic is key to the Holy Son’s descent, so take good care of it.”

“Rest assured, I pledge my life to not disappoint everyone’s expectations,” Olovice made a holy cross on his chest, as resolute as a martyr. Prine’s lips moved, but he finally said, “Actually, the church knows about the wandering witch by your side, Lily. Lily and Lilia are sisters, and Lily was once active in Morito City. The church won’t say anything about your encounter and friendship with her.”

“If you…” Prine paused, then said, “In the future, if they are willing, they can assist the healing nuns at the church. The healing nuns could use some pharmaceutical scholars.”

Olovice understood Captain Prine’s goodwill. There had been signs on the train. Was this compensation for someone destined to die? It was too stingy. He wanted more than that, and the fate of Lily and Lilia wasn’t his real concern. Olovice devoutly said, “The holy light will protect every believer.”

Reaching the black thorn bush, Olovice looked up. The crosses on the seven white towers were already pulsating with magic, clouds gathering above, and the wind direction becoming strange. A flock of crows circled in the sky. Prine’s frown deepened, as crows, being death omens and harbingers of misfortune in various stories, ruined his mood.

Olovice glanced at the crows, walking through the black thorn bush in the holy flame, entering the outer area where the Black Tower demon was confined. It was once the work and rest area for Black Cross staff. A group of witches, sorcerers, and black magicians, either deceived, invited, or captured by the Black Tower baron, looked nervously and fearfully towards the door. Even Captain Prine’s demon, the ghoul, was there. They were guarded by black knights and Black Cross personnel.

Under military suppression, these external personnel were cannon fodder for this demon eradication operation. The Radiant Church cherished its clergy but wasn’t as kind to others. Entering the second door, the pool in the room was gone, replaced by the Black Tower baron, the Enchantress, Bishop Ulrich, and the Morito City Radiant Bishop.

The Spiritless Room, which once housed the Alektryon Mirror and the Sea God’s Horn, now seemed to contain him. “Olovice, thank you for your contribution to all the southern cities,” said the archbishop of Morito City. The Enchantress casually pushed open the door. Olovice looked over; the Sea God’s Horn was no longer effective, and there was no song in the channel, but the mirror was there.

The Alektryon Mirror floated in mid-air, embedded with various gems, glowing. The mirror surface also glowed, but the mirror itself had shrunk, returning to the size of a normal makeup mirror. In Olovice’s vision, the light in front of the mirror twisted, like another space. The edges of the channel in the mirror constantly blurred and solidified, opposite to the real world. Meanwhile, the mirror’s gem light grew increasingly dazzling.

“The Alektryon Mirror can project what it reflects into its mirror space, a magical, chaotic, unknown space. This way, the Black Tower demon can be exiled from the real world into the false mirror world,” the Enchantress returned to the baron’s side, smiling. “This is the first method the baron devised.”

“And your responsibility is, if the first method fails, for Bishop Ulrich and the others to host the Holy Son’s descent ceremony, for the Holy Son and the bishops to defeat the Black Tower demon.” Olovice looked at the Alektryon Mirror, hearing hallucinations.

“What a magical mirror. Who is its owner?” Olovice asked. The Enchantress didn’t expect the young steward to ask an unrelated question after she said so much. Bishop Ulrich approached Olovice, placing the sacred relic in his hands.

Olovice looked down at the heavy red relic. Red, in the Radiant Church, symbolized the blood of the divine, representing the Radiant Lord’s love. The crown top had a simple blazing sun design, intensely red yet filled with a vast, radiant power. Olovice donned the blazing sun crown, immediately feeling an unfamiliar holy spirit enveloping him, sensing an invisible gaze upon him.

“The mirror was fished out of the sea by fishermen with nets. We don’t know its true owner,” Ulrich said, and he and the Morito City archbishop cast a protective spell on Olovice. “Release your holy spirit and merge with the power you sense,” Bishop Ulrich watched over him.

Captain Prine summoned a black magician, arranging team members behind him, forcing the black magician to take the Alektryon Mirror towards the dark channel. The black magician had barely taken two trembling steps when Samuel’s fragmented body appeared, composed of various internal organs and flesh, forming a long human shape, crawling along the channel ceiling with four arms and eight legs.

The black magician was nearly scared to death, his hand shaking as he held the mirror. Suddenly, the fragmented body vanished, but in the mirror, it continued walking in the channel. It walked in the mirror channel.

“Success!” The baron wiped the sweat from his forehead, gaining confidence. “Bring more people in and get those damned fragmented bodies into the mirror.” Captain Prine wasn’t very optimistic but agreed with the baron’s words. They were testing the waters, and he also sent a small team inside, mainly to see if they could trap Samuel’s main body in the mirror.

Olovice and the bishops waited inside, watching the dark channel. Initially, it was quiet, but after half an hour, screams echoed from the channel entrance. Captain Prine gritted his teeth and rushed into the channel. Over the next hour and a half, the screams increased, and the baron’s face darkened, indicating the mirror plan had failed.

“It seems it failed,” Ulrich said, looking at the Morito City archbishop. “I think we should activate the seven-star magic array to suppress the demon’s absolute domain.” “You’re right,” the baron quickly said to the Morito City bishop. “Activate it and ensure my safety.”

“Olovice, go to the channel and let the Holy Son’s power eliminate the terrifying demon,” the baron urged. “I’ll go in too,” the Enchantress waved to the baron and entered the channel. Olovice knew it would soon be his turn. Before the baron urged again, he stepped into the channel, one step, two steps, with Bishop Ulrich behind him.

He carried an oil lamp, as oil lamps and candles were safer than holy light here. As he walked deeper, Olovice realized the channel was more like a tunnel, about 2.8 meters high and 1.5 meters wide, spacious enough for Samuel’s fragmented body and those entering to play hide and seek. It branched in all directions, with many rooms destroyed beyond recognition.

The air smelled unpleasant, and sometimes his foot landed on something sticky and slippery. Olovice didn’t want to know what he stepped on. Along the way, he saw corpses, fresh, half-decayed, reduced to bones, and various magical creatures and demon corpses, as well as mutated animals polluted by Samuel—rats, moths, insects. The deeper he went, the more fragmented bodies there were. Olovice had to eliminate these things.

The blazing sun crown on his head emitted a red glow, covering him in a faint red aura. His expression unchanged, he looked at Captain Prine waiting ahead. Captain Prine held the mirror, its gems dimmed, a thin layer of black mist covering it like dust.

Captain Prine wiped the blood from his face, his team behind him. The mirror’s attempt to contain the demon had utterly failed. “Ahead is the demon’s absolute domain. The baron has ordered the activation of the seven-star magic array. This operation must succeed,” Bishop Ulrich said.

“I’m the one responsible for the Holy Son’s descent ceremony, Olovice,” Bishop Ulrich looked at him. “I’m going to perform the ceremony now.” Finally, it was happening. Olovice nodded slightly. Bishop Ulrich stepped back, chanting a complex summoning spell in Clumibis. When the magic array was complete, he couldn’t help but cough up blood, his face aging by a decade.

Olovice stood at the center of the array, a beam of light piercing the dark space. An invisible shockwave created a massive vortex, and a giant light figure appeared, holding a sword, slowly descending. Simultaneously, the blazing sun crown erupted with a hundred times more light than before. Amidst the blood-red and holy light, Olovice felt a splitting headache, as if his soul was being torn apart, blood oozing from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

His holy spirit surged, hundreds of times stronger than before, exceeding his body’s limits. Olovice clutched his head, unable to suppress a scream. Pain! It was excruciating! Blood seeped from every pore, his white robe stained red. His soul was compressed to the extreme, and Olovice felt a moment of detachment, his consciousness blurring. His limbs moved, someone using his body to walk. With each step, his frail body and soul protested, like a bubble about to burst.

The Holy Son’s appearance dispelled the underground darkness. Within his range, Samuel’s fragmented bodies melted like snow, along with the creatures he polluted. Olovice felt himself stride forward, pushing open a door. It was Samuel’s room. Ulrich and the others followed the Holy Son, falling into Samuel’s absolute domain, including Olovice.

Darkness engulfed him, time stretching endlessly, quieter than death. Olovice wasn’t sure if the Holy Son was still there, unable to sense anything, see, hear, smell, or touch. After a while, Olovice realized he had been deprived of his senses. Some things are taken for granted because everyone has them, but their importance becomes apparent only when lost.

In the next moment, he regained some perception, the overwhelming pain leaving him speechless. Thick, ink-like darkness appeared before Olovice, the resistance in the room like water, an abyss with no bottom. Olovice felt his eyes bleeding, the Holy Son using his eyes to see the Black Tower demon.

Olovice saw the Black Tower demon clearly. The large room held a cage, once a sacred relic, confining the demon. Mr. Brown was right; the Black Tower demon was trapped in a dark cage, but Mr. Brown never mentioned how small it was. The cage was in the corner between two walls, square, only a meter high, maybe even shorter.

Compared to the humanoid creature inside, it was too short, too small. The cage’s bars were bulging, deformed, with cracks appearing. It wouldn’t be long before the dark cage broke. But for now, it still trapped the demon. The cage’s size severely limited its form, forcing it to curl up, hunching, head bowed, cramped inside, packed tightly, yet still lacking space.

The gaps between the dark cage’s bars were narrow, less than two fingers wide. Instinctively, the Black Tower demon’s arms, legs, and protruding joints extended through the narrow bars. Olovice inexplicably thought of plants growing towards sunlight. In the depths of the Black Tower’s darkness, the demon’s growth direction was freedom.

Those deformed, small arms, wrists growing into large humanoid hands and feet, and animal-like scales, tails, horns, and hooves emerged from the cage. Perhaps due to the dark cage, it had grown beyond the scope of a high-level demon. The Holy Son had arrived, yet it remained motionless.

Its absolute domain was compressed to a ten-meter radius around the dark cage by the Holy Son’s power, its various extended limbs severed by the Holy Son’s sword, including the chaotic, coarse black hair growing from the cage’s gaps. Black hair, black eyes, black lashes. When they entered, the black hair covered the entire floor, walls, and ceiling, with Samuel’s various grotesque limbs resting on the bed it constructed.

Olovice felt his soul tremble. The Holy Son raised the holy sword, and Bishop Ulrich and Captain Prine struggled to regain consciousness. This was an unavoidable siege on the demon. As the holy sword descended, the dark cage suddenly shattered, the demon dodging the attack while knocking Captain Prine against the wall.

The demon fell to the floor, maintaining its bizarre, laughable posture, making no sound. The exit door was right there. It couldn’t see. The Holy Son’s power manifested as a giant of light. Olovice watched the demon, trapped by Bishop Ulrich’s closed door, banging its head against the wall, black blood flowing everywhere, severed limbs scattered, the Black Tower demon severely injured.

Olovice was nearing his limit. He sensed the next strike would be the Holy Son’s final blow. Ultimately, the demon was pinned to the wall by the holy sword. “It’s finally over,” Bishop Ulrich lay on the shattered ground, struggling to support himself with his sword. Don’t jinx it, Olovice thought, and in the next moment, the demon tore itself apart, shedding half its body, using the momentum to lunge forward. Its size had increased since their meeting, at least its legs were bent, though not very agile. Missing half its body, its speed was astonishing.

A shadow flashed before Olovice’s eyes. He looked down at the deformed, giant hand piercing his abdomen, collapsing to the ground. Everyone was stunned by the sudden turn of events. The Holy Son, having emerged from his body, shrank to normal human height, his silver hair flowing, silver-white eyes gazing at the demon, ending it completely.

Olovice could see the demon’s remaining half-body, black hair covering its face, if it was a face. He hadn’t seen its true form, its bones twisted beyond recognition. Olovice couldn’t describe his feelings. Joy? No. Sadness? No. It was dead, and he had to live.

Olovice looked at the Holy Son, his spirit form unstable, his white holy robe immaculate. Olovice coughed, blood frothing from his mouth. He wanted to say something. The Holy Son looked down at him. “Don’t worry, the church will do its best to save you.” The Morito City archbishop arrived in time, healing Olovice and agreeing, “Of course, we’ll reward you.”

The Holy Son saw the young man’s mouth moving but couldn’t speak clearly, so he leaned down to listen. Olovice laughed and coughed blood, battered and exhausted. Holy Son, show some human concern and speak at eye level. “Mermaid’s tears…” Olovice painfully voiced his request.

The Holy Son was puzzled, and Bishop Ulrich softly explained, “His rural teacher was poisoned by Sharadman’s fire.” The Holy Son nodded, “I understand.” His spirit quickly dissipated. Olovice gazed at the shattered roof, the Black Tower reduced to ruins by the battle’s aftermath, sunlight on his face. He closed his eyes slightly.

Using his meager magic, he activated the Ouroboros Rebirth magic array etched on his heart’s surface, with the soul-devouring scarab given by the Enchantress as the array’s core. The Enchantress stood expressionless in the distance, having taken the mirror during the chaos after ambushing Captain Prine.

Olovice felt a faint vitality circulating within, the soul-devouring scarab absorbing his death energy, and he smiled. But soon, Olovice couldn’t smile. Something was slowly wriggling in his heart. Olovice suddenly grabbed the Morito City archbishop’s hand, his vision darkening from blood loss, his soul spinning, blood pouring from his mouth.

“Don’t be afraid, I’m saving you. You’ll survive,” the archbishop reassured. “The Black Tower demon is dead.” No, it’s not dead! Olovice wanted to say, it’s in my heart. But he lost consciousness.