Chapter 392: Fall Of A Prince
Beneath an ancient olive tree within the restricted gardens of Vatican City, Hazel and Ruby sat quietly upon a weathered stone bench, their dull gazes fixed upon the morning sun filtering through the branches overhead. A gentle breeze rustled the olive leaves while the distant sound of fountains and cathedral bells drifted peacefully through the gardens. The serenity of the place only made the endless waiting feel even more unbearable.
Being stationed here to watch for Corbin had become the most boring assignment either of them had undertaken since the day they were born. Months had passed without the slightest movement from the mysterious priest. No schemes, no meetings, no suspicious behavior. It was as though the man had fallen into an eternal slumber while they wasted away beneath a tree guarding against a threat that refused to appear.
"I still can’t believe you got to fight without restraint. It’s been so long since we’ve had a proper battle." Ruby complained telepathically, her annoyance obvious even without words.
"Yeah." Hazel sighed inwardly. "Just like Lin Qui, he prefers taking care of things himself."
Ruby immediately shook her head.
"Nope. I don’t think he’s like Lin Qui at all. Lin Qui trusted us with smaller threats and let us roam wherever we wanted. He only stepped in whenever something beyond our abilities appeared. Damian..." She paused before letting out a helpless sigh. "I’m honestly scared he’ll simply forget about me and move on if I disappear to have fun on another planet for a while."
Hazel remained silent for several moments before nodding slowly.
"I know what you mean."
Racheal’s soft laughter echoed inside both their minds.
"You two worry too much."
Hazel smiled bitterly.
"Do we?"
Unlike Lin Qui, Damian never seemed interested in limiting himself. Lin Qui had always insisted that three wives were enough and had never once entertained the idea of taking concubines. Damian was the complete opposite. Rah had always been by his side. Loth had quietly entered his life not long after. Clara was already beginning to drift back toward him despite her lingering doubts. Barely a year after awakening his powers, he had already gathered three women around him without hesitation. Although he had yet to perform the permanent mating ritual that would officially make any of them wives, the possibility remained wide open.
It wasn’t jealousy that troubled them.
It was uncertainty.
They knew Damian cared deeply for those around him, perhaps even more than Lin Qui ever openly expressed. Yet his heart seemed far larger, always finding room for another person.
"Well..." Racheal finally spoke again. "That’s exactly why we need to help him win this planet. Once we’re done here and leave Earth behind, everything changes. We’ll finally have him all to ourselves."
Both Hazel and Ruby nodded almost instinctively.
They had grown tired of this world. It was time to move forward.
Thud!
A heavy footstep echoed across the stone pathway. Both women immediately snapped their heads toward the sound.
Buzz!
Standing only a short distance away was an enormous man whose very presence dwarfed the surrounding trees. He stood well over nine feet tall, his broad shoulders wrapped beneath luxurious white and golden robes while a hood rested upon his head. Long snow white hair flowed down his back to his waist and a strip of white cloth covered his eyes. Beneath the cloth, however, two faint golden crosses glowed where his eyes should have been, their light pulsing softly beneath the fabric.
"Ladies." Corbin smiled warmly. "You have been looking for me for quite some time. I’m finally here."
His voice carried an unsettling quality. Every word seemed layered with another deeper voice that echoed beneath his own, as though two beings spoke in perfect unison.
Hazel and Ruby both blinked. Not because of what he had said but because neither of them had sensed him approaching. Only when he deliberately announced his presence with that final step had either of them become aware of him.
A chill quietly crawled down Hazel’s spine.
From her centuries of experience, she immediately recognized what stood before her. This man was a demigod.
But that was impossible.
Both of them had watched everything that happened between Damian and the Church. They knew every important figure within the Vatican and exactly how powerful each of them was.
Corbin had been human. So how had a human suddenly become a demigod?
Unless, their noses twitched almost simultaneously.
He smelled human, yet beneath that unmistakably human scent lingered another.
An angel.
Swoosh!
The two women vanished from the bench almost simultaneously before reappearing several dozen meters away in a burst of speed. Seven brilliant white fox tails erupted behind Hazel, each tipped with crimson flames that swayed gently in the wind. Beside her, emerald scales slowly spread across Ruby’s arms and neck while her pupils narrowed into those of a serpent.
Corbin simply raised both hands peacefully. His smile never wavered.
"You can see us?" Ruby asked cautiously.
Her voice remained calm but every muscle in her body had already tensed. They existed beyond ordinary human perception. Priests, bishops and even cardinals had walked past them countless times without realizing they were there.
Yet Corbin looked directly into their eyes.
"What the hell happened to you?" Hazel muttered, unable to hide her disbelief.
Corbin chuckled. He lifted both index fingers with exaggerated innocence.
"Now hold on, ladies. You’re both married to an acquaintance of mine. You can’t go around taking such an interest in another man."
Neither of them laughed, their expressions only darkened. Ordinarily they would have already attacked someone foolish enough to joke under these circumstances. But instinct warned them otherwise. Whatever stood before them, they did not yet understand it.
Corbin lowered his hands gently.
"Relax." He smiled. "I come in peace, just like my Lord and Savior. I’m only here to pass along a prophecy concerning what is about to happen today."
Hazel and Ruby instinctively exchanged confused glances before looking back toward him.
"What?"
Corbin slowly folded his hands before him.
"On this very day, a Prince of Hell shall fall, and the foundation he has only just begun to erect shall crumble. His allies shall perish one after another, and his world shall descend into a chaos that will ignite the Third World War. But fear not." His voice became strangely serene as the golden crosses beneath the cloth brightened. "After the stormy night, the day shall arrive. The devotees of the One True God shall cleanse this world of evil and finally build a nation worthy for God Himself to dwell within."
He slowly lowered his head.
"Amen."
The white cloth covering his eyes suddenly began twisting and rotating like the gears of an ancient clock hidden beneath the fabric, causing both women to instinctively tense.
Dong!
The great cathedral bell rang across Vatican City.
Its deep resonance rolled through the gardens like the voice of heaven itself, sending birds scattering from the surrounding trees while an inexplicable chill settled over the entire courtyard.
For the first time in centuries, fear quietly surfaced within Hazel’s eyes.
"Wh..."
Her voice caught inside her throat as her fists slowly clenched.
What the hell did this fucking priest just say?