Chapter 504 - 110: Sun, Falling
This was the Withering Wind, the power that had made Calvin famous. It was the physical embodiment of his life form’s evolution toward the concept of "withering" after he stepped onto the path of Elementalization—a power potent enough to turn a forest into a wasteland in an instant and fill a city with Wandering Souls.
Yet, faced with a Withering Wind that would make even a powerful expert pale, Noe VII plunged into it without the slightest hesitation.
A brilliant and warm golden radiance flowed from his body. The Withering Wind buffeted the golden light, yet it was like waves crashing against an ancient reef, dissipating in vain, unable to erode it in the slightest!
"No—! Noe VII! This is heresy! You dare twist the doctrines of the God of Truth! You dare..." Calvin’s voice, distorted by the howling gales, was filled with despair and venomous hatred.
But he never got to finish his accusation.
The golden light erupted from the core of the ink-green mist, like the first ray of dawn piercing the deepest darkness of night.
After a short, muffled sound, the sky-spanning Withering Wind came to an abrupt halt. The churning mist quickly subsided and faded, returning to an ordinary milky white.
Noe VII’s figure reappeared as the clouds slowly dispersed.
He stood ramrod straight, his coarse robe unstained by even a speck of dust.
Then, Noe VII lowered his gaze to his outstretched right hand. A single, ink-green leaf rested quietly in his palm.
He regarded the leaf calmly for a moment before placing it in his mouth and swallowing it without a sound.
Having done this, he raised his eyes. His gaze seemed to pierce through the endless, layered sea of milky clouds before him, cross the invisible barrier of the Sanctuary Half-Plane, and settle upon the mortal world he so cared for—a world that had already changed.
’When a hero sits on the throne of a god, he becomes the new God.’
’But the world doesn’t actually need a real, infallible God sitting high above.’
’Just as this Continent has never needed an Oriane to actually descend and meddle in its affairs.’
’Mechanical Witch, Enchanting Witch... what you think and what you seek are, in the end, just another form of delusion.’
...
「Ten months later.」
「July.」
「The Holy City.」
The scorching heat of high summer had long since swept over the Jade Coast, and a sweltering humidity hung in the air.
The sky was a pale, grayish blue, as if bleached by the scorching sun. A few thin wisps of cloud drifted listlessly, offering no relief from the sun’s increasingly vicious glare.
The wind was hot, leaving skin feeling sticky. The leaves on the roadside trees looked wilted, and the tireless shrieking of cicadas in the branches only amplified the oppressive heat.
Today was not, by any means, a special day.
It was neither an important holy day on the Church’s calendar nor any festival or anniversary celebrated across the Continent—just an ordinary, muggy day in early July.
But at the behest of the College of Cardinals, the Holy City had been transformed overnight, decorated as if for a grand festival.
Below the pure-white Tower of Revelation, the plaza had been cleared to seem exceptionally spacious. A temporary high platform had been erected, draped in a deep red velvet carpet and surrounded by colorful flags symbolizing the Four Major Elements.
Silk banners bearing Oriane’s Holy Emblem and the crest of the Tower of Revelation were hung every few meters along both sides of the roads.
Musicians in new formal wear stood ready in the corners, while neatly uniformed Temple Knights maintained order at the plaza’s edge. The air was thick with an atmosphere that was at once festive and solemn.
The official reason was a perfectly grand one.
To celebrate the official end of the Tower of Revelation’s first academic year and to build excitement for the upcoming holidays and the start of the next.
To that end, an important speech, delivered in person by a Cardinal, was required to demonstrate the Church’s great emphasis on and support for the "Path of the Priest."
Cardinal Adrian had volunteered to give the speech.
Now, he stood at the center of the high platform, dressed in a brand-new, deep-red cardinal’s robe edged with golden thread. He wore a new monocle, and behind the lens, his gaze was gentle and charismatic.
"...The river of knowledge flows eternal, and the beacon of wisdom lights our way. This past year, we have witnessed the rise of the Tower of Revelation and have seen countless young minds ignited within its walls. Oriane grants us the courage to explore, and the fruits of that exploration will ultimately benefit all of humanity."
His tone was steady and captivating as his gaze swept over the crowd below the stage.
Hundreds of "Priest Apprentices" who had just completed their first year of studies were gathered below the stage. They wore uniform, light-blue apprentice robes, their faces a mixture of youthful naivete, curiosity, and anticipation for the holidays and the new academic year.
The parents stood on the periphery, their expressions a mix of emotions.
Mo Ling and Bobby were also standing at the front of the group of apprentices.
Mo Ling frowned slightly as she listened to Adrian’s smooth speech. She couldn’t help but turn her head and mutter to Bobby in a voice only the two of them could hear, "I don’t like the way he talks."
Bobby jumped, glancing around nervously. He lowered his voice, his tone a mixture of anxiety and earnestness. "Mo Ling, don’t say things like that... Cardinal Adrian is... he’s a very important person."
Mo Ling pursed her lips and said no more, but the dislike in her eyes remained.
To the side of the high platform, Headmistress Eleanor stood quietly, dressed in a simple and dignified deep blue gown.
Her gaze appeared to be fixed on Adrian as she listened to the speech, but in reality, her peripheral vision was constantly scanning the entire plaza, especially the state of the apprentices.
She had, of course, heard Mo Ling’s muttering. Her expression remained impassive, but inwardly, she sighed.
Adrian’s speech built to a crescendo. His voice grew more impassioned as he waved his arms. "...However, children, friends, please remember! Just as the sun in the sky rises, so too must it set. The old sun will eventually complete its mission and sink below the horizon, yielding the sky to the brilliant stars and the coming of a new dawn!"
"This is an immutable Law, a cycle decreed by Oriane at the dawn of creation! The glory of old is worthy of remembrance, but a new light shall illuminate a vaster future! The sun will fall, and a new sun will rise!"
The very instant he uttered the word "rise."
At the edge of the plaza, several people in plain clothes but with distinctive auras, along with Ambrosius in the shadows behind the stage and a few other Old Faction Cardinals in attendance, all snapped their heads up at the exact same instant. As if by a single accord, their gazes locked onto a certain point in the sky.
Their movements were so perfectly synchronized, filled with an almost devout anticipation, as if they were awaiting a fated moment.
Adrian himself seemed to be drawn in by this invisible atmosphere. The impassioned gesture he was making froze in mid-air, and his head slowly tilted upward to gaze at the thinly clouded sky.
His posture froze. Adrian remained looking up, his lips pursed, as if awaiting the arrival of some sacred moment.
The apprentices below the stage began to grow confused.
The speech clearly wasn’t over, so why was the Cardinal still standing there, staring up at the sky?
Why were the headmistress and the other dignitaries all holding the same pose, completely motionless?
A faint commotion began to ripple through the assembled students, and the sound of hushed whispers arose.
"What’s going on?"
"What’s the Cardinal looking at?"
"The headmistress is looking at the sky, too?"
"Is there something in the sky?"
Mo Ling also looked up at the sky in confusion, following everyone’s gaze. But aside from the grayish-white clouds, she couldn’t see anything.
But just then, a sudden, inexplicable palpitation gripped her heart!
The sensation was so violent, it felt as if an icy hand had instantly squeezed her heart, making it nearly impossible for her to breathe. The color drained from her face in an instant.
"Mo Ling? What’s wrong with you?" Bobby, standing beside her, was the first to notice her state. Startled, he quickly grabbed her to steady her swaying body and asked anxiously, "You’re so pale! Did you get heatstroke...?"
Bobby’s concerned words died in his throat.
Because at that very moment—
The sun fell.