Chapter 44 Lord of Greed Let's go to the New Sprout Festival together tomorrow night...

The spell from Cheryl failed.

She teleported over and looked at the high-ranking demon lying on the ground, utterly puzzled. "I remember Anciya called him 'mentor,' not 'teacher'?"

Merriel stood with his back to Cheryl, the dagger in his hand still dripping blue-purple blood.

Ancia smoothed things over, saying, "Morley is probably closer to here, so he got here faster."

No way, she saw the shadow clone that Mortley sent a long time ago, standing in the darkness. She just didn't know how he could switch the positions of his main body and the shadow clone in an instant. Was it some kind of advanced assassin skill?

Ancia curiously moved closer to Mortley to look at the corpse of the thieving demon, and out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a trace of crimson on Mortley's face.

Demon blood is bluish-purple, and Mortley's eyes are dark red, so how could they be scarlet?

Ancia blinked hard, and when she looked again, she saw Merri slowly wiping the blood splattered on his face. There was no crimson blood; it must have been demon blood that had gotten into his eyes.

“Here’s a clean handkerchief.” Ancia poured water onto a soft cotton handkerchief and handed it to Merriel.

"Yes, thank you." Murtrie pressed a handkerchief to her burning eye sockets, removing it only when the temperature dropped. In the dim light, the strange patterns in her pupils had faded to the point of being completely invisible.

"The monster tide has increased the concentration of demonic energy in the air, yet we didn't detect that a high-level demon had infiltrated the camp." Heligaluo's face was grim, his lips pressed into a straight line. "Everyone undergo holy light testing."

“Heli, this thieving demon came for the sacred relic.” Ancia retrieved the Radiant Wedge that had fallen to the ground. The relic emitted a soft light in her hand; it was hard to imagine that it was the very thing that had severely injured the thieving demon. “Has the Holy See leaked this information?”

“No.” Heligalo’s gentle demeanor vanished, his eyes sharpening, his azure pupils like frozen mountains. “Only the bishop and the privy councilor knew about the relic being given to you, and their loyalty to the Papacy is beyond question.”

The situation has become complicated. How did the demons find out that the sacred artifact was in Ancia's hands?

“Compared to the matter of the leaked information…” Ancia took a deep breath, “Heli, do you remember what I said? What if it’s not just high-level demons that appear in the Monster Mountain Range? Since the Monster Tide broke out ahead of schedule, everything has been developing in the most difficult direction. It is only because we have taken precautions step by step that we have barely managed to keep the situation within a safe range.”

“If the Seven Demon Generals appear here, the Privy Councilor in the camp can hold off two of them, but there will definitely be casualties,” Heligalo sighed.

"Hopefully..." Before Anciya could finish speaking, everyone heard a high-pitched dragon roar.

"It's the Lord of Greed of the Seven Demon Generals!" A knight who had participated in the last war recognized him.

In an instant, magic surged at the tip of the staff, the greatsword was raised overhead, and the shield stood before the priest—everyone was ready for battle.

The oppressive aura emanating from the demon general sent chills down Ancia's spine as she stared intently in the direction from which the dragon's roar had come.

It's not deep in the Warcraft Mountains, it's in the opposite direction, Red Maple City!

Sensing the suddenly intensified demonic energy, the Radiant Wedge in his hand unleashed a bright and dazzling golden light in response.

A giant dragon flew across the sky, its shadow obscuring the moon, making the camp even dimmer, with only the campfire on the ground providing light.

The dragon's crimson eyes replaced the moon, and it seemed as if only two slowly moving blood moons remained in the night sky.

Suddenly, the blood moon cast a long shadow downwards, and Ancia had a chilling thought.

Those cold, vertical pupils met her gaze.

Or rather, look at the radiant wedge in her hand.

Ancia thought of the source of the stolen magic power she had seen in the Fair Contract, and it seemed to be these eyes.

She raised the Wedge of Radiance directly, challenging the dragon in the sky—"Is the Thief Demon your subordinate? You want this sacred relic?"

The dragon withdrew its gaze. It could sense the pure light energy emanating from the sacred object, but it also sensed the protective magic that the demons loathed, which was wrapped around it.

It has no greed in its heart, only a weighing of flawed treasures. Getting its paws dirty for this treasure, or even causing unnecessary trouble, does not conform to its trading principles. After all, it is greedy, not a gluttonous person who wants everything.

The dragon snorted, spewing out a ball of purple flame, and flew towards the abyss without stopping. It seemed that the attempt to steal the demon envoy had failed. Whether successful or not, it was a drama worth watching for His Majesty the Demon King.

The moon reappeared, and Ancia's back was covered in cold sweat.

Luck smiled upon them; the Lord of Greed was merely passing through and had no intention of fighting.

Even more fortunately, no city in the Augustinian Empire was ever attacked by the Lord of Greed.

Heligaluo withdrew his staff, defining the situation, and said gently but firmly, "It was just passing through and wanted to return to the Abyss. The camp is safe. The monster tide has one last day. Hang in there, everyone."

He wasn't unaware that the Lord of Greed had flown from the direction from which it was coming, but at this moment, the Lord of Greed could only be passing through and had no interest in the camp.

Many low-ranking clergy members in the camp had collapsed to the ground, exhausted, and only breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the words of the Holy Son.

But in the instant that Cardinal Finel and Heligalo looked at each other, they both saw in each other's eyes the determination to conduct a thorough investigation.

“Ancia, the Wedge of Radiance is a gift from the Holy See to you, as a token of gratitude for saving the clergy during the monster tide. Without you, the casualties from the fourth wave of monsters would have been incalculable, and we wouldn't have survived until the reinforcements arrived. Your character and abilities are sufficient to possess the Wedge of Radiance and become its new master,” Heligaluo said in a raised voice in the camp.

In front of everyone, he winked at Ancia, lightly and quickly, like a butterfly fluttering its wings.

"Thank you, Holy See. This is what I deserve... what I should do!" Ancia almost misspoke as she helped Heligalo complete the Path of Light procedure for the Wedge of Radiance.

The fact that she possesses the Wedge of Radiance can no longer be concealed, but the secret arts of the Holy See are classified by the Holy See of Light and require a legitimate and reasonable explanation.

Ancia was overwhelmed by the sincere gratitude from the clergy in the camp. From the cardinal to the first-star priest, they all looked at her with gratitude and regret, expressing their thanks one after another, and repeatedly asking her if she really wouldn't join the Church of Light.

Ancia fled into Heligaluo's tent as if she were a refugee. Only here was there peace and quiet, and as the Holy Son of Light, the people of the Church would not bother her.

"Let me hide..." Ancia sat down in another chair in a panic.

If there was anything truly special about Heligaluo's treatment in the Papacy, it was that his tent had an extra chair compared to other bishops, making it easier to talk.

“The people of the Vatican all like you very much,” Heligalo said with a smile.

"That's a bit too much, I can't handle it." Ancia's face was practically screaming for mercy.

"Don't you like overly enthusiastic liking?" Heligalo asked calmly, as if it were just a casual question.

"Well... rather than disliking it, I'd say I'm not used to it. I've never faced this kind of feeling before," Ancia said honestly.

Faced with Heligaluo's unwavering tolerance, she had developed the habit of telling him her true feelings directly.

Another important reason is that Ancia always felt that those deep blue eyes could see through people's hearts, and she was a little afraid when she wanted to lie.

Although Hurley would definitely play along with her lie, she felt guilty for deceiving her friend, and she didn't like that feeling.

“I understand,” Heligalo said softly.

“Why would Your Holiness remember such a trivial matter? Haven’t you devoted all your time and energy to the Holy See?” Ancia chuckled.

“This is also important,” Heligallo said.

Unbeknownst to him, this suddenly appearing girl had become just as important as the Vatican, to which he had vowed to dedicate his life.

*

With the full support of the Holy See, the monster horde was fraught with danger, but it finally ended safely. It is worth celebrating that the Holy See suffered the lowest number of casualties in history during this monster horde, with no clergy losing their lives in the fight against the monster horde.

The Holy See recorded this event in its annals, calling it "the miracle of the Stars' protection."

After a week of monitoring, it was confirmed that the Monster Mountain Range had returned to normal, and the clergy returned to their respective church authorities, while the winter training in Gracia continued.

But the students are still discussing this thrilling experience.

"Why would the Lord of Greed appear? Is it because he's too bored in the Abyss and wants to get some fresh air?" Skulk wondered, resting his chin on his hand.

"The demons are treacherous and cunning, only acting for their own benefit. The abyss is the most suitable place for them; how could they possibly be out for a breath of fresh air?" Princess Eve subtly rolled her eyes, her posture very elegant.

“Eve knows more about the demons,” Ancia said with a smile, pleased to see Eve freeze after she spoke.

After being rescued and brought back to the camp, Eve heard about the despicable things the thieving demon had done while wearing her face, and she lost her confidence when facing Ancia.

"Yes, this orc has no political sense!" Eve's face flushed red.

“We orcs don’t need political acumen; we rely on instinct and force.” Skark blinked; his amber eyes were more pure than naive.

Eve and Skulker can't communicate; she'll be driven crazy.

Ancia laughed so hard she couldn't stand up straight, and Skalk, seeing her laugh, also laughed along.

Ellan leaped down from the treetop. "I saw a mid-level magical beast coming this way. It probably wants a drink of water."

Ancia stood up, her staff never leaving her side. "Then let's fight."

Time repeated itself day by day, and on the last day of winter, the system issued a notification after a long absence.

[Congratulations to the player for completing the side quest [The Calamity of Red Maple City].]

Congratulations to the player for completing the main quest [Winter Trial].

The player receives 80,000 gold coins, 100,000 experience points, and reaches level 35.

Starting tomorrow, we can return to Gracia. Some impatient students have already set off, while others want to stay in Red Maple City for another day to participate in the New Bud Festival tomorrow night.

Ancia went to Heligaluo's room in the temple, knocked on the door, and slipped a note under the door.

A short while later, another new note was passed around.

Ancia casually folded the note in her hand and returned to her room. The note simply read "Okay".

Meanwhile, Heligalo repeatedly stroked the note from Ancia, covering it over his eyes as if he could see happiness through the plain white fiber paper.

The note was carefully placed in the spatial necklace, along with the previous notes.

The handwriting above is—

Let's go to the New Sprout Festival together tomorrow night.