Chapter. 31 Day three

Lando awoke and found himself in an uncomfortable bed. At first, he thought he had overslept after a long, exhausting dream that still slumbered over his horizon. Or had he become ill? Strangely, he could not remember anything. The ceiling looked strange—cold, damp, and covered with moss and spider webs. Some shone in a silver-white light as the scarlet eyes stared down at him.

Still dazed, Lando let the darkness embrace him. The gentle ripple of slime contained a calming effect that Lando could not explain. Was it the rattling of the creatures that kept wandering among the corridors?

"Where am I?" he said aloud.

"In the southernmost part of the sewer master," said a monotone voice behind him. "More precisely, a hundred meters away in the inner part of the city."

"Luna?" asked Lando, sitting up. With cross-legged, the Servant was in a corner, her head leaning against the wall. Spreading her jacket on the floor, she stared at her Master without blinking. The dark gray hair occasionally flickered like the stars before returning to its natural gray.

"What... How did I get here?"

"You collapsed last night from exhaustion, and I brought you here."

With a sigh, Lando threw himself back into the pillow, and his head hit the rugged mat. It wasn't comfortable; the cold got through the thin cloth mat and blanket. But he had no desire to get up, and even if he tried to sleep, his body was already wide awake. Yesterday's memories surfaced again. The search for a hiding place and the surprise assault by Casters. His bones trembled slightly, and nausea arose in him.

'These two are not artists... They are madmen.'

A hand covered his mouth as Lando rolled out of bed and spat out the sour taste.

"Master, there are events I must urgently inform you of."

"Oh yeah, what are they?"

"The Church has called a meeting and asked all Masters to attend. Are you planning to go?"

"Why?" said Lando, hesitating for a moment. "What authority does the church have? They will soon be kneeling under my feet."

He jumped out of bed and put on his jacket. The jeans were dirty from the garbage, but he didn't care. He no longer noticed the smell in his nose.

"Get up; we're going to Caster!"

Lando reached the door, but he could hear no footsteps behind him. Luna continued to sit on the floor. Her body shook and turned from left to right. A deep, regular heartbeat boomed, creating a rumbling of a broken engine. The arms and legs were transparent, and one could see the green stone through them.

"Stand up..." he commanded again. But Luna showed no movement. Luna's head hung down, and her eyes, which had been shining yellow just a moment ago, shimmered only in a faint gray. Empty, cold, all life light disappeared. Luna did not even have the strength to understand her own emotions. Her body was trembling.

'Why is it so cold?' she thought, wanting to hug her knees. She tried to raise her arms but lacked strength, and only her fingers twitched. The magical energy dancing around was beautiful, and yet she sat lonely in the corner.

'What is my meaning? Where is my mom?'

Luna raised her eyes as she heard a voice.

"... You are a disgrace to me. What did I do to deserve a useless, pathetic servant like you?"

One hand pressed against Luna's forehead and thundered her head into the damp wall. Lando's fingers were warm but not a comfortable caring warmth. Luna gritted her teeth. Her eyes were heavy, and it took all her strength to keep them open.

One of the two red marks on the back of his hand began to glow.

"By the power of my almighty command spell, I tell you to rise and follow me. Understood?"

The mark on his skin prickled, and a red glow traveled across and seeped into Luna's Pale Skin, which gained color slightly. For a moment, her hair flickered white, and her left pupil shimmered red. Luna could see numbers being twisted before her eyes. But as quickly as it had come, it all disappeared. Her trembling body stopped, but she remained on the floor so that one could think she was asleep.

Lando scratched the back of his head as he felt a chain splinter in his wrist. He kept an eye on the tattoo but didn't notice anything unusual and sighed.

"Then I'll just go to Caster by myself. After all, I can't waste the whole day."

Lando stormed out of his room and turned left. He didn't know the corridors yet, but from the creatures' line of sight, he could tell where Caster must be. Gradually, he could hear voices, but they were still too quiet to be understood. A slimy slither echoed all around him.

None of his books had talked about this kind of magic, and Lando suspected that the author himself did not know about these dark creatures whose slimy bodies moved across the stone. The exact appearance he did not want to paint because the beasts were sludgy as from the deepest sea. Tentacles hung on the body, but the shape reminded more of a corrupted flower with countless teeth that hung like daggers in the throat.

Lando could feel the moisture on his skin, and it invigorated him.

The tingling of his fingertips had never been greater as he finally came closer to the source of magic. Caster stood at the end of the corridor. He looked like a figure spoken of only in legends, whose cruelty had been erased even from books. His shadow rose behind a silver glitter as he cursed and rumbled. An orb-like, crystal-clear stone long behind his curved body sparkled an unnatural silver. To his side, Ryuunosuke gazed into the shimmering orb.

"What are you doing right now?"

"Ahhh, Lando! Just come here and behold the shining beauty. The pure soul that was too beautiful even for God and thus enslaved."

Lando did not answer; instead, he looked deep into the sphere. The crystal showed a young woman barely tall enough to be called an adult. Golden hair shone like the sun itself, despite the silver glow dimming the image.

"And who is she?"

"She is my starlight in the night sky, the noble light that must be released from the iron cage."

Next to the Saint, as Caster called her, was another person. Her white clothes showed the status she enjoyed. The fabric was tailored from the finest silk and created by master hands. She was at least as impressive. Shiny white hair shone through the silver film. However, Caster showed no interest in the escort.

"Where are they going?" asked Ryuunosuke. "I mean, I haven't walked through that part of the city yet. At least there are no houses."

The view wavered as Caster made circular movements with his long fingers. Like a bird flying to the stars, the image widened. Only fuzzily could an ancient building be made out in the distance.

"The church?" asked Lando.

"Oh no!" Caster roared, startled. The sphere shook as he raised his long, ape-like arms. "Does God want to destroy her memory? How can they do this to my love? They are all monsters, monsters, monsters! Ryuunosuke, we must stop them!"

Caster turned to look down the wet channel, but just as he took the first step, something pulled him back. It was Ryuunosuke holding onto the furry coat.

"Why would God punish anyone anyway? If our art had disturbed him, we would have been punished long ago. What use would he have of this woman?"

Caster froze as if his heart had stopped beating in his chest. Then he straightened up and spread his aura.

"No, never. It was always the people who judged us, who burned Jeanne in broad daylight. But even when she was on fire and suffering unbearable torment, she continued to call out the name of your God. I can tell you that many people were confused. How could it be that a woman whose unchallenged faith determined her life did not receive salvation? Does God not care what happens to us believers who follow his holy words?"

"Ryuunosuke, how can it be that people always speak the holy words, but no one has ever heard them from the mouth of the great lord? The church is nothing but a group of greedy pigs!" thundered Caster.

"Isn't it most likely that this is a trap?" asked Lando with a puckered face.

'How can these devils vaguely award it over God! I am the only one worthy of that title. How can they believe in something that has never existed or shown itself?'

He never met a being in his dreams who watched everyone from afar. He was always the one who saw cities from the sky and punished unbelievers who defied his rules. He had the power! A proud heat spread in his chest, even to his surprise, and he stepped closer to the crystal ball. 'You will see!'

"A trap, you say? Not for the holy maiden, surely! Are the souls of men already so badly rotten that they now want to wash themselves with purity? How can they not know true faith and devotion?" said Caster.

"Calm down, my friend," Ryuunosuke interjected. "They wouldn't send a message to everyone then, would they? But what are they planning? It's hardly going to be a normal meeting if everyone is called in. Is it possible they're onto us?"

With both hands, Caster grabbed Ryuunosuke's shoulders so that the sharp nails penetrated deep into the fabric.

"Ryuunosuke! It is the Human Church! Just like back then, they want to hunt down and execute us infidels. The old worms do everything in the name of God. I have committed countless cruel acts. There is no such thing as God's word. It was only humans who punished me. We must do something immediately. Lando, where is Luna?"

Embarrassed, Lando scratched the back of his head as he thought about the morning.

"She's useless and broken. She can barely move, as if she's been starving for days. Even another spell wouldn't get her on her feet. I don't know what to do with a piece like that."

The images of a creature still burned vividly in his mind, bringing his stomach to a boil. 'She should feel honored. It's not my fault she's too weak to fight!' After Lando used a command spell to get her back on her feet, the dissolving condition had dissolved, but she had not gotten up.

"Oh dear, oh dear. She must have run out of magical energy. We need immediate sacrifices to save this young soul! Ryuunosuke, do we have any fresh artwork left?"

But Ryuunosuke shook his head in shame.

"We had so much fun yesterday and lost ourselves in the artistic rush. It was over even before we could reach a climax. It will be a little while before we can find new kids again."

"Ehmm," Lando said, calling attention to himself. "I'm providing magical energy; is she too stupid to know what to do with it or what?"

"Haha, a little drop like you provide is never enough to materialize a spirit like us. We need human victims from whose blood we directly suck our energy, preferably innocent children of God. They still carry purity in them. And then we will show this world a horrifying miracle. God shall have no choice but to show himself."

Without contorting his face, Lando clenched his hands into fists. 'I'll show you, ugly ogre! How dare you question my abilities?' He had to concentrate and think back to his dreams, what he could accomplish if only he could get his hands on the Holy Grail.

Caster's harmless explanation hit him in the pit of the stomach, but he didn't say anything and just nodded silently.

'I am not a worm, and I will punish all those who think they are beyond me. I will rise above mere human understanding and subjugate all life...'.