Party in the Holy City

7:28 p.m.

Vivian was walking down a busy street alone.

She wore a brown hooded cloak and had its hood up, covering half her face and only revealing her nose and mouth. And underneath her cloak, she wore an all-black attire -- long sleeve, gloves, pants and boots -- except for the brown leather belt pouch around her waist.

She also didn't carry any weapons and wore a bra.

And as for her gold necklace, she hid it under her shirt.

Thud.

Someone bumped into her shoulder.

"Sorry," Vivian said as she glanced at the person who bumped into her and noticed that it was a man.

The man didn't even spare Vivian a glance, let alone say sorry, and continued walking as if nothing happened.

Vivian didn't mind it and continued walking.

Thud.

A couple of steps later, she bumped into another person.

"Sorry," Vivian said and she glanced at the person who bumped into her.

It was a young woman who was with a group of friends chatting and laughing.

When they saw Vivian whose face was half-covered by the hood, they only sparred her a quick glance before resuming to chat and laugh with each other.

Vivian went over to the side.

Am I just imagining things or what I think is real…?

Back in her previous world, Vivian was a tall and muscular man. Because of that, she didn't really have to worry about walking into crowded places and bumping into people because people would just naturally move out of her way.

And of course, there will always be those people who think they're untouchable or want to pick up a fight, both men and women.

But for the most part, people just get out of her way.

Vivian was about to scratch the side of her face but stopped after remembering she was wearing light makeup.

Well…

At least this getup works…

So carrying weapons, wearing my Priest cloak or showing my face really is very different, huh…

Oh, no, scratch that…

Showing my face but not carrying weapons or wearing my Priest cloak is also a different problem…

Vivian recalled the last time when she was walking around with her face revealed but wasn't carrying any weapon or wearing her Priest cloak.

Well, sucks to be perfect…

She resumed walking.

***

8:13 p.m.

Vivian was walking down a quiet street and she swept her gaze around.

This looks like a good street to hunt…

Poor, but not a slum…

She didn't dare to go back to the place she hunted last time in order to avoid getting caught.

Vivian knitted her brows.

Did I come too early…?

Almost most of the shops were closed. However, the same can't be said of the houses. There were even a few people outside chatting and children playing.

She passed by 2 animals that immediately scurried away when they saw her.

Vivian wanted to face-palm herself but suppressed the urge not to after remembering that she was wearing a bit of makeup.

Why didn't I think about this…?!

This is like basic sneaking 101…!

Stupid…!

Vivian turned around and left the street.

***

Inside a tavern.

Vivian was sitting on a table all alone in the corner and she still had her hood covering half of her face.

There was a mug of beer and some grilled meat in front of her.

She picked up a piece of grilled meat with a fork and ate it before taking a sip from her mug to water it down her throat.

She picked up another piece of grilled meat with a fork and ate it before looking around her surroundings.

Now that I think about it…

I don't think I've seen any Adventurers here…

I've only seen Priests, Knights and Guards…

Why is that…?

She glanced at some of the patrons who looked like off-duty Guards and were carrying weapons.

I want to ask some of the people here why but I don't want to attract any unwanted attention…

She shifted her gaze to the waitresses.

I wonder…

What if I make humans like meat jerky…

Or perhaps a burger patty and eat them like a hamburger…

Would that also make my blood red…?

Also, is my diet limited to humans alone…?

What about animals…?

What about demon-kins…?

She shook her head mentally.

What kind of deranged questions am I asking about myself…?

I'm literally talking about eating humans and turning them into a meat jerky or burger patty…

But why am I not even feeling any sense of guilt…?

Was this always inside me…?

Or is it because I'm no longer human…?

She recalled the first time she killed a person.

Those were bandits who turned out to be demons as well…

She picked up her mug and took a sip.

It would be nice if there was a demon-worshiper that I could interview…

Also, I wonder if I'll finally get to see demon-kins in the Pagan Lands…

I really want to see a sexy demon human with horns and red eyes…

It was then one of the off-duty drunken Guards nearby got up from his seat and went over to Vivian.

"You there," said the Guard.

Vivian turned to him.

The Guard was in his mid-20s.

"Yes?"

"Why are you wearing a hood inside?"

"It is against the law?"

The Guard grinned. 

"A smart mouth, huh."

Vivian rolled her eyes and pulled out her necklace under her shirt.

When the Guard saw the necklace, his eyes turned wide.

As far as Vivian knows, the Holy City was the main base of the Temple of Priests. And in this city, Priests held a lot of authority that there were even places where only Priests were allowed to enter.

"What were you saying again?"

"A… A… A…. I-I'm very sorry for disturbing you, Honored Priestess!" the Guard said and bowed, causing everyone in the room to turn around and look.

Vivian let out a sigh.

This is a failed night…

She got up and pulled back her hood, revealing her beautiful face.

"So this is what Guards like to do when you're off-duty, huh?" Vivian said and then looked over at the companions of the Guard who all pretended to look away. "The rest of you, get over here!"

The rest of the Guards got up with a regretful expression on their faces and went over to join their companion.

Vivian looked at the Guards.

"Why are you not on your knees?"

The Guards looked at each other.

In their heads, if Vivian turns out that she was just impersonating a Priest, this would be a huge embarrassment to them. But if it turns out she was really a Priest, it would be a huge problem. However, if they had to make a bet, they would choose the latter. After all, this was the Holy City. No one was brave enough to impersonate a Priestess.

Nevertheless, it was weird to see a lone Priestess in a tavern like this where only commoners and Guards would go.

One of the Guards who was in his late 20s knelt down first and the rest quickly followed.

As the Guards knelt down, they threw a glance at the Guard who harassed Vivian and cursed inside their hearts.

"Who is the highest-ranking officer here?" asked Vivian.

The Guard who knelt down first raised his hand.

"I, Priestess…"

"What's your rank and name?"

"Guard Captain Thomas S. Grain..."

Vivian turned to the Guard who harassed her.

"And you, boy?"

"Guard Sergeant Hansel G. Losefit..."

Vivian turned to one of the waitresses, causing her to flinch.

"How much is my bill?"

The waitress turned to the owner who was a fat woman in her late 40s.

The fat woman quickly approached Vivian.

"First of all, Honored Priestess, we would like to thank you and the God of Light for gracing us with your presence here in this humble shop of ours. We also would like to humbly apologize for any inconvenience that our shop has caused you --"

"How much is my bill?" Vivian cut her off.

"I-I-It's on the house, Priestess…"

Vivian took out a gold coin from her belt pouch and gave it to the woman.

"I don't need charity from an establishment that doesn't protect their customers from being harassed."

Thank God I'm wearing gloves…!

I would've died if I were to touch this fat, greasy, smelly old woman…!

Ugh…!

Vivian turned to the Guards and then sneered.

"I pray to the God of Light that you're going to have a peaceful and pleasant sleep tonight, Guard Lieutenant Thomas S. Grain and Guard Sergeant Hansel G. Losefit. Goodnight."

Vivian put on her hood and left.

***

Vivian stepped outside of the tavern.

She raised her head and stared at the cloudy sky.

Rainy season is coming…?

Autumn…?

She let out a sigh.

I don't feel like going to Night's Edge…

Earlier, a few hours after they all returned to the dorm from the restaurant, they decided to meet up again later at night at the Night's Edge for one last celebration because they would all be leaving tomorrow to go to their respective Division and take the 3-week Training Course.

On top of that, the Night's Edge was only open to Priests, especially to new recruits at the Training Camp, during the day of Satur. But on the rest of the days, it was open to everyone.

I never really understood why must anyone drink alcohol or do drugs in order to celebrate…

Are people that boring, depressed or introverted that they stimulants in order to bring out their party side…?

And plus, who wants to have a hangover and feel like shit the next day…?

An image of her parents flashed inside her head.

Well, I guess I have to blame my parents for that, especially my father…

He would've killed me if I did drugs…

Vivian recalled the first time she came home drunk. If not for her girlfriend and friend at that time, her father would've beaten her into a bloody pulp.

She let out another sigh before walking.

Was that gold coin enough…?

Ever since I left for the Holy Crusade, I haven't earned a single coin…

Not even a single copper coin…

Pathetic…

It was a lie.

On the last victim of Vivian, she managed to find some coins. Unfortunately, it was only around 7 gold coins.

She thought about taking some valuable items as well and selling them but dropped the idea. She concluded that if she were to take and sell them, it would only serve as a link for the authorities to find her.

Vivian continued walking until she noticed something, causing her to stop.

That window is opened…

Among the many two-story houses and buildings around her, there was one two-story house on the corner near an alley with a very narrow path and one of the windows on the second floor was opened.

Vivian looked around her surroundings.

Just to be sure…

[Greater Origin Transformation].

Blaaak!

Her eyes transformed into the form of her Greater Demon eyes. Her eyes were color black and the pupils were yellow.

Vivian swept her gaze around to view her surroundings in case there was anyone following her.

She has never tried using thermal vision goggles before, but she has seen clips from videos and games. And right now, through her Greater Demon eyes, the world appeared to be black and white with a few differences.

It was more or less the same as the black-and-white thermal imaging. The difference is that it doesn't rely on heat, it's clearer and for any living beings around her, humans appeared as blue-colored nervous systems while the animals and insects appeared to be red-colored nervous systems.

Even Vivian herself, when she looks at her arms and body, she sees through her clothes, there were no skin, no meat and bones, only a blue-colored nervous system in the shape of her body.

According to what Gars told us in class…

This is how demons see the world…

The living beings that could use Magic Art have a blue-colored nervous system…

Meanwhile, those who couldn't use Magic Art have a red-colored nervous system…

Because of this…

It's not advisable to fight demons in low-light conditions…

They don't even encourage attacking a demon camp during the night…

When Vivian couldn't spot anyone following her, she continued walking.

By her estimate, it was already close to 9:00 p.m. and there weren't that many people in the non-busy streets. And the people that were still outside, most of them were drunk or homeless.

Vivian entered the narrow path.

Splash!

She stepped into a puddle and her nose was attacked by a foul smell.

Ugh…!

What is that smell…?!

She couldn't tell if it was piss, feces or animal guts, or all of the above.

Vivian turned around and went back.

Spit!

She immediately spat on the side once she exited the narrow path.

"Fucking hell!"

Although her demonic eyes were quite helpful in hunting, especially in low-light conditions, they also come with weaknesses. One of the weaknesses is that she couldn't spot water unless it was moving. Whenever she sees water, all she could see what was underneath.

I don't know what I stepped on but it stinks too much that I lost my appetite…

She scratched her head.

But I want to appear normal tomorrow when I leave for the Inquisitory Division's headquarters…

A window on the second floor suddenly opened and Vivian saw a brief view of the person who opened it.

It was a woman in her teens and she appeared to be wearing a sleeping gown.

Vivian swept her eyes around the building.

The door is closed…

The rest of the windows are also closed…

She swept her gaze around the area one last time.

All the doors and windows are closed…

There's also no one nearby as the occasional drunk people passing by the main street…

[Greater Origin Transformation].

Blaaak.

One of Vivian's eyes reverted to its human form.

There aren't enough lights in this street…

She went over to a small and narrow alley between two buildings and where the opened window was above her.

[Greater Origin Transformation].

Blaaak!

Two thin and long two-elbowed arms which looked more like a spider's arms burst out of ribs on each side and destroyed the sides of her long-sleeved shirt.

I think this length is enough…

Vivian's actual height of her Greater Demon form was 10 meters. And the demonic arms she summoned was for a 5-meter-tall demon.

Chud.

Chud.

She began crawling on the walls with her demonic arms like a spider. Although her hands can't stick to walls, her Physical Force was enough to hold onto things and carry her body weight as if she weighed nothing.

When Vivian finally got to the open window, a dark expression appeared on her face.

The woman was busy reading some notes on her desk with a lamp and the desk was facing the right side of a wall, not on the window.

I got lucky…

Had she been facing here, she would've spotted me right away…

I should never do this type of sneaking ever again…

She slowly entered the window as quietly as possible.

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Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

By the way, I posted some Chapter Drafts at P-a-t-r-e-o-n. And to view them, you can read them at…

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Please note that the chapters posted there are only drafts. So when those said Chapter Drafts will be published here, there will be some edits. They also involve a few secret outline notes/details that I won't publish here because they contain spoilers or dispel some of the mysteries. And at the moment, Chapter Drafts 263-267 are posted there.

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