Everyone looked at Priest Anton, and a long time ago, they stopped seeing a boy and began to see a man. Some people have a presence that attracts everyone's attention when they are there.
There are also some people who can make everyone feel extremely comfortable just by being there. Despite being intimidating, Anton was one of those people whom others trusted with everything he said.
The relief everyone felt hearing the certainty in Anton's words was immense, and the fear vanished from the hearts of all the people.
As soon as Anton entered the room, his strong presence made the family affected by this house feel much better.
"We are grateful that you are helping us, Priest Anton." Mateo, as the head of this family, expressed gratitude they hadn't conveyed until now.
Their family had already gone to the community church seeking help, but because they were not followers of the church, the rigorous process was even more complicated simply because they were not known in the community.
But knowing that Anton had come to their house the moment he heard they needed help was enough reason to be grateful.
"You're welcome, Mr. Mateo. We are delighted to help, so my team and I will free this house from any evil." Anton said it with kindness sufficient to reassure these people.
The church was very different from the Light Association; they handled exorcisms in very different ways. There are differences between proximity and distance. For believers who are not members of the church, if the priest performs an exorcism privately without waiting for permission from the headquarters, all the consequences of the exorcism will be the priest's responsibility. Therefore, even if the priest wants to perform the exorcism himself, he must weigh the pros and cons involved.
"I know things worry you, but nothing bad will happen. First of all, you must be sure of that." After saying that, Anton walked to his backpack. "Everyone must agree with my arrangements, no matter what they are; you must obey, or you will bear the consequences yourselves."
Mateo's family nodded seriously, and Isabelle said, "We will be obeying all your instructions, Priest."
Seeing that everyone agreed to whatever he was about to do, Anton began to make preparations.
…
The first floor was to establish a barrier around the house so that no other family would be affected. After finishing setting up the barrier, Anton looked at the house, and in every window, he had his assistants place a silver cross to prevent accidents.
Not only inside, but for safety, Anton also asked his assistants to help him place them outside just in case. Evil spirits naturally hate things that have light, good faith, or are blessed. This is an irreversible fact. Putting an illuminated cross in front of evil spirits is nothing less than throwing acid at them, so it will make them furious. But if done correctly, they will be affected, and it will be easier to face them without fear.
Apart from this, after ordering the preliminary arrangements, Anton quietly took another backpack and headed to the hallway, where evil spirits were most likely to appear. He secretly placed a cross in his own blood. Having an ability like the Perfect Red King, Anton could use his points to eliminate the darkness in this place, but at the moment, he had not received any missions that would reward him for his actions, so he did not want to spend points that he would not get back.
Anton's current mission is to return all evil to darkness regardless of the reward; this was his job, after all.
Late in the afternoon, following Anton's request, all preparations were made, and everyone stayed in the room where this family slept.
Under the darkness of the night, the atmosphere is naturally scarier than during the day. As time passes, the hour slowly approaches midnight.
Isabelle's family, who had been tortured by this kind of environment for a long time, either sat or stood on the bed. They placed their son in the middle of them, as if somehow this would give him more security.
Lorraine sat next to her husband, and Drew was chatting with the two aspiring exorcists who were checking that everything was fine.
Anton was silent, listening for any sound related to something supernatural.
"A few minutes until midnight..." Anton opened his eyes, looked at everyone patiently waiting, and finally began to activate one of his abilities to keep this place safe.
Starting with a prayer in his head, Anton activated his second ability, the Hand of God, and held a silver rosary, waiting patiently.
The temperature didn't drop further, but it was still very cold, so everyone moved closer to the person next to them. This was naturally something that happened when evil clashed against humans without any spiritual protection.
This family was easily affected due to their lack of faith; they didn't believe in any religion, causing a lack of knowledge, and that's why they reached such extremes. A knowledgeable family would at least know how to identify when something evil is lurking; that would relate to bad luck, continuous accidents, or a foul odor.
Nowadays, there are fewer believers, and therefore fewer knowledgeable ones, due to the increase in technology and because very few truly believe that something dark is lurking in their dreams.
Looking at the blood dripping from Anton's right hand, Drew asked, "Priest Anton, are you okay?"
"There's nothing to worry about. The light granted me this ability, and I use it against all the darkness in this world." Anton responded ambiguously.
After saying that, he unbuttoned his jacket and showed his arms where he had the Perfect Red King tattooed. Everyone was impressed to see a priest with a tattoo, but Lorraine saw something more in it.
"A rune of invocation, a gift from a divine being..."
Anton, looking at Thomas, said, "Start according to the procedure I've taught you."
"Understood, Guardian."