Chapter 165 - Xenovia! Don't Give In!
"We should have been excommunicated from the church by now."
At these words, Irina widened her eyes in disbelief, looked at Xenovia, then forced a smile and said, "Xenovia, that's too much."
"Even if you're teaming up with Mahiro to scare me, don't joke like that. I'll get really mad."
Despite her words, Irina puffed up her cheeks in mock anger, placing her hands on her hips as if she were furious.
"I wish it were a joke too, but it seems to be true." Xenovia said with a somber expression.
"When my brother spoke to me yesterday, he also asked me to take good care of you too. It seems he knew this would happen," Rias sighed.
"How could this be?" Irina's face turned pale as she slumped down, her gaze becoming unfocused, and tears began to well in her eyes.
"Irina, you promised me just now that you wouldn't cry," Mahiro reminded her.
"I..!" Irina held back her tears, scrunching her nose as if trying to fight off the urge.
"B-But why? We completed the mission, we retrieved the holy sword. Why are we being excommunicated?" Irina asked, feeling both aggrieved and confused.
At this moment, she accepted Mahiro's words as truth.
With both Xenovia and Rias saying similar things, she could no longer doubt it.
"It's because you learned of God of Bible's death," Mahiro explained.
"The news of his death would be a huge blow to the church. If it were to spread, it would cause unimaginable turmoil."
"We wouldn't tell anyone. We know how important it is to keep this a secret," Irina retorted.
"Do you remember what Kokabiel said yesterday about the system left behind after the God's death?" Mahiro asked.
"What about it?" Irina replied, puzzled.
"For people like you, who know that the lord they believe is dead, staying in the church could cause irreversible issues with the system, maybe even make it collapse."
"Think of the impact if that happened," Mahiro said thoughtfully.
In the anime, the system could still accept prayers from the devout believers, but it couldn't respond.
Later, with Michael's adjustments, even reincarnated devils like Asia and Xenovia were able to pray.
"Is that true, Xenovia?" Irina asked, looking for reassurance.
"Yes," Xenovia responded weakly.
Both Xenovia and Irina fell silent, each lowering her head in contemplation.
A minute later, Xenovia suddenly looked up, picked up her fork, and resumed eating at a faster pace.
"Xenovia, how can you still eat?" Irina asked, feeling both sad and puzzled.
"We've been abandoned!"
"Well, the lord is dead anyway," Xenovia replied with a serene look.
"I joined the church to serve Him. If He's gone, whether I'm part of the church or not doesn't change much for me."
"Don't you feel anything?" Irina asked, unwilling to let go.
"No, my mind is blank right now. I don't even know what to do next," Xenovia answered casually, showing no sign of sadness.
"We're homeless!" Irina wanted to cry.
"It is a problem," Xenovia nodded, thinking seriously.
"We still owe a lot of debt, and we need to work part-time to pay it off. But what happens after we clear it?"
Xenovia paused her meal, resting her chin in her hand as she pondered.
"So, why don't you join us?" Rias said gently, her eyes twinkling.
"I promised my brother I'd take care of you two."
"Join the you guys?" Xenovia frowned, considering it.
"Xenovia, don't agree! This is a devil's temptation, a provocation. Don't give in!" Irina said anxiously.
Rias remained calm, looking at Xenovia with confidence.
After all, she expected any devout believer would instinctively reject her invitation.
However, Xenovia seemed to be genuinely tempted.
"Anyway, my world is practically crumbling. It doesn't seem to matter where I go."
"There shouldn't be a problem joining you guys," Xenovia finally said, with a self-deprecating smile.
"Then it's settled, Xenovia!"
Rias said happily, immediately taking out an Evil Piece.
"So this is an Evil Piece? I'd only heard of it, but I didn't expect it would actually come in handy," Xenovia said, examining the piece in her hand.
"Are you serious, Xenovia? Are you really going to turn your back on the Lord and become a devil?" Irina's voice wavered with tears.
"It's not like I want this, but with Lord gone, I don't know who to serve," Xenovia replied nonchalantly.
"Anyway, Rias seems decent. Her clan is known for treating its servants well, so it could be good for me."
"Yes, we treat our servants like family," Rias replied with a smile, adding fuel to the fire.
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