A day before.
The Radiant Holy See, dusk.
Kavensis was not in a good mood.
The words of that Child of the Curse from this morning still echoed in his heart.
As one born with the Holy Light, as a son of a priest of the Church, Kavensis's life was supposed to be glorious and smooth.
Born into a Church family, he was hailed as 'Child of the Holy Light' upon his first prayer, and at the mere age of sixteen, he reached the threshold of a second-rank magician. In this border city, he should have been the paragon of the new generation.
He and the prospective Holy Maiden, Luojia, had known each other for a long time, much earlier than that Child of the Curse.
In the past, he often considered himself Luojia's childhood sweetheart, and even though Luojia was not familiar with him, he still placed himself in that position.
This also brought him much honor and convenience; many people respected him.
That was until that Child of the Curse was recommended by Luojia to the great Radiant Holy See.
The attention of the masses gradually shifted to this newcomer.
On his first prayer as well, he received a title.
He spent every day in the reading hall, studying from books, feigning diligence just as his detestable smile was feigned.
Yet, it still affected him.
He was merely a Child of the Curse.
But Kavensis knew, these humiliating days were about to end; his father had already found several small Esoteric Religion strongholds for him. Tonight, he would lead his father's Holy Knight squad to exterminate those evil cultists.
On this night of the Red Moon, he was going to make a name for himself in this border city, and the great Holy Light shall descend upon the world!
The Holy Knight squad was essential.
According to the Goddess's rules, one needed to personally eliminate Cultists to earn faith points.
But alone, he could not eradicate so many Cultists.
This is where the Holy Knight squad came in, to deal with the High-Rank cultists that Kavensis couldn't handle, leaving only the weak believers for Kavensis to slaughter.
This plan was foolproof.
This was the foundation of his family.
By then, becoming a second-rank magician at the age of sixteen, even Luojia herself would have to take note of him.
Thinking of all this, a shallow smile hung on his lips.
The sun slowly sank, and the evening sky turned the mountains into blood-red, with layers of fiery clouds spreading across, covering half the sky.
The Blood Moon was about to be born from the most brilliantly red blood clouds.
The twilight gradually enveloped everything, and the chime of the Church bells came from afar.
Kavensis had already finished his duties for the day.
He rose to dress himself, donning a sacred robe made by a high-rank craftsman, a magic wand inlaid with rubies, and a blood-red cape that trailed on the ground, all making him look as majestic and holy as an Angel Envoy.
"Lord Cavendish, are you ready?"
"I am here," he said, pushing open the door with a solemn and radiant smile on his face, starkly different from the sullen look in his room, "To all those blessed by the Holy Light, I extend my blessings to you."
He bowed, head held low, left hand on his chest, performing the blessing gesture impeccably.
With Kavensis's entrance, half of the Church's believers were won over by his demeanor.
This attire, this demeanor was completely that of a born saint.
The border City-State was not large, and many of the excitable believers had already heard that the Priest's son was going to hunt witches tonight, all rushing to witness the elegance of this saint.
Everyone held great expectations for Kavensis.
With sharp eyes, Kavensis noticed Luojia was also performing mass in front of the statue. A satisfied smile appeared on his lips.
She really couldn't let go of me.
Dressed in a pure white robe, Luojia knelt quietly before the statue, the scented breeze brushing her moonlight-like hair.
She was very devoted during the mass, completely unaware of her surroundings.
Kavensis came directly in front of her and knelt on one knee, "Respected lady, I am honored that you have come to see me off."
Having her mass interrupted, Luojia opened her eyes somewhat confused, tilted her head, and almost blurted out a "Who are you?"
She was indeed confused.
Luojia had come simply to pray, hoping that An Su would pass the upcoming saint's test.
But she was still very polite, if awkwardly so, "Hello."
"Tonight's honor is yours, my Holy Maiden."
In front of everyone, Kavensis lifted his robe, "I shall dedicate all the honor I earn tonight to you, that is my pledge. May the Holy Light bless you!"
'How romantic'
'A pledge from a saint'
'I'm so jealous'
'A match made in heaven'
The words of Kavensis stirred quite a discussion among the onlooking crowd, especially among the gossip-loving girls, who talked excitedly with their companions.
Luojia was still baffled, blinking her eyes, "Ah... thank you?"
After pondering for a while, she remembered the man in front of her who spoke so flamboyantly... seemed to be the son of Priest Rowan.
She then added, awkwardly but politely, "I... I'm looking forward to it?"
Kavensis, as though invigorated, stood up, and after a gentlemanly bow, he headed towards the Holy Knight troop.
The Holy Knights were all neatly dressed, thirteen in total. They were second-rank saints of the Church, under the management of the Priesthood.
"There's no need for such formality." The leader was a golden-haired adult woman who looked at Kavensis with eyes of admiration, "We should be colleagues soon."
"You are my senior, I should certainly respect you," said Kavensis, with humility and politeness, gracefully and appropriately, turning the heads of the female believers around them.
"Let's depart," Kavensis said, bowing to the believers all around, "Ladies and gentlemen, please await my triumphant return."
It was now eleven at night; the darkness of the night enveloped everything, and the blood moon was at its most vigorous.
In the light of the blood night, they rode out of the city gate on the Church's steeds.
They would start with the Esoteric Religion stronghold closest to the City-State, riding five kilometers east to a river. There was a cave on the east side of the river... Kavensis still remembered the location his father gave him.
The Church's horses shattered the stillness of midnight as they quickly came upon the river, and walking upstream, they discovered the cave.
Kavensis felt a rush of excitement; he already saw his glorious future, feeling like a Holy Knight destined to redeem all souls, set to eradicate the evil for his Holy Maiden today.
—Those Cultists and Children of the Curse, he would slaughter every single one without exception.
Dismounting directly, he held his Magic Wand and was the first to charge into the cave.
The cave was dark, but the bright future was in this very darkness.
"Repent, you wretched bastards," Kavensis scoffed in his heart.
He finally reached the center of the cave, saw the huge altar, took out his Magic Wand, and was about to cast Holy Light magic.
But he stopped abruptly halfway through.
"?"
The silence was eerie, with only the sound of Kavensis's confusion echoing through the empty cave.
"Where is everyone?"