Tula grits his old teeth and tries to avert the abyssal gaze. He could feel every part of his soul being sucked into that eyes. In a last-ditch effort, he controls his only minion to grab Hilda from behind.
Hilda wouldn't let go, her blood sipped through her mouth and she spat at the old man linking them transferring her pain over. Tula screams his mind out, every fiber of his being is dying rapidly.
In the heat of the moment, John notices something. Tula is averting his eyes in a particular place. John followed his gaze and he could see a figure rising from the ground. It was a bowman that Hilda killed with her knife.
Turn out the body hasn't died yet. It assumes a position and ready the arrows. It is aimed at Hilda! From its angle, the best chance it has is to aim it at Hilda.
John didn't think much, if Hilda didn't hold the old man anymore, he could easily get out of this predicament. The red monster would just throw her away.
If John blocks the arrow Hilda might survive but the soul eyes would be effect would not persist since John has to move out of position.
Out of the two choices John chose the latter, he threw himself to the side blocking the arrow that was fired at Hilda.
"Master!"
"Kill him! KIll Tula!"
The arrow struck the back of John's shoulder, sending him tumbling down. He used all of his breath to shout his final command before he couldn't. Tula awoke from the Black eyes, but he was lost in another daze, unable to comprehend how this guy knew his name. However, he quickly realizes that it doesn't matter.
"You fucking.... agh"
Tula was too late. Before he could react, a knife was thrust through his neck. Blood gushes from inside his throat, clogging up his breathing. He coughs out the blood, attempting to get some air. However, his mystic power is ineffective because it does not extend to healing.
Tula feels his control over the monster's body weakening. Another knife also ran through his neck, he had no choice but to surrender his life.
"Master!"
After making sure that the mystic is dead, Hilda runs over the John to check on John's condition. But he's not answering her. Around the corner, she could also hear footsteps, it looked like the time was up.
She grits her teeth and chooses to leave, the sun church wouldn't like her master and Theia. She holds her master and Theia in both of her arms. her figure quickly disappears into the night.
----------
After covering her tracks, Hilda finally heaved a sigh of relief at the room they rented. Not every day, she gets to fight a mystic, at least not one of such level.
She places her master down and looks at him with soft eyes, unbecoming of the cold maid. If her master hadn't blocked that arrow she most certainly would have died. Even if it's for mutual survival, not everybody would block an arrow for someone.
She touches her master's arm with her bloody hand. Her power isn't limited to transferring her pain but she could also transfer other people's pain. When she awoke at the 3rd circle she thought it was useless.
However, she was glad that she could use it right now. Her body heated up and she began receiving a wave of pain. She wiped the blood and sip out of her mouth and began picking the arrow from John's back.
She began bandaging her master.
--------------
"We have completed the subjugation of the monster, Father"
One priest talks while the other looks at the bloody monster they just fell.
"What do you think happened?"
"From our divination, It's likely that a group of heretics was fighting one another. Truly a pitiful sight"
The older priest looked around the place littered with dead bodies with sorrowful eyes. He walks to them and interlocks his hands together. His complexion relaxes and his hand glows.
"Under the golden embrace of the eternal sun, we remember both the living light and our loved ones. Oh, tremendous Sun God, a bright beacon of life, we offer our greatest respect. Your warmth nurtures our lands, your light directs our path, and your power maintains all of creation.
As we bask in your radiance, we remember those who have gone on. May your brilliance light their path and provide them comfort in the vast beyond. We pay our respects to the departed, and their legacy lives on in our hearts.
Bless us, Sun God, as we commemorate their lives and carry on their spirits. May your light lead us, honoring both the living and the deceased. In your timeless light, everyone is seen, loved, and remembered."
"Praise the sun!"
"Praise the sun!"
The priests all chant together. The light in his hand disappears into the ether.
"Please cremate them where the sun could reach." The old priest said with a sincere voice.
"Praise the sun"
The white robe priests all carried out the dead one by one. leaving one body on the ground. A divination priest came in and stood in front of the corps with a slightly worried look.
"It's time you complete your duty"
"Thank you for this opportunity Father"
"Don't thank me, instead praise the sun god for leading you here"
"Praise the sun!"
"You could start when you're ready."
The priest tidied up his robe and bent down. He used his hand to touch the bulging red muscle, and a bright yellow light began spreading from his hand. The area around them starts burning up and lastly, the priest's eyes start to burn.
AHGGHGGG
He screamed, no amount of faith could prepare one to have their eyes burn. But they will gladly do it every time. The burning lasts for minutes and in the end, the bloody corpse leaves nothing but ash behind. The priest also took some time to collect his thoughts. He no longer could see any more.
"Father, it seems like 4 people survived this incident."