"Then why doesn't the magic you used work?" Alex shouted, "Are you kidding me?"
"Are you scolding me?" The pastor frowned, his voice carrying a hint of annoyance.
Thomas saw that the situation was a bit unstable and immediately intervened: "Excuse me, pastor."
As he spoke, he patted Alex's shoulder and pulled him back: "He just came to this world and doesn't know much about the pastor and the church's affairs, so his actions were a bit impulsive. I hope the pastor doesn't mind this."
"Huh!" The priest snorted in disdain: "Kid, don't think that just because you're a hero you can say whatever you like."
"If I wanted to, I could create countless heroes like you. You… are just a pawn of this Kingdom."
"You…" Alex gritted his teeth; he wanted to say something, but Thomas' voice rang out again, interrupting his words.
"Okay. Pastor, can you check it again?"
The priest listened to Thomas and sighed, replying, "Don't doubt my abilities. I have never made a mistake while performing this magical ritual."
"Look…" The priest said as he pointed at the corpses wearing black robes lying on the ground: "Every time I perform this ritual, I have to sacrifice a believer."
"I have performed this ritual seven times… seven times already, do you understand? If you weren't a hero, if you weren't part of the royal army, I wouldn't have sacrificed so many believers."
The pastor finished speaking and felt great pain in his heart. He had to know that these believers were all loyal to him and were willing to die for him.
Yet in just one night, he sacrificed 7 followers just to kill a useless person.
If the other party weren't from the Royal Family, he would have chased them away after failing the first time.
Thomas frowned upon hearing this and said softly, "Pastor, so… where do you think the problem lies?"
The priest sighed, rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, then said: "There are only two cases, first, that is, he can revive infinitely. That means… my magic works, but the devil he summoned can help him revive infinitely."
"However, this case is absurd; it will definitely never happen. If the devil can do this, then the Demon King will definitely not be destroyed so easily."
"That's why I believe in the second case more."
The priest sighed, putting the crystal stone in front of him into a leather bag.
"This magic can kill people from a distance; however, it also has a drawback… it requires a human sacrifice."
"To be more precise, it is an equal exchange, one life for one life. Of course, the level of the person being sacrificed must be equal to or higher than the person being killed for this magic to work."
"Although my followers are loyal, they are still just ordinary people. If sacrificing them doesn't kill him, then there can only be one reason…"
"He is not an ordinary person."
Thomas frowned upon hearing this: "Pastor, he is really just an ordinary person. The devil can help him possess superior power, but he cannot create magic circuits."
"If he didn't possess magic circuits, he would still be an ordinary person."
"That's right." The pastor nodded slightly and said, "I understand that too. However, it is also possible that the brat named Roland received some kind of magic that could transform his body."
Thomas frowned upon hearing this. Alex stood behind him and shouted, "Then use someone stronger than your followers."
"Are you stupid?" The pastor could no longer bear it and shouted: "Who else would accept being sacrificed other than my followers?"
Alex heard that and was silent.
Yes, no one wants to die except the pastor's followers; they are all useless people, like rats.
If the pastor wants someone to die, then that person must die; that is the purpose and meaning of their life.
As for those who possess magical talent, they have bright futures, so why do they need to be sacrificed?
"If you can find a high-level adventurer who is willing to be sacrificed, I will immediately use this magic again without charge."
"If you can't find someone like that, then shut up! You're making me very uncomfortable. What's this brat's name?"
Thomas sighed and said, "Pastor, he is…"
Before Thomas could finish his sentence, Alex immediately spoke up, his voice filled with arrogance and confidence: "I am Alex, a hero with talent and an S-rank class."
The pastor frowned upon hearing that: "You mean…"
"That's right." Alex smirked: "My talent and class are both S rank, Venerable Priest."
"Hahahaha… this is my first time meeting you, Hero Alex." The priest's attitude immediately changed, which surprised Alex and Thomas a bit.
Alex saw this and became even more arrogant, immediately saying: "Pastor, I order you to find an adventurer, use him as a sacrifice, and destroy the followers of the Devil."
"This…" The priest cursed Alex in his heart for being a bastard. If he wasn't an S-rank hero, the priest would definitely spit out a mouthful of saliva and then chase him out of the church.
"Hero Alex, I am just a normal priest. How can I find an adventurer willing to be sacrificed?" The priest sighed as he spoke, the expression on his face extremely pitiful.
"Hero Alex, if you find such an adventurer, I am willing to help you, free of charge."
Alex frowned upon hearing that; he wanted to say something, but Thomas immediately spoke up: "Good, if I find such a person, I will immediately bring him to you."
"It's almost dawn; I won't bother you anymore."
Thomas finished speaking and led his soldiers and Alex away. The pastor sighed and said nothing more.
He instructed the living believers to bury the bodies of the dead believers.
The priest took out the crystal ball and stared at it with a frown: "This is strange… What exactly happened? Why is my magic not working?"
"Is there really magic in this world that can transform a person's physique?"
He sighed and shook his head, then stopped thinking about it and decided to go to sleep.
…
Outside, the city was still asleep, the darkness dispelled by the glow of kerosene street lamps.
The streets were paved with stone, and on both sides of the road were houses built in the medieval European architectural style.
At this moment, Alex also asked Thomas the same question; however, Thomas immediately answered him: "No! If such magic existed in this world, the world order would immediately fall apart."
"Why?" Alex asked, confused.
Thomas sighed and said, "What if that kind of magic existed? Surely every kingdom, every organisation would want to possess it."
"What if everyone was an adventurer, everyone was a magician? The world would be in complete chaos and fall into eternal war."
"Therefore, that kind of magic definitely won't exist, and it must not be allowed to exist."
"So why isn't he dead?" Alex asked, puzzled.
Thomas frowned and said, "I don't know either, but I only know one thing: the pastor didn't lie to us."
"Alright, I will notify the neighbouring countries to issue a wanted notice. We can only wait."
"Why wait?" Alex roared, his expression so angry that his face was as red as a lump of hot coal: "As long as we bring more soldiers and search that forest, we can definitely find him."
Thomas frowned, his eyes looking at Alex, carrying a bit of disappointment and a bit of confusion.
"Alex, why are you so agitated? Is it because of Selvia?"
"That…" Alex heard Thomas say, immediately startled.
Thomas patted Alex on the shoulder and said softly, "Alex, I know you like Selvia; however, you just married the princess. Do you understand what I'm talking about?"
Alex gritted his teeth and nodded slightly.
"Good!" Thomas continued, "The reason I didn't let you go into that forest to find him is because he doesn't have the qualifications for you to risk finding him. He's just a useless person. Even if a demon protects him, he can't survive in that forest full of monsters alone."
"Besides, in that forest, there is an existence that we cannot reach."
Alex heard that and asked in confusion: "What kind of existence is that?"
"The Dark Witch, Lilith."