Chapter 16: Arrogance

“Mihajic, do you have any further opinions?” After pondering for a long time, Komer finally turned to ask the puppet mage who had remained silent.
“My lord, this is like reaching for chestnuts in a fire—it’s extremely dangerous. If it comes to magical power, we might just be able to compete with the Light Church, but in terms of knights and warriors, we are far too weak. The Light Church isn’t just made up of mages; their knight orders may have far fewer members than those of secular nations, but almost all of them are highly skilled warriors.” Mihajic clearly had also been weighing the risks of this adventure. “Mr. Fran’s point makes sense. We might be able to rescue Rebrí, but it’s not certain we can escape the Light Church’s relentless pursuit. In the northern wastelands, knights clearly have the upper hand in battles against mages. How do you plan to solve this problem?”
“I’ve thought about this as well. Wars between mages and knights know no boundaries. What’s considered advantageous or disadvantageous applies only to temporary encounters. If we go prepared, we must guard against such situations. I believe magic scrolls might help us solve many problems. Of course, we’ll also prepare other impressive displays for these Light knights.” Komer smiled, clearly confident about this plan.
“If my lord has already considered this, then there’s nothing to worry about. Like everyone else, I’m eager for this battle.” Mihajic nodded. This battle was undoubtedly a public challenge to the Light Church, and once it began, it might turn into a fight to the death.
As Komer led his group through the somewhat desolate fields in the western part of the kingdom, another group was passing by in the opposite direction. The straight-line distance between them was several dozen miles, and no one could have predicted this encounter. Thus, a potential fierce battle quietly passed by due to the distance between them.

Komer and his party arrived outside Marco City as a caravan. The fame of the Holy City was well-deserved; almost all of them were visiting here for the first time. As a sacred site of the Church of Light, it housed the most magnificent and luxurious churches and palaces across the Azure Continent. Everywhere, one could see believers with expressions of devotion, as well as fountains, sculptures, buildings, even gateways and the exterior walls of ordinary residences, all adorned with legends and sculptures related to the God of Light. Perhaps some seemingly ordinary bridge had once been frequented by a saint of the Church of Light, or a certain wall in a temple might have been where a pope had meditated in solitude.

Yet for Komer and his group, from the moment they stepped onto the streets of Marco City, they felt an oppressive atmosphere everywhere. It was the lingering presence of the souls of countless heroes from the Church of Light who had perished over centuries. The inherently conflicting energies cast a deep sense of discomfort over them. Even though the Hidden Network of the Salvation Society arranged a remote, abandoned house for them to stay in, they still couldn’t escape this psychological pressure.

Seeing that the group remained listless, Komer risked using a mental magic spell to boost their spirits. Although this minor mental spell wasn’t considered a dark magic, it was still cast using dark energy. If a sensitive Light-worshipper happened to pass by at that moment, they would discover so many remnants of darkness hidden in this desolate house. Even a fool would realize what kind of scheme these people had in mind by coming here.

For the group, the darkness was actually the most peaceful and safe environment. In this city, only in the shadows could they feel a little more at ease. Every plant and tree here seemed imbued with the omnipresent sacred relics of the Light, causing Giovanni and the others to constantly feel an urge to destroy from deep within their hearts.

Komer sat quietly in the room, eyes closed in rest, yet his thoughts were in turmoil.

Tomorrow’s battle might well be a truly earth-shattering one. The Prison Tower is far too close to the headquarters of the Inquisition. Even if their group could swiftly deal with the Inquisition officials guarding Lebrí, it would be impossible to do so without raising any alarms. Since this is a place for imprisoning heretics, its alarm systems must be directly connected to the Inquisition. Perhaps as soon as they take action here, Inquisition agents will arrive. Hmph, well, Noroya and Lorenzo have taught me a valuable lesson, making me realize that there are always those better than us. It’s time for me to show them the unshakable truth that blood debts must be paid in blood.

The door opened silently, but Komer didn’t open his eyes. The only one who could enter his room so recklessly besides Uma was Shatima, but Shatima would never come in so quietly. She, who craved chaos, would rather everyone know about her unusual relationship with him. Uma, on the other hand, always slipped in stealthily—it seems the soul of Saint Elena still refuses to submit to her.

One must admit that the Light Church is indeed superior in cultivating souls. Although he had done his best to help Uma corrode and melt the ice covering her soul’s shell, she always found a way to recover. Strong pressure never had a real effect, as proven by countless failures. It seems conquering this saint’s soul will be difficult, but this ongoing struggle satisfies Komer even more. He is very interested in studying the Light Church’s mastery of spiritual and mental powers. Spiritual magic is often developed through repeated failures, and Komer is patient and confident that he can gain something from it.

For Uma, however, this is not good news. This stalemate leaves her frustrated. No matter how powerful her dark forces are, she can’t extinguish that tiny spark of soul in her opponent. Every attempt to use dark magic—soaking, corroding, devouring, grinding—has been tried, yet that glimmer of clarity in her opponent’s soul remains like a flickering candle in the wind, unstable but impossible to extinguish. This drives Uma crazy.

Uma had to reluctantly turn to Komer for help, but she wasn’t sure whether Komer was unwilling to let her obtain this body easily or if he himself had no choice. In any case, though the encirclement by that spark of soul grew tighter, it couldn’t completely extinguish the other party; sometimes, that spark would even burst out intermittently, nearly harming her own dark essence.
“Komer, how do you plan for me in this battle?” Uma was never restrained in front of Komer.
“Hmm, you’re my reserve pawn. You decide your own actions—I won’t interfere. But you need to seize the timing well and not rush in too soon. I suppose you’re not interested in trivial skirmishes anyway,” Komer said with a half-smile as he opened his eyes.
“Hmph, the holy city of the Light Church, the forbidden land of the Inquisition—I’ve longed for this place. In my last life, I wanted to come here and wreak havoc, but the Great Emperor didn’t give me the chance. I could only stand outside the city and wait from afar. Hehe, how could I waste such a good opportunity now?” Uma was about to laugh wildly, but an inner restlessness forced her to calm herself down and suppress that inappropriate tremor in her heart.
Komer smiled. “What, does Miss Elena seem annoyed by your rebellious tone? Uma, I think this is an opportunity.”
“An opportunity? What opportunity?” Uma seemed to not understand the meaning behind Komer’s words.
Komer gently tapped the center of Uma’s full chest—a gesture that seemed somewhat suggestive. But this body still didn’t fully belong to Uma; to some extent, Elena was still its owner. So such an act could also be considered an insult to the Light Church. “An opportunity to train this Saint Elena. Isn’t she still holding grudges against us over Marco? Perfect—let her experience firsthand how we wreak havoc in Marco and see how her supposedly inviolable holy city trembles at our feet.”
“Hmm, that’s a good idea. But what does that have to do with training her?” Uma frowned.

“Hmph, the Fire of Souls stems from the resilience of the heart. The fact that it has managed to strengthen Miss Elena’s mental defenses to such a degree interests me greatly. The Light Church has some methods in this regard that are worth learning from. So we need to peel back those defenses layer by layer. Once we can break through her mental barriers, the Fire of Souls will naturally fade. This war is meant to expose the cruelest, bloodiest, and most ugly aspects to her, forcing her mental defenses to collapse under the bloody reality. Only then can we achieve our goal. Umma, can’t you even understand this?” Komer said with a calm smile.

Umma seemed to grasp it, but soon frowned again, her confusion and dissatisfaction growing even more.

“Are you blaming me for not saying it in person so that Miss Elena wouldn’t be prepared?” Komer asked softly with a smile.

Umma didn’t answer, but her expression spoke volumes.