The blind villain of the academy

Chapter 266

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Episode 69 - Soul Transfer Ritual [1]

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"I think this place is perfect."

A girl with black hair and purple eyes took a seat on the branch of a fifty-meter-tall tree.

From there, she had a complete view of the city.

The cold night wind blew around her as the light of the Soul Moon bathed the city stretching out before her.

Her black hair swayed gently, while the violet and dark-blue glow of the Soul Moon enveloped her figure.

At that moment, as she stared intently in a certain direction, a notification suddenly appeared before her.

〖■■■■ Says that you look like a cliché villainess watching her arch-enemy〗

"......"

Veronica read the system message and snorted.

"You used to read a lot of villainess romance novels as a kid, didn’t you?"

〖■■■■ Says there’s anything wrong with that. On the other hand, she says you’re acting like an idiot〗

"Fuck you, old hag."

Veronica raised her middle finger at the system notification.

Then, she crossed her arms and let out a soft sigh.

However, shortly afterward, a faint smile appeared on her face.

"Hey, doesn’t this bring back memories of our arguments?"

The system notification appeared shortly afterward.

〖■■■■ Says Kim always separated us and scolded us〗

Upon reading the message, Veronica let out a soft chuckle.

"Haha, and remember when we pulled that prank...? Pfft, hahaha. The look on his face when he woke up that morning was hilarious."

But her laughter gradually faded.

The cheerful expression that had appeared on her face as she recalled those moments also disappeared, replaced by a dejected look.

Veronica turned her gaze toward the city lights.

Reflected in her eyes were eight figures, including herself, sitting around a campfire.

The sky back then looked nothing like the black sky of now, where only the moon and a few stars could barely be made out.

Instead, the night sky of that time had been completely different.

It looked like an enormous cosmic painting: rivers of stars, constellations, and colossal cosmic clouds stretched across the heavens, glowing with countless colors.

The eight figures sitting around the campfire enjoyed a peaceful and pleasant night.

Without realizing it, Veronica reached a hand forward, as if she wanted to grasp those memories.

"Aah..."

Suddenly, she let out a long sigh.

"Hey, do you think we’ll be able to get together again someday, all of us, and sit around a campfire like we did every night?"

Veronica kept her gaze fixed on the air before her, waiting for a system notification to appear.

However, the seconds passed without receiving a response.

Finally, she sighed.

"Ah, right. Looks like you got exhausted after only three messages."

She had probably heard her words.

However, she could no longer respond.

Veronica finally tore her gaze away from the city and fixed it once more on the structure located at its center.

The Holy Church.

She stared at it for several seconds.

Then...

Boom!

Suddenly, a massive explosion shook the dome at the center of the Holy Church.

Three figures were blasted out from within.

Two of them were wearing loose robes, while the third was...

"Ugh..."

Veronica stretched her arms and took a deep breath.

"All right, Veronica. Don’t lose focus and keep your eyes fixed on the final outcome."

After muttering those words, she focused all her attention on the three individuals.

***

A few minutes earlier.

I followed Rinna and Elizabeth into a large hall, where the two of them waited in front of an enormous wall.

’So that’s the entrance.’

To anyone looking behind Rinna and Elizabeth, it was nothing more than an ordinary wall.

However, thanks to the Pope’s magic, there was a door there that could only be revealed whenever he wished.

That was also the reason I couldn’t simply enter the Grand Holy Hall directly.

In any case, the eighteen Archbishops arrived shortly afterward.

A few minutes passed before the doors to the hall finally opened.

Suddenly, a door appeared behind Rinna, Elizabeth, and the Archbishops.

At that moment, I sensed the presence of four figures and turned my head, focusing my attention on the entrance to the hall.

A slightly hunched old man leaning on a cane entered first.

Behind him walked two men and a woman, moving side by side as they followed the Pope.

The four of them walked forward until they stopped in front of Rinna.

The Pope exchanged a few words with her before making a gesture with his hand.

The doors to the Grand Holy Hall opened.

The Pope entered first, followed by Rinna, then the three Cardinals, and finally, the Archbishops.

Knowing that everyone had entered, I said to my master:

’From here on, you take care of the Archbishops, master.’

My master’s voice immediately replied.

’You don’t need to remind me.’

My master’s figure materialized in front of me.

Then, he turned toward me and nodded.

Without saying another word, his figure blurred before disappearing.

Then, I muttered:

"Liora, you take care of protecting Rinna."

The little fairy suddenly appeared in front of me.

She crossed her arms and asked:

"Dad, do you remember that you promised me?"

"....."

"Yes, yes. I’ll let you bother Astrid for a week, so do as I tell you while I’m busy."

A faint smile appeared on Liora’s face.

Then, just like my master, her figure also disappeared.

This was because I had used Spatial Movement to assign both of them to their respective positions and have them act the moment I took the first step.

Finally, I stood up from where I had been crouching and reached a hand toward the bandages covering my eyes.

The moment I removed the bandages, a couple of notifications appeared in my mind, but ignoring them, I murmured:

"Pandemonium."

***

As Rinna gazed upon what lay within the Grand Holy Hall, she felt the breath leave her lungs in an instant.

"......"

Her face paled, and her body became completely rigid.

At that moment, the Pope, who was standing beside her, placed a wrinkled hand on her head and said:

"Step into the circle."

The faint glimmer that remained in Rinna’s eyes suddenly vanished. Her legs began moving on their own, and as though she were being controlled, she walked toward the center of the circle formed from blood.

When Rinna reached the center, the three Cardinals spread out around the circle. Then, they clasped their hands together and began chanting prayers in a strange language, the words sounding distorted to anyone who heard them.

Meanwhile, the Archbishops raised their hands as ordered by the Pope. Instantly, their Mana began flowing into the circle.

Then, the Pope also walked toward the center.

Stopping beside Rinna, he raised his gaze toward the Soul Moon visible through the dome above and said:

"Tonight is the night I will be freed from all sin and every trace of negative karma I have accumulated throughout my life. In exchange, I will be reborn as..."

".....!?"

The Pope’s eyes widened when he sensed an enormous amount of Light Mana crashing into the Archbishops.

He quickly turned his head toward the source of the energy.

However...

"....!?"

Right beside him, in front of Rinna, space began to distort.

A small fairy suddenly appeared.

Caught off guard, the Pope tightly gripped the cane in his right hand.

However, fortunately...

"Beatrice, protect the Pope."

At that moment, Cardinal Beatrice appeared in front of the Pope with a mace in her hands and swung it toward the little fairy.

But just as she was about to strike her...

Boom!

A white radiance exploded in front of Beatrice, deflecting her attack and preventing it from reaching its target.

When the light faded...

"Damn it."

Rinna had disappeared.

So had the little fairy.

On the other hand, the Archbishops had been struck by an enormous amount of Light Mana from somewhere, leaving them severely wounded.

Then, a few meters above the ground, an Ancient Spirit radiating an overwhelming amount of Light Mana appeared.

Upon recognizing the Ancient Spirit of the Light Attribute, the Archbishops widened their eyes in surprise.

But at that very moment...

"Bring my vessel back."

The Pope’s thunderous shout snapped everyone out of their daze.

Beatrice, who remained in front of the Pope, stepped forward and said:

"I will bring her back, Your Grace."

The Pope, whose rage grew with every passing second, shouted at her:

"The Soul Transfer Ritual has only partially connected. If she gets too far away from me, the connection will be severed, and everything will fail. Bring her back now! And you two, take care of the rest..."

At that moment, while the Pope shouted at Cardinals Abraham and Julius, both of them suddenly sensed a ripple in the Mana.

Their bodies reacted instantly.

Boom!

At the spot where they had been only an instant earlier, countless invisible slashes tore through the air, destroying everything in their path.

The two Cardinals exchanged a brief glance before turning their gazes toward their enemy.

Adel, sword in hand, suddenly appeared at the spot where the previous attack had struck.

Then, she shouted:

"Julien, do your job."

Upon hearing that name, Cardinal Julius immediately turned his gaze toward his brother.

However, Julien had already sprinted out of the Grand Holy Hall.

Julius quickly extended a hand with the intention of killing him, but...

Whoosh!

".....!"

An invisible force struck his hand and stopped his attack.

Julius cast a cold gaze at Adel, his expression turning grim.

"Let’s put an end to this filthy heretic who seeks to harm the Pope, Abraham."

Cardinal Abraham unsheathed his greatsword and nodded.

And without wasting a single moment, both Cardinals lunged at Adel.