Holy Orders: America’s Most Overqualified Exorcist

In a corner of the hall

Jenny pulled her head back behind the pillar, her entire body trembling as her heart pounded violently in her chest.

The moment she closed her eyes—

Peggy's death replayed in her mind.

Over and over again.

She had thought—

That being inside the witch academy, Gary wouldn't dare do anything too extreme.

But she was wrong.

Completely wrong.

That lunatic had killed someone—

Right in front of everyone.

Wasn't he afraid of Miss Fiona? Of Professor Fox?

Guilt surged inside her like a wave.

She had watched Peggy being humiliated—

And all she had done…

Was hide.

"If I had stopped him… would Peggy still be alive?"

Jenny buried her face in her knees.

"Don't touch me!!"

A sharp scream suddenly echoed through the hall.

Jenny froze.

"That's Quentin!"

She hurriedly peeked out.

In the hall

Quentin was cursing furiously, her face twisted with rage.

Gary stood before her, smiling calmly.

"Young Master Gary… maybe we should gag her," one of the masked men suggested.

"No," Gary waved lazily.

"I like her like this."

As he spoke, he lifted his hand and slowly traced it along Quentin's arm.

Her clothes were already soaked through from struggling.

His fingers slid upward—

Until they reached her pale neck.

"You're sweating a lot."

He wiped a bead of sweat from her skin—

Then closed his eyes and licked it off his finger.

Quentin's lips turned pale.

"I hope you'll still be this lively… when you're lying on the ground later."

Gary smiled.

But to Quentin—

That smile was more terrifying than any demon.

The next moment, he wrapped an arm around her and slowly forced her down to the floor.

"No… no! Stay away from me!"

Her voice was hoarse now.

Then—

She felt his hand grip her thigh.

Snap.

Something inside her broke.

Memories surged back.

Torn clothes.

Men's greedy laughter.

A girl's desperate screams.

It was as if she had returned to that night.

Years ago.

"Please… don't… I'm begging you… let me go…"

Her voice trembled as tears filled her eyes.

In the crowd, Zoe clenched her fists, unable to bear the sight.

Despite their past conflicts—

She couldn't watch another girl be destroyed like this.

Why isn't Miss Fiona here yet…?

Are we all going to die here?

Around them, the other witches turned away in silence.

But Quentin's fear only excited Gary more.

He grabbed her clothes—

Bang!

A flowerpot flew through the air—

And smashed into Gary's head.

"Stop… stop it! You animal!"

Gary staggered back, clutching his head. His expression darkened instantly.

Everyone turned—

To see a girl with short, light-gold hair stepping out from behind a pillar.

"It's you."

Gary recognized her.

"You… I already notified Miss Fiona… you… you won't get away with this!"

Jenny's hands shook violently, but she forced herself forward step by step.

Gary narrowed his eyes—

Then sneered.

"Look at you. You're trembling like that, and you still want to lie? At least make it convincing."

He waved off his subordinates and walked toward her alone.

"A witch descendant… connected to the academy's head… promoted straight to a primary witch…"

He spread his arms mockingly.

"Do you know how people talk about you behind your back?"

Jenny said nothing.

"A useless parasite. A shameless leech. Someone who climbs up through connections."

Gary's voice was cold.

"And you're standing up for them?"

Jenny finally spoke.

"They're still better than you."

Gary's expression hardened.

A flash of cruelty crossed his eyes.

"You think you can be a hero?"

He leaned closer.

"Let me tell you something—there's a barrier around this place."

"Even Fiona would need time to break through."

He clenched his fist.

"And before that…"

"I'll drain every last one of you."

At his signal, the masked men stepped forward.

Jenny raised her hand toward another flowerpot—

But nothing happened.

Earlier, she had acted purely on instinct.

Now—

She couldn't replicate it.

A masked man struck her from behind.

Her body flew forward, rolling twice before landing at Gary's feet.

A shoe pressed down on her face.

"Pathetic."

Then—

He kicked her in the stomach.

Jenny was thrown back into the group of witches.

"Hey… hey…"

A faint voice suddenly reached her ears.

"Don't turn around. He'll notice."

"My name is Madison."

"Listen carefully. Whether we escape or not… depends on you."

Jenny nodded slightly, seeing Gary turn back toward Quentin.

"The evil energy in me isn't strong," Madison whispered.

"Use your ability on me."

"If you restore my body to before I was restrained… I'll break free."

Jenny hesitated.

She had never used her power that way.

Sensing her doubt, Madison continued quickly:

"Your power rewinds time."

"Just restore me to my previous state."

Jenny's eyes lit up.

"So that's how it works!"

Without hesitation, she began channeling her magic.

Outside the academy

Gideon landed silently on a rooftop.

He looked across the street—

And frowned.

"A witch formation…"

"It's blocking external perception."

He tried probing inside with holy power—

But was repelled.

Golden rings appeared in his eyes.

Three layers deep.

"The energy… it's overwhelming."

The entire academy was engulfed in dark aura.

And something inside—

Was awakening.

Gideon's expression sharpened.

Something was wrong.

He reached out to the holy artifacts he had placed earlier.

At once—

Dozens of faint lights flickered along the fence and surrounding corners.

"They're still intact."

"Good."

Without hesitation, he moved.

Holy energy wrapped around his body—

And he stepped straight through the barrier.

Back in the hall

Gary grabbed Quentin again—

But suddenly froze.

"Who's there?!"

His arm lifted against his will—

Slap!

He struck himself across the face.

"What the—?!"

He turned—

To see Jenny standing again.

And beside her—

A witch with a high ponytail.

Cold.

Beautiful.

Dangerous.

"Didn't I tell you to watch them?!" Gary shouted.

But the masked men stood motionless.

"They're not listening to you anymore," Madison said coldly.

The masked men grabbed their own heads.

Then—

With a twist—

Crack.

They collapsed.

"Useless trash," Gary muttered.

"So are you," Madison replied.

She raised her hand—

Gary's body suddenly locked.

Then—

The floor cracked as he was slammed into it repeatedly.

"Telekinesis…"

Gary wiped blood from his mouth.

"Interesting."

Madison frowned.

She tried again—

But this time—

Nothing happened.

"You've tested my patience," Gary said calmly.

"Trash like you… should die in pain."

He began chanting.

A black orb floated toward him—

And fused into his body.

In an instant—

A monstrous surge of dark energy exploded outward.

The hall filled with wailing screams.

The temperature dropped sharply.

Mist formed on the witches' lips.

"This… this isn't just a spirit…"

Madison's voice trembled.

"That's an Evil Womb," she said.

"You actually fused something like that into your body?!"

Jenny blinked.

"Evil… womb?"

"It's a construct born from concentrated evil," Madison explained quickly.

"It can nurture powerful spirits."

"And if a human fuses with it…"

"They can connect directly to a realm of evil."

"If successful…"

"They could rival gods."

"But—"

"It also opens a path for those horrors to enter our world."

Gary laughed softly.

"You know quite a bit."

His body had changed.

Dark veins spread across his skin.

His size had doubled.

Behind him floated the black orb—

Connected by fleshy tendrils.

"So this is… divine power."

"But one witch alone isn't enough to sustain it."

In the next instant—

He appeared before Madison.

She didn't even see him move.

She raised her hand—

But her magic reversed.

Flowing backward.

"How… is that possible?!"

For the first time—

She panicked.

Gary didn't answer.

He lifted off the ground.

The orb behind him extended countless tendrils.

They latched onto the witches' heads.

"Mm—!"

Madison struggled—

Then went limp.

"We will become one."

Gary spread his arms, absorbing their life force.

Suddenly—

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Several iron nails shot through the air—

And pierced the orb behind him.

The tendrils froze.

Then—

The stolen life force began reversing.

"No—WHO?!"

Gary roared.

A bottle of thirty-year holy water answered him.

Sizzle—

His forearm melted instantly.

Shock flashed in his eyes—

But he reacted quickly.

With a wave of his hand—

The holy water vanished from his flesh, as if it had never touched him.

Moments later—

His arm regenerated.

At the same time—

The tendrils decayed.

The witches collapsed, freed.

Most of them lost consciousness instantly.

The hall fell into heavy silence—

Broken only by ragged breathing.

Someone had entered the battlefield.

Madison was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath.

A small section of her hair had turned snow-white.

The other witches weren't faring much better—some had streaks of white in their hair, while others had even begun to show wrinkles on their faces.

"No… no…"

Zoe stared at her reflection in horror as half her hair turned gray. Panic filled her eyes, and she didn't even realize she had regained the ability to move.

Only Jenny seemed relatively stable.

She looked exhausted—but otherwise unharmed.

"Who are you… and why do you possess items from the Church?"

Gary's voice echoed again.

At that moment, a figure stepped out from behind a pillar.

It was Gideon.

"You're here!"

Jenny's eyes lit up instantly. Despite her fatigue, a surge of strength seemed to return to her body.

The moment Zoe recognized him, the panic in her eyes deepened.

She immediately dropped to the ground, covering her hair with her clothes.

"Why did he have to show up now?!"

Though she was internally spiraling, her body visibly relaxed.

"He's finally here…"

Madison also let out a quiet breath of relief.

But then she gave a wry smile.

"Didn't expect I'd ever be glad to see him."

Meanwhile, Gideon said nothing.

Through the power of [Missionary], he was seeing something entirely different.

Behind Gary, a spherical mass was connected to a narrow channel.

From within it, streams of dark, malevolent energy seeped outward.

The flow was weak—because the passage itself was too small—

But it was constant.

At the same time, countless black spiritual threads extended from Gary's body.

Around him, shimmering, translucent threads floated in the air.

The black threads reached toward them—

Attempting to connect.

But every time they touched—

The luminous threads immediately broke away.

And yet, the black threads persisted, trying again and again.

Gideon glanced down at himself.

He, too, had similar threads—though only a few.

But unlike Gary—

The luminous threads were drawn to him.

They rushed toward him eagerly, as if competing for connection.

"So this is… the true layer of the world?"

He recalled the description of the [Missionary] ability.

But now wasn't the time to dwell on it.

Earlier, he had used a holy nail to suppress Gary's power.

Taking advantage of the opening, Gideon quickly scattered several holy artifacts around him.

"So… you're one of the Church," Gary growled through clenched teeth.

"What, thinking of converting?" Gideon replied calmly.

"Hmph. Whoever you are… you won't stop me."

The moment his words fell—

The veins across Gary's body bulged violently.

The dark energy behind him surged faster.

Crack… crack…

A sharp breaking sound echoed.

The channel behind him—

Expanded.

Twice its original size.

"That's bad!"

Madison shouted.

"He's trying to trigger a descent of evil!"

Though Gideon hadn't heard their earlier discussion about the "evil nest,"

He could clearly feel it—

A terrifying presence was pushing its way through the opening.

Without hesitation, he began chanting scripture.

Five magic arrays materialized around the hall.

Holy energy pulsed across their surfaces, vibrating intensely.

"Human power… dares to oppose us?"

Gary spoke again.

But this time—

His voice overlapped with another.

As if two beings were speaking at once.

At the same time, the arrays began to tremble.

They looked as though they might shatter at any moment.

Gideon narrowed his eyes.

Three golden rings appeared within his pupils.

The next instant—

Gary froze.

Completely.

His body locked in place.

Even the surging energy halted.

"You… sealed the surrounding spiritual particles…"

Gary's voice trembled with disbelief.

"How could a human possibly—"

Smack! Smack!

Two flowerpots suddenly slammed into his face.

For a moment, confusion joined the shock in his eyes.

Seeing that the immobilization was holding,

Gideon gave a small nod.

Then he turned slightly.

"Now…"

"Miss Madison—"

"Why don't you explain what exactly is going on here?"