The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 269: Sacred Body (2)

The Sacred body (Holy Sanctum) of the saint is often symbolized by the meaning of ‘white bread and grape wine.’

Therefore, the priests of the Rune Religion would always have a meal of white bread and grape wine every weekend. A long time ago, a custom originated from the myth that Prophet Rune made white bread from his own flesh and grape wine from his blood, sharing it with the followers. Those who imitated or cunningly twisted the teachings of the Rune generally shared a similar culture. This was evident in various religions such as the rapidly growing ‘New World Religion,’ Om Religion,’ and ‘Manson Religion,’ scattered throughout the empire. They would adopt the ancient teachings of Rune almost as they were, inserting their unique interpretations in the gaps, ultimately creating entirely new religions.

Leaders of these large heretical and cult-like religions, including ‘Elmani,’ ‘Om,’ and ‘Charles,’ gathered in one place.

It was in front of a temple of the New Testament faction temple, on the outskirts of the imperial city.

Numerous people gathered there, engaging in conversations.

“Oh, long time no see, priest. Your face has improved a lot, hasn’t it?”

“Well, you know. Recently, a merchant guild donated my entire fortune, so my living conditions have improved.”

“Ah, indeed. Your skills are truly exceptional. How did you manage to get a donation?”

“It’s nothing special. The daughter of the guild leader has been sick for a few years, and I gently persuaded her by offering to treat her. It’s just a matter of a few doses of narcotic painkillers for her pain.”

“Hahaha, impressive. I keep worrying that my facial fat is disappearing, making me look too gaunt.”

“Is it because you recently took a young concubine?”

“Hahaha, that’s right. She originally had a husband, but I gently persuaded her with our teachings and made her fall for me.”

“Well done. Frankly, to be a true believer, one must dedicate not only their entire fortune but also their body and soul, don’t you agree?”

“Absolutely. Otherwise, salvation is out of reach.”

Although the heretics and cult priests had different principles and doctrines, they shared a common point – extracting the spine of the weary and exhausted to inflate their own lives.

At that moment, the crowd split, and three figures walked out from different directions. Elmani, Om, and Charles.

Elmani, though aged, still emitted a greedy gleam from his eyes as he spoke, “By the way, let me get straight to the point. Receiving an invitation to a feast from the New Testament Faction of Quovadis means they finally intend to officially recognize our ‘New World Religion’ as a legitimate Religion, doesn’t it?”

The obese man, Om, who almost looked like a ball, added, “Yes. The act of consuming the Holy Sacrament involves sharing the blood and flesh of the saint. Inviting us here indicates their desire to form an official alliance with our Religion.”

Charles, with a lanky frame and sharp eyes, nodded in agreement, “Indeed. Gathering secretly like this today is also to restrain the Old Testament Faction! They found out that we’ve been secretly supporting the Old Testament Faction for a long time, and now they also want to grab a piece of the pie.”

The leaders of the gathered heretics and cults, each addressed as a pope, had recently received discreetly transmitted invitations to a feast in Quovadis under the name of the New testament Faction. Each had their reasons for gathering at this place.

Having already established a strong alliance with the Old Testament Faction, the leaders now planned to extend their influence to the New Testament Faction.

“Currently, the intense rivalry between the Old and New testament Factions within Quovadis presents us with an opportunity. If we provide financial support to both sides, regardless of who wins, we can ensure our survival.”

“Exactly. A clever rabbit digs multiple burrows. Whether one side prevails or they perpetually remain in conflict, as long as we enjoy the indirect benefits, it works for us. Perhaps an eternal rivalry without a clear winner would be more advantageous for us.”

“To achieve that, our gathering here today must remain a well-guarded secret from the outside world. We mustn’t let the Old Testament Faction hear about it. Have you all kept the secret well?”

Influential heretics and cults from various parts of the empire had gathered, each led by trustworthy high-ranking officials.

“How fortunate it is that the New Testament Faction has finally come to its senses and reached out to us.”

“They have their reasons too. Without our financial support, they can never defeat the Old Testament Faction.”

“Hahaha, those New testament Faction folks. Always pretending to be noble and clean, but not when they’re alone.”

Taking advantage of the whispers, they discreetly entered the temple in haste—or at least, attempted to.

Crash!

If only the unexpected sound of a distant explosion hadn’t occurred.

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

Debris from collapsed buildings and trees rained down, covering carriages and people.

Screams erupted from all directions.

“What, what’s happening?”

The heretics and cult leaders encircled themselves, bewildered as they observed the wreckage of soil and debris.

Then, amid the dusty haze, the sound of footsteps became audible.

Tap-tap-tap.

Black tights, heels exceeding 30 centimeters.

Ms. Ouroboros.

She had suddenly appeared at the scene!

“Hoho, what’s this? Why is there so much trash gathered here?”

Surveying the priests, she shrugged her shoulders.

“Heard there was Night Hound around. Came to check it out. Just a bunch of stinking trash, though.”

Enraged, the priests shouted back.

“You arrogant criminal! Who do you think you are? Kill her!”

Soon, soldiers armed with spears and shields rushed towards Ms. Ouroboros.

However.

Slish- Slick-

The whip, coiling like a snake, sliced through the soldiers’ arms, legs, and torsos, chopping them up as if carving pumpkins.

A terrifying aura left trails of violet and black, floating in the air.

Zap! Thud! Crash!

With each strike of the whip, adorned with thorns like a rosebush, hitting the solid rock floor, a faint earthquake occurred.

As heavily armored knights neared the brink of annihilation, the faces of the heretics and cult leaders turned pale with terror.

“This, this can’t be! What kind of monster is she!?”

“Huff! What are the Imperial Guards doing?”

“Save me! I’m someone who shouldn’t die in a place like this!”

Elmani, Om, and Charles tried to escape in panic, but it was impossible. Miss Ouroboros had already gracefully descended in front of them.

With a tone full of amusement, she asked, “Who are you guys? The popes?”

The three of them nodded vigorously.

“I am the pope of the New World Religion! Do you think you can escape divine punishment by doing this to me?”

“I am the leader of the Om Religion. If something happens to me, there are tens of thousands of devoted followers who will grieve.”

“I am the god of the Manson Religion. Anyone who tries to harm me will surely suffer.”

Elmani, Om, and Charles spoke with unwavering determination.

Then…

Zap! Crack! Boom!

Miss Ouroboros lashed her whip into the air.

Suddenly, several uprooted trees, previously lying flat, transformed into shapes with numerous branches, forming a tree-like structure.

“…?”

Elmani, Om, and Charles looked at each other in confusion.

Then, Miss Ouroboros spoke with a teasing laugh.

“If you’re popes or gods, show me the evidence. Only then will I spare your lives.”

Simultaneously…

Swish-

Miss Ouroboros’ whip coiled around Charles, who was standing at the forefront.

“Huh?”

Charles, standing dumbfounded, was instantly pulled towards the transformed tree.

Soon after…

Thump, thump, thump, thump!

Miss Ouroboros’ thrown dagger from her hip pierced through both shoulders and thighs of Charles, pinning him to the tree.

“AHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Charles screamed in agony, but his body was already firmly impaled on the tree.

Miss Ouroboros smiled and said, “Now, I’ll adorn you with a crown of thorns.”

The whip, covered in venomous thorns, fiercely whipped around Charles’ head, creating a scene of extreme suffering.

Charles, spewing blood from all over his body, thrashed violently before collapsing. He had succumbed to shock due to excessive bleeding.

Beside him, Elmani and Om were curled up, whimpering and wetting themselves.

Miss Ouroboros cheerfully opened her mouth, “Well~ Participant number 1, resurrection~ unsuccessful! Now, it’s the turn of participant number 2.”

Miss Ouroboros walked towards the trembling Om.

And then…

Thud! Thunk!

Her high heel struck his toes, and he was shattered into pieces.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

Om writhed, but Miss Ouroboros didn’t stop her relentless assault.

Starting from the toes and moving up to the instep, ankle, calf, knee, and thigh…

Soon, Om’s lower body became nothing more than a completely shattered rag.

Miss Ouroboros smiled and said, “You challenge is: ‘Fix the Broken Tailbone’! Come on, get up on both legs. Then I’ll spare your life.”

However, Om couldn’t get up.

He could only plead for his life, revealing perhaps the first truth in his life, “P-please spare me! I-I’m not a god! Not even a priest! Just a heretic! No, I’m a full-fledged cultist, a cultist!”

“Th-this can’t be…”

“How could our savior show such a sight to a mere thug…”

“This, this is a scam! There’s no divine power, he’s just a human without any sacred aura!”

Priests and followers who had obediently followed the authority of their leaders were now screaming in madness.

Meanwhile, the leader of the largest cult, Elmani, glared at Miss Ouroboros with a stern expression.

“I-I’m not afraid of you! I will never submit! Because I am a god reborn in this world!”

“Oh really?”

Miss Ouroboros covered her mouth and laughed.

Soon after, she looked at Elmani with curiosity and asked, “If you’re truly a god, touching holy water shouldn’t affect you, right?”

“What? Of course, it shou…”

But Elmani couldn’t finish his sentence.

Suddenly, she took out a vial from her pocket and sprayed the liquid it contained onto Elmani’s face.

“There. Holy water.”

Miss Ouroboros smiled. Simultaneously, terrifying sounds emanated from Elmani’s face.

Washishishishi…

Flesh melted, and blisters boiled. The horrific smell of burning flesh started to sting the noses.

“AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHh!”

Elmani covered his face with both hands, writhing in agony. However, the holy water not only melted his flesh and bore countless holes in his bones but also incinerated everything inside.

“Oh dear? Did I accidentally pour hydrochloric acid instead of holy water?”

Miss Ouroboros squinted, and grinned slyly.

The faces of the other cult leaders turned pale as they witnessed Elmani, dying in excruciating pain.

“I-I’m not the reincarnation of Rune!”

“Save me! I just wanted people to admire me…”

“Uwaaah! I’m just a married man who created a religion to have affairs with married women!”

“Uheuk! I just made it for business! To earn some money!”

The shocking confessions of the cult leaders continued. And the shock of the followers mirrored it.

Crash! Bang! Thud!

Throughout, the sound of shattered beliefs echoed loudly, causing a collapse of faith.

* * *

“Um… Things seem to be going a bit differently than planned, huh?”

On the roof of the New Testament Faction’s temple, Vikir, in his Night Hunter mode, stood alongside Dolores, observing the gruesome scene below.

Vikir’s original plan was to gather the leaders of the heretics and cults in one place and exterminate them. In fact, it was originally Sinclaire’s plan. In the university league’s second round, Sinclaire had received a mission:

Quovadis Clan / Difficulty [★★★☆]

The Empire is suffering from the increasing influence of heretics and cults. At this moment, from the perspective of the Inquisition’s Quovadis, suggest a way to eliminate heretics and elevate the status of the Rune Religion.

Back then, Sinclaire proposed a somewhat radical solution: gather all heretics and cultists in one place and burn them alive. Vikir, with his memories from his past life, was already aware of this plan Sinclaire would later reveal to Dolores.

“…Heretics and cultists are like weeds; you can’t catch them all unless you pull out the roots. But you can’t handle the scattered seedlings everywhere. So, the only solution is to gather them in one place and set them ablaze.”

Of course, this excluded indigenous beliefs, and traditional religions of local people, which wouldn’t cause harm to the surroundings. Only the scum exploiting the tired hearts of the poor and stealing wealth under the guise of faith would be targeted—those who committed heinous acts against children, spouses, and others.

Vikir had sent baby madam to steal the handwriting of the New Testament Faction’s Cardinal, Martin Luther. By replicating the characters in the documents using a special ink that would solidify when sprayed and then peeling it off, they could steal not only the content but also Luther’s handwriting.

Meanwhile, Dolores, disturbed by the plan, expressed her concern. “Isn’t that too extreme?”

However, this was the plan the “Steel Maiden” Dolores would execute in about ten years. So, Vikir responded without much enthusiasm, “Look at what the dying heretics are spewing out.”

Upon hearing this, Dolores widened her eyes.

Splat!

The color of the blood oozing out from the dying cultists was a distinctive dark black.

“Exactly. Those high-ranking officials and fervent followers were all in a contract with demons. Whether they knew it or not.”

‘Of course. Those involved with the sixth corpse were undoubtedly here.’

Vikir thought to himself while watching the dying individuals. To be honest, he wasn’t entirely sure if Miss Ouroboros would show up here.

*50-50. It was a 50% chance.*

This confirmed a few things:

1. Ouroboros had a desire to meet the Night Hound.

2. Ouroboros had a hostile relationship with the Demon Followers (for an unknown reason).

So far, wherever the Night Hound appeared, Miss Ouroboros inevitably followed.

Therefore, Vikir had planned to imitate Miss Ouroboros this time.

‘Disguising as a woman and performing some whip tricks shouldn’t be too difficult.’

However, things escalated faster because Miss Ouroboros had actually arrived.

Just then,

“It’s here! I can hear screams!”

“All troops, charge!”

“This time, we’ll catch her!”

The sound of the Imperial Guards, mobilized in response to a report, approaching could be heard.

“Ho ho ho, did someone try to use me for something? I received a tip that the Night Hound would appeared, but I wasted my efforts for nothing.”

Miss Ouroboros tilted her head as if amused.

“Night Hound-Nim… Are you trying to use me like this? Ho ho ho, this sly and charming person seems to be getting better. I like it more and more.”

Suddenly, Miss Ouroboros propelled herself into the air and disappeared, leaving behind only dense dust and darkness, swallowing everything.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Vikir swiftly entered the scene and brought in a captive—a person who seemed to be holding his breath.

It was Om, the leader of the Om Religion.

“Ugh…”

He, whose lower body had been horrifically mutilated by Miss Ouroboros, was in a state of semi-consciousness. Given his compromised mental state, Vikir had to employ Decarabia’s abilities.

Amid the crimson glow emanating from the outer eyes of the inverted pentagram, the nearly lifeless man, driven to the brink of death, spilled out everything he knew.

“Ledgers… beneath the destroyed carriage’s floor… concealed in triple layers… funding sources… top-secret documents….”

Just before Miss Ouroboros left and the Imperial Guards arrived, Vikir urgently took action.

“Hurry with the ledgers!”

Responding to Vikir’s gesture, Dolores, who was already searching beneath the carriage, urgently shouted, “Here! I found it, under the floor!”

Holding the ledgers, Vikir and Dolores leaped into the dust-filled air.

“Now, with the tail in hand, all that’s left is the torso—the real puppeteer.”

Carrying Dolores, Vikir soared through the air on the thread of the puppet master. While doing so, he quickly examined the ledgers.

The answer Vikir had been searching for.

Even a brief perusal of the ledgers revealed a dominating presence among the numerous trade partners—a name overwhelmingly weighted in significance. The financial lifeline of the Old Testament faction, serving as a money laundering network for heretics and cults.

And currently, it was the hiding place of the sixth corpse.

This was the revelation he sought, easily discernible within a few seconds of skimming through the ledgers.