Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 882 - 819: Dedication

"Lady Karen, will you come back?" The young nun hugged her waist, and not long before, His Holiness Pope Atrax had announced the upcoming [Divine Advent] to all clerics, which indeed was uplifting news in the current situation, but her peers who had spent these days with Karen felt some anxiety, despite having had many such comforting exchanges through hugs.

Karen always smiled, gently patting the back of the young nun with her soft palms. Having become an angel, the Holy Light had removed the calluses left by training on her hands, which wasn’t a bad thing; her charm had also increased due to the Holy Light, making her much more similar to Aryan in his gentle aspect. This sisterly tenderness easily soothed the naïve child.

"I will not leave, [Divine Advent] simply makes me a better version of myself, a stronger, more excellent, more mature angel." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

[The light of all priests is used to place a Halo upon the selected fifth Angel, elevating her to the golden stage of her life.]

"Similar to being ripened prematurely, Karen, you will become your future self in ten years during the Divine Advent, the complete form of Angel Saint Karen · Pembai. You will wield the Sword of Light, carving out a ray of light in this darkness." Karen still remembered the expression on Pope Atrax’s face when he said these words, his speech painted a scene of hope, yet his eyes seemed to weep, with sorrow etching new wrinkles on his face. Perhaps true saints are all depicted as compassionate towards the world, Karen thought.

"I am willing to undergo the [Divine Advent] ceremony, to become a more mature version of myself, Your Holiness, I see no flaw that warrants your expression. I am prepared to sacrifice my self for the Holy Light, becoming my future self in ten years. In my view, this price is rather a blessing."

"This is exactly what I am ashamed of, letting a young girl who does not understand the meaning of sacrifice bear the cost. What you will lose is a period only through experiencing it would you understand its preciousness, the most naïve and wonderful." Atrax stopped short.

"But a little girl cannot help us, right? It has to be a ’big’ girl," Karen said.

"In my eyes, you will always be a cute little girl. The Angel of Light is truly ****." After saying this, His Holiness turned and faced the sky to confess his sin, murmuring a few Amens.

"Karen." That gentle voice called her, Karen left the surrounding cluster of nuns, looked up at His Holiness Pope Atrax standing on the platform, who had changed into his most magnificent crown and robe, surrounded by bishops and priests, looking like a shimmering deity. Priests holding long-handled candles stood around the ceremony, light gathering in this church, and for a moment, even the noise outside vanished.

They closed their eyes in prayer, they knelt in devotion, they sang songs, turning themselves into a bundle of candlelight.

In this blur of light, Karen Pembai stepped onto the stairs of light. All the points of light were saying farewell to her, she walked up to the Pope, kneeling under the care of the priests, like an honored knight receiving the light’s accolade. She had not achieved glory yet; she would henceforth fight for the glory prepaid, transcending the mortal realm, in the visage of an angel.

The ceremony was still ongoing, the light converging on her body.

The [Divine Advent] ceremony was interrupted, the kicked-open cathedral doors introduced unwelcome guests, the sweeping dark winds ignored the priests’ screams, blowing out the candles, and darkness eerily taunted inside the great cathedral.

"Look what I’ve found, did I interrupt you?" Algernon asked knowingly.

"You disrupted the angel’s advent ceremony, Lord Algernon!" a priest said displeased.

Inquisitor Knights fluttered their black wings, floating to the center of the venue, they landed, and their formidable bodies pushed kneeling Karen aside, confronting Pope Atrax directly, handing a bundle to Karen. Karen caught the bundle instinctively, spotting a pair of blinking blue eyes from the wriggling bundle.

"Hello, little one."

"Lucy is not that small, and you’re not that big either."

Algernon impatiently drew his scabbard, tapped Lucy’s little butt with it and urged her to the side.

"It’s time for adults to talk now, little angel, take her to play aside."

"But..."

"There are no buts, little Angel!" Algernon glared at her, Karen Pembai was brought back to the Primordial Church by the Inquisitor Legion, this little angel who was rescued from the Loshutar vampire relics had been living with the Inquisitor Legion ever since, forming a guardian-ward like relationship under the stern attitude of the Inquisitor Knights.

Under the support of her strange emotions, Karen chose to confront Algernon in the same way she deals with her own father—defiant, yet holding it in.

The girls fell silent, and only then did Algernon turn his gaze towards the elderly man in front. The old man’s expression was complex, but much kinder compared to the annoyed looks of the surrounding clerics. As for His Holiness the Pope, who regularly inflicted corporal punishment on the Inquisitor Legion for recopying scriptures and cleaning the church, Algernon’s attitude was far from friendly.

"My troops and I delve into the lightless darkness, battling twisted monsters and fallen believers, snatching such little ones from despair," Algernon pointed at Lucy, "I demand my troops to fully protect these priests because they are utterly helpless and useless on the battlefield. The priests live in bright, beautiful buildings, big houses, and the only decision you think about in such environments——is to send a somewhat older little girl to become a sacrifice for the Holy Light. You should all be glad that hell isn’t constructed based on my will, otherwise I would definitely reserve a bed for you bunch of priests."

Algernon’s words were quite blunt, he scorned their behavior of hiding behind Karen, even trying to send her to the battlefield. Such an insult was unacceptable to any male with normal dignity, and the priests, faces flushed, argued vehemently.

"We have sought consent from Miss Karen!"

"She is still a child!" Algernon’s roar echoed through the entire church, "I raise the Sword of Light to behead them, yet there are always those who like to spout self-righteous nonsense to me. Since when can children make decisions for themselves? We are not dead yet, you disgusting fellow."

Pope Atrax stepped between the priests and Algernon, he bent down slightly and nodded to Algernon.

"We are grateful for the contributions of the Inquisitor Legion, Algernon. But humanity’s decline is imminent, and now it’s a matter of life and death. Holy Light is speaking unrest, and in the face of fate, each one of us is set in tragic equality. We need power, the power to preserve hope, to spread the embers. Karen is the only one who can do that, the only one who can."

"She is an Angel, the Chosen One—this is an indisputable fact. She can withstand the Divine Advent..."

Karen noticed Algernon’s silence, she saw this as an opportunity to assert herself as a mature woman.

"Yes, Lord Algernon, I..."

"Shut up!"

"Hmm!"

Algernon opened his eyes, his gaze firm as he looked towards the Pope.

"Divine Advent, isn’t it just a ritual focused on channeling the collective Holy Light into one person? Essentially, it’s a ceremony about power.

"Then rather, entrust that power to me."

"Let me, not the little angel..."

"Control the power of the Angels."

"I am the most outstanding Paladin currently alive, I am the right choice."