I am a former Flame Chasers

Late at night, in St. George Square, the magnificent square had completely changed its appearance. The artistic cafes that once dotted the area were now in ruins, and the magnificent white pigeons had all but disappeared.

The cobblestone road, centuries old, was crushed by tank tracks, and then blackened by flamethrowers. Pieces of limbs and chunks of meat burned, releasing intense flames, while the air was thick with the nauseating smell of charred flesh.

The battle was over, and the disaster had been confined to the square. Only stray bullets had destroyed a few surrounding blocks.

"This is really... hell on earth."

Major Joshua made a cross on his chest and looked up at the cathedral, whose roof had collapsed. Dressed in a priest's robe with a golden cross on his chest, he had a sharp face and a mustache, looking no different from any ordinary priest in the holy city.

As a believer and former abbot of a small monastery before joining the army, Joshua felt heartbroken seeing St. George's Cathedral reduced to this, but his green eyes were filled with anger.

The Holy Church had caused such a scandal. If the aftermath of the battle hadn't drawn him here in advance, who knows how many more people would have died?

The monsters were hard to kill, and the horrifying contagiousness would have turned the entire holy city into a purgatory in no time. What was even worse was that these monsters had come from the underground of the cathedral.

He glanced outside the blockade and saw some priests and nuns praying. His eyes froze for a moment as he spotted a nun with a graceful figure walking through the ruins, either searching for survivors or comforting frightened civilians.

This was a real nun. Compared to her, the others were truly blasphemous.

Joshua's eyes followed her, but his thoughts were interrupted by a report from his subordinate.

"Major, we found the monster's lair."

"Where is it?" Joshua asked, turning to his subordinate.

"There's a laboratory under St. George's Cathedral. This is the information we found inside."

Joshua took the report and quickly scanned it. His face turned pale as he dispelled his last hope.

What blasphemy!

It was indeed a human experiment. These hard-to-kill monsters had been created by the Crusaders themselves. The only good news was that, according to the list, the participants had volunteered. But could that absolve the guilt?

"Take me to see it."

"Major, should we report this to the higher-ups?" The adjutant hesitated. This was obviously something involving the Pope, and it was not something the Southern European branch could handle alone.

But Joshua's face darkened, and he almost spat out the words through gritted teeth: "I said, take me to see it!"

"Yes, sir!"

The group of soldiers quickly moved through the ruined church. The complex buildings that housed the Holy See's offices were now swarming with soldiers. Soon, they entered the underground area, where pieces of frozen meat littered the floor.

Joshua's already pale face grew even grimmer. As a high-ranking fusion warrior, code cm013, he recognized that this was no ordinary freezing ability.

The ice was as hard as steel. It hadn't melted, even after being burned by flamethrowers. This kind of freezing went beyond the normal physical concept.

It was freezing, but even Andevich's "Ice Breaking Fist" couldn't do this. Could it be...

A terrible thought struck him. Not long ago, the Southern European branch detected a strong surge of Honkai energy. When they rushed to support, the battle was already over. The follow-up investigation had been entirely handled by the Intelligence Department, and no one knew who was responsible for the battle.

Joshua had been quietly investigating, feeling that something was amiss. Now, seeing these ice sculptures firsthand, he understood everything.

"Major, this is the surveillance data we recovered. Please take a look." The adjutant handed over a laptop, concealing it from the other soldiers.

Joshua looked at the screen, and his eyes froze. The footage showed ice mist filling the screen, and an elegant gentleman appeared. He walked into a laboratory, and then the glass jar containing the monster shattered. Finally, the thick ice mist froze the monitor.

The Herrscher of Ice. The data indicated that no method could wake up these monsters... until the Herrscher activated them instantly?

Joshua took a deep breath, his fists trembling. Disappointment and rage flickered in his eyes.

The Holy Church... it turned out to be those damned faith sects!

**...

Squeak—

The wooden door creaked open, and Ryan, full of energy, walked into the room. He looked up and saw Kalpas sitting on the sofa with a scowl, a golden sword in hand. His resentment was almost palpable.

"Uh, what's wrong with you?"

"Get lost! You still have the nerve to ask!" Kalpas shot up from the sofa, spitting on Ryan's face. "First, you throw a stupid pig at me, making it so I can't join the fun outside. Tell me, did you do this on purpose?!"

Kalpas was furious, so much so that he wanted to throw Ryan into the wall. But then he saw Ryan's innocent expression.

"This is a coincidence. I didn't know about these things when I left, but I ran into them by bad luck," Ryan said, genuinely innocent. The original plan had been to accompany Aponia for a short outing and return before dinner, but secretly, he was a bit pleased with the situation.

Brother Kalpas, you're very hard-mouthed. You've been suppressing your fighting spirit and endured all day. Don't tell me you have no intention of protecting Pardofelis?

"Do you think I'll believe that?" Kalpas sneered.

"Yes, otherwise, look into my pure eyes and tell me there's nothing hidden," Ryan said, maintaining his innocent expression.

"Get lost!"

Kalpas was too lazy to talk further. He turned around, slammed the door behind him, and the impact shook the walls.

Ryan spread his hands, thinking, I was right. If he really had no feelings, who could control this heroic figure? He couldn't speak it out loud, but he had to control the timing.

He turned and saw Pardofelis sitting in the corner of the sofa, pouting with a look of resentment.

"Master, should you apologize to me?"

"Don't even think about it. You know Kalpas looks fierce, but he won't hurt you. You're still scared? You should be exercising more." Ryan said with a sigh. He had noticed it as soon as he entered.

Why keep Pardofelis in the living room? It was because he was worried she might wander off, and if there was danger, he could take her away quickly.

Pardofelis was talented and intelligent. They'd been together for a long time, so Ryan knew Kalpas was fierce in words, but at heart, he was a good person.

"But Brother Kalpas is really fierce. He almost scolded me to death. Besides, I'm not a stupid pig. At the very least, I'm a stupid cat..."

"Alright, Kalpas never talks to people he doesn't care about. He just shoots them in the head. He's not a bad person." Ryan smiled, already picturing how upset Pardofelis must have been.

That scene... well, let's call it a driving school instructor in Zaun.

"We know, just a bit of resentment. By the way, Brother Kalpas even saved dinner for you. It's on the table."

Ryan turned to see food on the table. Just as he was about to joke, the bedroom door cracked open.

A violent, terrifying look immediately swept over, making both of them shut up. Only the ticking of the clock in the living room could be heard.

"Uh, where did Aponia go?" Ryan asked, laughing awkwardly. He knew Kalpas wasn't a fan of gentleness or thoughtfulness.

"Sister Nia went out to help. I heard she's going to save someone." Pardofelis yawned, hugging her knees and munching on potato chips.

"That's more like her. By the way, why didn't you go?"

"Because I'm too lazy to move. It hurts. I'm already on the wanted list. It'll be troublesome if I get recognized."

That's more like it.

Ryan loosened his grip on Pardofelis's cheek, accepting her explanation. He wasn't overly concerned about Aponia's safety. Unless she encountered a high-level fusion warrior or someone capable of instant kill, all she needed to do was speak, and the enemy would lose the intent to kill her.

But Pardofelis was a bit spoiled.

Ryan glanced at the lazy girl. He thought about how Pardofelis didn't really need to do anything—she just stayed at home and provided a luck bonus.

Today was full of lucky coincidences. Looking back, the words "ghostly" kept ringing in his mind. How did she just happen to go out and stumble upon a conspiracy?

"You two metaphysical duos are really useful."

"What are you talking about, Master?"

"Nothing. I'm going to make a phone call on the balcony and head to bed early."

"If you don't eat dinner, Brother Kalpas might get angry."

Ryan froze, realizing that Kalpas's kindness wasn't so easy to accept. He patted Pardofelis's head.

"Then go heat it up for your Master, and don't refuse, or Kalpas will teach you tomorrow."

Pardofelis shrank back, not wanting to experience another hellish day. She quickly put on her slippers and went to the kitchen to heat up the meal.

This girl was quite the mascot.

Ryan smirked and grew serious as the sound of the stove igniting filled the air. Today's coincidence carried far more significance.

Even if the Southern European branch tried to suppress it, it wouldn't be so easy. All the information was in his hands.

He took out the USB drive, tossing it up and down, his eyes narrowing with sharp intent. The power of the Seventh Lawrence touched the interests of most parliamentarians, and this coincidence had given Ryan a trump card.

Once I send out this message, at least one of the big players in the Faith Faction will be taken down. With the Pope's status in the Cross Church, he's far from a small minion.

You have few options now. Either you're slowly destroyed by me, or you fight back. Since the Herrscher is uncontrollable, the only means for you to fight back is the Fire Moth.

I want to see how deep your infiltration in the Fire Moth really goes.

Dinglingling—

The phone rang. Ryan glanced at it and picked it up, hearing Mobius's voice on the other end. The background noise was chaotic, with the sound of engines in the distance.

"Hey, if I don't call you, you'll pretend to be dead, right?" Mobius sounded a little irritable, which made Ryan glance at Pardofelis.

Thanks to her, now there was a solid excuse.

"You know what I'm doing. The surprise has been sent. How's the response?"

Mobius, sitting on the transport plane, glanced sideways and flashed an enigmatic smile.

"It's okay, they're anxious."