"It seems like we got ourselves a filthy person, Ruby," Priestess Mine said as she turned back to Kaden.
"Your system as a holy knight says you're a Controller user. Meaning, these priestesses who died here... they killed themselves under your manipulation."
"Head Priestess... w-what should we do?" Ruby asked, her voice trembling.
"Hmm... how about you? What will you do?" Mine replied calmly.
"Umm... what are you talking about?" Ruby asked, confused.
"This holy knight here — we can't kill him. The king would be furious if one of his strongest men was slain by us," Mine continued. "I suggest you run now, before the entire church breaks down. The pope and bishops hold the same authority as the king. With them, we might gain permission to eliminate him. But for now, all we can do... is pray we don't fall into his grasp."
With that, Head Priestess Mine vanished.
Kaden slowly turned his attention to Ruby, a wicked grin stretching across his blood-stained face.
Ruby trembled as Kaden stuck out his tongue, saliva dripping from his mouth.
"Huh? You look young... That face, yeah. Earlier I didn't notice it," Kaden muttered.
"Please, God, help me," Ruby whispered.
Kaden's eyes lit up with lust.
"Your body is fresh... you're a virgin, aren't you? A pure priestess. Smooth, long orange hair... blue eyes... a cute little face. Makes it even better," he said, crawling toward her.
"Control this, and make her follow my comma—" But before he could finish his chant—
Ruby slammed the door and locked it from the outside, immediately sprinting away.
"Tsk. She has survival instincts... but that won't last long," Kaden mumbled as he approached the door.
He gripped the handle. The lock clicked open.
"Controlling doors to open isn't hard for me," he said flatly.
Three sisters nearby saw him step into the hallway—blood-soaked and smiling. Before they could scream, Kaden whispered a spell.
"Control these women... make them obey me."
Their eyes went pale and lifeless. Their bodies stiffened.
"Find that girl... what was her name? Yeah. Ruby. Find her."
The three priestesses nodded silently and darted away, eyes glowing white.
"It's been a long time since I've relieved my lust properly... Might as well do it with a beautiful virgin maiden," Kaden muttered.
Meanwhile, Ruby burst into the chapel. Her eyes darted around—every sister she passed now had glowing white eyes. She looked away and ran faster, heading for the exit.
"Kaden's ability... he can control anyone he makes eye contact with. And worse—those he controls can also spread that control to others. He's a one-man apocalypse. The only saving grace... he can't control people stronger than him," Ruby thought, panic rising in her chest.
She spotted the exit door and bolted outside.
Behind her, more sisters emerged—walking like puppets, eyes glowing. Then the townspeople saw Ruby fleeing from the church. But as soon as they looked at the priestesses—
They too fell under control.
Kaden finally stepped out of the church, smirking as his new thralls followed.
"What a bunch of idiots," he said with a grin. "Now, where is that young, beautiful maiden... heheheh..."
Ruby saw the adventurers' tavern in the distance. Her eyes watered, her expression frozen in raw terror.
Inside the tavern, Xiandre sat in a shadowed corner, taking up the seat that once belonged to Tanga. He exhaled deeply, already feeling the adventurers' stares pierce through his armor.
"It's that Black Knight again," someone whispered.
"Who the heck is he?"
"Who are they?"
"He's the one Faye protected."
"Why would Faye sacrifice her life for him?"
"Seriously, does anyone know who that knight is?"
Xiandre turned to his side.
Velmora was busy devouring a massive steak, her cheeks slightly red. Beside her, Amelia had passed out on the table, drooling with a sleepy grin on her face.
"Uwaaa... I'm so sleepy... I could sleep for an eternity," she mumbled in her sleep.
On Xiandre's other side, Alice wore a mask, sipping quietly from a soup bowl through a slit, her face hidden. Near her sat Fillia and Millie, both also masked, whispering between themselves.
"Of course all these adventurers are staring at me," Xiandre muttered in his thoughts. "Who the hell walks into a tavern with five girls at their table? And not just that—Velmora looks like a goddess with her face, chest, and thighs. Fillia too well I mean She is, even if her face is hidden. Amelia's just plain cute, and though Millie and Alice aren't standing out as much... they still draw eyes."
"Seriously, these girls..." he sighed under his breath.
"You know, Xiandre..." Velmora said suddenly.
"Yeah?"
"What do you plan to do after your revenge?"
"Well... who knows. Only the future can tell."
Suddenly, the tavern doors burst open. Everyone turned as Ruby stumbled in, gasping for breath, eyes wide with horror.
"Priestess Ruby?" called the counter girl—Faye's friend. "Is everything alright?"
"Everyone—please listen! A Holy Knight resting at the church has gone berserk! He has a power... he can control others! The entire church is under his control—please, help!"
The tavern erupted.
"For Priestess Ruby and the Church!" the adventurers cried, grabbing their weapons and rushing outside in droves.
Ruby collapsed to her knees, sighing in relief.
The counter girl quickly approached and guided her to a seat as the rest of the tavern girls and the Tavern Master gathered around.
"Everyone ran out to help... that's a relief," Ruby muttered.
"Are you okay, Priestess Ruby?" the counter girl asked.
"I'm... good now, thank you."
But Ruby's mind was still broken. She had just watched her four adoptive priestess-sisters get slaughtered—shattered, manipulated, and mutilated, they were the only one closest to her to be her family.
She bit back her tears and wiped her face.
"Looks like the adventurers got hyped by your shouting," the Tavern Master said.
"Yeah... I'm glad they did."
"Of course they did. You're everyone's favorite... priestess." His voice dipped low with sorrow.
Ruby noticed and sighed. "Sorry for your loss... Faye was really kind. A good person."
The Tavern Master gave a silent nod.
Ruby's eyes drifted across the tavern—one group hadn't moved.
The Tavern Master noticed too. He approached them.
"Hey, you there. Aren't you going with the others?"
Xiandre stood, the girls rising with him—except Amelia, who remained dozing.
"I'm not an adventurer," he replied.
"You're not? But you look like a knight. A Black Knight, to be exact."
Ruby's gaze locked on him.
A weight dropped into her chest.
"Is this knight... possibly the Smiling Reaper?" she whispered to herself.
The counter girls turned.
"What was that?" one asked.
"N-Nothing," Ruby quickly replied.
"I'm heading out," Xiandre said. "Curious to see what this is about."
He turned toward the exit. Velmora shook Amelia awake.
"Let's go, Amelia."
Amelia groggily wiped her face, stood, and followed them out, smirking briefly at Ruby before exiting.
Ruby's hands clenched. Her mind reeled.
"The Smiling Reaper... the rumors said he wore black armor, a mantle over his head, a cape on his back... and that masked blonde girl—she looked familiar. Wait—she looked exactly like Goddess Fillia. And that other girl with pink hair... could that be Princess Millie?"
She began to tremble.
"No way... that was really the Smiling Reaper. And that girl who smirked at me—she knows I figured it out. No... no, are they going to kill me next? I got too close. Too close..."
Her heart pounded, her eyes wide in shock.
"They killed the strongest priest... destroyed Millie's castle... defeated Goddess Fillia... even killed all the Holy Knights that were there..."
"What the hell is happening...?"
"I can't take this—everything is happening just like it was written in the Grimoire of the Future..."
She stood abruptly, drawing everyone's eyes in the tavern.
She sprinted outside, heart racing.
And then—she saw them.
The Smiling Reaper stood tall in the middle of the street, surrounded by masked companions. In front of them were the adventurers and citizens—all now under Kaden's control.
Guards rushed in from the castle gates, shouting alerts.
Ruby pulled her Grimoire from her dimensional storage. Flipping frantically through the pages, she found it.
"A catastrophe will occur on an unknown day. The Hell's Gate will open. A supposed villain will rise and fight an apocalypse... and then he will face the ruler, before the great war begins," she read aloud, her voice shaking.
Amelia raised her hands. With a subtle twitch of her fingers, bones sprouted from the ground—sharp and jagged—piercing through the bodies of the controlled adventurers. She avoided their vital organs, ensuring the bones only pinned them in place.
"Should I kill them?" Amelia asked softly, her voice calm as ever, directed toward Xiandre.
Goddess Fillia stepped forward, lifting her hand. A giant portal opened in the sky above. Within it shimmered a concentrated beam of light, swirling with divine energy. It hadn't fired yet—but the pressure it exuded was suffocating.
Xiandre turned his gaze toward Ruby, who stood behind them, frozen in fear.
"Priestess..." Xiandre began, his voice low but unwavering. "These adventurers... they can't return to their former selves. Once they've been struck by a Holy Knight's control magic, their entire body becomes enslaved—mind and soul. They're puppets now."
Ruby's eyes widened in horror. The weight of his words hit her like a hammer.
"W-What are you talking about... Who are you?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Xiandre didn't answer directly.
"You already know," he said, turning slightly toward Amelia.
"She does," Amelia replied, smiling faintly. "The way she looked at us earlier said everything."
More adventurers poured into the area. Some were unaffected—resisting Kaden's control with sheer strength or strong will. But they were quickly overwhelmed. The number of controlled bodies vastly outnumbered the free.
Ruby's fists clenched. Her eyes locked on Xiandre.
"You're... the Smiling Reaper, aren't you..." she whispered. Her voice was soft—filled with fear, disbelief, and a spark of fury.