Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
But things like this were not deal-breaking. Abel had already found a way to obtain more preacher guides, so there was no way he would give up.
Still, this was only an experiment. He was not planning to kill another preacher through a recognized preacher.
Instead, he shifted his focus on finding a powerful follower with special assassin abilities specialized for the job.
Becoming a professional assassin was not an option for civilians who grew up in the Holy Kingdom, and the assassins taken as prisoners from other places would be brainwashed and cultivated into the Holy Kingdom’s system.
They would normally get sent to a remote area with begin farming work until they were fully domesticated.
The outstanding ones would be able to live a better life and get put into different cities.
Poor-performing ones, on the other hand, would not be as lucky. They would continue to undergo brainwashing, lose their sense of identity, and become machines for prayers with barely enough food.
Normally, they would die by work overload in 10 years or so.
Abel’s druid soul found an assassin in a remote land named Apo. He was a professional back in the days but ran into the Holy Kingdom during an invasion.
Even with a soul and body stronger than normal people, he was hopelessly captured under the aura of the Holy Knights.
He became a follower and a farmer after being brainwashed. Just like that, he ended up on a deserted land and started farming.
However, he didn’t want to live like this, even as a follower. But there was no way for him to resist.
He was taking a break at noon, about to begin his daily prayer. He knew nothing about the gods, so his prayers were all done systematically after the brainwashing.
He just needed to chant according to the holy kingdom’s instructions, and the energy would be provided to the guardian wings.
After all, you needed the guidance of a preacher to become a truly loyal follower.
“My follower, do you want to take a chance and become the warrior of god?” A spine-chilling voice emerged from his soul, and he immediately knew it was god talking to him.
“My lord, hear my prayer, I will gladly be your warrior!” Apo began to cry.
As an assassin, he was used to deriving pleasure from murder. He just couldn’t handle the life of a dry, boring farmer.
The only thing that kept him going was faith. Although it was forced upon him, it was the only thing meaningful in his life.
If Abel hadn’t intervened, he would have become one with this land and die in the land.
Abel had given Apo a choice, but there was no way for Apo to reject him in reality.
Abel didn’t care how strong Apo was. All he needed was his special assassin’s scent to find his target.
Abel hesitantly granted a preacher guide to Apo. He was not expecting Apo to become a preacher recognized by the temple. Instead, he would make him an assassin specialized for killing preachers.
That preacher guide was only for Izual to use godsend. As you know, even a holy knight could not break the defense of a temple in a short period of time.
All of a sudden, Apo felt like he had been leveled up. He became the ambassador of god with the ability to use god’s power any time.
He no longer felt restricted by the constraint of the lands. Instead, he had regained his freedom.
He threw his farming tools on the ground and began to yell in excitement as he ran across the open fields.
He stopped after a while and realized how long he had been running. Still, he was in disbelief. He was no longer a farmer. God had recognized him.
Suddenly, a map was transferred to his head. It was a map of the Holy Kingdom marked with the location of the chapel.
Apo didn’t know, but his seemingly random run was actually him making his way to his first target.
He saw a little town in the faint distance, but his instincts told him not to let anyone notice him as he made his way towards the Chapel.
He used his skills and effortlessly dodged everyone as he jumped on the roof of the buildings. Finally, he arrived at the chapel.
It was at that moment, his mind went blank, and a golden glow emerged on his body.
Izual had taken control with the godsend, and the golden energy sword appeared once again to break through the defense of the chapel.
A small crack opened up, just enough for a person to fit in.
Izual did not wait for the preacher to come. He went straight in and found a middle-aged preacher. Before he could even react, the golden energy sword had already landed on his neck and sent his skull flying.
Since Abel was about to unleash a mass killing on preachers, he was not planning to do it the same way as last time.
Instead of directly retrieving the soul, he created a murder scene.
With a gentle flick, the soul of that middle-aged preacher returned to the crystal angel statue.
Izual stepped out before the defense of the chapel was even fully broken, so you could just imagine how fast he was.
It then turned into a beam and speeded out the town while dodging the gaze of everyone.
After the godsend was finished, Apo felt like he had just dreamt of murder. It was his best performance. He was just like the legendary assassins he saw in the books.
He looked around and saw that he was no longer in town, but he knew he would make his way in another direction.
He ran for 3 days and arrived at another town. Still, he managed to use his skills again and shifted through the town without anyone noticing.
He had not eaten anything during this time, but he was not tired at all.
Instead, he continued for another 20 towns, and none of the preachers escaped.
Little did he know, Abel was feeding him a hunger potion a day from the potion maker camp, and when he got tired, Abel would give him an energy potion.
It was how he managed to stay in top condition.
When Apo was another to enter another town, Abel sensed a tiny threat through the passage of faith.
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Of course, it was not a threat to Abel but a threat to normal people like Apo.
Abel knew the Holy Kingdom was on to him, so it was time for him to stop this crazy operation for a while.
With a gentle wave of his hand, Abel withdrew the Preacher Guide from Apo’s soul, and his preacher scent vanished.
It was the ability of a god, but Abel wouldn’t be able to retrieve his preacher guide if he did so.
Still, it did not go to waste since this preacher guide allowed him to get 20 more preacher guides.
Abel did not let Apo sense any danger, so it was basically like he had given up on him.
Apo ignorantly entered the town just like always, but he was immediately monitored by the power of the will from 2 elite holy knights.
Even as a professional assassin, his power was nothing compared to a true professional. He did not know anything about the power of the will.
The 2 knights were sent in to investigate the murder of preachers. Since something like this had never happened, the Holy Kingdom sent out 10 elite holy knights to the towns.
Although Apo was not a normal guy, his murderous scent still could not escape the gaze of the knights.
“A suspect has appeared, could he be the one who killed the 20 preachers?” An elite knight lowered his voice.
Preachers were the basis of the Holy Kingdom. In some ways, they were even more important than holy knights.
A single preacher could affect an area of followers, so they were crucial for faith creation.
“Stay calm, let’s see what he is about to do first!” The other elite knight interrupted.
They were powerful, and Apo would not be able to win against them.
Apo’s journey was smooth until that point. He arrived in front of the chapel and took out a little blade from his waist with his gaze fixed on the chapel.
He didn’t know why he was here, but his soul was telling him that he was on an assassin’s mission.
His target was the preacher within.
He sensed blood fishing through his body. It has been a long time since he smelled the fear of his prey and the beg for mercy of another.
“Ah!” Suddenly, his body froze. It did not kill him, but his movements were locked up.
“No you can’t capture me. I am serving God, I’m a holy warrior, I am not your prisoner!” Apo roared.
An assassin was no stranger to death, and they were prepared to die at any moment.
Killing someone and suicide were both sides of the same coin. It was what an assassin does best.
After, Apo immediately bit down one of his teeth without hesitation.
A bit of poison dripped out, and a strange smile emerged on his face.
Just like that, the smile stayed on his face as the life faded from him.
“Not good!” A shadow quickly dashed forward, but it was too late. Apo was already dead.
Abel sensed his passage of faith faded. He hadn’t expected Apo to successfully kill himself in front of a Holy Knight.
“It seems like I’ve underestimated people again!” He shook his head and mumbled.
A little assassin still managed to keep his dignity before he died.
After all, Apo just never got the chance to use this final move since he lost the will to die after the brainwash.
Abel was planning to give Apo a poison through the soul chain after he was captured, even if that ran the risk of the Holy Kingdom noticing, but what Apo did was perfect.
Apo was already dead by the time the holy knights arrived. They then left the town without any emotions on their faces. What type of punishment they would get was no longer important.
After a few days, Abel’s druid soul received more information from his followers. Some of them had already made contact with the interior of the Holy Kingdom.
The death of the 20 preachers was being categorized as a massacre by an assassin who resisted the brainwash.
The holy knight who brainwashed Apo was punished. There could only be one way someone could resist brainwashing: a powerful will. So the person responsible for the brainwashing needed to pay close attention.