As Seia stepped out of the room, the heavy thud of footsteps echoed from the stairwell. She knew Valak was trying to draw her away from Irene, herding them in opposite directions, yet she followed the sound nonetheless.

Still, she couldn't simply leave Irene to fend for herself.

With a small wave to the chubby bird perched atop her head, the little creature fluttered down onto Seia's finger.

"Go to Irene. Make sure she doesn't get hurt."

"Chirp, chirp!"

Though the little bird fretted over its partner, it gave a firm nod and took flight, disappearing toward Irene.

A pity.

Valak hadn't expected the girl to find her way so easily, but it hardly mattered. He had plenty of opportunities, and given the sheer scale of his power, the two of them being together wouldn't have changed much anyway.

What truly baffled him, however, was that even after her little companion flew off, Seia continued straight toward the stairs where the footsteps had just rang out.

Fine, then.

Valak let out a cold, mocking laugh. This girl really didn't take him seriously at all, did she?

Wait.

Suddenly, the reason for her bravado clicked in his mind.

Among the three of them, Father Burke was undoubtedly the greatest threat. This girl was deliberately provoking him, hoping he would waste his strength on her to create an opening for the priest.

A clever little trick, he thought, but I'll save you for last.

Taking the priest out of the game first would not only cripple the trio's power but also leave the other two lost and hopeless. His objective was clear.

However... that didn't mean Valak would simply swallow the insult. He decided to let Irene be for the moment and focus his malice on the priest and this ignorant little girl.

Unlike the priest, whose soul was riddled with obvious cracks, he couldn't find a single opening in the girl's heart. Breaking her wouldn't be as simple, but making her life a living hell was easy enough.

Following the stairs out of the dormitory, Seia felt a familiar, creeping chill.

In her line of sight, a figure in a white dress carrying a candle lantern drifted into the chapel of the inner courtyard. It looked like Irene.

Drawing the handgun holstered against her thigh, Seia walked toward the iron gate. Naturally, it was unlocked. As she stepped through, a wind far more piercing than before swept across the ground, biting at her legs from her feet to her knees.

The cold made her shiver uncontrollably.

Without drawing upon the "Power of Belief"—her Halo—her constitution was admittedly frail, much like the days she spent confined to a hospital bed.

She let out a soft sigh. To Valak's eyes, the girl seemed hesitant, yet she continued her slow march into the chapel.

Scared now, are we?

He couldn't suppress a sneer.

Moonlight poured through the windows of the well-lit chapel, illuminating a massive silver crucifix at the far end. Standing before it was a nun in black robes, her posture impeccably straight.

She prayed in total silence, yet her devotion was so palpable it was clear to anyone just how earnest she was.

This was the soul of a nun.

Even in death, she was doing everything in her power to suppress the demon's influence.

Seia felt a stir of genuine respect; a woman like this shouldn't end up as Valak's puppet as she did in the original story. She deserved to be guided to heaven with the dignity she earned.

Not just her, but all the nuns who had sacrificed themselves over the centuries.

But that would have to wait. Once the dust settled, Seia would bring a proper end to their long "ordeal."

With that thought, Seia reached into her skirt pocket and pulled out a chalice. It was silver with a gold rim, about a foot tall and half a foot wide.

Forged almost entirely from mythril soaked in holy water, it was a Mystic Code modeled after the legendary Holy Grail. As she held it, Seia began to whisper a string of unintelligible, ancient words.

Immediately, a golden radiance spilled from the cup.

A power that even a Great Demon like Valak could not fully perceive rippled out from Seia, blanketing the entire convent. The praying nun, whose consciousness had been a hazy blur of instinct, suddenly felt a wave of clarity.

It only made her pray more fervently.

Valak was momentarily stunned.

He had no idea what the chalice was meant to do. To his senses, aside from a faint holy aura, it seemed like an ordinary, unremarkable cup.

And yet, he felt it. The moment the cup appeared, the souls of the nuns—whom he had corrupted to the point of being his playthings—became far harder to manipulate.

It only went as far as waking their consciousness and allowing them to offer a meager resistance, which didn't stop him from forcing his control, but this unknown tactic piqued his curiosity.

What is that cup?

The truth was, the cup was nothing. It was a complete bluff.

The Halo was doing all the heavy lifting.

Regardless, Seia put on a show of utter exhaustion. A layer of thin sweat broke out on her forehead, and her chest began to heave with short, shallow breaths.

Is that all?

Valak understood now. It was a tool for dealing with vengeful spirits.

Waking a soul's consciousness was effective for exorcising ghosts, as many spirits relied on possessing a physical vessel. Even demons like him found it more convenient to operate through a host.

But unlike a demon, if a common spirit can't suppress the host's consciousness, they lose control of the body or get pushed out entirely with a priest's help.

Demons were different. With his level of power, unless someone knew his True Name, a conscious host was irrelevant. They would simply watch, wide awake, as he pulled their strings.

A neat trick, but useless against me.

Valak lost interest, find the situation almost comical. It was a powerful tool, sure, but if using it once left the girl half-dead before he even lifted a finger, how could he not laugh?

Once Seia's breathing steadied, she moved toward the praying nun. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly lunged to the side, her gun already leveled at a figure behind her.

It was another nun.

The woman didn't speak, but her stern, forbidding gaze made it clear she didn't want Seia interrupting the prayer.

Valak looked at the girl, his murderous intent surging.

The last time hadn't been a fluke. This girl had incredible talent; twice now she had sensed danger before it arrived and reacted with lightning speed. She possessed holy power far beyond her years and an affinity for animals.

Given time, she would undoubtedly become a headache for his kind.

But... that was assuming she had a "given time."

Feeling quite relaxed, Valak gestured for the girl to lower her weapon. Once he saw her let down her guard, he turned and walked a few steps forward, glancing back to signal for her to follow.

Seia didn't say another word. After a moment of feigned hesitation, she followed the "nun" deeper into the dark.

--+--

T/N: I have a Patreon!

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