Gun of Ashes

Chapter 38: Chapter 28: Stomach Chewing Grass

”Demon... Although we have fought endlessly against it, we still do not know what it really is, where it came from, what it exists as, or for what purpose...

Perhaps someone knew these things but took the secrets to their grave. This is as much as I know, but every entity should have its own name, even that filthy monster. So those saints named it with the mythical adversary of God.”

Lorenzo whispered that ancient secret, and just recounting that story made the girl feel inexplicable pressure.

The girl breathed heavily to maintain silence. She listened to Lorenzo’s words but did not want to say much.

Just as Lorenzo said, it was forbidden knowledge, and in Eve’s current state, it was best not to come into contact too much.

”Is that... an exit?”

In this moment of despair, the faint light ahead grew brighter, and Eve felt a little dazed, moving with weary steps.

As if grasping some hope, she regained some strength and ran desperately towards it, feeling certain that it was an exit. As long as she could leave here, she could say goodbye to these oddities, and this damned nightmare would end. But just as Eve was only a few steps from the light, Lorenzo grabbed her and held her down. Though the girl wanted to speak, he covered her mouth firmly.

”Don’t make a sound; something’s not right.”

Lorenzo’s voice was light, his eyes still dominated by calmness despite his excited body.

Eve did not resist much, only hearing Lorenzo’s cold voice under his restraint.

”In the face of madness, all you can do is remain rational, absolutely rational, do you understand?”

He sternly admonished, a situation Lorenzo had experienced many times. In the dark, under immense pressure, everyone would lose their sanity upon seeing light, like people living underground embracing sunlight fervently when they step into the surface.

But such an outcome would not be beautiful, as the scorching sunlight would burn eyes adapted to darkness in an instant. In the light after leaving the darkness, what might await Eve is an even more terrifying monster.

Under Lorenzo’s control, they advanced slowly. Finally, she shifted her gaze to the front, beyond that light.

There was nothing Lorenzo was wary of; it was just a deep pit. The passage where Eve and Lorenzo were currently situated was above this gigantic pit, with a staircase rising along the pit wall connecting them together.

Eve had thought the banquet hall was the biggest underground space of this underground palace, but it was obvious that this was the largest.

Endless light poured from above, seemingly from some high-intensity lamps, so bright that merely shifting their gaze upwards felt glaring, making observation impossible.

The entire deep pit, at least several tens of meters deep, was illuminated exceedingly bright, with meaningless torches ignited around the pit wall. Looking down, the pit bottom was covered with blood-red fog, only a blurry red mass could be seen.

”I guess this is a ritual site.”

Lorenzo looked at the bottom of the pit, and although the fog obscured it, past experience made him wary.

”So in your past work in Florence, you were... combating this sort of thing?”

Eve said slowly, but at the mention of demons, she instinctively avoided it. Even just seeing it once, the impact of the demon on her was already incredibly deep.

”Yes, but not entirely. Generally, we have a mature hunting system. We hunt them before people completely transform into demons, rather than waiting for them to fully become demons.”

Just like Wol, as long as a person hasn’t completely transformed into a demon, they are essentially still human, easily killed with a sword and gun, but once fully transformed, they become non-human, requiring non-human methods.

”Is that why a priest like you knows swordsmanship?”

Eve immediately thought Lorenzo’s life experiences seemed somewhat legendary.

”Bolognese Swordsmanship, a required course for every Holy Hall Knight. Becoming a priest is a prerequisite to becoming a Holy Hall Knight.”

The voice was very flat, but the brief sentences unequivocally revealed Lorenzo’s former identity. Eve was a bit bewildered. She recalled the descriptions of Holy Hall Knights, those knights favored by God, high moral character beneath white armor, wielding a sword igniting Holy Flame to uphold order and peace.

Though she couldn’t quite see how this ill-tempered person matched the word ”noble,” Eve was still very curious.

”That should be a very honorable identity, so why did you come to Ingwig to be a detective?”

Even though the influence of the Evangelical Church wasn’t as strong as it used to be, the identity of a Holy Hall Knight remained extremely noble within the Holy Evangelical Pope Kingdom. In the eyes of the believers, these knights guarding the Seven Hills were akin to angels descending to the earth.

”It’s simple. I have no purpose to exist anymore, or rather... I was unemployed.”

Lorenzo didn’t really want to talk about his past, but under Eve’s inquiry, he still spoke.

”Demons were exterminated a long time ago. There was no need to stay there anymore... Believe it or not, I, Lorenzo Holmes, have a dream.”

He actually laughed as he spoke.

”To be a detective?”

What a hell of an inspiring story, as Eve asked, he nodded vigorously.

”Frankly, Florence is not a place for humans to stay. Unlike Old Dunling’s progress and openness, it’s like a dying saint, full of rules and faith.”