Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 492 Dancing with God
It was Ethan's idea to set up the special operations team.

After the memorial service ended in a farcical manner, Mary kept the pre-selected members, as well as Ethan, including the acting warden, Mr. Salim, who had a red handprint on his face.

Of course, Mr. Salman insisted that he had fallen accidentally while going downstairs, although even he himself could not explain why the fall left a handprint on his face. But that did not stop him from claiming that he was the undisputed ruler of the house, and that his wife was so frightened that she dared not even breathe when he glared at her.

"Your wife is here."

Mr. Salleman's boasting ended with Ethan's reminder, and his body reacted first—his head slid into the table on the floor in one smooth motion, as fluid as if he were crawling into an air-raid shelter, which showed how many "air-raid drills" he had conducted without anyone noticing.

Ethan looked at Saliman, who was still stubbornly insisting on his position and shouting, "Where? Where?", and suddenly felt refreshed. If we were to talk about status in the family, it would definitely be him.

Yesterday, he dragged Winter to watch the snow all night. The two of them went back to the hotel and fell asleep immediately, sleeping soundly until dawn.

Despite some setbacks, the "cat-keeping" plan has achieved initial success, and Ethan has decided to continue the plan.

However, on the other hand, Mary was deeply concerned about the future of the special operations team.

"The patrol team found this in the lower city."

Fortunately, the special operations team still has a few reliable members.

Lyon took out a scarlet fruit and placed it on the table. "The prison guards and prisoners at the scene confirmed that Marshall swallowed this fruit before the mutation."

The danger is far from over.

As long as the source of the fruit is not eliminated, more Marshalls will appear sooner or later.

In the end, Marshall alone wiped out the Oasis prison. If Suliman hadn't stepped in at the critical moment, none of the guards and prisoners present would have survived.

“I’ve investigated Marshall’s background. He’s a regular at the underground pubs in the downtown area. I wonder if you’ve heard of him?”

"Underground tavern..."

Salman peeked out from under the table. "My wife did mention that place to me."

A tavern located in the sewers was originally intended to provide a haven for the people of the lower city, so that he wouldn't be sent to jail by the officials of the upper city for a casual complaint. "She even went there to help out when the tavern was first established."

"Great."

Lyon nodded in satisfaction. "I need more detailed information."

"It started as just an ordinary pub, you know, the kind where people would go after a long day, order a beer, complain about how Oasis City was getting worse, get drunk, and sleep until the next day without remembering what they said the night before."

"Sariman said."

He acknowledged that the people in the downtown area needed such a place.

As a prison guard, he knew that many people were imprisoned for saying the wrong thing or writing anonymous whistleblower letters. Salman was powerless to do anything about it, and could only offer some preferential treatment to those who were wrongfully imprisoned within his power.

"But gradually, the atmosphere of the tavern changed."

With Pope Carlo taking the throne, the situation in the far west became increasingly dire, with the possibility of war with the empire looming at any moment. The people who frequented the taverns were filled with hostility, and even... internal strife began.

“My wife used to work there as a waitress, but one day she was suddenly fired.”

Salman shook his head helplessly. "The reason is that I work as a prison guard at the Upper City Jail, and some of them think we are all lackeys of the officials."

The key point is that he really couldn't refute that statement.

Many neighbors had asked him to help those wrongfully imprisoned seek justice or to find ways to get them out of prison. Given his position, it was impossible for him to do these things. In fact, Salman had to admit that he was worried about implicating his family, so he suppressed many letters from his neighbors that he had entrusted to be delivered to the warden and Mayor Hafiz.

They have no idea about these officials.

The mailboxes in the city hall were just for show; they were a product of the intellectual trends that emerged during Julius’s time when he went to the empire to learn. Perhaps the initial intention was good and the system was advanced, but no one actually followed it.

Hafiz would rather spend an entire day watching a play at the Eternal Theater than open a letter and even glance at it.

“That’s exactly what I was worried about.”

Lyon sighed, “When I was investigating the missing persons cases in the lower city, I found that, apart from outsiders, most of the other missing residents were like the Salim family, with someone in their family working in the upper city. They were treated as lackeys of the officials.”

This was the first spark that Larry ignited.

For residents of the Lower District, breaking into the Upper District and confronting the security team was unrealistic, but they could easily break into their neighbors' homes.

In the past, the security team didn't really care about cases in the lower city; most people just let things slide until they really escalated.

If the head of the police station spends all his time in the Eternal Theater, why should the ordinary staff work so hard?
Those who get promoted are people who are appreciated by nobles or officials. They either have a background or are rich. Ordinary people would risk their lives and still not be given a second glance by those big shots.

“In the lower city, Larris has a considerable number of supporters, and most of the taverns in the lower city are their strongholds.”

In the past, this small group of people wouldn't have made any waves in Oasis City. However, things are different now. They somehow obtained this fruit that can instantly transform people into monsters.

One hundred residents of the lower city who are filled with hatred for Oasis City could give rise to one hundred Marshalls.

"I can't change their minds."

Greif, who had come at the invitation, shook his head in frustration. Distributing potions to treat fang disease was the limit of his abilities. He was just an old man who had followed the trend of the times and studied in the Empire for a period of time. At most, he had just seen more than the people around him.

This reform is truly aimed at those who still have hope.

Grave believed that the reforms Mary initiated after her arrival were the true way out for the city and even the far west.

He could answer the questions and concerns of the residents of the lower city, but he couldn't change the minds of those who harbored intense hatred from the very beginning.

This is why, upon learning of Larry's thoughts, Graves rushed to the Upper Town overnight to request a meeting with Mary.

This was beyond his control, and he could foresee that, under Larry's instigation, Oasis City would face a major upheaval in the future.

In Grave's view, perhaps only a saintly figure like Mary, who descended from the heavens, could truly change the future of this city.

People like Marshall will appear sooner or later.

They could appear anywhere in Oasis City today.

"Ms. Mary."

Leon stopped the discussion and looked at Mary, who hadn't said a word. "You're probably hiding something from us, aren't you?"

His eyes were sharp; the appearance of Marshall and the unknown fruit confirmed his suspicions.

For people like Larry today, the meaning of faith has changed.

It is no longer a channel for seeking spiritual relief in suffering, but a deadly weapon. As long as they have a strong obsession and possess these fruits, they can kill those officials who once filled them with fear.

This situation seems familiar.

“When I went to the Empire for exchange and study, it was the height of the Violet Commune movement. Through a member of the commune, I learned some information that had not been made public by the Papacy.”

Leon paused, then said, "After Julius became Pope, the number of Bazaros believers in the empire increased day by day, and evil god sacrifice rituals were taking place all over the empire. The reason is that the greatest temptation for believers of evil gods is that they can gain great power in a short period of time through soul sacrifice rituals, which is exactly... just like Laris now."

What Leon found most inexplicable was that Larry and his followers did not change their beliefs.

They still believe in the goddess of life, even more fervently than ever before.

This created a rather bizarre situation.

As a saint of the Holy See and the recognized representative of the goddess in the scriptures, Mary had a huge conflict with another group of staunch believers in the Goddess of Life. The tense situation in Oasis City is actually caused by two believers who are on the same path.

This is truly contrary to common sense.

Lyon studied at the Society for Truth, and believers in the God of Truth cannot ignore phenomena that defy common sense.

Therefore, he conducted a more in-depth investigation. "I found that Mayor Hafiz sent a letter to the Holy City a few days ago, but has not received a reply yet, and the Vatican has not sent anyone to Oasis City."

This is another problem.

The former saintess has reappeared in the mortal world. Logically speaking, with such a major event, Pope Carlo should have rushed to Oasis City immediately—everyone knows that Carlo is a person with an extremely strong desire for control.

“I have good reason to suspect that the appearance of the red fruit and your arrival mean that the Vatican is facing a huge upheaval.”

Leon's words stunned all the members of the special operations team.

Mary's reply then confirmed Leon's guess: "Carlo is dead."

"Wait a minute! Carlo is dead?"

Salman blurted out, "It wasn't mentioned in the newspapers!"

Such a major event has occurred in the Holy Capital, yet not a single word has been reported. Not long ago, when a bishop of the Holy See was murdered in a border city, the news was published in all the newspapers in the far west.

However, their shock did not end there.

Lyon nodded. "Then, may I assume that the one who provided the fruit to Laris was someone within the Holy See who is on par with you? Everything that is happening in Oasis City now stems from your disagreements."

Mary was somewhat surprised.

She hadn't expected that Lyon could roughly deduce the whole story without ever leaving Oasis City.

"Wait a minute, Leon!"

Salliman immediately questioned, "Who else in the Vatican holds a position comparable to that of Lady Mary?"

This is not flattery, but rather a fact that even people outside the Papacy know that only one saint, Mary, has ever appeared in history. Even within the Papacy, there is a faction that believes she was the reincarnation of the goddess of life, sent to help the people of the Third Age escape the plague.

Even the Pope's status cannot compare to Mary's.

And since Mary just mentioned that Carlo, who held absolute power, is dead, then there should be no one who can match Mary's status.

Everyone else was also waiting for Mary's response.

Although Salman was somewhat loud and boisterous, he raised the question that they all shared.

“Bazalian, that’s her name.”

Mary spoke as casually as possible.

"Bazalian?"

"Never heard of it."

"Where did this come from?"

……

“It’s normal that you haven’t heard of her,” Mary said, in fact, she herself had only recently learned of the name, “because you usually know her by her other identity.”

"Another identity?"

"Goddess of Life".

....................................

Mary recounted everything she had experienced in the Holy City, including the relationship between Bazalian and the evil god Bazatos, and the fact that the Holy City had now been destroyed by a blood plague.

The leaders of the different sects remained in the Holy City, along with Veronica and others, and they were preparing to rebuild the entire city and the Cathedral of the Dawn.

Every word she spoke was spoken in absolute silence.

Even the talkative Salman leaned back in his chair, as if he were slumped over.

No one could have predicted this shocking fact—that they were trying to defy the goddess of life in this land of the far west.
Let alone taking any actual action, even having the thought of it is enough to be convicted.

This made them look embarrassed, and when Mary finished speaking, someone shakily raised their hand, expressing their desire to withdraw.

Once it started, more and more people quit, until only three people remained in the huge room.

Lyon, Greif, and Salim.

Salman also raised his hand to explain why he stayed: "My legs went weak, I couldn't go any further."

Now he understood completely why Marshall gained such immense power instantly after eating the fruit. Although Laris's followers had mentioned more than once that they had received the goddess's blessing, everyone thought it was just rhetoric used to flaunt their faith. Almost every bishop in the far west had said the same thing in his speeches.

But Mary told them that this time they were facing the real, resurrected goddess of life.

Do you need help?

Ethan asked considerately.

"No, I'd better stay here."

Salman shook his head; his mind was in a mess and he had no intention of going home.

Because he had absolutely no idea how to explain to his wife that they were going against the goddess of life.

"But you said she's changed."

Leon suddenly spoke up, "She has recovered the lost parts, so theoretically, she has become a different person."

"you believe?"

Mary was somewhat surprised.

“I only believe what I see,” Leon asked again. “So, what’s the plan? How are we going to deal with this resurrected goddess of life?”

He asked the craziest question in the world, using the most rational tone.

"Moriko, it's your turn to appear."

It's the way to go.

"That's the purpose of forming the special operations team."

Ethan said, "Laris and his followers obtained this fruit. What do you want to get in order to compete with them?"

"...Yesterday's sword-forging ceremony?"

"That's just a special measure provided to you in case of an emergency."

Ethan shook his head and posed the same question to Mary. After all, this was a "mayor election" between Mary and Bazalian, and as an advisor, he had already overstepped his bounds last night.

“Bazalian has found her followers; it’s time for you to take action too.”

To win this mayoral election, simply staying in city hall to process documents or judging a few corrupt officials is far from enough; that is still a "human" perspective.

If Mary wants to truly challenge Bazalian, she must break free from her constraints.

"Reiko, think carefully, what kind of favors can you bestow upon them?"

Ethan said, "Otherwise, you'll lose this election sooner or later."

(End of this chapter)