Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

"Okay! Tell me about your findings first."

Immediately, Samael, who had been under immense pressure, felt a great sense of relief and nodded repeatedly.

Tsk, this guy, am I that scary?

Upon seeing this, Aozaki Touko frowned, her teeth clenching slightly. She then placed a rune stone on the table, activated the soundproof barrier, composed herself, and began to hum softly.

“I have already confirmed that the Aozaki family has nothing to do with this matter. You have also completed the recovery of the parts from the four exorcist clans and the Tono residence, so only the church remains.”

“Recently, there have been quite a few unfamiliar faces wearing crosses in Misaki City…”

Samael picked up his glass, swirled it slightly, and added meaningfully.

"It seems you've noticed too."

Aozaki Touko nodded and gave Samael an approving look.

Being collaborators and being able to keep up with each other's thinking is undoubtedly a very comfortable thing.

"I've been secretly investigating the church's actions for the past two days. Although they're very vigilant and operate quite discreetly, I've still managed to uncover some clues..."

Aozaki Touko stirred her coffee, spoke leisurely, and seemed quite pleased with herself.

However, her slightly arrogant statement was abruptly interrupted by the man. His dark eyes glared reproachfully at the somewhat impetuous Aozaki Touko, his brow furrowing and his voice deepening.

"You should at least have waited for me to come back. Don't do something so dangerous alone next time!"

"Are you worried about me?"

Aozaki Touko didn't take the reprimand to heart. Instead, she raised her eyebrows and asked a playful question.

"Why can't I worry about you? You're my student!"

Samael rolled his eyes at Aozaki Touko and responded with a cold snort.

Aozaki Touko's expression grew cold, her eyes filled with resentment.

"Just students?"

"what?"

"Hey, I mean, who wants to be your student! I've never acknowledged you as my teacher!"

The girl coughed lightly, glanced at the person opposite her with annoyance, then turned to look at the beautiful twilight outside the window, her eyes sparkling.

"Whether you admit it or not, I taught them!"

Samael tapped the table, emphasizing his words as he began to patiently and earnestly nag.

"When facing your teachers or elders, at least listen to their advice and show the proper attitude, right?"

The Holy Church was nothing in his eyes, but to Aozaki Touko, it was an unshakeable behemoth.

She is still too inexperienced, lacks experience in fighting enemies, and has not yet honed her skills in Grand Puppet Master and Rune Magic. She has no means of self-defense, yet she dares to secretly probe the Church's secrets. It is really too reckless of her.

It's important to know that the professional team that the Church sent from the Vatican this time is not made up of pushovers.

If Aozaki Touko were to run into just one candidate for the next Emperor and one Inquisitor of Heretics, it would be enough to give her a hard time.

However, Aozaki Touko chuckled and retorted.

"The proper attitude? You mean like how you treated my grandfather?"

What, you want to stab me again? You heartless bastard!

If anyone's going to stab someone, it'll be me... cough...

After being rebuffed, Samael realized that his thoughts had gone astray in his indignation. He couldn't help but twitch his lips, quickly stopping his wandering thoughts and silently cursing to himself.

Before she broke ties with the Aozaki family, this girl was steady, gentle, studious, and resolute. How come she has completely let herself go since she tricked her grandfather? She is not only getting further and further away from the image of a lady, but also becoming more and more difficult to manage.

Could it be that his delayed rebellious phase has finally arrived?

Left with no other option, Samael had to soften his tone and use a gentler, more tactful approach to advise him.

"Don't do anything reckless next time, I'm worried about you..."

"Alright, stop nagging, I understand."

Aozaki Touko waved her hand, her words carrying a hint of disdain, yet her orange eyes were filled with a smile and warmth.

She knew, of course, that the church was dangerous, and of course she was afraid of death.

To be honest, after her senior brother Wen Bingyongli killed her grandfather, the instinctive fear that arose made her tremble all over, and she couldn't even stop him from leaving.

However, in order to help this guy who had inexplicably barged into her life, she unknowingly forgot all of this and recklessly took the risk.

Perhaps this impulse was simply a response to the few acts of care and understanding she had received in her life.

Seeing that Orange had taken some of the advice to heart, Samael rubbed his temples helplessly, then his expression turned serious as he asked earnestly, listening intently as if he were listening very carefully.

"Forget about that. The information you've taken a liking to must be extremely important, right? What have you found out? Tell me about it."

Seeing her collaborator's upright attitude, Aozaki Touko nodded in satisfaction and replied after a moment's thought.

"The people of the Holy Church are currently in contact with the four exorcist families to discuss a ceremony. The ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow night at the Goda Church Cathedral."

Samael nodded; this was similar to the information he had received from the mole, A Liangjuningzi.

However, the location was actually the Hetian Church Cathedral, which surprised Samael.

After all, it seems a bit ridiculous and unreasonable to ask a group of exorcists who believe in Amaterasu Omikami and the local Shinto religion to attend Mass in a church and kneel down to worship Christ.

What surprised him even more was that the two sides were able to reach a consensus on this point.

It seems that since the Holy Body was lost, the four exorcist families and the Tohno family have lost their bargaining chips.

"Based on my observation, the church seems to attach great importance to this operation, and they have sent out a lot of people to verify the miracles."

Currently, those who have arrived in Misaki City include several scribes from the Eighth Secret Order with experience in collecting sacred artifacts, a parish priest named Mario, and two other forces—one overt and one covert—from the Inquisition Knights and the Burial Agency, responsible for providing protection.

At this moment, Aozaki Touko paused for a moment, then continued to reveal the information she possessed to Samael.

"Among them, there are two from the Inquisition Knights and two from the Burial Agency."

In addition, Mario has someone with him, hiding in the shadows.

This guy is really strong. The few crystal mayflies I released were crushed as soon as they showed their heads.

In short, he is a very dangerous person!

To avoid arousing suspicion, I didn't dare to go any further.

At this point, Aozaki Touko recalled the investigation that had almost been exposed, her expression wary, still feeling lingering fear.

"Your message is important, thank you for your hard work."

Samael nodded solemnly in thanks, then leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples as he gathered intelligence and prepared for the operation.

In fact, in order to figure out the Church's big move, and out of caution, the Ancient Serpent not only sent out three teams to gather information, but also used some of the Council's intelligence network.

Samael already knew the five people Orange had just mentioned, as well as their general identities.

The two members of the Inquisition Knights are Lizbefi Stolindobali, the Knight Commander known as the "Fortress Saintess," and a priest named Calab Frampton who possesses the "Eye of the Bubble." The Eye of the Bubble seems to grant the ability to see the past, presumably as a tool to trace the past of the Holy Body and Holy Relics they speak of.

However, this thing is too low in mystery, and trying to see through his past is mostly futile.

The two members of the Burial Agency are No. 2: [Priest] Andre Godbyback and No. 4: [Exorcist] Mr. Dawn.

One is skilled in divine arts, and the other excels in physical combat and logistics; their combat strength can only be described as mediocre.

None of that matters. The fifth person hiding next to Mario is more interesting.

According to Arakawa's intelligence, if I'm not mistaken, it should be her blood ancestor—"Sword Monk" Be Zhe, an unconventional vampire who believes in Christianity…

Adding the accompanying clergy and the local forces of the Goda Church, this is probably the Church's entire fighting force.

Overall, this is already the most luxurious and top-of-the-line option for the church.

Even the candidate for the next King of France was severely underestimated.

Unfortunately, comparing people is a recipe for disaster, and comparing goods is a recipe for disaster.

Samael could easily sweep them aside with just one or two of his units.

"So, what are you planning to do? Infiltrate like last time, or simply find the location and shoot in?"

Aozaki Touko sipped her slightly cool coffee, casually asking a question, her gaze lingering on the enigmatic man before her with keen interest.

According to the information she obtained from the four exorcist families, two days ago, someone sneaked into the Tono residence and stole the Holy Body right under everyone's noses. They also kept hundreds of exorcists at bay for most of the night and defeated the experts from the four exorcist families and the Tono residence.

Even more outrageous, an even more perverted person came later and almost left them all on the mountain.

Leaving aside what came after, what came before was undoubtedly this guy's masterpiece.

It was obvious that the man in front of them had been hiding his true abilities; in addition to his extensive knowledge, he also possessed extraordinary combat prowess.

For him, repeating Tono Otaku's classic actions might not be a difficult task.

However, Samael's answer was somewhat unexpected.

"I've changed my mind. I'll attend the Mass celebration tomorrow night. We'll talk about the rest later..."

"why?"

Aozaki Touko looked at Samael with some confusion and surprise.

The ancient snake tapped the cup in its hand against its right wrist, which was still fitted with a prosthetic limb. With a crisp clinking sound, the man's dark eyes turned to the city of Misaki outside the window, which was gradually covered by the night. His gaze was deep and distant, and he pursed his lips and sighed.

"Perhaps, this isn't a bad thing..."

Fate is unpredictable, and many people's lives are often filled with unexpected hardships, with sudden calamities crushing their meager happiness and hopes.

As they struggle and fall into depravity, they may be left battered and bruised, or they may descend into darkness.

If possible, who wouldn't want to stand in the sun and live a glamorous life?

The children from the four exorcising families were like that; the father and daughter I met by chance in the shopping street were like that; and the nun from the Goda Church was like that too.

That's right, there are too many sufferings in the world for him to handle.

But now that I've seen it, I'm determined to give it a try.

Seeing the man deep in thought, seemingly moved by something and having other plans, Aozaki Touko didn't press him. She frowned and began to seriously discuss the feasibility.

"So how do you plan to sneak in? This is a secret mass that is not open to the public. They will probably check people coming and going very carefully. Don't forget, you just caused a scene at the Tono residence."

"I'm not stupid. I didn't use my real face when I infiltrated the Tono residence."

Samael snapped out of his daze, smiled, and snapped his fingers. His skin stretched and contracted, revealing several distinct combinations of his handsome features.

Snakes excel at lurking in the dark; camouflage and concealment are essential skills for them.

Seeing this, Aozaki Touko nodded, relieved, but then raised a new question.

"There's another question: what identity did you use to get in?"

"Look, this is something someone gave me. It seems I'll be able to use it."

Samael pulled a business card-like object with a clover pattern from his jacket pocket and waved it with a smile.

It's easy to spot someone if you blend in with a group of guests, but what if you're applying to be a choir accompanist?

Aozaki Touko glanced at the name "Mario" on it, then dismissed her doubts, her eyes sparkling as she spoke softly.

"Then I'm going too!"

"Sure, but I have two requests."

Samael nodded, not surprised, and agreed, then began to ponder.

"First, no one is allowed to act rashly; you must all listen to me."

"you?"

"Ahem, a few of my colleagues from the council have arrived, and I expect they will also be participating in the operation."

"Colleague? I understand, then I have no problem."

Aozaki Touko withdrew her scrutinizing gaze, but for some reason, she felt that Samael's words lacked a certain confidence.

"Secondly, just to be on the safe side, you should make some necessary modifications before taking action."

Feeling guilty, Samael quickly raised his voice to interrupt Aozaki Touko's thoughts and change the subject.

"What transformation?"

Following her train of thought, Aozaki Touko couldn't help but put aside her doubts and subconsciously asked a question.