Ark, they don't revolve around you

"Our most basic law is not to kill one's own kind, and this is a film." Lemiaoan was silent for a long time, and whispered, "The bishop is cruel, and the nun is the harbinger. I actually think the doctor is right. This monastery should be burned down, but this dark room was kept secret and was lucky enough not to be affected."

Fiammetta clenched her fists. “The monastery is also full of such dirty things.”

"You know how many Lateran monasteries there are in this land. The Pope can't take care of every one of them."

“But this is still wrong, right?”

Lemion did not answer.

Seeing that she could not get an answer, Fiammetta asked again: "What should we do with this child? Take him with us?"

This will definitely alarm Zhuang Ning, but if he gives up, he will die.

Remyeon stroked the boy's head and made a decision in a flash: "Wait for us here for a while, I will save you."

The halo above her head began to light up, emitting a soft light in the darkness.

This seemed to be somewhat convincing, and the boy calmed down a little.

There was no expectation in his eyes, only numbness and emptiness. He did not ask for help, he just hoped that the two people would take him away.

He called out incoherently, made hoarse and broken cries, and clapped his hands about something.

Under that gaze, Lemion and Fiammetta turned away, both feeling their shoulders grow heavy.

They probably can't go back.

Soon, Remion sneaked into the storage room and found the discarded weapons.

"This is too smooth, it's like a trap," said Fiammetta.

"But to call it a trap is a waste of time. With his ability, if he really wants to stop us from escaping, he has a thousand ways to do it." Lemiaoan felt strange.

Ever since he was caught by Zhuang Ning, the man no longer cared about them.

If that’s the case, why keep us by your side… Lemiaoan thought, touching something casually.

That is the account book placed next to the weapons, kept in paper form. The reason for this is probably that it cannot be preserved in electronic form, so this retro form was chosen in a roundabout way.

"Do you know how to look at this?" Fiammetta raised an eyebrow.

"I've learned a little." Lemiaoan picked it up, flipped through it casually, and his expression became increasingly gloomy.

"You really have learned everything." Fiammetta complained in his heart, thinking that this thing could be opened slowly after escaping.

But Lemiaoan froze in place.

The conversations in the courtyard became louder, and the people speaking deliberately wanted to be heard.

"I burned this place down to serve the people."

"why?"

"Because there are a lot of bad debts here. Well, let me put it nicely, it's called usury." The voice gradually became weird. "The monastery can't survive for long if it only relies on the support of the Lateran. And the monks don't have any business, so they have to find some way to make money."

"So you're just lending money at high interest rates?!"

"How many people were destroyed by them, and in the end had to sell their property, become refugees in the wilderness, or die in natural disasters."

The Archangel shuddered: "I don't know this."

"Why do you know all this? You live a comfortable life, feeling complacent and thinking you have made a contribution to Terra." Zhuang Ning shrugged. "Under such circumstances, it is hard for you to imagine where your wealth comes from, right?"

"Of course, I won't be too absolute. There must be an upright monastery in Lateran, but such creatures usually don't survive for long." He smiled, "I remember there is an operator from 'Landon Monastery' on Rhodes Island, codenamed Kong Xian."

"She is upright and unwilling to work in such a lowly industry. In the end, she has fallen to the point of becoming an idol to make money."

Lemiaoan intuitively felt that Zhuang Ning was not lying.

After all, the Lateran's background was not so clean, and usury was common in the monastery.

Sakota has a good nature? How is that possible? The theory of nature is the most unreliable. The evidence is that as long as they go to the outside world, there are no shortage of angels who have been tainted by evil.

"The properties recorded in this bill were all taken from some poor people."

"This monastery is collaborating with the Syracuse family, secretly exploiting the locals together."

Fiammetta was a little reluctant to accept this fact, frowning and biting her lip:

"Damn it."

Lemiaoan put away the account, took a deep breath, and said, "The doctor did it on purpose—deliberately let us escape and deliberately let us see this."

She anxiously picked up the weapon, maintained it, and made crackling noises, no longer shying away.

Fiammetta silently gripped the howitzer: "What are you going to do?"

"He thought that would change my mind about Rutland, but I'm not that naive."

Lemiaoan said coldly, "I want to take Ale back, that's all."

There were problems with the monastery, no matter what, Lateran was her home after all, and there was not much room in Remyan's heart, it was like a tangled mess.

But the devil's whisper echoed behind him: "Really, Miss Lemiaoan?"

At some point, Zhuang Ning was sitting upright on a chair in the storage room, legs crossed, his eyes flashing with golden light in the dark night.

He should have been talking to the Archangel in the courtyard... Remiaoan instinctively pointed the gun at Zhuang Ning, but after thinking about it, he lowered the gun weakly with a depressed expression.

"You bastard."

"It was a good performance. It was a real pleasure to watch." Zhuang Ning raised his glass of red wine, enjoying its aroma and taking a sip.

"You want to deceive us, but the monastery is different from the Lateran." Fiammetta roared, as if grasping at the last straw. "The absurdity of the monastery does not mean the problem of the Lateran!"

“Even if your cardinal actually condones the monastery’s plunder of the people’s wealth?” Zhuang Ning looked dimly.

"acquiescence?"

"As long as it's not put on the table, it's naturally tacitly approved." Zhuang Ning smiled quietly, enjoying the quiet atmosphere. "I randomly selected eleven monasteries, without exception. Can you call this a coincidence?"

Fiammetta was speechless.

But Zhuang Ning smiled even more happily: "How cute, Feiya, let me ask you a question."

"The Lateran is a paradise on earth, without poverty, war, or famine."

"But what's the price? What is the price of achieving this beauty?"

“Where is the price?”

"Why not? The sweets wasted by Lateran alone in a year are enough to support Sargon's countless tribes, right?"

“We have our own industry!”

"Well, what is it exactly?"

"Weapons, real estate, and the monastery's--" Fiammetta stopped answering, his face showing a strange struggle.

"You're not going to say it anymore? Then let me say it for you. The prosperity of Lateran is built on the monastery."

"You can live a comfortable life at the cost of exploiting others. It's an equal exchange and there's nothing to be ashamed of." Zhuang Ning murmured.

"Enough, what does that have to do with us!"

"You think it's okay?" Zhuang Ning was silent for a moment, and then became even more distorted. "Really?"

"Shut up!"

"Just think of it as my bad taste." Zhuang Ning turned his head and looked at the Archangel who walked in the door. "Lemiaoan, can you say the same thing to your sister?"

"elder sister."

"Ale." Pain flashed in Lemiao's eyes.

"I can let you go. After all, I am kind-hearted and don't like killing. Everything is inevitable."

"You can return to Lateran, or flee to another place. I leave the choice to you."

Zhuang Ning said calmly, "Fiammetta, I can tell you that on December 12, I will launch an attack on the Lateran. You can convey this matter to the Pope."

Zhuang Ning turned his head and said, "And you, Lemiaoan, if Angel Nervous wants to follow you, I don't mind."

"I'll say it again. On the 24th, which is about ten days from now, I will destroy the Holy City and your God in the most brutal way possible."

Remian seemed not to hear and grabbed the sleeve of the Angel of Exorcism: "Ale, follow me!"

The Archangel did move for a moment.

But it was only for a moment, then she shook her head and stopped talking.

"why?"

"You wouldn't understand, sister."

Remnant was almost speechless because of the absurdity and felt powerless.

She asked again, "Why?"

"I swear to the Doctor on my gun that I will protect him forever."

That was a Sakta oath that could never be easily defiled.

Remian fell to the ground, gasping for breath, in disbelief. Fiammetta couldn't understand it either, but in the end, it was the person who came who crushed them.

The man was wearing a loose robe, holding a gospel, and had a kind face, like a saint.

He walked slowly, came gently in front of the doctor, and made a gesture to bless Zhuang Ning.

Zhuang Ning smiled and said, "Long time no see, Mr. Andorn."

"Yes, Doctor." The man... Andorn shook his head slightly. "I overheard everything that happened just now. I think your words were a bit extreme, but I don't deny it."

Andorn, once the captain of Lemion and Fiametta Mostima, longed to bring salvation to the entire earth and to every race, rather than just saving the Sakata race alone.

For this, he could even betray Lateran, throw himself into the thorny jungle, holding a torch and clearing a path!

"Why are you here?" Fiammetta trembled, raising the gun to point at Andorn's head, "Why are you here?!"

Andorn ignored Fiammetta and said softly, "Thank you for not killing them."

"It's just a piece of cake. I asked them to stay until today just to wait for you." Zhuang Ning's tone became more serious. "I'm a little surprised that you don't mind my killing of the monastery."

"When I saw the truth about the law, my heart collapsed for a time. I thought salvation was impossible. It was you who made me wake up."

Andorn spread out the classics, "He who steals a hook is a thief, but he who steals a kingdom can be a king."

"As long as the saints are alive, the thieves will not stop. Lateran, the saint, must be defeated - that's why I came here."

"The doctor is crazy, and you are crazy too!" Fiammetta roared with fear, "The doctor wants to destroy Lateran, but do you want to do the same? Andoen, the Pope once trusted you so much, and we trusted you so much, but now, you want to destroy your homeland!"

"This is the price." Andorn lowered his eyes, "This is the path I chose, Fiammetta."

"Do you believe what this person said? Do you believe that if Lateran is gone, the world will become a better place and be redeemed?" Remian's tears welled up. "I should have shot you in the head with a gun at the World Summit."

There is what is called empathy between the Sakotas, and Lemiaoan can truly feel that his former captain, this tolerant, loving man who has longed for redemption all his life, is serious.

"You don't understand, Lemion, Fiammetta." Andorn's voice was as calm as the sea, with a strange charm, "The end of my years of seeking scriptures is in sight. I can pay any price."

"But." He hesitated again and turned to look at Zhuang Ning, "Can I ask you if you really want to destroy Lateran by violence?"

"Yes."

"With the power of one person."

"One person is enough." Zhuang Ning shook his head. "I have simulated it before. When I was still powerless, I also had a way to destroy Lateran."

"But that would take me two or three years. I would have to use all my words to convince those who want to change and wait for the right time."

"When I become the Demon King, all problems will no longer be problems. If I think something is wrong, I can use violence to eliminate it. Lateran is the best detonation point, Andoen, you know this better than me."

He was righteous and solemn like a bishop: "Just like in the scriptures, true salvation will come after the Day of Judgment, and I am the Judgment!"

Andorn's face was moved: "Since you have gained such power, why don't you get rid of Lateran as soon as possible, but instead give the Pope a chance to reorganize his forces and waste time on slaughtering minor evils?"

"Rutland means nothing to me. This is just a warning to others."

Zhuang Ning smiled, "I can't destroy Lateran too quickly. I have to undermine Lateran's prestige little by little, let the whole of Terra see a demon like me, let them realize that I am here to kill, let them be afraid of me, and then destroy me with all their strength!"

Andorn suddenly realized: "That's why you are going to eliminate these God's Houses one by one."

He smiled again: "But you think too badly of yourself, Doctor."

"Ok?"

This was quite novel. Zhuang Ning smiled and asked, "What do you mean?"

"I don't think I'm evil, I just can't tolerate evil. You're just like me, you can't stand the depravity of this world."