vncnus Chapter 238 Stopping Decadence
Chapter 238 Stopping Decadence
Chapter 238 Stopping Decadence
"I want to talk to you."
Margaret stood in front of Kendrick and said this.
Kendrick paused for a moment upon hearing this request.
Then he turned his head and looked at the riders in the room.
Kendrick said, "I'm sorry, I have to stay at my post."
Margaret continued to plead, "Please, just for a little while!"
Looking at Margaret's helpless expression, Kendrick recalled the time he had spent with her during this period.
Unlike the other women Kendrick encountered in his life, Margaret did not openly express her dislike for Kendrick; in fact, she was even willing to have some physical contact with him.
Of course, Kendrick knew very well that it was most likely because he had once saved the nun, and because Margaret had temporarily set aside her personal emotions for the sake of the mission.
After all, she is such a serious person, so she kept forcing herself to put up with Kendrick.
Despite this, Kendrick was still very grateful to her.
Kendrick couldn't refuse Margaret's not unreasonable request.
He looked at the other knights again.
If Bishop Felix is right, then these knights must each serve their own master.
Even if Kendrick is temporarily away, they should be able to keep an eye on each other.
Unless, they conspired together and secretly did something behind Kendrick's back.
Kendrick, however, thought this was unlikely, because he represented Felix.
After observing Felix for several days, he concluded that Felix was not being ostracized by other members of the Vatican.
Felix's Dewdrop Cult was not a heretical sect, unlike the First Birth Cult, which was besieged and suppressed by other sects.
After weighing the options, Kendrick finally nodded to Margaret:
"Where should we talk?"
A look of relief immediately appeared on Margaret's face as she said to Kendrick:
"Come with me."
Then, Margaret pushed the cart out of the room.
After Margaret returned the car, she took Kendrick to a storage room.
As soon as Margaret closed the door, Kendrick asked:
"Sister Margaret, what are you doing here?"
"I used my connections."
"Relationship?"
Margaret nodded: "The night before I left, Bishop Simpson gave me a lot of instructions and mentioned that if any unexpected events occurred, I should find someone to help me."
"You went to see that person?"
"Yes, I was able to find you last time through his connections."
It seems that the person Margaret mentioned must have some influence in the Holy City.
They could both know Kendrick's movements and arrange for Margaret to enter the Papacy.
Even Kendrick himself only learned about his current mission this morning.
However, since Margaret was unwilling to mention the other party's name, it meant that this was inside information that only members of the Firstborn Cult were qualified to know, so Kendrick did not ask any further questions.
"So, Sister Margaret, what exactly do you want to tell me?"
“I’m here to remind you,” Margaret said, “that you’ve been deceived by Felix, and that you are still being used by him right now.”
As expected, Kendrick thought to himself, "She's just spouting useless nonsense."
"He didn't lie to me; I'm sure I'm perfectly lucid right now."
"Any bishop is good at preaching. They can skillfully use language to distort the listener's thinking little by little without the latter noticing it at all."
"Besides, Felix is a patriarch, and without a firm faith, one can easily be deceived and manipulated by him."
“That’s not a lie,” Kendrick said. “You don’t know me, so you wouldn’t know how much he actually helped me.”
"I don't understand?" Margaret's tone was full of surprise. "Since we met, I've been with you day and night. We even stayed in the same hotel for a long time. How can you say you don't understand yourself?"
"That's because you were too careless," Kendrick said. "If I had just thought about it for a moment, I would have realized that my disguise was full of flaws."
"camouflage?"
Hearing Margaret's question, Kendrick sighed.
Should I reveal my true self to this nun?
Perhaps this is an opportunity so that Margaret will no longer have any expectations of him.
Perhaps it's a good thing for both of them to sever all ties.
So Kendrick began to speak:
"Sister Margaret, you should be more careful. It's far too dangerous to keep a bloodthirsty beast by your side. At the very least, you should have discovered the twisted faces behind those masks as soon as possible."
Margaret's expression turned serious: "What exactly are you trying to say?"
Kendrick replied, "I'm actually a—hopeless psychopath."
"ha?"
Even though he had mentally prepared himself, Kendrick remained silent for a long time without uttering a single word.
When he revealed his innermost thoughts to Mr. Mosley and Bishop Felix, he did not hesitate at all.
He even experienced an extreme sense of relaxation.
He probably knew that the other person would understand him.
He couldn't predict Margaret's attitude, which could also be because Margaret was a woman.
Kendrick rarely interacted with women in his life; apart from prostitutes, no one was willing to talk to him with a smile.
He gathered his thoughts and then said to Margaret:
"Sister Margaret, you are now riddled with flaws."
"flaw?"
"That's right, I've seen countless ways to kill you."
Margaret's face turned ashen: "This joke isn't funny."
Kendrick replied, "This is no joke. I have the ability to see your weaknesses and to see myself shattering them."
Margaret paused for a moment before saying:
"I see—that's truly incredible."
"But you don't know, I used to call those images beautiful art."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't you understand? I crave blood and killing," Kendrick said. "I was just twenty when I first killed someone, at the Herald Academy, but that first killing was still stimulating my brain until a month ago."
"Since then, I have killed countless people. I am a deranged serial killer, not for hatred or profit, but simply for pleasure."
After hearing Kendrick's description, Margaret was completely stunned. After a long while, she finally said:
Why are you making up such a ridiculous excuse to fob me off?
"See, you really can't understand me," Kendrick sighed. "Well—Sister Margaret,
This is no excuse!
"Everything I'm telling you is true. I crave killing, even you. During the time I've spent with you, I've been looking for your weaknesses every day, and I've fantasized countless times about killing you while you're still beautiful."
Having said that, Margaret took a step back:
"You mean you want to kill me?"
"That's right."
"So, the night you saved me, you said you wanted to kill me. Was that not a dark joke, but your true inner desire?!"
"Exactly."
After hearing this, Margaret was completely stunned.
Kendrick waited for her to catch her breath before speaking:
"So, Miss Margaret, now you know what I really am, something you never knew before."
"And my promise to help your Firstborn Cult was not because I was persuaded by Simpson, nor was it out of any good intentions."
"It's because my other identity is that of an assassin. I came to the Duchy of the Holy Envoy to kill Felix. I'm using you."
"But if that's the case, why do you do all those good deeds? You donate money, you help the weak, and you saved me—isn't that a manifestation of your kindness? Or is all of that just an act?"
Upon hearing this, Kendrick thought for a moment, and then:
"Probably not—I'm a cowardly person, so I sympathize with the weak and am willing to lend a helping hand to others. Those are probably my instinctive actions, not something I can act out."
"Finally, I've heard something 'good'," Margaret said with a helpless smile. "But if you came here to kill Felix, why are you now working for him?"
"Because Lord Felix healed me."
"rule?"
"That's right!"
Kendrick nodded, his face beaming with joy. His eyes and tone were filled with devotion. "The person I just told you about was the person I used to be. The master healed me, and that bloodlust has been removed from my mind. I am different now!"
"And the way he healed me was by helping me understand the truth. The teachings of the Dewdrop Church are the true teachings of God, and they are the truth of the world."
"So, Sister Margaret, you see, I wasn't deceived; I truly benefited because of Lord Felix!"
Margaret looked at Kendrick suspiciously, and after a long while, she spoke again:
"What did he say to you?"
"He told me that I wasn't addicted to killing, but rather to loneliness."
"Lonely?"
"Yes, you don't know my past. I grew up in cold stares and exclusion. No one wanted to be with me, so I lived alone for decades."
"Lord Felix told me that I did not crave killing, but rather the relief of loneliness. I have received almost no attention in my life."
"Only by killing others can I gain their attention. Lord Felix told me that he was willing to be the eyes that connect with me, so that I would not be alone, and naturally I would not need to kill anyone."
"Your Excellency is undoubtedly right. Over the past month, my murderous urges have rapidly faded, and I have overcome that problem!"
"But he's still using you," Margaret retorted immediately. "He's making you kill for him!"
Kendrick was startled; he hadn't expected Margaret to know even this.
The powerful figure behind Margaret seems to have extraordinary connections!
"This is a necessary action for the sect!"
"Necessary action? Humph!" Margaret sneered. "In the doctrines of all sects, killing is a grave sin. As a sect leader and a patriarch, the fact that he teaches you to do such a thing shows that his heart is extremely evil."
"Sacrifice is inevitable," Kendrick said. "To save more people like me, a small number of people need to be sacrificed."
"Saved?" Margaret said. "You're saying he saved you? Didn't I realize at all?"
Kendrick frowned upon hearing this:
"What do you mean?"
"The person I sought help from told me that Felix would bestow upon his trusted confidants a condensed liquid called 'Holy Dew.' I suppose he gave it to you as well."
Kendrick immediately tensed up: "What do you mean?"
"That holy dew is not the sacred item he claimed could purify people's souls, but a highly concentrated alchemical potion."
"An alchemical elixir?"
"Yes, it's said that its function is to refine one's soul."
Margaret explained,
"Once you take it, your soul becomes calm and compliant. Felix made you take this alchemical elixir to control you."
"So, you understand now, right? He's been using you from the very beginning!"
Upon hearing this, Kendrick felt a surge of intense frustration.
So, it was all a lie after all?
There was no truth, no loneliness; what suppressed his murderous impulse was alchemical drugs.
However—clearly, this isn't a good approach.
But perhaps it's not so bad.
"Aren't you all using me too?"
Kendrick stared at the floor and muttered, "Use it if you want. At least my soul feels much lighter now."
Margaret shook her head repeatedly:
"But all alchemical drugs have side effects, and these side effects are often uncontrollable. However, this particular drug, in addition to its uncontrollable side effects, has an additional, fixed side effect—long-term use can cause dementia!"
But Kendrick remained unmoved.
He had long felt hopeless about his life, and he hated his sinful past.
Even if this is his end, he feels he deserves it.
Moreover, in Kendrick's view, this was undoubtedly not a too bad outcome.
He said dejectedly, "If that's really the case, then I'll accept my fate."
"Give up? Are you just going to give up like this?!"
Kendrick looked up at her; she had a huffy expression on her face.
"Sister Margaret, I'm sorry, I now know the truth, and I know that I have no way to repay you for everything you have done. But you have no idea how much I have been tormented by that bloodlust."
"So even though I knew it was an alchemical drug, and even though I understood that I would eventually be harmed by it, it was the best path for me."
"No, not the last one!"
"?"
"Felix is the worst bishop I've ever met; his very existence has tainted the entire Papacy. But there's one thing I think he's right about: you are indeed just too lonely, but clearly, Felix never intended to cure your loneliness in the first place."
Kendrick smiled sadly and shook his head:
"I am a despised and sinful person, and no one is willing to heal my loneliness."
No, not everyone.
Upon hearing this, Kendrick suddenly looked up at Margaret.
At this moment, Margaret held the cross necklace tightly in both hands.
It seems she really likes it.
Kendrick asked:
"Who?"
Margaret looked him straight in the eyes!
"I!"
"Hmm—. Don't pity me, I have nothing—"
Kendrick was interrupted halfway through his sentence.
He stared in astonishment, unable to believe what was happening.
Margaret's white eyelids were almost within reach.
With her soft lips, she silenced the dejected words that were about to escape his lips.