The Erratum-Chapter 54: Darkness Within.

The candle bent, turning to a perfect 90 degree angle, casting down the burning wax below.

Cetas jolted back, his eyes widening upon the sight of such familiarity.

Prophet of Perfection! Is she here?!

He looked around, noticing the intricate designs of the church. Filled with 8 marble pillars, a mural at the ceiling, and sculptures around, Cetas didn’t seem to have seen any signs of the Prophet.

Except for the bent candle that is..

Vigilant, Cetas naturally brought the Ivory Flintlock out and held it with a firm grip in his right hand.

If anything were to arise from the darkness, he would be ready!

The polished wooden seats with reclined cushions below, layered all throughout the cathedral. Cetas couldn’t see beneath them so he traversed through the sides and checked one by one.

After going through the entirety of the cathedral’s seats, Cetas determined that there were no signs of danger beneath the seats.

Looking at the doors to exit the cathedral, Cetas proceeded to walk towards it.

Now having reached halfway, an eminent creaking echoed from behind the closed doors.

Tilting slightly, the entrances to the cathedral opened, revealing a dim light illuminated by an orange lamp.

Cetas ducked and kneeled, hiding behind the polished chairs while keeping hold of his flintlock.

Two individuals emerged from within the doors, both wearing similar outfits as those of the members of the church.

What was different though, is the insignias on their chest. One possessed a full-gold insignia with a symbol resembling that of the Helios Church, while the other wore one with a golden and silver gradient - the gold overpowering the silver greatly.

The steps produced by their leather boots echoed around the cathedral, resounding continuous taps as they walked towards the altar in front.

The two seemingly in deep conversation, Cetas silently eavesdrop while hiding behind the seats.

"But sire, if we discontinue the crusades, belief for the God of Power will surely plummet!" The one with a gold and silver gradient spoke with persuasion in his tone.

Naturally, the other individual let out a husky voice, one belonging to that of an old man, "These crusades do no good for the people. We are merely masking genocide for the sake of the religion! We are humans, not Dreadspawns!"

"But, sire! It is the order of the king to conquer the entire continent!"

"Tell him to consume cow dung!" The old man’s voice resounded in the cathedral.

Glaring at his ’subordinate’, he walked forward and increased his pace.

"If the king decrees to commit mass genocide to the poor people of the continent then I object! I, as the Cardinal of the East, do not subject myself to such.. cruelties!"

He waved his hand in the air with intensified prowess, pushing out the winds with this gesture.

"Tell him that yourself, your majesty, the Prince."

Bewildered by this, the ’Prince’ stopped in his track and went dead silent. After a few seconds, his tone became eerie.

"That is quite unfortunate.. I wanted to be just yet it seems that my machinations are to be ruined by you.."

"Amunra.."

The ’Prince’ changed in appearance, turning into a more dignified and royal individual. A cane appeared on his hand, adorned with its full golden splendor.

The Prince’s golden hair became longer, more silkier. His face changed into that of a man with a distinct youthly appearance.

Then, he addressed the Cardinal, gazing deep within his eyes with contempt hidden beneath it.

"Cardinal.. Kneel before your king."

"I refuse!" The Cardinal shook his head and walked away from the king.

Just then, the Cardinal fell down to the marble floor, his legs vanishing in an instant. With legs replaced by spurting blood, the Cardinal maintained his glare towards the King, gazing at him with utmost hatred.

"The search for power has corrupted you! Your mind has been engraved with the very things that you stood against! The ideas and beliefs that you had, was it all for naught?! Tell me!"

The king chuckled, echoing around the cathedral. Then, it turned into a hysterical laugh as his body started to shake and convulse.

Trying to hold himself back, the King wiped a tear from his eyes and faced the Cardinal, "In this world, only three things hold the utmost importance: Divinity, Knowledge, and.. Power. As Zealots, we are naturally inclined to seek these higher planes of concepts. We start with three Origins, and we end with three Paths."

"Although it is said that Zealots only pave the way for the will of the world to aid them, it is the WILL of the world that sends them into a path lying beneath these three."

The King kneeled down, staring directly at the Cardinal’s glaring eyes.

"And I am naturally inclined to follow this Path. For I am a piece in this world, one that seeks to govern its entire Power. You know what that means?"

"Curse.. you.. krnghk!"

The King clapped, his face showing clear amusement, "It’s clear that you understand already.. That’s right, all of these are inevitable."

With his arms extended towards the Cardinal, a beaming incandescent shot out from his palms, incinerating the Cardinal in a second. Covering his nose, the King stood up and shook his head.

"Ah! That stench.. unbearable!"

Gazing in the direction to the left, the King outwardly let out his thoughts, "You! Don’t think that your presence is masked."

Cetas felt his heart beat ever-so strongly than before. A creeping vision enveloped him, rooting his muscles in place.

Cetas didn’t have a clear sight of the King’s whereabouts but as the taps of his boots became louder, Cetas’ heart trembled even more.

He needed to get out! But meeting upon the presence of such an individual, Cetas couldn’t help but be stunned in place.

After a moment, the King made his way in front of him. However, he looked perplexed.

"Nothing? I must be imagining things, no that can’t be right. Me? Imagining things?"

He shook his head, gazing down at the presence beneath his feet.

"A mere Spark? How bold. Well then," the King extended his palms and emanated a burling flame towards the presence below him.

All of a sudden, Cetas’ sight shifted, the world around him spinned and changed accordingly.

His eyes gradually adjusted to the light, and eventually, he found himself in the cathedral once more.

Now, though, he was sitting next to Elishia, who had a concerned look on her face.

"You.. spaced out? What happened?"

"I.." Cetas massaged his temples, earnestly trying to recall what had just happened.

Turning his head to the right, he noticed that the black-clad lady was gone. Naturally, he asked Elishia:

"Where did the lady go?"

Looking confused Elishia tilted her head to the side, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

"What lady?"

*

Leaving the cathedral, Cetas and Elishia looked casual, looking as if they were normal civilians who had finished the sermon inside.

Additionally, Cetas told her that they need not enter one of the confession rooms as he had a bad feeling.

Understanding this, Elishia agreed and left the cathedral together with him.

Everything looked illusory to Cetas.

The trees beyond, the details of the cathedral, people walking side by side, the pavement lining up with the road, the fences, the sun striking up above..

Everything seemed... perfect. Almost to the point that it was weird.

"I feel dizzy."

Elishia turned to him and placed her palm to his forehead, "You’re heating up. Let’s go back to the fifth layer quickly, alright?"

Cetas nodded.

As such, Elishia held his right hand, leading him towards the descent to the fifth layer.

It didn’t take long as the stairs leading downward weren’t that far to the cathedral. Still, descending down proved to be quite a hurdle.

Each step made Cetas’ head spiral, his head felt wobbly and.. liquid.

People making their way up had aligning footsteps, each of them taking a step at a specific interval. Additionally, their upper bodies stood upright. Their eyes leaned upwards, and their hands perfectly sat on the sides.

Everyone looked the same to Cetas, with the only distinguishing factors being clothing.

Elishia, too, looked similar.

Cetas couldn’t see her gaze but it seemed that her entire body looked the same as the people around them.

A beating sound echoed in Cetas’ eardrums, getting louder by the second with each step that he took.

Upon shaking his head to release the nauseating feeling, Cetas felt his heart palpitate rapidly.

He took his right hand and grabbed onto his left chest, gritting his teeth with extreme force.

Then, with his knees failing to work, Cetas began to feel sluggish. However, Elishia never stopped descending down the stairs and instead dragged Cetas even with his weakened knees.

Cetas opened his mouth, letting out a faint voice that echoed throughout his ears.

Or so he believed..

No sound ever protruded out of Cetas’ mouth. Only a trivial struggle that made his efforts all the more futile.

As the footsteps around him resounded, Cetas’ heart beat matched that of the people in the surroundings.

With each of their steps, Cetas’ could feel his insides pulsate.

Tap! Bam! Tap! Bam!

The noise became louder, screaming at him towards oblivion.

Cetas let go of Elishia’ hand and covered his ears. He kneeled down and curled up into a ball, cradling himself while listening to the heavy footsteps around him.

He blinked, feeling the heaviness of his eyelids took every ounce of his energy.

Then, as if something swelled inside Cetas’ stomach, he felt a blockade in his throat. Something rose from inside him, making Cetas gag and spit out saliva.

He closed his eyes, seeing everything devoid of light. Cetas breathed deep and controlled his mind.

He gradually became calm as he made deep breaths every 2 seconds, the pulsation in his ears stopped and the sounds of footsteps matching with his heart beat misaligned.

Cetas tapped into his Zeal, making it flow towards his mind and activating Sands of History.

Then, the grains of sand emerged from the darkness and matched the surroundings around him.

An olden wooden room filled with homely ornaments such as a lamp, desk, and etc.

Cetas was facing upwards to a ceiling made out of sand, he laid upon a soft bed and felt a sinking feeling below his body.

Upon opening his eyes, Cetas noticed that he was in a familiar room.

It looked similar to Skadi’s room in the inn - Room 301.

He shifted his gaze to the door, which was wide open and occupied by an auburn-haired girl.

"Rise and shine! It’s morning!"

Cetas sat up and rubbed his eyes. He felt the sense of reality once more, as if he had now been intact with it again.

Opening his mouth, he let out a soft voice, "Huh, weren’t we just at the cathedral?"

Elishia tilted her head to the side, the strands of her hair following alongside it.

"Cathedral? What do you mean?"

"The cathedral at the fourth layer.."

Elishia walked forward, confused about Cetas’ odd words. Then, she burst out to laughter, holding her stomach firmly.

"Hahaha! You silly, that was 5 days ago!"