Hyarum, the Holy Church's homeland.
One of humanity's greatest strongholds.
For aeons, it had stood as an unyielding bastion against every threat to mankind—demons, false gods, and the countless horrors that lurked beyond the veil.
It was more than a fortress; it was a sanctuary.
A refuge for the displaced, a beacon of order in a fractured world. Within its gilded halls, history was not only preserved but revered. Guided by the Pope and upheld by the unwavering faith of its followers, the Holy Church of the Goddess Hyades represented the pinnacle of human virtue—the purest, most righteous society humanity had ever known.
And yet… within those very halls, something had broken.
A schism—no, a desecration—had taken root.
Sir Arthur Pagiel, Head Paladin of the Church's sacred order, knelt upon the cold marble floor. His arms trembled uncontrollably, his knees threatening to give way beneath him.
And still, he did not rise.
