Recently, various branches of the Goddess Cult have suffered heavy blows.
The losses have been incredibly severe.
Consequently, the Goddess Cult's activities have become more restrained, and their movements have become more secretive.
However, it's no wonder they can't afford to be arrogant; the people who moved against them were simply too strong.
An Adventurer who appeared out of nowhere—'The Jet-Black Hero' Momon. This person foiled the Goddess Cult's plans and saved a city, single-handedly defeating a high-tier angel summoned by the Cult in the city center. He displayed immense strength and was subsequently promoted to Adamantite-rank by the Adventurers Guild. At the same time, the Goddess Cult has another incredibly powerful enemy—'The Empire's Peerless Sword Saint' Tsukasa Astrea. If the Jet-Black Hero is a powerhouse within the human realm, then this Sword Saint is a deity descended to earth. Once, three Bishops attacked the Sword Saint together, casting a Tenth-tier Summoning Spell to call forth the strongest angel seen to date, but that angel didn't even last a single strike before being insta-killed by the Sword Saint.
The three Bishops, who had sacrificed most of their power, suffered a massive psychological blow. Since then, no one from the Goddess Cult has dared to attack that Sword Saint. The Goddess Cult was even forced to abandon their former strongholds, and the cultists have all hidden their identities and gone into hiding.
Finally, there is an unknown knight.
This knight, clad in silver-white armor, possesses immense strength. Though not equal to the Sword Saint, he is still a formidable enemy the Goddess Cult cannot handle. His appearance is very similar to a certain heroic figure from the legends of the Thirteen Heroes.
There are also some evil Demon Gods and Vampire True Ancestors who have suddenly appeared to surround and attack the Goddess Cult.
For a time, the Goddess Cult became the enemy of the world.
One by one, powerhouses—some heard of and some not—emerged, and without exception, these powerhouses acted with the goal of targeting the Goddess Cult.
Even though the Goddess Cult was very arrogant at first, after these waves of massive losses, they finally stopped putting up a front and began moving their activities truly underground.
Normally, they no longer wear their cultist robes.
They have all begun living under assumed names.
While secretly plotting the destruction of the Kingdom, they have also learned how to hide the Aura of the Twilight.
On the road to the Kingdom's capital.
A black carriage traveled steadily toward the Royal Capital. The Astrea family crest was openly printed on the outside of the carriage as it moved boldly through the Kingdom's territory.
Nowadays, no one in this world dares to be disrespectful to the owner of this carriage; the Noble Faction would no longer seek death by testing the mettle of this Sword Saint as they did last time. Over these past few months, the Imperial Sword Saint has established an unparalleled reputation.
In that battle, the Goddess Cult summoned a high-tier angel that far surpassed a Demon God. The mere afterglow of that angel's mana was enough to cause massive destruction to the city, plunging people into despair. Yet, against such a god-like existence, this Sword Saint used only a single strike. Like severing heaven from earth, or night from dawn, her Spatial Slash technique cut through space and slew the angel. This was a deed witnessed by an entire city, its authenticity impossible to fake; thus, everyone on the continent has re-evaluated the strength of this Sword Saint.
At this moment, the guards of the Royal Capital reported the carriage's arrival the instant they saw it from afar and opened the city gates, not daring to show even the slightest negligence.
As for whether it was possible for someone else to be impersonating her, that was none of their business, and they didn't believe anyone would dare to impersonate the Sword Saint at a time like this.
The Sword Saint currently has a relationship of irreconcilable enmity with the Goddess Cult. If anyone dared to disguise themselves as the Sword Saint to spread rumors or swindle others, those lunatics from the Goddess Cult would likely be at their door immediately.
The Goddess Cult cannot defeat the real Sword Saint, but they wouldn't show any mercy when dealing with a fake. If someone truly dared to impersonate the Sword Saint now, one could only admire them as a truly ruthless person. After all, although the Goddess Cult has moved underground, their activities remain frequent, and news of cultists appearing in various cities is often heard.
However, they have also grown smarter, now acting individually to ensure their organization's location is never leaked. Furthermore, every cultist is capable of self-destruction and sacrifice; even sealing items cannot prevent them from using these two skills. It's impossible to even capture a cultist for interrogation. No one can understand why the people of the Goddess Cult have absolutely no fear of death.
Tsukasa opened the window and looked outside. The Royal Capital hadn't changed much since her last visit. She had heard news that the Goddess Cult had blown up the main gate of the Royal Capital, but it seemed that after some time, the gate had already been repaired.
The carriage had not been inside the city for long when it was stopped by an elite unit of soldiers galloping toward them.
The leader of the group was none other than the fully armed Warrior Chief. Because many Bishops were hidden within the Royal Capital and could attack the Kingdom's important figures at any time, the Warrior Chief, as the Kingdom's strongest combatant, now enjoyed much better treatment than before. In the past, the Noble Faction would never have allowed him to carry the Kingdom's treasures with him, even though those treasures could only reach their full potential in his hands.
"The one sitting in the carriage ahead must be Her Highness, the Imperial Sword Saint Astrea. I am the Kingdom's Warrior Chief, Gazef Stronoff. His Majesty the King requests your presence; please accompany me to the palace!"
When Hanta heard the Warrior Chief's words, he was about to turn back to ask for the Sword Saint's opinion when her voice, transmitted from inside the carriage via a voice-amplifying spell, rang out:
"No time. Move."
Tsukasa was no longer the novice she once was, no longer ignorant of this place. She now knew who the high-tier combatants of this world were and understood the Kingdom's situation. There was nothing in this country worth her attention; if it weren't for the Goddess Cult happening to be active here, she wouldn't have wanted to visit this terrible place again. After all, this country was being targeted by that Demon God Ainz Ooal Gown and the Theocracy, and since the Kingdom itself had no noteworthy figures or treasures, she naturally had no interest in meeting its King.
She had come to the Royal Capital this time because she had received an invitation from Ainz Ooal Gown to discuss the suppression of the Goddess Cult; she cared about nothing else.
The Sword Saint's voice fell undisguised upon everyone's ears, and some soldiers grew angry upon hearing it.
Gazef hadn't expected the Sword Saint to answer like that. In his impression, although the Sword Saint had a cold temperament, she wasn't a difficult person to get along with. When she had challenged him to a duel back then, she had even given him pointers on his swordsmanship at the end. However, it seemed the Sword Saint truly lacked goodwill toward their Kingdom; he also knew about the Noble Faction's attempt to test her. Thinking of this, he shook his head helplessly and gestured to his troops to make way.
"Sword Saint, if you need our strength"
"to help, please be sure to contact us. As soldiers of the Kingdom, we also wish to contribute our strength to the eradication of the Goddess Cult for the sake of this country."
Gazef said to the Sword Saint.
But the carriage simply rolled on quietly.
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