Volume 1 Chapter 665

Chapter 665: Original Soup Turns to Original Food

Everyone present, including the cultists, wore expressions of utter bewilderment at the unfolding situation.

Yet this did not signify the conclusion of the "anomaly" that began with the lead cultist’s collapse.

Rather, it marked only the commencement.

Like some invisible plague, the remaining perplexed cultists began collapsing one after another beneath the stormy night’s deluge.

Without the slightest warning—one moment their faces bore looks of confusion as they exchanged uneasy glances with comrades, the next…

Their vitality extinguished completely, bodies plunging into rainwater-choked depressions without so much as a final gasp.

The contagion spread with terrifying swiftness. Within mere dozen heartbeats…

Not a single cultist remained standing amidst the downpour.

The final few attempted to envelop their souls with spells and the Power of the Evil God, desperately mouthing prayers to their dark patron…

Yet before their incantations could take form, before the unholy energies could coalesce, they too succumbed to an eerie unconsciousness hurtling toward swift demise.

It was as though Death’s very essence had materialized to dance through their ranks.

Lalea and the young sorceress exchanged startled glances.

They scanned the rain-drenched surroundings, arcane senses probing for the source of this phenomenon…

Only to detect the faintest wisp of dissipating energy—an impossibly refined aura bearing both magical and divine signatures.

Desolate and crumbling, it resonated with death’s primordial nature.

One might imagine some deity descending in wrath, or a high priest wielding mortality’s scythe to harvest these tainted souls.

Kanor observed their tension with calm amusement, casually flicking moisture from her sleeves.

Thanks to Lalea’s preemptive water-repelling charm, the downpour left the trio utterly untouched.

"Peace, both of you… This was my doing."

Lalea’s eye twitched at the declaration.

"Your doing?!"

Yet she’d witnessed no activation of the girl’s signature artifact—that mercurial silver device responsible for most bewildering feats.

To her knowledge, that alchemical marvel constituted Kanor’s primary weapon and ultimate safeguard.

How could such devastation occur without its manifestation? Worse still—where were the telltale ripples of spellcraft?

The sorceress mirrored this bewilderment. Though less acquainted with Kanor’s capabilities than Lalea, the implications chilled her:

A dozen lives extinguished through means leaving neither magical residue nor perceptible trace…

Such power defied all reason and mortal comprehension.

"What… kind of technique is this?"

The young sorceress couldn’t help but murmur to herself.

Kanor pursed her lips in response.

"Now now, you two—no need to stare at me like I’m some monster…"

"Especially you, Sister Lalea… Is it really so strange that I can borrow a fragment of ‘Death’s’ own power?"

"Though you didn’t witness the conclusion, you should at least understand I’ve had my share of ‘extraordinary encounters.’"

At these words, Lalea suddenly remembered the death-saturated Divine Kingdom they’d experienced together after the Bennett Manor incident not long ago.

"That much I grasp… Wait, that still doesn’t explain it! Did you learn to wield the ‘Death Authority’ there?!"

"And in such a short time… You’re already applying it in actual combat!"

Lalea was once again struck by the little girl’s monstrous talent.

The mage girl felt an icy dread crawl down her spine at the mention of "Death Authority."

There was no reason for these two to lie—their words must be truth.

Yet understanding the "mechanism" only deepened her terror rather than easing it.

The proper term for "Authority" should be "Divine Right"…

This girl, at mere Superlative Level rank, had touched the domain of deities!!!

Moreover, it was the formidable and dreadful "Death Authority" itself!

Kanor didn’t elaborate further, simply offering an enigmatic smile and shake of her head.

Having obtained the "Crown of the Forgotten," her comprehension of Death stood unparalleled in this world.

Though she’d later relinquished both crown and control of the Death Divine Kingdom to the Necromancer Queen—the former hero, her master’s sister-in-law Trish Diana—

The insights and knowledge she’d gained remained hers regardless of ownership.

Until Trish Diana fully assimilated and commanded the Death Authority, Kanor could still invoke certain death-related concepts.

Given their amicable agreements, even when the former hero inexplicably styled herself like some eldritch deity…

Kanor suspected future divine ascension wouldn’t hinder borrowing privileges—perhaps even serving as Death’s chosen or pontiff if desired.

But such revelations would overwhelm Lalea and the mage girl.

Not even Master Lolth received such full disclosure.

Though Lalea grasped the "how," she still…

The "why" eluded her.

"Why?"

She stared at the cultist corpses, perplexed.

"They’re heretics deserving death… Eliminating them serves the common good."

At Kanor’s casual explanation, Lalea found herself tongue-tied.

"I understand that, but why now? The ritual’s incomplete, isn’t it?"

Had Kanor wished to stop the ceremony, she would’ve acted sooner.

Clearly, she wanted the ritual completed to escalate Holy Capital’s chaos.

Kanor chuckled at this.

"It still needs finishing touches… which I intend to modify personally."

"Step back, both of you."

She lifted the rain-soaked idol of darkness, its surface gleaming without supplication.

"For an evil god, devotees make finer offerings… In culinary terms, we might call this—"

The cultists’ corpses began radiating matching luminescence.

Above them, an alternate plane’s portal yawned open.

"Original broth to digest the meal!"