Chapter 117 : Chapter 117

Chapter 117. Underflow

Eugene’s sudden action startled Torus, but his firmness ended the confusion that had plagued Torus for half the day.

It was as if he had finally found a backbone. Torus spoke, "But Priest Eugene... those people are quite powerful, and they are numerous. With just the guards and priests, we may not be able to stand up to them."

This was the core of Torus's confusion. Not only were their numbers overwhelming, but in terms of raw strength, they were also outmatched, especially with the priests having disappeared.

Yet Eugene’s calm face broke into a faint smile as he replied, "Who says our strength is limited to just the guards and priests? What about the civilians?"

Every month, Monsa City granted divine water to those who showed exceptional merit, and this practice had expanded the crowd of drinkers.

However, in the past ten years, no new priests had been added to the ranks. This was not just because the High Priests had purged those who met the standards, but also because the priesthood sought to keep their positions scarce.

Even commoners who had made significant contributions had not been granted the opportunity to become priests.

If it weren’t for the High Priests adhering strictly to the will of the gods in distributing the divine water, the priests would have monopolized it, making it a family business.

Still, even now, the priests held considerable sway over many positions, including the guards.

Nearly everyone in the guard was related to a priest by blood, and without such a connection, you were unlikely to join the guard. You’d be forced to farm or deal with minor monsters instead.

Of course, if your strength reached the level of Luca, the guard captain, the priests had no choice but to accept you into the ranks, but how many had such strength?

As a result, many who drank the divine water were relegated back to their farms or businesses.

At this point, Eugene thought of those civilians who had been excluded. They lacked any influential backgrounds and thus found themselves without positions after drinking the divine water.

Now, with the guards halved and almost every priest injured, Eugene knew it was time to rely on those civilians.

And the "punished by the gods" were nothing but a group of lowly individuals— not even Eugene’s group of priests, let alone the civilians, would respect them.

"Don’t think that just because you’ve taken over here, you can become the masters of Monsa City..." Eugene murmured to himself, then thought, how much better it would be if the three High Priests were still here. If they were still around, these people wouldn't dare act so recklessly.

The High Priests and High Priest Rune had long since disappeared, something Eugene already knew.

But what about High Priest Angmar? He must have also disappeared for some unknown reason. Otherwise, with Angmar’s power, how could these lowly people have taken the temple?

Eugene gently stroked his cane, a fire igniting within him. The last time he had felt such excitement was sixteen years ago, when he was only forty-five.

---

As Fran finished arranging her matters and was about to check on what the "half-dragons" were doing, she heard the sounds of a fierce confrontation.

"You monsters, neither human nor beast, how dare you be inside this temple!"

"Get out of the temple, you monsters!"

Fran looked over and saw a few of her half-dragons confronting more than twenty people.

From their clothes, it was clear they were neither priests nor guards, just regular civilians.

Fran scratched her head. Didn’t she tell her subordinates to call all the civilians over? She had intended to "educate" them at sunset.

She noticed some of the priests’ servants nearby, watching the scene. Frowning, Fran walked over.

Xavier was one of the civilians hurling insults at the half-dragons.

He had long been aware of the situation at the temple—a group of "god-punished" people claimed to have received divine forgiveness, drank the divine water, and stormed the temple, killing numerous guards and priests.

The bloody incident was so terrifying that many residents had fled into their homes, too scared to come out.

When the half-dragons, still covered in blood, arrived to tell the residents to gather at the temple square for the god’s messenger’s announcement, most avoided them. But Xavier eagerly agreed.

He had heard the full story from a priest’s servant. After some quick analysis, he realized that while the half-dragons were strong, they weren’t insurmountable.

Their physical strength was only slightly superior to those who had drunk the divine water.

Though their bodies were enhanced by various beastly traits, giving them superior combat abilities, the number of half-dragons was still fairly limited—around a hundred, based on the servant’s description.

In comparison, there were over two hundred civilians in the area who had drunk the divine water, not including those working elsewhere in Monsa.

After quickly assessing the situation, Xavier's ambition grew. Since drinking the divine water, he had envied the priests' way of life—no work, just praying to the gods daily while enjoying good living conditions and having servants.

This was an opportunity, and it was his first idea after learning the full details.

So, he quickly gathered friends and family, assembling a group of more than twenty people before sunset to make a move.

From the start, he had not been subtle, directly clashing with the half-dragons. After all, with so many people, why should he be afraid?

And not just his immediate group—his family and friends were also his support.

With this united strength, Xavier was confident he could seize some power from the god’s messenger who had gathered them.

Just as a real physical conflict seemed imminent, he saw a person wearing unusual robes approaching.

As Fran walked up, the half-dragons, ready to strike, immediately lowered their claws and turned to greet her.

"What’s going on?" Fran asked.

"They’re the ones causing trouble," one of the half-dragons replied.

Fran turned to Xavier and asked, "You’re the ones causing trouble?"

"We’re not... We’re just asking if it’s really appropriate to kill so many people," Xavier said with a smile, his eyes locking onto Fran’s.

He had heard that the god’s messenger always wore a gray-yellow robe, not the one before him, which had many decorative patterns and white sections.

"Is this how the god’s messenger’s confidant dresses?" While still speculating about Fran’s identity, Xavier suddenly felt the ground beneath him tilt, and his world began to spin.

Finally, his vision plummeted, and he found himself looking directly at the ground at a 90-degree angle.

"What happened?" That was his last thought, and as he tried to open his eyes to see what was going on, it was the final movement of his life.