As a dramatic change occurred in the elemental power within Felix, death knight Reinhardt, who was meditating atop an ice dragon, suddenly trembled. Slowly opening his eyes, he looked toward the heart of the imperial city, his eyes shimmering with a deep blue light, swirling with strange colors.

"What's wrong?" The banshee nestled beside him woke up, looking up at the handsome profile of the death knight.

Spending nights together, nestled against each other on the mountaintop, waiting for the first light of dawn, had become their most frequent activity over the past twenty years. In the world of the undead, where perpetual clouds obscured the sun, only at noon could a glimmer of light be seen in the sky. For the undead, that was their sunrise.

"The bait has slipped off the hook," the death knight said, turning his head, his blue eyes gazing affectionately at the woman beside him.

This woman, not famed for her beauty, had died and lived again for him. He could never forget the time she accompanied him in waiting for the light, smiling and saying it was the most beautiful light in the world.

Although he smiled, his heart ached sharply, more than even a Saturnian sword piercing his heart.

The death knight raised his hand to caress the woman's face, yet hesitated, fearing to disturb her fragile form.

He had vowed to bring her sunlight, for it was the essence of his soul, a commitment he would never abandon – a knight's creed, and the creed of the undead.

He believed that the runaway fish would return, remembering that the crazed vampire was the most fiercely protective woman in the world.

The sweeping energy storm affected many, alerting the holy priests cleansing the plague.

When Felix awoke, he found himself surrounded by an excited crowd. The miraculously healed victims knelt around him, praising "My Lord" for his mercy and expressing their gratitude. It began with one, then all knelt, devoutly and fervently chanting – "Saint!"

The miraculous scene, with the last traces of green light absorbing into Felix's body, took away the plague from the people and brought him glory and faith.

It was an era ripe for belief, like the Gamma priests willingly giving their souls to the Shadow Queen Christie.

If not for a reverent fear of sacred rituals, those fanatical victims would have rushed to kiss his feet.

"What's going on?" Two holy priests dispersed the crowd and hurried over, their gazes at Felix tinged with hostility.

The middle-aged nun quickly arrived, protectively positioning Felix behind her, then coldly confronted the two priests, creating a standoff.

Only one in history was called "Saint" – the God of Light, Iyeta.

The half-angelic beings created by the Sacred Affairs Department, although also called "Saints," were reviled by the faithful.

According to the Sacred Affairs Department's decree, any being attempting to rival Saint Iyeta was heretical.

The atmosphere grew tense. Although the Religious Tribunal and the Sacred Affairs Department were historically at odds, involving the weighty term "Saint" complicated matters.

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"I seem to be able to absorb the plague," Felix said, inadvertently clenching his right hand within his black cloak.

He looked up at the cold-eyed nun, then, as if leading her thoughts, mused, "What he bestowed upon us isn't just the power of frost."

The nun, pondering, furrowed her brows. She too had doubts, as even the holy priests hesitated before the Power of Pestilence. However, she and her knightly attendants seemed immune to these strange powers, either assimilating them with their ice powers or repelling them entirely.

Unlike Felix, whose frost power was overtaken by the Power of Pestilence, the nun's ice power was stronger and purer, completely assimilating any intruding plague within her.

Felix's words guided the nun's thoughts. She wasn't sure of the death knight's hidden talents, but Felix's query provided her room for speculation.

The sectarian strife had never ceased, particularly in the competition for gathering believers.

Even the weakest faction, the New Creed, stood strong in this race. The plague was now spreading outward, and leveraging Felix's ability could potentially expand Notre Dame Cathedral's influence into the Titans Empire. In the religious realm, nothing earned divine favor more than the accumulation of followers.

The only uncertainty was whether Felix's ability to absorb the plague had any limits.

"Can you dispel the plague?" asked the Silver Hand, who arrived later, his face etched with fatigue and his scarred visage sweaty. The power of the Holy Light could purify the vile aura of the plague, but its effectiveness was disappointingly low.

On the verge of becoming a Sacred Coffin Knight, he had exhausted much of his holy energy, yet could only purify the plague from a few dozen infected. Worse still, this purification was temporary – the plague might re-infect them once the Holy Light's power waned.

The Silver Hand noticed something unique about Felix and the middle-aged nun, but he hadn't yet realized Felix's true identity as a death knight. He simply thought they were arbitrators inclined towards dark energies. The Church's Judgment Department always had arbitrators who used dark powers to judge darkness, as darkness inevitably lingered behind the light.

In truth, the plague had already erupted the day before, but the infected were secretly executed by the military. He thought all the bodies were cremated, but the plague had spread regardless. Since last night, hundreds had been secretly executed and cremated. To prevent panic, he had suppressed this news, reducing the death toll to double digits.

Felix, looking at the solemn Silver Hand, eventually nodded slowly. Many had already witnessed him dispelling the plague. Denying it now was pointless.

"Good, then come with me to meet Princess Helen," said the Silver Hand, a smile breaking through his weary face. Though a knight hardened in bloodshed, he felt compassion for the afflicted victims. Knights might be steeped in blood, but those with unwavering faith also staunchly upheld the world order, embodying virtues like bravery, humility, or integrity. Even those who embraced evil once possessed noble qualities like honor or love.

At the mention of Princess Helen, Felix's delicate, handsome face turned even paler, but he had no choice. The Silver Hand was already leading him toward the town hall.

Time was running out. The plague victims, weakened by a flood, could only last a few hours before their bodies succumbed, rotting away. If this virulent plague spread, it would spell disaster for the entire world.

The Titans Empire might soon have no choice but to issue an Extermination Order. Historically, such orders were issued six times, each due to a plague's spread, leading to widespread slaughters of infected civilians. Each order resulted in millions of civilian deaths.

The most brutal was during the outbreak of the Black Death, where the arrival of the Pestilence Goddess led to nearly a billion deaths, erasing nearly thirty duchies from history.

Eventually, the spread of the Black Death became unstoppable, forcing even the wise Dragon Clans hidden in the Maya Mountains to join the Extermination Order, as lower dragons began to fall to this deadliest of plagues.

The Extermination Order meant that once the plague became uncontrollable, the military would intervene, killing any living creature in the infected area. Then, magicians would set the entire province ablaze.

Felix's homeland, Oaklandia Province, had experienced an Extermination Order four hundred years prior. During the plague's rampage, nearly three million surviving civilians were slaughtered, followed by nearly ten thousand magicians igniting a fire that burned for three days, reaching deep into the Maya Mountains.

After the Extermination Order, Oaklandia Province remained uninhabited for over a century until the ancestors of the Fairmuth family settled there. Until then, it was known as a land of death across the continent.

The plague has always been humanity's greatest enemy, whether smallpox, cholera, or the Black Death. For this reason, the Pestilence Goddess has always been revered by humans and even other deities.