Chapter 76 – Encounter with Vincent Again
"Careful! He's about to launch a psychic assault!"
Sadie, who had only recently suffered under such an attack, quickly shouted a warning.
Moments later, a visible ripple of energy surged outward, spreading across the town like a shockwave.
"…I'm… fine?"
Carly pinched Wade hard, drawing a sharp yelp from him. She blinked in disbelief.
The last time she had seen that monstrous gaze from their enemy, she had been dragged into a nightmare of pain and memories.
Sasha, too, was confused.
In her palm lay a delicate silver coin, etched with an angel clutching an olive branch.
It was the relic she had stolen from Saint Jehovah's treasury—a replica of the "Holy Roman Empire Silver Coin." Though not an authentic artifact, it had been consecrated during a Vatican festival decades ago, accumulating enough sacred power to ward off psychic corruption.
Sasha had relied on it to resist Bo's assaults earlier, though its "spiritual integrity" had been greatly diminished. By her estimate, one or two more strikes would have destroyed it.
And yet, the blast they had just endured was far stronger than anything she had witnessed before. By all rights, the coin should have been reduced to dust.
But when she looked down… the silver relic was unchanged.
"…If it wasn't the coin protecting me…"
Her gaze slowly turned toward a certain figure's back.
Nearby, Sadie also opened her eyes. She glanced at Carly and Wade with caution, but saw no signs of madness.
Frowning, she touched her own face. No visions, no corruption.
A realization dawned on her, and she turned.
There stood Gideon, exorcism scripture in hand, his expression steady and composed.
Across from him, Bo had collapsed to his knees.
"H-how…"
He coughed blood, his hands clutching the relic fused with his very heart—the Skull of Depravity.
Its name resembled the legendary "Skull of Despair," but this was no sacrificial trinket.
It was a gift from Azazel himself—a vessel of rage. It allowed Bo to strike directly at the minds of others, dragging them into the abyss of fury and madness.
Long ago, it had merged with his heart, granting him the ability to attack through sheer will.
When defeat loomed earlier, Bo had chosen desperation. He carved out his own heart, pouring every shred of his consciousness into the Skull, unleashing a wide-scale psychic storm.
Such power consumed life itself. It was meant to be unstoppable.
At least—that was how the story should have ended.
Instead—
"Hu… hah…"
Bo gasped for breath, vision dimming, vitality pouring out of him.
Why weren't they writhing in agony? Why hadn't his storm broken their minds?
Even his brother, Vincent, had once crumbled beneath this force.
So how… how had this priest endured?
He would never know the answer.
Thud.
Bo fell lifeless to the ground.
Sadie exhaled in relief. Finally, the bastard was dead.
She lowered her weapon, but Gideon's voice stopped her.
"Miss Cooper. You handle a gun well, don't you?"
She blinked, then nodded. "Yes. What do you need?"
"I recall you use those special incendiary rounds." He gestured toward Bo's corpse. "Better to make sure he stays down."
Sadie smirked faintly, respect for the priest growing. "Those are flame rounds—we modified them from standard bullets. They work wonders on abominations."
Gideon's brows rose slightly.
"We? Abominations?"
He tucked away the thought, then said evenly:
"Then I'll leave it to you, Miss Cooper."
Sadie loaded a fresh cartridge, raised her pistol, and aimed at the body. At this range, she couldn't possibly miss.
Bang!
The shot rang out. Carly, Wade, and Sasha all clutched their ears.
But Sadie frowned.
…She had missed?
Just as she steadied her aim for a second shot, a sudden weightlessness seized her.
Startled, she realized Gideon had grabbed her belt and flung her aside.
In the next instant, Sadie was hurled through the air—straight into Sasha.
The two women tumbled across the ground in a rough roll before coming to a stop.
From the corner of her eye, even as dust filled her vision, Sadie caught a startling sight:
The priest had vanished—and reappeared beside Carly and Wade in the blink of an eye.
"Pfft… what the hell just happened?" she muttered, spitting out grit as she scrambled upright.
The answer revealed itself almost immediately.
The ground where Sasha, Carly, and Wade had been standing suddenly swelled upward.
A massive maw split open from beneath the earth and clamped shut with bone-crushing force.
Had they still been standing there, they would have been reduced to pulp.
Sadie's breath caught. She realized the priest had used her as a tool—hurling her into Sasha so he could rescue the others.
Gideon now stood firm, gripping his crucifix, widening the distance from the creature that had revealed itself.
In truth, Sadie had not missed her shot earlier—the bullet had been intercepted before it reached its mark. The thing's speed was simply too great for human eyes to follow.
Gideon had been about to intervene, but then sensed the threat beneath the others' feet, forcing him to shift tactics at the last second.
Now, the monster finally unveiled its true form.
A fleshy pod swelled from the ground, and from within it, Vincent emerged.
"Oh?" Gideon raised a brow. "I could've sworn I purified you completely."
"Hmph. Indeed you did." Vincent gave a cold snort, but offered no explanation for his return.
Through his Ethereal Sight, Gideon saw the truth—the evil aura around Vincent was far denser than before.
He prepared to probe further, but Vincent suddenly lunged—not at him, but at Bo's corpse.
Before their stunned eyes, Vincent fell upon his brother's body and tore into it with savage hunger.
Crunch… crackle…
The wet sound of chewing filled the air.
Carly and Wade gagged, their stomachs turning violently until they vomited.
Sadie, grimacing, raised her gun again.
Whatever this thing had become, it was nothing good.
Gideon thought the same—but Vincent was faster. He leapt away with Bo's remains clutched close, his jaws unhinging wider than any human's. In one grotesque motion, he devoured the rest of the corpse whole.
"I have eaten my brothers," Vincent whispered, wiping the blood from his mouth.
"Oh? Should I ask how they tasted?" Gideon replied dryly, though his feet slid subtly backward.
That single word—brothers—told him Lester must have fallen too.
"Heh… hahahaha!"
Vincent burst into laughter, his expression tipping into madness.
"You're amusing, priest. Let's see if you're still so lively when you're inside my belly."
"Then do me a favor and start with my head," Gideon shot back. "Otherwise, I might use your stomach as a latrine."
Even in a war of words, Gideon yielded no ground.
Vincent's eye twitched. His smile curdled into a grimace.
Enough talk. He would act.
Gideon quickly motioned for the others to retreat. He had been observing closely—Vincent had deliberately avoided the holy wards he had set, and though his movements were fast, they were still within Gideon's sight.
Even so, he wasn't ready to gamble everything yet. Better to see what cards Vincent held.
On the other side, Vincent plunged both hands into the earth.
At once, the ground beneath them shuddered violently.
"An earthquake?!" Wade cried in panic.
But Gideon turned his gaze outward—and saw the horror unfold.
The land surrounding the town buckled upward, curling toward the sky before collapsing inward, as if the earth itself were folding shut like a monstrous flower.
The soil melted, transforming into a soft, fleshy texture, pulsing like living tissue.
Within moments, everything was swallowed in utter darkness.