Page 218 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

“They were not busy. They were attacked.”

“W-what?” I whisper, feigning surprise.

“The Sin Squad was attacked?” Molokai inquires, his reaction genuine.

“Another odd situation of which we were only apprised days after it happened.”

“When you say attacked, you mean?”

“General Leotar is dead, as is his entire military base.”

“General Leotar? But he is a level nine. Who could have killed him?” Molokai asks, his jaw tense.

“That is what we are currently investigating,” Aethon replies. “Only another level nine or above could have done this. But there is something else amiss with this murder.” He pauses, glancing at Commander Azerius for confirmation. “His soul is gone.”

“His soul?” My eyes widen.

“Indeed,” Commander Azerius drawls dangerously, his eyes never leaving my face. “The souls of everyone present at the base are gone.”

“Only a demon could have done that,” Molokai states.

“A demon, yes. A regular demon? No. The soldiers present at the base were all levels six through eight, and the general level nine. A level twelve demon would have had a hard time defeatingonelevel six soldier, let alone a score of them and a general.”

“What do you suspect, then?” Molokai asks.

I’m still silent, doing my best not to betray any knowledge of the murders, though I can’t help but feel Commander Azerius’ hard and probing gaze on me.

“A Son of Tenebreis,” Commander Azerius replies curtly. “AneliteSon of Tenebreis.”

“Impossible.”

“So we said about their presence in Anthropa, and while we have not officially confirmed it, there are a number of clues that point to that being the case.”

“But they cannot get out of Tartareia,” Molokai adds.

“They should not be able to, no. But this can only mean one thing. The seal is weakening. And if these murders are any indication, whoever managed to escape Tartareia is incredibly powerful.”

“Have you called on the truth diviners?”

Commander Azerius’ lips tip up dangerously.

I hold my breath. If he has called on them, then he knows. And this meeting was only a pretext so he could apprehend me. If he has yet to do it, then he will know soon and I will be equally doomed.

“That is another odd thing. For some unknown reason, the truth diviners cannot get a read on the base. They could not detect any energy signature, not even the one of the deceased soldiers.”

“That’s impossible…”

“As impossible as me receiving a tip that a powerless goddess vanquished a greed demon outside of her area of expertise?” he asks pointedly as he raises a brow.

“I hope you are not implying that my sister would have been involved in this.” Molokai surprises me when he jumps to my defense. “As you said, someone powerful must have killed the general and his soldiers. Minerva is only a level five.”

“Is that so?” Commander Azerius flashes himself in front of me in the blink of an eye. “Then why is it that I feel more energy coming off her than a level five should possess?”

He looms over me, his height and proximity terrifying.

“I…” I take a deep breath. I cannot show him how afraid I am of him. “I could have tested for a higher level, but I was never allowed to.”

He tilts his head to the side, studying me. His obsidian eyes are two bottomless pits of apathy and despair, and Iknowthat one wrong word and he will have my head.

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