The Vastness of Magical Destiny
Chapter 1003: Volume 32 Dark Clouds Roll In - 21 Wounds of the Double-Edged Sword

Chapter 1003: Volume 32 Dark Clouds Roll In Chapter 21 Wounds of the Double-Edged Sword

"Grand Archon Vazinsky, are we just going to stand by and watch that man strut around so arrogantly?" Onia’s indignation was beyond words, "That guy is clearly a remnant of the Dark Forces. Although he has not openly shown it yet, the tip of the fox’s tail has already been revealed. Claiming ’absolute freedom of religious beliefs’ is purely a way to legitimize those dark beliefs. If we strike back now, not only will the influence of the Church of Light significantly shrink in Nicosia, but I’m afraid it will greatly affect our reputation within the territories of other members of the Northern Alliance."

"Onia, you’re oversimplifying the situation," Vazinsky sighed and shook his head. "Do you really think Komer is still the same rural noble lord from a few years ago? No, you are gravely mistaken."

Vazinsky seemed to be recalling the past; after a pause, he slowly continued, "Who is Rebry? Once the star of hope of our Church of Light, he merely chose the wrong path. However, his magical expertise has not stagnated due to his different path; on the contrary, it has advanced further. Now he is the chief Grand Mage under the Komer Mage Corps."

"That Mihailovich, others might not know his background, but I do. His full name is Freud Mihailovich. Remember now? The Puppet King who roamed Prague over a decade ago, a magic puppet maker who made both mages and swordsmen tremble, back in Bohemia who knows how many mages and warriors died at the hands of his magic puppets. He is now also a significant figure in the Caucasian Mage Group; and that Newman, don’t tell me you don’t know how adept he is at magic arrays. Had he not gone astray, he might have been a top member of our Church’s research assembly by now."

"Besides these guys, the Caucasian Mage Group has also imported many dark magic practitioners from those regions to the south where the Dark Forces are rampant. We don’t even have full details on these guys now. What can we possibly do under such circumstances? Are we to hastily march against Komer? The battle at the Tower of Imprisonment has already served as a precedent; if a similar situation were to occur again, I’m afraid the Church of Light would no longer have a foothold as dominant as the St. Vasily Cathedral faction."

Vazinsky’s words left Onia drenched in cold sweat; he fully realized that Komer was no longer the simple country bumpkin from Versailles who obediently followed his arrangements. The power and resources that this man now possessed were not something commoners could easily provoke. Besides having an army’s strength, he was equally backed by a formidable force of mages.

Noyola and Lorenzo got nothing but trouble from him, and with the current strength of St. Vasily Cathedral, it was really not advisable to provoke him carelessly. Perhaps Frenster and others were just waiting for him to make one wrong move; although they themselves were unwilling to provoke that flourishing man, they secretly yearned for the St. Vasily Cathedral faction to engage in a deadly struggle with the Nicosians. Grand Archon Vazinsky had long seen through this and hence decided to bear indignity and bide his time. Yet, it seemed Onia was completely blinded by hatred and rage."

"What should we do now?" Onia asked quietly, unable to mask his sadness and weakness, "Are we truly powerless against all this?"

"No, Onia, don’t think of things so pessimistically," Vazinsky reassured. "Komer might have used the Salvation Society to outsmart us, but he’ll soon realize that many things are a double-edged sword. When you feel the benefits something brings, you often overlook its harm. Sometimes these hidden dangers far outweigh the benefits they bring. The Salvation Society isn’t actually as compassionate as they appear to be. Such an organization simply cannot survive in this world. Saints are, after all, too few. Only interests are eternal, its just that external appearances and methods of pursuit might differ somewhat. The Nicosians will soon feel the chilling cold following the warm sunshine."

The confident expression on Vazinsky’s face instilled a glimmer of hope in Onia. "Grand Archon Vazinsky, are you saying the Salvation Society will part ways with the Nicosians?"

"Onia, let’s consider this, the decisive factor for two forces to unite is aligned interests. When both the Nicosians and the Salvation Society needed to counter the pressure from our Church of Light and the Northern Alliance, their union was unsurprising. But what happens when the external pressures disappear?"

"Now, the Northern Alliance is no longer a threat to the Nicosians, and our Church of Light is also caught in a civil strife. Pericles Cathedral and our St. Vasily Cathedral are united in name only, almost at the point of breaking off. The Court is just a group of paranoid fanatics, oblivious to reality, only deepening the instability of our already unstable situation, and the Pope has consistently refused to take a clear stand. The rise of the Salvation Society has become inevitable. Do you think Komer would want to see the Salvation Society monopolize the religious aspect in Nicosia?"

"No, impossible. Although we don’t get along with the Salvation Society, they are even less compatible with the Dark Forces. Komer would never tolerate such a situation," Onia firmly shook his head.

"In this scenario, how long do you think the cooperation between the Salvation Society and Komer will last?" Vazinsky smiled slightly; he needed to boost his subordinate’s morale, or else the St. Vasily Cathedral would be toppled by its own before external forces could do so.

"Grand Archon Vazinsky, are you suggesting that we temporarily hold our forces and watch how the situation unfolds before we adapt?" Onia’s eyes brightened, and a rapid spark flared.

"Why not? I will meet with Noyola and Lorenzo and persuade them to temporarily avoid the brunt of the Salvation Society. A momentary step back doesn’t mean we are cowardly or unreasonable. We’re merely pulling back our fist to gather strength for a stronger blow." Vazinsky raised his gaze toward the distance and solemnly said, "Let’s hope the Salvation Society doesn’t disappoint us. I’m looking forward to the moment they break with the Nicosians." (To be continued. For more about how the story unfolds, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters, support the author, support authorized reading!)