The battle between the "gods" ended so swiftly, and the turnaround was just as rapid.
On the ground, the followers of the God of Hatred and Deformation had not yet fully realized what had happened, when the two Mythical entities were either fleeing or captured.
The humanoid monsters watched incredulously as the dark green divine glow was imprisoned by the crimson chains and a dodecahedron; when they realized what had occurred, they exhibited expressions of horror, their faith seemingly collapsing.
And when Charlotte turned to fly in their direction, they completely fell apart and scattered in all directions to escape:
"Ah... Lord Dora has been captured!"
"He's coming! Run... run for your lives!"
Charlotte glanced indifferently at the fleeing monsters, her right hand rising gently.
The next moment, countless black bats materialized, swarming in groups to chase after the monsters.
They quickly caught up with the fleeing abominable believers, then engulfed them in a mass.
Screams rang out as those overtaken by the bats were quickly drained of their blood, turning into mummified corpses, which then quickly disintegrated into ash on the breeze stirred up by the bats.
Charlotte watched coldly, her hand never ceasing.
The scenes of the monsters slaughtering the Free City State's subjects still haunted her mind; in her heart, she had long sentenced these abominable believers to death.
After exterminating the last monster, Charlotte walked towards Lilith.
By Lilith's side, Haral had already arrived, sporting beads of sweat on his forehead; he appeared to have run the entire way, arriving just in time to examine the girl's injuries with a grave expression.
Surrounding Lilith, many survivors from Silver City had also gathered.
Some had not been corrupted by the divine power of the God of Hatred and Deformation; others, though affected, had sprouted various tumors but still retained some lucidity.
Of course, there were also those who had completely degenerated into monsters similar to the abominable believers, losing their sanity and falling into comas, now cared for by other survivors.
"Savior... Thank you for your salvation!"
Seeing Charlotte approaching, the survivors showed their excitement and promptly prostrated themselves in worship.
As Charlotte beheld the survivors who worshipped her with fervent adoration, a wave of emotion surged within her.
Although these survivors worshipped the "Savior" and not Charlotte herself, she could still sense the deep admiration and reverence in their eyes.
It was hard not to compare them to the subjects and followers in Castel Domain who pursued and worshipped her, and especially to those in the mines who fervently adored her.
She sighed softly and, using her divine power, cast a wide-range Dark Healing Technique to heal the wounds of these people.
Under the somber glow, their injuries slowly began to mend.
Even Lilith emitted a faint red glow, as her ghastly wounds slowly healed.
Watching their injuries heal, the survivors looked at Charlotte with even greater respect and adoration.
They prostrated themselves eagerly, their excitement palpable as they worshipped Charlotte.
However, Charlotte was not satisfied with her own healing.
Simply put, while her divine power had healed the survivors' physical injuries, it had not removed the mutations from their bodies.
And as for Lilith… although most of the surface wounds had healed, that most terrible wound on her upper body showed no signs of recovery.
In particular, her heart was missing; while Charlotte's divine power was temporarily sustaining the girl's soul and life force, it was clear that Charlotte, who had no understanding of the "Life Type" laws, could not yet restore a heart.
Haral too had noticed Charlotte's return.
He cradled the blood-soaked Lilith in his arms, his eyes bloodshot, and was about to bow to Charlotte when she stopped him:
"There's no need, how is Lilith?"
Haral's expression instantly fell.
Seeing his expression, Charlotte felt a weight in her heart.
She quickened her pace and came directly to Lilith's side.
Lilith's condition was dire.
Having lost her heart, even if the other injuries on her body healed under Charlotte's Dark Healing Technique, it couldn't change the nature of her impending death.
Nevertheless, the Dark Healing Technique had some effect; at least under the gloomy light, Lilith, who was in a state of feigned death, had begun to awaken.
Her breathing was weak, her complexion pale, and the deep red blood beneath her had pooled into a stream, staining Haral's clothes thoroughly red.
It was only because of Charlotte's divine power at work, barely maintaining the girl's blood-making function and substituting for her heart in pumping blood to other organs.
But clearly, this was not a sustainable solution.
Lilith's injuries were too severe to be healed by a mere Dark Healing Technique, and even with Charlotte's divine power sustaining the last of her life, Charlotte could feel the girl's vitality rapidly slipping away.
Her awakening seemed more like the last flicker of life before one's death.
If left alone, perhaps in another three to five minutes, Lilith would die completely.
"Teacher... please save Lilith! Please save her!"
Haral was excited, anxious, and sad.
It was the first time Charlotte had seen him so agitated.
Of course, Charlotte's own feelings were nearly the same.