Everything seemed to have settled.
The Battle of Salted Fish City, Holy Knight Gray achieved a decisive victory. Or rather, humanity achieved a decisive victory.
Could Heaven rally the remaining twelve Angel Armies and forcefully wage war? Of course they could, but it would take months. And doing so would bring unpredictable results. Even if they won, what would it mean? The Lich, or rather the Undead Clan, were best at long wars. They could drag the battle out indefinitely until the demons spectating from the sidelines laughed aloud.
The current situation, without a doubt, announced the complete failure of Heaven’s faith strategy for the past ten thousand years. And for Hell, was it any different?
*Would the continent’s regime, led by the Holy Knight, leave them any space?*
The justice under Heaven’s leadership was at least defensive. However, Gray’s faith strategy was entirely offensive, expansionist, unyielding, like a blaze capable of incinerating everything. This was clear to everyone.
The abyss was eerily silent.
A huge screen displayed what was happening at Salted Fish Port, where the victorious people were rushing in, filling the port to the brim. They lifted the barely intact body of Gray high, shouting and laughing.
The Frog Demon couldn’t help but exclaim, "Unbelievable, he truly did it. Against everyone’s wishes, and not by force. He himself possessed no power. None of the endings we considered were ."
All the demons, including the Demon Lord, remained silent.
It wasn’t just the abyss.
The Holy Light was equally silent.
At this moment, none of the holy beings knew how to evaluate the scene before them.
Heaven and Hell had battled for ten thousand years, and in the end, the Undead Clan triumphed. Allowing the Lich Knight had brought the situation to an unmanageable point for any of them.
Of course, perhaps it wasn’t the Lich who won, but humanity. After all, hadn’t humanity awakened?
The sky was filled with roaring bone dragons, and the ground was a sea of the undead. Giant siege engines loaded with stones enhanced by magic were ready, while stitched monsters beat their chests and roared. The iron hooves of the Undead Knights stomped over every corner.
The entire Angel Army was surrounded, utterly immobilized. Meanwhile, the Liches lined up before them, taking turns flaunting.
"Write me two slogans of justice, ones that are especially loud!"
"I want one too, I want one worth a hundred gold coins!"
"No problem! It’ll be more impressive than anyone else’s!"
Morca’s "business" was booming.
Gray was lifted high by the exuberant crowd, parading down a long street. A Black Cat perched on his armor, laughing and fumbling to keep from falling off.
All the members of the Church, including the four Holy Knights, the newly appointed Pope, all cardinals, and even the four Guardian Angels, were bound together and piled in a corner of Salted Fish Port, guarded by soldiers.
"Esteemed Holy Knight, we sincerely thank you for changing us, for making us see the world anew and awakening us. You are a gift from Heaven to humanity. At the same time, we apologize for our prejudices and plead for your forgiveness of our ignorance and recklessness." The kings of various nations came before Gray in groups, kneeling on one knee. Among them were Benedict II, Arthur, Gene II, and Banette III.
Gray stared at them dumbfounded, in silence.
All around, including the crowd lifting him, fell silent, all eyes on Gray.
The Black Cat looked at him too.
Dean whispered, "Does the Holy Knight refuse to forgive them?"
"No," Gray shook his head and softly said, "I’m just thinking of how to describe my feelings at this moment. Your smiles are the greatest gift I’ve received. I’ve said it before, I love you all."
In an instant, everyone erupted in cheers.
The banner of the Silver Moon fluttered over Salted Fish Port.
Injured, Yilin rode her horse, watching from afar as Gray was thrown high into the air by the people, smiling contentedly.
"Wow—! Don’t toss me! I’m afraid of heights! Let me down!" The Black Cat screamed in terror. Unfortunately, no one understood its words.
Amid the jubilation, Gray laughed heartily, feeling a sense of relief like never before.
Finally, he had fulfilled his dream, able to walk under the sunshine as a Lich. He had gained recognition as a Knight. On this path, he had traveled further than anyone initially anticipated.
Camilla stood on the other side, holding Carl’s remaining skull, tears streaming down her face.
"So, whom do we believe in now?" a club asked.
"We believe in no one, we believe in ourselves, in justice." Abi Robbs softly answered, "This is the path he illuminated for us: ’Humanity likely has to embark on a new journey again.’"
"Alright, that sounds pretty good too." The club nodded.
Catherine returned with Shelley, staring wide-eyed at the dense crowd of undead. She slowly landed on the street, setting Shelley down.
The people around made way for Shelley.
Shelley ran straight towards Gray, tightly hugging him amidst the crowd.