Gun of Ashes

Chapter 458: Chapter 76 The Invincible Mr. Holmes Fell_2

Lorenzo reverted to that composed demeanor, running his fingers through his light golden hair, leisurely sitting on the chair.

”Yes, I could hail from Florence, originate from Old Dunling, or even from the distant Jiuxia. I could be 047 or 042; of course, I don’t mind being called Arthur either. After all, a name is just a label for something, right?

The only thing that matters is what I’m going to do.”

Lorenzo smiled while looking at Anthony, calmly voicing his long-cherished wish.

”I am... a weapon temporarily named Lorenzo Holmes, and I am here to eradicate all demons.

So, what about you, Fr. Anthony?”

Lorenzo crossed his legs and clasped his hands, placing them on his lap.

”After saying so much, what is it that you wish to do, Fr. Anthony?”

Anthony was taken aback. After a long silence, he finally chuckled helplessly.

”I wouldn’t expect any less from you.”

A Demon Hunter who carried the Pseudo Holy Grail for years, still able to keep fighting amidst the madness—he wouldn’t go down so easily. Even if he did, he would drag the demons with him into hell.

Anthony collected his thoughts, once more showing his respect for the Demon Hunter. Unlike the new generation, he had the privilege of glimpsing a fraction of madness and knew clearly what this hunter had faced—not just faced, but survived and escaped from that forbidden madness.

”We want to reclaim the Pseudo Holy Grail you are carrying,”

Anthony continued.

”The Pseudo Holy Grail was born on the Night of the Holy Arrival. Due to the loss of control at that time, we only knew it was dangerous, and nothing beyond that.”

”You wish to reclaim it and test its powers?” Lorenzo saw through their intentions at once, then let out a dull laugh.

”That belongs to the Evangelical Church.”

”But I now belong to the Purification Mechanism,” Lorenzo replied without mercy.

Lorenzo continued immediately.

”Anthony, I understand your intentions today, and even those of you...”

His gaze shifted to the silent members of the Purification Mechanism beside him.

Lorenzo suddenly stood up, slowly walking around the round conference table as if he were a joyful fawn, occasionally turning and kicking as though dancing.

He was calm, yet teetering on the edge of control.

”Evangelical Church, Purification Mechanism... What a pity, in the end, you are merely using the banner of combatting demons to seek that forbidden power.

It’s not meant for mortals to touch.”

Lorenzo placed his hands on Arthur’s shoulders.

”Don’t be eager to refute me, everyone, isn’t it so? When we were weaker than the demons, we strained every nerve to destroy them. Yet, when we were equal or perhaps a bit superior, human nature showed its flaws.

You too began to crave that forbidden power. Yes, it’s quite fitting to satisfy one’s own greed.”

His gray-blue eyes carried a touch of desolation.

”How I miss the days of the crusades in history, with no distractions—everyone just wanted to destroy demons, purely so.”

Lorenzo then looked towards Anthony, speaking emotionlessly.

”Priest, give it up. Whether it’s you or the Purification Mechanism, the power of the Pseudo Holy Grail isn’t something you should touch. Like the Holy Grail, it belongs to the Messiah-class anomalies, possessing memetic effects. Should I utter its true name here, perhaps you would be corroded and infected the next moment...”

There was a threat in his words as Lorenzo scanned the room.

”You don’t want that, right.”

Lorenzo was threatening everyone; if he spoke that forbidden name, it might unleash another Night of the Holy Arrival within Old Dunling.

Of course, this was merely a hypothesis, just as Anthony said. No one really knew the capabilities of the Pseudo Holy Grail. Perhaps some knew, but they perished during the Night of the Holy Arrival.

”No, Lorenzo, you won’t do it,”

Arthur suddenly spoke.

”You are a madman but at least one with limits. You wish to eradicate demons, so you’ll become the cage, eternally binding that devil.

Dragging everyone to die together goes against your purpose.”

Lorenzo seemed a bit surprised, not expecting the guy who always pointed a gun at him would know him so well. But he immediately said,

”But never test a madman’s limits. Who knows, maybe I’ll whimsically bring everyone down with me?”

Lorenzo’s expression remained serene, making it difficult to tell whether he was just talking rubbish or had seriously considered this decision.

He walked to the door of the meeting room, turned back one last time to look at everyone.

”So the conclusion is... I refuse, Fr. Anthony. I reject anyone’s pursuit of the Pseudo Holy Grail. Humanity should not touch these evil anomalies, especially because of the greed of you Superiors.”

His voice carried a fire of anger, rebuking all present.

”You do not understand the price of all this. I witnessed, with my own eyes, Demon Hunters being slaughtered, devoured, with severed limbs and entrails scattered everywhere. Everything that you have today is bought with blood.

This is something I will never compromise on!”

Lorenzo spread his arms openly, then asked,

”So... are we going to fight? Could you first lend me two swords, after all, it seems like there are quite a lot of you?”

Lorenzo was speaking nonsense. He could hear the heavy breaths behind the door, the fingers lightly rubbing on metal, the steam engines slowly operating hidden in the corners, and the sound of a whale roaming overhead.

The invincible Mr. Holmes wouldn’t fall, but perhaps the invincible Mr. Holmes would be killed here, not at the hands of demons, but under the degradation of human nature.

But just as Lorenzo harbored thoughts of death, Arthur spoke once more.

”Then you can leave, Lorenzo.”

Anthony looked sharply at Arthur, not understanding why he made such a decision.

”I agree with your decision, Lorenzo. Someone needs to maintain the human boundary, much like the Cleaner oversees the Purification Mechanism. You guard the Pseudo Holy Grail; there’s no one more suitable than you.

As for the danger you mentioned.”

Arthur looked at Anthony, who never expected his open strategy would turn out this way. According to his script, once Lorenzo’s identity was exposed, he should have descended into hysterical madness, coupled with the Pseudo Holy Grail’s threat. The Evangelical Church would have a good chance to reclaim the Pseudo Holy Grail, although they might have to share the spoils with the Purification Mechanism.

”According to your account, Lorenzo has carried the Pseudo Holy Grail for many years. During this time, he has remained stable and secure. Of course, whether the Pseudo Holy Grail is actually on him, we cannot currently confirm, can we?”

Everyone knew of the Pseudo Holy Grail’s existence, but as for what it truly looks like, its properties, and everything else about it, it was still unknown.

”We at the Evangelical Church will not give up the Pseudo Holy Grail,” Anthony stated firmly.

”But Lorenzo now belongs to the Purification Mechanism, and this place is Old Dunling, Ingwig.”

Arthur securely tied Lorenzo to the war chariot of the Purification Mechanism, and then the tightly shut doors slowly opened.

Lorenzo cast one last glance at Anthony, then left without looking back.

The corridor was not long, with one side full of knights from the Purification Mechanism and the other of Demon Hunters from the Demon Hunting Order. Everyone seemed surprised to see Lorenzo, as if in their reckoning, a single command from the conference room would have sent them in to hack Lorenzo to pieces.

But Lorenzo walked out alive, scanning each Demon Hunter’s face, etching them deeply in his mind. Anthony wouldn’t stop here; he might find himself reuniting with these Hunters in a dark alley someday.

His figure vanished at the end of the corridor, strolling in the deserted alley, the ferocious madness on his face dissipated, now looking like a hungover drifter who couldn’t remember how he left that heavily guarded building. Finally, unable to hold on any longer, he staggered, supporting himself against the wall as he sunk down bit by bit.

Like a fearsome creature now pierced with arrows, Lorenzo’s deceit was his skill, and this time was no exception. He fooled Anthony and Arthur, but he could not deceive himself this time.

As his figure vanished at the end of the alley, the man who was once an invincible monster, a figure clad in the persona of invincible Mr. Holmes, finally succumbed. And so, in the reflection of the muddy water, his excruciatingly pained face was visible, until that moment when the invincible Mr. Holmes collapsed.

Neither 042 exists, nor does Lorenzo Holmes. All of this was merely a figment of my own madness, and everything I held on to turned out to be in vain.