Chapter 14: The Divine Parasite
The aftermath of the duel was not a storm, but a cold, suffocating fog. The Grand Arena, once a symbol of holy strength, remained stained with the black veins of corruption that Cyan had unleashed. Prince Kaelen, the "Golden Sun," had been carried away not as a hero, but as a shattered vessel, his spirit so thoroughly crushed that he hadn't spoken a word since his forehead touched the dust at Cyan's feet.
In the luxury dorms reserved for the highest nobility, Cyan Valerian sat in a velvet armchair, watching the moon through a glass of expensive crimson wine. Across from him, Isabella was meticulously organizing a stack of documents—the new "Academy Regulations" drafted by the now-subservient Student Council.
"The conversion is proceeding faster than anticipated, Master," Isabella said, her eyes flickering with a dark satisfaction. "With Marquess Julian and the Council under your influence, every administrative decision now passes through us. The commoner students are beginning to worship you as a liberator, while the nobles are too terrified to even breathe your name."
Cyan took a slow sip of his wine. "The commoners' worship is just another form of shackles, Isabella. They don't love me; they love the idea of someone stronger than their oppressors. But we will give them a god to fear soon enough."
A soft knock at the door interrupted them.
"Enter," Cyan commanded.
The door opened to reveal Servina, the Saintess. She wasn't wearing her radiant church robes. Instead, she wore a simple, white mourning dress, her face devoid of its usual divine glow. Behind her, leaning heavily on a staff, was Prince Kaelen. His movements were stiff, his eyes glazed with the violet hue of the System's lingering influence.
"You called for us... Master," Servina whispered, the word 'Master' catching in her throat like a piece of broken glass.
"Kaelen," Cyan ignored the Saintess, focusing on the Prince. "How does it feel to be the puppet of the man you despised?"
Kaelen's jaw tightened, but he couldn't resist the command in Cyan's voice. "It feels... like drowning in a sea of oil. I can see the light, but it no longer warms me."
"Good," Cyan stood up and walked toward them, his presence filling the room with an icy pressure. "Because tomorrow, you will return to the Imperial Palace. You will stand before your father, the Emperor, and you will tell him that the Zenith Academy is under perfect control. You will recommend that the Church's tithes be redirected to the 'Experimental Research Wing'—which Isabella will manage."
"You want me to lie to my father? To the Emperor?" Kaelen's voice shook with a remnant of his old pride.
Cyan grabbed Kaelen by the chin, forcing him to look into the abyssal depths of his purple eye. "You aren't lying, Kaelen. You are simply speaking a new truth. My truth. If you refuse, I will let the corruption in your heart explode. You won't just die; you will transform into a mindless demon and slaughter your own guards before they put you down. Imagine the disgrace to your 'Golden' lineage."
Kaelen collapsed to his knees, his will finally snapping like a dry twig. "I... I will do as you command."
"And you, Servina," Cyan turned to the Saintess. "The Church is getting suspicious. They've sent an Inquisitor to investigate the 'dark aura' detected during the duel. You will meet him. You will convince him that the darkness was a 'Divine Trial' sent by the gods to test the students' faith. And then, you will invite him to a private prayer session... where Elara will be waiting."
Servina's eyes widened. "You... you want to corrupt an Inquisitor of the High Circle? That's suicide! If the Pope finds out—"
"The Pope will be kneeling where you are standing by the end of this year," Cyan interrupted, his voice cold and absolute. "Go. Prepare for the Inquisitor's arrival. I want him to taste the 'divinity' I've planted inside you."
As the two broken icons of the Empire left the room, Elara materialized from the shadows near the ceiling, her twin daggers spinning in her hands.
"The Inquisitor is a 'Level 60 Light-Bringer', Master," Elara said, her voice a lethal whisper. "His soul will be a rich feast for the System. Shall I prepare the sacrificial altar?"
"No," Cyan smiled, a look of pure, unadulterated malice. "I want him to witness the 'Saintess' committing the sin himself. Let his faith be the weapon that breaks his mind. Once he is ours, the Church's gates will be wide open."
[System Notification: Hidden Objective 'The Fall of the Clergy' Initiated.]
[Reward for Completion: 'Herald of the Void' Class Awakening Fragment.]
Cyan walked to the balcony, looking out over the academy. The students below were moving like ants, unaware that their "Sanctuary" had become a slaughterhouse for their souls.
"Isabella, Lilith, Elara, Clara," Cyan called out.
The four women stood behind him, each representing a different facet of the darkness he had unleashed.
"The Academy is just the first domino," Cyan said, his voice echoing in the night.
"Tomorrow, we reach for the Crown. Let the Emperor sleep well tonight, for it is the last night he sleeps as the master of his own fate."
Suddenly, a massive surge of dark energy erupted from the center of the academy grounds. The "Blight-Core" Lilith had planted was finally maturing, feeding on the negative emotions and fear of thousands of students. A pillar of violet smoke rose into the sky, invisible to the mundane eye but a beacon to the monsters that Cyan was summoning from the Abyss.
The "King of Sin" was no longer just a title. It was a reality that was consuming the world, one soul at a time.