Demon Bible

Chapter 122: The Gap in Life

After a full morning of searching without uncovering any relevant clues, Gabriel frowned. The most they had accomplished was capturing a few fringe users of Demon power.

It was supposed to be a simple mission to investigate a minor Religious Order, yet two entire days had passed without them securing any crucial intelligence.

Al stood off to the side, feeling an absolute obligation to save Fass.

After all, he was the one who had enlightened Fass, teaching him the importance of power. It was his relentless pursuit of a Breathing Technique and a Meditation Method that had caused Fass to step foot into the realm of a heretical cult.

"However, Mr. Gabriel, I do not believe you should be cooperating with the Rope Gang," Al advised after a moment of hesitation.

He hadn't noticed it last night, but today, seeing Gabriel and the others directing the Rope Gang in their search felt like a profound desecration. Though he knew it was out of line, he had to speak his mind.

Gabriel, already irritable, scowled. The boy's tone bordered on an outright accusation.

"The Rope Gang is an Evil parasite feeding on the dockworkers, and they even kidnapped me—"

"Do you think you have the right to speak here?" Brent snapped, hoisting Al up by his collar from the other side. His triangular eyes brimmed with malice. "We aren't cooperating. We are simply driving them to find someone for us!"

"Brat, don't think you can freely voice your opinions just because you guided us last night and Gabriel allowed you to join the search.""You haven't even cleared yourself of suspicion yet!" Brent sneered, referring to the incident where Al had previously left with Buke.

Although Al claimed he had only followed them to save a friend, without any concrete evidence, they could easily twist the narrative against him however they pleased.

"Alright, Brent, don't be so hot-tempered. The kid means well," Galen placated from the side, though his eyes held only a cold, mocking smile.

A brat born as a Noble, yet reduced to such a pathetic state, actually dared to criticize how they handled things.

Could he still not let go of his airs even now?

Galen glanced at Gabriel, who was also suppressing his anger nearby. He was just about to fan the flames further when he noticed Gabriel's expression suddenly turn exceedingly grim.

Following Gabriel's line of sight, Galen spotted a figure standing in an Open Clearing not too far away.

The person's left hand was wrapped tightly in bandages, and his face twisted with malice directed squarely at Gabriel and the rest of them.

"That silhouette... is that Buke, who escaped from us last night?" Galen's fury instantly flared, Burning hot. A lowly mongrel from the slums, relying on temporarily acquired Demon power, actually dared to show his face before them again and issue such a provocation!

His internal rage almost materialized into something tangible before violently erupting.

"Don't run!" Gabriel acted even faster than Galen.

He darted forward in an instant, his hand already resting on the hilt of his Sword.

However, the moment he stepped away from the group, Gabriel sensed an unprecedented, fatal danger.

Instinctively, Gabriel took a deep breath, and his entire body's Attribute Values were fully mobilized.

He realized in a flash that this was a trap set specifically for him.

Gabriel slightly turned his head, casting his gaze in another direction.

There, a young boy was half-crouched, staring dead at him. His right arm was extended forward while his left hand firmly supported his right wrist.

The instant he came into view, a groove opened on the top of the Bracer on the boy's right arm, and dozens of Small Black Dots forcefully ejected outward.

These Small Black Dots moved at terrifying speeds, instantly crossing the distance and striking his body. Agony radiated through his limbs and bones. In a mere fraction of a second, over a dozen bloody holes had been blown through his flesh.

From Brent and Galen's perspective, Gabriel charged out only to be instantly ambushed by streaks of black. His entire body was flung to the side, blood pooling across the ground, his life or death unknown.

"On guard!" Brent shouted, immediately drawing his Sword and locking his eyes on the area where Buke and Fass were positioned.

"Al." At that moment, Fass stepped out from the shadows, his expression complex as he looked at Al standing beside Brent.

"Fass?!" Al was stunned to see him emerge, but quickly pleaded, "How could you attack a Holy Knight?! Hurry up and surrender, you can still survive this!"

"Let me ask you, why did you betray us?" Fass demanded, raising a hand to point at Al, completely ignoring his pleas to surrender.

"I was trying to save you!!" Al retorted with intense agitation upon hearing the word betray. He even took a step forward. "In The World, joining the Church is the only righteous path. By walking down this heretical road, you are only marching toward a dead end."

"Yet my parents and my younger siblings were killed by that man because of your betrayal," Fass stated coldly, pointing at Gabriel's motionless body. The hatred in his eyes hadn't diminished in the slightest.

He had a fairly clear understanding of what had transpired now. Gabriel had never respected bottom-dwellers like them, striking out without the slightest hesitation or restraint, which ultimately dragged his family into the crossfire.

Whether his family had been saved or not, it didn't change his burning animosity toward people like Gabriel.

"He was a man of the Church, but isn't he facing a dead end right now as well?"

"Fass!" Al yelled his name in a daze, unable to comprehend why his genuine good intentions were being trampled so thoroughly.

"How could anything have happened to your family? They were captured by the Rope Gang, and I was just begging the Holy Knight to..." Al stammered as he finally registered what Fass was saying, frantically trying to explain.

"I see. You appear to understand everything, but in reality, you know absolutely nothing." At this moment, Fass truly saw Al for who he was.

From start to finish, Al had always just been a 'Noble Lord.'

He trivialized, or rather, romanticized all forms of suffering.

The World in his eyes was fundamentally different from The World in Fass's eyes.

Even after enduring hardships and falling into the Mud, Al never truly blended into the dirt. That invisible barrier between their classes still remained.

He looked at everything in The World with naive idealism, self-righteously believing that everyone always had access to better choices.

Joining the Church could indeed allow one to leap across social classes—who didn't understand that?

But Fass knew with painful clarity that he would never be given such an opportunity.

Al didn't understand this reality, or perhaps he instinctively dismissed it.

Naturally, his status supported this ignorance to a certain extent. For example, he had been credited with reporting them last night; he could have simply severed ties and walked away free.

It was his own voluntary choice to join the search, a privilege an ordinary commoner would never have received.

Because he was born a Noble, his status commanded enough respect to grant him permission.

In times of destitution, a Noble status couldn't be directly converted into money or resources. But when an opportunity arose, it served as an indispensable ticket of admission—one that others could only dream of obtaining.