The Divine Armor of the Old Century（Book 1）

Chapter 160

On the night of the battle with Father Lawrence, everyone seemed to have forgotten one crucial detail.

At that time, Celia was with Eve. Maybe it was Celia's unremarkable presence that caused this oversight, but Lloyd clearly remembered that the two of them were together. This meant that when Father Lawrence was taking hostages, his real target might have been Celia. It was only because the situation had spiraled out of control that he had taken Eve instead to avoid revealing his true intentions.

Listening to Lloyd's explanation, Celia felt a chill run through her veins. She knew exactly who Father Lawrence was and had witnessed the battle's harrowing might firsthand.

"Why do you think it was him?" Celia shook her head, still in disbelief. "If it were him, wouldn't he have just attacked directly? No one could have withstood his power."

"Perhaps he was preoccupied with something else, lacking the time..." Lloyd mused, recalling the underground breeding grounds. If things had gone as he suspected, that madman had already melted the Holy Coffin, releasing the Holy Grail within.

"Of course, this is all just my conjecture," Lloyd hesitated, refraining from sharing all his suspicions about Father Lawrence. The eerie visions he had experienced were perhaps not mere hallucinations but glimpses from the Rift. There, he had seen that crimson figure. Medanzo had mentioned that demons could fully exploit the Rift. If the Holy Grail had indeed been released, it could have granted Father Lawrence some ability to interfere with the Rift.

"Father Lawrence, what exactly are you planning?" Lloyd whispered, looking at Celia as new questions arose. Why was Celia Father Lawrence's target? His thoughts became tangled; everything was built on conjecture, and the truth remained hidden.

With a weary sigh, feeling a touch of fatigue, Lloyd heard the sharp whistle of a patrolman. As someone familiar with the operations of Suya's Court, Lloyd knew what that sound meant. The hurried clatter of hooves halted nearby. Lloyd concealed his knight's sword behind him, walked to the door, and slowly pushed it open.

As expected, armed patrolmen had surrounded the mansion, rifles aimed at the door. Before the situation could escalate, a voice shouted out, "Lloyd? Wait, it's one of our own."

At this devilish hour, hearing the words "one of our own" felt oddly comforting to Lloyd. A figure dismounted and ran over. To Lloyd's surprise, it was Press.

"What are you doing here?" they both asked in unison, followed by a brief silence. Lloyd spoke first, "A rather troublesome commission, involving some secret organizations."

As an ordinary police officer, Press was unaware of the existence of demons. Under the purview of the Purge Agency, Lloyd seemed to be working for a confidential branch within Old Dunling. Press nodded, easily immersing himself in the narrative. It was a high-level operation, but here, at the Stuart estate? Could it be that the Queen had finally had enough of these openly banded nobles and decided to act?

"Why are you here?" Lloyd asked warily. He did not know what the conditions for breaching the Rift were but was certain that Father Lawrence could lurk in anyone's Rift before launching an attack. Thus, any of the patrolmen could potentially be an enemy.

"Gunshots, Lloyd!" Press exclaimed almost frantically. "This is the inner city, patrolled by mounted police around the clock, let alone this being the Duke's estate!"

The Winchester's gunshots had echoed down half the street. The patrolmen, alerted, rushed over, suspecting an audacious attempt to assassinate the Duke, possibly wiping out his entire household.

"Is that so?" Lloyd rubbed his forehead. He had forgotten that this was Old Dunling, a lawful society, although the law had little hold over demons.

"Lloyd..." Press's voice trailed off, his eyes locked onto Lloyd's, his hand inching toward his gun holster. Lloyd realized something was trickling down his hand. It was drenched in blood, but not his—it was from the invaders.

Just as Press was about to call out, the sound of urgent hoofbeats echoed in the night. Black horses pulling a black carriage emerged from the fog, blending with the shadows. The expected characters had arrived; Red Falcon and his team from the Purge Agency were on the scene. Brandishing mysterious documents, the unit took over, leaving Press bewildered. This really was a high-level operation? The Queen was acting against the Stuarts?

There was no chance for verification; Suya's Court patrolmen were escorted away, while armed soldiers cordoned off the street.

"You're slower than I expected," Lloyd remarked, glancing at Red Falcon as he opened the door.

The Purge Agency was Lloyd's backup plan. They had deployed Geiger counters throughout Old Dunling. Despite some damage from Father Lawrence's corruption, they were still functional. Feeling the situation deteriorate, Lloyd had activated his secret blood to trigger the detectors. He hadn't anticipated the Purge Agency's delay.

"We came as fast as we could. We're not demon hunters; we need time to prepare our weapons," Red Falcon retorted.

"Enough excuses. I need your help," Lloyd said.

"What a surprise. What do you need?" Red Falcon asked, intrigued that the demon hunter was seeking assistance.

Lloyd dragged the two unconscious intruders out. "Help me identify them," he said, looking Red Falcon in the eye, his expression grave. "This involves Father Lawrence."