From the God of Lies to the Lord of All Worlds

Chapter 196 Assassins and the Brotherhood

In fact, Lyon had already noticed the man when Gabriel appeared on the street.

As a paladin with the Iris Flower Mark, and a formal knight, his perception and judgment of good and evil are ridiculously strong.

So he could see the light emanating from a man in the distance, flickering and shimmering, seemingly oscillating between good and evil.

The constant stares from the other person convinced Leon that he was most likely their target.

It's not surprising that he's being targeted, given that the Vatican has threatened the interests of too many people. Even His Holiness the Pope is targeted, let alone him, the "priest."

Basically, anyone who has any connection with the Vatican will be targeted by opposing forces.

However, what interested Leon was not certain actions of this "rookie," but rather the kindness and compassion that the man possessed—a quality that shouldn't belong to a "hitman" or "gangster."

It's amazing that many people, especially adults, don't have compassion, but this man truly does.

The other party clearly had many opportunities to come up to him and take his life with the short knives, daggers, or darts on his body.

But he gave up on all of them, and Leon could guess why he gave up: it was because he was talking to children, chatting with the elderly, and helping others!

This was a trap set by Lyon himself, designed to lure the other party into making a move so that he could then act as well.

He dared to do this because of his extraordinary power; he dared to directly confront even demons, so naturally he wasn't afraid of a human assassin.

Lyon was confident that he could take down the opponent as soon as they made a move.

But after round after round of contact, Leon discovered that the other party's behavior was not like that of an assassin at all, but more like that of a rookie who did not know how to kill at all.

Lyon, after all, was once a member of the Mafia, so he was very familiar with the behavior of these assassins. They usually hit their target with one strike and then escaped.

As for the reactions of the people around them, public opinion, or the environment, they should not be considered in their thinking. But this killer is different; he would even walk right past a little girl to avoid her.

They would also be happy because an old person was happy.

He acted like a genuine "good person," but apart from his intention to kill, he did nothing like a killer.

This is the reason why Lyon said he was a "rookie".

He was so unprofessional, exuding an air of amateurism and sloppiness, but that was precisely why Lyon let him go. This amateurism wasn't about technique or ability, but rather "kindness."

It's strange that a man who has mastered the art of killing is fundamentally kind; this is simply too unbelievable.

After all, he had only ever seen the words gangster, killer, compassion, and kindness all in one person at the same time, and that person was himself.

Because of this trait, he was excluded from family affairs and became the sole survivor of the Rankoch family.

Unexpectedly, he saw the same trait in another person.

This softened his expression slightly, and he slowly said to the "rookie" in front of him, "Tell me about your background, Mr. Assassin?"

“Gabriel, an assassin, the one who came to kill you. Since you failed, then kill me!”

The man said it in a very straightforward manner.

Lyon, on the contrary, murmured his name a couple of times, "Gabriel... that's His Majesty Gabriel's name. Your elders had such high expectations for you, how could you have chosen such a path?"

Gabriel means Gabriel, the name of the Archangel Gabriel. In France, a country known for its strong Catholic faith, the name itself carries a beautiful and auspicious connotation.

“Expectations? Elders? Hahahahahaha!” Gabriel laughed loudly, his words filled with countless madness. “It’s this kind of expectation that turned me into this!”

He stared at the other man, then suddenly smiled with relief. "Since you're a priest, before you hand me over to the police, would you like to hear a story? A story of someone who wasn't thoroughly evil, nor fully satisfied with their good deeds, and thus lost their entire family!"

Lyon nodded and led Gabriel into the confessional room next door. "Then tell me your story in front of God!" "Okay!" Gabriel said.

Immediately, a somewhat sad and melancholic story appeared before Lyon.

Gabriel comes from Avignon in France, a special region that has seen seven popes and is also a region with a very strong faith in God, so his whole family are believers.

He was one of the best among them, and was even noticed by the local bishop at a very early age, who hoped that he could become a monk and even inherit the bishop's mantle.

"He was a very good bishop. He always did his best to help us. When many people had nothing to eat, he would give communion in the church. When some people were on the verge of bankruptcy, he would use his own reputation to help them get by for a few more days. He would also take in orphans and raise them behind the church!"

"He also told me that if I wanted to study when I grew up, he could pay for me to attend a church school, and I didn't necessarily have to come back. Actually, it's quite good outside..."

“He always felt he wasn’t doing enough, so he would always go out to preach and help others in person… He said that the Lord’s glory should spread to every corner, not just in the church!”

He said that as a servant of the Lord, he should work harder so that the people around him can be happier!

As he spoke, Gabriel's eyes filled with tears. "But such a good man received no reward whatsoever, only a revenge killing from the mafia!"

“Those gangs felt that his lending money to people and helping them pay off their debts was affecting their profits, so they took action!”

"He was murdered in the church, and the officials in Avignon refused to let us call the police. I had no choice but to take matters into my own hands and find the murderer who killed the bishop!"

He recounted how he could dream about assassination techniques since childhood, and how his family had a tradition of assassination. He was a born killer, so he really did silently eliminate most people!
He was avenging the bishop; he was judging every blasphemer. This was his journey!

Until he went to assassinate the last culprit, a local tycoon, he hesitated for a moment and let go of the woman who had been coerced by the tycoon.

“She said she was forced, and she was crying her eyes out, so I believed her. I felt sorry for her!” Gabriel said self-deprecatingly. “Then I realized that I was the one who was pitiful!”

“This woman didn’t keep her promise at all and went straight to the police. When the police found out, they put my whole family in jail, and then they all died in prison… If it weren’t for my lock-picking skills, I would have died in prison too!”

“My family is dead, the bishop is dead, and those who killed the bishop are dead. I don’t even know who killed my family!”

"And Avignon remained as lifeless as ever. Without the bishop, and with the new bishop being an utterly inanimate figure, everyone's lives were even more difficult..."

"And I, this homeless man, had no choice but to leave France, join the Sicilian mafia, and become their hitman..."

A bitter smile appeared on his face. "And then, on my first order, I ran into you, Father!"

Upon hearing these words, Leon was momentarily speechless.

Was what the other party did wrong? It doesn't seem like they did much wrong, but was what they did right? Of course not entirely right either.

Ultimately, it's a struggle between ordinary people and the powerful, but it ends in vain. Gabriel might be right; he couldn't fulfill his family's expectations because this messed-up world never gave him the chance.

“Alright, you can call the police now!” Gabriel said, taking a black stone from his pocket and handing it to Leon. “I probably won’t survive. The Mafia will make me a scapegoat. I hope you can place this keepsake at my parents’ graves after I die!”

“Father, I can sense that you are a good person, a good person just like the bishop, so I hope you can help me!”

However, he failed to notice that Leon's eyes widened in shock the moment he received the black stone!
He stared incredulously at Gabriel, then at the stone, and then, to the other's utter astonishment, a white light appeared in his hand.

Gabriel was shocked. "Hiss... I truly deserved to die. I actually attacked a superhuman!"

A look of dejection crossed his face. "So, I'm going to hell, is that it?"

"Whether or not I go to hell is another matter. What I want to know is, where did you get this stone?" Leon asked in a deep voice. It was clearly made of the same material as the "Knights Templar Medal" on his chest before it was deconstructed!

If he wasn't mistaken, this should also be a token of the "Brotherhood," could it be...?

Looking at the man in front of him, he had some guesses.

(End of this chapter)