Chapter 1405: Chapter 1405

The angel's bell-like laughter echoed in her ears, and a sudden gust of wind blew open the bathroom window. When Finney looked in the mirror again, the pure white wings behind her were gone.

In the collapsing illusion, the battle was not yet over. With the Bestowal forged from that brilliant light, Jenkins now possessed a truly magnificent shield.

But relying on this alone to defeat his opponent was still a monumental task. The old man of the bell tower was a genuine Cursed Item, and this doomsday city was his home turf. Even as the realm crumbled, the situation was far from advantageous for Jenkins.

As the two stood in a stalemate, a beam of white light, visible to the naked eye, pierced the boundary between the material world's sky and that of the doomsday city. The light shot directly into the winged shield Jenkins held.

The folded wings gradually unfurled. Jenkins cast the shield forward, and as its wings fully expanded, the angel Louise appeared before him once more.

In his mortal form, it was incredibly difficult for him to summon his angel in her complete state, as her very existence in the material world required a vast amount of Spirit. But now, with this winged shield born of primordial light, he could at least allow Louise to manifest in a lesser combat form.

She gave Jenkins a slight curtsy before taking the sword he offered her.

"I will fight for you."

"I will save everything!"

He cried out, and together with the angel, he aimed his weapon at the weakened soul of the old man of the bell tower.

"So that's it... that's the truth behind the lies!"

The soul roared as it was exposed to the searing light. The doomsday version of Nolan was collapsing, and his soul was dissolving in the brilliance.

"This must be the Master's conspiracy! They knew all along I would encounter a god dwelling in the mortal realm! That's why they let my plan succeed step by step, only to deal me this crushing blow at the very end!"

The soul gathered its remaining strength and charged one last time toward Jenkins, who held his scepter high. The little angel moved to intercept, positioning herself before her god. She gripped her sword with both hands, her wings folding inward to envelop her, and for a moment, it seemed as if she had transformed back into the shield.

Searing light radiated from the angel's wings and sword. But this was not the light of salvation that dispels darkness, but the light of retribution that destroys all.

In that instant, the night sky was set ablaze. Ripples of light spread out, dispersing the black clouds above Nolan, and with them, the illusion and the soul that had hidden behind them. A phantom image of the angel was briefly projected onto the night sky, but it vanished in a flash.

The silent night reappeared before the people below. It was a vast, cloudless expanse, filled with a river of stars. Those who had just witnessed the strange celestial phenomenon couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of the heavens tonight.

Papa Oliver and the Keeper of Secrets were still standing in the courtyard behind the church. They had witnessed the entire spectacle of the white light in the sky dispersing the black clouds.

"Smith, was that my imagination? I think I saw... an angel... above the inverted city."

Papa Oliver asked hesitantly. Even with his excellent eyesight, it was difficult to see clearly at such a great distance.

"And that angel... wasn't it the same one from the angel fall last month?"

"I think I saw it too. More accurately, I saw the angel's wings... It must have been an angel, right? Could it be that some benevolent god sent an emissary to resolve all this?"

The Keeper of Secrets was just as puzzled. The immense river of stars above was reflected in his aged eyes, making his old face seem younger by several years. Keeper of Secrets Smith had lived in Nolan for many years but had never seen such a breathtaking starry sky.

"It's hard to say if it was a benevolent god. Didn't we just see a unicorn? Perhaps this is all a conspiracy by the God of Lies. It's difficult for us mortals to imagine what He is planning. Let's go. After this is over, I'm sure the Universal Star Church will have astronomical records from that time. We can use them to determine if what appeared at the end was truly an angel."

Papa Oliver said, and his thoughts turned to Jenkins.

"We'll contact him tomorrow. I imagine he'll be interested in what happened today."

At that same moment, deep in the night sky where the spatial boundary had vanished, space warped for an instant, rippling like the surface of water. Then, Jenkins and Louise burst forth from the ripples.

With the angel's help, Jenkins had successfully defeated the old man of the bell tower. But because they had taken too long, he had nearly vanished from the material world along with the collapsing doomsday city.

The unicorn had already returned. It was the swifter Louise who had grabbed his hand and pulled him back into Nolan's skies. So now, Jenkins found himself being dragged along by the little angel, who was flapping her wings furiously. Even though he didn't have a fear of heights, he didn't dare look down in this situation.

"Alright, alright, we're safe now."

He said to the angel holding his hand, then summoned the unicorn again to catch him. The angel flapped her wings and slowly descended to a position slightly below Jenkins. Then she lowered her head, curtsied slightly, and offered the winged shield back to him with both hands.

This was the reward the blue figure had spoken of for destroying the doomsday city—a genuine Bestowal. From its performance just now, the shield's durability surpassed any material Jenkins had ever seen. It could even defend against curses and soul-based attacks.

He reached out to take the shield, but after a moment's thought, he didn't. Instead, he willingly severed his connection to it. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel·fıre·net

"Normally, you can only sleep in Finney's shadow, unable to move freely, right?"

He asked his angel. The night wind brushed against his face and the little angel's clothes. The unicorn, impatient, stomped twice in the air, feeling neglected by its master.

The little angel nodded cautiously but said nothing.

"Take this shield to Finney. If she can react to it, then this Bestowal belongs to her, and you can use it to materialize your body at any time. If Finney can't form a connection with the shield, then you will hold it. You can protect Finney and, at the same time, gain more freedom for yourself."

Louise looked up at Jenkins, then silently opened her arms and gently hugged his neck.

After bidding Jenkins a final farewell, she transformed back into light and fell toward the church on the ground below.