Chapter 114 : Give Me Your Body

Before dawn, after returning to the cell with Milly, Tifna helped her cover the tunnel entrance. As long as no one stepped on it, it wouldn’t be discovered.

With everything set, Milly curled up in the cage, and Tifna locked the door, returning the key to the guard before leaving.

Now, she just had to wait for Lillian to wake up. She needed to ask her about the underground area. As a Saintess, she should know something.

She waited quietly in front of Lillian’s room. She knew what time Lillian woke up. She just had to wait.

Just then, she heard a familiar voice, one she didn’t want to hear at this moment.

“How is the Saintess feeling lately?”

Suppressing the urge to draw her sword and attack Oswell, Tifna turned and saw him at the corner, followed by several Platinum Knights.

“Her Holiness is recovering well. Her complexion has improved a lot. She should be fully recovered soon.”

‘Why is he here now?’

Tifna’s answer was flawless, her tone calm.

“That’s good. Then I won’t have to worry about her.”

“By the way, has that demon said anything in these three days?”

‘Lillian hasn’t held the purification ritual for three days. It would be a miracle if Milly said anything. Besides, if Milly hadn’t changed her mind, she would have already escaped.’

“I only know about Her Holiness’s condition. I don’t know anything else.”

Hearing Tifna’s answer, Oswell didn’t press further. Tifna didn’t know if he believed her, or if he was just asking casually.

“When the Saintess wakes up, tell her to prepare.” Oswell’s tone suddenly changed. “The judgment will be held at noon today, in the central square.”

Judgment?

Tifna froze. This was not good for Milly.

A public judgment in the central square.

Even if the Saintess wanted to help her, she couldn’t do it in front of everyone.

If she was discovered helping a demon, she would be stripped of her title and face the same judgment.

If she went back and told Milly now, she would still have a chance to escape. If she hid in the tunnel until night, she could help her get a carriage out of the city.

There was still a chance. She just had to go back and tell her.

“The filth on her is so severe that it cannot be purified by any means.” Seeing Tifna freeze, Oswell continued, as if speaking to himself.

“Only the judgment of the Goddess can wash away the filth. The Goddess’s glory will help her find release.”

“If she is willing to repent, the Goddess will give her a chance to atone, to cooperate with the Church’s research on holy arts against demons.”

Hearing his words, Tifna’s stomach churned. After seeing what was in the underground, she knew what that “research” was.

She remembered the foul-smelling mass of flesh. If she cooperated, Milly would become like that, a rotting pile of flesh, dying silently in a corner.

No, she had to warn Milly.

She couldn’t let her face that judgment.

“May the Goddess purify the filth.” Tifna bowed, hiding the worry in her eyes. For now, she had to play along.

As soon as he left, while they were preparing for the judgment, she could go back and warn Milly. If the guards stopped her, she would just have to knock them out.

She had noticed that the guards in the dungeon were no match for her.

The plan was good. She just had to wait for him to leave.

Seeing Tifna’s usual response, Oswell didn’t say anything more. He had given her the order. Now he had to prepare for the judgment. But he could do that alone. As for the Platinum Knights with him…

“Watch that demon. I don’t want any accidents before the judgment.”

“As you command, Your Holiness.”

The Platinum Knights headed toward the dungeon. Tifna froze. Her plan was ruined. If it were just one, she might have had a chance. But now… she could only try one thing. She just had to shout, and hope Milly would hear.

As for what would happen to her, she would probably be judged as a demon sympathizer. A helpless smile. Let this be her apology to Milly.

After Oswell left, she calculated the time. It was almost time for Lillian to wake up. Before going to the dungeon, she had one last question for her.

The moment she knocked, the door opened. Lillian was already awake, as if she had been listening from behind the door.

“Come in.”

She pulled Tifna in and closed the door.

“Your Holiness, about what the Pope has hidden underground…”

“Wait,” Lillian tilted her head in confusion. “I vaguely heard the Pope ask me to do something… and what’s in the underground?”

Tifna looked at her. The confusion on her face was not fake. The Pope had kept her in the dark.

“No, it’s nothing.”

Since the Saintess didn’t know, there was one thing she had to know.

“He has decided to hold the judgment at noon.”

Lillian froze for a moment. Tifna saw a flash of crimson in her eyes.

“Oh? Judgment,” Lillian’s voice suddenly changed, a strange smile on her lips. “Then I should prepare.”

Tifna could feel it. The Lillian before her was a different person.

The one she had just been talking to was the Lillian she knew. Now, it was another, a stranger. As if there were two consciousnesses in one body.

“Then, little knight,” Lillian lifted Tifna’s chin with her fingertip. “Did you tell me this because you were ordered to… or because you thought I would save Milly?”

“I…”

“Alright.”

Lillian clapped her hands, silencing her.

“Your answer is written on your face. Now, you can go and wait for the judgment to begin. And before that, don’t do anything.”

“But.”

The Saintess leaned in, her breath icy. “Don’t. Do. Anything.”

“I understand.”

As Tifna left, her legs trembled. In that moment, she had seen the blood-soaked figure again, the one that made her soul tremble… the Fell God.

“It must have been a hallucination.”

Since the Saintess had her own plans, all she could do was wait.

After Tifna left, Lillian went to the mirror. The scratch on it split her reflection in two.

“Now, Lillian, give me your body.”