Chapter 8: The Holy Light Detection Bracelet

“By the way, I truly hope His Grace the Bishop, along with all my former servants, subordinates, and colleagues from the Holy See, will honor their words,” Allyrose declared. “This house is rightfully mine, and mine alone!”

“I owe no one, nor have I wronged anyone. Therefore, I will not hand over this house for no reason, or without proper justification.”

“If you desire to live in a comfortable home, then earn the money and purchase one yourselves!”

As she spoke, Allyrose turned her gaze, visibly displeased, toward Vivian. Then, without reservation, she rolled her eyes.

Vivian, sensing the blatant disrespect, immediately widened her eyes in disbelief. The feigned innocent and pitiable expression she had carefully maintained almost faltered, a flicker of disgust betraying her true feelings.

‘What is going on?’ Vivian thought, bewildered. ‘This Allyrose… wasn’t she so easy to manipulate just a few days ago? Gentle, naive, even foolishly eager to fawn over me, claiming she’d assist me as a senior and become my friend…’

‘Yet, after only a few days apart, has this woman completely abandoned all pretense?’

‘Tsk…’

However, this only further ignited Vivian’s competitive spirit and her innate desire for theatrics. The more unwilling Allyrose seemed to be, the more Vivian yearned to seize what was hers.

‘Otherwise,’ she mused, ‘how could I possibly justify the suffering I’ve endured for over a decade?’

Naturally, she couldn’t appear as a greedy, covetous maiden. Vivian had always cultivated the image of someone who neither contended nor snatched, perpetually humble and yielding.

Yet, she subtly conveyed her desires at every turn. When others acquired things for her, she never refused, accepting them with a seemingly reluctant grace—the quintessential ‘little white flower’.

The very next moment, Vivian silently lowered her head. A glimmer of tears welled in her eyes as her aggrieved voice trembled softly.

“I—I think so too,” Vivian whimpered. “Even though Sister Allyrose lost the Divine Staff, I’m sure she can find it again. You… you all stop arguing. Vivian feels so scared. Sister Allyrose, please don’t be so mean to me anymore, boo-hoo—”

“Lady Vivian!” Tok exclaimed, leaping forward once more. “Hmph… Allyrose, why are you being so vicious? Lady Vivian still believes in you so strongly! I’d like to see exactly how you plan to find that Divine Staff!”

The moment Vivian started to cry, Tok, standing nearby, immediately sprang forward, agitated and threatening Allyrose with a furious glare.

The twin-tailed girl, naturally, had no intention of indulging them. After a brief pause, she retrieved a golden bracelet and slipped it onto her wrist.

Then, Allyrose abruptly raised her arm, ensuring everyone in the hall could see the bracelet on her wrist slowly emitting a brilliant, shimmering light.

This was the very item Allyrose had just acquired from the ‘Enemy Funding System’: the Holy Light Absorption Bracelet.

On any other day, this might merely be an item designed to automatically absorb experience points for Allyrose’s journey of advancement.

But today, Allyrose curved her lips into a playful, cat-like smirk, a clear strategy against the people before her already forming in her mind.

After a moment, she tilted her head, then spoke with a sudden, piercing clarity.

“Everyone,” Allyrose announced, “this bracelet I’m currently wearing is far more than a mere ornament. It is called the Holy Light Detection Bracelet.”

“Its function, precisely as its name implies, is to display varying intensities of light based on the amount of Holy Light energy it detects in the vicinity.”

A sharp intake of breath rippled through the crowd.

Upon hearing this, Vivian, who had just been sobbing, abruptly ceased her tears. Her gaze fixed intently on the bracelet adorning Allyrose’s wrist.

The twin-tailed girl caught the fleeting glimpse of panic in Vivian’s eyes, and immediately turned to face her, a knowing smile gracing her lips.

“And as everyone knows,” Allyrose continued, “the Divine Staff of Holy Light is our Holy See’s most sacred artifact, and moreover, the very vessel of endless Holy Light energy.”

“Therefore, if I were to use this bracelet as a detector, wouldn’t it be possible to… effortlessly locate the Divine Staff?”

“What impossible fantasy are you spouting?!”

Before Allyrose could even finish her sentence, Jennelle suddenly interjected, her voice laced with panic. Her breathing grew shallow, and her fists clenched tightly as she pointed an accusing finger at Allyrose.

“Stop wasting everyone’s time, alright?!” Jennelle demanded. “You… even if that bracelet of yours is legitimate, its detection range must surely be limited, correct? Unless you’ve hidden the Divine Staff in your own home, otherwise, how could it possibly…”

“How do you know it isn’t in my house?” Allyrose retorted smoothly.

Allyrose’s eyes narrowed as she offered a soft smile. Jennelle, in response, immediately furrowed her brows in confusion.

The twin-tailed girl before them gazed down at the bracelet in her hand, then slowly began to speak.

“It’s quite possible… perhaps I simply misplaced the Divine Staff at home, you know?” Allyrose said with an innocent air. “This is clearly a very plausible scenario, yet… Miss Jennelle, why do you seem so incredibly certain that I definitely wouldn’t find the Divine Staff in my own residence?”

“Could it be… Miss Jennelle, that you actually know where the Divine Staff is located?”

“H-how… how could that be possible!” Jennelle stammered, her voice tight. “You… you’re talking absolute nonsense…”

“Me? Talking nonsense, you say?” Allyrose challenged, a cold edge to her voice.

Allyrose let out a cold, derisive laugh. Immediately, she began to advance, step by deliberate step, towards Jennelle. A sheen of cold sweat instantly broke out on Jennelle’s forehead.

Before the eyes of the assembled crowd, Jennelle instinctively recoiled, taking one step back after another. Yet, the light emanating from the bracelet in Allyrose’s hand only grew more intensely brilliant.

Finally, Jennelle found herself cornered against the wall, her gaze fixed on Allyrose, brimming with utter disbelief. The twin-tailed girl then waved her slender wrist towards Jennelle’s chest.

At that precise moment, the Holy Light Absorption Bracelet erupted with a blinding burst of golden light, forcing everyone present to instinctively shield their eyes.

Jennelle immediately began to tremble, her eyes wide as she stared at Allyrose. The next second, the twin-tailed girl let out a cold, triumphant laugh.

Then, with a swift motion, she snatched the brooch pinned to Jennelle’s chest. Instantly, an torrent of Holy Light energy surged violently towards Allyrose’s bracelet!

Moments later, the ‘brooch’, now having discharged a portion of its concealed energy, finally revealed its true form in Allyrose’s grasp. It was none other than the Divine Staff of Holy Light, which had been missing from the Holy See for months.

The vibrant, pulsating Holy Light energy emanating from it was an undeniable testament to its authenticity, leaving no room for doubt for anyone who witnessed it.

‘No… no, it’s impossible!’ Jennelle thought, a shiver running down her spine. She stared at Allyrose in utter disbelief. ‘This woman… how could she possibly have discovered this? How did she instantly pinpoint the Divine Staff, hidden so perfectly?’

‘This…’

Though Jennelle was utterly bewildered, at this moment, the method of Allyrose’s revelation seemed utterly insignificant to her.

For now, the paramount issue she faced was far more immediate: she, who had just been vociferously accusing Allyrose of losing the Divine Staff, now had to confront the intensely awkward reality that the artifact had been found on her own person!

“Oh~ how utterly fascinating~” Allyrose purred, a predatory glint in her eyes. “What is this? The safest place is truly the most perilous, isn’t it? Transforming the Divine Staff into a mere brooch, masking the fluctuations of Holy Light energy… this kind of shapeshifting magic doesn’t quite seem to be Miss Jennelle’s handiwork, does it??”

Allyrose proudly brandished the Divine Staff, and then, her gaze sharpened, becoming piercingly cold.

“So… what do you say, Miss Jennelle?” Allyrose’s voice was sharp, cutting through the silence. “Can you now explain to us why the Divine Staff was found on your person?!”