Chapter 10: The Princess’s Silver Tongue

“Is that you, Tia? Come in.”

“It’s me. I have something I want to say to you…”

After getting Violet’s permission, Tia opened the door, her head bowed, her steps a little hesitant.

“Have a seat.”

Violet pointed to the chair by the desk and casually scooped up the still ominously crawling Nastasia, placing Her beside her.

“Thank you…”

Tia mumbled, her hands unconsciously clutching the hem of her skirt.

She approached the chair but didn’t sit down.

She looked at Violet, who was a few years younger than herself, but couldn’t bring herself to speak.

Seeing the atmosphere gradually becoming awkward, Violet broke the silence with a light laugh, proactively finding a topic for Tia.

“Don’t be so nervous. Do I look that scary?”

“N-No!”

Tia hurriedly denied it.

“Then why are you so afraid of me? It’s not like I’m going to eat you.”

As if Violet’s words had given her confidence, Tia took a deep breath, raised her head, and met those rose-red eyes:

“Because of something that happened in the past.”

“If you don’t mind, you can tell me about it.”

Violet nodded lightly, signaling for Tia to continue.

Communication was the beginning of any relationship.

She wanted followers, not slaves.

If she couldn’t even communicate, let alone proselytize.

“When I was little, there was a plague in the village. Dad… Old Qien, for the sake of everyone in the village, went to the Imperial Capital to ask for help from the divine envoys of the Eternal Sect.

That divine envoy told everyone to believe in the gods of the Eternal Sect, saying that as long as our faith was sincere, the disease would naturally disappear.”

As she said this, Tia’s eyes dimmed a little, her hand unconsciously clenching.

“But we later found out that the divine envoy had no ability to solve this disease at all, and many people in the village still died.

He blamed it all on our faith not being sincere enough and even killed the person who questioned him.

To protect me, Old Qien almost…”

“So, you’re worried that something like this will happen again, right?”

Violet asked softly.

Tia, sitting opposite her, subconsciously nodded.

The girl, realizing what she had just done, turned pale and hurriedly waved her hands:

“No… I didn’t mean that, I just…”

“I remember saying that the one I believe in is an Evil God.”

A certain Evil God, lying paralyzed on the bed, was picked up by a big evil hand and kneaded randomly.

“An Evil God wouldn’t be short on followers, now would she? Right?”

Nastasia: “…”

Tia nodded silently, her clenched hands relaxing a little.

“If faith can be so easily changed, then it’s not called a follower, it’s called a weathercock. Besides…”

Violet pointed at Tia, and although it was a question, her tone was full of certainty:

“You don’t believe in the Eternal Sect either, do you?”

Tia’s gaze flickered, but she still nodded.

“Speaking of which, you’re a mage?”

“An apprentice…”

The girl’s reply was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz:

“I just passed the selection for Isidore Academy a few days ago.”

Isidore Academy was affiliated with the Church of Knowledge.

Although its status couldn’t compare to the Eternal Sect, it was still quite well-known.

No wonder she had dared to talk back to her earlier; it turned out she was already a semi-member of the Church of Knowledge.

If it were a member of an ordinary sect, after learning Tia’s identity, they might have really backed off.

Violet kneaded Nastasia in her arms, lost in thought.

Did this count as poaching from the Church of Wisdom in advance?

You see, most of the people who could enter the Church of Knowledge were research-oriented talents.

Most of the world’s magic and technology basically came from the Church of Knowledge.

Tia looked at the contemplative Violet and said in a small voice:

“Apostle, if the Lord Evil God doesn’t want me to be a… weathercock, I don’t have to go.”

“Of course She wouldn’t mind.”

Violet waved her hand casually and put Nastasia back on the bed.

This casual tone made Tia a little ashamed.

“Shouldn’t you ask Her about this? After all, this is about faith…”

Violet glanced at Nastasia, who was already so excited her tentacles were dancing wildly, and replied casually:

“She’s listening. If she doesn’t say anything, it means she’s not refusing. Even if you apostatize, she won’t blame you.”

There was one thing Violet didn’t say.

Based on her understanding of Nastasia, if someone really apostatized, this silly Evil God would probably think it was her fault.

Tia was speechless.

She suddenly had an absurd feeling.

Other sects would guard their followers jealously.

Any act of apostasy would be met with, at the very least, a wanted notice, or at worst, a full-scale hunt.

Who would be so casual about it?

“Apostle, are you sure the one you believe in is an Evil God?”

Nastasia, who was going wild as if high on something, suddenly stiffened.

Her tentacles went limp, and the entire god looked like she was about to shatter.

“Yes, and she’s very strong. You definitely won’t regret believing in her.”

After all, this was Nastasia’s first follower; Violet intended to save some face for Her.

“Then, is there anything I need to do? Offerings… or something like that.”

“No need. Just shout right here: ‘Lord Nastasia, I want to be your follower,’ and she will give you an answer.”

Tia’s face turned red, but she still chose to do as she was told.

“L-Lord Nastasia… I… want to be your follower.”

Her voice was so soft that even Violet couldn’t hear it clearly.

She suddenly had a mischievous idea.

She quickly covered Nastasia’s tentacles, interrupting Her action of bestowing a blessing, and at the same time put on a serious expression.

“No spirit at all, I can’t hear you. You want to be a follower with such a small voice?”

“!!”

Tia was flustered by this sudden seriousness and could only try again.

“Lord Nastasia, I want to be your follower! Hiss…”

This time, she shouted very loudly and even made a praying gesture.

If she hadn’t bitten her tongue, it would have been a perfect oath.

As soon as Tia’s voice fell, a red light descended from the sky and accurately shot into her brow.

Broken images flashed before Tia’s eyes, and countless memories flooded into her.

Her eyes immediately rolled back, and she was about to faint.

Violet quickly stepped forward and, together with Nastasia, placed Tia on the bed.

After doing all this, Violet sat down at the desk, stroking Nastasia in her arms.

“Ehehe, I knew you could do it, my kin~♡”

“This is only the second one. You’re still a long way from recovering the first stage of your authority.”

Violet shook her head.

The sun was just right, and through the window, she could see many villagers busy repairing the buildings.

She planned to find Old Qien and speed up the process of recruiting followers.

With Old Qien and Tia as guarantors, the efficiency of the villagers’ belief in Nastasia would be greatly improved.

At this thought, Violet looked back at the still unconscious Tia and casually placed Nastasia on her head.

Outside the door, the huge crater created by the explosives had long been filled, and the villagers had even transplanted an old tree.

Violet immediately spotted Old Qien squatting under the tree, smoking a cigarette alone.

He had a preoccupied look on his face and didn’t even notice someone standing behind him.

“Is there any trouble I can help you with?”

It wasn’t until Violet spoke that Old Qien belatedly turned around.

“Apostle Elynne, why are you out here? Tia, she…”

Old Qien looked like he wanted to say something but couldn’t.

The cigarette in his hand burned his fingers before he realized it and threw it away.

“Is it about Tia?”

“Yes, that child, sigh…” Old Qien sighed: “I’m sorry for eavesdropping on your conversation. I was worried Tia would talk back to you again, so I listened outside the door for a while.

You may not know, Tia is not my child. Our Salna Village is adjacent to the Imperial Capital, so we’ve always had a good relationship with the passing merchants.

Tia’s parents were among them. That year of the plague, if it weren’t for them, our Salna Village would have died out long ago, right?”

As he said this, Old Qien’s back stooped even more, the wrinkles on his face trembling, as if suppressing the pain in his heart.

“But such a good and kind family, just because their beliefs were different, they died at the hands of the divine envoy.

I’ve wronged Tia. Perhaps I shouldn’t have gone to find any divine envoy in the first place.

If it weren’t for that, she would have had loving parents, a wealthy family, instead of following a good-for-nothing old man who only knows how to farm, wasting her youth.”

At this point, Old Qien was already sobbing uncontrollably.