Chapter 12: The Princess Takes the Blame

In her past life, a faction war had broken out in Fortuna City.

Players could choose to help the revolutionary army or the Empire.

Of course, none of that was the main point.

The main point was the end of this war.

—The Imperial Princess, Violet, ordered that the revolutionary army be completely wiped out, even if it meant slaughtering the entire city.

Thus, Syks was forced to communicate with a god and cast a divine spell.

Under the power of the divine spell, the entire city of Fortuna was razed to the ground.

The reason Violet remembered this story so clearly was because it would be the origin of the entire game’s main storyline.

At this thought, an idea sparked in Violet’s mind.

Since this was the beginning of the story, why didn’t she try to join in?

If she could protect those revolutionary soldiers under the divine spell, wouldn’t followers come pouring in?

She could even join the revolutionary army, become its leader, and finally kill “Imperial Princess Violet,” ascending the throne again as the leader of the revolution!

You see, the first time players met Violet was four years from now.

In four years, Violet was confident that with Nastasia, she could be on equal footing with Syks.

At that time, why would she need to care about Syks’s mood? If she was unhappy, she could just slap her.

“My kin, are you done writing? Please, tell me what you wrote~♡”

Nastasia’s voice pulled Violet back to reality.

She turned to look at the small Evil God who was acting cute, and suddenly felt a little discouraged.

Although Nastasia’s divine rank was high, the number of her followers was what it was.

Violet didn’t think that with just a dozen followers, Nastasia could contend with the gods of the Eternal Sect.

She would need to convert at least all the villagers of Salna Village into followers.

According to the storyline, the conflict in Fortuna City would probably happen in about a month.

In other words, she had one month left.

Imperial Capital, the Imperial Princess’s bedchambers.

The expressionless “Violet” sat on the edge of the bed, as quiet as a doll that hadn’t been wound up.

“Knock knock—”

The abrupt knocking echoed in the deathly silent room.

The next moment, the lock turned, and two armored figures entered, one after the other.

The armored person in the lead was none other than Relia.

Behind him, a slightly shorter armored person was his student—Elan.

“Your Highness, have you been well lately?”

Relia walked up to “Violet,” took off his helmet, and knelt on one knee, giving her a standard knight’s salute.

“Mm.”

“Violet” nodded, her gaze falling on the graying hair under Relia’s helmet.

This old knight, who was as famous as Syks and was the former Emperor’s right-hand man, could be said to have watched Violet grow up.

And he was also the only high-ranking official in the Empire who had genuinely supported her until his death.

“What… do you… want from me?”

Relia looked up, his gaze meeting “Violet’s.”

For some reason, he could feel an unfamiliarity in this young body that shouldn’t be there.

It was as if… the person sitting in front of him wasn’t that Violet, but a puppet wearing “Violet’s” skin.

But that was impossible.

Relia had secretly checked “Violet’s” identity before, even using a special alchemical tool from the Empire, and the answers were, without exception, all her.

“The Empire has not been peaceful recently. Many people are using the guise of revolution to try and disrupt the order of the Empire. I need to lead troops to suppress them.

This is my student, Elan. During my absence, she will be responsible for your personal safety.”

“Not… necessary.”

“Violet” shook her head gently, but her words startled Relia.

“Syks… will protect… me…”

The old knight would never have guessed that while he was out suppressing the rebellion, the Imperial Princess had already been secretly swapped by Syks.

The one sitting in front of him now was just a puppet controlled by her puppet spell.

“Your Highness, Syks cannot be trusted…”

Relia wanted to say more.

He had noticed Syks’s disloyalty back when the old Emperor was still alive, but he had never been able to find any evidence.

Furthermore, as the former Saintess and current Pontiff of the Eternal Sect, Syks had always maintained a positive image in front of the public.

Under Violet’s tyranny, the “wholeheartedly for the people” Syks was the people’s choice.

“None… of your… business…”

On the luxurious bed, the expressionless Imperial Princess spoke words that sent a chill down one’s spine.

Relia wanted to say more, but a hand grabbed his shoulder plate.

“Teacher, let’s go.”

Elan stood behind Relia, his eyes cold under his full-face helmet.

His teacher had been away for many years and might not have heard of the “good deeds” Violet had done over the years.

Elan often thought that if the person in power wasn’t Violet, the Empire might be a different place.

“Your Highness, please take care of yourself.”

Relia sighed and stood up, putting on his helmet.

He didn’t understand why the once lively and cheerful Violet had become like this.

He only knew that he had promised the former Emperor to take care of her as she grew up.

Not long after the two left the bedchambers, the large brass doors were pushed open again.

Syks stood with her hands behind her back, like a proud hawk surveying her territory.

She looked down at “Violet” and directly placed her hand on her head.

A ball of magic was injected, and “Violet’s” blood-red eyes flickered, gaining a bit more life.

There was no communication between them.

After doing all this, Syks left the bedchambers with “Violet.”

As Relia had said, the riots around the Empire were becoming more and more frequent lately.

However, most of them were just riots under the guise of revolution, used to amass wealth and satisfy selfish desires.

Only a few were truly trying to overthrow the Empire’s tyranny.

The two of them left the palace.

The guards they met on the way all lowered their heads and pretended to be blind when they saw “Violet” following Syks.

All the people assigned to this place were Syks’s trusted aides.

Soon, the two of them entered the cathedral, or more accurately, the side hall of the cathedral.

Unlike the magnificent decorations of the main hall, there were only a few candles lit here.

The flames flickered, and through the faint orange-yellow light, one could vaguely make out the surroundings.

This was actually an altar, an altar for communicating with the gods!

However, the statue in the center of this altar was not of the gods of the Eternal Sect.

Looking at its features, it looked more like Syks.

The statue was in a posture of devout prayer.

Although it was a sacred appearance, under the candlelight, it somehow seemed a bit eerie.

In this gloomy atmosphere, Syks, who was standing in front, slowly turned around, her gaze fixed on “Violet’s” face, a trace of satisfaction flashing across her own.

After the old Emperor’s death, Relia was arguably the person who knew Violet best.

Even he hadn’t noticed anything unusual, which showed how flawless “Violet’s” disguise was.

However, this was not a long-term solution.

To eliminate future troubles, Relia had to be silenced forever.

As it happened, the Empire was currently rife with rebellions, and as the commander of the Imperial Guard, Relia naturally had to lead the troops.

In that case, launching a powerful attack on the long-besieged enemy was a very reasonable thing to do.

And if the attack range was too large, causing friendly fire and even accidentally killing Relia, that was also a very reasonable thing.

In any case, the person who gave the order was “Violet.”

What did it have to do with Syks?

She only needed to express her condolences for Relia in front of the public and incite public opinion to transfer the people’s faith to her.

Syks believed that as long as she had enough faith, even in this era where it was impossible to become a god, she could still carve out a path to godhood.