Chapter 86 : She Still Won’t Eat?

“May the Goddess’s light forever shelter her children.”

As the bells for morning prayer rang, Lillian’s fingers trembled slightly. She looked down at the holy book before her. The words on the page blurred into a golden halo in the sunlight.

Perhaps it wasn’t the sun. A sudden wave of dizziness forced her to pause her prayer. She could only wait for it to pass.

The voices of the faithful, reciting the prayer after her, echoed through the cathedral. But amidst the chorus, she caught a strange, fleeting sound.

It was familiar, yet gone in an instant.

Perhaps she was just hearing things.

She unconsciously touched the silver cross on her chest. It was slightly warm.

“Your Holiness?”

A nun’s voice brought her back to reality. Lillian realized that the morning prayer had ended. The faithful were leaving in an orderly fashion.

She had been distracted at the very end. Fortunately, it hadn’t caused too much of a disruption.

“Today’s blessing is concluded.”

As Lillian stood up to leave, her body swayed. The nun quickly supported her.

“You’ve been working too hard, ever since the crusade…”

“I’m fine.”

She pulled her arm away and walked alone toward the Confession Chamber, a place she visited every day.

The nun was right. She was a little too tired. But Lillian couldn’t say why.

It had been three days since the crusade ended. In that time, she had been distracted more times than in the past year combined.

As a Saintess, she never lost focus during prayer. But lately, her mind had been wandering. What was wrong with her?

In the Confession Chamber, she didn’t kneel before the statue of the Goddess as she usually did.

Her thoughts drifted back to three days ago.

When the Pope had been possessed by that unknown entity, the situation had turned in an instant. The girl Stacy had valued so much was like a fish on a chopping block, completely helpless.

After Milly passed out from suffocation, Oswell had placed a seal on her, a permanent one.

It was a necessary precaution.

He couldn’t be attached to Oswell’s body at all times. If Milly found a chance to escape, no one could stop her.

After that, the golden light in Oswell’s eyes faded. As it disappeared, he stumbled, nearly falling.

The memory of what had just happened flashed in his mind. By tradition, as a demon, Milly had to be burned at the stake.

But he had just received a new directive. Before the next step was decided, Milly was to be kept under watch. The only requirement was that she be kept “alive.”

As long as she was breathing.

When he returned to the sanctuary, he would find a suitable way to deal with her. Before that, there was something important to find.

The precious item stolen by the Fell God. According to the information they had, it was most likely disguised as an ancient tome. To find a specific book in the fortress’s vast library was like finding a needle in a haystack.

The only clue was the faint aura of the Fell God that remained on the tome.

Even after reinforcements arrived, they found nothing. The stolen item seemed to have vanished with the Fell God.

Throughout the search, Lillian had followed behind Oswell, silent. Only he knew what he was looking for. From the end of the crusade to now, she had been struggling to keep up.

She instinctively sensed that there was something behind Oswell, something she couldn’t see. Stacy seemed to have some knowledge of it, but she wouldn’t share it with her. From start to finish, she was just a bystander.

Afterward, Oswell decided to stay in the fortress to continue the search, leaving some men to assist him. The rest of the reinforcements, along with the spoils from the fortress, returned to Starlight City with Lillian.

Milly was also taken back to Starlight City, to be dealt with by Oswell upon his return.

When they arrived in Starlight City, it was the next morning.

The city gates opened in the morning light. The streets were lined with flowers, and a crowd of people surged forward.

“The Saintess has returned!”

“The Fell God has been defeated!”

Cheers thundered. Lillian rode on a white horse, her pure white robes fluttering in the morning breeze, glowing in the sunlight. Behind her, the golden carriage symbolizing the Pope slowly entered the city gates, flanked by Platinum Knights, solemn and majestic.

The streets were lined with people holding flowers and candles, their eyes filled with tears as they shouted praises to the Church.

“Light eternal!”

“Long live His Holiness the Pope!”

After this battle, the Church’s prestige in the Empire had risen to new heights. The reinforcements had brought the news to the city before they left. Although the battle had been costly, Pope Oswell had personally slain the Fell God.

The people had gathered spontaneously to welcome the triumphant army, nearly blocking the city gates.

From that day on, a three-day celebration was held in the city. Even now, three days later, when Lillian walked out of the cathedral, she could still see the colorful ribbons fluttering in the streets.

The memory continued.

That night, Lillian sat alone by the fountain outside the cathedral. The city was brightly lit, the people still reveling in the victory over the Fell God.

During the day, her smile was flawless. But at night, alone in the darkness, she no longer had to pretend.

Stacy was dead.

The evidence pointed to it. But Lillian’s unease had not diminished. It only grew stronger as she looked at the city lights.

That was Stacy. How could her end be so anticlimactic?

Just then, Tifna, reeking of alcohol, stumbled and sat beside her, a new golden medal in her hand.

It had been awarded to her by the Emperor himself that afternoon.

As the only survivor of the crusade besides her and the Pope, Tifna’s strike had been crucial.

But the drunken girl threw the medal into the fountain.

“Lady Tifna?”

That was an honor bestowed by the Emperor himself. It was not something Tifna, with her family’s code, would do.

“Your Holiness,” Tifna’s voice was filled with confusion. “Did we really kill the Fell God?”

The sudden question made Lillian pause.

“The moment my attack on Milly failed, I realized it.”

“With the Fell God’s power, she wouldn’t have been distracted by me.”

“She could have killed me easily. But she looked back, at me.”

“It was as if… she deliberately created an opening.”

Tifna had spoken her exact thoughts. Yes, it had all been too smooth. The moment Tifna’s attack drew Stacy’s attention, the Pope’s holy light had pierced her chest.

It was as smooth as a carefully choreographed play.

“Yes, it’s all over. We all saw it, didn’t we?”

She heard her own dry voice. Even she didn’t believe it.

“Yes, it’s all over.”

She fished the medal out of the fountain. Looking at the warm, lively lights in the distance, Tifna suddenly felt a pang of fear.

Yes, it was all over. But she had lost everything.

“Your Holiness, I have a request.”

Tifna suddenly grabbed her wrist. Lillian paused, then nodded.

“Go on.”

The memory froze. Lillian sighed and left the Confession Chamber.

She had to check.

As she stepped out, she ran into Tifna, who was carrying a tray of food.

The silver-armored girl now wore a conspicuous Church emblem.

“Three days, and she still won’t eat?”

“Yes.”