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Chapter 105
∥“Aaah!”∥
Elijia stepped out of the Mage Tower.
‘It’s way higher than I thought!’
Looking down at the dizzying height beneath her feet was truly terrifying. The only relief was that, thanks to the wing-shaped item in her hand, she wasn’t falling but floating gently in the air.
‘A rare item that helps me fly.’
Thanks to it, Elijia safely touched the ground and took a moment to catch her breath, surveying her surroundings. Reflected in the nearby window was her own image.
‘As expected, I’m completely invisible.’
Before coming out, she had used Illuzernis, leaving her transparent just like last time. With this, moving around without being noticed by people was easy enough.
‘As long as I avoid the Chancellor.’
For some reason, the Chancellor had recognized her despite her invisibility. Thinking of that, it was best to avoid him as much as possible.
After making up her mind, Elijia ran in the direction completely opposite to where the temple party was heading.
‘Even if I have to take a detour, as long as I’m several times faster, it’ll be fine!’
The temple party was traveling by carriage, and Elijia’s speed was far beyond any carriage. Feeling proud of that, she sprinted at full speed.
“Why are we going to the basement again?”
It seemed like the broadcast cut off last time at the temple too…
∥“Yes. Back then, we were also on our way to the basement.”∥
The signal wasn’t stable down there, so the broadcast might cut off again. Elijia asked the viewers for their understanding regarding that.
Why is the signal cutting out? We’re not even really going underground; it’s just a game…
What’s down there anyway?
∥“…There’s something there, yes. Probably the temple’s greatest secret?”∥
Ugh, I hope it doesn’t cut off this time.
⌞How naive, this is just a game trailer. They’re not going to spoil it, lol.⌟
Hey, don’t just keep it to yourself—tell us more!
‘I want to know too…’
She wasn’t even an insider, so she really didn’t know anything!
Even if she said, “I think the administrator might be trapped there,” it would only make the viewers suspect she was more involved than she really was.
Sighing inwardly, Elijia increased her speed. After running at a speed that barely let her see the surrounding scenery, she soon reached the temple. With a graceful leap over the high temple wall, she landed lightly in the bushes.
The temple party hadn’t arrived yet. Considering the speed of the carriage, the Chancellor would probably take quite a while to get here.
‘Good. If I head to the basement now…!’
Just as she was about to step forward, she heard an unexpected voice nearby.
“…Oh my, the Saint too.”
‘What?’
Elijia peeked through the bushes to see what was happening. Between the trees, she saw a white table with chairs set up, and a tea spread arranged. Under the sunlight filtering through the trees, young noble ladies visiting the temple were having tea time. Sitting right in the middle was…
‘Frilien?’
Saint Frilien held a teacup with a gentle smile. Among those sitting nearby, half were unfamiliar faces, and half looked vaguely familiar—probably seen at a banquet, though she didn’t know their names. She did recognize Meirany and Nova.
At that moment, Meirany spoke excitedly.
“I didn’t expect you to speak that way about Lady Semperion.”
‘What did she say?’
Elijia couldn’t hear the previous conversation and frowned. Then Frilien’s clear voice was heard.
“I’m telling the truth. Lady Semperion must have been misunderstood.”
“Wait a moment. I don’t think you can just call everything a ‘misunderstanding.’”
A sharp voice interjected. Surprised, Elijia looked over. For some reason, the attendant priest had naturally joined the conversation. With a firm voice as if refusing to accept it, she added:
“The temple doesn’t act just because of misunderstandings. Lady Semperion is being investigated for valid reasons.”
“Yes, that’s true…”
Frilien smiled awkwardly.
“I wasn’t talking about the relics… I just wanted to say that Lady Semperion is a good person. You can see for yourself if you speak to her directly.”
“Well, that’s because you’re a saint…”
Meirany turned her head, secretly showing a frustrated expression. It was a gesture mixed with slight sarcasm, like the saint is just being overly generous or the saint must have restrained Lady Semperion too.
“I nearly fainted because of Lady Semperion… No, I really did!”
Meirany, who had been surprised by Elijia’s skills at the banquet, spoke. Frilien’s eyes widened in shock.
“Oh my, you must be very delicate…”
Meirany was speechless, staring at Frilien. But Frilien didn’t stop there; she reached out her hand.
“May I check if you’re in good health?”
“You’ll examine me yourself?”
Meirany’s expression brightened at the unexpected offer. She reached out her hand excitedly but then noticed something and stiffened.
“Uh, Saint… but your arm…”
At the end of her gaze was Frilien’s arm, marked with blue bruises and minor abrasions, revealed as she reached through her sleeves. Other young ladies gasped in surprise.
“Saint, you’re injured…!”
“How on earth did this happen…!”
Even Elijia, hiding and observing, was taken aback.
‘Can a saint get hurt?’
With her healing skills, she could recover from this in no time. Why leave it like this? Could her holy power have weakened, or was she attacked?
Noticing the reaction, Frilien quickly covered her arm.
“Oh, it’s just from some sword practice…”
“Sword practice?”
The attendant priest next to her explained.
“Yes. Recently, the saint has been receiving sword lessons from Lady Semperion.”
“Whaaaat?!”
Everyone around gasped in shock.
“Could Lady Semperion have done this?”
“Lady Semperion hit the saint?”
“Oh, Princess Frinis! How could this happen!”
‘No!’
Elijia froze, frustrated at being misunderstood as the one who hit the saint. Frilien hurriedly clarified.
“No, no. These aren’t injuries from Lady Semperion. I got them by myself while training and falling.”
‘That figures.’
But why hasn’t she treated them yet?
‘Could it be because of my advice?’
She had told her to rely less on holy power and train without it.
‘Still, she should heal that quickly!’
There’s no middle ground!
Elijia sighed heavily. Frilien looked satisfied, completely ignoring Elijia’s frustration. The others whispered quietly among themselves, clearly misunderstanding.
“The saint may dress it up, but still, to have injuries like that…”
“Maybe she was really hit but is covering it up.”
“Right. I heard even the Crown Prince experienced it…”
‘What’s happening to my reputation?’
I’ve really become the villain harassing the Crown Prince and the saint!
‘The Crown Prince won fairly in the duel, and this time I was just helping teach! It’s so unfair!’
Next time she meets Frilien, Elijia thought, she’ll insist on proper treatment immediately, no matter what. Sighing, she turned away. She couldn’t intervene and explain here anyway. The attendant priest sitting there meant she had to be extra careful. Previously, the priest had tracked relics, so he might sense something again.
‘With a relic in my inventory, the temple could track me anytime.’
Once inside the temple, other stored relics would prevent immediate detection, but she still needed to move quickly. Elijia ran without hesitation.
Unlike before, many knights were guarding the area around the basement.
‘But with my teleport skill…’
She had escaped last time with teleport, so going there again should be possible. The distance was manageable.
‘Let’s go! Teleport!’
Elijia activated teleport without hesitation. Then…
Ding!
??@!$???? has been reached.
The familiar notification appeared, just like last time. Looking around, the basement scene was familiar. A mysterious stone-decorated door welcomed her.
Sealed ??? (found)
Do you want to unlock the seal?
As before, the same notification appeared. Elijia spoke to the person beyond the door.
“Knock knock, Angel? Are you still there?”
“…You really came? How?”
A small whisper, sounding surprised, reached her. Elijia smiled faintly. The angel’s voice continued, sounding a little touched.
“…You came all the way to save me?”
“Well… I can’t exactly promise that. I’m being chased right now.”
Even staying here briefly was dangerous. Elijia spoke indifferently.
“Someone falsely accused me of stealing a ‘relic.’ Now the temple is tracking me… it’s a huge mess.”
But…
“Since it’s come to this, I’ll make good use of it.”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
Still looking confused, the angel watched as Elijia placed her hand on the door. A new notification appeared.
Unlocking the seal requires high-capacity holy power.
Current progress: 00%
Cannot unlock the seal.
‘It said high-capacity holy power is required.’
That’s why she had left last time.
‘But now it’s different.’
As mentioned before, Elijia had a very useful card. She didn’t get it intentionally, but that made it perfect to use now.
“Inventory!”
At her shout, something sparkled in midair. A silver, radiant ornament appeared.
A relic: ‘Pendant of Frinis.’
“How much holy power does this relic have? This should be enough!”
Elijia placed the pendant against the door. Then…
!!!Holy power injection confirmed!!!
Current progress… 1%… 2%… 7%…
Bright light began to fill the entire room.
