Chapter 343 - 300: Lu Jia’s Persistence and Choice

If physical pain alone could break a Battle Sister of firm will and pure faith, Lu Jia would never have been able to hold out for three grueling months on Hiniya World, facing the siege of four Slaughter Demons alone and fighting to the very last without falling.

But.

The accusations and suspicions from the Inquisition and her most revered Nun Superior—charge after charge of treason and heresy—were like salt rubbed in a wound, plunging her soul into an icy abyss and driving her deep into despair.

Lu Jia didn’t understand what she had done wrong.

’She didn’t understand. Shouldn’t the return of that powerful Emperor’s Angel be a cause for celebration? Why were they demanding she fabricate groundless charges, pinning the crimes of heresy and treason on him?’

’And even Lady Eleonor was...’

Lu Jia’s head was bowed, her filthy white hair hanging in front of her eyes and obscuring her vision.

Her lips, cracked and dry from dehydration, felt as if seared by fire. The open, weeping lash marks on her back were exposed to the air, each passing second a fresh wave of excruciating pain.

The unknown drugs the Judge had forced down her throat were a constant assault on her mind and thoughts.

Lu Jia’s hazy memories drifted back to a month ago.

She had been serving on the Verne Front Line when she received a recall order from the Holy Rose Order.

At first, she thought she was hallucinating. It was only when she clearly saw Lady Eleonor’s seal on the Holy Sheepskin Paper that she believed her sisters from the Monastery had escaped the Void Storm and reached the Iberian World.

Words could not describe the excitement and joy Lu Jia felt at the thought of returning to the Holy Rose Order.

That very day, she found Raphael, explained the situation, and boarded a supply ship. Burning with impatience, she broke through the Imperial Rebel Army’s blockade and hurried to the Iberian World.

Strictly speaking, after withdrawing from the Dark Side of the Empire aboard the Punisher Ship, Lu Jia had immediately reported the plight of the Holy Rose Order and her own situation to the Inquisition in the Ash Soil Star Zone.

She hoped to return to the Judgment Court and continue fighting for the Divine Emperor and her faith with all her strength.

Unfortunately, the only reply she received was a dismissive ’Understood,’ with no follow-up.

Lu Jia assumed the Judge who replied was simply too busy, so she went to Raphael time and again, asking to report her personal situation and her desire to return to the Inquisition once more.

Perhaps the young Battle Sister was simply too naive.

Perhaps her faith was too pure and steadfast, utterly without blemish.

Lu Jia could never have understood. Without the protection of the Holy Rose Order, her strength and background meant nothing. To the Judgment Court, her return was a matter of complete indifference; no one cared.

On the contrary, if the Administrative Region’s Inquisition were to accept her, they would not only have to manage her personal affairs and assign her a post, but also submit a requisition report to the National Church so convoluted it could make a man tear his hair out.

This report would need to clearly state the purpose of the requisition, its duration, the specific combat objectives, the deployment location, and so on.

If she were to die on a mission, the supervising Judge would have to write another report on her death in the line of duty, detailing the cause of death, the disposal of the body...

And even though a Judge could delegate these tasks to an assistant, it was still a hassle.

After all.

The Battle Sisters were an Imperial military body belonging to the National Church, basking in the light of the Divine Emperor. The Inquisition merely collaborated with them. Thus, even for a single Battle Sister, they had to navigate the internal requisition process.

Because both the Judgment Court and the Administrative Region’s National Church, being nominally loyal to the Empire, had to act in accordance with Imperial law on such matters. They could not afford to leave any loopholes that potential enemies could seize upon to launch a vicious attack.

To put it another way, for powerful figures like a Judge, the utility of Imperial law was irrelevant. What mattered was having the backing of Imperial law.

Clearly, Lu Jia’s strength and seniority were not worth any Judge going to such lengths.

Ignoring her, leaving her to die on the Verne Front Line, and pretending nothing had ever happened was the far better option.

Raphael, of course, knew why the Judge wouldn’t reply to the loyal sister, but he couldn’t say so outright. He could only offer subtle hints.

Unfortunately, Lu Jia, whose political sensitivity was near zero, was still fixated on why the Judgment Court hadn’t replied to her, even after a year and a half.

Still, Lu Jia was eternally grateful that the Caster Battle Group had taken her in for over a year. She was also grateful that, through Raphael’s efforts, she had been granted a legal status to fight on the front line by the Administrative Region Military Affairs Department.

’As long as I can fight for the great Divine Emperor, my life still has meaning.’

「Time returned to the present.」

Lu Jia struggled to raise her head. Her numb gaze swept over the Judge and the Nun Superior inside the cell.

The excitement and joy she had felt a month ago—at the thought of returning to the Holy Rose Order, of seeing the sisters she had fought beside, of seeing her most revered Lady Eleonor—had long since vanished.

All that remained was confusion and a seething, fiery rage.

She had seen with her own eyes Lord Reinhardt fighting the Imperial Rebel Army to the death. Countless Demons had fallen by his hand. He had even stayed behind alone to cover the retreat of the ships rescuing the Radiant Angels.

’If actions like that couldn’t prove his loyalty and courage...’

’...what on earth could she do to prove she wasn’t lying? How could she prove that he had never committed any act of heresy or treason?’

Her interrogator was a tall, powerfully built Judge with high cheekbones and a prominent nose. He wore a dark green greatcoat adorned with numerous mysterious trinkets, and his eyes held a look of extreme ruthlessness.

At that moment.

The words Lord Raphael had spoken to her as a warning while they fought on the Demon Mother Ship echoed in her ears—words that now, in retrospect, were filled with profound meaning.

’Some secrets... they’re not just known by you alone.’

The Battle Sister, who had endured eighteen days of secret torture, fought back the excruciating pain from her wounds. The corners of her mouth curled into a faint, sardonic arc—a look of both relief and mockery.

Because in that moment, she finally understood.

’These people weren’t putting Reinhardt on trial for the Divine Emperor or their faith. They were just looking for an excuse to eliminate him.’

’How despicable.’

’How... heretical.’

’Utterly without honor.’

"Wolfgang, I swore a Knight’s Oath before the Radiant Holy Image. I fight only to protect the weak and defend the majesty of the Divine Emperor. My faith will not permit me to betray my conscience and slander an Emperor’s Angel who proved his courage and Loyalty with his very life.

Kill me. Unless you can control my thoughts and consciousness, you will never get what you want from me.

But if you do that..."

"Heh... then between the two of us, who is the real traitor? Who is the one committing heresy against the Divine Emperor?"

Having said this.

Lu Jia’s gaze fell upon Nun Superior Eleonor, her voice trembling with a storm of emotions. "Superior... please believe me. I... have never betrayed my faith."