Chapter 516: Salvation

THUD.

A muffled thud.

Sean and Elvire, their hearts pierced by fingernails, stiffened and collapsed into a pool of blood.

Three Low-tier Wizards, not even Grand Mages yet, stood no chance against the Tier Ten Diana. The outcome of this conflict was decided from the very beginning.

‘I told you not to come, but you just wouldn’t listen…’

Diana sighed to herself.

“Dispose of the bodies.”

She said to Fan Ke’er, “Make sure they don’t turn up in Cadola Royal City.”

The implication was clear: don’t use Undead Magic on these three corpses, or he would face the consequences.

“Yes.” Fan Ke’er accepted the order.

Although the Bright King’s Court wasn’t under the Saintess’s jurisdiction, everyone knew she was the Pope’s most beloved daughter. As long as the Royal Court’s bottom line wasn’t crossed, he would always show Her Highness the Saintess the respect she was due.

Just like this time.

Sean and the other two knew his identity, had followed him all this way, and had trespassed into the church’s secret chamber. By the laws of the Church Court and the authority of the Bright King’s Court, he could have killed the three of them on the spot. They would never have even had the chance to discover the secret chamber.

However, during this process, he received a message from Diana. She said they were her friends, that she wanted to deal with them personally, and that she would let Sean and the others die understanding why. That was what led to tonight’s scene.

Honestly, this wasn’t exactly by the book.

The closer the friend, the more one should avoid suspicion.

But she was Her Highness the Saintess, after all. He had to show her some deference.

The final result would be the same anyway. He would just watch from the sidelines, ensuring that Sean’s group couldn’t speak another word and would take what they saw tonight to their graves.

“Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness the Saintess,” Fan Ke’er said with a smile. “This was originally a matter for our Bright King’s Court, yet we troubled Your Highness to handle it personally. If you hadn’t alerted me, I wouldn’t have even known I was being followed. I nearly caused a disaster. I’m truly ashamed. I only hope Your Highness will consider my many years of dedicated service to the Church Court and refrain from telling His Holiness the Pope about this. Otherwise, my good days will be over.”

Diana laughed. “You certainly have a way with words.”

She didn’t believe for a second that Fan Ke’er hadn’t noticed Sean’s group was tailing him.

This whole affair should have been Fan Ke’er owing her a favor. But the way he spun it, it sounded like she was the one who had helped him.

“Give Count Potter my regards. I won’t be going over.”

Diana said, “Captain of the Forbidden Guard Fan Ke’er is loyal and dedicated, serving the Church Court for a decade as if it were a single day, without a single mistake. Tonight, he promptly discovered intruders in the church, slew three heretics, and nipped the danger in the bud… I will personally report this meritorious deed to His Holiness the Pope on your behalf.”

Fan Ke’er’s face lit up with joy. He immediately bowed and said, “Thank you, Your Highness the Saintess.”

“You’re welcome,” Diana replied with a faint smile. “I’ll leave the rest to you.”

With that, she turned and left.

From beginning to end, she never once looked back at Sean and the others. It was as if, to her, killing three heretics was such a trivial matter that it wasn’t worth a second thought.

Fan Ke’er respectfully saw Diana off before turning to the person in the shadows who was controlling the Undead Army. “Alright, have your people withdraw.”

“You heard Her Highness the Saintess just now. These three bodies belong to her friends. She wishes for them to retain their final dignity, so just burn them. Don’t get any funny ideas.”

“Yes, Lord Fan Ke’er,” the person answered respectfully.

He was from the Potter Family. His Tier wasn’t actually lower than Fan Ke’er’s, but their statuses were worlds apart. Fan Ke’er represented the Bright King’s Court, while he was merely the heir to a count. He had no choice but to obey.

Seeing that Fan Ke’er had also left, he withdrew his Magic Power.

The moon reappeared in the night sky.

The zombie-like residents on the street gradually returned to normal.

They seemed to have no memory of what had just happened. One moment, they had swarmed forward, blocking off any escape for Sean and his companions. The next, they dispersed, returned to their original spots, and continued the conversations they had been having with their friends.

The entire city once again became bustling and bright with lights.

「Elsewhere.」

After leaving the scene, Diana didn’t return directly to Elderidge.

She went to William Castle and entered the room where Sean and the others had stayed the night before.

“You’re still here?”

A voice suddenly rang out beside her ear in the empty living room.

But Diana seemed to have expected it, showing no surprise at all. She walked over to the mini-bar on her own, took a bottle of liquor from the icebox, and poured herself a glass before replying, “Aren’t you still here as well?”

Daeli’s figure slowly materialized in front of the bar.

Diana smiled. “Long time no see.”

Daeli said meaningfully, “I think it would have been better if we hadn’t.”

Diana asked, “Then why did you show yourself?”

She could have pretended not to sense Daeli.

After all, that was what she had been doing before.

Daeli had actually been there the whole time.

It was obvious if you thought about it. She and Sean hadn’t seen each other in so long. Now that they had finally met again, how could she just up and leave?

The so-called family business was just a clumsy excuse. Nothing was more important than Sean.

Daeli simply didn’t want to put Sean in a difficult position, nor did she want to wrong her sister, so she chose to suffer in silence.

This was also why she hadn’t been too harsh on Elvire, merely sending the girl back along with Sean.

The time and place that night had been inappropriate, and she hadn’t wanted to start a conflict with Diana.

Otherwise, just for that “fox spirit” comment from Elvire, she would have long ago taught the disrespectful girl a lesson, asserting her seniority. After all, there’s a proper order to things—first come, first served. She wouldn’t have cared if Elvire was aware of the history or not. In Diana’s eyes, Elvire was the latecomer and should have respected her as her senior.