Chapter 113: Aftermath of the Divine War

Leisurely moments without unexpected turmoil always seem to pass quickly.

In the blink of an eye, a week had already passed since the disturbance caused by the Faceless Ones, and there were now less than ten days remaining until the sacred day that Edwina mentioned, when she would inherit the Arbitrary Holy Sword and the position of Judging Saintess.

Although the sudden and mysterious disaster had a significant impact on the Western Capital, luckily, the attack from the Faceless Ones primarily focused on the Lingyin Merchant Association and the central Temple of Bright Light, preventing the calamity from fully spreading into densely populated areas.

Later on, the black flame giant, an avatar of the mastermind [Faceless and Blissful God] Musk, was blocked by a certain Miss White Fox who had rushed over personally.

Aside from the area that was burned when it first appeared and the casualties caused by panic-induced trampling during the escape, the true foundation of Mingguang City hadn’t been too shaken.

This was largely due to the swift and decisive response from the ruling Holy Knight Yuna Summerfield, who led the Temple Knights to directly eradicate the other scattered Faceless Ones, not giving them a chance to rampage and integrate into the population. Otherwise, the losses would have certainly been more than this.

However, this was precisely the aim of the [Faceless and Blissful God] at that time, to temporarily delay the main force of the Temple to prevent them from aiding the Lingyin Merchant Association, ruining his plans.

This shocking event that stirred the Holy Kingdom, even drawing attention from various quarters, was dubbed the [Fake Mask Demon Rebellion].

Yes, demon.

This was the final definition given by the Holy Knight Yuna Summerfield, who stood on the front lines of the battlefield in the Western Capital at that time.

Of course, there was no need for the demons to acknowledge it.

And during that battle, another individual who became renowned for her great contributions…

“Eh?! Is this true? That Holy Knight Yuna… really decided to do this?!”

In the messaging room of the Cecily Merchant Association, the armored blonde Holy Knight gasped in disbelief.

“Yes, Yuna personally told me this. A few days ago, regarding the [Fake Mask Demon Rebellion] in the Western Capital, I’m sure you’ve heard about it. If nothing unexpected happens, she will officially announce soon that she will lead the Temple Knights, with Mingguang City at the forefront, to the east to eradicate the demon forces causing chaos over there.”

After a moment’s pause, the black-haired white-robed Priestess chose to continue speaking.

“The timing is precisely on the sacred day. If I’m not mistaken, this isn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision or the excuse she’s publicly stating about the appearance of the fake mask demons representing the urgent need to address the infiltration of demon forces or whatever.”

“This is a premeditated plan; the appearance of the fake mask demons just conveniently provided Holy Knight Yuna with an appropriate excuse and reason.”

“Edwina, you and your family need to pay attention and choose your position wisely. This could mark the beginning of an enormous change and reshuffling.”

Silently, the expression of the Holy Knight in the image became serious.

“May I ask, what does Miss Vilyric believe Holy Knight Yuna’s purpose is? Is it to gain prestige through the fourth holy war against the demons and overturn the current dominance of the Holy Church, reclaiming the transcendent position within the Holy Kingdom from centuries ago?”

To the blonde girl’s probing and ambiguous question, the Priestess merely shook her head.

“I don’t know. Although we have a somewhat collaborative relationship, it’s clear that Yuna cannot disclose all of her intentions and plans to us.”

“After all, just like how you and I are communicating now, the information I can share with you is what she doesn’t intend to hide; it’s content that will eventually be known by everyone. As for deeper objectives, whether there are other plans, how to respond, what stance to take, and so on… those are your own concerns in the Holy Kingdom~”

Listening to the Priestess’s indifferent attitude conveyed in her words, Edwina appeared contemplative and again tried to ask quietly.

“Then, is Miss Vilyric…”

“Hmm, I will indeed be heading to the eastern battlefield alongside Yuna, but you must always remember, I am merely a traveler, an outsider.”

“I can provide some limited assistance, but I won’t interfere extensively in your Holy Empire’s internal affairs, nor can I personally eliminate the demons completely. What Yuna… Summerfield ultimately desires, how to respond, and how to deal with the demons, that’s your own problem, understand?”

“Ah ha ha… Just as I thought, that’s very much in line with what I know about Miss Vilyric…”

Watching the Holy Knight scratch her head with a smile, the Priestess, who had been putting on an aloof act, couldn’t maintain her composure and ended up touching her nose to disperse the awkwardness, shaking her head helplessly.

“It’s best if you can accept that, but this means that the Holy Church’s planned Holy Maiden succession ceremony will have to be postponed. After all, their original rationale was to allow you to quickly gain the full power of the Judging Saintess to address the impending chaos caused by the demons on the eastern battlefield.”

“However, now that the leading Holy Maiden of Bright Light has made a strong entrance, bringing with her tens of thousands of elite Temple Knights from the Western Capital, the urgency for the changeover of the Judging Saintess’s position naturally decreases. Without sufficient excuses, a Holy Maiden isn’t just something that can be swapped out like a cabbage, right?”

“Indeed so.”

Hearing the Priestess bring up this matter, the Holy Knight on the other side obviously sighed in relief, her expression relaxing a bit.

“Now, that’s settled. Currently, the Holy Church probably hasn’t received the news about the Holy Maiden of Bright Light deciding to launch a campaign; they’re still frantically preparing for the succession ceremony and the artifact recall ritual. As long as we wait for the announcement of the Western Capital’s deployment… Hehe, those detestable old geezers are bound to be so mad they’ll be red in the face~”

Having finished this topic, as if suddenly recalling something, Edwina quickly brought up another issue.

“By the way… a little over a week ago, on the day the news broke about the [Fake Mask Demon Rebellion] in the Western Capital, it was said that an unbelievable scene of utter darkness suddenly appeared across the entire Holy Kingdom, even extending to the farther United Kingdom, Kingdom of Azure, and as far as the Ost Empire.”

“Not only did the sunlight vanish, but even candles, magic lights, and magic crystals… all sources of light extinguished almost simultaneously, leading to an unprecedented sight where nothing could be seen. This had never occurred in all historical records.”

“Although this phenomenon lasted only about ten seconds, and the world quickly brightened again, it still sparked much discussion, fear, and even rumors about the impending end of the world…”

“The City of Angels’s Holy Academy has already held several large-scale discussions regarding this incredible phenomenon, but to this day, they haven’t reached a convincing answer.”

As she spoke, Edwina displayed a strange and curious expression.

“Since Miss Vilyric said earlier that you were engaged in battle with that [Faceless and Blissful God], could it be…”

“Ah, this…”

Alright.

Although the Priestess had already roughly understood the various effects brought on by that [Essence: Light] through Yuna’s channels, and was surprised that such a wildly different side effect from the game could occur, being pointed out directly still caused her to fidget awkwardly and touch her nose again.

But since Edwina was one of her trusted friends who had witnessed her various skills before, it shouldn’t be a problem to tell this Holy Knight.

So, Vilyric broadly explained the battle situation at that time and also mentioned her use of the identity [Xī].

However, upon acknowledging this, the Holy Knight didn’t mock the Priestess for her naivety but instead seemed almost as enthusiastic as Yuna had been at the time, her expression gleaming with excitement, clapping her hands and shouting with sparkling eyes!

“Oh! Truly worthy of Miss Vilyric! Amazing!!!”

She quickly pulled out a familiar-looking notebook from her bosom and began feverishly writing!

???

“Hey!? What are you writing that for, you weirdo!!”

   

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