Hearing Luna’s words, Vanessa finally let out a heavy sigh of relief.

They were finally safe.

“Milady Vanessa has just woken up and is still very weak. Although Amisa and I have already treated your injuries, eating more nutritious food will speed up your recovery.”

“Come on, Milady Vanessa, open your mouth, say, aah~” Luna smiled slightly as she fetched a wooden bowl from beside the campfire, ladled a spoonful of thick soup, and gently brought it to Vanessa’s lips, using the teasing tone one would use to coax a child into eating.

“Miss Luna, please don’t tease me like this. And please, stop calling me ‘Milady,'” Vanessa said, her delicate face tinged with both embarrassment and bashfulness.

“Eh? Why not? Aren’t you the Saintess, Milady?”

“Of course I’m not the Saintess,” Vanessa asserted firmly.

“Then why did you respond every time we called you that before?” Luna replied playfully.

“Because the situation was urgent back then.”

“But why did you instinctively assume we were referring to you when we said ‘Saintess’?” Luna pressed on with a smile.

“Because, ” Vanessa faltered for a moment. “Miss Luna, aren’t you just playing word games with me? My family is the lineage of the Saintesses. Naturally, I’d react instinctively when I heard that title.”

“So you’re instinctively urged that you should be the rightful Radiance Saintess, aren’t you?” Luna continued relentlessly, grinning mischievously.

“Miss Luna, that kind of talk is crossing a line,” Vanessa said helplessly. “Saying things that are impossible and frustrating to respond to, surely that’s not proper behavior for a lady?”

“Even after everything we’ve been through, isn’t it enough to change your mind, Saintess?” Luna softened her tone. “The Church of Radiance’s current attitude and actions toward the Varelis family are clear for all to see. Someone as intelligent as you already know this, you’ve simply been chosen to run away, forced to face this truth.”

“But how long can you keep running?” Luna’s smile faded, her eyes growing serious.

“Your enemies won’t spare you just because you compromise. You should know better than anyone, keep fleeing, and eventually, there will be nowhere left to run. And the Church of Radiance will become nothing more than a breeding ground for demons.”

“Don’t think I’m exaggerating,” Luna continued calmly. “You’ve been away from the Church for a long time. You don’t know what’s really been happening inside.”

“A century is more than enough time for many things to change. It took the Church of Radiance over a thousand years to evolve from an obscure sect in ancient times to one with followers across the world, and eventually become the guardian of continental order. Yet it took less than a hundred years for it to transform from a protector of justice, peace, for the intelligent races into a source of corruption and evil.”

“Destroying something is always far easier than building it,” Luna said. At these words, Fanya and Amisa both turned their gazes toward Vanessa, their eyes filled with an unspoken tension and divergent hopes.

They both sensed the atmosphere had grown serious and heavy.

“There has never been a time more urgent than now for a true Radiance Saintess to step forward and uphold the greater cause. Only a true descendant of the Varelis line can wield such powerful influence, someone whose mere call can win widespread support across human society.” Seeing Vanessa remain silent, Luna pressed on.

“It’s not as simple as you think, Miss Luna. The Radiance Pope has already officially declared me an imposter.”

“Do they not know the truth in their hearts? Everyone has seen your true appearance. Don’t they know who’s lying? One can deceive everyone for a time, or one person for all time, but never everyone for all time,” Luna responded.

“To state an objective fact, Saintess, mankind needs you. But I’m not trying to morally pressure you or force your hand. I merely want to make it clear: this is no longer a situation where you can escape or compromise. The Church of Radiance has already unilaterally marked you as a thorn that must be removed.”

“If they discover you’ve awakened your ancestral bloodline, they’ll never let you live. They know that if you’re allowed to grow stronger, one day you’ll have the power to completely overturn the entire Church of Radiance, whether or not you intend to.”

“The moment you awakened your bloodline, your fate became one of irreconcilable conflict with them.”

“Whatever your reasons, whether purely for yourself, you must now make your stance clear,” Luna said with solemn seriousness. “Indecision and hesitation are the most dangerous paths.”

“Either flee to a place where no one can ever find you, or rise up and shatter the current state of the Church of Radiance, completely reshaping it.”

“…Mankind?” Vanessa remained silent for a long while, whispering softly. “I don’t have that ability. Having such intentions would only make things more complicated.”

“No ability? No will? Is that what you’d say about repelling the Demon God Pillar at Holy Cathedral, saving the entire academy, and even the entire continent?” Luna smiled, as if catching Vanessa in another contradiction.

“If you truly had no will, why did you step forward then? That was a crisis even the authorities at Carillian Academy couldn’t resolve, surely it wasn’t a matter that concerns someone who insists on being an ‘ordinary person’ like yourself?”

“Miss Luna, you really do enjoy asking difficult questions,” Vanessa said after a pause, letting out a soft sigh.

“Are they truly difficult to answer, or is it that the Saintess simply doesn’t want to answer?” Luna’s smile, like her voice, was sweet as honey, yet left Vanessa utterly helpless.

“…” Vanessa fell silent.

She knew perfectly well that Luna was right. In truth, she understood all of this clearly in her heart. But she had been running away, clinging to the dream of a normal life, unwilling to be dragged into these storms.

She had never forgotten how her fate ended in her previous life. Thus, whenever possible, she avoids getting involved.

Although she’d always been unlucky, constantly pulled into one main storyline after another against her will, all she ever wanted was a quiet, ordinary daily life. She never wished for her existence to be so ‘thrilling.’

Despite her deep hatred for the Church, she also knew that opposing it would change everything, it would mean a life-or-death struggle, a battle that wouldn’t end until one side was completely destroyed.

How much bloodshed would that cause? If possible, Vanessa didn’t want that.

But now, it was no longer a matter of what she wanted. The Church of Radiance simply wouldn’t leave her a path to survival. Her constant retreat had only emboldened them further, culminating in this incident, sacrificing so many lives just to frame her death as an accident.

This Church was rotten to the core, from top to bottom, beyond salvation.

With no choice left, resistance was the only path remaining.

“So, Miss Luna, what do you want me to do? I don’t believe I should now make a grand declaration and expose myself to more people,” Vanessa sobbed softly.

“Of course not right now,” Luna replied with a cheerful smile, her eyes instantly curving into two crescent moons. She knew that Vanessa saying this meant there was already a spark of resistance within her.

Even if there hadn’t been before, after being provoked by Foreno, there definitely was now.

After all, the Church of Radiance had already pushed things to the extreme, denying Vanessa any space to exist, determined to crush her completely, to erase the goddess’s lineage entirely, or at best, reduced her to a caged canary. In such a situation, anyone would develop a rebellious spirit.

“I’m not suggesting the Saintess do that either,” Luna continued. “If you did, you’d immediately become a target. Right now, both public opinion and absolute power are in the hands of the Church of Radiance. If you stepped forward, they’d instantly declare you a false Saintess and send troops to eliminate you, regardless of any opposition.”

“For us now, bidding our time and concealing our strength is the best strategy.” Luna glanced at Fanya and Amisa. “Once the Saintess reaches the same realm as the past Saintess, once she gains the power to appoint or revoke [Holy Envoys], the Church of Radiance will have no choice but to surrender. At that point, that seemingly invincible organisation will kneel at your feet.”

“There’s an unpleasant truth I must say upfront,” Luna paused, speaking with deep implication. “Since we’ve conspired this far, anyone here who leaks this information or proves disloyal to the Saintess will be utterly destroyed, bones crushed and ashes scattered.”

This, of course, was directed at Fanya and Amisa.

“After all, the current Pope has a habit of extreme paranoia. So if anyone regrets boarding this ship now, it’s already too late, the old man won’t spare any of us.” Luna added with half a joke.

“Lady Luna, please rest assured, Amisa and I will never betray the Saintess,” Fanya declared firmly. “I swear it upon my family’s honor and my own life!”

“Yes, I’ll fight for Milady Vanessa until my very last breath!” Amisa nodded earnestly.

“Of course, I’m only saying this to remind everyone, we’re all in the same boat. Our fates rise and fall together,” Luna smiled. “I can clearly sense both of your loyalty to the Saintess.”

“You see, Saintess? Not everyone in the Church blindly follows the Pope. You still have your own followers,” Luna then turned to Vanessa.

“Miss Luna, I have a few questions,” Vanessa said after a moment of silence.

“Ask away, Saintess. Although I haven’t formally sworn allegiance yet, I’ll answer whatever you wish to know,” Luna replied with a gentle smile.

“When we first met, did you already have some inkling about my identity?” Vanessa asked.

“Our first meeting? Mmm, I did feel something,” Luna admitted honestly. “But even I couldn’t see through your male disguise.”

“…So you did that on purpose??” Vanessa’s poised, graceful smile began to crack.

“Eh?” Fanya and Amisa, listening nearby, were completely confused. “Miss Luna, what does the Saintess mean by ‘on purpose’?”

“Oh my~ I almost forgot you two probably don’t know,” Luna giggled mischievously. “Actually, it’s not something worth hiding. It’s kind of funny, isn’t it, Saintess?”

Funny? Where was the humor? What was funny about this at all?

All she could recall was the image of a destitute village girl, fallen on hard times, scrambling desperately for money to pay her expenses!

Vanessa pursed her lips, a faint blush crossing her cheeks, as her dignified voice strained out a few words. “Nothing. Don’t say another word.”

As she said this, she kept shooting warning glances at Luna.

Back then, she had truly been the one to dig her own grave.

Fortunately, as long as she didn’t admit it, she could always claim Luna was slandering her.

“Oh, I just remembered, there’s something, Saintess. I hope you don’t mind?”

“What is it? Speak,” Vanessa said, eyeing Luna’s overly sweet smile with growing suspicion.

“It’s just, my shop, to prevent theft, has been using recording stones for regular scans.”

“???” Vanessa instantly knew what Luna was implying.

That was obviously a lie!

“Miss Luna, what exactly are you talking about?” Vanessa struggles to maintain her composure. “I’ve never heard of anyone using a recording stone that shuts down after ten minutes and sleeps for over ten hours as a surveillance device. What exactly could you possibly monitor?”

“Ahh~ You caught me. Just a harmless joke, Saintess. There’s nothing like that, really.” Luna covered her mouth and laughed lightly.

“…” Vanessa stared silently at Luna, feeling as though her emotions were completely under the other woman’s control.

“Eh? Eh?” Fanya and Amisa, watching the back-and-forth exchange, grew even more curious.

“What exactly happened?” Fanya blinked with wide, innocent eyes, recklessly asking.

“Fanya, don’t. Ask. About It.” Vanessa turned to her with a smile so sweet it was clearly deadly.

“Ugh! I’m sorry, Saintess! I’ll never ask such a question again!” Fanya stammered hurriedly.

Oh no, had she upset the Saintess again??

Fanya instantly sank into guilt, scolding herself for being so tactless and unable to read the room.

Let such an embarrassing black history rot away in some forgotten corner, forever.

That was Vanessa’s silent wish.

“Then, do you have any other questions, Saintess?” Luna asked.

“Miss Luna, why are you helping me? Is it truly your personal decision? And why help me, a powerless, so-called ‘false Saintess’?” Vanessa pondered for a moment asking before the question that weighed most heavily on her mind.

“Milady Vanessa,” Luna began, “Our family has served the Radiance Goddess and the Saintess since ancient times. As for why I’m helping you, what do you want to hear? The idealistic reason, or the more practical one?”

“Tell me the idealistic one first.”

“The idealistic reason? I already stated it earlier when confronting Foreno. We’ve seen the corruption and decay within the Church. Both the current state of Terraria Continent and the Church of Radiance desperately need a Saintess to break this deadlock. Fortunately, in my lifetime, she has appeared.”

“But will her appearance alone break the deadlock?”

“Of course. The Vareliss are descendants of the goddess. The awakening of your bloodline symbolizes a certain destiny, does it not? After all, in a world where demon gods and gods truly exist, destiny is a widely accepted concept,” Luna answered.

“And the practical reason?” Vanessa asked.

“A more practical motive?” Luna’s lips curled into a smirk. “How about wanting to leave a significant mark in the history of the Saintess’ restoration, being celebrated as a founding hero? Does that count~?”

“Of course, if you fail, I’ll die alongside you.”

“Besides that, if you find me capable enough to be of use, Saintess, I believe I can assist you greatly. After all, my ancestors had been Popes before~” Luna said with a bright, smiling gaze.

(This chapter focuses on Vanessa’s psychological transformation, so the pacing is a bit slower 0.0)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep