When the strange phenomenon finally ended, Alba had casually asked Elvin and Raina whether they remembered anything. Clearly, neither of them had any impression at all, as if nothing had ever happened. That only made her feel more uneasy.
"That fast, huh. Well, I guess it is about time, but judging by your look, something is bothering you again, right?"
Raina remained calm as she spoke, casually stuffing more snacks into her mouth. Elvin's expression, however, turned odd as she explained that the the Lord reason was tied to some strange events that Raina should already know about.
The biggest issue was that the recent situation with the Abyss Church had been far too abnormal. Dozens of Church of Holy Light had been wiped out in batches, dying off like harvested crops, and anyone seeing that would feel uneasy. It made one wonder if the Evil God had suddenly developed an appetite and started treating its own followers as fuel.
Over these days, every time Elvin tried to investigate, she found nothing but empty buildings. Entire structures, along with everyone inside them, had vanished completely. At first, large-scale sacrificial rituals or collective suicide might have seemed plausible, but after so many incidents with no trace of anything left behind, and entire Church of Holy Light dying from top to bottom each time, it was simply too strange.
What made it worse was that whenever these mass deaths of the Abyss Church occurred, a few Saintess would sometimes disappear along with them. This only strengthened Elvin's resolve to thoroughly clean out the Church of Holy Light once she took office. For now, though, she had decided to quickly bring Alba to the Holy City region controlled by the the Lord Diocese.
That was why she said it out loud. Apart from the fact that they had already harvested almost all the influence they could in this area, it was time to expand their reach further. Raina nodded in agreement, standing up as she did so.
To Alba's surprise, the two of them huddled together in a corner and whispered about something, occasionally glancing back at her. The feeling made her uneasy, as if she were some rare animal under observation. After a while, they seemed to reach a decision and walked back over, prompting her to sit up straight.
"Alba, as we just discussed, we are heading to Holy City under the the Lord Diocese for the next stage of selection," Elvin said with a serious expression. "This is a necessary step to compete for the position of Saintess." Raina nodded beside her and added that this meant their cooperation would either end here or continue.
Alba froze for a moment. Thinking it through, she realized that their main reason for working with her had been her Holy Light, which could effectively remove the curses of the Abyss Church. Now that most of the cursed had been healed and the Abyss Church were nearly wiped out, her role really was no longer essential.
The main concern was her safety. The competition ahead would be far more intense, and some people would use any dirty trick imaginable. Even something as extreme as arranging a deadly accident during a live performance was not impossible, and no amount of Magic gear or Barrier protection could guarantee her survival.
Simply put, Alba herself was weak. Her Holy Light support was powerful, but her body could not take much punishment, even with expensive equipment. If she died in public, it would turn into a disaster, which was why Elvin suggested she consider ending their cooperation and staying out of what came next.
"So if you are saying all that, does that mean there is still the option to continue working together?"
"Yes, that is correct."
Raina nodded, her expression far more serious than when they joked around or got scolded together by Elvin. Continuing would mean that Alba kept impersonating her Saintess identity, which carried much higher risks and the chance of being exposed.
Although Raina had kept herself hidden so far and let Alba handle public activities, there was no guarantee their relationship would not be uncovered. Because of the advantage brought by Holy Light in the upcoming competition, they were offering her this choice. If she refused, the promised reward would still stand, and they would escort her away immediately.
They would depart in three days, giving her time to think it over, or she could decide right away. Raina even warned her that agreeing meant boarding a dangerous ship. It was not something to take lightly.
"I see. Then I understand."
Alba nodded and smiled faintly. There was no real need for her to think further, because her choice had always been to leave, and to leave as soon as possible. It was not heartlessness, but her own situation was far too complicated.
She never wanted to become a Saintess in the first place. More importantly, that Elder God Relic disguised as a holy scripture was still tucked against her chest, and she had no idea what kind of thing it truly was. Walking into Holy City with that on her was asking for trouble.
Even if she had Holy Light and was suspected of being watched by the God of Light, that did not mean she was safe. Anyone who truly wanted her dead would have countless excuses, and the issue of the Elder God Relic was something she could never ignore. Chances were high that going in would just get her killed and drag Elvin and the others down with her.
Just as she was about to speak, she heard a clear chime. The Simulator panel suddenly popped up in the corner of her vision and began loading on its own. Without any mental command from her, the simulation started.
It felt as if someone had pressed a switch on World. Everything froze, including the two people who had been talking moments ago, their faces blank and unmoving. At the same time, something stirred in her chest.
The black book she always carried floated into the air, pages flipping rapidly as tadpole-like patterns swam across them and reformed into lines of text. The words spoke of a task, of seeking Abyss and the hiding place of the Evil God. The repeated call to search echoed in her ears.
A small storm rose in the room, whipping the pages back and forth. Amid the sound, she faintly heard something screaming in agony, as if being ground into Shard, crushed and burned piece by piece. A thick blood-red glow seeped out, shining as if it might drip, as though something terrifying was about to break free.
The change did not stop there. Sparks flashed, the outer cover was scorched into charcoal, revealing a dark core threaded with blue, vein-like light. After a brief twitching suspension in midair and a strange scent like burnt meat, three words appeared again.
"Go to Holy City."
With a burst of sparks, everything in front of her shattered like a mirror under Rend. When Alba came back to herself, she was still standing where she had been. The other two were still waiting for her answer, whispering to each other as before.
She touched the book in her chest. By the feel of it, the cover was truly gone. Silence hung for a moment.
"You agreed? You are really going?"
Raina's eyes widened with a bit of excitement. Alba, forcing her face into a normal smile, nodded again and said that she could still help a little more, if only to repay them. Hearing that, Raina cheered happily.
Watching her, Alba nodded once more and covered her face with her hand. Yes, this was her true intention. She was voluntarily heading to Holy City. Really.
Hearing that Alba agreed on her own, the two of them were genuinely pleased. Setting aside that Holy Light whose value was so high that even she herself did not understand it, just the possibility of divine favor already made this deal a huge win. Even if it turned out not to be that, her future was still promising.
At the start, facing such a talent that seemed to fall from the sky and whose background could not be traced, it was natural that they did not fully trust her. So during those days, besides arranging her living situation, they also kept her under quiet observation. After spending some time together, they found that Alba's personality seemed trustworthy in a simple and transparent way.
In addition, from the very first time they met Lynna, a certain magical Magic device had already been placed in the room. This was what finally made them decide to fully draw her in and accept her. It was a machine recently invented by Paraten Empire, commonly known as the Truth Detector.
Although it could only be used on ordinary people with almost no cultivation, Alba happened to meet that condition. Throughout the mansion, the surrounding Magic Circle arrays were all channeled into this device. When combined with mental focus, the Magic could judge truth or falsehood directly based on facts the subject already knew, leaving no room even for self deception.
The questions asked earlier were simple. "Do you still remember your parents?" "I remember them, but I do not really want to talk about it. They are in another World."