Orange candlelight illuminated the room.
The young girl sat quietly on a wooden chair with her eyes closed, surrounded by the three nuns and the female knight.
"Your Highness, it is already midnight."
The female knight placed her pocket watch back into her breast pocket as she spoke to the Saintess.
Since that stirring speech, the Saintess had come to this temporary residence, quietly waiting for time to pass.
"I see."
After a long period of contemplation, Luo Li rose from her chair and looked at Hilda.
"Hilda, have the knights prepare. Wrap the horses' hooves in cloth to muffle the sound, gather rations and water, and prepare to set out."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
"Lola, go prepare the carriage. Ella, find a pair of shoes that I can wear."
Luo Li turned her gaze toward the expectant Nara.
"Nara."
"Yes! Please give me your command!"
Nara's expression instantly became excited, as if she were receiving a divine oracle, her face filled with devotion.
"You stay here and keep me company."
"..."
Watching Nara's expression shift from excitement to disappointment, the sudden drop made Luo Li feel a surge of emotion.
'Not bad, quite spirited!'
"Wait, Your Highness, what do you need the carriage for?"
Just as Hilda received her orders and turned to leave the wooden hut, she heard the Saintess's instructions to the two nuns.
Her heart skipped a beat.
She hurriedly turned back to look at the Saintess, praying in her heart that it wasn't the worst-case scenario she had imagined as she quickly asked.
"I am going as well."
Luo Li knew exactly what Hilda was thinking just by looking at her expression.
The importance of the Saintess to both the Holy Church and the Kingdom of the Moon went without saying.
As a Temple knight, it was only natural that Hilda did not want her on the battlefield.
However, she could not just sit here and wait for the results.
If this war was truly lost, then the title of Saintess of the Moon would basically be impossible to keep.
Rather than fleeing in terror when that time came, it was better to stake everything on this gamble!
"Your Highness, please reconsider!"
Hearing Luo Li's decision, the female knight immediately dropped to one knee, pleading for her to withdraw the decree.
"Words are useless. Sir Hilda, go and prepare."
Luo Li glanced at Hilda. In the game, the end this loyal knight met was becoming a toy for the demon army alongside her, her limbs severed and thrown into a pack of demonized beasts to be eaten after birthing countless offspring.
That fate was simply unacceptable.
"Hilda..."
"Your Highness?"
"Do not die. I want you to come back alive."
Hilda froze. She blinked, her eyes turning red as a shimmer of tears began to well up.
"Your Highness, I will certainly live. I will defeat the demon army and escort you back to Brilliant City!"
"Good. Go now."
Luo Li waved her hand to signal Hilda to leave. Although Hilda clearly wanted to say more, she hesitated for a moment before finally choosing to obey the order.
Watching Hilda's retreating back, Luo Li took a deep breath and turned back to Nara.
"Nara, I am giving you a difficult task. This mission stakes everything I have. Do you have the confidence to do it?"
The previously dejected Nara's eyes instantly brightened upon hearing this. She looked as if she had been injected with adrenaline, her spirit soaring in an instant!
"Your Highness, no matter how difficult the task, I have the confidence to complete it! You can leave it to me!"
Luo Li nodded and reached behind her, pulling out a small object she had been hiding for a while.
She took Nara's hand and placed the long, small object into her palm.
Then, she leaned in close to her ear and whispered a single sentence.
In an instant, the girl's face changed drastically!
Crash!
Nara's body stumbled as she scrambled backward, heedless of the table and chairs she knocked over.
She fell to the floor with a heavy thud.
Those emerald green eyes of hers were no longer filled with their usual liveliness, but were now consumed by sheer terror!
"Can you do it?"
When Luo Li did things, she habitually calculated for the worst-case scenario. Therefore, leaving Nara behind was her insurance.
Nara slowly lowered her head in disbelief. In her hand was a dagger encrusted with jewels, looking incredibly magnificent!
"Your... Your... Your Highness, do you really want me to do this? I... I wouldn't dare!"
"No, you do. Out of the three of you... only you have the nerve for this."
Within the Three-La trio, the three girls had very different personalities. Lola was the most serious and the most observant of etiquette; she would never do such a thing.
Ella, on the other hand, was timid and afraid of trouble. Although she might be capable of it, there were too many variables, making it unsafe.
In the end, Luo Li had chosen Nara.
Nara was lively, but that didn't mean she was truly foolish. On the contrary, she was a girl who hid her sharp mind behind a simple exterior.
Luo Li had clearly judged this from her social interactions, which was why she dared to entrust this matter to her.
That dagger was one Luo Li had selected from the sacred relics enshrined in the Temple.
It was said to be a dagger used by a previous Saintess.
It was incredibly sharp, capable of slicing through iron like paper.
If they lost, and if suicide became impossible, she needed someone who could give her a swift end.
Nara was the most suitable.
Luo Li took a step forward and gently knelt down, taking the girl's trembling hand and looking her directly in the eye.
"My child, do not be afraid or filled with dread. This is all God's arrangement. It is God who has chosen you."
Nara sat on the ground in a daze, appearing completely shocked by those words.
"Can you do it?"
Luo Li watched her eyes, hoping to see a trace of resilience.
But for now, all she could see was confusion.
Without further words, Luo Li quietly cast a buff on her.
【Invigoration】
Feeling the mysterious power within her body diminish slightly, Luo Li continued to watch Nara.
'My child, you have been empowered. Now, do your part.'
Nara pursed her lips and gave a trembling nod.
"I understand, Your Highness. If... if we really lose this time, I will go with you to meet God."
"Good. Truly a child chosen by God."
Luo Li smiled. Although she was now more confident, she still habitually prepared for the worst.
She helped Nara up and spent some time comforting her until Lola and Ella returned.
They noticed the strange atmosphere in the room, but because Luo Li was present, they did not ask.
After a while, Hilda returned from outside, covered in dust from her preparations.
"Your Highness, everything is ready!"
"What time is it?"
"It is nearly half past midnight."
Luo Li nodded and issued the most critical command of this mission.
"Set out! Tell everyone that I shall be right behind them!"
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