The Lady Only Deals With the Real Ones - Chapter 214

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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*

A little while ago.

I took a deep breath while looking at Crescens’s silver hair that shone white like snow.

‘There’s no need to panic. I was expecting this.’

There were several clues.

The first thing that made me suspicious was the sugar cubes.

It was the moment when Crescens’s coffee, sweet enough to make my tongue tingle, overlapped with the image of ‘Eivor’ putting sugar cubes into his cup when he came to talk with me. My thoughts connected in a flash.

‘His way of speaking, expressions, and even his eyes were similar. But thinking about it, Crescens was always present at places where incidents related to divine artifacts occurred.’

Recalling the Founding Festival, Delphia Manor, and the Imperial Palace from earlier, I clenched my fists.

Most importantly.

‘Crescens’s prayer time.’

Earlier, I had checked Crescens’s schedule on his desk.

Except for the times when he appeared before people to perform religious duties, it was a densely packed schedule filled entirely with prayers.

I felt a sense of déjà vu from that schedule. It was because Crescens’s prayer and sleeping times perfectly matched the activity times of ‘Eivor’ as testified by the mages at the Duke’s Residence.

Also, considering that ‘Eivor’ had been lying low like a dead mouse during the period when Crescens couldn’t sleep properly, his identity was clear.

‘The Two-Faced God…’

When Crescens closes his eyes, ‘that thing’ awakens.

[He had two faces in one body.]

Recalling Grandfather’s fairy tale, [The Two-Faced God], I bit my lips.

Why did Grandfather, who had even written such a fairy tale to warn me, keep Crescens close instead of casting him out?

I couldn’t know yet.

But what was certain was.

‘Crescens’ has no ill will toward me.’

The kindness Crescens had shown me all this time wasn’t an act.

The way he looked at me with startled eyes when I said I was hurt, and how he lowered his gaze saying he didn’t want to be hated by me—those couldn’t have been lies.

Then I need to find out.

How Crescens came to have two personalities.

And why he, who had plenty of opportunities to harm me if he wanted to, hadn’t done so until now.

‘To do that, I need to resolve this situation first.’

I thought coldly.

Whatever kind of person the ‘Crescens’ I know is, the reality that he’s currently kidnapping Lina, stealing artifacts, luring people to the Sanctuary and attacking them doesn’t change.

I had no intention of getting lost in pointless sentimentality and letting Tesagh and Ailren get hurt.

So I need to subdue Crescens. As quickly as possible.

‘There must be a way. Definitely!’

Having quickly organized my thoughts, I decided to check on Lina’s safety first. Embracing Lina, I listened carefully to her.

Lina’s breathing, whom Crescens had put to sleep, was faint and her body was ice cold. My body temperature was of no help at all.

As I was thinking I needed to secure some warmth, I suddenly looked up.

‘Come to think of it, where’s the Sacred Flame?’

I couldn’t see the three divine artifacts that Crescens had stolen.

I narrowed my eyes and calmly surveyed the large Sanctuary.

‘The Sanctuary can be divided into four sections.’

Recalling the replica sanctuary I had seen in the basement of the Temple, I mentally divided the areas.

One was the section where I currently was, where the World Tree was located.

One was the section filled with ice pillars where the ice serpent, Crescens, Tesagh, and Ailren were fighting.

One was the section with an altar that had originally been a flower garden full of blooming lilacs but was now replaced by snow flowers.

And finally, there was the section with the frozen waterfall and small spring.

My gaze lingered on the last section.

‘Over there.’

I could sense the light of dark sacred power from the waterfall area.

After carefully leaning Lina against the back of the World Tree, I quickly moved toward the waterfall, taking advantage of the moment when Crescens was distracted by the intensifying battle.

I couldn’t have been more grateful that I could see sacred power. And for some reason, my ability to discern sacred power seemed to have become clearer.

‘Is it because this place is a Sanctuary?’

It was perhaps natural for me, a divine saint, to receive power in a Sanctuary.

When I arrived at the waterfall and looked around, the dark energy was gently rising from within the completely frozen water.

The frozen surface was smooth like a mirror. As if the world was split in two, the Sanctuary was reflected within it.

Hiding the flame inside ice. I let out a hollow laugh and was about to break the frozen water when I changed my mind.

‘Wait. It’s not that cold here, is it? Then perhaps…’

When I carefully reached out, surprisingly, the rippling water welcomed me as if drawing me in.

The ice in this section seemed to be an illusion. It was such an elaborate fantasy that it was impossible to distinguish with the naked eye.

‘This must be something Crescens manipulated.’

Something caught in my groping hand.

‘The Sacred Flame.’

The moment I firmly grasped the flame in my hand.

The ember that had been flickering as if about to go out suddenly blazed up, and like the other divine artifacts, it showed me the past.

It was the figures of the Emperor and ‘Eivor’. It seemed to be the moment when the Emperor, under Eivor’s suggestion, was just leaving the Imperial Palace.

Watching the Emperor searching for the Sacred Flame throughout Mount Cartan, I held the flame to my chest and began running toward the World Tree.

Though it was a terrifying artifact that burned entire spaces and scattered ashes, in my hands it felt somehow warm and cozy. It felt very familiar.

“Lina.”

Placing a fragment of the flame beside Lina, I stroked her cheek.

“I have many stories to tell you when you wake up. So sleep well, okay?”

Crescens’s voice could be heard.

“You’re too soft, our Princess…”

I picked up a small fragment of the flame and stood up.

Recalling the sensation of shooting peas, I aimed toward the ice serpent.

I infused the flame fragment with power and threw it.

“Are you talking about me?”

Bang!

Seeing the ice serpent scatter and melt away, I smiled.

It was time for counterattack.

*

The momentum shifted to our side.

With me keeping the ice serpents in check with the flame, Tesagh and Ailren could concentrate their offensive on Crescens.

Ailren’s swift swordsmanship blocked Crescens’s escape route, and Tesagh, finding an opening, pressed him hard.

The composure finally disappeared from Crescens’s face.

‘Using sacred power has definitely become easier.’

When I first faced Eivor, I didn’t even have the concept of ‘using’ sacred power.

But now, as I destroyed the armor in the Imperial Palace and attacked the ice serpents, handling sacred power felt natural.

Tesagh’s words telling me to do as I pleased had served as a catalyst, but the biggest reason was.

‘It feels like the restrictions have been lifted since I made contact with the divine artifacts.’

Crescens’s body, which had been creating ice scales to wear like armor while unleashing sacred power, suddenly swayed greatly.

Tesagh had succeeded in penetrating the armor and striking him.

Crescens, looking at his side where blood was seeping through, sighed.

“You know this kind of thing is meaningless.”

“What, feeling like you’re going to lose so you want to preach about life’s transience now?”

Crescens, who dodged Tesagh’s sword that struck again, laughed as if it were absurd.

Crescens’s wounds, manifested through holy power, had been completely erased. Like disgusting ice serpents that would grotesquely regenerate even when burst and melted.

But Tesagh showed no sign of wavering even after witnessing his ability.

Crescens sighed as he blocked Tesagh’s sword with holy power, the blade thrust at him again as if it were nothing special.

“Why do you keep trying to provoke me, Duke?”

Crescens, who had similarly blocked Ailren’s sword aimed at his arm with ease, swept his hair back.

“And if you’re going to provoke me, why target my arms and sides instead of my head or heart? How do you expect to catch me like this?”

“Stop showing off uselessly and think about paying for your crimes in prison.”

“Do you share the same opinion, Knight? …And our Princess too?”

Crescens glanced back at me and muttered.

“It seems you do.”

“It’s futile bravado. Please stop.”

“Futile bravado….”

Crescens shook his head and pushed away both men’s swords at once.

Crescens coldly watched Tesagh and Ailren rise to their feet again and raised his hand.

“Do you all even know what you’re saying? Useless bravado, futile courage. Isn’t that all just self-introduction? Look into your own hearts.”

With a rumbling sound, a massive ice barrier rose before Ailren’s eyes.

At the same time, Tesagh’s body began to stiffen rigidly.

Even so, both men’s gazes remained unchanged. They trusted me.

It was when I was concentrating, having grasped the flame.

“Why don’t you realize I’ve been going easy on you?”

Crescens disappeared.

“Our Princess.”

Swish.

Crescens, who had approached right before my nose in an instant and was looking at me, muttered.

“You’re not the only one who receives power from the Sanctuary.”

Empty green consumed me.

At the same time, the world went black.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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