Chapter 75: Turbulent Imperial Capital

Empire, capital.

This is an ancient city with a long history, the political center of the empire, the heart of the empire, and also the headquarters of the church.

Most of the buildings in the city are ancient structures left from the past, exuding a strong sense of history.

The once prosperous and bustling imperial capital now carries a hint of oppression.

The number of patrolling teams has increased, criminals have vanished, and the faces of the passing citizens show signs of tension. A feeling of impending storm looms over the imperial capital.

Michelle’s disappearance has thrown the entire imperial capital into turmoil. The church’s holy knights are frantically sweeping the surrounding cult strongholds, indicating that there will be no traces of cult activities in the vicinity for the next few months.

The candidate saintess is the face of the church; each one is a core member of the church, blessed by the divine, with limitless prospects, destined to become a pillar of the church’s upper echelons.

Now, someone is attempting to harm the candidate saintess, which has completely angered the church, and even the high-classing officials of the empire are shaken.

Anyone involved will be implicated. The first to bear the brunt is the Crimson Flame Team; except for the Sword Saint’s disciple, Yuris, all members are under investigation, including nobles Jin and Mona.

As the princess of the Siska Empire, Krista is also receiving special attention.

There are even rumors that the candidate saintess’s disappearance is a conspiracy of the Siska Empire.

Such rumors are gradually spreading; now Krista is under house arrest, and she will not be released until the truth comes to light.

Krista has never suffered such grievances; the royal family of the Siska Empire has a very fiery temperament, just like the fire element they excel at.

The Siska Empire is amassing troops within its borders, pressing towards the imperial border.

The empire is not backing down; in their view, the Siska Empire’s actions confirm their connection to Michelle’s disappearance.

The military forces within the empire are being mobilized in large numbers, heading towards the border.

The church, as the center of the incident, is mobilizing holy knights from various places to form a large army, also heading towards the border to assist the imperial army in resisting the Siska Empire’s forces.

This is the current situation in the empire; ordinary citizens are anxious, and if not handled properly, a war could break out between the two great powers.

The comprehensive strength of the empire is on par with the Siska Empire, but the church exists within the empire, and this conflict arises from the candidate saintess’s disappearance. The church’s strong members are all present; if the two sides go to war, the Siska Empire will undoubtedly be defeated.

Even so, the Siska Empire shows no signs of retreat.

Both sides are so strong; if war really breaks out, the citizens will not fare well. Even if they can severely damage the Siska Empire, both the empire and the church will pay a certain price.

Church headquarters.

Accompanied by a group of holy knights, Selena arrived at the core of the church.

All the high-classing members of the church are here; besides Selena, other candidate saintesses are also present, all under twenty, with stunning appearances, each possessing their own charm.

When Selena arrived, everyone’s gaze was on her.

“How is it? Have you found Michelle?” she asked.

“Almost.”

In front of everyone, a round mirror with a diameter of over a meter, bordered in gold, was placed.

This is a legendary-class artifact, the holy relic “Gaze of the Gods.” Using this mirror, one can observe any corner of the world.

The gods used divine power to enhance this legendary-class artifact, turning it into a holy relic, possessing the might of the gods.

However, activating a holy relic requires borrowing the divine power of the gods; it will not be used lightly unless absolutely necessary, as it may disturb the sleeping gods.

In the three days since Michelle’s disappearance, the church has swept the surrounding cult strongholds but found no trace of her.

Three days is the limit; after three days, the church’s high-classing members had no other options and reluctantly decided to activate the Gaze of the Gods, using divine power to drive the holy relic.

After finding Michelle’s trace, they would use the holy relic “Crown of the World” to teleport there, ignoring space and distance, allowing them to teleport to any corner of the world.

It has been a few days since they prayed to the gods, and they finally received a response.

But now, more than a week has passed since Michelle’s disappearance, and they do not know her current situation; they can only pray for her safety.

Currently, the church is busy due to the matter of Michelle, with high-classing personnel quietly waiting for results in front of the mirror.

“Indeed, we need to restrict the candidate saintess from entering the Nidlan Academy. Our church’s resources are not lacking, and it seems inappropriate for Michelle to enter as a candidate saintess.”

Someone expressed dissatisfaction with Michelle’s situation.

“What’s the big deal? Isn’t Selena also at the Nidlan Academy?”

“Everyone knows Selena’s excellence; it doesn’t matter where she is. But Michelle’s abilities are still somewhat lacking; the academy is not a place for her to play. Moreover, she caused this situation by joining another team without permission. If she had joined the Holy Radiance Team, with other strong members looking out for her, this wouldn’t have happened.”

This point hit the nail on the head, and others fell silent.

Seeing everyone’s reaction, Selena did not allow the topic to delve deeper.

“Let’s not discuss this anymore; the results will be out soon.”

With divine power enhancing the Gaze of the Gods, the entire appearance of the empire is displayed in the mirror.

Everyone looked at the mirror; finding a person in the world is like searching for a needle in a haystack, but the power of the holy relic should not be underestimated.

The mirror showed mountains and rivers, and the range gradually narrowed.

“That is the border area of the Shali Hate Plain; it actually teleported to such a distant place.”

On a vast plain surrounded by mountains, one side is a cliff, with a roaring river rushing below, the turbulent waves crashing against the rocks, and falling in could easily lead to a gruesome death.

Leo and Michelle stood side by side, holding weapons, facing a knight army directly.

On the opposite side, three factions were separated by a distance, slowly closing in. Besides the knight group from the initial town, two nearby nobles were also incited to participate in the encirclement of Michelle.

It has been two days since they parted ways with Dino and the others.

In these two days, they have been evading the noble army, traversing mountains and forests, hiding in remote locations.

No matter how Michelle used teleportation magic, they could always be found by the opposing side.

Michelle knew that church members were involved in the assistance.

There are many replicas of the holy relic “Gaze of the Gods”; although they cannot explore the entire world like the genuine article, it is still easy to find someone in the nearby area.

Even replicas are very precious; only the church has collections in the border area.

Now, they are being pushed to the brink.

Behind them is a cliff, and in front are three noble armies; there is only one battle to fight.

After two days and nights of travel, both of them are somewhat exhausted; Michelle’s silver hair gradually loses its luster, falling messily behind her, and there is a hint of pain in her brows.

Although Leo’s face shows fatigue, his gaze remains sharp.

Michelle blames the deaths of Dino and the others on herself, as it was her decision to go to another town that led to their deaths.

Leo cannot comfort her; he can only vent his anger by slaying these noble lackeys.

“Leo, I’m sorry; it’s my fault that you got involved.”

Michelle’s face carries an expression of regret.

“They are targeting me, so you should leave; don’t worry about me.”

Her face shows a hint of reluctance, filled with determination, as if saying a final goodbye.

“I will never let you die.”

Leo’s gaze is resolute; he will fight his way out with Michelle, and no one can stop him.

———-
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