Chapter 77: The Distance of the Heart

This is a one-sided massacre, with the surrounding army almost completely wiped out, and the church once again demonstrating its iron-blooded methods to the world.

When they strike, they do so with astonishing impact.

Having witnessed the power of the church, those with ulterior motives will likely restrain themselves a bit.

In the end, apart from three nobles, everyone else has already perished.

Anyone who dares to openly confront the church’s candidate saintess can only atone with their death; previously, Michelle had already given them a chance, but unfortunately, they did not seize it.

The church’s choice to adopt ruthless measures is also to give others a warning.

After the violent magical bombardment, with smoke everywhere, the three nobles knelt on the ground, their faces filled with relief, thinking the church had spared them.

Indeed, after all, they are imperial nobles, and the church must give the empire some face.

Little did they know, a priest hovering in mid-air said, “By the order of the Holy Emperor, the mastermind behind this incident will be taken to the imperial capital and publicly executed!”

“Please, no!”

The nobles’ faces changed drastically as they hurriedly begged for mercy.

As nobles, being publicly executed is the greatest humiliation, and what terrifies them even more is the unknown punishment awaiting them in the imperial capital.

Not only them, but anyone connected to them will also face severe punishment.

Ignoring the nobles’ desperate cries, the priest directly teleported them to the imperial capital, where someone was already waiting to receive them; their only fate thereafter is death.

“Saintess, please return to the city with us.”

The captain of the Radiant Knights approached Michelle and said respectfully.

“Don’t rush; there is a cultist stronghold nearby. I need you to eliminate it immediately. There are some poor children brainwashed by the cultists inside; rescue them.”

Michelle handed over the location of the cultist stronghold to the Radiant Knights, who assured her:

“We will complete the mission!”

Michelle nodded; she had originally planned to go with them, but she was already very tired, and going would be of no use and would only burden the Radiant Knights.

The rescued children will be sent to special facilities by the church to undo the cultists’ brainwashing.

If their minds are completely twisted, the church will imprison them forever, preventing them from harming the world.

Once the brainwashing is lifted, the children who leave will also be monitored by the church until they are deemed completely safe, at which point the monitoring will cease.

In short, this is a very troublesome process, and it is essential to ensure that these children are not in danger.

Surrounded by a small team of Radiant Knights, Michelle and Leo were teleported back by the Crown of the World.

At this time, the remaining Radiant Knights still had missions to complete; besides Michelle’s orders, they also needed to launch a war.

The church’s shame must be washed away with war and blood; they will sweep through the borderlands, targeting not only the towns that have dealt with Michelle but also other nobles with heavy sins.

The army set off, raising clouds of dust.

The townspeople were still unaware of what was happening when they felt the tremors coming from afar.

Then, a large number of angelic priests appeared in the sky, occupying the airspace above the town.

On the distant horizon, a neatly organized squad of Radiant Knights quickly approached, exerting pressure on the town.

The war has begun.

The guards on the city walls had no power to resist, and the city gates were quickly breached.

The people inside the city immediately scattered in panic.

The Radiant Knights avoided the surrounding people and headed straight for the lord’s mansion and the church.

Seeing this, the ordinary people around breathed a sigh of relief.

“It’s over!”

The high priest’s face was filled with despair; the moment the priest army appeared, he knew everything was over.

With such a large mobilization from the church, they would certainly not let it rest; all matters would be exposed.

His face turned ashen, as if he had aged decades in an instant, waiting quietly in the church hall for the judgment of the Radiant Knights.

The church’s strongmen took action, sweeping through the borderlands; those towns that had not been visited by the Radiant Knights had their lords living in constant fear until the Radiant Knights finally departed.

After this incident, the borderlands underwent a transformation, with the remaining nobles treating their subjects better, fearing that if they displeased the church, strongmen would come to eliminate them.

…

The world spun around, and Leo suddenly appeared in the imperial capital alongside Michelle.

Surrounding them were church personnel, including several candidate saintesses, the Holy Knights, and some priests who had a good relationship with Michelle; among them, Leo did not recognize anyone except Selena.

As soon as Michelle appeared, they immediately surrounded her.

Selena gently hugged Michelle, a hint of concern on her face, “You’ve worked hard.”

Michelle shook her head, “Every experience is worth it.”

Others also gathered around, their faces showing joyful smiles as they inquired about Michelle’s situation, to which she responded one by one.

Leo observed her from the side; Michelle, surrounded by church personnel, seemed like the center of the world. She was so outstanding, a future core member of the church.

To save her, the church even dispatched the Radiant Knights, highlighting how important her identity was.

At this moment, he deeply realized that he and she were not from the same world; no matter how much Michelle treated him as a friend, it was limited to their time in the academy. Once they graduated, they would hardly have any intersection.

Even now, the joy of surviving the ordeal was not something they could share together.

It was better not to disturb her for now, Leo thought with a hint of melancholy, quietly leaving.

“Can you tell us how you escaped the cultist stronghold?”

Selena was focused on Michelle, and the other personnel were also curious.

“It was difficult for me to escape alone; thanks to Leo. By the way, let me introduce him to you; he is…”

Michelle looked at Leo beside her, only to find that he was no longer in sight.

She looked around and spotted Leo weaving through the crowd, leaving her with his back.

“Leo…”

She reached out her hand, wanting to call him back, but it stopped in mid-air, unable to continue.

Her eyes filled with confusion and panic; why was he walking away?

She seemed to understand something, and the panic in her eyes gradually expanded, fearing that in the next moment, Leo would completely leave her. But her stiff hand could not stretch forward even a centimeter.

Watching Leo’s figure grow more distant, it felt like a back that was unreachable.

Suddenly, she had a feeling that if she did not stop him, he might leave her forever.

Clearly, she had tried so hard, and the distance between them was so close, yet the distance of the heart felt as far away as the horizon, forever unable to bridge.

She retracted her hand and placed it on her chest, a hint of loneliness flashing in her eyes.

Leo, by nature rebellious, did not like to be constrained; it was normal for him to be unaccustomed to the church’s atmosphere. At this moment, Michelle also sensed a hidden barrier between them.

It felt like an insurmountable wall; the gap in status between them was like a chasm. Even if she repeatedly claimed they were friends, after graduation, they would go their separate ways. Perhaps Leo understood this too and did not take her words seriously, listening to her speak selfishly.

Rather than saying she could not reach Leo, it should be said that Leo could never approach her.

They did not belong to the same world; one was a highly regarded candidate saintess, while the other was an inconspicuous commoner.

If it were not for being in the same academy, they would never have intersected.

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