She grabbed Dimitri’s hand and ran towards the teleportation circle intending to activate it. The knights immediately acted, they had no time to waste! If their lady intended to go down, they had no choice but to go down with her!
It was either die protecting her or die at the Marquess’s hand for not doing so.
Adeline would have rolled her eyes if she knew what they were thinking. You won’t die! I have powers, I would just heal you. Hehe
It didn’t take long for them to reach the gates of the Holy Temple, it was quite close by. Their carriage wasn’t exactly lowkey, it had her family crest on it. This meant that anyone could’ve sent word to Edward about her arrival.
She didn’t care about being caught, if he dared to approach her she would make sure he would regret it. She had her knights and Dimitri by her side. Her confidence was practically through the roof.
The gates were massive, carved from a strange white stone that gleamed like polished marble. Golden inlays formed patterns of suns and stars, symbols of the divine power the temple claimed to embody.
For a place that was considered to be the holiest of them all, the atmosphere was filled with dread. The air here felt different... Heavier, charged with a strange energy that made Adeline shiver.
Fortunately for her, no one there noticed. They were too busy preparing for a war. The Emperor heard the news of the rebellion. The army was loyal to the Captain, but their nation came first.
When they caught their Captain’s plans to turn against the Empire and instead pledged loyalty to such an organisation, they made sure the Emperor knew of it. While many did not dare to disobey their Captain.
There were still those whose loyalty could be taken away from them.
When the Emperor read the report he couldn’t control his rage. How dare they try to act against him?!
They told him what Edward said, "So what if the Imperial army is thrice the size? We have healers, don’t we? If you get injured we will make sure that your vitality is replenished. Now tell me, do you think we can lose?"
They would be just as strong as they were. Their manpower would keep replenishing because of their holy powers but could they say the same for the Imperial army?
The Emperor knew that the Western marquess would lend a hand. The other Duchies were not known for their army, but they decided to follow his orders and help in the way that they could.
The North made sure to stop supplying them with agricultural produce. The Eastern Duchess planned to send her knights as reinforcements. And South agreed to provide them with a new invention.
A type of armour that was unbreakable. But, it was quite heavier than the regular armour. They used unique alloys from the mined ores.
This was a full-blown war. The Emperor still couldn’t believe that a child was now running things in the temple. An internal conflict would be the worst thing to happen. They were a great Empire sure, but monsters and the other kingdoms had their eye on them.
Lunaria will not fall. He repeated with fury.
The group didn’t linger near the gates. They had no intention of entering the temple itself—a decision that brought visible relief to the knights.
Instead, they turned toward the mountains that loomed in the distance. The path was steep and winding, the rocky terrain dotted with sparse vegetation.
Adeline led the way with surprising confidence, her steps sure despite the uneven ground. Dimitri stayed close at her side. He wished he had a sword with him but he was much better with his wind magic than the sword.
Behind them, the knights moved in a tight formation, their eyes darting between the surrounding trees and cliffs.
As they climbed higher, the air grew cooler, and the sound of the temple’s bells faded into the background. Adeline found it funny that she preferred the bitting cold winds of this snowy mountain over the atmosphere near the temple.
She couldn’t put her finger on it but being there made her feel weird. She already named the feeling dread, but that wasn’t the only thing she felt. She felt an incredible amount of melancholy as if she suffered a great loss...
"What exactly are we looking for?" Dimitri asked after a while, breaking the silence.
Adeline glanced at him, her expression thoughtful. "The source of the plague," she said. "According to the Goddess, it’s somewhere in these mountains. A polluted water source, she said."
Dimitri frowned. "And how do we find it?"
Adeline shrugged. "I’ll know it when I see it."
"That’s... not reassuring." He smirked.
She laughed softly. "You’ll just have to trust me, Dimitri."
He sighed again but didn’t argue. Trusting her had become a habit—one he wasn’t sure he could break even if he wanted to.
After hours of trekking through the rocky terrain, Adeline and her group finally came across the river. It looked like an ordinary waterbody to all except Adeline. Maybe because she possessed holy powers she could sense a lot of things.
She could sense the presence of it... She could sense the power that was completely opposite to it... Forbidden magic. She could see it, it was as clear as day... This was the source of the plague?
"Yes... Unfortunately..." The Goddess’s voice echoed through her mind...
So it was man-made! Someone did it on purpose. Adeline’s fists clenched. She didn’t know what to expect when the Goddess told her she would find the source of the plague... But this was not what she expected.
"Who did this..." Adeline muttered. She said this in disbelief while also asking the Goddess for some answers. She witnessed the devastation it brought with her own eyes, she drained herself to help the ones who were suffering.
How could someone bring about something so cruel?! She could see red... She had a suspect already. Who else could it be? It had to be Edward or Annora. She remembered that Annora was not herself.
The Annora she read about was very different. Something changed... No, many things have changed.
"It is... As you guessed, it was Edward. He did this..." The Goddess replied with a hint of helplessness. She could only watch it happen, she didn’t have the power to stop it. The only way she could help the world she conjured up was via Adeline.
"Why did he do this?!" She couldn’t understand. He was evil, she knew that. He was a manipulator, she knew that too. But she knew he was a wise demon, he wouldn’t simply just do this...
He had a greater scheme planned out, didn’t he? What was it? Why did he recall the healers, why did he unleash a plague?! She knew the answer to that too. It was because of her, wasn’t it?
Tears started to stream down her face. She felt... Helpless. Dimitri ushered the knights away so that Adeline could use her powers in peace, but when he came back, he saw her crying.
"Adeline-"
"No, he went too far..." There was a blinding light that made Dimitri turn away.