Chapter 131: Diligence, you wretched light bulb!

On one side was the temptation of power.

On the other was the doubt in her own abilities.

Isiphlan asked, “Why?”

Aililan remained silent for a moment before she slowly spoke.

“The Church has developed for such a long time, and in recent years, we haven’t launched any major wars against the outside world. People in many regions have long since begun to grow like parasites.”

She paused and then continued, “To put it bluntly, while some still follow the Church’s orders, they only do so in name while disregarding our actual authority.”

Aililan finished speaking.

She expected the Saintesses to be angry.

Unexpectedly, almost no one reacted. Even Isiphlan maintained a calm and indifferent expression.

Just as Isiphlan was about to speak, Lizberu, the Saint of Temperance, performed a slight bow and said, “Allow me to explain this matter to Chastity.”

Aililan was stunned. “Huh?”

Lizberu smiled and explained, “Chastity, do you know which of the Seven Regents’ positions I will inherit in the future?”

Aililan replied, “The Elder of Records.”

Lizberu nodded.

“Exactly. The Elder of Records manages the doctrines, ancient texts, and the right to interpret history.”

“But at the same time, there is a more important power — the authority to declare any thought or action as Heresy.”

“To put it simply, I can sentence anyone as a heretic.”

“You can think of me as the one responsible for purging corruption and instability within the Church.”

“This is why ‘Temperance’ is best suited to inherit the position of Elder of Records. No one wants such a blade hanging over their head.”

She paused, then whispered:

“If Gentleness were in this position, she wouldn’t be able to tolerate a single speck of dust in her eyes. I’m afraid she would brand every single person she found as a heretic and purge them with her short temper.”

Aililan couldn’t help but widen her eyes, saying in shock, “It… it can actually work like that?”

Lizberu gave a soft huff.

“So, you don’t need to worry about these things.”

“The parasites and small-scale corruption you see are actually just the Church’s purses being left outside.”

After hearing this, Aililan felt a chill rush from her back to the top of her head.

A deeper realization suddenly struck her —

The Church itself found it inconvenient to directly exploit the commoners.

But if the local nobles did the exploiting…

In the end, that wealth would still return to the Church’s hands.

Aililan couldn’t help but suck in a cold breath.

‘This is far too dark.’

Those so-called noble families and clans that had existed for decades or even centuries —

To put it plainly, they were nothing more than the purses the Church held in its hands.

And they were the kind of pitch-black purses that devoured people without even leaving the bones.

Seeing everyone’s silence, Isiphlan continued:

“The situation in the Fifth Wing Region is unique due to its proximity to the Orcs, so we can handle it as a special case.”

“In a few days, we will summon the Archbishop of the Fifth Wing, along with the local Bishops and joint officials, to the Holy Land.”

“Chastity, you will meet them first.”

“If there are any who are disobedient, they will simply remain in the Holy Land.”

“What you need to do is unify the power of the entire Fifth Wing.”

“The Fifth Wing has a total of eight cities, a population of over 2,000,000, and nearly 100,000 troops that can be mobilized.”

“These forces will be of help to you in dealing with the war against the Orcs.”

Isiphlan sighed softly and added:

“Our expectation for you isn’t that you actually eliminate the Orcs.”

“Initially, we only hoped you could hold Atester; that would already be a great achievement.”

“So, you don’t need to feel too much pressure.”

“You’ve already done very well.”

“Even better than your sisters did back then.”

Afterwards, she gave a few more brief instructions.

Only then did she slowly stand up.

“Alright, I’m going back to the estate to rest. You young people should spend some more time together.”

The Saintesses hastily rose and bowed.

It was only after the elder left that the atmosphere gradually relaxed, and before long, the sound of playful laughter rang out.

They did not see, however, that after Isiphlan left the field of flowers, she walked alone to a Secret Chamber.

A crystal coffin sat inside.

A beautiful girl lay within the coffin.

She was in a deep sleep —

She was another member of the previous generation’s Seven Regents, yet now she was like the living dead.

Isiphlan’s eyes turned slightly red.

She gently stroked the girl inside the crystal coffin, only sighing after a long while.

“Chastity, I’ve come to see you again.”

“The children of this generation are all doing very well.”

She spoke softly:

“You used to say that each generation has its own burdens.”

“Our generation fought until the very end, and only you and I are left.”

“I really miss the times when our older and younger sisters were still here.”

“I only hope our sacrifices were worth it.”

“At the very least, we left a complete foundation for the children of this generation.”

She suddenly gave a soft laugh.

“By the way.”

“Why does the dark history of your Virtue of Chastity always involve being so amorous?”

“Almost every generation has a ‘cheating cat’.”

“However, the little Chastity of this generation is much smarter than you were back then.”

“Although she hasn’t shown any particular thoughts about her sisters…”

“I can guarantee she definitely has them in her heart.”

At this point, Isiphlan suddenly stopped.

She seemed to have thought of something.

She smiled, but then she suddenly choked up.

Only a soft sigh remained in the Secret Chamber.

“Wake up soon, okay?”

The girl in the crystal coffin did not respond.

A faint sadness permeated the estate.

The Saintesses of the previous generation —

They were either killed in battle or crippled.

Only one living corpse remained.

—

Meanwhile, in the field of flowers, the seven Saintesses were laughing and playing.

The sounds of joy and laughter echoed through the blossoms, surrounding the tombs of every past Saintess.

Aililan held a jar of fruit wine, walking back and forth with hesitant steps.

Only when she saw all her sisters were present did she relax a little.

She slowly shuffled over to Lizberu, the Saint of Temperance, and said with expectant eyes, “Sister Lizberu, let’s share a toast.”

Lizberu gave a gentle smile, raising her crystal glass to lightly clink against the jar.

“Mhm, cheers.”

Aililan shuffled a bit closer.

Her body was almost leaning against Lizberu’s side.

She could even smell the faint fragrance on her.

‘Good. One step closer.’

Aililan glanced at the food on the picnic cloth and picked up a small piece of grilled meat.

“Sister Lizberu…”

However, just as the grilled meat was halfway there, a figure suddenly rushed between the two of them and snatched the meat away in one bite.

“Diligence!”

Aililan screamed.

“You’re a total third wheel! Get lost!”

The Diligence Saintess, Yegeerlinai, acted as if she hadn’t heard a thing. She directly wrapped her arm around Aililan’s neck and rubbed her face against her shoulder.

“Chastity, let’s have a drinking contest.”

Aililan shouted in anger, “Contest my foot!”

Diligence blinked. “Strange. When you were drinking with Temperance just now, you clearly looked like you wanted to get her drunk. Why won’t you drink with me?”

Aililan instantly became alert.

She swung the wine jar up.

“Fine! Let’s drink!”

Diligence: *Gulp, gulp, gulp!*

Aililan: *Gulp!*