Josephina trembled as she looked at Leticia. She thought to herself that she must cover Leticia’s mouth immediately. However, she couldn’t move even a fingertip.
It was dreadful. She was scared. It was terrifying! How on earth does Leticia know about the oracle? What in the world is happening to me!
“This a warning just for you? What on earth does that mean?”
“Was the oracle you received a warning?”
Amidst the murmuring of the people, Leticia smiled faintly.
“I only said one line, and everyone is curious about the whole message. It’s better to clarify it to everyone now that it has come to this, isn’t it?”
Josephina’s face turned pale. She had to shut that woman’s mouth immediately! By any means necessary! The oracle must not be revealed……
“As you have just declared, the end of evil is not far off.”
The murmuring in the temple subsided instantly.
“Know that the end of your deceit is not far off.”
“……”
“No matter how much you distort my intentions, fate is already determined. Everything will eventually flow according to its natural course.”
A clear and transparent voice continued the oracle. Only Leticia’s voice filled the vast temple.
“You cannot reverse time, thus you will lose everything in the agony of downfall. What awaits you is only.”
Leticia’s gaze turned icy cold.
“The most miserable death.”
The temple became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
“What do you think? Do you remember now?”
All eyes silently turned to Josephina. She felt as if her whole body was crumbling.
‘This can’t be! This is a dream! It must be a dream!’
That such a mad situation could be real was unbelievable to Josephina. She clenched her fists so hard that her fingernails dug into her palms. If she didn’t, she felt like she might collapse.
‘I can’t fall down. If I fall, it’s all over.’
Exactly how Leticia came to know about the oracle, she did not know. But one thing was certain. If she collapsed now, Leticia’s words would become the truth.
‘Surely you don’t already believe it?’
Josephina looked at the people with bloodshot eyes. They all seemed visibly confused.
“Did I hear that correctly just now? Did the goddess predict Josephina’s doom?”
“So Josephina stayed out of sight right after receiving the oracle because of the oracle?”
“Nonsense! Do you believe that? Who is she? Leticia, Leticia! The assassin of the Divine Palace!”
“But still, what if……”
“What if nothing!”
Fortunately, Leticia’s reputation was so bad that it seemed they did not believe her words immediately. Yet it was maddening. The mere fact that they were confused suggested they might consider Leticia’s words could be true. Then, a cleric nearby shouted loudly.
“Holy lady. I will drag this mad woman out immediately!”
Josephina barely managed to move her eyes to look at the cleric.
“How could such a filthy sinner be chosen by the Elixir?”
“That’s right! Moreover, an oracle? This is a disgrace to the oracle!”
“That woman wasn’t even near the central temple when the oracle was given. How on earth did she interpret the oracle?”
“Just look at that insolent gaze. When she was being whipped, she couldn’t make a sound and begged for her life lying down! How can she be so bold now! It doesn’t make any sense!”
“It’s because she wasn’t whipped enough! Even now, we must severely teach her a lesson so she learns her place!”
“It seems that all this is because of the prince. Surely, meeting a dragon’s lineage has made her lose her sense of right and wrong. We must send a letter of protest to the Principality!”
The clerics raised their voices as if to show the shaken populace. All the clerics here had been loyal to Josephina for a long time. They not only overlooked the abuse Leticia suffered but often participated in it. It was unimaginable and unacceptable for a woman they had scorned and despised as a filthy sinner all her life to be the representative of the goddess.
“I believe that today’s events are also because of that woman. A filthy sinner has snuck into our sacred land, allowing demons to escape!”
“I agree. That’s why the goddess is angry!”
“Wasn’t Lord Tenua killed while escorting that woman?”
“That woman killed Lord Tenua! We must make an official complaint to reveal the truth!”
As the clerics took a strong stance, the mood among the murmuring populace began to shift.
“That woman killed Tenua? Then what about the oracle just now?”
“Obviously, it’s a lie! Do you believe her?”
“Is it really?”
As the mood among the people flowed as intended, the clerics became triumphant. Josephina gradually regained her composure.
‘Right. Think about that woman’s past. No need to go far. Recall what she was like right before the wedding, right in front of me.’
Leticia was nothing more than an insect to Josephina, a creature less significant than a bug, which she could crush at any time, make beg at her feet.
‘I don’t know how she learned about the oracle, but this madness ends now.’
Josephina, who had been glaring at Leticia confidently, paused.
‘Wait, now that I think about it, wasn’t the oracle influenced by the dragon? Could it be that the dragon gave her the words of the oracle?’
Josephina finally realized the cause of this debacle. It was the dragon. Leticia’s presence here, the sudden uprising of the demons, the deaths of Tenua and Ahwyn! It must have been the dragon’s doing!
“Impudent woman! You’ve obviously taken orders from the filthy dragon to desecrate our sacred land!”
Josephina regained her bravado and snapped angrily.
“I should have killed you long ago! I hoped by sparing you for my sin of birthing a demon, you would spend your life in the Principality atoning! Even living as if dead, quietly and without incident, would not have been enough, yet you dare commit such acts! Are you not afraid of divine punishment?”
Josephina stomped her foot loudly.
“On behalf of my goddess, I will inflict divine punishment on you. You will never leave here alive! I will tear your body to pieces and hang it on the city walls!”
Just then, the crowd blocking Leticia parted like a wave, and Calisto appeared. His grey eyes flickered ominously as he looked at Leticia, who smiled awkwardly.
“Thank you. I actually knew you would come forward, Your Highness.”
“Ha, if you were going to entrust it to me anyway, why did you take such a risk? Have you forgotten the promise you made to me earlier?”
“I’m sorry, but it was necessary. It was the quickest and most effective way for me to step in.”
She hesitated a little before adding,
“Even if you were in danger, Your Highness, I would make the same choice.”
“You have a natural talent for turning situations upside down.”
“I’m sorry. That I, like this, have received the goddess’s choice.”
“If you are not going to turn back time, then no need for apologies.”
“Even if I could turn back time, I would make the same choice. If my mother threatens my people…”
“Not today, but a month ago!”
“What?”
“Never mind.”
Calisto frowned and turned around. He stepped forward as if to protect Leticia and then declared,
“Everyone, see clearly! I can prove that this person is the goddess’s representative! I have lived my life as Josephina’s first wing! But I could never accept that fate! Because!”
He declared coldly, staring at Josephina,
“Josephina is a fake. A vile evil! But now that I have met the true master. I will follow the fate of the wings given to me by the goddess!”
Then he swiftly turned around, placed his hand on his chest, and knelt on one knee in a gesture of perfect respect, entirely different from how he addressed Josephina.
“Lady Leticia, the true representative of the goddess.”
He slowly raised his head to meet Leticia’s gaze. His grey eyes focused solely on her.
“Just give the order. I will destroy everything that blocks your path.”
As he declared this, a rumbling started. Not just in the temple—the entire capital began to shake.
* * *
The door was locked. Dietrian leaned against it with a thump.
“Your Highness, the doctor has arrived.”
“……”
“Your Highness?”
As if he couldn’t hear the voice behind him, he stared with bloodshot eyes at the empty bed. He clenched his eyes shut, then opened them again. But Leticia had not returned. Even the body of Leticia who had collapsed was gone.
Once more, he closed and opened his eyes, but it was futile. His trembling hands covered his eyes.
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