Although she was the only one in the prison, somewhere, the subordinates of Rehir were surely watching her.
So, as if pouring water through a needle hole, she used her power very slowly and carefully.
By the time sweat was beading on her pale forehead, she felt a very familiar energy beyond the elixir.
It was the spirits, wandering the desert in search of her.
「Lady Leticia has disappeared!」
「I’ll break everything!」
Although they were invisible, she could vividly imagine the spirits, agitated after losing her.
「Where on earth has she disappeared to?」
「Rehir has completely erased Lady Leticia’s traces!」
She let her energy flow around the furious spirits.
The spirits, who were frantically roaming around, suddenly stopped in surprise.
They sniffed like puppies searching for their owner, and their mood changed in an instant.
「It’s Lady Leticia’s power!」
「Where? Where is it coming from?」
「Here, the space is distorted!」
Finally, the spirits found the space connected to the elixir.
Some of them quickly flew to their wings, while others tried to tear the air.
「Lady Leticia! We will rescue you!」
At that point, Leticia withdrew her power. The noise of the spirits’ chatter faded away.
「The power is getting weaker!」
「No, don’t! Aaargh!」
She felt sorry for the spirits, but she couldn’t use the goddess’s power any longer.
If she desired more than this, Rehir would notice.
For now, just signaling her location was enough.
‘Now, I just have to wait.’
Leticia leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes.
It would take time, but eventually, the wings would find her.
They were people who wouldn’t miss even a needle dropped in the sand.
Eliminating Rehir could be done later.
‘Julios…’
Leticia, whose chest felt tight, closed her eyes.
Now that she was alone, she could reflect on the shock from earlier.
Thanks to the passing time, her heart had calmed a lot.
Still, there were things she found hard to accept.
‘Julios has become one of Rehir’s subordinates.’
Leticia pressed her tearful eyes with the back of her hand.
The image of Julios standing beside her before she collapsed was vivid in her mind.
Even when Rehir struck Leticia’s cheek several times, Julios did not react.
His gaze was as dry as if he were looking at an inanimate object.
It seemed he would not have cared if Leticia had died right there.
‘It’s so painful.’
Feeling as if a huge stone was weighing down on her chest, Leticia bit her lip hard.
It wasn’t that she resented Julios.
It was just that the situation was unbearably painful.
If Julios had been alright, their reunion would have been a great blessing.
He would have been overjoyed to hear about the pregnancy.
‘This is not the time to be in pain. I need to pull myself together.’
Leticia squeezed her eyes shut, letting the tears flow, then stood up.
‘First, I need to find a way to bring Julios back. Since it’s a tainted darkness, perhaps the goddess’s power can purify it.’
To do that, she needed to secure some time alone with Julios.
‘But what worries me is.’
What would happen to Julios’s soul when all the darkness was driven out?
Julios’s body was not that of a real human.
He was borrowing the body of a deceased person that should have decayed long ago.
It was the tainted darkness that was keeping his body and soul in sync.
‘If I purify the darkness, will Julios’s soul be expelled from his body?’
If not, would he vanish along with the purified darkness?
‘If his soul has already merged with the darkness, the goddess’s power might harm Julios.’
Leticia, trembling with fear, hugged herself.
It wasn’t Rehir she feared.
She was confident she could overcome the tainted darkness.
But with Julios involved, it was different.
She was as afraid of hurting Julios as she was of him becoming Rehir’s subordinate.
‘Should I give up on purification?’
Leticia bit her lip hard and shook her head.
‘No. Even so, it’s better than leaving things as they are.’
If the situation were reversed and she was the one consumed by darkness.
She, too, would have wanted Julios to purify her.
Even thinking that, it was too painful to accept the future. She clenched her chest with a hand so tight it turned white.
‘Baby, what should I do? My heart hurts so much.’
It was unbearably painful, but there was no one here for her to lean on. She had to endure alone until another wing found her. Because of that, she felt the baby in her belly more than ever.
‘I am not alone.’
To drive away her fear, Leticia repeatedly muttered to herself. I am not alone. Our child is with me.
* * *
How much time had passed?
Clang.
Thud.
Leticia, who had been burying her face in her knees, raised her head.
The sound of footsteps grew louder beyond the dark prison.
A long shadow drew closer to the prison.
Soon, Julios appeared beyond the bars.
Leticia quietly looked up at Julios, who was backlit.
Had she had time to organize her thoughts during this period?
It was easier to manage her expression than before.
Clang.
A white hand unlocked the latch and opened the prison door.
Julios spoke in a cold voice, as before.
“Get up. Lord Rehir is calling for you.”
“…I understand.”
Leticia slowly got up and followed Julios.
They walked through the dark corridor, just as they had when they came to the prison earlier.
After climbing the stairs to the ground level, they soon reached Rehir’s slightly ajar room.
Julios knocked on the door.
“Lord Rehir. I have brought the fake saint.”
“Come in.”
Julios opened the door, and Leticia followed behind him.
From the prison to this place, Julios never once looked back.
Inside the spacious room, Rehir was deeply reclining on the sofa.
When he saw Leticia, he smiled and beckoned her.
“Leticia. I have something to show you.”
From his fingertips, a dark energy swirled.
Soon, he created a mirror-like circle in the air.
The circle shimmered translucently, reflecting those she knew well.
It was Leticia’s spirits.
「We can’t feel Leticia’s presence!」
「What if Leticia is hurt?」
After Leticia’s traces disappeared, the spirits fell into a state of panic.
Their eyes turned wild, and their power overturned the entire desert.
Water boiled, winds blew, flames soared, the ground split, monsters roared, and light spirits flashed everywhere.
In the midst of this, the guardian spirits struggled to protect humans from their comrades. Those humans who knew the truth kept their mouths shut as planned.
“A sight too good to see alone, isn’t it?”
As Leticia had anticipated, Rehir was monitoring the spirits.
Seeing the spirits in torment, he was convinced of his victory.
Unaware that all of this was part of Leticia’s plan, he smiled contentedly and stood up. Then, he looked down at her arrogantly.
“Kneel.”
Leticia deliberately straightened her back. Seeing this, Rehir chuckled.
“Do I have to force you to kneel to make you understand?”
“Ugh!”
Forced to her knees by the power of darkness, Leticia groaned.
He grabbed her hair roughly and turned her head slightly. Looking down at her swollen cheek, he chuckled.
“I almost want to preserve you like this.”
He said this while holding a whip in one hand. Although she knew she wouldn’t feel any pain due to the shield, Leticia deliberately trembled as if in fear. Ignorant of the truth, Rehir laughed wickedly and swung the whip.
“Whew.”
Rehir swung the whip for a long time.
When Leticia suppressed her groans, he became more vicious, wanting to see how long she could endure.
In the end, Leticia collapsed again.
Rehir, who had been wildly swinging the whip, stepped back, panting.
He slightly frowned at the sight of Leticia’s bloodstained clothes.
“Did I overdo it?”
Leticia’s bleeding was quite severe.
Seeing the raging spirits had excited him, causing him to be too excessive.
Although he didn’t want to stop, Rehir threw the whip aside.
He slumped back onto the sofa and nodded at Julios.
“Check the girl’s condition.”
“Understood.”
“Inform me when she regains consciousness. That means we still have time.”
“I will check.”
Julios bowed slightly.
He slowly approached Leticia and knelt on one knee, facing away from Rehir.
After looking at her wounds for a moment, he carefully lifted her upper body.
His fingers trembled slightly as he checked her pulse, but Rehir didn’t notice.
After a moment, Julios exhaled a shaky breath and closed his eyes tightly.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he spoke in an indifferent voice.
“Lord Rehir, the fake’s pulse is very weak. It would be best to leave her as she is for now.”
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