Episode 104
‘Is Lucius a fake apostle, and this Tristan is the real one?’
No, that didn’t make sense either.
Noah had said the apostle was a Theology Department student. Elonia didn’t know all the Theology students, but there was a more crucial reason.
If Tristan was the true apostle of the Calamity God, he wouldn’t undermine the god’s authority. An apostle’s power stemmed from their god’s power.
While Elonia was lost in thought, Lucius descended from the podium, a candle in his hand, and placed his hand on each devotee’s head, offering a blessing. A faint light flickered with each touch, indicating the use of Holy Power.
Elonia clicked her tongue.
‘He’ll see my face.’
She had only changed her height and hair color. Her face was still the same. Altering her facial features would shorten the spell’s duration and make it more susceptible to external stimuli.
She had only changed her most distinctive features – her bright mint green hair and her small stature – assuming it would be enough to avoid recognition. But Lucius already knew her face. He would recognize her up close.
‘Even if I avoid eye contact, he’ll still notice.’
The moment he used his Holy Power on her, it would clash with her mana.
She had planned to observe from afar and capture him later, but the sudden appearance of a new god had thrown her off.
‘Should I escape?’
She was last in line for the blessing, and she had a teleportation scroll in her bag.
She could escape before Lucius reached her.
But,
‘…I didn’t come here to run away.’
Natalie’s death still haunted her. Natalie had died because of Elonia.
She couldn’t use Lucius saving her life as an excuse to spare him.
An Emperor was a sinner.
They had to sacrifice others to protect their nation.
She couldn’t call herself a good Empress if she couldn’t even bring herself to eliminate a single Heilan child, especially when he posed a threat to her nation.
‘I’ve killed so many people. If I kill just one more, no, three more – Tristan, Lucius, and Felix – this will all be over.’
Elonia, desperately searching for a justification, added another excuse.
She wouldn’t kill him immediately.
He wouldn’t be telling the whole truth. There had to be a hidden motive, and she would uncover it before killing him.
First, she had to isolate him.
‘I can’t use a large-scale teleportation spell. It would reveal my identity.’
Should she damage the building slightly?
No, that wouldn’t work either.
Even a small-scale spell would cause significant damage, potentially harming innocent Ravanta citizens.
‘…I’ll escape with Lucius when he approaches me.’
Elonia discreetly checked the position of her dagger under her skirt.
‘Just below the heart.’
She remembered the least painful spot from her previous death.
Lucius was approaching. His clear voice echoed beside her.
“May the blessings of the God Tristan be with you, devout brother. What did you pray for today?”
“I prayed for my family’s safety from the tyrant of Ravanta, under the guidance of the God Tristan.”
“A noble prayer. It must have reached God Tristan. As his apostle, I bestow my blessings upon you.”
Lucius placed his hand on the devotee’s head, and a faint light flickered.
And Elonia saw it. Lucius’s face had turned pale.
There were about forty devotees here.
Even with strong Holy Power, bestowing blessings upon so many people would take a toll on him. It was equivalent to casting a teleportation spell for every five small blessings.
Was the veil and the candlelight meant to hide his pale complexion?
Lucius, despite his paleness, maintained his composure as he approached Elonia.
He asked, his voice steady,
“May the blessings of the God Tristan be with you, devout sister. What did you pray for today?”
Elonia, her hand gripping her dagger tightly, couldn’t answer.
Lucius, sensing her hesitation, asked again,
“Sister? I’ll ask again. What did you pray for…?”
He couldn’t finish his sentence.
Elonia’s lavender eyes met his.
“You’re…”
Lucius recognized her.
She had hoped Ricardo’s disguise spell would be enough, but it was useless against someone who knew her face.
Elonia, in a moment of panic, grabbed his wrist.
“…!”
Lucius, startled, dropped his candlestick. The carpet caught fire instantly.
‘Oh, no.’
Elonia’s mind snapped back to reality.
But it was too late. The fire spread rapidly.
“Fire! Fire!”
“Help!”
It felt like déjà vu.
But unlike the Rossi estate fire, this wasn’t intentional.
The sanctuary was in chaos.
“Everyone, calm down…!”
Her usual commanding voice was drowned out by the panicked screams.
The professors and clerics, trying to escort Lucius to safety, rushed towards them.
Elonia, realizing she would be discovered, decided to make the best of the situation. She amplified the flames with her magic, creating a wall of fire between her and Lucius and the other devotees.
“Aaah!”
“Fire! Brother, fire!”
Lucius, his wrist still in Elonia’s grip, watched in horror as the flames engulfed the sanctuary.
The clerics, their robes catching fire, frantically patted themselves down, abandoning Lucius and fleeing the sanctuary.
“Help me! God, God Tristan!”
“Someone put out the fire!”
There weren’t many Magic Department students present, and even those who were couldn’t extinguish a fire fueled by Elonia’s mana.
Lucius, finally realizing the situation, turned to Elonia.
“Y-you! What are you doing?! Let go of me!”
“Stay still.”
He struggled, trying to break free, but it was futile.
Subduing a boy who had just exhausted his Holy Power was child’s play for Elonia.
Lucius saw the dagger in her hand and realized what was about to happen.
Elonia’s heart ached.
‘Life is full of surprises.’
She had been saved by him, she had saved him, and now she was about to kill him. She was no better than Artius, the ungrateful beast she had once despised.
Elonia created a barrier to protect them from the flames, then, avoiding his horrified gaze, looked around the sanctuary.
Crash!
Pillars, engulfed in flames, began to collapse, blocking the exits.
“The exit…!”
Elonia cleared a path for the remaining devotees, blasting away the burning debris with her magic. She continued to create escape routes until everyone, except for her and Lucius, had left the sanctuary. Then, she withdrew her mana.
The flames, deprived of their fuel, vanished as quickly as they had appeared.
The sanctuary, which had been as bright as day, was now filled with smoke, charred debris, and darkness.
Elonia, after sealing the entrance with the remaining debris, finally released Lucius’s wrist.
And she held her dagger to his throat.
“Lucius, we have a lot to talk about, don’t we?”
“A-ah…”
His reaction was strange.
She couldn’t see his expression clearly in the darkness, but his breathing was ragged and uneven.
“…Lucius?”
He had been so composed while bestowing blessings, even when his face was pale with exhaustion. And now he was hyperventilating.
She had wondered if he had been injured by the fire, but that was impossible. Her barrier had been perfect.
‘What’s wrong with him?’
“Gasp…!”
Lucius clutched his throat and slumped to the ground, his body trembling. He groped the floor blindly.
His breathing grew increasingly rapid and shallow.
“F-fire…”
“Lucius, calm down. The fire is out.”
“N-no… Is anyone there? Please, bring me fire…!”
Bring him fire?
Before she could process his strange request, Lucius looked at the sealed entrance and stopped breathing.
She had initially thought he was just pretending, but it seemed genuine. Lucius wasn’t the type to feign such distress.
Elonia calmly analyzed his behavior.
He had remained calm even when engulfed in flames, but now, after the fire was extinguished, he was showing signs of extreme anxiety.
And he was asking for fire.
‘Could it be…’
She suddenly remembered Lucius’s kidnapping by the Connet Kingdom.
More specifically, the place where he had been imprisoned.
And the Third Sanctuary had been excessively decorated with candles.
She finally realized it wasn’t Lucius’s preference, but a coping mechanism.
‘…I made a mistake.’
Why hadn’t she realized it sooner?
Being confined to a small, dark space as a child could leave lasting trauma.
Lucius had been imprisoned in a wooden box.
A small box, barely large enough for a baby, with a lock that couldn’t be opened from the inside.
He was suffering from claustrophobia and nyctophobia.