Decision

Using a small knife, she gently cut a lock of white silk from beside the ear of the sleeping Aurelia.

Selina tiptoed as she pulled the quilt over the girl.

At the same time, she reached out one last time to touch her forehead; after confirming the girl was in a deep sleep, she opened the door and walked out.

Returning to her own room, Selina skillfully set up a barrier.

The little dragon girl’s advancement would take at least three days, which happened to clash with the “Dragon God’s Trial” scheduled for two days later. Although one could choose not to attend the trial, if she didn’t, Aurelia’s name as the Saintess would surely be stigmatized, or she might even be stripped of her title on the spot.

Selina couldn’t be bothered with other people’s business, but she would not allow outsiders to wantonly bully this girl.

The best way forward now was to proceed according to Archbishop Hodmogh’s plan: she would attend the Dragon God’s Trial in the little dragon girl’s stead. This would not only stop the demons from smoothly seizing the position of Saintess but also buy time for Aurelia’s advancement.

As long as the little dragon girl successfully advanced to the Transcendent rank, she, as the Saintess, could release the unique awakening magic [Dragon God’s Descent].

At that time, regardless of where the old Dragon God was—whether He was sleeping or awake—she could directly pull the Dragon God’s soul to her.

Although the Dragon God Himself was a bit prone to oversleeping and unreliable, the Great Dragon Divine Dynasty was, after all, the core region where He gathered the power of faith and the gathering place of His descendants.

At the very least, the coordinates of the Dragon God’s Divine Realm were within the Great Dragon Divine Dynasty; the old gentleman would never allow a Demon God to lay a finger on the place where He slept.

In short, the keyword now was “delay.” The longer the little dragon girl could delay, the easier the plan would be to succeed. During this process, she had to disgust the demons as much as possible and must not let them have their way easily.

This was a struggle over divine power, while the struggle over royal power was another matter. According to Selina’s previous conversation with the Dragon King, although King Harks appeared to be staying his hand, he had actually long since noticed Duke Roniel’s small movements.

If she wasn’t mistaken, if the demons encountered strong resistance while assisting his daughter in seizing the Saintess’s position, then this Duke’s private soldiers would immediately turn into rebels.

This would be the largest rebellion in the history of the Dragon Tribe.

Roniel had great ambitions, but clearly, the demons assisting his rebellion had even greater ones. What Roniel wanted was merely the right to rule the entire Great Dragon Divine Dynasty, whereas the demons wanted everything belonging to the Dragon Tribe.

[Are you certain you want to leave me by her side?]

Hestia asked in a grave tone.

“Yes. I don’t feel at ease about that girl. That red dragon attendant of hers has been gone for a long time and hasn’t returned; if I’m not mistaken, she has likely met with an accident.”

“Even though this tavern has a barrier, I’m still worried. After those people catch Norin, they will surely try every means possible to pry the little dragon girl’s location out of her mouth. I have to guard against this.”

Selina explained as she placed the collected white hair in her palm, carefully enveloping it with magic to sense the unique aura upon the strands.

[But if I do not accompany you, I will be unable to help you. The greatest threat of the demons lies in their assimilation and pollution, and my abilities happen to counter them.]

As the former arch-nemesis of the Demon God, Hestia was naturally well aware of the demons’ methods. After all, Her failure back then involved suffering greatly from pollution and assimilation.

“Don’t worry, please have faith in my strength. Besides, don’t I still have the power bestowed by Themis?”

As she spoke, the girl touched another small piece of the crystal sword around her neck. That crystal sword representing the elements had not been used since the last battle against the Vampire Prince.

[If you are set on this decision, I shall bestow one more thing upon you.]

As she spoke, a dazzling small piece of crystal flickered on the golden-colored neck of the deity’s projection.

A small crystal item shrouded in flowing golden light bloomed. The flowing light wandered through the air like a tiny golden snake, and as it swam, it swiftly shot toward an unused candle on the table.

The candle was enveloped in golden light; after a long while, the radiance dissipated. The originally white candle now seemed plated with a layer of pale gold, and at the wick, a wisp of silver-white flame burned.

“This is?”

Looking at this unique candle, Selina felt it was very familiar for a moment.

[In the past, the followers of the Reincarnation Cult were also known as Candle Bearers. They held lit candles and wandered through the mists and darkness, using their own light to illuminate the path for those behind them.]

With Hestia’s reminder, Selina immediately recalled the candles held by the believers she had seen in the dream of the Divine War.

However, her candle seemed a bit different.

[The candles of ordinary believers are condensed from their own spiritual will. As long as their spirit is not extinguished, the flame will continue to burn; their candle fire consumes their own mental energy…]

[But as you are my only Saintess, the candle fire is naturally different. This flame condenses my Origin Divine Power and Origin Godflame. It is the symbol of identity for Saintesses of past generations, also known as the Saint Candle.]

[If you suddenly encounter large-scale demon pollution during the trial, immediately take out this candle fire and light it with your mental energy. Its light will guide you to dispel the darkness and lead you out of your lost way…]

One could hear that after Hestia created this so-called Saint Candle, Her originally clear voice had become quite weak. Clearly, separating this wisp of power was not easy for Her.

Selina picked up the pale gold Saint Candle from the table, felt the connection between herself and this candle, and nodded solemnly.

Hestia added: [No matter what, this Saint Candle is your only weapon now.]

“I understand. This time, no matter what, we will all be safe.”

She had now completely adapted to and familiarized herself with the unique aura on the little dragon girl’s hair.

This time, she would disguise herself as Aurelia to attend the much-coveted “Dragon God’s Trial.” Although the one judging her certainly wouldn’t be the Dragon God, given the demons’ caution regarding this plan, that Dragon God’s Eye used for the trial would definitely be replaced by the power of the Demon Goddess Lilith.

Under the discernment of god-level power, Selina’s previous disguises would appear quite crude. To avoid being seen through the moment she stepped onto the stage, Selina needed the little dragon girl’s personal items to familiarize herself with her aura, allowing for a more precise imitation.

Stepping before the mirror, Selina gripped the lock of hair in her hand and took a deep breath.

The magic in her body circulated in an extremely special way. With the unique concealment secret technique combined with the crystal necklace bestowed by Aemisia, Selina was confident that this disguise would be absolutely seamless.

[Thief God Skill: Faces of All Living Beings]

In the mirror, the magic combined with the power of the crystal necklace to twist Selina’s appearance in a very peculiar manner. Vaguely, the girl’s aura was affected and began to change in a specific direction.

Flesh and blood blurred within the light until…

Until the light completely dissipated, the girl in the mirror had turned entirely into a form indistinguishable from Aurelia. What was even more amazing was that both the appearance and the aura had reached absolute identity between the two.

Selina gave a slight smile to herself in the mirror.

She reached out to touch the dragon horns on her head; the feeling, as warm as soft jade, caused her to feel dazed for a moment.

Even she herself had almost doubted her identity for a split second just now.

If she could fool herself, she could fool others. It seemed she would have to give her all in the gamble of this upcoming trial.