They are all characters I control.

This is to be expected. Isabelle does not have the experience and mind of Ophelia, and she would not doubt that Claire could go out and control Leah while she was in the 'Holy City'.

Lia never expected that the person the acting saintess was talking about would be herself.

The people who didn't quite understand each other's guidance also couldn't imagine that the guide they knew was someone the other person also knew.

Faced with this conversation, Claire was momentarily speechless.

If I were to offer a reminder now, it would only expose my shortcomings or create an awkward atmosphere.

Meanwhile, Isabelle and Lia's conversation continued.

Lia seemed encouraged, her tone becoming more relaxed: "But he's not always that serious. Sometimes he'll make me repeat what he said, and after I finish, he'll be silent for a while, and then say 'not bad'."

"Just two words?"

“Just two words. But he’ll say them when I do something right.” There was a seriousness in Lia’s tone that she herself didn’t realize.

“He doesn’t offer many extra compliments, but he never says ‘not bad’ when I shouldn’t have to.”

Isabelle looked at her thoughtfully, as if the details were gradually piecing together an outline.

What about when he criticizes you?

“The criticism was very direct.” Leah’s voice lowered. “Once, when I hesitated for too long while handling something, he said I was ‘using hesitation instead of judgment.’ I remembered that sentence for a long time.”

“Replace judgment with hesitation…” Isabelle repeated, her voice soft, as if she were tasting the words on the tip of her tongue.

"The person I'm talking about said the same thing to me."

Lia couldn't help but laugh out loud, and Isabelle also smiled slightly.

Isabelle adjusted her cuffs slightly, as if preparing to wrap things up. "What you said tonight...was quite useful to me."

"It worked?" Lia was somewhat surprised.

“Hmm.” Isabelle didn’t explain much, but just looked at Leah. “Some things are easier to understand when you hear others say them than when you think about them yourself. Sometimes, looking back can also help you discover things you didn’t notice before.”

For example, when it comes to Claire, Isabelle, like most people, would subconsciously see the title 'Emperor of Evil Gods' first, rather than Claire herself.

Ophelia seems to have done a better job than Isabelle herself in this regard.

Because Ophelia treated Claire as a human being, not as someone who was not a terrifying 'Evil God Emperor' like she was.

Lia nodded. She didn't understand what Isabelle meant, but she knew she had probably been helpful: "I'll be here if you'd like to talk again next time."

Isabelle nodded slightly, and the light from the communication stone began to dim from its edges. "Then let's talk again next time. It was a pleasure to have this conversation with Miss Lia."

"Yes, Lady Isabelle."

The light screen closed, and the light from the communication stone slowly went out.

Lia sat in the armchair, looking at the stone that had returned to calm, her fingers still resting on the edge of the book page.

She shifted her gaze from the low table to the firelight in the fireplace, as if replaying those moments in her mind.

Claire sighed at the two girls, thinking of the two naive fools together.

Chapter 145 Lia's New Day

When Liya woke up, the sky outside the window was not yet fully bright.

The fire in the fireplace had gone out, leaving only dark red embers shimmering faintly beneath the grayish-white charcoal layer.

She sat wrapped in a blanket in the armchair all night, the book on her lap never turning a new page. She glanced down at the communication stone; its surface was cold, devoid of any remaining light.

Leah had a very pleasant conversation with Isabelle last night. Apart from her aunt, Earl Orlando, this was the first time she had made a true friend.

After all, neither his half-sister Elena nor his maid Anna had ever chatted with him so intimately and relaxedly.

This is the most precious experience for Lia right now.

Because regardless of who he is with, the troubles brought about by his different status are not only getting involved in conflicts of interest, but also being forced into marriage by His Majesty Darian and being pressured by the Rost family.

These were all unavoidable, which is why Lia was able to escape the days when she was constantly tormented.

At this moment, Lia is undoubtedly relaxed.

Besides Isabelle being kind and gentle, Lia was in such a good mood because the topic of conversation last night was not anyone else, and Lia also told Isabelle a lot about the 'God of Guidance'.

Although he couldn't tell Isabelle that the person he had been talking to all night was 'Emperor of Evil' Claire.

However, it's quite remarkable that they were able to discuss the topic of the "God of Guidance" so much with Isabelle without mentioning the title of "Evil God Emperor".

What's even more remarkable is that Miss Isabelle seems to have a mentor by her side.

Who was that person who provided guidance? To be honest, Lia was a little curious, after all, Miss Isabelle was the acting saintess of the Goddess Church, second only to the saintess in status.

How could someone like her actually teach her how to do it?

What kind of identity does that person have? What is their status? How wise and intelligent do they have to be?

Lia was indeed very curious about the person who could teach Isabelle. However, although she was a bit slow on the uptake, she wouldn't actually ask, and directly asking Miss Isabelle was absolutely out of the question.

Isabelle, acting as the acting saintess, must have kept such conversations with me quite private and confidential.

Simply making a new friend is something to be happy about, and Lia doesn't have any special desires for it.

Lia got up, folded the blanket, walked to the window, and opened it. The morning breeze rushed in, carrying the scent of dew and earth, as well as the faint clanging of metal from the distant streets.

It wasn't fighting, but the sound of knights' armor rubbing against their swords as they patrolled, more frequent and intense than in the previous days.

Bishop Augustine's purges are still ongoing.

The imperial capital is now seeing arrests of heretics, which has angered many nobles and church members, as they are among the most affected.

Everyone knows that if they were captured by the Goddess Church at this time, they probably wouldn't be able to get out.

Even if they were to escape, they would likely pay a heavy price. The first thing Bishop Augustine did upon arriving in this empire was to carry out a massive purge; frankly, even Lia could see that he intended to make a name for himself.

Especially since the person in charge of the Great Purge was the rather loyal Knight Commander Karl.

Knight Commander Karl had always wanted to properly govern the current capital city when he was Bishop Simon, even though not everyone in the capital city was a heretic.

However, there were also quite a few nobles who secretly studied forbidden magic and opposed the church.

However, Bishop Simon was focused on becoming an archbishop as soon as possible and didn't have time to deal with these matters. In any case, His Majesty Darion was completely obedient to Bishop Simon at that time.

If nothing unexpected had happened, Bishop Simon should have been able to completely control the situation.

The problem is that the opportunity to be promoted to bishop is gone, and along with it, Bishop Simon's power also disappears instantly. His Majesty Darion has no feelings of loyalty or anything like that towards Bishop Simon.

His Majesty Darian has simply been waiting for an opportunity to regain control of the entire empire and thus break free from the control of the Church of Goddess.

Knight Commander Karl was thus unable to do the things he wanted to do.

But the arrival of Bishop Augustine, perhaps to demonstrate his power and influence, and to establish his authority over the nobles of the empire, led to this great purge.

As long as this purge is large enough and enough heretics are arrested.

So it wasn't just that Bishop Augustine was able to establish his authority quite perfectly in this empire, completely replacing Bishop Simon, and then present a very impressive report card to the Church of Goddess.

At that time, even if Bishop Augustine doesn't do anything special, he might still gain the favor of the acting saints who have always been resistant in the 'Holy Council'.

Alternatively, it is entirely possible to persuade the other archbishops.

Bishop Augustine was clearly eyeing the position of archbishop of the imperial diocese, which is why he carried out such a purge, but it was much more prudent than Bishop Simon's attempt to achieve it all at once.

Although this may offend some people, those people can negotiate for their freedom.

Those who still stubbornly resist and are completely opposed to or even disobey the Great Purge are only those who have done things that are unforgivable to the Church, or those who are completely loyal to Bishop Simon or His Majesty Daryan.

These people naturally had no chance to escape their fate, after all, His Majesty Darian and Bishop Simon were powerless at this time, and Bishop Augustine had the support of the knights of the Order of the Church and the archbishops.

This purge was also justified, because Bishop Simon's subordinates actually "copied" the new system of the "Holy City" of Isabelle, the acting saintess, and created a "new tax".

Although Isabelle did not punish Lia, there were clearly some things about Bishop Simon and the Empire that the Church could not tolerate. This was indeed a case of using this as an excuse to make trouble, since both the archbishops and the acting saintesses wanted to reshuffle the power dynamics within the Empire.

Given the deal between the archbishops and Bishop Simon, and because Bishop Simon had not done anything wrong before, there had always been no reason for them to do so.

Bishop Simon's mistake has now given everyone a good excuse.

Bishop Augustine was merely an executor of the 'Holy Council,' so no one could resist this great purge.

Although Lia didn't know how to resolve this situation, she was deeply moved by what the 'Guiding God', Count Orlando, and Rosemary had said to her.

Through constant exposure and learning, Liya also learned many things that were completely unfamiliar to her before.

"Miss Leah, Earl Orlando invites you to dinner." There was a knock on the door, and the maid Anna's voice came from outside. Leah slowly turned her gaze away from the window.

She straightened the wrinkles in her clothes, turned around, and replied, "Okay, I'm coming."

Chapter 146 Miss Lia is a completely different person now

When Lia changed her clothes and came downstairs, Count Orlando was already sitting in the living room.

She was dressed in dark riding attire and holding a cup of tea. When she saw Liya come downstairs, she simply raised her chin to indicate the other cup on the table.

"I've brewed your tea. The temperature is just right, you're welcome."

Count Orlando is Leah's aunt. Although he has a man's appearance and attire, it's just the effect of a magic potion.

Having lived at her aunt's house for so long, Liya had long since gotten used to her aunt's lazy and casual manner.

It was thanks to this aunt that Lia was able to live her daily life so peacefully.

Of course, from the outside perspective, Earl Orlando is currently using the pretext of pursuing Leah, which makes Leah somewhat uncomfortable.

Apart from that, my aunt has absolutely no bad qualities.

Lia picked up her teacup and took a sip. The tea was warm, with a hint of minty coolness. "What are the plans for today?"

"Bishop Simon sent word that a group of people are being released from prison today. He wants us to go with him to pick them up."

Count Orlando set down his teacup, his tone calm, as if discussing a routine matter. "He said it would be more effective for us to claim it in our name than for him to do so himself."

Lia paused, her hand holding the teacup still. "Which group?"

“Those of his men who were arrested by Augustine. Not all of them, just the first batch. The list is here.” Count Orlando took a folded parchment from his pocket, unfolded it, and pushed it in front of Leah.

The paper listed seven or eight names, some of whom Leah recognized as deacons and scribes to Bishop Simon.

There were two other names she didn't recognize, but judging from their positions, they should be mid-level staff members of the church.

"Why does he want us to collect them?" Lia put down her teacup and looked at the list carefully. "Wouldn't it be more direct for him to go himself? Those people are his subordinates anyway."

“Because if he goes now, it will only make things more complicated.” Count Orlando leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on his knee. “Augustine’s men are watching him. His appearance at the cell door is tantamount to reminding them that ‘these people have powerful backers.’”

"Would it be different if we went?" Leah asked uncertainly.

“If we go, they will assume these people are my people, or that they are part of your Rost family’s network.”

Countess Orlando's voice lightened, as if she were explaining something she had already figured out.

“Augustine doesn’t really want to break ties with you. If you go, he’ll see it as a favor to you, rather than being forced to release people by Bishop Simon.”

Lia was silent for a moment, then carefully folded the paper and put it away. "Then go ahead."

By the time the carriage traveled along the main street of the capital, it was already fully light.

There were significantly more people on the street than in the previous days, but the expressions of the pedestrians were generally more tense than usual.

Teams of church knights patrolled the street corners, their silver armor gleaming coldly in the morning light. Commoners passing by would unconsciously quicken their pace, avoiding the knights' gaze.

The atmosphere was somewhat like the calm before a storm, with a subtle sense of oppression hidden beneath every bright ray of light.

Bishop Augustine's purge has been ongoing for nearly a week, involving arrests, interrogations, and executions.

The process proceeded methodically, following the rhythm of an assembly line. More and more people, including nobles, merchants, middle-ranking church officials, and commoners, were implicated, and the charges against them became increasingly vague.

Lia lifted the curtain and glanced out the window, then lowered it again and leaned back in her seat. "I feel like there are fewer people in the city than before."

“It’s not that we’re less, it’s that we’re afraid to go out,” Earl Orlando said calmly. “We’re afraid we’ll be taken away while walking down the street. We’re afraid our neighbors will report us. We’re afraid of receiving letters we shouldn’t receive.”

"Won't it be too conspicuous if we go to pick up people like this?"

“We need to be conspicuous.” Count Orlando glanced at her sideways. “The more openly we appear there, the less Augustine will think we’re hiding anything.”

The carriage stopped in front of the church's attached detention center.

The stone walls of the courtyard were cleaner than those of ordinary prison cells, but they still exuded a sense of desolation.

Two church knights stood guard at the entrance. When the carriage came to a stop, they took a half step back and placed their hands on the hilts of their swords.

Upon seeing the newcomer's face, the two knights paused slightly, unsure whether to stop him or not.