They are all characters I control.

Isabelle was completely unaware of this; she had already found what she wanted.

[...In Imperial Year 437, the Evil God Emperor Claire proposed a 'Popular Healing Mutual Aid' plan to the Church, suggesting that the Empire fund and the Church provide the manpower to establish affordable healing points throughout the country, where commoners could enjoy basic healing magic by paying a small monthly fee...]

The Church rejected the idea, citing the opinion of the Archbishop of the Imperial Region: Healing magic is a gift from the Goddess, and its value should not be measured in money; such an action would be blasphemous…

[The Evil God Emperor's reply: You idiot.]

Isabelle's gaze lingered on the last line for a long time; sure enough, Claire was being sarcastic.

In the dungeon, he said he would collect taxes ruthlessly.

But what Claire actually wanted to do was not to collect taxes, but to reduce the cost of healing magic so that ordinary people could enjoy it.

However, it seems that the Church of Goddess at that time did not accept this method.

She continued scrolling down.

In the year 438 of the Imperial Calendar, the Evil God Emperor issued the "Decree for the Popularization of Herbs," extending the cultivation of healing herbs, originally reserved for noble territories, to commoner farms. He also dispatched court sorcerers to teach commoners simple medicine-making techniques.

Large quantities of inexpensive medical supplies quickly spread throughout the Empire, effectively reducing the number of people dying from illness or accidents.

The church protested again, arguing that the cheap potion desecrated the sacred magic bestowed by the goddess...

Isabelle read it word by word, her brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

At that moment, she felt that the names on the document seemed to be misspelled. Were the names of both parties reversed?

Chapter 67 Please use polite language.

In the records, Claire used two words most often in her letters to the Church of Goddess.

Shabi.

This was rather uncivilized, and Isabelle's gaze lingered on the last line for a few seconds.

She could almost picture Claire's expression when she wrote those two words—a smug, half-smiling look.

In the dungeon, Claire would also give her a similar look.

Isabelle sighed and shook her head, continuing to flip through the pages. What complicated her feelings even more was the account of the actions of the Church of the Goddess recorded in the book.

In the year 439 of the Imperial Calendar, the Evil God Emperor proposed opening monastery cemeteries within the Empire to commoners and planned to establish "honorary cemeteries" for fallen Imperial knights, to be managed uniformly by the Empire.

The church refused again, stating that only baptized and lifelong devout believers are eligible for burial in sacred grounds. Ordinary people wishing to be buried in church cemeteries must pay exorbitant fees.

[The Evil God Emperor's reply: You'd better not die. If you do, I'll dig you up and sunbathe you, you idiots.]

Isabelle stared at the words, and suddenly Claire's words in the dungeon flashed into her mind—

“I will collect a burial tax. Everyone who dies on my land must believe in me, or I will drag their body out.”

She thought it was nonsense at the time, but now she looks at the records in front of her.

Claire wanted to do the exact opposite; instead of collecting taxes, he wanted to provide a place for commoners to be buried.

If a person is buried outside the monastery cemetery, wild animals will often hunt for food or the body will be dug up and used to place the body of a loved one.

Commoners were obviously not as wealthy as nobles, who could afford to build cemeteries specifically for burying family members.

Moreover, Claire also wanted to build a burial ground for the knights, which would be an unparalleled honor for the knights of the Empire.

The church refused, on the grounds that they were not believers.

Those who are not believers are not worthy of being buried in sacred land.

Even if that land is empty, even if those commoners have prayed to the goddess, it is no exception.

Isabelle's hands trembled slightly; she had never left the 'Holy City'.

The small 'holy city' has no burial grounds; only after the death of high-ranking members of the Goddess Church will they be completely purified by holy magic and returned to the Goddess's embrace.

Therefore, Isabelle never thought about what would happen to the common people after they died, but looking at the words in front of her, she could imagine that the common people would not be able to rest in peace after they died.

She took a deep breath and turned to the next page.

In the year 440 of the Imperial Calendar, the Church and the Empire clashed for the third major conflict.

The incident stemmed from the church's protection of a nobleman's son who had committed murder. The church demanded the empire release the man, citing his "repentance before the goddess."

The evil emperor refused and publicly mocked in the palace: "If repentance is useful, what's the point of laws? Why not create indulgences, where people pay a fixed price for killing someone, so you won't bother me every day?"

The church viewed this statement as an insult to sacred doctrine, further deteriorating relations between the two sides.

Indulgences.

This is the second time Isabelle has heard this word today.

The first time I heard it was from Claire in the dungeon; she said she was selling indulgences, which could absolve murderers and arsonists of their crimes by paying money.

At the time, she felt it was an extremely evil tyranny.

But now she realizes that it is the church that is actually doing this.

She quickly flipped through a few pages, and the records became increasingly detailed and shocking.

In the year 443 of the Imperial Calendar, the Evil God Emperor promulgated the "Law on Inheritance," stipulating that the church could not seize the estates of commoners under the pretext of "donations from believers."

The church protested, saying the move violated sacred rights.

[In the year 443 of the Imperial Calendar, the Evil God Emperor issued...]

Isabelle turned the pages one by one, growing more and more silent with each reading.

Before she knew it, she had finished reading through the letters between Claire and the archbishop of the Church of Goddess.

Further on are some records about Claire's private life, showing that this evil god emperor had a rather rich private life.

[The Evil Emperor is fond of attending the private dinners of noble ladies and their mothers, but never takes responsibility...] Isabelle grinned as she looked at Claire's name.

That's just how this guy is; doesn't he often make fun of himself in the dungeon too?

He even spoke ironically in the dungeon, actually mocking the church.

If Isabelle hadn't dug deep to find out more about this information, she wouldn't have understood Claire's sarcasm.

However, what Isabelle was even more curious about was that even the philandering Claire was able to be more merciful and kinder to the common people than the church.

Isabelle had found the answer she was looking for. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, stood up, and put the book back on the shelf.

As she walked down the stairs, the old nun remained seated on the bench in the corner, motionless like a statue.

Isabelle walked up to her and nodded slightly.

"Sorry to bother you."

The old nun did not respond; she didn't even lift her eyelids.

Isabel paid no heed and turned to walk toward the tower's gate. The nuns who accompanied her saw her emerge and immediately went to greet her.

The footsteps of Isabelle and her entourage gradually faded into the distance.

The stone tower returned to silence.

Then, several tall, slender figures emerged from the shadows.

Black, tight-fitting leather armor, a dark hood, and a silver scale and chain emblem on the chest that gleamed coldly in the moonlight.

Ophelia was in the lead.

The Virtuous Actress, the Head of the Inquisition.

She stood at the entrance of the stone tower, gazing in the direction where Isabelle had disappeared, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Isabeth, what are you looking for here?"

Ophelia withdrew her gaze from the direction Isabelle had left, and slowly turned to look at the stone tower beside her: "Stealing food and wine? What are you doing, Isabelle? What kind of pet do you have? I'm really curious."

The answer lay within the stone tower, and Ophelia walked straight toward it without hesitation.

The old nun remained seated in the corner, still motionless.

Ophelia, who was also an acting saint like Isabelle, was entitled to freely enter and exit the stone tower, and she went straight to the stairs.

Upon reaching the third floor, Ophelia walked to the spot where Isabelle had previously stood.

The light from the Philosopher's Stone illuminated the surrounding bookshelves.

Ophelia's gaze swept over the neatly arranged journals, finally settling on the desk.

There was a book that was placed slightly out of place, not completely tucked away.

The book is titled "A Study of the Life of Claire Ethan, the Evil Emperor".

After turning the pages, Ophelia quickly noticed subtle creases on a few pages.

Those are traces left from flipping through the pages.

Those pages contained correspondence between Claire and the archbishop of the church, including discussions about policy reforms.

In addition, there are some rougher creases in the pages about Claire's private life.

"So it really is related to the evil god emperor. A dignified saintess acting as a prayer agent, coming to the forbidden book area alone in the middle of the night to look up the records of the evil god?"

"Why are you suddenly interested in the Evil God Emperor? Could it be that something has happened to the Evil God Emperor that you've been hiding recently?"

"Who did you steal the food for? Hiss..."

A bold idea popped into Ophelia's mind.

Ophelia slammed the book shut, startled by the thoughts that had been running through her mind. But then her long, sharp eyes gradually narrowed, and a meaningful smile appeared on her lips.

Clearly, she already knew what to do next.

Chapter 68 Lia is a Human Machine

[Lia: Are you there, God of Guidance? Good morning!]

[Lia: Could you come a little later this morning? Because... because I haven't gotten up by myself in a long time.]

[Lia: My father, mother, and sister have been arguing all morning, so I didn't dare eat with them and ate in my room. Anna said you also like to eat breakfast in your room!]

[Lia: So you drink alcohol every morning? Anna said your breakfast must include red wine. No wonder I often feel dizzy; I thought I was sick. Now I can rest assured.]

[Lia: My father gave me a lot of gold coins and bought me many beautiful things. I'm a little hesitant to accept them. Can I use these things? Will my father take them back?]

[Lia: I'm going to the Royal Academy. Aren't you coming out, God of Guidance?]

[Lia: Everyone at the academy was very polite to me this morning. I think it's because the Earl came to see me yesterday. What do you think, God of Guidance?]

[Liya:...]

Claire stared speechlessly at the barrage of comments in front of her.

Since his bond level with Lia exceeded 50% and the [Heart Bond] mode was activated, Lia has been able to send him bullet comments.

This is not a good thing; it's quite annoying.

Previously, I only treated Liya as a tool, and I didn't care what I did, nor would Liya know.

Now that Lia knows about him, she's become annoying, asking him all sorts of questions.

This naive and innocent young lady was completely unaware of Claire's identity, and she had no idea what the combined advantages of the Rost and Nolan families meant to Claire.

The Rost family goes without saying; Lia's great-grandfather was a traitor who betrayed Claire.

Lia's great-grandmother had supported Claire's rival for the throne and belonged to the other heirs to the throne camp that Claire's rival was in.

Lia is practically covered in hostile buffs.

Therefore, it's not a good thing that Leah is being so close and trusting to Claire now, once she finds out Claire's true identity and the grudges between her parents and family.

Who knows what kind of expression this naive and innocent young lady will make?

Given Lia's weak personality, she probably wouldn't be able to do anything.

This is tantamount to recognizing a thief as one's father, and Lia does indeed lack a bit of fatherly love.

[Lia: My God of Guidance! Look, I've learned how to stack rune imprints! Anna said you could use it like this, and now I've learned it too...]

This silly roe deer completely ruined Claire's pleasant mood and desire for control over her body.

Leah wouldn't even consider rebelling against him, the controller; on the contrary, she was quite happy for Claire to do so. She had no opinions of her own, so she wouldn't reject Claire's presence at all.

To some extent, Lia's attitude was wise.