They are all characters I control.

[Claire: Heh heh heh, he just knows he's about to die, his family is about to be finished, and the facade of a respectable and harmonious family has been ripped away.]

[Lia: Is that so? What should I do then?]

Claire: What to do? Fine, whatever. A father willing to sell everything for the family's future, even if it means being cuckolded; a stepmother only interested in climbing the social ladder and liking young, handsome men; and a stepsister who stole her sister's fiancé—this filthy family is better burned down.

[Liya:...]

Upon hearing these words from the God of Guidance, Lia felt a surge of exhilaration.

But she quickly regained her senses.

Perhaps I was influenced by the 'God of Guidance's' constant talk of killing, killing, killing. How could I possibly burn my own house down?

Chapter 82 An Unexpected Surprise from the System

"flame."

In the dungeon, Claire continued to test her combat abilities today.

However, he was somewhat troubled as he watched the sparks he had summoned extinguish in just three seconds.

Although the Guardian's Gaze can break the seal for a short time, allowing Claire to regain the ability to use magic, the problem is that he loses his elemental perception at this time.

"It seems I can't use low-level rune magic either. Am I even more useless than Lia?" He felt somewhat frustrated, realizing he wasn't even as good as Lia.

Rune magic doesn't really require talent in elemental perception, but it can't be completely devoid of elemental perception either.

Lia has a very weak affinity for elements, possessing only magical power, so learning rune inscription is very suitable for her, as rune inscription itself can largely bear the link between magical power and elements.

However, for Claire, who had absolutely no elemental perception...

His use of basic rune magic was so ineffective it was practically nonexistent, far inferior to Lia's.

Regardless of who it is, generally speaking, anyone who possesses magic will have some degree of elemental perception; it can't be 0, it's at least 1.

However, Claire's elemental perception is -100.

With a sigh, Claire composed herself.

Giving up is out of the question. Without the ability, even if you manage to get out, you'll just be stuck on the side of the road. I didn't have time to try yesterday, but now I naturally have to try everything.

Maybe I can come up with something useful? If the basic runes don't work, I'll try using more advanced runes.

Circling her magic, Claire then raised her hand and began to construct the intermediate rune inscription that Lia had just learned that day.

"Explode! Let the flames scorch my enemies!"

The rune inscription was easily completed on Claire's palm, and then the magical rune emitted a fiery glow.

However, when Claire cast the Explosion spell into the air, she did not see any flames.

Instead, plumes of black smoke billowed out from the rune inscriptions.

"What the hell is this?!" Claire looked at the plumes of black smoke billowing into the cell and immediately stopped inscribing the runes.

I coughed because of the black smoke, and tears welled up in my eyes.

The explosion magic didn't explode, it just produced a fart? Claire laughed in exasperation.

"Forget it, this explosion spell can be used as a smoke bomb. Let's try other rune inscriptions."

Next, Claire tried other intermediate rune inscriptions.

However, like the Burst Rune, the other intermediate rune imprints lack an elemental channeling rune for ignition, and therefore cannot cast spells normally.

For example, the second attempt to use the intermediate rune inscription [Torrent Rune] resulted in the formation of a small area of ​​pressure instead of a high-pressure water column after activation.

The water elemental cannot be summoned, but the water pressure is available.

The third [Rock Spike Rune] does not summon rock spikes, but it can summon a seismic wave.

The earthquake waves weren't very powerful, not enough to kill someone standing still, but since they were summoned using magic, they could temporarily paralyze someone's body.

The fourth one used the [Arc Rune], but instead of lightning, only a tentacle formed by electric current was summoned.

Although the tentacles are rather brittle, the electric current on them can paralyze the body.

The fifth test was the [Wind Blade Rune]. It was supposed to release a sharp blade of air, but after the engraving was activated, no visible blade appeared. However, a strong but very small spiral airflow suddenly appeared in front of the engraving.

This airflow wasn't strong enough to cut anything, but it carried a considerable suction and rotational force, enough to lift a rock about half a person's size quite smoothly.

These runes, imprinted on Claire's hands, seemed to have transformed into heretical runes? They had none of the proper effects, but instead amplified the side effects.

"Rune imprints can only be used for support now. It seems that mental magic is the only way to deal damage?" Claire pondered for a moment, then shook her head.

“Mental magic is useless against those mad knights in the Church of the Goddess. Those madmen know holy magic, and their consciousness is quite high due to brainwashing. Even if they lose their hands or feet, it doesn’t matter. They can still keep going.”

Magic was clearly severely restricted, leaving Claire with only one path forward.

"Looks like I'll need to focus on physical training. Magic will have to be a secondary profession. I'll have to switch to a melee main profession." With a sigh, Claire clenched her fist.

"Holding a sword in one hand and casting magic with the other, being a melee mage isn't so bad."

Claire is also quite skilled in swordsmanship. Of course, she initially practiced swordsmanship to strengthen her body and boost her yang energy, so she trained very hard.

Sometimes he would wear a full suit of armor to show off, but later, when the war with the church broke out, wearing armor was no longer just for showing off.

The problem is that Claire used to be able to use magic.

Therefore, he did not specifically learn any breathing techniques, but instead focused on swordsmanship skills, and mostly used magic to defeat his opponents.

Incidentally, he also needs a complete set of knight's gear.

A knight's sword is definitely needed, but it can't be one of those junk pieces from Lia's house; it has to be a high-end one.

It's a pity that Claire is still stuck in the dungeon, otherwise she could go to the royal treasury and choose whatever she wants; there are all kinds of treasures inside.

As Claire pondered her power level and skills, the three-minute unlock time for the "Guardian's Gaze" was up.

As the holy swords shone brightly once more, the seal on them took effect once more.

Feeling the magic power rapidly fading within her, Claire checked Lia's character panel on the system.

Character Name: Lia von Rost

[Title: Daughter of a Fallen Marquis / Exclusive Owner of 'The Keeper of Secrets' / Rune Beginner]

[Current Status: Controllable/Deeply Linked]

[Bond Value: 79%]

[Control Authority: High (Can perform consciousness communication, knowledge infusion, skill guidance, and limited collaboration)]

The higher the bond level, the longer it takes for the "Guardian's Gaze" ability to be unlocked.

Lia's current bond level is 79%, which is not bad.

After helping Leah find her beloved mother's sister and reunite with Count Orlando, Leah's bond level increases much faster than before.

Although this guy is still somewhat indecisive and has a pure and kind heart, his only redeeming quality is that he is obedient.

Claire selected the synergy value row, preparing to see how long [Guardian's Gaze] could be used if the synergy value exceeded 80%.

The bond value is currently over 70%, which allows for the removal of the seal for three minutes.

If the bond value reaches 80%, it should be able to be broken for a longer period of time.

Sure enough, the answer he wanted popped up immediately after Claire selected the "bond value" line.

[Note: When the synergy value exceeds 80%, the effect of 'Guardian's Gaze' lasts for ten minutes.]

Ten minutes? That's not much.

Claire had thought it could last for several hours, but it only lasted ten minutes.

It seems that the bond value becomes harder to increase as you progress. While it's still relatively easy to raise Lia's bond value now, it's hard to say what will happen in the future.

Conversely, the harder it is to increase bond points in the future, the more the boost will likely be.

Just as Claire was about to close the system panel, he caught a glimpse of an inconspicuous notification out of the corner of his eye.

[Tip: When the bond value of the first selected character exceeds 80%, the option to select a second character will be available...]

The second role?

Seeing this, Claire had no choice but to control the system screen to return to the homepage.

Besides Lia, there are two other female characters on the homepage that have not yet been unlocked.

Chapter 83 Finally, they took the bait.

To be honest, Claire had almost forgotten that she still had two character cards that she hadn't unlocked.

Lia is the second character card below. She is a black-haired girl wearing a simple nun's habit.

The third character card features a red-haired girl with a high ponytail, wearing slightly worn but well-maintained lightweight armor.

Claire originally only wanted to regain her freedom, so her first target was Leah, with the goal of obtaining the "Guardian's Spy View".

I thought that after obtaining the [Guardian's Gaze], I wouldn't need to choose any other characters at all.

Although Claire has now obtained the [Guardian's Sight], it is now bound to Leah, and the effect of the [Guardian's Sight] is not as convenient as Claire had imagined.

Lia's mother, a magical artifact craftswoman, modified the cost of "The Guardian's Peeping" from consuming life force to consuming a huge amount of magic power.

Currently, Lia's bond value is 79%, and 100% bond value is needed to fully unlock [The Guardian's Gaze].

This took a little too long for Claire.

If we were to create another character, that would be fine; he's currently lacking quite a few things.

What rewards will I get if I unlock the second character?

Claire, who had returned to her night watch, glanced at the selectable characters on the homepage. Besides the already unlocked Leah, there was a nun-like character and a female knight.

As Claire pondered, a noise came from the stone door of the dungeon.

Needless to say, the truck arrived.

Isabelle was still wearing that pure white robe that symbolized purity and holiness. Although the robe radiated a holy light, Claire could see it clearly.

Whether it's the low-cut design like an evening gown, or the skirt that slits all the way to the waist.

Her curvaceous and alluring figure made her look more like a succubus than a saint, though Claire had seen this outfit many times before.

Claire was more interested in the food Isabelle brought than Isabelle herself.

Using divine protective magic as a dining table, what was laid out on the table was no longer mashed potatoes and dry bread, but carefully cooked lamb chops with herbs, seasonal vegetables drizzled with amber sauce, soft white bread, and even a plate of fresh fruit.

The bottle of wine was replaced with a more flavorful, older, deep red wine.

There was even a honey pastry sprinkled with icing sugar.

Looking at the lavish meal before her, Claire stared at the acting saintess with some surprise: "What? Are you going to feed me my last meal before I'm executed?"

"What do you mean by 'last meal'? Are you even going to die?" Isabelle rolled her eyes at Claire and slowly poured out the wine.

"So what are you doing? Why are you feeding me such a lavish meal today?"

Claire sniffed the rich aroma emanating from the wine; it would be a lie to say she didn't want to eat it.

No matter what good things you feed Lia's body, it's all just a taste in the end.

If you really want to enjoy delicious food, it's best to take care of your health.

“I’ve found out.” Isabelle said softly, her mood not good.

"What did you find out? Did you find out how tall and powerful I am, and then you fell for me? Can a substitute saintess get married?"

Claire teased Isabelle as usual, but Isabelle wasn't as angry as she usually was.

She just grinned at Claire.

Then he picked up the food in front of him and handed it to Claire.

“What you said last time, about imposing heavy taxes after we go abroad, etc…” She paused, her tone somewhat dejected: “That was sarcasm. I could tell there was something wrong with what you said back then.”

"Afterwards, I reviewed the records in the Holy City's secret archives about the later stages of your reign, and found that the people who hindered you from reducing the tax burden on ordinary people were the Church."

"However, that decision was made solely by the archbishop of that imperial territory within the church of the empire."

“I may not be very convincing to say this, but not all people in the Goddess Church are like that. We also have devout people who genuinely want to save the people.”

As Claire savored the lamb chop in her mouth, she could indeed see how much Isabelle cared about the facts she had witnessed.