They are all characters I control.

"I can guess even if you don't say it. Have you killed a lot of children? Is that why you're not talking? Guilt? Fear?"

I have to say, Grace is really annoying.

Seemingly fed up with Grace, the gloomy woman finally spoke.

"I didn't kill the child." Her voice was low and hoarse, as if she hadn't spoken in a long time, and her vocal cords were rusty.

Grace's eyes lit up. "Oh? What's your name?"

silence.

"Look at you, you've already said it, just finish it."

Then there was a long silence.

“...Megan.”

“Meghan?” Grace repeated, “What’s her last name?”

no answer.

Grace was about to ask another question when Claire interrupted her. "We're here."

Claire pushed open the wooden board above her head, and blinding sunlight poured down.

In the distance, the outline of the city wall was faintly visible in the sunlight.

They have already left the city.

Claire took a deep breath.

become free.

He turned around and looked at Grace and Megan.

“That’s enough,” Claire said. “We should part ways.”

Chapter 22 Nowhere to Hide, Better to Go Back to My Hometown

By the time Claire left the blacksmith's shop, it was completely dark.

The door behind them creaked shut, and the old blacksmith glanced at them one last time through the crack before bolting it shut.

Claire weighed the money bag in her hand; it contained a dozen silver coins and a few copper coins. She paid no attention to the old blacksmith's reaction behind her.

This is what Eleanor got in exchange for all her possessions.

Thanks to Eleanor being sent inside as soon as she returned to the Knights, although her outer armor and knight's sword were taken away, she still had some equipment on her.

Currently, those outside are unaware of what's happening with the Knights, so selling these equipment isn't too difficult.

As for why the old blacksmith was closing down, it was simply because of the price. Grace snatched the dead cat from Megan's arms and shoved it in the old blacksmith's face.

This approach successfully allowed them to exchange bread for more meals.

"Tch, if Megan hadn't stopped me, I could have gotten even more!" Grace leaned closer, peering into the coins in her purse, and scoffed, "That old man, trying to haggle just because there are three of us women? No way!"

“Your things are at least for church knights; they could sell for a dozen gold coins in a bigger place, not just silver or copper coins.”

“This is a small village; we’re lucky if we can even sell it.” Claire stuffed the money bag into her pocket. “If it were a big town like you, no one would dare to buy church equipment.”

"If you ask me, we might as well just rob him!"

Grace snorted and turned around to kick the door of the blacksmith's shop behind her.

As for Megan, she was currently stroking the cat's corpse, as Grace's actions had been too rough, making the cat's fur in her arms all messy.

Claire wasn't particularly dissatisfied with her two eccentric teammates.

Originally, he wanted everyone to go their separate ways, and for him to go wherever he wanted, and then he would say goodbye.

As it turned out, those two guys still followed us.

Claire hadn't figured out what to do next.

With a "gurgle," Grace's stomach made a sound.

"I'm hungry. I haven't had prison food yet today," Grace said, rubbing her stomach.

With that in mind, Eleanor hasn't eaten anything since being locked up in her cell.

Looking up at the bakery not far away, Claire pulled out a handful of copper coins: "Let's eat something first."

Grace took it and ran to the bakery without saying a word.

Megan stood behind Claire, holding the dead cat, motionless.

When Grace came running back with several loaves of black bread, she already had one in her mouth and mumbled, "Eat, eat, eat your fill first."

Grace handed the bread to Claire and Megan, and Claire took the bread and walked out of the village.

She doesn't have much money, and if she's careful with her spending, she can last three or four days. Right now, she just wants to rest, but she can't stay in a hotel.

After all, this place is too close to the Knights' headquarters; staying in a hotel would be like walking into a trap.

It seems we'll have to find a secluded place to stay tonight, either outside the city or in the ruins on the outskirts.

"Where are you planning to go?" Grace swallowed a bite of bread and turned to ask her.

Claire looked at her and said, "I don't know. Anyway, I don't care. I can go anywhere. I just need to wait a bit."

Claire was certain that her current situation wouldn't last long.

Since the traitor Karl infiltrated back into the 'Holy Lance Knights' and planted quite a few traitorous knights, he was clearly planning something big.

But thinking about it, it's understandable; it's simply a matter of destroying the 'Holy Lance Knights' stronghold and killing as many church knights as possible.

Wasn't Scarlet Witch Dorothy's ambush of Knight Commander Will also aimed at eliminating the strongest fighting force of the 'Holy Lance Knights'? As long as Knight Commander Will is gone, the 'Holy Lance Knights' won't pose much of a threat.

Now that Commander Will is in a coma, it is naturally the best opportunity.

Although Eleanor is alive, wasn't she already successfully imprisoned by Karl? What will happen to the 'Holy Lance Knights' next is predictable.

It was nothing more than the continuous deaths of middle and high-ranking members, who were then replaced by these heretics from the 'Church of Life' who began to control and purge the church knights.

When it's almost time, then close the door and carry out a massacre.

The church knights and everyone in the church of the goddess can become raw materials for the 'Church of Life' to create the Philosopher's Stone.

This is a huge gain, but Commander Will is still alive.

If Knight Commander Will were to awaken, he would naturally eliminate the apostate knights.

At that time, Eleanor will also be able to clear her name.

However, if the apostate knight manages to kill Knight Commander Will before he awakens, it certainly won't end well.

Claire didn't care whether the Goddess Church's knights lived or died.

He did not get along well with the Church of Life. Although the heretics of the Church of Life regarded his true form as the "Holy Son," they only treated him as a mascot.

He wasn't really allied with the 'Church of the Goddess' either; his true form was imprisoned in the Church of the Goddess's dungeon, and the owner of the body he controlled, Eleanor, was a saintly female knight.

If we have to say something, it's a good thing that the 'Goddess Church' was able to weather this storm.

After all, the Church of Goddess wouldn't want to turn Claire or Eleanor into the Philosopher's Stone.

"Since there's nowhere else to go, how about we go to your place?" Grace said, chewing on her bread.

"My home?" Claire paused for a moment.

He was stunned for several seconds before he realized that Grace wasn't talking about his home, but Eleanor's home.

After a quick search of my memory, I realized that she got along quite well in Eleanor's hometown.

Going back there would be a good idea, even though Eleanor's hometown is far away.

The people in her hometown probably don't know that Eleanor was sentenced to hang by the Knights of the Church and that she even escaped from prison. Staying there for a while would certainly be better than living as a savage.

"And your home? Where is your home located?"

Claire asked casually.

"My home? I burned my home down, along with my family."

Grace shrugged.

As for Megan, she remained silent as always, simply looking down and breaking off pieces of black bread to eat.

Seeing these two, he understood why they were following him; they had nowhere else to go.

"Sure, but my place is a bit far..."

As soon as Claire finished speaking, she looked up and saw a caravan appear on the road outside the village.

On the carriage at the very front of the caravan, Claire spotted a somewhat familiar figure.

It was a short girl wearing a hooded cloak.

Isn't that Mel?

Chapter 23 Eleanor's Confusion

Eleanor opened her eyes and saw the moonlight overhead.

The air smelled of hay, soil, and some kind of animal fur; clearly, this was neither her cell nor the Knights' quarters.

She sat up abruptly and looked around.

"woke up?"

A voice came from the side.

His voice was hoarse and languid, with a tone that suggested he enjoyed watching the drama unfold.

Eleanor turned her head and saw a disheveled woman sitting on the doorstep, a blade of grass dangling from her mouth, smiling at her.

The woman was dressed in tattered coarse cloth clothes, and her face was covered in grime, but her eyes shone brightly beyond what one would expect from someone dressed like that.

"Who are you? Where is this?" Eleanor's voice was a little tense.

She found the woman in front of her very familiar, and after thinking about it carefully, she realized that this was the prisoner in the cell next to hers!

The prisoner appeared outside, right beside him!?

Immediately, Eleanor instinctively reached for her weapon, only to find that it was a broken sword.

“I’m Grace. How come you don’t recognize your good friend after just one night’s sleep?” The woman took the hay out of her mouth and looked at Eleanor strangely.

"What kind of look is that? What? You really don't remember me?"

Eleanor frowned, staring at the other person, whose attitude didn't seem to be threatening her.

But Eleanor couldn't understand what she was saying.

"Companion? You and I are companions? How do we know each other?"

"Huh?" Grace's eyes widened as she casually tossed aside the hay and stared at Eleanor. "You don't recognize me? Then who was it that set off the smoke, caused the earthquake, and beat those apostate knights to a pulp in the cell yesterday? Who dragged me out of the cell? Have you lost your memory?"

Eleanor's pupils contracted slightly.

It happens again: you lose your memory, and then someone else tells you what you did.

“Those things… I didn’t do them,” she whispered.

"Not you?" Grace tilted her head. "Then who is it? You have a twin sister?"

Eleanor did not answer.

Perhaps I really was done to by the heretics, who knows?

Just as the bishops and the knights suspected, then wasn't he truly guilty?

"No, I need to go back to the Knights. I need to find out what happened." Eleanor stood up.

Looking at Eleanor, whose mind had suddenly become dull, Grace suddenly realized something.

No wonder this female knight was sent to prison and locked up with them.

She used to be so capable and intelligent, but now she's become a complete idiot?! In the eyes of the Knights, a female knight like this definitely needs to be locked up.

"You can go back if you want, but you can take a look at this."

Grace took a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket, unfolded it, and spread it on the ground.