The Villain Saint is my secondary account

“Originally, as the person in charge of everything, you should bear the main responsibility. The royal family should not only hold you accountable, but also the Duke.”

"But considering your youth and the Duke's relationship with the royal family, all that is needed is for the Holy Church to provide an explanation as the person in charge."

"Hand over the person who killed my brother, and the Loren Sanctuary will allow court members to enter to investigate the cause of Ken's anomaly. Ella, we have already made a huge concession with these conditions. Considering the relationship between the Sanctuary and the royal family, as well as the Duke's perspective, please consider them carefully."

So that's why court members were allowed to reside in the sanctuary.

Ella was waiting for the other side to show their fangs. It's not hard to see that they didn't really care about their brother's death. What they really cared about was what kind of mess they could make of this.

The Loren Grand Cathedral, one of the largest branches of the Cathedral in the human empire, is located in the imperial city but possesses religious autonomy that transcends the state. It is a symbol of faith left by the Cathedral in which the former emperor of Loren helped establish the country. Now, the royal family has finally found an opportunity to intervene in its affairs.

As long as manpower can be sent to gradually erode the Loren Sanctuary, the priests, paladins, and arcane mages it trains can become high-end combat forces loyal to the Loren royal family. The royal family of light believers under Loren can also be induced and manipulated through the Loren Sanctuary.

Therefore, for the royal family, this grand cathedral located within the imperial city has always been a coveted prize. However, the bishops of the Loren Cathedral throughout history have all been shrewd and capable individuals, and the two sides have been constantly at odds. Although historical records show some traces of royal interference in the cathedral, the royal family has never truly succeeded.

The princes and princesses appeared to be arguing, but in reality, they were working together in unison to lead to this final outcome and force Ella to comply.

Ella looked at the eyes of the royal family members all fixed on her. Their faces showed a variety of emotions, from sorrow to fear, but their eyes were all like those of venomous snakes eyeing their prey, revealing cunning and greed.

Archbishop Evans, a man of extraordinary power, had just fallen, and the temporary replacement archbishop was old and incompetent. Meanwhile, the inexperienced "young" Holy Maiden of Light, who symbolized the Sanctuary, had just committed a "mistake" involving human life.

This seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; a gentle push could pave the way for sharing the Loren Sanctuary.

However... that only applies if it truly belongs to the sanctuary of the "God of Light".

To be honest, this situation would be a real headache for Evans if he were still the archbishop, but for Ella, the royal family's actions were tantamount to sending their people into their own "tiger's den".

Even when Ella was forced to use Haye's power to corrupt ordinary people or those without malice, she never intended to actively brainwash or manipulate their thoughts—for example, the butler Dean, or the million people during the pilgrimage.

But as for the royal family and their cronies they wanted to plant in the Sanctuary... well, it's fair to say that Ella isn't kind to everyone.

However, Ella remained vigilant. The mix of rumors in a closed society and the timely information blockade by the Sanctuary might mean that some members of the royal family didn't even know how Evans had fallen in Sanctuary Square. But she wasn't going to dismiss all of them as idiots.

There must have been people among them who, knowing full well that she was not a simple believer in the Light, still deliberately supported the decision to send people into the church.

Moreover, there's the strange centipede of unknown origin on the Second Prince's body; the royal family's background is definitely not as simple as it seems on the surface.

But that's alright. Once the path is opened, the rest is just a matter of how to play the game. Since she has already openly challenged him, she naturally has no reason to avoid the fight.

Ella was also curious about how long those who were loyal to the Empire or had faith in other Outer Gods and Wild Gods could maintain their loyalty under her influence.

Chapter 81 The Princess's Challenge

"This... I'm afraid I need to discuss this with His Excellency the Bishop. The matters of the sanctuary cannot be decided by me alone."

Ella looked troubled.

Although she was quite looking forward to the conditions for the royal family to move into the sanctuary, she couldn't easily agree on the surface.

"I understand your concerns about the conditions for entering the Sanctuary, but I think Priestess Havil should be able to make a decision about the murderer we need to apprehend by now." Prince Raymond's gaze shifted to the old butler beside Lilia. Although he could not be considered a member of the Sanctuary, forcing the Sanctuary to hand over the person was itself a manifestation of the imperial power regaining its grip.

If taking over the sanctuary was driven by self-interest, then executing the person who murdered the second prince was a matter of face that the royal family had to regain.

Otherwise, if the royal family and the Holy Church could kill people at will without any consequences, how would they maintain their dignity in Loren?

Lilia did not object. She had already anticipated this outcome when she asked the old butler, Winster, to take action—she was prepared for such a sacrifice for the sake of the gods.

“Then please allow me to return to the sanctuary to discuss this further. I will return here later to accept the royal family’s decision.” Ella nodded slightly.

"This matter doesn't need to be discussed back at all... Wait, are you going to be punished?" Raymond paused for a moment before understanding Ella's meaning. "Priestess Havil, you may not have understood, but we mean simply hand over the killer who murdered your brother..."

“I’m very sorry I didn’t tell you the truth beforehand, but Prince Ken actually died at my hands,” Ella said softly.

"Huh?" Prince Raymond and the rest of the royal family were immediately stunned.

Even Lilia turned to look at Ella's face in surprise. No, this isn't what we agreed on!

"But the letter from the sanctuary informed us that it was the butler, Winters..."

“That was just the Holy Church and Her Highness the Second Princess covering up the truth for my sake.” Ella shook her head, her expression sincere. “But as a believer who serves my Lord and pursues the light, how can I let others sacrifice themselves for my mistakes?”

"He accused and detained Prince Ken, discovered that the prince was under the influence of dark magic, and accidentally killed him when he suddenly attacked someone upon leaving the dungeon."

“These things were all done by me alone. I repent to my Lord and am willing to bear the corresponding consequences.”

The girl interlaced her fingers, her head tilted slightly upward as if she were praying devoutly to an unseen god, her snow-white dress accentuating her holy figure.

Is this person really that naive?! Fourth Prince Raymond was a little confused. He had heard the rumors about the duke's daughter before. Did that arrogant and vicious noblewoman really turn into a loyal believer in the light after becoming the Holy Maiden of Light?

The eldest prince, Edgar, seemed to have some sense of it. "Ella, protecting him this way is useless! A life for a life, and you have no idea what you're going to face!"

"If the consequence is my life, then it is the punishment I deserve." Ella remained unfazed, displaying a nonchalant attitude that she didn't care about life or death.

Damn it, who would dare to actually execute this woman?! The royal family members looked at each other in dismay.

Executing her is tantamount to declaring war on the Holy Temple. It's one thing to negotiate with the Holy Temple at the negotiating table, but fast forward to war and it's a completely different story!

They probably already knew perfectly well that this Holy Maiden of Light was acting so defiantly because she knew they wouldn't dare to really do anything to her.

But the question is, was it really necessary for this saintess to pull this stunt?

To put it bluntly, he's just an old steward in his seventies or eighties under a member of a marginal royal family. He's barely passable, only at the level of a Grandmaster Swordsman. Even if left unattended, he might die of old age in a few years.

By handing it over directly, the royal family saved face, and the Holy Church didn't lose anything either—a complete win-win situation.

Now that she jumped, nobody knows how to handle the situation; arresting her is one thing, but not arresting her is another.

“Priestess Hyvil, have you thought this through? Impersonating a member of the royal family isn’t something that can be easily dismissed,” Princess Skadi said sternly.

Ella simply closed her eyes and prayed, ignoring her.

What's wrong with this woman?! Skadi was furious, but she couldn't retaliate.

This scene not only worried the royal family members, but also Lilia standing nearby—what was the god suddenly planning to do?! What if they really fell into the hands of these royals?!

Ugh, if all else fails, just say I killed him! The Holy Maiden protecting the old steward and the royal family members can't understand it, but saying it's to protect me makes sense!

Just as Lilia was about to reveal her hand and prove that she had killed the Second Prince, the First Prince Edgar spoke up in desperation: "The letter from the Holy Temple says that Ken was killed by Winster with a single sword strike, and it wouldn't be difficult for us to investigate his cause of death. But according to you, if my brother had the ability to break free of the Holy Temple Knights' restraints and attack Lilia Betis, it would be something that no ordinary swordsman could do."

“Ella, I know very well that you have always studied magic at the National Noble Academy and have never received any sword training. It is impossible for you to kill a monster or person who is above the level of a Templar Knight with a single sword strike!”

“Yes, yes, yes!” Princess Skadi quickly agreed. “Don’t try to use our status as the chosen ones of the God of Light to coerce us. Such a meaningless lie is easily exposed.”

Ella's lips curled up almost imperceptibly, a subtle expression noticed only by Lilia, who was watching her closely.

“Your Highness Edgar, I practiced swordsmanship at home for a while, but I rarely showed it after I came to the academy.” Ella lowered her head, which had been praying. “But my swordsmanship skills are actually not bad.”

You're kidding me!

Prince Edgar wanted to shout out loud: This guy really has decent swordsmanship skills, and he even blackmails ordinary noble students at the academy to take her physical fitness test for him?! Does he think everyone is stupid?!

“Priestess Hyvil doesn’t need to tell such an obvious lie,” Princess Skadi said disdainfully. “We are all colleagues in the academy, and we should all know our own limitations.”

“But I remember that Her Highness the Princess didn’t score as high as me in the basic swordsmanship test at the academy,” Ella chuckled.

That's because you fucking had the examiner's daughter kidnapped! Skadi almost had a stroke. How dare this person even mention it? As a member of the royal family, she wouldn't stoop to such a despicable act for an exam. This guy would even resort to kidnapping and blackmail just to get a point higher on the exam and disgust her. It's utterly outrageous.

I can't stand it anymore! Why did the Chosen One of Light have to be this kind of person?!

"Heh, ordinary exam scores are just superficial practice on paper, and there's a significant difference between them and a real sword duel," Skadi said indignantly. This Ella was a fraud who was just trying to gain fame, but her swordsmanship assessment was truly just one point away from a perfect score. "I hope that Priestess Havil doesn't underestimate the swordsmanship heritage of my Betis family."

“The Betis family’s swordsmanship is renowned throughout the continent, and I believe that His Highness Edgar or His Highness Raymond’s swordsmanship is far beyond my reach.” Ella’s crimson eyes stared at Skadi’s eyes with a hint of provocation. “However, Princess Skadi’s swordsmanship assessment a few months ago was indeed slightly inferior to mine, and please do not deny this indisputable fact.”

“You… Priestess Havil, you must take responsibility for your words.” Skadi finally couldn’t hold back any longer. Provoking her again and again, did she really care about her cheated score? “If I can prove that your swordsmanship was insufficient to kill Prince Ken, then you will not only have to hand over the real murderer, but also publicly declare that you lied to protect the murderer!”

Ella's eyes darted away. "Oh dear, Your Highness, there's no need to worry so much..."

"Priestess Havil, I only ask you, do you dare to take responsibility for your words?"

“Skadi.” Edgar sensed that something was wrong and quickly tried to dissuade his sister.

“Well… in the name of the God of Light, of course I take responsibility for my words.” After saying this, the Holy Maiden seemed a little nervous, her lips slightly pursed.

The saintly image she had just displayed was gone; now Ella resembled a guilty cat who had done something wrong.

"You're too proud to act like this! Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you have the protection of the Holy Temple!" Skadi shouted angrily, ignoring Prince Edgar's advice. "Ella Heville, I challenge you to a sword duel!"

“Princess Skadi, then I’m afraid I must explain beforehand,” Ella suddenly revealed a sly smile, her red eyes curving into crescents as she instantly transformed into a smug little fox, “I’m very powerful, you know.”

Chapter 82 Ella's Considerations

The Holy Maiden of Light and the Eldest Princess will have a public sword duel at the academy's training grounds tomorrow.

How did things develop into this way?

Crown Prince Edgar watched with a bitter expression as the saintess and the group of Templar Knights left gracefully, rubbing his forehead and feeling a buzzing pain in his head.

There's no need, really no need. Whether that old steward is punished or not is really not that important to the royal family.

The important thing was the palace's move into the sanctuary. Ella didn't resist at all and sincerely said she would go back to discuss it. The purpose of this meeting had already been largely achieved.

If this goes through, it's not a big deal to loosen the strings about the murderer. We might lose some face, but it can be seen as the royal family's support for fighting against evil forces. It's just a matter of how we announce it to guide public opinion.

But his younger sister has always had a terrible temper... She is the most talented swordswoman among the direct descendants of the royal family in their generation. As a swordswoman genius with few rivals in her class, it is indeed hard for her to bear being mocked by someone who cheated to gain an advantage in her proud field.

But there's really no need to make such a big deal out of it.

“Brother, you don’t need to worry about this so much.” Skadi, who was standing next to him, saw that the Crown Prince seemed a little troubled and couldn’t help but comfort him. “Haviel’s swordsmanship test score was purely due to cheating. She didn’t even have any special swordsmanship training.”

“I know.” Prince Edgar touched his nose. “I believe you can win, sister, but… try to go easy on her. We can’t afford to make things too tense with the Holy Temple.”

“Brother, she’s really pushing her luck,” Skadi pouted. “Seriously, if the God of Light hadn’t been blind enough to choose that bitch as the Holy Maiden, with her trashy magical talent and swordsmanship, she wouldn’t even be qualified to stand on the same stage as me.”

"Skadi, watch your words!" Edgar couldn't help but remind her. His sister sometimes really spoke without thinking. "Mind your manners as royalty!"

"Alright, alright," Skadi replied listlessly, then glanced at her father, who sat on the throne like a withered tree, and gave a barely perceptible "tsk" at the corner of her mouth.

“Sister will definitely beat her easily,” at this moment, the youngest third princess, who had just been showing a timid demeanor, jumped out from behind the steward with a smile on her face, showing no trace of her previous fear and timidity. “Cut off her clothes, then cut off her hands and feet, and make the Holy Maiden of Light look bad in public. That would be so much fun, hehehehe.”

“Little Erica understands me best!” Skadi picked up the baby-faced girl and gave her a tender hug.

"Sigh." This is what Edgar sighed about. "Don't go too far. Even if you don't consider the Holy Temple, you should at least consider the Duke's attitude."

"Okay, okay, brother, you worry so much." Princess Skadi smiled and agreed, but whether she really agreed in her heart was another matter.

……

On the other side, in the carriage returning to the church.

“Thank you so much for stepping forward, Your Grace, but I am truly prepared for the worst.” The old butler, Winters, sitting at one end of the carriage, was bowing his head to the beautiful silver-haired girl sitting at the other end.

Lilia, sitting next to Ella, grabbed Ella's arm with a worried look. "God... we should have been able to prevent them from even having a chance to enter the sanctuary, as we discussed before. Now... if we win, you will be punished, and if we lose, you will be humiliated by that scoundrel. It feels like we're losing out on both sides."

“Mr. Winster, this shouldn’t be your responsibility,” Ella nodded to Winster first, then patted Lilia’s head, which had a head of soft black hair. “Don’t worry, the worst they can do is lock me in the dungeon.”

"But... what if they do something to you after you get into the dungeon..."

"Don't worry, when that time comes, they'll be worried about what I'll do." Ella's eyes gleamed with cunning.

Using evil god magic to corrupt the officials stationed in the sanctuary was indeed a good way to infiltrate the palace, but there was only one way and it was easy to be discovered. Therefore, she also planned to plant a seed in the dungeon of the imperial city.

Her divine magic can be cast without any external objects, so she herself can be seen as a large, mobile source of pollution.

Just like Liangqiuling, who was converted into a believer, if the entire dungeon and its inhabitants located beneath the palace were corrupted by her, then the palace would be continuously polluted in the future, and the scene would be simply too beautiful.

Most importantly, this was a much wider and more natural approach than her deliberately seeking out locations within the palace or hiring someone to corrupt her—after all, the royal family themselves had personally invited her in.

However, Lilia still waved her little fist worriedly, "Even so, God, you have many other ways. There's no need to deliberately duel with that woman, is there?"

“Oh, that was just a side effect,” Ella smiled faintly. “She insulted you, so I wanted to teach her a lesson.”

After the words were spoken, Lilia froze for a long while, her face flushed red, then tears welled up in her eyes. She rushed forward and hugged Ella tightly, crying, "Ahhh, Goddess!!!"

"Be more reserved... Your Highness, be more reserved...!"

……

The news of the princess and the saintess's public duel, deliberately spread, quickly became a hot topic throughout the capital city within an afternoon.

Even Ye Xiao, who was drinking at the front desk of a dilapidated tavern in a Roma settlement outside the city, wearing a large cloak, could hear the people around him talking about it.

"Hey, it seems your little girlfriend is going to have a duel with someone. Aren't you worried?" Greta, who was also wearing a cloak, sat on a high stool next to Ye Xiao, stretching out her two slender legs wrapped in white stockings and wearing a pair of black leather shoes, swaying back and forth.

"What's this 'little girlfriend' nonsense?" Ye Xiao pouted. "The Holy Maiden and I only have a simple acquaintance."

“I am a demon, your lies cannot fool me,” the little maid chose not to believe Ye Xiao’s nonsense. “That day in the Adventurer’s Guild Hall, you could speak for each other with just a glance. I could see that. How could normal people have such perfect understanding!”

Ye Xiao took a sip of wine, somewhat speechless. If you thought this little guy was dull, he could be quite observant at times.

"Silence means you're guilty! How despicable!"

Once outside the city, Ye Xiao no longer dared to drink anything in large gulps, sipping it little by little in case the magic in his body detected the toxins and there was still a chance to deal with it.

The bartender, dressed in a sloppy shirt, walked in from the side door, slowly approached Ye Xiao, and then bent down to quietly slip a note to Ye Xiao.