Chapter 151. Goodbye Juliana
Inside the ruined throne room, one of the priests helped the priest who had been knocked back by the demon cult’s vice leader.
He poured some potions that made the injured priest’s complexion look a bit better.
Juliana calmly watched everything on the side. After she saw the Temple’s priest finish giving first aid, she asked, “I’ve only targeted the demon cultists who infiltrated my court and never planned to cross swords with the Temple’s priests. So, will both of you leave now?”
Though Juliana is tempted to kill the two priests and demolish the Temple behind them that was responsible for turning her court into a sieve full of spies, she understands that doing so would cause severe trouble for her empire.
That’s why she gave them some face and only mentioned the demon cult spies.
Who knew the two priests only looked at her with their unnerving, gentle smiles and fanatical eyes, “My apologies, but the god’s divine order comes first. Please surrender the life-extending method.”
Juliana thought for a moment before deciding to come clean, “Those life-extending methods are lies. My long lifespan comes from a gift from the creator.”
Juliana’s words caused the two priests to look at each other.
They seemed to be discussing something with their looks before one of them said, “Then we shall just capture you as a sacrifice to seek forgiveness from the god of magic.”
Juliana had planned to let the two priests take her. After all, she’ll die soon anyway. But when one of the other priests glanced at Silvia and said, “Leave no witnesses,” she knew battle was inevitable.
Although Silvia is also a Level 4, she's only recently advanced and hasn’t yet accumulated enough control or spellcasting materials. Even against an injured Level 4, there’s a high chance she’ll lose.
The only advantage Silvia has is that the enemy will underestimate her power because of her youth.
After all, those who have reached Level 4 all at least look like middle-aged people simply from the sheer difficulty of reaching Level 4. On the other hand, Silvia only seems to be in her late twenties, and even the geniuses around her age can only reach early Level 3.
Before the priests could make their move, Juliana shot a jet of water toward the injured priest.
“All those who defy the god’s order are heretics!” The healthy priest used his blessed power to summon a blast of lightning that shot toward Juliana.
Meanwhile, the injured priest took more potions while preparing to cast a second circle earthwall spell at any time.
Juliana raised a water shield with her blessed power, which immediately exploded into steam upon contact with the lightning.
Luckily, Juliana acted quickly and used an ice element to freeze the water in front of her, blocking the impact from reaching her.
Shrouded in the mists, Juliana took her prepared materials and spent a long time triggering the strongest spell she had ever created.
Feeling no movement even after a few seconds, the priest grew suspicious and cast a wind-element spell to blow away the mists.
In an instant, the mists inside the throne room dispersed, and both priests could see Juliana casting spells behind the ruined ice wall she had created.
Seeing the length required to cast that spell, both priests became serious. The uninjured priest circled the ice wall, while the injured priest took some magic material to cast a second circle fireball spell.
Sensing the situation, Silvia no longer stayed still and silently ambushed the priest circling the ice wall.
The priest had just gathered his lightning-element blessed power when a burst of water shot toward him.
Mid-flight, the water froze and turned into a huge chunk of ice after receiving an ice element spell from Silvia.
“Such a young Level 4 blessed!” Seeing the water’s size, the priest shouted in shock as he looked at Silvia.
The priest narrowed his eyes and evaded the ice chunk while shooting the lightning he had gathered toward the massive chunk of ice.
The ice exploded directly, shooting shrapnel all over the place. It even dispersed the fireball the injured priest had shot.
Seeing the shrapnel, Silvia decisively chose not to defend herself and instead used her blessed power to create several vortex-like water shields that dispersed the ice shrapnel shooting toward Juliana.
Amid the hailstones, Juliana finally finished preparing her spell.
She directed the processed magic material in her hand toward the uninjured priest, channeling most of the mana in her body into it.
The priest saw it and sensed the danger. He quickly took a magic material and cast a second circle earth wall.
Even so, it is for naught.
The spell Juliana has been preparing is a fourth circle spell she accidentally created as a byproduct of her research on the power inheritance ritual.
Similar to the ritual, the spell’s function is to put mana into a target’s body.
But unlike the power inheritance ritual she has perfected, which lets mana flow as gently as possible to the recipient, the spell she created will let the mana inside the material and the mana imbued into the material violently enter the target’s body.
Furthermore, the dense mana can bypass pretty much everything within a dozen meters without dispersing.
The high-density mana bypassed the earthwall the priest erected and directly entered his body.
The priest initially felt relieved when he saw nothing shoot out of the spell Juliana cast. But soon, he felt the spell’s effect.
A surge of mana suddenly invaded his body. The incompatible, violent mana wracked his body as his eyes turned red and every vein bulged.
A few seconds later, with a soft ‘pop,’ the priest fell to the ground, blood and invisible mana seeping from his corpse.
Seeing his comrade’s death, the remaining priest prepared to flee. But Juliana motioned to Silvia, who chased after the priest.
Silvia exchanged several magic attacks with the injured priest, and still almost let him flee by using a second circle wind element spell to fly away.
Thankfully, Juliana used her remaining mana to cast a first-circle lightning spell that temporarily paralyzed the priest, causing him to fall from the sky and be easily killed by Silvia.
After the adrenaline from the battle wore off, Juliana looked at the ruined throne room and fell to the floor.
She motioned to her granddaughter, who hurried toward her. “From now on, you’re the new empress.”
When Silvia arrived beside her and tried to take her away to rest, Juliana shook her head and muttered, “I know I’ve indeed released bait to catch the spies in our empire more easily, but who knows if two Level 4 experts from the Temple were actually attracted. I guess I am already too old and have messed up greatly.”
“By killing those two, we’ve basically become enemies with the Temple. Although I hate to say it, after you ascend to the throne, contact Catherina at the Great Dragon Academy or the elves’ elder Elisa, and join their side. As long as they’re willing to protect us from the Temple, you can surrender part of our Empire. Just know the limit, and don’t give too much to the point of damaging our Empire’s foundation.” After talking so long, Juliana huffed as her eyes turned cloudy.
Silvia anxiously said, “Grandma, I think you should keep your breath and drink some potions to heal yourself.”
“Don’t waste your energy. After the effects of the potions that helped me to recover to my peak ended, I’ll definitely die. So, listen closely to my last will.” Juliana immediately gave several pieces of advice to Silvia.
As time passed, her voice grew softer and softer until it became incomprehensible mumbling.
Silvia’s eyes grew misty. Although she has complicated feelings for her crazy and cruel grandmother, the warmth and care Juliana gives her are real.
When she could no longer feel Juliana's breath, tears slid down her face.
Silvia looked at Juliana, who seemed to be sleeping peacefully, before looking at the ruined castle and throne room.
Before the battle, Juliana had sent her trusted subordinates to hold off other people, whether they came from the dead empress’s faction, the empire’s noble factions, or even others who would try to profit from the chaos.
That’s why, even after such a commotion that left around a quarter of the palace destroyed, no uninvolved party had entered the throne room.
Silvia held Juliana’s corpse and brought it out of the castle.
Outside, many of Juliana’s subordinates have gathered around the castle, with blood and corpses scattered among them.
The subordinates saw Silvia leave with Juliana’s corpse and knelt without surprise at Juliana’s death.
The leading subordinate stepped forward. “Under Lady Juliana’s last order, we shall now follow Your Majesty the Empress’s command.”
Juliana had seen him before. He was one of the subordinates Juliana trusted most.
Silvia said in a tired voice, “Bring my grandmother’s body and help me bury it in the royal tomb. I know Grandma already has her tomb prepared. Just place her body there quietly. Then gather people to repair the castle. I want the study room and throne room repaired as soon as possible to hold my coronation.”
The subordinate nodded, “May I ask, what should we do about the eliminated high-ranking minister’s families?”
Silvia looked at the man, “Grandma should’ve made preparations for it right? Just follow her preparation.”
“Yes.” The man left with some of the other subordinates around the castle while leaving more than half to protect Silvia.
By evening, news of Juliana’s massacre had spread throughout the world thanks to the internet.
While waiting for the palace’s repairs, Silvia wasn’t idle.
She knew the Starry Sea Empire was in an extremely dangerous situation after offending the Temple by killing two Level 4 priests.
After sending a message to Catherina via a messaging app, Silvia immediately flew at top speed to the Great Dragon Academy to discuss an alliance with Catherina’s Great Dragon Academy.
On the other hand, inside the Temple, the current High Priest was fuming after losing two Level 4 blessed. Even as one of the world's top forces, the Temple can only nurture three Level 4 blessed, including the High Priest.
The High Priest wanted to go and wage war with the Starry Sea Empire himself, but he held back. Instead, he went into Lacius’s secret room and knelt as lowly as possible while asking for Lacius’s forgiveness.
Lacius sensed the High Priest’s arrival and lifted his petrification.
He listened patiently as the High Priest reported the situation.
Hearing that the Temple had lost two of its three Level 4 blessed combatants, Lacius frowned.
The High Priest gulped and tried to make amends. “My Lord, please let me gather the Temple’s forces and teach them a lesson.”
Lacius’s frown deepened when he heard the High Priest’s plan to use an army to fight the Starry Sea Empire. “No, war should be the last resort in desperation.”
“From your report, the new uncrowned empress of the Starry Sea Empire has left the Empire and headed towards the valley that connects the human and dwarven territories. I guess she’s most likely seeking protection from Catherina, Elisa, or both of them. If we waged war, those two might join, and the war would definitely get out of proportion.”
Of course there’s something Lacius didn’t say.
The main reason he avoids doing that is that he believes causing such a large war might draw the creator’s attention and put him at risk, potentially even leading to his death due to the creator’s wrath.
He already found out about the giant ants that previously infested the underground of the dwarven territory and were coincidentally driven to extinction during an earthquake.
No matter how Lacius thinks it through, the situation is simply too coincidental to have had zero involvement from the creator.
Of course, it doesn’t mean the Temple will just let things go.
Lacius looked at the kneeling High Priest and commanded, “For now, just sanction the empire. Have other kingdoms and empires block trade with them. You can make up a reason, such as the empire being invaded by the demon cult. Then send some priests and knights born in the empire to control the situation there while it is in chaos. If the new empress doesn’t want to entirely offend the Temple, she should be willing to give some concession to us.”
“This humble servant understands,” the High Priest replied, still kneeling.
Before petrifying himself again, Lacius said, “You may return. Remember to keep a close eye on Catherina and Elisa’s side. Immediately inform me if they make any new moves. As for the Level 4 blessed, go and train a new one using the excess funds.”