Valo eventually chose to believe the Sister Superior’s words and brought Kaika back to the Clock Tower.
It was currently morning.
This was the busiest time of the day for the Clock Tower, and the moment when the academy atmosphere was at its peak.
Students from the Arcane Society and the Knight Order Faction were either leveling up on their own or sparring in groups within the Martial Arena.
Students from other niche, hidden gem factions were also busy with their own affairs — everyone had a bright future ahead of them.
The most conspicuous sight was likely the daily choir practice of the trainee nuns from the Hidden Sea Church on the second floor of the Clock Tower.
A group of beautiful girls singing with voices like heavenly music — ah, it would be worth the price of admission even if one died right then and there!
Unfortunately, Valo had no time to appreciate it today.
The Sister Superior, who had accompanied them, lived up to her promise.
Kaika, as the daughter, was allowed to go to her classes as usual, while Valo was invited to a private room in the small chapel.
The Saintess of the Hidden Sea Church, who was also a member of the Hero Party — Miss Anqi — was already waiting for her.
“Thank you very much for your trust, Lady Valo.”
“The Sister Superior should have already relayed the message to you. Please rest assured; as long as I am here, you will not face any blame or harm.”
The morning sun filtered through the window. The blonde girl of the Skywing Race, sporting a pair of white wings, offered Valo a holy smile just like an angel — you are safe.
‘So dazzling…’
She truly lived up to her status as the undisputed number one in the “daughter who most resembles a little angel” rankings.
Valo felt like her identity as the Villainous Demon King was about to be burned to ashes.
As for the Saintess’s subsequent explanation, it was more or less within Valo’s expectations.
She should have thought of it sooner: being able to walk away unscathed after essentially robbing a Holy Relic from the Hidden Sea Church only happened in the game if the player started as Phinney’s mother.
This was because, according to the setting, the Female Hero Phinney Kess possessed a portion of Demon Clan blood.
Even if she publicly gained the recognition of the Holy Relic Pandora, which symbolized her status as the Hero, it was inevitable that some stubborn, prejudiced old fogeys would gossip.
They would claim that someone with Demon Clan blood was unworthy of a Holy Relic, much less the title of Hero!
At that point, if the player had raised Phinney’s stats to a passing level and her Justice Value was high enough, the Great Sage would join forces with the Hidden Sea Church to make a firm, final ruling.
They would even change the “laws of the ancestors,” stating that once a Holy Relic recognizes someone, it belongs to that user personally.
To put it in terms of blue system text on a white background:
[We are giving Phinney a back door.]
[What are you going to do about it?]
[What can you do about it?]
However, as the player carefully raised this Hero daughter, Phinney’s identity as a Hero would strengthen, and her Justice Value would climb higher and higher…
Sooner or later, it would lead to a tragic, explosive confrontation between Phinney and the player’s perspective as the Villainous Demon King mother.
Choose the Hero or choose the mother?
Choose the grand ambition or choose the daughter?
The greatest difficulty of Phinney’s route lay right there — if one could not meet the conditions for the true ending, there was nothing left to say.
One would have to act quickly; the Hero would sacrifice her kin for the sake of justice and then take her own life.
Valo judged that the development team must have been absolutely twisted to come up with that.
……
“…In short, that is the Church’s decision regarding the Holy Relic,” Saintess Anqi’s explanation interrupted Valo’s thoughts. “Lady Valo, you may dispose of the Holy Relic you obtained as you see fit.”
Should she expect nothing less from the Saintess? The kind and holy Skywing girl didn’t seem interested in holding her accountable; she didn’t even suspect Valo of anything.
However, the Sister Superior beside her was a different story — Valo felt this nun’s personality was somewhat warped.
“Lady Saintess, I still have a few questions I wish to ask Lady Valo.”
“First of all: whose idea was it to steal the Holy Relic? And why did you not use formal, legal means to inform the Church that the Holy Relic had a recognition response toward you?”
Valo set down her teacup.
She had already thought of a way to handle this expected question on the way back — she would just take all the blame herself!
The Holy Relic was already hers anyway, and the Sister Superior couldn’t do anything to her. However, before she could even open her mouth, Saintess Anqi was already defending her!
“Sister Superior, I imagine this must have been Kaika’s idea. After all, she has only just arrived at the Clock Tower and is unfamiliar with the Church’s arrangements for Holy Relics.”
“When she discovered that the Holy Relic responded to her mother, her love for her parent clouded her judgment, and a few wicked thoughts sprouted. This is not some heinous crime. We should understand and kindly guide such a heart of filial piety.”
‘Oh, wow. You can even interpret it from that angle?’
‘Is this the kind of treatment the mother of the Hero gets to enjoy?’ The Saintess even added another line.
“Do you think Lady Valo looks like the kind of mother who would command her own daughter to do bad things?”
Now Valo was even more afraid to speak. She could only keep drinking tea to hide her guilt — this black tea was brewed quite well.
The Sister Superior’s next question almost made her spray the tea out.
“Then, the second question. Lady Valo, what is the basis for your recognition by the Holy Relic?”
“The Holy Relic you obtained is called the Purity Protection of Askara. Even the Lady Saintess tried to claim it to no avail… how did you manage to achieve ‘purity’?”
The Sister Superior spoke elegantly, “Oh, my apologies, Lady Valo. I mean no offense.”
‘Like hell you don’t!’
‘Sister Superior, why don’t you just say it clearly?’
For instance: how could a Holy Relic symbolizing protection and purity be obtained by a member of the Demon Clan, a loli widow who had been divorced three times and had two daughters — that was what she really wanted to say, wasn’t it?
Valo was turning red from the heat of the situation, but she had no choice.
She couldn’t very well tell them that she didn’t have any biological daughters at all, nor had she ever outlived three husbands, including the Demon King.
Though she was called a loli widow, she was actually still brand new and unopened — how did she not meet the standards of the Holy Relic?
Originally, she wanted to use an excuse like “I just got lucky” to brush it off, since the Sister Superior had no evidence anyway.
However, even for a question like this… Saintess Anqi actually answered for her again.
“Sister Superior, who dictated that the word ‘purity’ must be taken in its literal sense?”
“Please look at Lady Valo’s deeds. She risked everything to send Phinney away, which led to the Hero who defeated the Demon King for the Alliance — who is also the backbone of our party.”
“She submitted herself to the Demon King to protect her daughter, Kaika, always making sure her daughter did not become evil like him, finally waiting for the day the Demon King was defeated…”
The Skywing girl’s golden eyes overflowed with holy radiance.
Her wings even snapped open with a whoosh because she had reached such an emotional point in her speech. She looked as holy as could be!
Incidentally… she also suddenly boosted Valo, who had planned to just act like a thick-skinned scoundrel, to a height of greatness that didn’t belong to her.
“It is only natural for a woman like Lady Valo to obtain Askara. Sister Superior, do you really harbor doubts about Lady Valo’s ‘purity’? It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Lady Valo is the purest mother in the Empire… no, in the entire world.”
‘Hey, wait, don’t go that far.’
“In short, Sister Superior, your definition of purity is a bit narrow. Please be more mindful.”
Since the Saintess of the Hidden Sea Church had made such a judgment, Sister Superior Kenes could only sigh helplessly.
“I understand.”
Valo, pretending to drink tea, could barely hold back her laughter.
Although Saintess Anqi had set the bar a bit too high — calling her the number one mother of all time — her acquisition of the Holy Relic Askara had become an established fact that no one could contest anymore. Seeing this Sister Superior, who had been targeting her, suffer a setback…
Her mood couldn’t be better.
However, that thought vanished without a trace a few seconds later.
The two high-ranking Church officials in front of her quickly continued with their arrangements.
“Then, Lady Saintess, regarding the subsequent ‘review’ of Lady Valo as a Holy Relic holder…”
In Phinney’s start, the Hidden Sea Church had follow-up regulations regarding the ownership of Holy Relics.
After obtaining one, the Church would send people to conduct a qualification review of the user to ensure they wouldn’t use it for evil or reckless purposes!
In the original game, this setting was only meant to add some difficulty and obstacles to raising Phinney, but now it was being used on Valo herself!
“I will personally conduct the evaluation of Lady Valo, of course, Sister Superior,” the Saintess said, flashing a holy smile at Valo, as if saying: ‘Please rest assured, Lady Valo. With me here, things won’t be made difficult for you.’
But that wasn’t the point!
She wasn’t panicked about dealing with Saintess Anqi; after all, Anqi wasn’t her daughter.
The key was Anqi’s next sentence!
“The review requires two people. As for the other person, hmm… I will have Phinney join me. Sister Superior, you have no objections, do you?”
“Lady Saintess, isn’t that just a guaranteed pass… sigh, fine. If you insist.”
‘Phinney? The Female Hero!?’
Valo broke out in a cold sweat instantly. ‘I played myself!’
Phinney knew her identity as the Villainous Demon King!
So, what would her Hero daughter — who wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice her own family for the greater good — think about the fact that her mother had “obtained a Holy Relic”!?