Chapter 27: The Invisible Huge Crisis

Simon listened to Alexia’s words from the side, a storm of complex emotions surging within him.

This was exactly why he chose to follow Alexia.

She was not unrestrainedly brutal.

Facing the enemies of the Empire, she would destroy them without mercy, leaving not a trace of life.

But the current situation did not allow her to show any compassion.

Otherwise, the Empire, already thrown into chaos by the former king, would inevitably collapse.

It was already difficult enough just to maintain the status quo.

“Your Majesty, the Witch Council has no reason to apologize to you to such an extent. It’s unreasonable.”

Simon understood the style of the Witch Council well.

They would never offer such a generous gift to Alexia without a reason.

There must be unpredictable danger lurking behind this.

Even if Alexia was the Empress of the Empire, in the eyes of those witches, she was merely a mortal, not worth mentioning.

Even considering Simon’s existence, Rosalind’s words and actions were clearly aimed at Alexia.

“I understand. Therefore, the next time you visit Gerard, you must ask him to closely monitor the movements of the Witch Council.”

Alexia also knew this gift was too heavy.

That’s why she needed to keep a backup plan.

“During the martial law in the Imperial Capital, I specially permit the Saint Knights of the Light Church to arm themselves, so that when the people of the Empire face crisis in the future, they can protect them as much as possible.”

“As for me…”

Alexia looked at Simon and handed the sword back to him.

“There’s no need to worry about me.”

The enemies of the Empire usually targeted her.

As long as she stayed within the Imperial Palace, the citizens outside would be less affected.

Moreover, the Light Church would surely stand with the people.

If the Witch Council dared to act against the people of the capital, the Light Church would never sit idly by.

Simon sheathed his sword.

“If that day truly comes, I will give everything to protect Your Majesty, without taking a single step back.”

Alexia smiled softly.

“Then I’ll leave it all to you, Simon.”

Then, she reached out and took the stone sealed with the soul of the Apocalypse Witch.

“I need to take her to September Nine first.”

—

Simon immediately left the hall and, upon leaving the Imperial Palace, headed straight for the Grand Cathedral in the capital.

He explained Alexia’s thoughts to Gerard and informed him that the capital might soon face unrest, so preparations must be made to assemble the Saint Knights and evacuate the citizens at any time.

After hearing this, Gerard shook his head in disbelief.

“This is impossible. It’s too unreasonable… If Her Majesty truly cared about the safety of the Empire’s people, I shouldn’t still have negative feelings toward her.”

He did not doubt that Alexia valued the lives of others.

He was doubting himself.

Ever since Simon told him about Alexia’s actions, he had been pondering this issue.

Why did he think Alexia was an evil person?

Even though he had not interacted with her much.

Although he often heard rumors of ministers’ homes being confiscated and people being executed, he always regarded them as hearsay.

Without seeing it with his own eyes, he would not draw conclusions lightly.

That time, Alexia had stormed into the capital’s Grand Cathedral in anger.

On the surface, it seemed for personal reasons, but in reality, it was for the safety of the capital.

If the Pollution of the Evil God was not cleared in time, it could easily trigger a chain reaction and destroy the entire area.

As the Archbishop of the capital, this was a failure of his duty, and he could not justify it.

From this perspective, he should have had a favorable impression of Alexia deep down.

If she had not reminded him in time, his position might have ended there.

Those who died because of his negligence would also leave him unable to face the Cross.

But why did he still have no change in his view of Alexia?

Gerard did not consider himself a stubborn person.

He had seen many evil and good people, and also witnessed the transformation between good and evil.

His understanding of Simon had grown increasingly clear, yet his feelings for Alexia remained blurred.

It was as if something was interfering with his perception.

After thinking it over, Gerard said helplessly.

“Simon, you might not believe it, but deep down I still think Her Majesty deserves to die… That’s my true feeling.”

Simon nodded in understanding.

“I believe you. Let me tell you one more thing—then maybe you’ll understand.”

He then told Gerard the story of the little girl from that night.

Gerard hesitated no more.

He took off the Cross from his chest and began to call upon the name of the Lord.

A few seconds later, light gathered around Gerard, forming into a ball of radiance.

“My Lord, could you please shelter me temporarily?”

Gerard prayed sincerely to the sphere of light.

The Light God, now in the form of a light sphere, answered.

“I know the doubt in your heart. There’s no need to use my power to test it—I can tell you the answer directly.”

“The entire Empire is shrouded in a terrifying Shroud, targeting Alexia. This causes a natural repulsion and aversion towards her deep within your hearts. No matter how much good she does, you all will twist it with malice.”

“It is not because she did not do well enough, or that your impression of her has always been bad. Rather, someone wants you to see her that way.”

Upon hearing this, both men below fell into deep thought.

Simon had long suspected this possibility, but hearing the confirmed answer from the Light God still stirred him inside.

At the very least, it proved his direction was correct.

Under the protection of the Light God’s radiance, Gerard temporarily freed himself from the effect, allowing him to face his true feelings toward Alexia.

Clearly, he felt Alexia was not bad.

For the Empire, a ruler like her was essential.

“Can the Light God tell me who is targeting Her Majesty?”

Simon pressed on.

As long as they knew the source, all problems could be solved.

The Light God was silent for a second before answering.

“Someone is protecting her. I cannot see through it.”

“Even you can’t see through it?”

Simon looked surprised, but understanding dawned in his heart.

With this, the scope of the investigation was narrowed to its limit.

There were few in the world who could deceive the Light God.

Because of this, Simon understood that the challenges ahead would be even more difficult.

“No. I can feel she is weaker than me, but she is skilled at this. She can disrupt the threads of fate, making it hard for me to track.”

“Then, can you tell me how to solve it?”

The Light God responded immediately.

“Kill the opponent. That is the only solution.”

Simon nodded.

“I understand.”

If that was the case, then it was a battle to the death.

No matter what, he would help Alexia break free from this predicament and allow her to walk the streets freely.

The Light God then turned to Gerard and warned him.

“Recall all Saint Knights of the Altered Order at once. The capital is extremely dangerous now.”

Gerard’s eyes widened suddenly.

“Has it reached such a crisis already? Thank you for your warning, Lord. I will act at once.”

Simon, too, was stunned.

The Saint Knights of the Altered Order were not ordinary knights—they were the foundation of each cathedral.

Legends of the Light Church, beings who would be elevated to saints after death.

Every one of them was shrouded in legend; to them, an army was nothing.

If they were to all retreat to defend the capital’s Grand Cathedral, just how serious had things become? Simon could not imagine.

He had only wanted Gerard to investigate why the Empire was so hostile to Alexia, but did not realize that the Empire had already fallen into a Great Crisis without anyone noticing.

And they were utterly unaware of this disaster.

He had even been complacent, thinking everything was under control.

How negligent he was!

Without another word, Simon turned and dashed out of the capital’s Grand Cathedral.

He had to tell Alexia the severity of the situation at once.