It was night, a moment when the moon shone bright and the stars were sparse.
Milly was outside sulking by herself. She walked along the village streets, kicking pebbles in indignation.
Seriously, Elena was just too much. Not only did she kidnap Felusa, but she even threatened her with that lewd video.
Involuntarily, she touched her own stomach.
Forget it. I can’t get angry; it’s not good for the baby. Since I have to infiltrate the enemy’s ranks anyway, I might as well start with Elena.
Fortunately, Elena hadn’t restricted her freedom.
This was quite different from before. She had thought Elena would tie her up, lock her in a dungeon, and then do whatever she wanted with her.
Come to think of it, if Elena wanted her to participate in the Silver Party, she would need Milly’s cooperation.
If Milly caused a scene, Elena’s plan wouldn’t work. Was that why she switched from forceful coercion to threats and bribery?
Just then, two village girls approached her. They were carrying baskets and chatting happily.
Milly finally noticed that even though the moon was out, every house was brightly lit, and streetlamps had been lit throughout the village.
Were they going to perform some kind of ritual?
Could it be related to Elena?
“Hurry, we won’t make it if we wait any longer!”
“Ooh, wait for me!”
The two girls ran past Milly. To her surprise, she sensed a faint magical power coming from them.
Was this magic… Holy attribute magic?
Curious, Milly followed the crowd. Before long, she arrived at the village square.
The square was already packed with people. Countless villagers were holding baskets filled with various fruits and vegetables.
They held the baskets above their heads, their voices rising in a noisy cacophony.
“Lady Elena!”
“Lady Elena, please accept these!”
Milly looked closely and saw that the person standing on the high platform in front of them was indeed the witch, Elena.
Standing beside her was a girl dressed in a black robe.
“Is some kind of evil ritual about to take place?”
As soon as she said this, the surrounding people cast reproachful glances at her.
“Who are you? How dare you insult Lady Elena?”
“Ah, I’m… I’m…”
*I’m the Holy Maiden.* She couldn’t say those words. These people worshipped the witch so much that if her true identity were revealed, they would surely attack her en masse.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t beat them, but these people were just commoners. They had likely been bewitched by that damn witch.
“I’m Emma, a traveler passing through.”
“You came to our remote backwater instead of going to a big city?”
“Because… because I wanted to feel the breath of nature, haha, hahaha…”
Fortunately, she had dyed her hair and wasn’t wearing her Holy Maiden robes, just an ordinary dress.
In any case, she had to avoid causing a stir and see what Elena was up to.
“I’m just curious, who is Lady Elena?”
“It’s normal not to know since you’re from out of town. About half a year ago, our village was ravaged by a plague, and it was Lady Elena who stepped in to help.”
“Thanks to the medicine she prepared, we miraculously regained our health.”
*A plague? Why haven’t I heard about this?*
*Is the intelligence of the Church of the Goddess that restricted? Did no one report a plague affecting an entire village?*
*Or was it reported, but no one mentioned it?*
“If you were sick, why didn’t you go to the Church of the Goddess?”
“Could we have gone? When the plague broke out, the Church of the Goddess immediately set up checkpoints on every mountain road. Anyone who tried to break through died by their blades.”
“They just wanted us to die off on our own. If it weren’t for Lady Elena, we’d be dead by now.”
Milly was stunned.
How could the Church of the Goddess be so unreasonable?
Directly blockading the mountain roads and leaving the villagers to fend for themselves went against the very teachings of the Church!
Of course, there was another possibility: Elena had directed and acted out the whole thing. She might have poisoned the villagers first to give them the plague, then stepped in to distribute the antidote.
As for the checkpoints on the mountain roads, Elena could have sent people to pose as guards. Her goal, naturally, would be to gain followers.
Looking at this crowd of fanatics, it was clear how successful Elena’s tactic had been.
“Um, I don’t mean to be rude,” Milly pointed at Elena on the stage. “Aren’t you afraid she’s a witch?”
“Don’t talk nonsense! Lady Elena is a messenger sent from heaven specifically to save us from misery. How could she possibly be a witch?”
*I see. This basically confirms it.*
Elena was a witch who bewitched people’s hearts. Unfortunately, these people were too far gone to be convinced by a few words.
She could just reveal her identity, but Felusa was still in Elena’s hands. She decided to observe the situation and try to gather more evidence of Elena’s crimes.
“Villagers, there is no need to be so formal.”
Elena spoke. She stood on the high platform and spread her arms as if she wanted to embrace everyone.
Milly rolled her eyes, feeling like she was just putting on an act.
“I was just passing through and didn’t come seeking a reward. I appreciate your gifts, but remember the things I’ve instructed you to do.”
*The things she instructed?* Heh, Elena really did have other motives. Did she want to use these villagers as cannon fodder to attack the Church of the Goddess’s headquarters?
“Lady Elena, you’re too kind to us!”
“As expected of the Goddess’s messenger!”
The people were moved to tears.
Milly curled her lip and glared at Elena on the platform.
Elena also noticed Milly, and their eyes met.
A seductive smile played at the corners of her mouth, and she even blew Milly a wink. Milly glared at her, let out a “hmpf,” and looked away.
“Excuse me,” Milly tentatively asked a villager, “What exactly did… Lady Elena… instruct you to do?”
If it was something dangerous, Milly would naturally intervene. Depending on the situation, she might even reveal her true identity.
“Oh, she told us to wash our hands and keep our homes ventilated, and to disinfect everything with alcohol once a day.”
“We don’t really know what it means, but whatever Lady Elena says is the truth.”
“What!?”
*What the hell? That’s it?*
That wasn’t using the villagers at all; it was actually for their well-being.
However, hand washing, ventilation, and alcohol disinfection… weren’t those concepts from Earth?
She had known for a while that there were other transmigrators in this world. Could Elena be one? Should she try a secret code? She remembered something about sine and cosine?
No, stay calm. Maybe Elena heard it from somewhere else. She remembered Elena had some connections with the Dragon Race; maybe the Dragon Race had transmigrators.
Besides, I refuse to be fellow countrymen with her!
“Lady Elena, please accept these!”
“They’re just fruits and vegetables, please don’t mind!”
The villagers cheered and raised their baskets.
The baskets were full of produce. It was hard to refuse such hospitality, so Elena could only smile and accept. Milly rolled her eyes, thinking her schemes ran deep.
If she didn’t want to accept them, why not just stay anonymous? Why hold a press conference in the middle of the square?
Wasn’t it obvious she wanted people to thank her?
And that plague incident? Elena definitely caused it!
If she directly accused her now, the villagers would certainly be unhappy.
Therefore, Milly had to go to Gutram to investigate.
She would find clues in the temple’s archives.
Milly would make Elena admit defeat!
She would slam those archives right into Elena’s face!
Putting on such a sanctimonious act just to trick people into trusting her… I’ll rip off your ugly mask and humiliate you in front of these villagers!