The Holy Saintess's sudden intrusion caused the already delicate atmosphere to instantly freeze.
She seemed entirely oblivious to the tense, sword-drawn atmosphere inside the shop.
Her gaze swept past everyone and landed on Lin Gui once more.
She gently repeated her question, her tone soft yet carrying an unquestionable penetration.
“Excuse me, is Holy Saint Lin Gui here?”
Lin Gui's mind raced, and he was the first to speak.
He forced a slightly exaggerated smile onto his face.
“Oh? Are you talking about that rather handsome mage who specializes in delivering letters?”
The Holy Saintess stared at him with her clear violet eyes and nodded.
Lin Gui immediately pointed outside the shop door and lied without hesitation.
“Him? He went to the Royal Gardens in the First Ring to feed the ravens! Why don't you look for him there?”
Hearing this, Elvia's lips twitched violently behind the Holy Saintess.
She couldn't help but raise her hand to cover her face.
Brother! She came looking for you by name. How could she not know what you look like?
That lie of yours is way too amateur!
The Holy Saintess's expression also blanked for a moment.
A flash of astonishment clearly crossed her beautiful, always sacred and tranquil face.
She seemed completely unprepared to receive such an... off-the-wall response.
When Elvia had been desperately winking to warn him earlier, Lin Gui had already made up his mind to adamantly deny that he was the Lin Gui she was looking for.
The Holy Saintess suddenly coming to find him had to be because she saw his future self through a Prophecy spell.
Or rather, a fragment of his future self.
No matter what she planned to do, Lin Gui didn't want to take any risks.
The last time he got involved with someone who could use Prophecy, he had nearly died in that revolution.
This time, no matter what, Lin Gui was going to stay far away from these riddle-speaking seers.
With only a few days left before leaving the Royal Capital, he didn't want to invite unnecessary trouble.
He was just a messenger.
On the other hand, while appearance could certainly identify a person,
he had a “theoretical basis” that could refute this conclusion to some extent.
The theory of magical repulsion.
In the magic world, it was virtually impossible for someone to master both light and dark magic simultaneously.
Except for an anomaly like him, who didn't rely on conventional meditation and instead got all his skills directly from the system.
Right in front of the Holy Saintess and Disciplinary Knight, Lin Gui explained with a “sincere” tone.
“Miss Saintess, I think you might have made a mistake.”
“Although my name is also Lin Gui, I'm really not the Holy Saint you are looking for.”
“I don't know light magic because I am a dark mage.”
Before his voice even faded, he rapidly chanted a short, obscure incantation.
In the next instant, several sharp spikes formed purely of shadow materialized out of thin air.
They circled and darted around his body, radiating a cold, sinister aura!
High Rank dark magic, 【Shadow Pierce】.
Disciplinary Knight Daniel's brow twitched imperceptibly.
Dark magic was diametrically opposed to light magic.
It was a power viewed as heresy by the Holy Church of Light, one that demanded vigilance.
Having demonstrated his dark magic, Lin Gui dispelled 【Shadow Pierce】.
He shrugged and flashed a helpless smile.
“So, Miss Saintess, you've really got the wrong person.”
“As for the Lin Gui you mentioned, I know of him too. He is Princess Elvia's husband, a Holy Saint from the Central City-States.”
“He indeed looks very much like me, but there's no way we could be the same person.”
“In the ordinary course of things, someone who can use light magic and is also proficient in dark magic simply doesn't exist.”
“Is that so...”
Holy Saintess Eve softly trailed off, a faint smile gracing the corners of her lips.
Her violet eyes opened fully, looking at Lin Gui as if she could pierce through his very soul.
Seeing his future.
“Then... could I trouble you to lead me to him?”
“My apologies, Your Holiness, but I have to leave the city shortly for Modo City. The transport team is already waiting for me.”
“Why don't you let Lin Gui's wife, Her Highness the Seventh Princess, take you instead? She surely knows exactly where her lover would be fooling around at this hour.”
Pointing at Elvia, Lin Gui offered a sincere suggestion.
Elvia's lips twitched slightly.
Lin Gui's blunt refusal, completely devoid of respect, left Daniel highly displeased.
He took a large stride forward, seemingly intending to use force.
Alarm bells rang wildly in Lin Gui's mind.
He took subtle steps backward, moving closer to the Legendary shopkeeper behind the counter.
He believed this Legendary shopkeeper would protect him.
Because only he knew where the Hero's skeletal remains were kept.
Lin Gui decided that the moment he was out of the Disciplinary Knight's line of sight,
he would immediately activate 【Shroud of the Gloomy Night】 and slip away.
Then, he would quickly return to the post office, grab all the replies he had received, find Theia, and set off for Shield City immediately.
However, just as he was plotting his escape,
the system's prompt suddenly rang out in his mind:
【Reminder to Host: The current Weekly Commission—Deliver 4,867 letters to the Carter Royal Capital—is not yet complete.】
【As a side note, no one has signed for any letters at the post office for three days.】
【The current delivery progress is stuck at 69.8%, with 133 letters still undelivered.】
【If the Host chooses to abandon the mission and leave the Royal Capital now, it will be deemed a failure, and all rewards will be voided.】
【Note: The time limit for the Weekly Commission will expire in three days.】
The fake smile on Lin Gui's face froze instantly, his mind filling with utter bewilderment.
Wait, I completed over half of it on the very first day.
It's already the sixth day, and you're telling me it's stuck?!
【The Host must investigate the cause themselves. In short, please do your best, Host.】
The system replied dryly.
Lin Gui felt a wave of helplessness.
Counting the days, there were indeed only three days left.
The post office manager was so professional that Lin Gui had almost forgotten about the Weekly Commission.
Three days, 133 letters...
An unprecedented sense of urgency washed over him.
Lin Gui hesitated no longer, stepping back to stand behind the shopkeeper.
He whispered to him,
“The Hero's skeletal remains will be placed in the Seventh Ring post office.”
“I have also written down his last words and placed them with his bones.”
“I will leave them in the attic at the very top of the post office. Go retrieve them yourself.”
“His soul is on the verge of dispersing; he has less than three days left.”
“His greatest wish is to see Queen Catriona one last time.”
“I have to run. Block those guys for me.”
The shopkeeper's pupils contracted slightly. He hadn't expected Lin Gui to just tell him the location of the Hero's remains like this.
Giving Lin Gui a deep look, he whispered,
“Kid, I owe you a favor.”
“There's a secret door behind the counter. I'll create an opportunity in a moment, and you slip out through there immediately.”
“Use that magic of yours that lets you disappear and get out of here!”
Lin Gui was shocked. He instantly realized something and snapped his gaze toward Caleb.
“The assassin last night—did you send him?!”
Caleb neither admitted nor denied it.
He merely stared sharply at the Holy Saintess and Disciplinary Knight at the door.
Seeing that Lin Gui seemed about to leave, Holy Saintess Eve's tranquil expression remained unchanged. She simply uttered a single word softly:
“Avalon.”
This word seemed to possess a strange magic.
Lin Gui, who was just about to slip away, froze instantly, snapping his head around to look at the Holy Saintess.
Beside him, Elvia's heart skipped a beat, sensing that things had taken a terrible turn.
Looking at Lin Gui's suddenly altered expression, the Holy Saintess smiled gently.
“There is no need to be so guarded, nor is there any need to worry.”
Her voice remained elegant and clear, yet it carried a strange, comforting power.
“In truth, Mr. Lin Gui, our interests... are aligned.”
She took a few steps forward, looking directly at Lin Gui, and said clearly:
“Mr. Lin Gui wishes to know the route to Avalon.”
“Mr. Caleb does not wish for anyone to spy on or attempt to alter this Royal Capital's preordained future again.”
“And I...”
She paused slightly.
An extremely complex, inexplicable light flashed through her violet eyes.
Finally, she said softly,
“...simply wish to live.”
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