Dignity

The group of hundreds scattered like startled birds.

Even if her level had been lowered due to the descent, Virginia, the invincible Sacred Knight hailed as a one-woman army, was not someone these people could hope to face.

I had not summoned Virginia before because she actually lacked specific team-combat skills.

In the 《Heroic Legends》, the casualties among those who followed Virginia into battle were always exceptionally high, despite their soaring morale.

The primary reason was that Virginia's own frenzied holy energy was simply impossible to form into effective, refined skills.

To put it simply, it was difficult to control precisely, so she could only charge into the enemy ranks like a humanoid Tyrannosaurus, leaving no one standing in her wake!

Ultimately, a single person's destructive power and energy were limited.

In a large-scale team battle, she was almost useless.

But in a situation like this, her appearance was absolutely perfect!

Despite her strength being significantly reduced due to the class and level constraints, her individual power was still far too overwhelming for these scattered remnants.

Virginia turned back to 'look' at me with a helpless expression, pointing at the hundreds of people fleeing in all directions.

"Your Highness Luo Li, they've all run away~"

"I can see that."

Did you really need to tell me?

It would be quite difficult to give chase now; after all, Virginia didn't have a cloning technique. Even if she pursued them, she could kill a third of them at most.

As for the rest, it was basically impossible to catch them.

"Do you have any skills? If possible, it would be best not to let a single one escape."

"Eh? I can use a skill?"

A look of excitement suddenly surfaced on Virginia's face.

"Uh... yes."

What was going on?

Why did she get so excited the moment I mentioned using a skill?

Before I could figure it out, Virginia had already walked up to a knight and patted his shoulder.

The knight looked at Virginia with a face full of panic and confusion.

"Lady Sacred Knight, do you... do you need something?"

"Lend me your lance for a moment."

"Ah? Oh... here."

The knight dazedly handed over his lance. Virginia took it and tested its weight in her palm.

"It's a bit light, and it's not a trident, so it doesn't feel quite right, but it'll have to do."

As she spoke, Virginia gave the knight a faint smile.

"My apologies, I probably won't be able to return this to you."

The knight nodded, still looking completely lost.

Before he could react, Virginia had already raised the lance high above her head.

In that instant, the holy energy within her body erupted!

Like a pillar of light soaring into the sky, the night was momentarily turned into day!!

Boom—!

A violent gale instantly swept through the surroundings. With Virginia at the center, the frenzied holy energy expanded outward without any suppression. The ground beneath her feet began to crack inch by inch, unable to withstand the pressure of such immense power.

Ligeia's long hair fluttered wildly in the wind of holy energy, and a hint of a murderous smile appeared on her face.

"Knight Combat Art!"

With a soft cry, the holy energy that had been erupting upward in a cylindrical shape suddenly intensified again, and the violent power could be seen flailing through the air.

Even the air itself began to let out explosive popping sounds.

The cylindrical shape could no longer maintain its form and transformed into a geyser-like state.

Seeing this, the two skysoar dragons in the sky flew toward the distance in terror. No... they didn't fly away voluntarily; they were blown away by the violent holy energy!

In the next second... cracks began to appear on the lance in her hand. Virginia glanced up at it.

"As expected, it won't work. It can't even withstand seventy percent of my power."

As she spoke, she lowered her head, tucked the lance under her arm, and swept it horizontally!

"Horizontal Sweep!"

In that moment, the geyser of holy energy was like a broom sweeping across the earth.

It suddenly flattened against the ground and swept across the landscape.

Within a range of nearly a kilometer in front of her, almost every object was struck!

Wherever it passed, mountains crumbled and the earth split. The ground was left with marks as if it had been scorched.

It was as if someone had taken a giant iron and pressed it down hard! The entire earth was instantly ironed flat.

And those who were swept by it were completely vaporized in an instant.

A massive scorched area was left on the ground, extending outward from Virginia in a fan shape.

A humanoid Tyrannosaurus?

No, no, no, that would be underestimating this humanoid weapon.

What was standing before my eyes was clearly a humanoid Godzilla!

This strike was no less powerful than an atomic breath.

"Phew..."

'Looking' at the devastation she had caused, Virginia wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead, seemingly very satisfied.

"That was a great warm-up. This descent was worth it!"

It might have been worth it for you, but look at the ground! It's all scorched; I can't even tell where the road is anymore!

It's a good thing there aren't any villages nearby, or how on earth would I explain this to the people!

"Your Highness~ mission accomplished perfectly!"

Virginia turned back to 'look' at me, the smile still on her face.

The lance in her hand had already shattered because it couldn't withstand the violent holy energy, falling to the ground in a clatter of metal shards.

It was indeed accomplished, and so thoroughly at that.

It was so complete that I... was speechless.

"Well... it seems time is almost up. Your Highness Luo Li, thank you for the invitation. If you have need of me, I will surely respond again."

"Thank you for your help."

I'm joking, I never want to summon her again. She's strong, but this is just too ridiculous.

Moreover... it's almost impossible to summon her on a battlefield. If she used a skill like that in the middle of a war, she wouldn't distinguish between friend and foe; she'd wipe out everyone in one go.

"You are too kind, Your Highness~ My time is up. Your Highness Luo Li, I wish you success in your martial endeavors. Until we meet again."

Virginia smiled, her eyes still tightly closed. It seemed those eyes of hers had some other function.

It's just that this point was never detailed in the 《Heroic Legends》. My guess is that the Holy Church's confidentiality measures were simply too good.

As a stream of light drifted out of Ligeia's body and slowly dissipated into the world, Ligeia's body suddenly slumped to the ground.

"Ligeia!!"

Seeing this, my heart skipped a beat. Could it be that her body broke down because she couldn't handle Virginia's recklessness?

I rushed over in a single stride and supported Ligeia from the ground. Her face was slightly pale, and her breathing had become very weak.

Clearly, her physical constitution was a bit too strained to host Virginia's soul.

"Healing!"

I instantly channeled a healing art into her body. Ligeia's face regained some color, and she slowly opened her eyes.

"Your Highness... I did not fail the task. However, I hope you won't summon that lady again next time."

At this point, Ligeia slowly straightened her body, finally gaining enough strength to stand. Her voice held a hint of both complaint and astonishment.

"That lady is far too reckless. How did she manage to use that violent holy energy without harming herself?"

How should I know?

This is the first time I've met her too!

However, the time seemed to have been shortened significantly this time, likely because Ligeia's physical condition couldn't sustain it.

The original five minutes of Hero Creation seemed to have lasted only a little over three minutes this time.

It seemed that the descending souls also needed to be matched with someone who could withstand them, or someone with good compatibility.

For example, Hilda and Julius had very good compatibility. Even after Julius's full-power eruption, Hilda still had energy left.

On this side, even though Ligeia's level was higher than Hilda's, her compatibility with Virginia was poor.

To the point that after Virginia used just one skill, Ligeia's body couldn't take it anymore.

"Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere else?"

Although her color had returned, she still looked quite weak.

"Rest assured, Your Highness. My body is fine; I'm just over-exhausted."

Just over-exhausted?

That's good. As long as her body is fine.

"It seems the city has already fallen into chaos. Ligeia, can you still travel?"

"No problem."

Ligeia clearly felt better now. She turned to look at Brilliant City, where flames were soaring into the sky.

If something hadn't gone wrong over there, a situation like this would never have occurred.

"Then let's head back. You can rest properly once we reach the Temple."

I instructed the surrounding knights to dig the Saint's Carriage out of the cooled lava.

Although I had used a skill to protect the carriage, it was still heavily damaged, with many parts completely destroyed.

Fortunately, the wheels and the horses were unharmed, so its function as a carriage was not affected.

However, the original shock absorption seemed to be broken. When the Saint's Carriage started moving again, the violent shaking was clearly felt inside.

Sitting was out of the question; I could only manage to stand while holding onto the handrail until we reached the South Gate of Brilliant City.

Just as we arrived below the gate, a white light suddenly shone down from above, aimed directly at us.

"Who goes there!?"

The soldiers on the wall were performing their duties faithfully, not relaxing their guard even when facing a group that looked like the Saintess's entourage.

"It is I. Open the gate."

I pulled back the curtain and stood outside. The moment the soldiers on the wall saw me, their attitude changed instantly.

"It's the Saintess! Her Highness has returned! Open the gate quickly!!"

As they spoke, someone opened the gate, and the soldiers quickly formed a line.

Hundreds of infantry stood on both sides, while a dozen knights walked over and knelt on one knee before the Saint's Carriage.

"We greet Your Highness!"

"Yes. What is the situation in the city? Why did such a large fire break out?"

Arriving at the foot of the city, the smell of charred air rushed toward us. In the distance, flames still flickered against the night sky, and occasional panicked screams could be heard from within the city.

"Reporting to Your Highness, someone suddenly released fire magic in the city, and there are people causing trouble everywhere. Lord Hilda and Lord Nar are currently suppressing these rebels. At the same time, they ordered the city gates to be closed, strictly forbidding entry or exit."

"Mm, you've done well. Continue to enforce the order after I enter the city. Entry and exit are strictly forbidden!"

"Yes! Does Your Highness require an escort?"

"No need. With the dragon army here, no one can harm me."

The Saint's Carriage set off again. After successfully entering the city gate, a single glance revealed the city was in total chaos!

Various items could be seen everywhere on the main streets—shoes, clothes, and other scattered belongings. There were even corpses lying on the side of the road.

I estimated that Hilda and Nar were already busy out of their minds and had no time to deal with these bodies.

As we moved forward, we occasionally encountered scattered groups, some with seven or eight people, others with thirty to fifty.

When these people saw the Saint's Carriage, they immediately showed signs of panic.

I showed no mercy. The order for tonight's curfew had already been broadcast throughout the city by the knights.

Anyone appearing on the streets at this moment, other than my knights and soldiers, could only be rebels.

Without exception, every one of them we encountered was killed by the skysoar dragons.

By the time we reached the Temple, we had encountered over a dozen groups, totaling at least several hundred people.

Clearly, the Garnet family had thought of every possibility when they designed the ambush for me.

The only thing they likely hadn't expected was that the Hero Creation would bring forth the invincible Virginia.

If I had summoned Julius at that time, it probably would have been difficult to even protect myself.

But thinking about it, even without Hero Creation, they couldn't have killed me with two thousand skysoar dragons alone.

From the very beginning, victory was already in my hands!

The carriage slowly stopped in front of the Temple. At this moment, the Temple was still calm and peaceful.

Just as I stepped off the carriage, the person who walked out to meet me was actually Lola, who had woken up at some unknown point!

"Your Highness!"

"You're awake? How is your body? Are you feeling better?"

Although I was the one who fixed her curse and injuries, I was still worried about her physical condition.

I wasn't sure if the curse would leave any after-effects or anything of the sort.

"I am fine now. Thank you for your concern, Your Highness."

Lola was still a bit weak, but her spirit had mostly recovered.

"That's good."

As I spoke, I stepped off the carriage and prepared to enter the Temple, only to see Lola standing motionlessly before the door, her expression hesitant and conflicted.

"Lola... do you have something to say to me?"

Looking at her like this, I knew she had something to tell me, and... it was likely about that man.

"Your Highness..."

Lola pursed her slightly dry lips and looked up at me.

"He... is inside waiting for you."

"I didn't go looking for him, and he actually dared to deliver himself to my door?"

Lola hesitated for a moment, then looked up at me.

"How... does Your Highness plan to deal with him?"

A sense of pleading showed in her eyes, but her face was filled with a look of difficulty.

Clearly, in this situation, she understood how heavy Baker's crime was.

Participating in a coup was treason. In any country, this was the most serious crime, and anyone who committed it would not meet a good end.

"Lola, you know..."

I didn't want to say much, and I didn't even know how to say it at this moment.

I understood Lola's thoughts. Emotionally, she wanted to plead for Baker, but rationally, she understood that Baker's situation was beyond pleading for.

Suddenly, Lola knelt on the ground and bowed her head deeply.

"Your Highness, I understand. At this point, I ask for nothing else. I only hope that you... can give him a dignified end."