Lorencia inwardly sighed at the sight of Ruans lying without the slightest trace of hesitation.

He can lie without hesitation in any situation, and he speaks even knowing it’s a lie that will soon be exposed.

A person who is good at effectively controlling and manipulating people with lies.

For a moment, I had forgotten that’s who Ruans is.

“Indeed, Your Majesty Ruans remains unchanged.”

“Lorencia. My love has always been constant.”

“Your Majesty Emperor Ruans. I wish you would stop obsessing over my fiancée.”

Teishar intervened with Ruans.

“Viscount Teishar Spencer. Listen well. Lorencia has been mine since birth. You dare to steal her away and even make a thief’s engagement?”

“I heard you recently took in a concubine who is carrying Your Majesty Emperor Ruans’s child. Yet you keep trying to take away an engaged woman with a fiancé. What is your intention?”

Ruans was momentarily at a loss for words.

The matter of the daughter of Marquis Montbellionst becoming his concubine was kept strictly confidential. How did they find out?

“Lorencia. I have absolutely not taken in any concubine. It’s a baseless rumor.”

“I suppose you want to believe it’s a baseless rumor.”

“Viscount Teishar. I’d appreciate it if you’d shut that mouth. And let me give you a warning. It would be best to stop driving a wedge between her and me to that extent.”

“It’s not driving a wedge. This is what’s being said in the social circles of the Isuter Empire. Many people saw the daughter of Marquis Montbellionst enter the imperial palace riding the Empress Dowager’s carriage a month after spending a night with Your Majesty Ruans in the palace.”

Seeing Ruans flustered, the corners of Teishar’s mouth turned up.

“There’s probably no one in high society who doesn’t know about the food the daughter of Marquis Montbellionst is eating while staying in the Empress Dowager’s palace, the doctors going in and out, and the story of a lying-in chamber being carefully prepared in the palace.”

“To believe such baseless rumors and for Lorencia to speak so carelessly… Are you picking a fight with me now? Viscount Teishar Spencer.”

Ruans began raising his voice with a reddened face.

“I will have Viscount Teishar Spencer and Lorencia’s engagement broken off by today.”

Without fail.

Ruans could no longer control his emotions. He immediately walked to where Saraph and Benedict were.

The aide standing behind him followed with a face that had given up on everything.

“Great Saint. I’d like you to excuse yourself now. I have an urgent conversation to have with Queen Benedict.”

Ruans squeezed between Benedict and Saraph.

“Your Majesty Emperor Ruans. Please have your conversation with the Queen after my words are finished. I have a duty to carry out as the Great Saint of the Ella Temple.”

“What duty do you have? Can’t it be done later?”

Ruans asked in an irritated voice.

“As the Great Saint of the Ella Temple, I am in conversation with Queen Benedict to receive guidance on the evil witch in the Polroid Empire.”

Saraph pointed her finger at Lorencia.

“I have come in the name of Goddess Ella to capture the witch Lorencia, born of the witch Musilla.”

People began to murmur. The hall became noisy as the beautiful daughter of Duke Di Glosten, Lorencia, was pointed out as a witch.

“A witch is a very dangerous being who controls magical beasts and deceives people with a beautiful face.”

Benedict gently closed her eyes. The Ella Temple is always like this. It hasn’t changed. Now as before.

On the day of the Polroid Empire’s commemorative event celebrating the Ella Temple, they always pointed out Musilla as a witch and then threw a fit demanding she be handed over.

It was really troublesome every time, but Benedict always said the same thing to them.

“Great Saint Saraph.”

“Speak, Queen Benedict.”

“If you can take her, then try to take her.”

The Ella Temple never took Musilla away. No, they couldn’t.

All the priests and saints from the Ella Temple know how to do is say ‘Musilla is a witch’.

“I suppose you’ve come out of the Ella Temple for the first time today to do that.”

They only say Musilla must be taken away and put on a witch trial, but when it comes down to it, they couldn’t even touch a hair on Musilla.

“20 years ago, the priests and saints who called Musilla a witch said the same thing. That witches are too evil for mere priests and saints to touch.”

Benedict continued speaking leisurely.

“How could we weak humans touch an evil witch that even priests and saints blessed by Goddess Ella cannot touch?”

Benedict rose from her seat.

She didn’t expect to have to say the tiresome words from 20 years ago again, but it wasn’t bad. It was a play staged with Musilla back then too.

“Take away the evil witch the Ella Temple speaks of, Great Saint.”

Saraph bit her lower lip.

“Are you not the noble and holy messenger of God chosen by Goddess Ella, not a mere saint? If Lady Lorencia is truly an evil witch, you should be able to take her away, right?”

“That is my intention.”

Benedict looked at Lorencia who was with Teishar.

Lorencia met Benedict’s gaze. It was her turn to step forward.

“Tei, please escort me.”

Teishar carefully escorted Lorencia to where Queen Benedict and the others were.

As Lorencia approached, Saraph’s face grew increasingly rigid.

She openly glared at Lorencia, who had stolen the cheers and enraptured gazes that should have been hers.

“Your Majesty Queen Benedict. Lorencia of the Di Glosten family. I pay my respects.”

Benedict nodded with satisfaction at Lorencia’s perfect noble greeting.

“Hello, Great Saint Saraph.”

Lorencia smiled prettily.

“I am Lady Lorencia of the Di Glosten family.”

Saraph scrutinized Lorencia’s face in detail.

Small plump lips. Beautiful eye corners with mysterious purple eyes. Jealousy arose at the sight that anyone would find charming and lovely.

“Witch Lorencia.”

“I introduced myself as the daughter of Duke Di Glosten, Great Saint Saraph.”

“So you want to be called a duke’s daughter instead of a witch? You have quite a lot of demands for a witch.”

Lorencia couldn’t shake off the strange feeling.

She used her power to see the future to confirm the end of the white snake. However, the future of the white snake was not visible, and all she saw was pitch-black darkness.

The white snake is Goddess Ella’s sister. In other words, the white snake is also a goddess.

It seems that even with the power to see the future, one cannot see the future of a goddess. Still, instead of seeing the future, she confirmed the snake’s original form.

The white snake sat high up, looking down on the people kneeling before it as if they were insignificant creatures, mocking them.

Its platinum scales sparkled like moonlight with every movement, beautiful, but its red eyes, which felt like quiet darkness, were surprisingly desolate, making one’s body freeze just by looking through the amethyst bead.

But the Great Saint Saraph before her eyes didn’t give off that feeling at all.

Is it because she’s in human form that it feels that way? If not, what exactly is this feeling?

“Great Saint Saraph.”

“Your Majesty Emperor Ruans.”

Saraph looked at Ruans who called her. Why on earth did he come here?

“I would like you to refrain from calling Lorencia a witch.”

Ruans was quite troubled. If rumors spread that Lorencia was a witch, it could cause problems when she becomes his concubine.

“What is wrong with calling a witch a witch?”

“Of course it’s a problem.”

“Why?”

“Haven’t you heard anything about Lorencia from the Empress Dowager? Or are you pretending not to have heard?”

“I have heard nothing about a witch.”

“Then I will say it clearly here. Lady Lorencia Di Glosten is to be my concubine and is certainly not a witch.”

Ruans’s statement instantly silenced everyone in the banquet hall.

There had clearly been an announcement that Teishar and Lorencia were officially engaged, and though he didn’t know, the two had even danced three waltzes.

“Indeed, the power of a witch is formidable.”

The first to break the silence was Saraph.

She could no longer stand by and watch Lorencia, who had stolen the attention of everyone in the banquet hall, from her handsome fiancé to Ruans who was to marry her.

“To even cloud the eyes of Emperor Ruans who fervently believes in Goddess Ella. Truly an evil power.”

Saraph glared at Lorencia with a smile full of contempt.

“How dare you.”

She approached Lorencia and sneered, lifting one corner of her mouth.

“To use your evil power to bewitch the Emperor of the Isuter Empire in front of me, the Great Saint.”

Lorencia looked at Saraph with a gentle smile. She was just like Illina when she was being unreasonable.

“Bewitchment… you say? Do you think I have any reason to bewitch His Majesty Emperor Ruans?”

“Yes, you evil witch.”

“I am engaged. If I had wanted the position of His Majesty’s concubine, I wouldn’t have gotten engaged. And above all, I love Teishar Spencer. So I have absolutely no reason to bewitch His Majesty Ruans.”

“Witches bewitch people and put them in danger without reason.”

“I’m living happily with my fiancé and family now, so why would I create dangerous situations? I really can’t understand what you’re saying, Great Saint. And I’ve told you I’m not a witch.”

“Witches will lead magical beasts and torment people.”

Saraph’s words began to speed up. Just like someone making excuses.

“Great Saint. As an ordinary person, I have no desire to torment anyone.”

“Don’t lie. You are a witch who came down to this world to torment people.”

Lorencia took one step at a time towards Saraph.

“If you wish to frame me as a witch…”

This confirmed it.

“You should use the Great Saint’s holy power.”

“What? You dare tell me, the Great Saint, to use my power?”

“You, Great Saint, said that the people in the banquet hall were bewitched by my witch’s power. So you should use Great Saint Saraph’s holy power to return those who were bewitched to normal.”

At Lorencia’s words, Saraph’s eyes turned red.

She began to tremble, clenching her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms.