Chapter 32: The Puzzle

Princess Helen lifted her head, her gaze playfully fixed on Felix as they entered the town hall. She sat at her desk, reviewing documents piled high and stamped with the imperial secret seal, her demeanor as elegant and composed as Felix remembered, unaffected by the dreadful plague raging outside that could kill within hours.

For some reason, Felix always resisted Helen's superior air. Despite her beauty, he had no desire to see her. Lady Elizabeth's ambitions inevitably set Felix against this woman. Between the two, he couldn't abandon Lady Elizabeth; she had given him so much, too much...

"Your Highness," the Silver Hand approached Princess Helen respectfully, reporting Felix's ability to dispel the plague.

After hearing the report, Princess Helen turned to Felix, who was hanging his head, her face unreadable, leaving Felix clueless about her thoughts.

Felix's right hand clenched nervously. He couldn't be sure if this overly clever woman had sensed something. After all, she had personally banished the God of Pestilence, and she might know what a banished deity leaves behind. This inscrutable woman always unsettled him.

Princess Helen, her brow slightly furrowed as if struck by a thought, picked up a piece of parchment from the desk. She quickly wrote something in elegant script, then pressed a square crystal seal onto the paper before handing it to the Silver Hand. "

Take this letter to the imperial city with a griffin knight, and call back the court mage group," she instructed softly. "No one is to cross the blockade until the plague is completely eradicated!"

Felix's expression shifted subtly upon hearing this. Calling back the court mage group because of his ability to dispel the plague? Had she already issued an Extermination Order?

The plague had only erupted yesterday, and today she had ordered the extermination of the infected area – such a ruthless decision! Without his appearance, would she have allowed the army to slaughter the tens of thousands of afflicted victims?

Even though it was the best way to prevent the plague's spread, Felix felt a pang of guilt. These were not enemy soldiers but flood victims facing a terrifying plague.

Felix knew he couldn't have made such a decision. Without even beginning to gather priests for treatment, she was ready to kill all the infected. Felix suddenly felt that she might be better suited as a Gamma priest than himself, her disregard for life and decisive courage something he lacked.

"Alright, you may leave. I need to talk to him," Princess Helen said after instructing the Silver Hand, gesturing for the others in the hall to exit.

Perhaps because of her terrifying power shown when banishing the God of Pestilence, even the proud holy priests left the hall reverently.

Felix's expression remained unchanged, but his hands clenched tightly. He was now certain that Princess Helen knew something, or else she wouldn't have kept him alone, especially at this time.

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Removing her gold-framed glasses, Princess Helen sat back down, smiling faintly at the seemingly calm Felix. "The spreading Power of Pestilence comes from the God of Pestilence with a fragmented divinity.

Ordinary holy light can't dispel it, and the best way, other than using the God of Pestilence's original divine power, is to eradicate everything at the source of the plague. Being as smart as you are, I believe you understand what I mean."

Felix's heart churned with turmoil, but he maintained a strained calm on his face. Turning away, he avoided Princess Helen's piercing gaze and said in a deep voice, "I don't understand what Your Highness is trying to tell me."

Princess Helen laughed softly at his words, her mature figure trembling with the laughter, but Felix was in no mood to appreciate it. "You were the first to reach the center of the altar. I suspect that if the God of Pestilence left something behind during its demise, you must have obtained it. Right, Lady Elizabeth's little kitten?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly, the smile on her face turning colder. Her gaze was chilling, exerting immense pressure on Felix. "I dislike the evasiveness of clever people," she said, putting her glasses back on.

Felix was torn and hesitant, his mind clearly agitated. He didn't know how to deal with this woman, the fabled daughter of the sea.

Princess Helen lowered her head to read through a document, acting as if nothing had been said. This only increased the invisible pressure on Felix, causing his façade of calm to finally crumble.

After a long silence, Felix extended his right hand and slowly opened it in front of Princess Helen. "I found a dark grey crystal shard where the God of Pestilence perished. But as soon as I touched it, it turned to dust. Last night, I suddenly found this in my palm."

As Princess Helen's gaze fell on the dark grey crystal shard, her calm expression drastically changed. She grabbed Felix's right hand, and after a moment of silent scrutiny, she spoke with furrowed brows, "Don’t let a third person see this. Unless you want to be turned into a dark puppet by those lunatics in the Sacred Affairs Department!"

Felix, surprised, looked up at her with confusion. Did she not care about what was in his palm?

Princess Helen slowly released Felix's hands and brushed her beautiful long hair. Looking down at the puzzled Felix, she said softly, "What you hold in your palm could be an opportunity or a crisis that spells your doom."

Felix's head shot up in surprise. "Your Highness, what is this? Is it a god, or...?"

Before he could finish, Princess Helen covered his mouth with her hand, her expression solemn. Pointing to the sky, she looked at Felix reproachfully and said in a stern voice, "From now on, don't mention that word again! Not until you can speak with the gods as equals, if you don't want to die."

Felix tensed, swallowing back his words. When he came to his senses, he realized Princess Helen had covered his lips with her soft, warm, and faintly fragrant hand.

Suddenly, driven by an outrageous impulse, perhaps to retaliate against the oppression she had exerted, he acted on this impulse. He licked Princess Helen's palm.

Shocked, Felix felt her body stiffen and her expression become unnatural. Regretting his impulsive act, he wished he could go back in time and slap himself. He knew how terrifying this woman was and would usually avoid her, but today, in a moment of impulse, he had teased a fierce tiger, no, a dragon.

Princess Helen, startled by the warm, soft touch, quickly withdrew her hand and turned away, her voice cold as she uttered a single word: "Leave!"

To Felix, this was a reprieve. He bolted like a frightened rabbit, as if he, not Princess Helen, had been the one teased.

His heart racing, the blush on his face only faded long after he had left.

Princess Helen opened her palm, where a wet mark from the stealthy attack remained. Wiping it off with parchment, she rubbed her forehead, trying to calm the chaos in her mind. Felix was the first man to dare tease her, and to do it twice.

"What does that crystal shard represent?" she pondered, writing a series of strange symbols on a white paper with a quill pen – symbols Felix would recognize from the Dead Sea Scrolls.

"Is it a divinity? Or a physical manifestation of divine power?"