"What on earth is this all about?"

One of the people huddled around the wall exclaimed. He had read what was written on a piece of paper taped to the wall. The paper was stamped with the seal of the Fey family. A poster was attached to inform the people. The act of attaching a wall poster is permitted only to the lord.

"Isn't impersonating a lord a felony? Did anyone see who had the nerve to do this? Let's report it to the guards."

"I already did... It turns out, it was indeed posted by the Fey family."

"I saw it myself. The person who posted it here was certainly a servant of the Fey family."

"So this was written by Lady Kurzina? Are we to believe this content?"

The contents of the tablet were as follows.

- All people must know the following:

- Lutea does not rule this world; the wicked witch Granadilla does, in the guise of the divine.

- Ygraine is not the witch incarnate; she is Lutea incarnate, and she fought the witch to the death for us.

- Edulis is not a murderer. Edulis is...

A lengthy discussion ensued. The wallpaper detailed who he was and what he was doing.

"Edulis killed my relatives in Lunia! Why is Lady Kurzina defending a murderer?"

"Wasn't it Lady Kurzina who defeated the killer? This is..."

"I heard that the Lady is very ill and has been faintly conscious lately, so this poster must have been written in a delirious state, what a pity!"

Someone shouted over the commotion. "Instead of this, let's go to the office and ask! Whether it's true or false, they will tell us something, right?"

Hearing this, the people rushed to the government office. Their jaws dropped as soon as they got there.

"Why is a battalion from the Central Army here..."

There were dozens of soldiers in thick armor, wielding spears and swords. The one standing in front of them, the one with the medal on his chest, shouted.

"Hear, hear. Rumors are spreading rapidly throughout the Fey family's territory. Do not listen to them, but go about your daily business! Anyone who speaks of them, regardless of circumstance or reason, will be severely punished!"

The sound of the spear tapping the ground with its shaft was intimidating. As they left, the man with the medal on his chest looked back and said.

"The third platoon will remain here to calm the people, and all the rest will follow me to arrest the traitor, Kurzina Le Fay!"

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"We're in a bind, my Lord. How are you going to handle this situation?"

Count Aldin's office, Karnak region.

A woman with an eye patch over her eyes stood behind the lord asked.

"Please be patient. We're doing the best we can on our estate."

Count Lamar Aldin, a thin man with a graying beard, shuddered from head to toe.

"What kind of disaster is this?

He had hoped that nothing would happen until he stepped down from his position, but why did this have to happen now? What had Kurzina Le Fey eaten that was so bad that she would write such a thing on the wall? All sorts of questions and complaints swirled in his mind.

"Is that the best you can do? Really? Your wife seemed to be bedridden, wasn't she?"

Lamar bit his lip and closed his eyes tightly. The woman with long black hair tied into a ponytail, Ambrosia, was like a poppy, beautiful and splendid in appearance but filled with poison inside. He had hoped never to meet this woman.

"My wife is now pregnant with our second child. Please be lenient. She is in full term and has limited mobility."

"If the bedridden Countess herself were to make a speech, wouldn't the people believe her? The impression is important, after all. If it's too hard for her to move, I can make her move."

"Please… please…"

Lamar knew what it meant to 'make her move.' The subordinates of witches often twist human souls into monsters.

Lamar dropped to his hands and knees, forehead at Ambrosia's feet.

"Lady Ambrosia...they say rumors have a shelf life of two months, don't they? I'm doing my best. It's no secret that Kurzina of House Fey is not in her right mind... the rumors will soon fade, so please, spare my wife... ugh!"

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Lamar screamed in agony. Ambrosia was crushing the back of Lamar's hand with her high heel.

Ambrosia spoke in a sweet but chilling voice.

"Can't you understand? Anything faint that remains must be completely eradicated."

"Ugh… Agh…"

"Granadilla desires peace. Absolute peace, unending peace! But look outside, is it peaceful? Are people keeping quiet like gentle sheep?"

"I'm sorry… I'll… somehow…"

By the time Lamar's hands had swelled to purple, Ambrosia had withdrawn her foot.

"Quell the rumors at all costs, restore faith in this regime! You have one week, or I'll skin your wife and get inside her and make her move myself."

The blood drained from Lamar's face at those words.

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"You want to conduct a procession?"

Yurmir Astania, King of Astania, asked as he knelt on the ground.

"Yes, it would be fun, just make sure you have a budget."

A saint with black hair and black eyes said. More accurately, the woman known as a saint spoke. Yurmir knew that what was inside her was far from saintly.

"Lady Akale...how far do you plan to extend the procession?"

"What? The whole country, of course."

The king was astonished.

"People are restless these days, aren't they? There are rumors that I'm actually a witch and that Edulis is a saint. Ha, it's true I'm a witch, but why would Edulis be a saint? Ridiculous."

"Astania is vast, Lady Akale. We don't have the budget to travel the entire country..."

Yurmir tried to look up at Akale, then quickly looked down. Akale, now back to her true form, stared down at him with ominous blue eyes. The thin smile on her lips was creepy.

"Don't you think the people would feel differently if the goddess herself traveled the country and showed her face?"

He can't say no. To Akale, humans are toys, and Astania could be destroyed at her whim. But Yurmir, as their ruler, cannot let that happen. Akale is not like the other witch's servants. Unlike them, who hope for a peaceful reign, Akale's behavior is unpredictable. With that in mind, Yurmir said.

"I will comply, and since it will be a long schedule, I will prepare in such a way that only your face... only your face is simply visible.

"What? And who decided that?"

Akale said with a smirk.

"To win back the hearts of the people, you have to greet them, right? Making eye contact and all."

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One month before Edulis's whereabouts became mysterious, in the Spider's Forest.

The silver fruit glowed faintly. The stem at the top grew and grew, bearing dozens of leaves. Buds formed among the leaves, which then bloomed into flowers, and where the flowers wilted, fruits formed. The droplet-shaped fruits split open, and dozens of silver butterflies flew out. Then, a fragrance spread widely. It was a warm spring breeze-like scent, like sun-dried blankets, like the comforting embrace of a mother...

The spiders, drawn to the scent, flocked to it as if in worship. In the center of it all, the broken leg of Laotou, holding the heart, glowed, and flesh grew to form a whole leg. The stab wounds on the spider's back disappeared as well. Lutea's heart no longer needed Laotou's help; it pulsed on its own.

Shamas, the apostle with the head of a wolf and the wings of an eagle, knelt with his hands on the ground and looked up at the goddess's heart.

"Ah... beacon of the soul, mother of the world! I, Shamas, the foolish one, the brazen survivor, see you now, my mother, the last remaining hope in this world..."

The wolf whimpered as he spoke, tears dripping from his eyes.

"How shameless of you, Shamas, you fool who was tricked by a witch into leaving Sijia!" Laotou shouted at him.

"Is that where you should be bowing your head? Look at Bosha! Bosha who was injured trying to save you! Without Bosha, the heart of Lady Lutea wouldn't have regained its strength!"

Then Shamas turned his head toward Edulis.

"Bosha, why did you save me? Weren't you always the one to prioritize your own survival?"

"That's right. I was about to leap into the shadows, only to have your filthy figure snag my foot."

Shamash scanned Edulis' body up and down. His body was covered in curses, and his abdomen had a huge hole in it. No blood flowed from the scorched wound.

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"I smell trouble... Leaf, that bitch must have been here. I wonder if Lady Akale is also interested in Rekabi?"

A woman in black robes grumbled as she walked through the corpse-strewn ruins of the Rekabi, her eyes narrowing as she came upon the altar.

"What? Bashme's dead? How could a human... no... did Leaf kill her? There's no other explanation." The woman nodded to herself, not even noticing the shadow approaching from behind her back.

"Lady Akale, and Leaf...I've felt something strange about them for a while. I must inform Lord Lucreta soon..."

It was at that moment that the woman turned around.

"Argh!"

Something struck into her chest in a flash. A black jewel fell from her chest in a cloud of black smoke. Standing in front of the unconscious woman, her attacker said.

"Take it, Shamas. It is yours."

Shamas's wolfish face took on an unpleasant gleam.

This was the conversation that went back and forth between Shamash and Edulis in the Spider Forest.

"Bosha cannot be healed now. Bashme has left a mark on his heart in exchange for her death. Soon the mark will become apparent, and the witch's minions will flock to it. So..."

Shamas looked at Edulis and said. "So take my heart. It is my gratitude for allowing me to worship Lutea. Take my heart, and give me your cursed heart, and with it, I will fulfill my final mission."

Then something sprang from Shamas's chest. It looked like a bud on a pine cone. Shamas tried to push it into Edulis's chest, but Edulis frowned and pushed Shamas's hand away.

"Bosha… I am about to be destroyed anyway. Do not hesitate to take my heart."

"Talking about your demise, is that what you say as an Apostle? You Apostles can exist for as long as Lutea exists. Granadilla may have weakened you, but when Lutea is resurrected, you will regain your power."

"No. That's not it."

Shamas dropped his wolfish face and looked at the ground.

"I did not lose my power because Granadilla defeated me. I lost my power because I could no longer recognize myself as an apostle."

"What does that mean?"

"After losing Sijia and witnessing Ygraine's final moments, I could no longer recognize myself as an Apostle. The light from my own heart has become blinding and unbearable. I was so ashamed to call myself an Apostle, frail and foolish as I was, and with that thought, my existence slowly began to crumble."

A groan escaped from between Shamash's broken fangs.

"So, Vosha, go ahead and take my heart. Lutea's light does not suit me. I am fit for a cursed heart. I will break my remaining wings and run on all fours, tearing apart the witch's minions."

But Edulis was still pushing Shamas's hand away.

"Why would you want to wear a cursed heart when you could just pluck the heart of a beast?"

"I was born an apostle, albeit a false one, and I need a heart that contains a significant amount of magick to sustain my existence."

"Really? Just a heart full of magic, then?"

With those words, Edulis dashed off toward Rekabi, and this is the result.

Looking at the black jewel in Edulis' hand, Shamas hesitated.

"How can I, an Apostle, use the heart of a witch to... does this make sense?"

Then Edulis said.

"You said you couldn't recognize yourself as an apostle, and now you come looking for one?"

"Yes, I did."

Shamas brought his hand to the black jewel.