Somewhere back in the capital of WQSC, Anika opened her eyes with a lost expression on her face.
“Where am I?” Anika asked herself.
She suddenly remembered the events of the past few days and immediately stood up to find Mathew, but she was unable to.
That was because she had been locked up in a dark underground cellar beneath the cathedral.
“How did I get here?” Anika asked, feeling a bit of fear.
At that moment, she began hearing footsteps coming closer and closer until they eventually stopped right in front of her cell, revealing an old man in his early seventies.
He wore a long robe with intricate golden lines surrounding it.
Of course, the old man standing there was Pope Thadious.
Anika raised her head and noticed the person in front of her cell.
“Who are you?
Please let me out.”
The pope opened the cell, forming a worried expression on his face as he approached her with feigned concern.
“I’ve finally found you, child.
Thank the constellations you and your friend are alive.”
The pope held her tightly and helped her stand before leading her away from the prison cell.
As Anika was led away, she turned toward the pope.
“What happened to me, Your Holiness?” she asked.
The pope shook his head and answered, “You were kidnapped, child, when your orphanage was attacked.
I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything to help.
If I had known, I would have come right away.”
Hearing this, Anika’s face filled with shock as she tried to remember when the orphanage had been attacked, but for some reason, she couldn’t.
The pope opened a door that led upward toward the exit.
“Don’t you remember what happened, child?” the pope asked.
Anika stared at him with a lost expression.
“No… I don’t remember any of it.”
Hearing that, a faint smile played on the pope’s lips.
Anika suddenly grabbed his robe, her expression turning worried.
“Did anyone besides me survive the attack, Your Holiness?”
The pope turned to her.
“Yes.
Someone else besides you survived.
Two people, in fact.
But the rest of the orphaned children, the nuns, and everyone else unfortunately didn’t make it out alive.”
Hearing that, Anika couldn’t think straight.
After a while, both she and the pope exited the cellar.
Anika looked around and realized she was in the capital.
“So who are the other people who survived?” she asked.
The pope adjusted his robe.
“The other survivors were a young boy with black hair—the one who formed the Supreme Soul Core—and the one with the Divine Core.”
Anika was relieved to hear that Kane and Mathew had survived.
The pope took Anika’s hand, and together they entered a carriage that carried them toward the Imperial Palace.
Once they arrived, Anika couldn’t remove the depressed expression from her face.
She turned to the pope.
“Why are we going to the Imperial Palace?”
The pope looked back at her with a smile.
“We’re going because of your safety.
The people who attacked your orphanage did so to get rid of you.”
Anika could no longer sit still and immediately leaned forward.
“What?
Do you know who they were, Your Holiness?”
“We do not know everyone who participated in the attack,” the pope replied, “but we have discovered the mastermind behind it.”
Anika’s expression suddenly turned furious.
“Who was it?”
The pope studied her for a moment.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you, child.”
Anika grabbed the pope’s sleeves tightly.
“Just say it!
Who dared to attack the orphanage and kill all those innocent people?”
The pope smirked slightly before replacing it with a sad expression.
“It was the Divine being who did it—the one who formed the Divine Core.”
Hearing that, Anika’s mind went blank as she entered a state of complete shock.
“You mean Mathew was the one who planned the attack on the orphanage?
That can’t be true!
Why would he do that?”
The pope sighed.
“I don’t know either.
But don’t worry—I’ve already placed a bounty on his head and informed the other world quadrants as well.
No matter where he runs, he’ll be a wanted criminal.”
Anika still couldn’t believe it.
With clenched fists, she looked back at the pope.
“There’s no need to place a bounty on him.”
The pope shifted slightly.
“And why is that?” he asked.
Anika clenched her fists even harder and turned toward the pope with sharp eyes.
“Because I’m going to kill him myself.
Even if he is Divine.”
Hearing that, the pope smiled faintly.
“Good.
As children of the Flame, we shouldn’t let evil acts go unpunished.”
The carriage eventually stopped in front of a massive castle surrounded by four towering walls.
Soldiers—both Awakened and Ascended—stood guard at the gates, wielding weapons.
Upon seeing the pope, the guards allowed the carriage into the palace grounds.
Anika stepped down from the carriage and walked alongside the pope into the palace.
The pope eventually led her into a room containing a huge bed and intricate decorations.
A wardrobe stood against the wall, already filled with dresses her size.
“This is where you’ll be staying from now on, child,” the pope said.
“Or should I call you ‘my lady’ from now on?”
Anika didn’t bother sparing him a glance.
“Call me whatever you want.
And tell me…” She paused for a moment.
“Does your offer to admit me into the Imperial Academy still stand?”
The pope straightened his posture.
“Of course it still stands, my lady.”
Anika walked forward.
“Alright.
I’ll join your academy if it can make me powerful enough to end him.”
The pope folded his hands behind his back.
“Wonderful, my lady.
But I have to leave now and address some important matters.
Since our Emperor isn’t currently in the capital, it’s up to me to resolve issues concerning our quadrant.”
Anika glanced at him.
“Alright then.”
With that, the pope turned and took his leave.
“By the way,” he added, “your other friend is in the room at the end of the hall.”
Then he shut the door behind him.
After a while, Anika took a shower, changed into fresh clothes, and headed toward the room at the end of the hall.
She knocked and waited for an answer.
Eventually, she heard Kane’s voice.
“Come in.”
She opened the door and walked into the room, seeing Kane standing by the window with a distant expression.
“How are you feeling, Kane?”
Kane turned his head to stare at her.
“You heard what that bastard did to us, right?”
Anika shifted slightly.
“Yes.
I just heard.”
Kane stretched out his hand and grabbed a cup of water.
“So what now?
Do you still think we should let him go?”
Anika thought for a moment.
“I’ve already decided to join the Imperial Academy to become stronger and kill him myself.
That bastard needs to pay for what he did.”
He paused before continuing.
“Even though I didn’t have that much attachment to the orphanage like you did, it’s still despicable to do something like that.”
Hearing him, Anika finally spoke.
“Me too.”
Kane stumbled slightly and looked at her.
“You what?”
Anika walked toward Kane and stood by his side.
“I’ve decided to attend the Imperial Academy and become so strong that I’ll never have to worry about protecting anyone ever again.”
Kane felt strange while looking at the intense and sharp gaze in her eyes.
“That’s good to hear, Anika.”
At the upper level of the Imperial Palace, the pope walked into his quarters and removed his outer robes, placing them on a sofa.
He then closed the door and used his ability to summon runes, creating a communication portal.
On the other side of the portal, a deep masculine voice spoke.
“So, how did it go with the Sacred Child?
Did the drug work?”
The pope smiled brightly.
“It worked even better than I expected, my liege.
They don’t remember a single thing and plan to join the Imperial Academy.”
“Good work, Thadious.
I expect the girl to be well-trained by the time I return.”
The pope bowed.
“Yes, my liege.”
With that, the runes disappeared, shutting off the communication.
Anika returned to her room and thought to herself:
“All this happened simply because I was weak and couldn’t do anything.
Lady Godspell, Miss Irene, and the other kids are all gone because of that monster.”
She folded her fists and bit her tongue.
“I’m going to become stronger—stronger than any other person who’s ever lived—in order to protect myself.
But to do that, I’ll need power.
Not just raw power, but political power too.”
She smiled while looking out over the capital from her room.
“In that case… I’ll just become the next ruler of WQSC.”