Chapter 239-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation
Inside the elegant palace stood countless exquisite furnishings. Masterpiece paintings lined the walls. A finely dressed man stood with his head tilted back, admiring them. Not far away, a girl waited with her head bowed. The room was so quiet one could hear a pin drop.
"Heath." The Emperor finally turned around. "I have a reply letter here. Deliver it to the Pope."
Heath took the letter. From above came the man's amused voice. "It's just pleasantries, nothing more. You and Ye Zheng are on good terms—a perfect excuse to visit a friend."
"…Ever since Her Holiness became the Sei Curia's Saintess, we've drifted apart. I wouldn't call us particularly close friends."
"Is that so? Last time you used my name to divert Bai Yi, I assumed Ye Zheng had instructed you to do so."
He was referring to the incident at Ye Zheng's coming-of-age ceremony, when she had invoked the Emperor's authority to halt the clash between Bai Yi and Wen De's group.
Heath's knees began to weaken again. She hastily raised her innocent eyes and shook her head. "You know how devastating Duke Bai Yi's abilities can be, Your Majesty. The guests were still sheltering nearby. If things had gotten out of hand, the casualties could have been far worse."
"Please forgive my presumptuousness, Your Majesty."
Heath bowed deeply.
"Your Majesty?" The Emperor noted the form of address, and his smile deepened. "Why aren't you calling me Father anymore?"
"Heath wouldn't dare. You are father to all the people, the eternal sun of the Empire."
The Emperor studied the bowed princess, as if trying to discern something.
A long moment passed before he spoke. "Very well. Go deliver the letter to Ye Zheng—and have Qin Lu come report on the palace restoration progress. No more delays."
Heath nodded repeatedly and withdrew with the letter.
The Emperor turned back. His distant gaze settled on a vivid painting. The longer he stared, the more it grated on his eyes. With a sweep of his hand, the frame crashed to the floor, revealing the hollow white wall behind it.
Ye Zheng had agreed, just as he'd anticipated—yet he couldn't shake an irritating sense of unease. Something felt off.
Perhaps it was this secondary palace, too secluded and monotonous. He preferred the old Imperial Palace. That fool Sykes had destroyed the better part of it, but the outer defenses were still largely intact—safer and more familiar than this place.
Five hundred years ago, before he entered that body, the memories belonging to Vincent Aston had apparently been damaged during the struggle with Margaret, leaving only fragments.
He might not be the real Vincent Aston, but he was without question the true Aston XIV, ruler of this nation for five centuries. If this world truly had a god, it could be no one but him.
Creating a "God of Hope" had been a stopgap measure at the time. To combat Margaret after she became the demon dragon, he'd had no choice but to fabricate a righteous deity and nail her permanently to the wrong side of justice.
He had planned to discard the "God of Hope" once the disaster ended. He hadn't expected Marcy to appear out of nowhere, building her own power on top of his web of lies—even turning around to constrain him!
The man's fists clenched involuntarily.
The existence of the "God of Hope" was annoying enough. Were it not for the Sei Curia's genuine usefulness, he would never have allowed it to survive to this day.
In truth, before the West District incident, he had never given Ye Zheng serious thought.
At that round-table meeting where he'd summoned the three of them, he had studied Ye Zheng closely for the first time. Those calm dark eyes gazed back at him, and for reasons he couldn't explain, fragmented memories stirred somewhere deep within.
Before the recollection could surface fully, a spine-chilling cold crept over his body. He froze for a moment, and the memory fragments scattered like a kite with its string cut, vanishing without a trace.
From that point on, Ye Zheng had been on his kill list.
First, destroy Ye Zheng's reputation and strip away the people's faith in her. Then have Percy, wielding the Divine Sword, step forward to kill her. Finally, he would take over "Percy's" body, grant "Percy" a Royal Family identity, and continue sitting comfortably on the throne.
It sounded perfect. Yet when it came to Ye Zheng, Aston XIV found himself, for the first time, contemplating a contingency plan. If he failed…
Then he would become "Heath."
Whether Heath's performance was genuine devotion or a survival act, her greatest value to him was as a backup vessel.
If her reverence was sincere, he wouldn't mind granting her a few extra perks for being so attentive and useful. If not… he probably wouldn't be able to resist killing her.
Outside the secluded palace, Heath walked quietly along the garden path, letter in hand, her expression taut.
The envelope was unsealed, yet she remained proper, showing no curiosity about its contents.
The Emperor was testing her loyalty. But no matter how distant she and Ye Zheng appeared, he would never trust her completely. Once suspicion took root, she might be smothered in her bed any night.
Heath thought: she had to find a breakthrough.
*
The Papal Palace, reception room.
Ye Zheng was surprised by Heath's visit. The moment she heard Heath had come on the Emperor's orders to deliver a letter, her gaze carried a touch of concern.
"Heath, you saved Wen De and the others last time. They've been wanting to thank you in person."
"Oh, there's no need. I just happened to lend a hand."
Heath waved it off with a modest expression, somewhat stiffly picked up her teacup, and took a small sip.
After that exchange, silence settled between them. Ye Zheng observed quietly and confirmed that Heath had no intention of confiding in her or asking for help.
The princess could request to become a nun in service of the divine. Under her protection as Pope, Heath could leave the Royal Family and escape the old monster that was the Emperor.
But since Heath showed no such inclination, Ye Zheng let the topic pass.
"How is Teacher Qin Lu lately? She's overseeing the Imperial Palace reconstruction alongside the other royals—she must be busy."
At this, a small smile finally appeared on Heath's face. She nodded. "Oh, absolutely. Those people don't know what they're doing—barking random orders—and Teacher Qin Lu has to clean up their messes."
The mention of a teacher they both knew and adored seemed to restore their old rapport and closeness—as if Ye Zheng had never become the Saintess, and they were still in the same classroom, exchanging knowing glances and stifling laughter at their elderly professor's comical slips of the tongue.
They chatted for a while, and Heath visibly relaxed. Knowing Ye Zheng was busy, she didn't want to take up more of her time and rose to say goodbye.
"Heath."
Ye Zheng's voice stopped her from behind.
"Tell Qin Lu—there's no rush."
Heath paused for a moment. She understood what Ye Zheng meant.
The solitary princess left the Papal Palace. She did not return to the temporary royal residence, but headed instead for the Imperial Palace under renovation.
After Heath departed, Ye Zheng lingered in the reception room. She drew out the letter Heath had delivered.
Nothing but hollow pleasantries from the Emperor. Not a shred of substance.
The letter's real purpose wasn't about her—it was about Heath.
Ye Zheng gazed out the window. The sturdy old trees were budding with new growth. The sky was clear as a mirror. Everything pulsed with flourishing vitality. A pity that at a time like this, too few could afford to stop and appreciate it—everyone was rushing along their own path.
She had truly gotten to know Heath eight years ago, in spring.
At a garden party, her brother—the second prince, Lemon—had shoved her to the ground. The ghastly bloodstains had even soaked through her heavy skirts. Amid the crowd's pitying gazes, Ye Zheng was the first to step forward and help her up.
She tried to take her to a Royal healer, but the small, silent princess frantically refused, insisting she just needed to rest in her chambers.
Ye Zheng understood. She escorted her to her room and left, even thoughtfully telling others that she had already bandaged Heath's wounds.
Because of this incident, the second prince Lemon was shut away by the furious Empress for a long stretch of disciplinary education, and was forbidden from going near his sister again. At the time, the current Empress still harbored the slim hope that the second prince might replace Sykes for the succession and didn't want him tarnished by scandal.
As it happened, she and Heath attended the same school, and the two gradually grew close.
Those simple, beautiful memories were like the spring scenery outside the window—fit only for a passing glance in idle moments. Neither she nor Heath could return to that innocent past.
A breeze stirred. Ye Zheng closed the window and left the empty reception room.
*
"Your Holiness, are you certain you want to send them to apprehend Sierra?"
Wen De looked at the names on the list and raised one eyebrow.
"Yes. Is there a problem?"
Seated in a deep crimson high-backed chair, the Pope gazed out with guileless dark eyes, chin propped on one hand.
"I see. Rest assured, Your Holiness—this operation will go very smoothly."
Wen De bowed. Having grasped Ye Zheng's intent, she couldn't suppress a small upturn of her lips. By the time she raised her head, her expression had returned to its usual gravity.
The bombing of Empire Central Station had been officially attributed—under the Pope's ruling—to the extremist organization "The Disciples." The Sei Curia had every legitimate reason to dispatch forces to eliminate Sierra and her band of radicals.
The names on the list were mostly internal opponents of Ye Zheng within the Sei Curia. Sierra wasn't the real target; using Sierra to put a scare into those people was.
Wen De suspected there were deeper reasons behind it all, but as always, she didn't pry.
Ye Zheng, of course, had no intention of following the Emperor's script to the letter. She had told him she would capture Sierra first, then announce to the Empire the existence of a demon dragon vessel—this way, public panic could be minimized.
Faced with that reasoning, the Emperor couldn't find a suitable objection. He approved her arrangement and awaited news of Sierra's capture from the Sei Curia.
"Sierra…"
Ye Zheng tilted her head, feeling a twinge of guilt toward Sierra. But she simply couldn't afford to take such a piece off the board.
Speaking of Sierra—she wondered how Lucy was doing. Annabelle and the others hadn't been able to reach Lucy, and Sierra still seemed to have people searching for her.
Ye Zheng wasn't particularly worried. Sierra didn't actually dislike Lucy. She only resented Lucy slipping beyond her control, which made her feel unsafe again—Sierra was a child who found it very hard to feel secure.
As for Lucy… she was actually the person Ye Zheng worried about least. Now that Lucy had left Percy's Cloud-Soaring Squad, far from the irrational plot and the turmoil of the upper district, and free of any special identity or mission, Lucy could live a relatively peaceful life in the West District—like an ordinary student.
Percy and his two teammates had recently joined Bai Yi's knight order. Word was that Bai Yi was personally training them.
Bai Muqing had not returned to the Royal Knight Order. She had been placed under house arrest by her family.
Ye Zheng let out a soft sigh. She didn't know the details, but a gilded, hollow castle couldn't hold Bai Muqing forever. Perhaps once she sorted through certain things, she would walk out of the prison in her own heart.
She had already made contact with Wen Xin's group in the lower district. On the surface they ran a publishing house; in secret they had cultivated a sizable network—all her mouthpieces, hidden among ordinary citizens, ready to steer the tides.
It was time to make people curious about where Crown Prince Sykes had gone.
*
Ye Zheng arranged everything methodically, monitoring developments on all fronts. In her spare time, she trained her abilities, striving to integrate [Stream] and [Mother of All Things] for more effective combined use.
Then an unexpected piece of news brought her orchestrating hand to an abrupt halt.
Qin Lu had been arrested on charges of attempting to assassinate the Emperor, and was awaiting trial.
*
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