“What is the situation now?” Roseliel tried her best to make her voice sound calm enough.
She needed to fill the information gap between her and Ophelia as quickly as possible.
“Extremely poor.” Ophelia’s expression darkened slightly. “Ever since you were betrayed and died a hundred years ago, the Wandering Snake School has declined rapidly. Currently, there are likely fewer than a hundred members of our branch remaining in the world.”
She paused, her voice dropping a few octaves. “Though the other two schools remain powerful, they have long since deviated from their original goals. Now, they are more like people who cause destruction for the sake of destruction, and kill for the sake of killing.”
“The voice of the Great Snake God hasn’t echoed in our hearts for over a hundred years.”
Roseliel listened to this, completely stunned.
It seemed that the clergy of this world truly could hear the voices of gods. Although she, a transmigrator who had grown up under the red flag, instinctively didn’t believe in such things, after seeing living corpses, spells, and vengeful spirits with her own eyes, a “Divine Revelation” didn't seem all that hard to accept.
Wait a minute...
If the Snake God’s voice could no longer reach this world, didn't that mean no one could ever expose her identity as a fake Saintess?
Realizing this, Roseliel felt slightly more at ease.
“No need to worry.” Roseliel put on an air of importance, her tone deliberately drawing out a bit. “Now that I have descended, I will surely make the Lord’s glory shine once again.”
How chuuni.
Roseliel couldn't help but recall her middle school days, back when she was the most powerful Dark Shadow Queen in the entire school.
Ophelia merely allowed the corners of her mouth to curve up in a very faint arc before lowering her head again. “Then my Master’s deathbed entrustment was not in vain.”
Master?
Roseliel’s brow twitched slightly. “Deathbed? What happened to her?”
Ophelia’s eyelids lowered, her entire being sinking back into the shadows of her hood. “Decades ago, Master accidentally exposed her trail and was discovered and hunted by traitors of the same race. Powerful as she was, she was ultimately outnumbered and died under a traitor’s blade.”
She paused for a moment, her voice even softer. “That she could not personally awaken you and continue to serve you was the regret of her life.”
Well, I don't understand any of that.
However, judging by these words, that Master was also someone who had seen the real Saintess. The fewer people who knew the real Saintess, the better it was for her.
“Another old friend lost.” She could only play along, putting on a look of deep sorrow.
“A hundred years ago, I was still young and lacked the strength to be your aid.” Ophelia pressed her right hand to her chest and bowed slightly. “Now, please allow me to serve as your right hand and complete our great cause with you.”
“Mm, I believe you will become a capable assistant no less than your Master.” Roseliel nodded.
Another piece of good news: Ophelia didn't know the former her either. She could act to her heart's content!
Thinking of this, Roseliel suddenly felt it was a bit funny. As a transmigrator, she had to play the role of the originally wicked Roseliel, and now she had to play the role of a Saintess she hadn't even figured out herself.
I hope I don't develop a split personality one day.
“Ophelia.” Roseliel clenched her fists, showing an expression of suppressed resentment and frustration. “Although I have returned, as you can see, this body is far too weak. I need to increase my strength.”
Roseliel took the opportunity to reap some perks from the Snake Cult.
Judging from the fact that she, a transmigrator from Earth, could immediately use the spells Roseliel herself possessed, the power in this world was likely tied to the physical body. Saying this shouldn't expose her.
“Master already considered this for you.” Ophelia flipped her hands, and two items appeared out of thin air.
A simple, heavy book with worn edges. And a pair of uniquely shaped scimitars, lying quietly in the moonlight.
“This book records the soul magic collected a hundred years ago. Today, the vast majority of such spells have been destroyed or sealed; this is nearly the last copy in existence.” She glanced at the pair of scimitars again. “And these weapons... were used by you back then. I return them to you now.”
Ophelia presented both items with both hands, and Roseliel took them. She set the scimitars aside first, opening the book to scan the contents.
Then, she was thoroughly shaken.
The pages were filled with dense, cryptic squiggles; she hardly recognized a single character. The last time she had felt this much despair looking at a book was when she opened her brand-new Functional Analysis textbook right before university finals.
With the original body's meager foundation in magical studies, she could barely recognize it as likely being Ancient Elvish. In other words, if she wanted to understand it, she would first have to find a teacher to learn a minority language.
Given the situation, she might as well look at the scimitars first.
She put the book down and picked up the two scimitars. The blades were slender and slightly curved, their surfaces carved with snake-scale patterns. They shimmered with a deep, dark luster under the moonlight, like two snakes forged from metal resting quietly in her palms.
The hilts took the imagery of a 'snake' to the extreme. They felt cool, and holding them was like grasping a living venomous snake. The pommels were sculpted into snakeheads with tongues slightly flicking out, the curves fitting her palms perfectly.
A sigil was engraved in the center—a sinister viper.
The weight of the blades was unexpectedly light. She gave them a casual couple of swings, the sound of them cutting through the air clean and sharp, the edges leaving a faint trail of light as they sliced through the air.
As she used them, Roseliel discovered another surprise.
The ends of the two hilts could be connected. With a gentle twist and click, the two scimitars merged into one, becoming a double-headed blade.
Roseliel’s eyes lit up. The dual-wielding form was light and nimble, perfectly complementing her small and more flexible physique. And the combined double-headed form made up for her lack of attack range; for someone small like her, her greatest fear was being unable to reach her opponent.
“There is one more thing,” Ophelia said. “Master made improvements to your weapons.”
“Oh?” Roseliel stopped her swinging, her eyes shining.
You mean there's another surprise?
“If you capture souls, you can seal them within the blades. Over time, the blades will nurture their own consciousness, and they will become increasingly easy to use.”
“Excellent.” Roseliel put away the book and blades with satisfaction. “I accept them. As expected of my capable subordinate, you have prepared everything quite thoroughly.”
“If Master knew her arrangements finally served their purpose, she would be able to rest in peace.”
Roseliel felt a slight twinge of guilt. Her Master probably... would never be able to rest in peace.
“It is almost time.” Ophelia bowed slightly. “If I remain here too long, I will attract the attention of the Holy See of the False God.”
“When do you plan to rejoin us?”
“There’s no rush.” Roseliel waved her hand. “I have already secured a suitable opportunity to blend into the kingdom's interior. I intend to lay low for now and seek opportunities while using this identity to obtain resources to restore my strength.”
Rejoin? That would be walking right into the tiger's den; she wasn't that stupid.
“Understood.” Ophelia didn't question her. She handed over a piece of talisman paper drawn with symbols Roseliel completely failed to understand. “Should you encounter danger, please ignite this rune, and I will appear to protect you.”
“Those two items can be hidden within your soul on a daily basis to prevent suspicion. They themselves were crafted using your soul fragments, so even in your current, not-yet-fully-restored state, you should be able to store them within.”
A soul could actually be used to store things! Roseliel was quite surprised.
However, she wasn't actually the same person as that Saintess; she probably wouldn't be able to store them.
Even if she could, she didn't plan on doing it. Just as Ophelia said, these things were made from fragments of the original Saintess's soul, and Roseliel didn't want to mix foreign matter into her own soul.
What if she got possessed? That would be the end of her.
Roseliel took them solemnly and tucked them away carefully.
“Thank you for your hard work.” Roseliel nodded.
Ophelia said nothing more, only giving another half-bow. Then, her body seemed to melt into the moonlight. Starting from the edges, she became transparent, until she and her white clothes faded away, gradually dispersing into the air.
The room was suddenly left with only the faint whistling of the night wind squeezing through the cracks in the window.
Roseliel stood in place for a few seconds. After confirming that the presence had completely vanished, she let out a long breath of turbid air.
She took two steps back and plopped down onto the edge of the bed. Looking down at the talisman in her palm and then up at the moon, it felt as though the moonlight had dimmed slightly with Ophelia’s departure.
“Survived another one,” she whispered to herself, then placed the talisman into an inner pocket close to her body.
Rate on N.U.
