Flawless

"Ah..."

Under Tilis's control, Eleya's body tensed up instantly. The black flames scorched her soul, forcing a pained moan from her lips.

"Luo... Luo Wei..." she murmured with difficulty, "Believe me... what I said is true. It was because I lacked power that I could only watch helplessly as you vanished before my eyes four years ago..."

"I despise my powerless self. I despise this dark, filthy world. I exiled myself..."

"Now... I've found the solution. This is the only chance. Luo Wei, help me!!"

She screamed in agony, yet even so, she clung to her consciousness, still trying to persuade Luo Wei, unwilling to abandon the shell of this Church envoy.

"She isn't lying," Ophelia said calmly as she walked over, now dressed in fresh clothes.

Everyone turned to her. Tilis snorted coldly. "I doubt your methods would work on her."

"And what good is yours doing?" Ophelia leisurely sat on the sofa, observing the scene of everyone interrogating Eleya. "You were even more stubborn than her before. There's no reasoning with someone who's fallen this deep into darkness. What we need to do now is dismantle her schemes piece by piece, ensuring her plots never come to fruition."

Tilis and Luo Wei approached. Tilis lowered her voice. "Then what's your idea...?"

"Can she be contained?" Ophelia asked, glancing at Luo Wei.

Luo Wei shook his head. "No."

Because Eleya was occupying the body of this Church envoy—an envoy who wasn’t even listed in the conquest options, with no affection meter to speak of.

This, too, had been part of Eleya’s calculations. She knew about Luo Wei’s ability to control others, which was why, from Thornflower Castle until now, she had never faced him directly.

"Figures," Ophelia mused before a smirk curled her lips. "But I still have a way. Even the most resolute individuals have emotions. And where there are emotions, there are weaknesses."

She stepped forward with a smile, locking eyes with Eleya. "Even if you’ve seized control of the Church, secretly infiltrated multiple nations, and formed an open anti-Wegner alliance, deep down, you know you can’t truly shake the Wegner Empire, right?"

Eleya narrowed her eyes. Though she didn’t respond, every micro-expression was caught by Ophelia.

Ophelia’s smile widened. She continued, "So you can only strike from within. Even though Father purged the Anomalous Species within the empire, compared to other nations under the Church’s influence, the empire still harbors the largest number of them."

"They hate humans. They hate the empire. So you plan to exploit that, don’t you? Just like how you handed the 'Ghoul Scriptures' to the Night Crows—many Anomalous Species resistance groups are your pawns, aren’t they?"

Eleya stared back impassively, but Ophelia already had her answer. She turned back triumphantly to Luo Wei and Tilis.

Bound here, Eleya had nowhere to run. And even if she refused to speak, the simplest "yes" or "no" would let Ophelia unravel her entire plan.

"Impressive," Tilis admitted, excitement bubbling within her. She could almost taste Eleya’s impending defeat.

Ophelia pressed further, guiding Eleya’s thoughts. "Pawns are just pawns—they’re not fit for the grand stage. Even if they somehow manage to summon higher beings of their kind, that’s just one piece of your plan, isn’t it? Because you’d never hinge everything on such a gamble."

She went on, "So when they succeed in causing chaos, it’ll scatter the defensive forces, giving you an opening. Let me guess—which of Father’s three personal guards is your mole?"

Ophelia grinned. "Given the precedent of the traitorous Bishop Lawrence, the current Pope Adrian is the most likely candidate, isn’t he? You’re truly something. Adrian’s only been in power for two years, yet you planted your agent that long ago."

Though she spoke mockingly, her eyes were fixed on Eleya’s subtle reactions.

She needed confirmation—because this deduction lacked solid evidence. Eleya’s response was key.

But to Ophelia’s shock, Eleya showed not even a flicker of hesitation. She simply gazed back, her eyes hollow and indifferent.

What’s going on?

Ophelia, unwilling to concede, fired off a few more questions.

Yet Eleya’s demeanor remained unchanged. It was as if she had shed all emotion, leaving no cracks to exploit.

"This doesn’t make sense... How is this possible?" Ophelia slumped back onto the sofa, deflated.

"Earlier, when I burned her soul with flames, it didn’t affect her either. It’s like she doesn’t feel pain at all..." Tilis returned, her expression even more bewildered than Ophelia’s.

"Has she already left?" Tilis muttered, frowning. "Or... has she destroyed the Church envoy’s soul? Is this just an empty shell now?"

"Neither," Luo Wei said, watching Eleya closely. Her gaze followed him as he moved to another seat.

From the start, he’d felt something strange—this detached version of her seemed like an entirely different consciousness from the original Eleya.

When he voiced his thoughts, Ophelia frowned. "Split personality?"

"Wait, I have another idea..." Tilis recounted the details of her battle with Eleya in the snowy mountains. Analyzing it, she said, "Now it seems she can switch between these two consciousnesses seamlessly. And this indifferent one... it’s more like..."

"Divinity," Luo Wei murmured.

Divinity—the symbol of Eleya’s power—had now become a defense mechanism.

"This complicates things..." Ophelia sighed in frustration. "How can divinity be shaken? If she stays like this, we’ll never get anything out of her."

Luo Wei was equally troubled. Eleya had exploited every loophole—first by possessing the Church envoy to block interrogation, then by ensuring her true self wasn’t even present to be contained, and now, with her divine aspect, she had no emotions to manipulate...

This was exactly the kind of meticulous planning he’d expect from her. She’d anticipated every weakness, exploiting them like in-game bugs.

"So what do we do?" Ophelia looked to Luo Wei.

Instead of answering, Luo Wei walked silently up to Eleya. He already had a plan.

Since they’d gathered this much intel, rewinding time to before the sewer operation and tracking down the other underground factions under Eleya’s control might be their best bet.

Moreover, uncovering the other traitors within the Church would grant them a temporal advantage, as Eleya would still be completely unaware at that point—she would be caught off guard.

But just as he was about to act, Eleya, her gaze hollow, spoke in a detached tone:

"A mysterious foresight, knowing the path of the future."

"Or perhaps, like the Key of the Gate, capable of altering the past directly."

"I don’t know which one you are, but either way, it’s a wasted effort."

She regarded Luo Wei coolly. "Since I dared to come here, I’ve prepared for every possibility."

"Luo Wei, please don’t disappoint me further. In this state, I won’t hesitate to take your life. I will eliminate anyone who stands in the way of the Holy Light’s descent."

"Oh, is that so?" Luo Wei met her gaze and abandoned the thought of reloading his save.

"Then you’re bound to be disappointed," Luo Wei said with a smile. "Not only will you fail to kill me, but you’ll also witness the day your Light never touches this world—and watch as your life’s work, the Siston Church, crumbles to dust."