Succubus cannot be a saint

But at this moment, soft fingertips touched her cheek skin. Sharlele carefully wiped the tears from her face, and then smiled sweetly.

"Are you still calling me 'the Kingdom's Saint', Granny?"

Granny stared blankly at the girl before her. Somehow, her heart suddenly began to itch, her skin began to heat up, and an inexplicable impulse filled her chest, as if her heart were expanding and contracting with happiness, following the shimmering light in the girl's eyes...

"I, I understand, little...little Charlene..."

As she said this, the pink number above her head changed from "?59" to "?60".

Volume 1: From Crazy Daughter to Saint: Chapter 78: Granny's Prayer

"Sister Granny, actually, those things you said were all false, right?"

Sharlene's gentle voice rang in Granny's ears. She shuddered and stared at those purple eyes in disbelief. Even her voice was distorted with nervousness. "...Fake?"

"You said that you ordered the mountain people to rob the body. That's false, isn't it?" Charlotte poked her light brown cheek.

I have to say that this beautiful brown-skinned sister's blue-green facial patterns, coupled with her reddish-brown curly hair, have a unique ethnic style, very similar to the Celtic people on Earth.

The skin is a little rough to the touch. But it doesn't matter, these small flaws will disappear after becoming a succubus.

"Actually, it was the mountain people themselves who acted. You only discovered the grass growing in the fields later, right? You did this just to take the blame on yourself and get me to stop making things difficult for your compatriots, right?"

Hearing this, Granny seemed relieved and hesitated for a long time before nodding, "...Yes."

"Don't worry, Sister Granny, I won't do anything to you. Rather, I want to thank you for discovering such good fertilizer for me." Sharlelei smiled, and Granny was stunned for a moment before she remembered this. She stood up with a shout and almost knocked Sharlelei to the ground.

"I'm sorry! Little Charlene, I'm so excited..." Granny quickly helped her up from the ground, her words incoherent with excitement. "You said that the goddess's horn... can be used as fertilizer... The goddess will give us endless millet to harvest. That's what you mean, right... right!"

Salare gave her a gentle look, nodded, and shook her head, which confused Granny.

"Don't be too happy just yet, Sister Granny. All our current judgments are based on assumptions and speculations based on the current situation. Further testing is needed to prove their correctness."

After hearing what Sharlele said, Granny was completely stunned. The brown-skinned older sister held Sharlele's hand blankly, not knowing what to say for a moment.

Hypothesize, conjecture, test and… prove?

"Those horns do help plants grow luxuriantly, but precisely because of this, we must be cautious." Sharlelei pinched her fingers in a half-annoyed manner. "According to our speculation, the Deer Horned Goddess didn't create the magical beasts. On the contrary, the Deer Horned Goddess is fighting against the power that created the magical beasts."

Granny didn't quite understand what he said, so she could only swallow nervously and nod.

"Horns grow from magical beasts. While they are a symbol of the Antler Goddess, they could also be tainted by 'that power.' If they are indeed contaminated... I can't let Moonspring become another Stratholme... er, I mean, I can't risk food security."

"So, what should we do?"

Although she didn't know what Stratholme was, Granny's mind was completely drawn to Sharlele at this moment.

"We can first reclaim a few plots of wasteland far from water sources and use them as control experiments. Once the crops are grown, we can test them on animals. Once we're sure there are no problems, we can put them into production. At the same time, we must also monitor the fields where we've already buried the horns. If any problems arise, we must burn the land immediately to eliminate any future problems."

Granny nodded in confusion, half understanding what was said. For a moment, she actually felt that compared with this girl who was half her age, she seemed to be the child who knew nothing.

"Before that, I also want you, Sister Granny... to try to communicate with the Deer Horn Goddess again."

Although it is unlikely, it would be best to confirm through the mouth of God whether there is any problem with the batch of monster horns...Salele added in her heart.

Hearing this, Granny opened her eyes wide in surprise. "But... we have tried to pray to the Deer Horned Goddess countless times, but there has been no response..."

"I understand." Salares held Granny's hand and gazed into her deep green eyes. "But this time, we have the monster horn—it's a symbol of the goddess' power, isn't it?"

...........................

An hour later, at Granny's request, Sharlene ordered the horns peeled off from the monster's corpse to be moved from the cellar to a secluded room for her to pray.

Along with this, a magical beast skeleton was also brought in. The flesh and tendons were carefully peeled away from the bones. Even Granny was speechless at the sight of the horns sprouting from the white bones.

In the face of facts, all cover-ups and explanations are pale and powerless.

In addition to being a mountain priestess, Granny is also an experienced hunter who is familiar with the body structure of animals.

This skeleton once again confirmed what Sharlelei had said—those horns grew from the beasts' ribs, leg bones, spines, and even joints. No matter how you imagine it, these monsters absolutely cannot run. Even if they could run, they would constantly suffer the torment of their skin and flesh being torn apart.

Why... didn't we realize this before...

Thinking back to the past scenes, Granny couldn't help but clench her wooden stick in regret.

For a long time, the mountain people have been dragging the corpses of monsters into the fire with great fear and burning them repeatedly, until even the bones, skin, flesh and horns are all burned into a pile of indistinguishable ashes, and then taking them to the edge of the Black Forest and scattering them into the bushes, letting them "return to the arms of the Deer Horned Goddess", in order to pray to the goddess not to let the beast's soul attach to humans and turn humans into half-wolf monsters.

Dissection? No one dared to perform such a blasphemous act, not even to contemplate it. For the mountain dwellers, even glancing at the corpses for even a moment could lead to possession by the beast's spirit and transformation into a werewolf.

Who could have imagined that those horns were a gift from the goddess?

But what made her regret the most was that the one who revealed all this was not even a mountain dweller, but a person from the kingdom, a pagan.

But...it's different now.

Granny turned her head slightly without making any expression and glanced at Shailelei who was standing beside her.

Although the room was filled with the bloody smell from monster bones, the Saint Lady still had a calm smile on her face, as if she didn't smell anything.

"I'm sorry, Goddess. Until now, our clan has failed to understand your intentions and hear your voice. But now, we have decided to make amends for our past mistakes."

So... please answer our prayers.

Granny clenched her hands around the dark green-veined wooden staff. This "Staff of the Soul" was a treasure passed down through the generations of mountain priests. Legend had it that it was made from a branch broken off by the Deer Horned Goddess and could guide the souls of the beasts in the forest.

She took a deep breath, dipped the end of her staff into the paint pot beside her, and drew animal symbols used to worship the Deer Horn Goddess on the ground. She arranged a simple small shrine around the corpse of the monster and the broken horns piled on the corpse.

"Great forest spirit, mistress of the woodlands, mother of beasts, trees, and springs, please hear our call, please answer our prayers—"

....................................

The night is already deep.

Nanned stood beside the burning bonfire, motionless like a piece of wood, just staring blankly at the burning flames.

"It's late at night, Nannide. You can't just stand here all the time." Someone reminded him, and his cracked lips moved, and a hint of life finally appeared on his face.

"The high priestess... Where is the high priestess? Is she back?" he whispered, his voice hoarse and dry.

The mountain people around him looked at each other and whispered, "No."

"That saint from the kingdom must have locked her up and done something to her... We must do something too."

Standing in front of the campfire, Nanned's back almost melted into the shadows.

"But Nanned, the high priest told us not to act rashly..." a mountaineer whispered. But Nanned did not respond. He slowly clenched the hand holding the hunting knife and slowly turned around.

After seeing his face clearly, the two mountain people were shocked, gasped involuntarily, and even let out a low cry of pain.

In the firelight, shadows carved deep into the wrinkles on his face. Nannide's thick lips were pressed tightly together, the muscles in his jaw were twisted and knotted fiercely, veins bulged on both sides of his temples, and his pale eyes stared fixedly at the void ahead.

"The letter was right... The people of the Kingdom cannot be trusted. Lies flow through their veins. They have their gods, and we must rely on ours, too. We must rely on... the Antlered Goddess."

His voice was like the dull rumble of rocks, echoing into the night along with the crackling of the campfire.

"Let's go save the high priest. No matter what the cost."

Volume 1: From Crazy Daughter to Saint: Chapter 79: Howl of the Wolf (Part 1)

Granny's prayers continued late into the night, until the lights in the lord's mansion went out one by one. Only then did the mountain people's high priest open his eyes and sigh tiredly.

"It still doesn't work..."

The room was now empty, except for the pervasive smell of blood and Granny herself. Sharlele had left at some point, and for some reason, looking at the empty room, Granny felt a little lost.

Things did not develop as she expected, and the Antlered Goddess still did not respond to her prayers.

But to Granny's surprise, she wasn't as depressed as she had imagined. At least she knew the goddess hadn't completely abandoned the mountain people, but had been silently protecting them in her own way. That was enough.

With a creak, the door of the room was pushed open, and a beam of light and a small head poked into the room.

"...Isadore?" Granny breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the person's face and smiled gently. "What's going on?"

"Sa...Lady Saint asked me to come see you!" Isadore blinked and raised the basket in her hand. "I brought you some food!"

"Thank you... By the way, little... um... where's your Saint?" Granny smiled, but almost let it slip. Fortunately, she corrected herself just in time, and a blush spread across her cheeks. Fortunately, it's so dark here, no one should notice, she thought.

But all this was seen by the little succubus with night vision. Isadore keenly noticed the blush on Granny's face and couldn't help but become alert.

When Aunt Granny mentioned the Saint, her face turned red... Why?

But soon, a new idea emerged from the bottom of her heart. Isadore bit her lip lightly, went into the room, and closed the door with her backhand, plunging the room into darkness again.

"The Saint is in the laboratory." She whispered. Before Granny could carefully consider the meaning of the word laboratory, she slowly approached the priestess, "Aunt Granny, I have a question for you."

"What's the problem?" Granny's heart tightened. Somehow, facing this girl she'd watched grow up, she felt a tinge of fear. Was it because she'd been blessed by a pagan god? Or was it something else? She couldn't tell.

"Thirteen years ago...what happened?"

"Varied……"

The moment Granny heard this question from the little nun, she nearly dropped her staff. In the dim light, the girl before her silently approached her, her eyes even gleaming with a faint red light.

"So... it was you at that time..." Now Granny finally understood where the sense of incongruity she felt when she was by the ridge of the field came from.

But neither he nor Nanned heard her footsteps, nor saw any figure... Is this also a blessing from the pagan gods?

"Aunt Granny, please answer me. My parents... no, what exactly happened thirteen years ago? Why did Uncle Nannide say... that the people of the Kingdom committed a crime against us?"

Isadore's speech speed became faster and faster, and her pace became faster and faster. She was already close to Granny, and even the basket was creaking because of her subconscious squeezing.

Granny sighed deeply, looking at the two ghostly red lights in the darkness. She simply sat down and patted the clean ground beside her. "Sit down and talk, child."

Isadore sat down beside her as she was told, and Granny opened her mouth, wanting to tell the truth about it all, but she felt inexplicably tongue-tied and that no matter what she said, it would hurt Isadore's feelings.

For a moment, she wished that the eloquent Saint Lady was right here.

"Thirteen years ago, when you were born..." Granny was silent for a moment, slowly choosing her words. "Your father was a merchant from the Kingdom who came to Yuequan Town to do business. Your mother was a mountain dweller, one of our compatriots..."

"I know... Uncle Nannide said my mother has turned back into a flower and returned to the garden of the Deer Horned Goddess... Aunt Granny, what about my father? Did he also return to the garden of the Deer Horned Goddess?"

This time, facing Isadore's question, Granny was silent for a long time.

"I don't know, child. I only know... your mother was... raped by that businessman when he was drunk. He fled the town overnight after committing this heinous crime, and to this day we don't know where he is."

"Not long after, your mother died giving birth to you. I wanted to keep you, but I had to consider the feelings of my fellow compatriots... I'm sorry, child."

She spoke quietly, her gaze fixed on the dark void before her.

"Nanny and your mother are both orphans who grew up together. Although they are not related by blood, they are as close as siblings. If this incident had not happened, they would have..."

At this point, Granny paused. Isadore stared at her, her eyes already filled with tears. Granny sighed deeply, opened her arms, and embraced the little girl.

........................

Walking quietly in the dark night, a mountain man clenched the hunting knife in his hand.

A dark cloud obscured the moonlight, making the towering figure in front of him somewhat unclear. He turned to look at the four or five compatriots around him. They were all carrying bows and arrows, holding hunting knives, and crouched and tiptoed in the shadow of the lord's mansion wall.

Although there were hunters among the mountain people who were more experienced than them, not long ago, Nanned only said one sentence when he decided to set out to the lord's mansion to rescue the high priest.

"I only want those who hate the Kingdom the most. No one else is allowed to follow."

The mountain hunter looked up at the figure in front of him, feeling a chill in his heart.

Nannide, are you really going to...

Under the cover of dark clouds, the mountain folks took advantage of the gaps in the militia patrols and deftly climbed over the courtyard wall. Even they themselves had not expected that invading the lord's mansion would be so easy.

This was because the former guards of the lord's mansion—the extraordinary warrior Durenna—and the most elite and experienced private soldiers were not here. These militias had no reconnaissance experience, so it was naturally difficult for them to be spotted.

But somehow, when he thought about how the Saint Lady had sent her most elite guards and her most reliable bodyguards to the west of the town and to the mountain villages without hesitation to set up defenses, the mountain hunter couldn't help but feel a little shaken.

He knew that the Saint Lady was a good person. But now...

"Nanny..."

When he thought of this, he couldn't help but call out softly, his voice trembling a little.

At this time, the dark clouds left the moon, and the cold moonlight sprinkled in the yard, illuminating a makeshift wooden house and a target full of arrow holes.

There was a faint light in the wooden house. I don’t know what it was used for, but it looked like a place where servants lived.

Nanned only glanced at the wooden house and then looked towards the main house of the lord's mansion.

The saint must be in the main house, enjoying the warmth of the fire in this warm big house, while the high priest... the high priest...

For a moment, the scene from thirteen years ago seemed to resurface in his mind. Hearing his companion's call, he slowly turned his head. The moonlight shone on his twisted and gnarled face, making him look like a demon.

The mountain hunter couldn't help but take a step back, and then he saw that Nanned was holding a small bottle in his hand, which was filled with dark green liquid.

He recognized the bottle. It had been delivered to Granny a few months earlier, along with the mysterious letter, and he had been there. After reading the letter, Granny and Nannette had burned it to ashes, leaving only the bottle.

Although he didn't know the contents of the letter, he still remembered the high priest's mumblings.