The Villain Saint is my secondary account

Therefore, only the protection promised by the Holy Maiden of Light gives her some sense of security, after all, the Holy Maiden has truly taken back the imperial city.

But what's giving Ella a headache now is that even if they take back the capital, Serendra herself is still unwilling to accept the throne.

Even though she was currently in the study with Sivirif trying to comfort her, Celinedra's unexpectedly stubborn attitude remained unshaken.

"In times of peace, I would do my best to take on this heavy responsibility out of a sense of duty to my family... But now we live in a chaotic world. If someone as useless as me becomes emperor, he will only drag down the future of the empire."

“That’s not how it works, Your Highness Serendra. Even according to imperial tradition, you are the only legitimate heir.”

Ella was quite helpless.

She originally thought that by clearing away the obstacles and tricking the person back, she could force Serendra to "don the royal robes," but this girl was unexpectedly stubborn and would give up the throne that was given to her for free.

“This so-called ‘legitimacy’ is only derived from bloodline. Just because I was born into royalty does not mean that I am the most correct candidate,” Selindra sighed and shook her head.

"But now it's just you, Your Highness."

Ella really wanted to open up the disheartened girl's head to see what was wrong inside.

Severif couldn't help but chime in, "The people of Aslan need a spiritual symbol to unite them. With me here and the Holy Maiden here, you don't need to worry about any problems."

"If that's the case, I think the Holy Maiden is far more suited to be that kind of person than I am."

Celinedra looked at Ella with deep respect.

No, Ella was speechless. She wasn't even an Aslan. What was Serendra thinking when she said she should inherit the throne?

If they really dared to do that, and announced it, all the elders of Aslan's court would probably jump up in anger, and a second civil war would immediately break out.

"This...is perhaps putting the Holy Maiden in a rather difficult position."

Severif couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his brow.

“I understand your concerns, but the Holy Maiden just said that she has the ability to change my appearance.”

Celinedra said, "If I were to appear in that capacity, those problems would likely be resolved."

If Ella hadn't had some prior contact with Serendra and thus some understanding of her character, she might have thought this guy was plotting some sophisticated scheme, planning to first trick her into working for free to solve Aslan's predicament, and then jump out to reclaim the throne in the name of legitimacy.

To be honest, if that were the case, Ella could understand it to some extent. The problem is that Celinedra's tone was simply very sincere in her relinquishment.

"This won't do, Your Highness. Perhaps we can temporarily allow the Holy Maiden to succeed you in your name, but what will we do in the future after resolving the current predicament?"

Severif spoke in surprise.

Ella's lips twitched, and she couldn't help but turn her head to look at Severif again.

Wait, what is this guy talking about? There's no way he can just take over temporarily, right?

“In the future… perhaps we could ask Femishier for his thoughts.”

Celine initially looked troubled, but then her eyes widened as if a lightbulb had struck her. "However, social gatherings are also a way to continue the royal bloodline. As far as I know, there are some good men in the collateral branches of the family. As long as they can win the Saintess's favor..."

"no??"

A few question marks appeared above Ella's head.

"Your Highness? The imperial throne is of utmost importance; we cannot act recklessly like this..."

“You are absolutely right, Your Holiness.”

Serendra nodded slightly. "That's why I believe this is the right choice for the Empire."

Can you please stop this, girl?

Ella couldn't hold back anymore. How did she manage to persuade someone to put such a huge throne on her own shoulders?

She gestured to Sivirif to say something as well, as Serendra was getting increasingly carried away with her thoughts. There was no way this traditional nobleman of the empire could accept such an abstract idea. She quickly tried to find a reason to bring the topic back on track.

As expected, Severif immediately put on a serious expression after hearing this. "Yes, Your Highness is wise and intelligent. How come I didn't think of this before? In this way, even if the Holy Maiden ascends the throne, it will still be in accordance with the etiquette of royal succession."

"?"

Are you a genius too?

Looking at Sivirif's serious expression, Ella wanted nothing more than to punch him.

She desperately wanted to know if the master and servant weren't just putting on an act to deliberately deceive her.

What kind of respectable saint would transform into an emperor and manipulate state affairs? Do you think she's some kind of sorcerer or enchantress?

But now the public opinion in the small study has reversed, from Ella's previous two-on-one advantage to her now fighting alone against two opponents.

The conversation abruptly shifted from her advising Celinedra to taking over the position to Celinedra and Severif jointly urging her to do so.

"Your Holiness, the empire is now in imminent danger. Demons and sea creatures are invading on a large scale, and evil gods are also lurking. Only you can save the people of the empire."

“Holy Maiden, I have come to deeply admire your figure through our previous collaboration. In the name of our ancestors and the goddess, I hereby swear my allegiance to you.”

"Your Holiness, you possess a kind and intelligent heart, as well as great abilities and far-sighted wisdom. With you leading the empire, its future will surely be bright."

"Lord Saint..."

Ella couldn't take it anymore; she was really struggling to withstand the barrage of verbal attacks from the two of them.

It's unbelievable! I didn't see this eloquent princess with such a worried face when I was comforting Serindra.

And then there's Sivirif, who spent ages trying to persuade his princess to ascend the throne but couldn't say anything useful; it was all Ella talking. Now that they've changed people, it's like he suddenly regained his past life memories—he can come up with all sorts of rhetoric.

"Okay, okay, I understand..."

Still small and delicate, Ella rubbed her temples helplessly. "To deal with the Dark Shepherd, I can temporarily stand in for Your Highness, but I hope you will reconsider after this is over."

Celinedra and Sivirif exchanged a glance, then smiled. "Praise be to your greatness, Your Majesty."

Chapter 225 Pre-battle cleanup

With the matter of the throne tentatively settled, Aslan and his people finally had someone to rely on.

So, in the palace hall, subsequent reports came in like snowflakes, all focused on Ella.

The civil war caused the loss of nearly 20% of the capital's fighting force. Aslan had a small population, so the combined forces of the royal guards and the lords' allied forces, which were brought under their control, amounted to about 150,000 men.

The 20,000 troops belonging to the imperial city and the 20,000 personal guards of the various lords can be considered elite.

The Sky Knights were a special case. Although they did not suffer many losses in the battle, their leader, Lancelot, decisively led his confidants to break through the encirclement after the defeat was announced from the rear.

Since the air force was riding griffins, Elon and Julius didn't have much of a way to deal with the guy who was running towards the horizon.

Since their main target was the palace, the allied forces didn't waste too much effort chasing after this guy.

This ultimately led to most of the Sky Knights being taken away from the capital by this guy, leaving only a small number of noble sons from the capital who chose to surrender.

This small group of Sky Knights numbered approximately two hundred. Of the two vice-captains in the group, one had been taken away by Lancelot, and the other, Garethontepro, had either died in the Dawn Forest. Therefore, the remaining Sky Knights were temporarily placed under the command of Reinhardt.

A group of players belonging to the company were not so lucky; they couldn't fly, so they were all captured after the palace fell.

Although Astra could fly alone, under the righteous encirclement and suppression of Alina and the two sword saints who arrived later, even as a god, his strength was limited to the Saint rank by the laws of the world, and he really couldn't use any more methods.

Seeing the situation was dire, the goddess girl tried to escape despite the attack, but was nearly smashed into a pulp by the golden hammer summoned by Alina's holy light.

In the end, she was humiliated and became Ella's prisoner, captured by Ella and taken to the dungeon beneath the palace to be used as nourishment for extracting divine power.

"Ugh... You'd rather be killed than be defiled by such despicable means, you damned witch!"

The scene in the dungeon was indeed full of blasphemous connotations. Poor Astra, her thin body wrapped in an evening gown, was covered by thick, black mud plastered firmly to the wall, like a giant cocoon.

Dense tentacles covered its entire body, writhing and coiling, leaving only its open mouth exposed, hysterically cursing.

"That won't do,"

Ella watched Astra scream in agony from beneath the giant cocoon. "You must live to provide a continuous supply of divine power. I won't do something as short-sighted as killing the goose that lays the golden eggs."

As they spoke, a figure was also stuck to the wall in a large cocoon, whimpering and struggling in the black mud. This was Silvana, the neighbor that Ella had found for Astra, simply because she discovered that the Chosen Ones could also be used as sources of divine power, although not as many as the real gods, but still a little.

Thanks to the selfless dedication of the two girls, Ella did grow a little taller than before, probably by about two years, but she was still quite different from her original appearance.

However, the cooldown of the portal didn't take as long as before, so she directly opened the spatial ripple to return to the stronghold mansion and found Councilor Wend waiting there.

This guy looks increasingly old; he seems to have aged several years in just one night.

Unlike Ella, who never sleeps day or night, he sits on the sofa with his eyes closed, holding his cane and remaining motionless like a statue.

If it weren't for his faint breathing, Ella might have thought he was dead.

"Wake up, wake up! Your information is wrong."

Ella showed no respect for elders or children, casually summoning a small tentacle to lightly pat the other's head. "Where are the promised deities in the palace to help me restore my divine power? The ascension plan is imminent, and I haven't fully recovered to my peak yet."

"Um……"

Congressman Wendt slowly opened his eyes, his voice hoarse, "How many members the company leaves behind to defend the city... is not something I can control..."

"But on the bright side, this also saves you some effort in taking over the palace, doesn't it?"

"But what happens next?"

Ella lightly jumped back and sat on the desk behind her, crossing her legs. "Am I supposed to fight Elias in this state?"

"And the Tomb of the Gods..."

Councilor Wendt seemed to be pondering something, and slowly said, "If Elias can use the Tomb of the Gods to restore his power, then naturally you can use it as well."

"All seven divine tombs, except for the one in Loren, are under the other party's control."

Ella waved her hand. "The fall of Molten City proves that the enemy can use the Nexus to open a giant portal at the God's Tomb location, which means their forces can guard all the God's Tomb at the same time."

“These seven are merely the tombs of the gods of life… In fact, there is another tomb, the place where light fell.”

Councilor Wendt said in a deep voice, "However... I don't know where that place is either."

"...Then what's the use of this?"

Ella was speechless.

"But I know who will know."

Representative Wendt smiled kindly.

Ella stroked her chin, then raised an eyebrow. "The God of Dreams?"

"You are so wise."

Councilor Wendt nodded slightly. "That sir was the last follower of the light. If it is Him, He should know where the Father of the Gods fell."

"That guy's being so secretive, where am I supposed to find her now?"

"With only two days left in the upgrade plan, the old gods at the top of the company will also gather their wills at the God Tomb Hub."

"Oh?"

Ella narrowed her eyes. "After all this talk, you just wanted to lure me to Hub Town, right? It seems that the lack of a few pieces of divine fertilizer is not a coincidence."

"I can't hide it from your eyes, sir."

Councilor Wendt didn't mince words; instead, he readily admitted, "The Hub Town is both a spatial convergence point for the divine tombs and a place where the divine power of all the divine tombs intersects."

"Only there can the power of that deity be restored to drive you away."

Ella initially thought she had misheard, but after a while, when she realized what she had heard, she couldn't help but laugh.

"From what you're saying, are you planning to expel me as well in the end?"

"Because if the plan goes smoothly, you will be the last supreme god still walking in the mortal world."

Councilor Wendt said unhurriedly, "The seal of the ancient chief god still remains. Although some demon gods and some subordinate gods still exist, I have already left the method to drive them out of this world to future generations..."

Ella snapped her fingers, and the study floor instantly turned into a black swamp, with countless tentacles rising up to lift Senator Wendt's hunched body off the ground.

"Since that's the case, I might as well just take care of you first."

The girl's voice was cold, and a chilling killing intent flashed in her eyes.

Chapter 226 The Unkillable God

"Uh……"

Congressman Winder was already old, and the way his tendrils were pulled together almost made him fall apart.

Even so, he responded in a broken voice, "Holy Maiden... even if you kill me... it won't change... the continuation of the plan..."

"Thoughts are interconnected...the will of humanity...will continue to be passed down..."

"Humph."