Chapter 1:Villainous Saintess LV99

Aust Empire, Crimson Forest, Rose Knights temporary encampment.

“Everyone’s first monster subjugation, and you’ve done this well already. I’m very satisfied.”

The black hem of her skirt swayed as Isabelle walked through the seated, resting Rose Knights, hands clasped over her abdomen, like a king inspecting her domain.

Her ascetic black hair and black eyes, paired with the faintly glowing transparent teardrop earring on one side and the black ribbon around her pale neck—every gesture radiated an indescribable mystery and allure.

Many knights felt a flutter in their hearts with just one glance.

But that flutter burst like a bubble, popped by her own hand.

Stopping before a young female knight, Isabelle crouched, lifted the girl’s chin with a finger, and gently wiped the grime from her cheek, her tone laced with pity.

“You’re… Aaliyah, right? You look exhausted. Your face is all smudged. You’ll need a good rest when we get back.”

“But before that, can you tell me why there’s no blood on your sword?”

At those words, fear flashed in the girl’s innocent eyes. She clutched her sword tightly and began to tremble.

“Was it that you lacked the courage to strike the monsters, or did you think killing them would be cruel? Aaliyah, can you tell me the reason?”

Isabelle’s smile was radiant. In her presence, it seemed any reason could be forgiven.

Yet… the truth was the exact opposite.

She spoke with a smile, but the temperature around them dropped unnaturally. The other knights turned to the girl, worry in their eyes.

Seeing the girl shake harder, Isabelle’s expression remained unchanged, though her thoughts raced.

She had once been a boy on Blue Star, dying from overwork. When she opened her eyes again, she was a female infant in this other world.

Like the protagonists in the novels of her past life, she possessed extraordinary magical talent. At just twenty years old, she had reached the pinnacle of this world—LV99.

With that power, she easily earned the goddess’s approval, becoming the saintess of the Aust Empire, her influence rivaling the empress herself.

From that point, she had no further ambitions.

She was ready to slack off, to live a leisurely life in this new world.

But then the goddess issued a divine oracle: in less than six years, the abyss seal would shatter completely. The evil dragon would crawl out and destroy humanity.

The way to save the world was to gather those blessed by the gods, train them into demigod warriors above LV90, and slay the dragon the moment it emerged.

Following the oracle, she joined forces with the empress to assemble the blessed ones and form the forty-member Rose Knights.

Then a new problem arose.

These blessed individuals were currently ordinary people with no strength at all. How could she turn them into demigods in just six years?

Their talents were decent, but compared to hers, they were fireflies to the sun—no comparison at all.

Achieving this in six years was nearly impossible.

The goddess offered two possible methods.

First: life-and-death training.

The fastest way to grow stronger was to face mortal danger.

If every training session pushed them to race against death, their strength could skyrocket, potentially giving them the power to slay the dragon in six years.

The downside: constant pressure could warp their minds, and after six years, they might turn on her for revenge.

Second: give them love and care.

Just as they believed in the goddess, they should believe in the knights and in their own efforts to become demigods and defeat the dragon.

Isabelle’s role would be the caring big sister, clearing every obstacle in their path and helping them grow.

Ideally, let them feel the beauty of the world, so they would fight for it without hesitation.

Of course, this method had flaws—it was a gamble from the start, betting that love could create a near-impossible miracle.

Both paths had pros and cons. Choose life-and-death training and risk retribution; choose love and leave everything to fate. Anyone would hesitate.

Except Isabelle.

Her choice—I want both.

So now, facing a young knight who couldn’t bring herself to kill monsters on her first subjugation, Isabelle needed to play the true villain, to show them what life-and-death training meant.

The girl chose to let the monsters live.

Then death would greet her.

“A soul that has never killed is so naive and fragile. Unfortunately, the Rose Knights are no greenhouse. If you want to stay, you must ascend your soul.”

Isabelle stood, smiling as she raised her right hand like a goddess scattering sunlight, her voice tinged with fervor.

“Now, I grant you the grace to ascend your soul.”

“On the first floor of the Hecate Monster Dungeon, many monsters as weak and pitiful as you wander. They’ve been starving for days and desperately want to live.”

“You will be teleported to the deepest part of the first floor, to stay with them. Whether you kill your way out or become their food—that’s up to you.”

As her words fell, a blonde knight shot to her feet.

“Saintess, if you do this, Aaliyah—she’ll die!”

“Oh? So certain?”

Tilting her head, Isabelle blinked innocently.

“Saintess! Aaliyah just hasn’t adjusted yet. She’ll definitely—”

“If she dies, she dies.”

Her words stole the blonde’s breath. She stared in disbelief, unable to comprehend why the saintess before her was so cold-blooded.

“Saintess…”

“I’m doing this for your own good. A knight who can’t even kill monsters—what kind of knight is that? The Rose Knights have no need for such trash.”

Isabelle smiled again.

“Or do you want her to stay, only to drag you down on the battlefield and get you all killed?”

“…Saintess, please give her one more chance!”

“The monster dungeon is her chance. If she walks out, she remains a Rose Knight. If she doesn’t—heh, a useless knight has no right to exist.”

With that, Isabelle pointed at Aaliyah. A golden teleportation circle appeared beneath the girl’s feet, and in the next moment, she vanished from sight.

“Oh, one last thing before I go. Anyone who dares to help her in secret—”

“Will share her crime.”

Her gaze swept over every knight. Her red lips parted, her voice soft and sweet, yet the meaning was as chilling as a demon from the abyss.

Having said her piece, she turned and left, her black skirt tracing a decisive arc. The entire band of heroes trembled in terrified silence.