Chapter 28: Daphne-senpai, what’s wrong with your neck?
Before the Confessor could break free, a blazing phoenix of flame engulfed him.
“Too noisy~”
The culprit spun her sword with a flourish, sheathing it with a crisp click.
Confessor: Feed me peanuts! Feed me peanuts! Kuruya yabai!
The blonde girl raised an eyebrow, then turned and left without a word.
Ifrora’s gaze lingered on the retreating figure, lost in thought.
“Aphrosia…?”
Her crimson eyes swirled with cryptic emotions, mysterious and unreadable.
What puzzled her was this girl, claiming to be Aphrosia, looked strikingly like Saintess Aitelien Astraea—Flo’s mother.
They couldn’t possibly be lovers…
What were they hiding?
Or was it just playful teasing?
Ifrora didn’t understand.
Or perhaps another possibility: Aphrosia was the Saintess’s true heir.
Then what was Flo?
And what about Sophia, the candidate Saintess in the Church?
Aphrosia and Sophia?
Could they be the same person?
Unlikely, but not impossible.
Curiously, both names ended in “Thea,” raising suspicions.
At a palace banquet, Ifrora had seen the candidate Saintess.
Aphrosia’s appearance was eerily similar.
Why? Were they sisters?
And why had Flo vanished while Aphrosia appeared?
That was suspicious too.
Ifrora’s mind was sharp, but even she couldn’t untangle this web of mysteries.
Yet, why was she even trying to unravel it?
It wasn’t her business.
Was it because Flo was involved?
She wasn’t sure.
Honestly, she didn’t know why she cared so much about Flo.
Because they were rivals? Or something else?
Ifrora didn’t bother digging deeper—or was it that she didn’t want to face the truth?
Maybe it didn’t matter…
She kept staring at the departing figure, making Aphrosia uneasy.
Only when the silhouette vanished did Ifrora turn, smiling at the orphanage group.
“Everyone, follow me.”
Aphrosia sprinted along the black magic trails, moonlight scattering like stardust in her hair.
Suddenly, an emerald glow erupted ahead, and Daphne’s phantom appeared, holding a harp, green vines streaming from her fingertips.
“Senior?” Aphrosia gripped her staff warily.
[Shh, this isn’t something you can handle alone, loser junior.]
Vines coiled around Aphrosia’s wrist.
A ring engraved with the Tree of Life appeared in her palm, its inner band faintly etched with ancient elven script.
Aphrosia’s pupils shrank.
She vaguely recalled this symbol marked the proxy of the Goddess of Nature and Poetry.
To think it would fall into her hands—a half-elf with impure blood…
If the elves, especially the rigid, old-school elders, knew, they’d be furious.
Their coveted prize, in the hands of a “mongrel”?
How dare she!
“Senior Daphne, this?”
[You agreed to be my proxy. Regretting it now? Backing out won’t end well, you loser! What, wanna be chopped up and fed to dogs?]
Daphne set her harp on her lap, one hand on the strings, the other twirling her hair, looking down imperiously.
The blonde girl lowered her head, sneaking glances at Daphne perched on the branch.
She noticed a red mark on Daphne’s neck, mostly hidden by her ornate divine attire.
From Daphne’s three-quarter angle, Aphrosia couldn’t see more, unable to discern what it was.
But clever as she was, she had a hunch.
Ignoring Daphne’s words, Aphrosia flashed a sly smile.
“Senior Daphne~ What’s that on your neck?”
The question caught Daphne off guard, her cute face visibly flushing, her words stumbling.
[L-Loser junior! You’re… meddling… too much!]
“Oh?” Aphrosia’s smile widened, her guess confirmed.
She stepped forward, waving her staff, its end sprouting wings that carried her to Daphne’s side.
Her fingers brushed Daphne’s burning neck—not touching her essence but sensing the hidden burn.
Moonlight pierced the canopy, revealing the mark as feather-shaped, stretching down Daphne’s back.
“Senior’s playing wild too~”
She spun her staff, leaving afterimages.
“This mark… wouldn’t be from Senior Astraea, would it?”
A string on Daphne’s harp snapped.
Vines wrapped around Aphrosia’s waist, pinning her against a tree, Daphne’s green skirt brushing her trembling knees.
[Don’t… talk nonsense! 😱 Loser junior!]
Daphne’s tone carried a dangerous sweetness.
[Believe me, I’ll turn you into vine fertilizer right now!]
Aphrosia’s grin grew slyer—not for any other reason but because, up close, she recognized the mark.
She had one too!
How’d she get it?
Ahem*, why ask so much? Little Thea doesn’t know~
[Hey! You’re getting too bold! 😡 Daring to tease a goddess! ☹️]
Aphrosia only grew bolder, sitting beside Daphne, her face inching closer.
“Oh? Didn’t Lady Astraea hurt you?”
[Hmph, her? 😡]
Daphne was about to boast but caught herself.
Bingo! Not quite!
“Heh heh~ As expected, Senior Daphne?”
[How’d you know? 😳]
Jackpot, nine out of ten!
Daphne’s vines instantly bound Aphrosia’s wrists, pinning them above her head.
Then, she yanked at Aphrosia’s high-collared gown, exposing a bit.
On her snow-white neck was the same mark as Daphne’s.
[Pfft! 😂 What, you’ve got one too? No wonder you knew! 😓]