A saintess? She's just a bad woman.

Page 132

It's worth noting that when she met Saint Karina in the Black Forest, she had a heated argument and even physically assaulted Saint Karina over a piece of merchandise, intending to teach Saint Karina a lesson. If that lesson had succeeded, it would have left an indelible mark on the victim, both physically and mentally.

“No amount of protection is too much, Miss. As the housekeeper of the Graham family, I am doing this for your own good.”

Okay. The housekeeper is quite stubborn in some ways.

"Rest assured, Ms. Melville, I assure you, I will do everything in my power to find the family crest that is so important to Miss Graham. Curtis and I are both excellent wizards, and I am also skilled in swordsmanship. You know, magic swordsmen and wizards are usually very good at finding things."

"Alright... Since my young lady has said so, and you have assured me, I will not object."

The housekeeper eventually gave in.

She probably couldn't find anyone else; the Graham family's predicament was likely already well-known in aristocratic circles.

Those proud and self-proclaimed noble true magicians would not help a family that is on the verge of decline.

"Thank you, Melville."

Miss Graham was overjoyed to see that the housekeeper, who had taken care of her since childhood and was like a mother to her, had finally relented.

Then, she gave a concise yet relatively detailed explanation of the Graham family's coat of arms, its importance, symbolism, and the fact that the gems embedded in it were precious magical gems.

What she said matched the information the housekeeper had previously revealed, and was even more detailed. However, one detail caught Saint Karina's attention... that was about the young lady's own curse, which she didn't mention at all.

"You must find my things before the moon gets angry tomorrow. Otherwise... it will be too late for my family, my marriage... all our efforts will be in vain."

"I understand, Miss Graham. We will do our best and not let you down."

Santa Karina nodded, and then left with Curtis.

They first left the Graham family's territory. It was actually quite large, with a very grand mansion, a large garden and courtyard, and some precious, aged artifacts. The antique paintings and gemstone jewelry within the mansion were all valuable items.

If these were used to pay off debts, they would indeed be worth a large sum of money.

"Curtis, let's go gather some intelligence first."

"What information?"

"You've probably sensed it too, right? There are a lot of suspicious points in this job to find something."

“Well… I can’t deny that, as a member of the royal family, I know that marriage is important. But no matter how valuable the family crest is, it’s just an ornament. Whether or not we can find it shouldn’t affect the wedding. But… when Miss Graham talked about it, she acted as if she couldn’t get married without it, as if everything was ruined.”

If the offspring of nobles do not marry out of love, then the symbolic and political purposes of their union become more important.

"More than the wedding being delayed, I think she was more concerned about the things she accidentally lost..."

"Also, the wedding is next week. So it should be before next week. It's only Tuesday now, why does it have to be within two days? We could have given them more time."

232. Caught red-handed

Afterwards, Santa Karina took Curtis to the streets to inquire about the matter. Besides asking passersby near the mansion, there were also some information vendors. Quite a few people knew about it, but after asking around, not a single person knew the key points or suspected anything pointing to a particular area.

Therefore, it is even more impossible to pinpoint a specific person based on intelligence summaries.

Thanks to Miss Graham's high price and the Dryden family's intervention through their male servants, many people in the neighborhood knew about this.

"Not a single useful piece of intelligence, these useless people..."

Curtis was clearly not a very patient person, and so she found herself at dinner time. As night fell, she knew that all her previous efforts had been in vain.

"No, quite the opposite, this matter will probably be over soon."

Saint Karina smiled mysteriously.

"How to say?"

"Later, you and I will go to the Dryden family to visit Miss Graham's fiancé, and the truth will come out."

“Alright. Saint Karina, you’re sometimes just like my father, you love to keep things mysterious and be a riddle.”

Curtis sighed, knowing the mystery wouldn't be revealed until the very end.

She wasn't interested in eating dinner right now; she was more interested in finding out the truth behind the commission.

The two paid a coachman by the roadside to take them to the Dreyden family mansion.

Faro is a large city. This is Saint Karina's first visit in over five hundred years. Curtis, on the other hand, is not interested in the positions of various noble families. She has no ambition and does not need to know about the families and power distribution of each noble family.

In front of the mansion stood a large, black-lacquered metal gate, a double gate with intricate carvings of metal forming beautiful patterns. Beside the gate was a high wall constructed of silver-gray stone bricks.

"Who are you? This is the Dryden family mansion. Did you receive an invitation from the master or young master?"

When the manservant at the door saw the two of them get off, he initially gave them a disdainful look, as if he looked down on people who knew how to use a rented carriage. Then, after seeing Santa Karina and Curtis and their attire, which looked like that of noble ladies, his tough attitude softened slightly.

He suspected that perhaps the two noble ladies had secretly snuck out for a stroll by renting the carriage, even though it was highly impolite and contrary to tradition. However, if they were guests invited by the Dryden family, he couldn't make any rash judgments.

He even wondered if the two noble ladies were actually from Faro; otherwise, why had he never heard of such beauty before?

"Well, I'm an adventurer who accepted Miss Graham's commission. Her family crest has been lost, and I wanted to come and ask Miss Graham's fiancé for some details about that night."

Santa Karina's lips curled into a mocking smile, and a sly glint flashed in her eyes, leading Curtis to believe that she was doing this on purpose.

Because, in order to do what was befitting of her adventurer status, she didn't even perform the noble etiquette.

"Not a noble lady... an adventurer? Ha, adventurer, what a ridiculous word."

Upon hearing Saint Karina's self-introduction, the valet's initially polite smile instantly froze and became strange. Then, he very naturally changed his expression, his face becoming long and drawn, looking extremely angry.

It was as if he had been deceived by two swindlers, by some incredibly bad guy.

"I'm very sorry……"

He deliberately drew out his words, but his apology contained no real sense of remorse.

"This is the mansion of the Dryden family, the territory of noble lords and young masters, not just one or two so-called adventurers who can come in at will."

"Adventurers? What are those? Filthy commoners? The Dryden family is an incomparably noble family in Faro for generations, with noble blood. To associate with some commoners who call themselves adventurers would only taint their bloodline."

He even disdainfully snorted through his nose.

It's really tough on him, with such a rich body language and facial expressions.

"What did you say?"

Curtis was the first one to break down.

She always prided herself on her high status, and now she was being scorned for her lineage. Oh my god, Curtis felt a surge of anger rising within her.

"Of course I'm saying that you lowly commoners are not worthy of seeing my master, whether you are the lord or the young master of the Dryden family. Just having you standing at the gate of the mansion is already a favor from the Dryden family. Let alone going in, I feel that even saying a few more words is a waste of air."

Of course, if he knew that the person in front of him was the sixth princess of the Toran Empire, who was deeply favored by His Majesty the Emperor, he would definitely have a different attitude.

He would fawn over her, practically begging to lick the spot where the princess's shoes had trod, and boast about today's conversation to others as if it were a lifetime ago.

"Curtis, stop talking, let me do it."

"It doesn't matter who comes."

The male servant's nose was almost higher than his eyes, and he raised his head high, looking down on the two of them.

He must have overheard their conversation and heard the name Curtis, but couldn't recall who that name belonged to. Or perhaps he simply didn't care to think that a princess would disguise herself as an adventurer, choosing to stand at the door, turned away, and come to see his master without an invitation.

For someone of Her Highness's stature, if the host knew she was coming, they would probably start preparing well in advance, laying out red carpets, scattering flower petals, and firing salutes outside the gate to welcome her.

The difference between royalty and the Draden family is like heaven and earth.

"You're really courting death. However, seeing your attitude, my guess has completely changed from a 99% success rate to a 100% success rate."

Saint Karina smiled kindly at the snobbish male servant. Her voice, however, was like the clanging of metal, revealing a steely sharpness.

"As the saying goes, if you stay with a dog, you'll catch fleas too. I think your owner must have been preparing to break off the engagement with Miss Graham a long time ago."

"Who are you calling a dog! You lowly commoner!"

"It keeps barking wildly; what else could it be but a dog?"

Santa Karina's sarcasm made Curtis burst out laughing. She clearly had no intention of giving any face to a watchdog who dared to insult her.

This laughter thoroughly enraged the male servant.

He's rolled up his sleeves; he's no longer merciful. He intends to resort to violence, but with magic.

“Very well! You can say whatever you want to me, but you will regret it today for daring to insult a male servant of the Dryden family, a respectable gentleman. First of all, I am not using violence, but protecting. As a male servant, it is my duty to prevent lowly people from entering and defiling the Dryden family’s property.”

As he spoke grand and eloquent words, flames began to gather in his palms.

It started as a small flame, but soon it grew into a fireball the size of a basketball.

"combustion!"

Like an executioner wanting to carry out the burning at the stake, acting as the kindling to ignite the fire, he hurled fireballs at Santa Karina and Curtis.

"呲-"

"Zi-"

However, the scene he longed for—the two being attacked by fireballs, burned, or subjected to even more severe punishment—did not appear.

Before the fireball could reach Curtis, Santa Karina stepped forward and stood in front of him.

So the fireballs simply landed in front of Saint Karina, and then, like hot oil being extinguished, they cooled and went out with a sound.

Amidst the wisps of white smoke, Saint Karina wore a disdainful expression.

"Is that all you've got? Well then, it's my turn to show you. Holy Flame - Judgment."

At her strongest, Saint Karina could cause a rain of fire to fall over the entire sky and the city of Faro, turning the clouds into crimson hues.

With just a flick of the finger, a human is ignited, revealing the aroma of roasted cured meat—it's all very easy.

The male servant who tried to stop him was immediately shot dead.

Next, Saint Karina used teleportation to take Curtis to the young master of the Dryden family.

He was hiding in his room. This kind of information was easy to obtain by simply asking any servant. Under the threat of death, and with the help of the Truth Word technique to verify the information, finding a young master with no real ability would be very simple.

"You...who are you?"

A person suddenly appeared in the room, startling the young master of the Dryden family.

It is said that the patriarch of the Dryden family only had this one son, and had no other heirs. The patriarch had his son late in life and had long since stopped managing affairs, leaving everything to this son. Therefore, it is fair to say that he is the current head of the Dryden family.

Although the valet said his master was distinguished, in fact, when the two entered, he was already seated in a chair at the central table. On one wall hung two murals; one was likely of his father or grandfather, and the other was probably of the head of the Dryden family.

The mural framed in glass is an oil painting by an artist. The painting is very well preserved. The man in the painting has blond hair, blue eyes, a deep gaze, a beard, and is dressed very smartly with a white bow tie around his neck.

Compared to the young master, he has become more mature.

If you look closely, you'll find that their facial features are similar.

The young master was indeed sitting in a chair at first, at least until Saint Karina and the others came in. Just now, because Saint Karina appeared almost instantly, the blond-haired, blue-eyed young master jumped up in fright.

After recognizing the two young ladies, who might also be formidable magicians, he cleared his throat, not displaying the arrogance of a servant. He understood that if a fight broke out, he would be no match for these two young ladies who looked even younger than him.

Take this ability to teleport and shift space, for example. Even among the teachers at the Toran Empire Magic Academy, you could probably count on one hand the number of people who could do it so easily.

"Um, ladies... ahem, or rather, esteemed magician, may I ask what business you have with me at my residence?"

He used a very humble form of address.

Actually, he was quite handsome and young. However, Saint Karina wasn't interested in male beauty, and his habitual gesture of unconsciously squinting his eyes, even when feigning respect, as if he were calculating someone, made Saint Karina and Curtis dislike him.

Looking around the room, the overall decor is predominantly bright yellow or gold. The walls are painted gold, the frames of the paintings are gold, the table is pure gold, the chairs are edged in gold, the leather parts are red, the curtains are the same red, but the curtain ties are gold.

Even the flooring uses golden-yellow tiles.

Saint Karina believes that if the Dryden family weren't worried about being labeled as nouveau riche for their taste, they would have preferred to use gold bricks to build walls and pave floors, rather than this kind of opulent and luxurious decorating style.

"In fact, we are adventurers summoned by Miss Graham."

Upon hearing "adventurer," his lips twitched, clearly unwilling to believe that his respect had been given to a mere adventurer.

Moreover, the name Miss Graham was ominous to him.

"You...you wouldn't happen to be accomplices hired by that little girl, would you? Using magic and violence to break into my house. Do you know what happens when commoners break into a noble's mansion and threaten the mansion's master? You'll be wanted by the authorities."

His brow furrowed, and he began to adopt a condescending, lecturing attitude.

"Leave now before I decide to hold you accountable, and I, in my magnanimity, will forgive you. Otherwise..."

"Otherwise? Are you planning to threaten us? What are you going to do? You don't look like a swordsman, nor do you look like someone who is good at fighting. You don't look like a good mage. You can't even see through our magic."

In my opinion, you're just a spoiled aristocratic young master, smug and complacent after gaining power, indulging in your noble status. When you want something, you only dare to target innocent and naive girls, using them while putting on an arrogant act, not wanting to get your hands dirty.

Saint Karina spoke eloquently, gradually revealing the mystery and exposing the hypocrisy of this young master.

Below, there was absolutely no noble and pure heart as he claimed, only a heart as black as ink.