How did Raphael get here? No, was this even a place anyone could enter in the first place? Leaving the confused goddess behind, Amelia stared blankly at Raphael. She couldn’t believe the solid fingers gripping her wrist.

“How did you…?”

“Stop it!”

Before she could grasp what was happening, her body was lifted. She was slung over his shoulder.

“Raphael…?”

It looked like he was carrying her and running away, almost like he was abducting her.

“If we leave now, Evelyn will be in danger!”

“You never intended to let her out, did you?”

“What…?”

“How long do you think you can hold out! Evelyn is my child! The only one who can convey my words!”

The Elaina who seemed regretful and sorry was a fake. Seeing her now, shouting with a face twisted in anger at Raphael, was shocking.

“You monster!”

“Ra-Raphael… shouldn’t we stay here?”

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him, but the goddess’s reaction bothered her. She thought she had collapsed and was unconscious… how did Raphael get here? Was this a space anyone could enter?

“The goddess never intended to save you from the start.”

“What?”

She turned around in disbelief to see Elaina glaring at them with trembling rage. Naturally, others would believe Elaina. Known as the Goddess of Peace, Elaina was believed to love humans. In contrast, Siegfried’s family was feared. Fear was an easy means of control.

But why did she want to trust Raphael instead of Elaina? She had just decided not to see him again.

“This is a space created by the goddess. She wouldn’t have let you out until you gave up and returned to her side.”

A space created by the goddess? She naturally thought she had lost consciousness and was either dead or in a subconscious state created by the goddess.

“How did you get in? The brooch should have been broken….”

“I found it strange. It wasn’t a brooch that could be broken by Leonel’s power.”

Amelia was shocked to hear that the brooch was broken. It was made with the goddess’s power, yet it broke so easily?

“I realized it was a trick to break the brooch. So I destroyed all the nearest temples one by one. It’s sustained by the temple’s power, right?”

At Raphael’s words about destroying the temples, Elaina’s face twisted ferociously. She was also taken aback. Who would think of destroying temples…? Only Raphael Lloyd Siegfried could do such a thing. An ordinary person would be too afraid of the goddess’s wrath to even try.

“You…!”

“Souls can be restored at the temple, not just here.”

She was too flustered to notice, but Raphael’s face was just as hardened. Why did he come to save her knowing he would soon find out everything? Had he not heard from Leonel yet? But he seemed to know about her soul.

“Return Amelia’s soul right now.”

“Ha! Why should I? She’ll leave me anyway.”

Elaina’s attitude changed immediately. Just as Raphael said, she never intended to save her from the start.

“Really? Then I’ll just destroy all the temples in the empire.”

“You scoundrel!”

“Raphael!”

She couldn’t understand why he kept provoking Elaina. If he truly angered her, Raphael would be at a disadvantage.

“Be honest. You might fool Leonel, but not me.”

The grip around her body tightened. It was hard to tell who was holding onto whom, as if he was desperately clinging to her.

“Amelia’s body is currently safe. I’ve gathered all the priests to pour holy power into her.”

“…I never gave permission!”

“Once I showed an example, everyone stepped in to help. Who cares about the words of a god? The immediate threat to their lives is more pressing.”

As Raphael’s statements continued, Amelia’s face grew more pale. This was not just about angering the goddess. It was a challenge to her authority.

“Make your choice. If you don’t return her soul, all temples will be destroyed. There will be no Elaina temples left in the Khalid Empire.”

He said to choose, but it wasn’t really a choice.

“I’ll eradicate them completely.”

Threatening a goddess… Amelia was appalled. Elaina wouldn’t be wrong to curse him in anger.

“Are you crazy…?”

“It’s fine.”

She whispered softly to him, but Raphael loudly proclaimed, making her close her eyes tightly. She didn’t understand what was fine. Raphael Lloyd Siegfried was no ordinary human. Who else could destroy temples and threaten a god?

“You really want to die.”

“You need Amelia because she’s necessary for you. Isn’t that why you’ve been caring for your descendants all this time, for your own prosperity?”

Impossible. The goddess referred to the imperial family as her children. She seemed full of affection when she spoke about them. Did she really care for them for her own prosperity?

“For over 700 years, the Goddess Elaina has been revered. When that seemed threatened, she used Leonel to turn back time.”

“…….”

“The lack of a saintess is more inconvenient for her than anyone.”

It seemed like a lie, but looking at Elaina’s face, it seemed true. Her enraged, flushed face showed he had hit the mark.

“A god’s power grows stronger with more believers. Especially if the temple is led by the state, it’s different.”

She could guess why Elaina was so desperate. Kendrick didn’t believe in Elaina. He even deceived her by creating a fake saintess. She must have felt a great sense of crisis. Even if she waited for a saintess to be born again, Kendrick might try something again.

The birth of the saintess could have been permanently interrupted. The decline of the temples would have been swift.

“I did revive Evelyn, that remains unchanged.”

Evelyn, Evelyn. She hated hearing that name. Maybe it was because she had no memories of being Evelyn, but every time she heard it, it gave her chills.

She understood why the goddess Elaina wanted to save her by turning back time. In the end, it was for herself.

“Choose. Will you become a god forever forgotten in people’s memories, or will you at least maintain the current state?”

Hearing such a dreadful statement, Elaina twisted her body in agony.

“We are currently working hard to take control of the temples.”

“You…!”

“You intended to use Amelia’s soul as a saintess.”

Raphael was completely right. Elaina was more than capable of such actions. The fact that she was flustered when Amelia was willing to give up her soul was proof of that.

“Do you think I’ll comply just because you threaten me? Without me, Evelyn will die. That’s a clear fact.”

“She will never die. You know how tenacious Siegfried is.”

Her previously anxious heart calmed with his words. She hadn’t completely given up. The moment she saw Raphael’s face, her resolve wavered. Even now, she didn’t resist while being held in his arms.

She kept silent because she liked the familiar scent and the strong arms supporting her. Even with everything revealed.

“Shouldn’t you at least save a few temples?”

“…How dare a Siegfried try to take my precious child.”

She flinched at the approaching goddess’s reaction, but relaxed seeing Raphael remain unflinching.

“I’m sorry for the many wounds my mistakes caused you.”

The warm touch on her cheek made her body shrink involuntarily. This familiar yet nostalgic feeling. It was like meeting parents she had never seen before. The moment the goddess’s hand touched her, she realized she could never completely hate Elaina.

“Your memories will gradually return. And don’t worry too much. In the end, I couldn’t hate Leonel. He was my child too.”

When she opened her eyes, her view had changed. The familiar Siegfried bedroom. She saw people in priest garb sprawled around.

“Mother!”

Through them, Leonel came running, tears filling his eyes.