Page 260 of The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen

"Clear your mind... Clarisma!!"

As Yuria’s divine power spread, the overwhelming fear that had been crushing everyone began to dissipate. The student council members, who had felt as if even breathing was forbidden, prepared for battle without hesitation.

Their opponent was the nun before them—Elicia, the Apostle of the Heretics.

Shartia felt as if she were staring into a bottomless abyss. She slapped her own cheek and turned her head to snap herself out of it.

Smack!

"Get a hold of yourself...!"

There was no time. She needed to use the artifact as quickly as possible to call for reinforcements if they were to escape this situation.

Her instincts screamed that this might be her last chance.

"The artifact...!"

Clang!

"Mikhail!"

"I’m fine. But Rohan...!"

Before Shartia's eyes, flashing blades clashed. Rohan’s sword, swinging wildly with tears streaming down his face, and Mikhail’s sword, parrying the attacks, danced dangerously close to Shartia.

Shartia made up her mind. She needed to break the ring without hesitation. Clenching her fist tightly, she began to channel her magic into the gem on # Nоvеlight # the ring.

‘Please, shatter.’

And at that moment.

"Princess."

Crack.

With Elicia’s voice, Shartia’s body froze as if encased in ice. It felt as if something within her had broken.

A high-pitched ringing filled her ears, her magic flow was cut off, and she couldn’t move.

"What...?"

With a small exclamation, Shartia’s legs gave out, and she collapsed helplessly. It was so sudden and complete that she couldn’t even muster an excuse.

As she fell, she caught a glimpse of Elicia’s smiling face. That gentle smile, as if watching something entirely natural, weighed heavily on Shartia’s heart as she sank to the ground.

‘I mustn’t fall... I can’t...’

Elicia approached the kneeling Shartia and spoke in a soft, caring voice.

"Our princess carries so much pain in her heart."

‘Move... Please move...!’

"Your blood relatives scorn you as a bastard, and the man you call father only cares about your brother."

‘Get a grip, Shartia... Don’t let her words affect you!’

"Your dream is to live happily with your mother... Oh my, isn’t that a bit too modest for a grand princess of the Empire?"

Clap. Elicia clapped her hands and looked at Shartia with pity. As if lamenting how unfair the world could be, she gently stroked Shartia’s hair.

"How could it be so tragic?"

As Elicia’s hand touched her forehead, Shartia felt a strange peace settle over her. Even though swords were clashing nearby and someone was calling her name, her heart felt as calm as a still lake.

Clang!

"President!!!!!"

Slash!

"Damn it!"

She didn’t want to move.

She could see people emerging from the open church doors.

Dressed in white ceremonial robes with weapons at their waists, familiar faces moved with military precision, like valiant warriors, their steps echoing in unison.

Shartia smiled at the sight of them.

"Oh..."

She didn’t know why, but their presence reassured her.

They were the missing students.

The ones they were supposed to rescue.

Even though they were now rushing toward her with vacant eyes and drawn swords, she felt relieved.

Shartia looked at Elicia with trembling eyes.

"What have you done to me...?"

"What... What did you do to me...!"

"I merely redirected the feeling of fear elsewhere."

"...What?"

"Like this."

Elicia made a gesture as if grabbing something in the air and then pretended to throw it towards Yuria, who was using her divine power.

And then—

"Aaaaah!!!!"

A scream tore from Yuria’s mouth.

Yuria clutched her head and fell to her knees, her hands trembling violently, overwhelmed by fear.

"Aaaah... I want to run away...! I want to get out of here...!"

"Yuria!!"

"Ha... ha... Ricardo! I want to see Ricardo...!"

Elicia smiled as she watched the terrified Yuria.

"Isn’t this fun?"

"What... what is this...?"

"I merely placed a part of your anxiety onto the shoulders of that fearful girl."

"What have you done...!"

Elicia roughly grabbed Shartia by the chin and spoke.

"How does it feel? Your heart feels at peace, doesn’t it?"

"Shut... up...!"

"Your heart is at ease, and your worries are gone, right?"

"Shut up, you crazy...!"

Elicia sighed softly as she looked around the blood-soaked battlefield. She gazed with satisfaction at the chaotic scene, where the officers fought desperately against the students with vacant eyes.

"There are so many interesting emotions here."

She smiled brightly at Yuria.

"That pink-haired friend of yours has a huge knot in her heart because of a mistake she can’t undo with the one she loves."

She smiled at Ruin.

"The magician, filled with vanity, still believes that if she puts her mind to it, she can change the world. Ah, I see it. That stubborn pride that won’t break even in the face of ruin."

Then she looked at Mikhail with an intrigued smile.

"And that friend... he looks very sad."

The brainwashed students were being pushed back. The officers were slowly gaining the upper hand, as if the limits of manipulating their minds had been reached.

Elicia smiled and lightly raised her hand toward the sky.

And then.

"Let’s take a look into your inner mirrors, shall we? Self-reflection is the essence of faith, after all."

Before each of them stood someone who looked exactly like them—a reflection of themselves, shrouded in darkness.

In front of the struggling Yuria, who was clutching her head in pain, stood a crying girl holding a pink dagger.

In front of Mikhail, who was trying to join the others after defeating Rohan, stood a girl with long silver hair, glaring at him with a somber expression.

Everyone’s nightmares were standing before them.

Elicia smiled and spoke.

"Love the Lord."

She began to move the doppelg?ngers created from their emotions as she preached fanatical love.

Everyone was frozen in place.

They were paralyzed, unable to move as they faced their nightmares.

Yes.

"Aaaaaah!!!"

They were all running in fear.

As soon as they saw their inner emotions, the student council officers began to flee into the forest as if they were running for their lives. It was a primal fear.

The fear of showing others the past they wanted to hide and the dread of confronting those memories again.

As Shartia watched them disappear one by one into the forest, she shouted in alarm.

"Everyone, we have to stick together!!!"

"I can’t do it!!"

"I just can’t!"

Elicia smiled kindly and explained why they were fleeing.

"They’re all so weak-hearted. All I did was amplify the emotion of fear a little, and they’re this terrified. Just imagine how much it will hurt if they fall to that emotion...!"

Elicia looked up at the sky with eyes filled with pleasure, running her hand over her face.

"Oh, how delighted the Lord will be!!!"

Goosebumps rose all over her body, as if her sweat glands were screaming. Her mouth was parched.

Elicia smiled at Shartia.

"Now, let’s have a little chat, just the two of us. I’ve been wanting to talk to you for a long time. About how you plan to lead the Empire from now on, what you want to do if the Crown Prince isn’t around... I want to hear the evil within you."

Elicia’s hand slowly reached out to grab Shartia’s hair, preparing to drag her into the church.

Unable to move her body, Shartia looked at her unmoving hand with trembling eyes.

She had tried everything she could.

She had bitten her lip.

She had held her breath.

She had tried everything, but nothing worked.

"No..."

And then.

"You crazy bitch!!"

With a flash of brown light, Elicia’s body was sent flying into the forest.

She was swept away by Hanna’s sword and vanished from the battlefield without resistance, almost pitifully.

"Huff... huff...!"

A wave of exhaustion washed over her.

Now that she was out of Elicia’s sight, she could finally move her body again.

Shartia clung to the remnants of her sanity, gasping for breath, relieved that she was still alive.

"Huff... huff... huff...!"

"Senior! Are you okay?"

"No... I’m not okay."

"For now..."

Hanna bit her lip as she looked at the dust clouds rising from the forest and clicked her tongue.

"Use the artifact."

Nod.

Without hesitation, Shartia shattered the artifact. This chance might not come again.

With a soft 'pop,' the gem shattered, and a red orb soared high into the sky.

Shartia, still breathing heavily, asked Hanna.

"How did you get here...? What about the doppelg?nger?"

Hanna shrugged her shoulders and answered as if it were nothing.

"It wasn’t a big deal."

"What about the others...?"

"They’re fighting hard. Some of them lost, though."

"How did you manage?"

"Me?"

Hanna smiled faintly, thinking of the red-haired butler who was likely somewhere nearby.

"I’m not afraid of anything except the butler. Unless he showed up as my doppelg?nger. Hehe."

"You..."

Crack!

"They’re coming, Senior."

"Yeah..."

"For now, I’ll cover you, so catch your breath."

"Okay."

As soon as the words left her mouth, a thin tree branch shot out from the dust clouds, turning into a spear. Moving too fast for the eye to catch, the branch grazed Hanna’s cheek and struck the ground, wriggling as if it were alive.

Thorns began to sprout.

Crack...!

Small thorns wriggled like blood vessels along the outstretched branch, amplifying the sense of unease.

Hanna quickly turned, pulling Shartia along to get out of the way. At that moment, more branches began to shoot out from the original, spreading out like a web, as if they intended to skewer them.

"Damn it!"

Slash!

Gritting her teeth, Hanna swung her sword.