The door shut. Aesphyra had gone back inside, leaving Vinny standing there alone, frozen on the spot. When he came back to himself, he looked down at the top-grade potion still hot in his hand, turning over the meaning of what Aesphyra had said earlier.

Was she telling him... don’t be polite with me?

Was that what she meant??

But he’d only done it because he didn’t want to keep owing her things, to the point where the two of them couldn’t even treat each other as equals.

Vinny glanced up at the villa with complicated thoughts, then turned and left.

He returned to Shicodale’s ward. Milian, still sitting there, turned to look at him.

“Is it ready?”

“Yeah. Everything’s prepared.”

Seeing Vinny nod with such certainty, Milian couldn’t really understand what he had prepared. If it involved high-value, expensive equipment, she had no idea where Vinny could’ve gotten it—what kind of connections he could possibly have. But that wasn’t something she wanted to care about right now, either.

Time passed bit by bit. Dusk fell.

After the two of them ate dinner, they returned to Shicodale’s ward. Once the nuns finished the final room check, Vinny gave Milian a look. Milian understood and nodded.

“Let’s begin.” Vinny stood up.

“...Everything’s in your hands.” Milian hesitated, but at this point there was no room for her to say anything about being uneasy. She helped Shicodale onto Vinny’s back, supporting her as she said it.

Then Milian frowned slightly, as if something occurred to her, and she suddenly asked, “By the way... when did you figure out her identity?”

“You mean what—Dale’s identity, or other information?” Vinny didn’t look at Milian, busy with what he was doing.

“Both.”

“Then it was a long time ago,” Vinny said matter-of-factly. Since things had reached this point, there was nothing to hide.

“Just as I thought.” Milian let out a soft sigh. She’d known it—simple, innocent Shicodale could never keep her identity hidden in front of a crafty human.

“Does she know?”

“Not yet.” Vinny answered. “If Dale feels safer with those things not being known, why would I point them out?”

“Tch. You humans really know how to talk.”

Still... even though this guy knew Shicodale’s real sex and identity, he hadn’t made any excessive demands. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Milian had even imagined it before—this notorious Camella capital playboy with a vicious expression, forcing the poor, helpless Shicodale into a corner, saying something like: ‘Dale, you wouldn’t want your real sex and identity exposed, would you?’—using that kind of threat to coerce her into things she was extremely unwilling to do.

If that happened, Shicodale would only be able to submit. If her real sex was exposed, she wouldn’t be able to stay in school. And if her real identity was exposed, that was even worse—if those vicious tribal people learned there was still a surviving orphan of the Moon Elf royal line, they would do everything they could to capture her.

And if news that the royal line still lived reached the Moon Elves under tribal rule—those who’d already fallen into despair and willingly become slaves—hope would reignite. ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) At that point, if the royal line raised its banner, countless Moon Elves might rise up.

That was a risk the tribes would never tolerate.

But even knowing stakes like that, Vinny had never used it to threaten Shicodale. He even avoided mentioning it for her sake—acting as if he’d never discovered her secret at all.

So maybe this guy’s character... wasn’t as despicable as the rumors said??

Still... men and women were different, weren’t they??

Milian was still torn. Vinny had discovered Shicodale’s secret and still lived with her. Even if it couldn’t be helped... it still felt inappropriate, didn’t it??

In daily life, had Shicodale ever been taken advantage of by Vinny or anything like that??

Milian knew this wasn’t the time to think about it—but she still worried.

“If something unexpected happens later, you’re the only one who can deal with it,” Vinny said. He had no idea what nonsense Milian was thinking right now. He just nodded to her. After he got Shicodale securely on his back, he drank the high-grade invisibility potion Aesphyra had given him, and pulled both himself and Shicodale into a high-grade invisible state.

Milian looked a little surprised. That alchemy potion looked like an invisibility-type potion, and it was extremely high grade—something only an alchemy master could produce.

Top-tier invisibility potions weren’t just visual concealment. They half-shifted you into an unknown subspace. That subspace nearly overlapped with Tyrelis itself; in essence, it created a spatial passage—so it could even bring other people into invisibility with you.

It was said the strongest invisibility potions could even eliminate collision volume. And in the user’s eyes, the world they saw would be different from the world ordinary people saw.

A potion of this level could be displayed in a small nation’s palace as a treasure-grade offering. And he was using it this casually??

After drinking the high-grade invisibility potion, Vinny carried Shicodale, climbed out through the window, and slipped out of the church. The rest was on Milian.

This potion’s duration should only be about thirty minutes. Vinny made his way to the maid café with practiced ease. Following Vinny’s instructions, the door hadn’t been shut fully today—there was a tiny gap left open, waiting for him to enter.

Vinny quietly pushed the door open. The signboard hanging above swayed with the movement, then steadied again once the door closed—like no one had come at all, as if a faint gust of wind had simply nudged the door.

After entering, Vinny locked the door, making sure no one could see. Then he dispelled the invisibility.

Hearing the noise, the people upstairs came down one after another.

“Saint—!... Ahem, long time no see, Vinny. How have you been lately?” Fennia saw Vinny and got so excited she almost blurted it out—but she immediately remembered what Luna had instructed her before. She switched her tone on the spot, coughed, and put on a flat, ordinary expression, like their relationship was limited to mere acquaintances.

“Fennia, there are no outsiders here. Call me however you want. It’s fine,” Luna said from behind her, amused.

“Huh...?” Fennia glanced at Miao Ke standing behind Luna, hesitated, and swallowed the rest of what she wanted to say.

“Miao Ke is my confidante. She’s not an outsider—she’s someone we can trust,” Luna explained.

“Ah... I see.” Fennia scratched her head.

“Mm. Is everyone ready?” Vinny looked at Fennia and Amisha. Clearly, Luna had called them both over.

“Yes, Lady Saintess. We’re ready.” Amisha nodded, staff in hand. Last time she hadn’t been able to help at all—this time, she could finally be useful.

And when Amisha addressed Vinny as Lady Saintess, shock flashed through Miao Ke’s eyes—but it quickly settled back into calm.

She didn’t ask anything. She just followed behind Luna in silence, suppressing all curiosity.

No wonder her master treated him with such respect, even calling him “you.” So that was it??

Miao Ke’s little head still couldn’t understand how Vinny had disguised himself. No matter how she looked at him, he seemed more like a boy—and he didn’t have any obvious traits of House of Facilis on him.

“So this is... Lady Saintess’s roommate?” Amisha was seeing Shicodale for the first time. When she got a clear look at the person on Vinny’s back, surprise appeared in her eyes.

She truly hadn’t expected this Moon Elf boy to be so delicate and refined. Aside from that fairly obvious Adam’s apple, she couldn’t tell he was male at all.

Was this Moon Elf really a boy??

After what had happened with Vinny, Amisha couldn’t help thinking that.

But... maybe it made sense? Elves were elves; humans were humans. Maybe it was normal for male elves to look this pretty?

Amisha hadn’t seen many elves, and the ones she had seen were all female elves, so she wasn’t sure.

“Miao Ke, go open the basement door,” Luna ordered.

“As you command, Master Luna, meow.” Miao Ke nodded. Even the way she addressed Luna changed—because it was obviously a very formal situation now, and everyone present was one of their own. So her address to Luna became formal as well.

She had originally been assigned to Luna by the Haukekai Family, serving as Luna’s private maid and bodyguard. She had been by Luna’s side since Luna could remember.

Miao Ke produced a ring of keys from under her skirt and led everyone to a basement entrance that was never opened in ordinary times. She unlocked the first door.

It was called the first door because there were several more doors inside. After opening three doors in a row, they entered a spacious basement.

In the darkness, Miao Ke used the magic-stone switch on the keyring to turn on the basement light array.

Snow-white brick lights flared on, shining into every corner of the basement.

They could clearly see the inside now—shelves lined the walls, stocked with all kinds of books and tools. In a corner were an enchanting worktable and alchemy vessels. The entire basement was built from neatly arranged white brick and stone.

And placed at the center was the treatment table Vinny needed.

Luna didn’t know where Vinny had gotten an advanced enchanted treatment table from. Vinny himself had only seen the usage method of this enchanted device in books.

How to put it... the enchanted treatment table was somewhat like creating a sterile environment. While providing a treatment space, it minimized the chance that improper handling during healing would worsen the patient’s condition.

Of course, the principles and actual effects of an enchanted treatment table were vastly different from what could truly be called a sterile environment—but this was the interpretation closest to Vinny’s knowledge from his previous life.

It was said that the highest-level enchanted treatment tables could even prevent worsening in the mental and spiritual domains. And the table personally built and improved by Dawn Saintess Agnes Facilis—the inventor herself—was even more absurd in effect.

But in the present day, there was no way Vinny could use the one Agnes had left behind. It had become an asset of the Church of the Dawn—a sacred relic left by a previous Saintess. Without the Pope’s approval, no one was even allowed to see it.

Yeah. It looked pretty similar to the pictures. Underneath was a cross-like array. Six pillars sat at six points as anchor nodes, each topped with a floating white crystal that radiated energy. In the middle was a stone bed covered in magic inscriptions.

Vinny didn’t know why, but even though he’d only seen a drawn picture in a book and never seen the real thing, the first moment he saw that strange stone bed, he felt a sense of time and distance collapse—as if the device before him was deeply familiar.

“This is the enchanted treatment table. As for how to use it—” Luna was about to explain in detail, but Vinny walked straight over, stepped up onto the platform, and carefully laid Shicodale flat on the stone bed. Then he fell silent, looking at her without speaking.

“Luna, Fennia, Amisha—can you continuously supply healing power to the enchanted treatment table?” Vinny asked after a moment.

“Of course.”

“No problem.”

“As you command! Lady Saintess!”

Hearing the three replies, Vinny silently nodded.

Looks like she didn’t need to teach him step-by-step at all.

Luna thought that to herself.

“Lady Saintess... have you used an enchanted treatment table before?” Luna asked.

“I haven’t. But I don’t know why—I feel like I can use it,” Vinny said with certainty.

Luna nodded quietly.

She recalled a legend about the Dawn Saintesses. A Dawn Saintess’s aptitude could be seen in her level of understanding toward the sacred relics left behind, toward the holy texts, toward the [Saint’s Envoy].

It wasn’t about learning later. It was an inborn level of comprehension—an unusual sense where you could take one look and know the general method of using these sacred objects.

“Miao Ke, lock the doors. Guard the entrance,” Luna ordered as she stepped forward.

The possibility of an intruder could basically be ignored, but it was better to be cautious.

Because they were already a small group now. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say they were a Saintess-support faction prepared to fight the Church to the death.

“Okay, meow. Miao Ke understands.” Miao Ke nodded. After checking that the doors were indeed shut properly, she stood guard in front of them.

And it was at that moment—

Vinny held Shicodale’s hands in both of his, closed his eyes, and the next instant, a sacred, cherry-colored light descended. A pair of pure, flawless white wings wrapped around his body. When they blossomed open again, immaculate cherry-colored hair unfurled in the air, scattering countless dazzling holy motes and golden radiance.

Miao Ke stared at the scene with widened eyes.

That was... Miss Vanessa?!

No wonder she’d always felt a faint sense of familiarity from Vinny.

So that was it??

This Vinny... really was Vanessa?

And Miss Vanessa really was the last surviving descendant of House of Facilis?

Vanessa appeared wearing the feminine [Armor Fortress]. She held Shicodale’s icy hands tightly in both of hers. When she opened her eyes again, her heart-shaped pupils cast down a gaze that looked almost like mercy.

Miao Ke remembered the descriptions of a Dawn Saintess. Those heart-shaped eyes were the symbol of Facilis’s pity for all people—so much so that anyone whose gaze entered those eyes filled with tenderness and compassion would fall deeply, drawn in by her charm, shaken, conquered.

Like being kissed by an angel.

Like being blessed.

That was exactly the state Miao Ke was in now. The instant Vanessa appeared, it was as if Vanessa sensed her gaze. The cherry-haired girl glanced in her direction. Those eyes paused on her for a brief moment—and Miao Ke instantly felt as if an angel had favored her.

Even though it wasn’t Miao Ke’s first time seeing Vanessa, this was the most overwhelming it had ever been.