Saint Lumiel glanced at his outstretched hand, then looked up at him with an indifferent gaze. A faint smile rested on her face.

"Your Highness, are you kidding me? Work together? Surely you know better than anyone that I hate war more than anything."

Erald let out a soft chuckle. He lowered his hand and said, "I know. But I also believe you might change your mind. What do you think? Don’t worry. I can make sure the imperial family lifts all the restrictions on the Church. I’ll even provide generous financial support. If I remember correctly..."

He rubbed his chin and looked at Saint Lumiel with a playful smile.

"You’re short on money, aren’t you?"

Saint Lumiel flinched but quickly regained her composure.

"Whether we’re short on money or not is none of your concern, Your Highness. Either way, the Church of the Goddess of Light will never support this war," she said coldly.

Erald’s expression hardened.

"Won’t you reconsider, Saint? This is the last chance we’re giving you. Think carefully."

But Saint Lumiel didn’t back down.

"No. That’s my final answer."

"Fine!" Erald clapped his hands and rose to his feet. "I hope you don’t regret this, Saint Lumiel."

Without another word, he turned and walked away.

Adalen also stood up. He gave Saint Lumiel a meaningful smile before following Erald out.

Watching the two of them disappear from sight, Saint Lumiel let out a long sigh.

"What a pain," she muttered.

She turned to Elina and gave a slight bow. "I’m sorry you had to witness something so unpleasant, Princess Elina."

Elina took off her veil and waved a hand.

"It’s okay. Don’t worry about it."

Even so, her gaze stayed fixed on the direction they had gone.

Now she understood what Saint Lumiel and the Church of the Goddess of Light had been dealing with. The imperial family had really pushed the church to its limits.

The church was still standing, but if this went on, the balance of power would eventually fall apart.

The imperial family’s constant threats and the fear of death could slowly shake the people’s faith.

And faith was the very foundation that allowed the church to protect the people. If that faith were to crumble, one could only imagine what would become of the church.

"By the way, Saint Lumiel."

Elina looked at her. "I heard you mention funding earlier. Is it true that the Church of the Goddess of Light is having financial problems?"

Saint Lumiel’s expression darkened.

"That’s... true," she admitted with a wry smile. "Ever since the imperial family began suppressing us, many people have been too afraid to come and worship. The church’s main source of income comes from public donations, so with fewer worshippers, our income has inevitably declined."

Most of the Goddess of Light’s followers were ordinary people. There were a lot of them, but very few had much money.

As more worshippers left, the church’s income took a heavy hit, making it harder to keep things running.

Saint Lumiel had tried all kinds of ways to raise money, including asking wealthy merchants to donate. She did receive some help, but it still wasn’t enough to cover the church’s daily expenses.

Elina nodded. "How much do you need?"

Saint Lumiel blinked in surprise.

She fell silent for a few moments before answering, "We calculate our expenses on a yearly basis. We need fifty million Solaris a year just to keep the church running. Even that isn’t enough. To truly feel secure, we’d need at least seventy million Solaris."

The amount was so enormous that Saint Lumiel found it difficult to even say it aloud.

"Seventy million Solaris?" Elina murmured.

Two Solaris was equal to one Sharn. That meant seventy million Solaris was equal to thirty-five million Sharn.

Elina suddenly pulled out a check from her pocket, walked over to the nearest desk, and picked up a pen.

She quickly wrote something on it.

Saint Lumiel watched in confusion but chose not to ask.

Three minutes later, Elina set the pen down and walked back to Saint Lumiel.

"Take this."

Saint Lumiel accepted the check and looked at the amount written on it. Her eyes instantly widened in shock.

"P-Princess... What does this mean?"

Written on the check was a staggering amount... Two hundred ten million Sharn.

"This is a gift from me," Elina said calmly. "Since the Church of the Goddess of Light is short on funds, allow me to cover your expenses for the next six years. Please accept it."

Saint Lumiel was speechless. She never thought Elina would give her this much money.

She was deeply grateful. At the same time, though, she couldn’t help feeling that accepting such a gift would weigh heavily on her.

"Your Highness..."

Before she could finish, Elina smiled and gently interrupted her.

"Just take it, Saint Lumiel. Please think of it as a gift from me. I’m giving it wholeheartedly, without expecting anything in return."

Although she wasn’t a follower of the Church of the Goddess of Light, she genuinely admired its teachings, especially the sermons delivered by Saint Lumiel.

Those sermons had opened her eyes to social issues and the harsh realities of war.

Two hundred ten million Sharn was indeed an enormous sum, but she wasn’t worried in the slightest. Not long ago, she had discovered that the balance in her account had increased to three hundred million Sharn.

She had absolutely no idea how her fortune had grown so much. After looking into it, she finally found the answer.

It turned out that her brother had been the one who gave her the money. She didn’t know exactly when it had happened. He often gave her checks, and she never bothered to look at the amounts written on them.

Besides her brother, she also received generous gifts and financial support from the noble families who backed her.

On top of that, the newly built lumber mill in Virella Town was generating a steady stream of profits. With all that combined, Elina would practically never have to worry about money again.

Saint Lumiel opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but the words wouldn’t come.

The amount was simply too great, and she had no idea how she could ever repay such generosity. But since Elina had already said it was a gift, she had no choice but to accept it.

"All right." Saint Lumiel took a deep breath and stood up, clutching the check tightly. "I accept it. May the Goddess of Light bless you, Your Highness."

She bowed her head to Elina.

Elina immediately helped her straighten up and replied softly, "You’re welcome."

After exchanging a few more words, Elina changed back into her own clothes and took her leave.

Saint Lumiel watched her figure slowly disappear from view with a gentle gaze.

"The Star of Destiny from the East has begun to shine upon the Great Velmora Empire," she whispered, her blue eyes gradually glowing with a brilliant light. "Soon, the Great Velmora Empire will welcome its first Empress. Their glory shall be beyond the reach of even fate itself..."