Claire wandered through the corridors of the local temple and approached a room at the far end of the church.
The children had just finished eating breakfast and were now cleaning the plates under the watchful supervision of the older ones.
Unfortunately, there was not enough manpower in the church so perhaps Claire would need to hire some workers in the future.
But not yet.
The holy paladin stared outside the nearest window and saw a bright sun shining brightly in the sky above the city.
Patches of smoke rose up in different locations across the city and one could faintly hear the sounds of screams and fighting in the distance.
It was not surprising.
Claire's actions had essentially weakened the major underworld organisations by removing their top members.
This city without law and order was nothing more than a haven for scum and villainy.
The five crime families suppressed the local gangs using brute force and tactics of terror.
But now that they were weakened…
The local gangs were like sharks that smelled blood in the water.
Vicious fighting erupted in different parts of the city as they rebelled against their criminal overlords.
No doubt in the following weeks or even months, the power structure within the city would completely change.
Claire's golden eyes shone with purity and righteousness as she could see tiny golden threads squirming around her body.
The holy knight took several deep breaths in order to calm herself down as the addicting feeling of pleasure once again resurfaced in her mind.
She needed to learn how to control this.
Claire silently counted to ten over and over again until the harsh glow in her eyes gradually faded away and disappeared.
Now she could focus on the matter at hand…
The upcoming talk with Elisa.
Claire approached a simple wooden door at the end of a passageway and saw a thin translucent barrier covering the room.
The holy knight tentatively pushed her hand outwards, and she easily passed through the barrier as if it was not there.
Claire activated her vision powers and checked her body for any dangerous side effects. Seeing that she found nothing wrong, Claire let out a sigh of relief.
She raised up her right knuckle and gently tapped it twice against the wooden door.
Knock! Knock!
"Come in please," a sweet voice came from the other side. Claire opened the door and entered inside the room.
She closed the door behind her as she went inside and saw Elisa sitting down on the mattress watching her.
The former saintess had gotten a few hours of sleep since they had last spoken so the heavy bags under her eyes were no longer there.
But that was not what captured Claire's attention. No… there was a far more noticeable sight lingering before her eyes.
Elisa had taken off her disguise and was sitting down on the bed as her true form.
A beautiful otherworldly dark elf smiled enchantingly at the holy knight as her crimson eyes gleamed with an emotion that Claire could not recognise.
There was a table in front of the mattress with a single wooden chair placed so that its occupant would be facing the bed.
An empty cup was placed on the table and next to the cup was a small pitcher filled with a mysterious liquid.
"Have a seat," Elisa spoke politely as she gestured towards the chair.
Claire walked towards the chair and sat down quietly.
A strange silence fell upon the room as Claire did not know where to begin. Countless questions flashed across her mind…
What was Elisa's purpose for infiltrating the Varion Church?
What happened to the duke's original daughter? Or did she even exist in the first place?
Did Elisa really like her?
That last question wasn't the most important, but Elisa's confession did make Claire's heart begin to race.
Claire's cold appearance did not change but inwardly her thoughts were a mess.
The holy knight did not know what to do next or how to approach the situation.
Elisa quietly observed her guardian knight for a few minutes and then reached into her robes to pull out a stack of papers.
She placed the papers on the table and pushed them towards Claire with a solemn look on her face.
Claire picked up the first sheet and began to read its contents. Her brows gradually furrowed as a heavy pressure descended on the room.
"What is this?" Claire asked curiously as she picked up another sheet and started to read.
"A list," Elisa replied plainly with a cold glint in her eyes.
"A list with names belonging to powerful nobles like barons, dukes and princes to even high-ranking members of the church."
"Every single name on the list has imprisoned my kind as pets, slaves or servants."
The hatred in Elisa's voice was hard to ignore and her crimson eyes seemed to darken as she waited for Claire's reaction.
"Is that the reason why you infiltrated the Varion Church? To rescue them?" Claire asked softly as she stared at Elisa.
The former saintess hesitated for a moment when she saw Claire's trusting eyes and pushed down the guilty feeling in her heart.
"Yes… yes… my only goal is to save my people and escort them back to our homeland in the outer regions," Elisa spoke gently as her hand slightly trembled beneath her robe.
She didn't want to lie but… what other choice did she have?
How could she tell the full truth?
Even if Claire felt sympathetic towards the foreign races she would not sit idly by as they invoked the power of the demon clan.
"This… this… is a lot to take in," Claire admitted as she leaned back against the chair.
Perhaps the original Claire would have doubted Elisa's words, but Sui Li had seen incident after incident that revealed the corruption in the church.
Slavery was outlawed on the continent, but laws did not apply to those who stood on the top of the feudal system.
What made Claire feel truly disgusted was seeing the names of high-ranking members of the church on the list.
Lord Varion had granted his strength to humanity in order to protect them but instead these high priests and knights used his power to oppress the weak.
Elisa waited until her words had sunk into Claire's mind before making her next move.
"Will you help me rescue them?" Elisa pleaded as she got up from the bed and approached Claire with slow purposeful steps.
The dark elf princess bowed her head and tossed away her pride as she prepared to beg the powerful holy knight for help.
If any dark elves were in the room, they would have been shocked and horrified to see their fearsome princess act so humbly, but Elisa did not care.
For her people… she was prepared to pay any price.
The secret forces that she had built up over the years would only be able to rescue a handful of dark elves.
And it was unlikely that they would be able to save the ones bought by extremely powerful noble families.
But now Elisa saw hope.
Claire's angelic form and the power that she possessed created a tiny flame of ambition in her heart.
Slavery was officially outlawed by the Varion Church so as long as they did not go too far, Claire could justifiably raid the homes where the dark elves were kept.
Claire opened her mouth to say 'yes' but the words changed as she remembered how her mind was affected by her newfound power.
"I will consider it…" Claire hesitantly spoke.