After cleaning up the laboratory, I prepared the transmutation table for the day. The old Josephine was quite particular about tidiness to the point of obsession.
I'm more of a "no-shit" kind of person, so our ideologies conflict on that matter, but I cleaned up because it had become second nature to me. The process was actually quite simple: put all the ingredients on the transmutation table and wait a few hours for the desired item to come out.
After carefully placing all the necessary materials, which I had painstakingly procured, I yawned and realized it was too late. The transmutation table would need a few more hours, so I could just pick up the product later.
I left the laboratory, and the mansion was pitch black when I stepped outside. I used a fire stone to light my surroundings and made my way to my room.
When I opened the door, I saw a light on the table and Jane seated there. "Good evening, Lady," she greeted me as she stood up and bowed.
'Ayaya…'
Even I could see that behind her smile, she was more or less angry again. If I was the old Josephine, I wouldn't mind this, but honestly, since I had grown fond of Jane, it was impossible not to feel guilty.
I put my right hand on my neck and stooped low. "This… I'm sorry."
It felt weird, honestly, but Jane really reminded me of my caretaker who had taken care of me in my previous life.
Before I realized it, Jane was already in front of me, holding my hand.
"Lady, you really changed," she said to me in a kind and gentle tone.
What's this feeling? Why does my chest hurt?
"I have accompanied you throughout your life, and this is the first time you've apologized to me."
"That's why…"
Something damp was before she could finish it, she hugged me tightly.
"It's okay not to feel fine, my lady."
Why...? I couldn't stop the tears streaming down my face.
"All of your pain and struggles, I know of it." I couldn't stop it from flowing out. "That's why... let it all out."
And before I knew it, I was already sobbing uncontrollably into Jane's skirt. "You've done well, my Lady." The night was deep, but it was the warmest day of my life as Josephine.
-
I woke up with my eyes dried out. I must have cried a lot last night, huh?
"Do you feel fine now, my Lady?" Jane said to me while preparing my breakfast, which was a simple eggs benedict with coffee.
"Well... yeah." Although our interaction was quite dramatic yesterday, we actually felt closer this time. "That reminds me, you have a meeting with Marquis Jhake this morning, right, my Lady?"
"Nephi."
"Huh?" Jane was surprised by my response. "Call me Nephi, Jane."
"I-I wouldn't dare to—huh?!?" Jane was even more shocked this time.
"That's right," I put my hand on my chin on the table.
"Y-you're that N-Nephi?!?" Jane said as if she had sewn the pieces together.
"Yes, I'm that Nephi."
"But I thought that Nephi was your friend!"
"As if I had any friends to begin with." Jane was left speechless by my response. I looked sideways. "Besides, how did you even think I got the money to do things? My family barely gives me an allowance. And this spare mansion's fund is managed by me."
Jane couldn't respond. "I don't want to hide anything from you anymore, Jane. Besides, it feels uncomfortable to be called Josephine, right?" I smiled at her. "That's why, call me Lady Nephi from now on."
Jane, while staring at me blankly, chuckled and brightly smiled at me. "Yes, Lady Nephi!"
Yep, that's more like it. I realized it was getting late, so I hurriedly ate my meal and got prepared by Jane. I chose a simple white and black dress with my hair laid down and no ornaments. Although Jane was pretty insistent I wear one, in the end, I yielded by just wearing a simple necklace with a teardrop design, much to her displeasure.
Before I could depart, I had to stop in my laboratory to pick up my magnum opus. I entered through the entrance and saw a dark red light enveloping the room.
I approached the transmutation table, and there it was—the Philosopher's Stone.
But why were there two? I genuinely thought. I held them in my palm.
"So this is the legendary stone said to be the peak of alchemy?" There were two nearly identical stones radiating a red light. They didn't really feel special.
I packed them in my pouch and hurriedly strode toward my carriage.
Now that I think of it, this carriage had no emblem of my family, which made it inconspicuous. I left the mansion quietly since there was no one around and rode alone on my way to the cathedral.
"Can't you make it move faster?" I said to the coachman.
"We're already going as fast as the horse can handle, Lady," the coachman said as he clicked his tongue.
I was already too behind my schedule since I was too complacent, but it seemed that we would arrive on time.
I held the Philosopher's Stone in my hand. It was glowing, but I made it so that it wouldn't be as glowing as it used to be. Aside from that, I didn't really know what this stone did.
I tried chanting some stuff like "Turn this metal into gold!" or, while infusing mana, muttering "Grant me strength!" or something like that. Nothing really happened.
My alchemist instinct was telling me that this was already the final product of alchemy, so there was no more evolution for this thing.
"How do I even use this thing?" I muttered. As I thought it was kind of useless due to the fact that it did literally nothing, I was putting it back in the pouch when the carriage I was boarding suddenly struck something.
I was startled, causing the stone to be launched into the air. Since I was dazed, I tried to catch it with my hands, but I juggled it, and it landed in my mouth. Before I could react to spit it out, another thud made me stumble back and crash my back on the seat, causing me to swallow the stone.
"...!" I thought that I had made the biggest mistake of my life as I held my throat. My stomach suddenly felt really hot for some reason. "Argh!" It felt like my insides were burning from within.
"Why are you...?" The coachman, who peeked at me, was surprised that I was groveling in pain.
"Help me! Argh!!!" It burns; it feels like I'm being set alive. The coachman was dumbfounded and nervous, unsure of what to do.
"Run the damn thing already to the cathedral!"
"A-ah, yes!" The coachman, as if he had realized, ran the horses as fast as he could.
Gradually, the pain started to worsen, and it felt like the veins in my body began to show blue as I cried out blue blood. As I blacked out due to the unbearable pain, I woke up with a hazy mind, still plagued by the pain.
I saw the coachman talking to the paladins outside the church, who were pointing their lances at him.
I opened the door, albeit faintly, and unsteadily got out. The paladins were shocked. I couldn't look at them properly as my eyes were already bluish-red, and my ears were long gone as they dripped blood. My throat was burned from the inside as I struggled to gently get out of the carriage and fell to the ground.
The coachman helped me to my feet. A priest showed up as if he were contemplating me, and I paid no heed to him.
I threw the bag of coins I had at him, and he was left speechless. He let me pass through, and I limp-walked inside the cathedral as many people saw me and murmured, but I couldn't care less or hear them.
My destination was none other than the altar of the goddess situated in the middle of this cathedral. I couldn't figure out how much time had passed, but one thing was certain:
'I want to live...!'
I desperately dragged myself to reach the place. With my hazy mind and swirling head, I finally found it. The eroded statue with no face and a bowl in the middle.
I crouched my way to the statue while blood pooled around me. This statue was the original statue of the gods, left unchanged but not well kept.
Adele finds the purpose of this statue, in desperation, prayed to this very statue, offering her most prized possession, a necklace from Peter, to save him from his mortal wounds.
The gods supposedly granted her wish, bestowing holy power upon her, allowing her to heal Peter and become the saintess.
'It's a bullshit story' but right now, I wasn't driven by any noble reason, petty revenge, or even desperation.
'I just want to live….!!!' I put the other Philosopher's Stone in the bowl.
I knelt in front of the statue and prayed earnestly, for the first time in years. I wished with every fiber of my being, from the bottom of my heart.
'I pray, if anyone is listening, grant my wish and save me!'
Although my vision was blurred, a pillar of light so strong illuminated the cathedral. It was so intense that I was almost taken aback. Clinging to the floor with my remaining strength, I instinctively crawled toward it.
After the light had faded, I saw the Philosopher's Stone shining brightly. Even with my bloodied vision, I noticed it had changed. My instincts told me to grab the stone and with my last bit of strength, I swallowed it. I fell to the cold floor, bracing for death.
Suddenly, I found myself floating in the air, shining brightly. I could see my body radiating with a yellow energy. Contrary to my expectations, the pain plaguing me gradually disappeared, replaced by a clear sensation in my head. A game-like screen appeared in front of me:
[The gods have acknowledged you!]
[The rampaging Philosopher's Stone inside your body was purified by the Holy Power of the Purified Holy Philosopher's Stone!]
[Your strength increases to its maximum! Your mana reaches its maximum! Due to the effect of the Philosopher's Stone!]
[Impossible feat achieved! Due to ingesting another Philosopher's Stone imbued with the holy powers of the gods, all stats increase vastly past their limits!]
[The gods have bestowed you with their power! You can now freely use Holy Power without limit!]
What the hell was going on? As I floated, it felt like the two stones inside my body were merging. A large wave of energy emitted from me, producing winds that swept through the entire cathedral and nearby cities. Still unfamiliar with my new powers, I landed on the floor and hurriedly hid in another room.
-
The incident caused a revelation within the cathedral: a new saint had arrived. They connected the pillar of light and the wind to the room it originated from. The room had blood dripping from it, and they found the old, ignored statue now shining and restored, with a scroll in the bowl containing a message: "The new saintess has arrived, find her."
Because of this, the whole cathedral was in an uproar. Fortunately, all suspicions were removed from me. I was a being known in the empire as a villainess, there was no way anyone would suspect I was the new saintess. This commotion allowed me to escape without being seen, and my meeting with Marquis Shake was also canceled.
The coachman seemed relieved that I was safe. The priest initially rejected the money but later took a few coins as a "fee" which I didn't mind since I managed to slip away amidst the chaos.
After insisting that we go first, they let us go because there was alot going in their hands.
I boarded the carriage and slumped on the chair stained with blood i shed earlier.
I sighed. 'It's a really tiring and confusing day.'