In fact, before she had any contact with Ahtal and Letixia, she had sensed that these two were not very powerful, and it was highly likely that they had no way to lift the curse.
However, after they produced the items that resisted the curse, she still felt disappointed, they merely had good luck by carrying these items with them.
There was nothing special about them.
"To remove the curse, one must at least understand its origin," Letixia suggested, and upon hearing this, Belis's expression subtly shifted.
She scratched her cheek, hinting mysteriously,
"I've heard... just heard, that this curse originated from the vengeful spirit of a deity before death. Someone assassinated the deity, causing the curse to spread to Lionheart Castle."
"How could a god possibly die?" Letixia instinctively retorted, understanding even as a three-year-old child would, that gods do not have the concept of death and cannot be killed.
At this, Belis smiled mysteriously, "Now any prayer to the God of Plague has lost its effect."
Letixia: "..."
Prayers related to deities naturally assume the existence of the gods; if the deity itself does not exist, then prayers cannot be answered.
And at that moment,
"Moreover, prayers to the God of Omniscience have also failed." Belis dropped another shocking piece of news.
The God of Omniscience, believed to have created the world, could not respond to the prayers of believers, an event unheard of before.
Unless there was something wrong with the deity itself.
"...!?" Letixia was so shocked by the sudden news that her pupils constricted, but Xi Mu beside her remained unmoved, quietly sipping tea.
In fact, Belis's speculation was partially true; the Goddess of Plague had indeed died, although the God of Omniscience had not.
Instead, he had been pulled into a time flow by the Time Witch, closely approaching a still space, and was indirectly sealed.
Thus, the God of Omniscience could not respond to prayers.
As the game progressed to later stages, players embarking on different game endings would see the sealed God of Omniscience break free from his binds for various reasons, appearing to battle with the players.
Defeating the God of Omniscience would also signify the end of the game.
"You seem hardly surprised at all?" Belis observed Xi Mu, who continued to quietly sip tea and eat fruit, a hint of puzzlement in her eyes.
Xi Mu offhandedly remarked, "Stop making such boring jokes, gods do not die."
"I'm not joking," Belis pursed her lips, though she knew her words would hardly be trusted.
She rose and walked towards the door, waving back at them without turning.
"Well, since you have no way to solve the curse, we'll just have to find another way to resolve it."
"..."
Letixia watched Belis's retreating figure, her emerald eyes reflecting contemplative thought.
In fact, she was not a devout believer in deities, unlike Ahtal who was a follower of the gods; she could accept the death of a deity.
But this posed a problem.
If deities were truly assassinated, she would not be able to meet them to legitimize her claim to the Iris Flower Kingdom, making taking back the kingdom exceedingly difficult later on.
The church and the nobles might not support her claim to the nation.
"Don't worry, nothing will happen to the gods." Xi Mu comforted Letixia, adding, "No deities have perished in fifty thousand years; it's unlikely to happen in our generation."
"That's true." Letixia nodded lightly, finding reason in his words; she also felt it was unlikely to be so unlucky as to not only be usurped from her inheritance by her sister but also witness the death of a deity.
"If you're still worried, you could also check with the followers of the Goddess of Plague and the God of Omniscience." Xi Mu continued to console her, "Seeing whether they can perform prayers will confirm some of the information."
"Hmm." Letixia gently nodded, planning to visit the followers of the Goddess of Plague to ascertain whether the Goddess was indeed unharmed.
Subsequently, a desperate reality presented itself.
"Sorry, I can no longer receive a response from the goddess."
In a secluded alley, a devout priest of the Goddess of Plague leaned against the wall, his pale face tinged with a hint of guilt.
"After that disaster, I have been unable to use any prayers. If you want to cure illness, you should seek the followers of the Goddess of Life."
Letixia: "..."
Indeed, the followers of the God of Plague had lost the ability to use any prayers associated with him, which meant... there was something wrong with the god.
Could the ceremony to meet the gods still be held as scheduled?
"Oh god, have You abandoned us?" The priest murmured softly, his breathing becoming more rapid and painful, sweat increasingly beading on his forehead.
The priest seemed to feel despair and pain regarding the lack of response from the Goddess of Plague, but he did not believe that the Goddess had died.
"Oh god, please turn Your gaze upon Your devout followers again."
"Maybe it's just been too long at work." Letixia squatted down, comforting the priest who was now weak, "Today the Goddess of Plague just… slacked off a bit."
"Is that so?" The priest seemed comforted and peacefully passed away, his breath stopping as his soul journeyed to the underworld.
"Maybe the curse has affected him too deeply, causing him to lose his ability to cast spells?" Xi Mu comforted Letixia, who seemed somewhat downcast.
He pointed down the street.
"Why don't we look for someone else?"
"Yes." Letixia nodded lightly, stood up, and grabbing Xi Mu's wrist, they continued searching for followers of the Goddess of Plague and the God of Omniscience.
Without exception, they were all unable to hear the voices of the gods.
However, followers of other gods were able to use prayers. They too were cursed and infected, but their casting abilities remained unaffected.
Back at the widow's home.
Letixia seemed very downcast; she might really be unlucky, finding herself in the awkward situation of divine assassination and inability to secure a legitimate right to succession.
Then her shoulder was suddenly tapped.
"What's the matter... Lord Ahtal?" she asked softly, only to see Ahtal giving her a very gentle smile.
"It's okay if we can't get divine recognition," Ahtal withdrew his hand, flexing his wrist, "I can still help you reclaim the nation."
"Lord Ahtal, do you want to make an enemy of a nation?" Letixia, astonished, widened her eyes. Even though Ahtal was capable, making an enemy of a nation was an impossible task.
Originally, she had planned to meet the gods and, after obtaining legal succession rights, return to her nation to garner support from the nobility and the church.
Now that road was blocked.
"Have you forgotten that I am to become Siegfried's apprentice?" Xi Mu smiled and explained to Letixia.
"I will do my best to gain Siegfried's support to help you reclaim the Iris Flower Kingdom."
"How should I ever repay you, Lord Ahtal?" Letixia pressed her lips together, her voice carrying an extremely complex emotion.
She was starting to feel overwhelmed by the tumult of emotions within her.
"Just smile." Ahtal casually remarked, raising his hand to wipe away the unwitting tears falling from Letixia's eyes, observing her forced smile.
"Go rest, tomorrow we'll hurry to Sky City."
"Yes." Letixia nodded softly, raised her hand to wipe away her tears, turned her back on Xi Mu, and whispered softly.
"Lord Ahtal, do you... want to be king?"
"No," Xi Mu answered casually, seemingly unaware of the implication in her question. He had no interest in being king, instead only desiring Letixia's family inheritance and relishing the experience of fighting through the process of reclaiming the kingdom.
Other than that, he had no interest. After all, there wasn't much benefit to being a king.
"I'm going to rest now." Letixia sighed lightly, her silhouette looking somewhat forlorn, slowly leaving the room.
Why must there be such a righteous knight in this world.