Chapter 40

“No, that’s not a registered student. I can confirm that there are no students with such characteristics, whether among this year’s freshmen or the upperclassmen,” Mirexia spoke up.

At her words, all the teachers present fell silent.

Although their common faith was also in the Goddess of Radiance, they found it hard to believe in the manifestation of the goddess.

Think about it, if the goddess could truly manifest, there would have been many more opportune times and many more suspicious points.

Why didn’t the goddess manifest when the ancient empire fell? Why didn’t she manifest when the demons invaded the southern continent?

Why didn’t she manifest when the disciples of the Demon God Pillar raided? Why didn’t she manifest when the Demon God Pillar descended and plunged the Terraria continent into turmoil?

Looking at the history of the Terraria continent, there have been many more critical moments than the current situation. Why didn’t the goddess manifest then?

Why manifest now? Could it be that the goddess turned a blind eye to these sufferings?

The students are too young and inexperienced, so it’s normal for them to believe in the manifestation of the goddess. But those with deep experience like us find it hard to believe such things, it’s too much like a fairy tale.

“Elder Norton, what’s the current situation? Do you think this rumor is reliable?” The old man in a black suit, leaning on a black cane, didn’t rush to a conclusion but asked the elder who specialized in detection and reconnaissance magic.

“Vice Principal, based on my current observations, the authenticity of this rumor and how much of it is true still needs to be verified.” However, to everyone’s surprise, Norton, whose detection abilities were unquestionable, gave an ambiguous answer.

Ambiguity, sometimes, is also an answer with implications.

If it were just a rumor like usual, Norton wouldn’t have given such an answer; he would have directly and clearly explained the situation.

“That girl is wearing a pure white short dress adorned with a silver cross and golden holy patterns, with a pair of pure and flawless angel wings, and her features include cherry-colored hair and pink eyes. Now, she is confronting the blood altar in the air.” There was one more thing Norton didn’t mention: that pink figure was so small, yet the scene was full of tension.

The pure holy light released by the angel girl’s wings seemed to form a barrier, dividing the suffocating and despairing darkness, and her aura seemed to rival the blood altar.

Although it might be controversial to say so, Norton really wanted to say that in a scene of deep darkness, the only light that emerged truly gave the feeling of a goddess saving the world. If he were just a student, he might have believed such a rumor.

At this moment of human despair, nothing could be more uplifting than such a scene.

“Can we confirm the identity of that girl?” the old man pondered.

“That, I’m afraid, is not possible for now. As Mirexia said, there is no such student among the registered students of the academy. Indeed, some combat instructors saw that the girl did fly out from the direction of the Saintess Selina Cathedral.” Elder Norton shook his head. In fact, he was also very curious about what was happening now and who that girl was.

At this moment, all the teachers present fell silent, and many couldn’t help but have this thought in their minds.

Could it really be the manifestation of the goddess?

Everyone knew very well about Elder Norton’s detection abilities; he couldn’t be mistaken.

If someone deliberately disguised themselves or used something like a potion of transformation, he would see through it at a glance, so it was impossible for the appearance to be a disguise.

“Is there a student from the Varelis family this year?” The Vice Principal pondered for a moment and asked the question that everyone had thought of.

“Yes, but that student from the Varelis family is a recognized ‘dead bloodline,’ and he’s a boy through and through. I’m sure you’ve all heard his name, Winnie Varelis. Just now, when I was patrolling the academy to see which students hadn’t entered the shelter, I happened to run into him, and then I arranged for him to enter the shelter.” Mirexia took over the conversation at this point and answered seriously, acting as an assistant to cover for Winnie.

“Besides him, are there no other members of the Varelis family?” asked a teacher who didn’t know much about the Varelis family.

“No, he is the only direct descendant of the Varelis family today. The Varelis family has always been a single line, and now only he remains.” Mirexia shook her head, doing her best to cover for Winnie.

“Then, could it be some branch family or something?” Another teacher put forward his own idea.

“That’s obviously impossible. Although the Varelis family is a Saintess family, it’s not a large family and has always been a single line.” The Vice Principal dismissed this conjecture, or rather, it was no secret.

The pain of the strong is their extremely low fertility, the more powerful the bloodline, the more so. It’s not uncommon for Saint families to be a single bloodline, but the Varelis family is the most prominent.

“So, Mirexia, do you believe this is the result of the manifestation of the Goddess of Radiance?” the Vice Principal asked, holding his cane, the single lens of his glasses flashing with an unreadable light.

“I think that as long as there is still a glimmer of hope, we should not completely abandon our compatriots.” Mirexia did not answer directly.

“But we cannot pin our hopes on such a fleeting possibility. It might be hope, or it might be a mirage of hope. If it’s the latter, we would be playing with the fate of the entire continent.” The Vice Principal clearly did not agree with Mirexia’s risky approach.

“Mirexia, you have always been a cautious person. I don’t know if your decision was made on the spur of the moment or for some other reason, but forgive me for saying so, whether you stand from the perspective of the Carillian Academy or the Camela Kingdom, you should not hesitate in such matters.” The Vice Principal slightly lowered his eyes, making it unclear what he was thinking.

“But…”

“No buts, Mirexia. This is too sudden; no one has time to come to our aid. Without exaggeration, our decisions now determine the life and death of the Terraria civilization… They are also my students. If it wasn’t absolutely necessary situation, we wouldn’t do this. Afterward, I will investigate, and whoever’s carelessness caused this will be punished as they deserve, even if it’s me.” The Vice Principal’s deep and resolute voice completely overpowered Mirexia.

As the actual helmsman of the Carillian Academy, his presence on the battlefield was not something a junior like Mirexia could match.

“There’s no time left; activate the amplification magic array.” With that, the Vice Principal stood up and walked to the center of the magic array.

Mirexia wanted to say something more, but no one would listen to her.

In front of the academy’s top brass, her voice was too small, and most of the instructors also felt that this was too risky. Bearing the weight of the entire Terraria continent, no one felt they could shoulder such responsibility.

“Wait a moment, everyone. I think the matter still needs to be evaluated.” [Boneless] Morinkate suddenly spoke up.

“Morinkate, whether or not that girl is a goddess descending to earth, we must take the safest measures now.”

“But what about those students who were controlled by the disciples of the Demon God Pillar and infected with the virus due to our negligence? Are we just going to abandon them?”

“Can we absolve ourselves of responsibility?” Morinkate said seriously.

“Vice Principal, something else has happened!” Just as the two sides were arguing endlessly, Norton’s expression suddenly changed.

“What is it, Elder Norton?” the Vice Principal asked gravely.

“The students, the students in the shelter, and those who volunteered to defend the academy under the guidance of the instructors, they have gathered around the blood altar! If we use the amplification array to launch a super-large magic now, we will definitely harm them!”

“What’s going on?” The Vice Principal’s expression darkened. “Didn’t we tell the students to stay far away from the blood altar and go to the shelter, and if they didn’t go to the shelter, to have the instructors watch over them?”

“Do they not know the danger?”

“That’s right, but it seems the students organized this themselves.” Norton contacted the combat instructors present through magic and came to this conclusion.

“Organized themselves? What’s going on?”

“It seems that someone leaked the information that the academy’s top brass was going to use the amplification array to destroy the base of the blood altar. The students didn’t agree and organized themselves to gather in front of the blood altar!” Norton was also in chaos now, unable to figure out who had leaked the information.

“Who leaked the information?”

“… It’s too late to worry about that now; find a way to solve it.” The Vice Principal frowned slightly.

“Everyone, let me broadcast the scene for you.” Norton sobbed and waved his hands in the air, and a crystal screen appeared in everyone’s view.

“Bomb the base? Now? Are you kidding? What about Her Majesty the Goddess? And what about the students trapped inside? Isn’t this completely irresponsible?”

“That’s right, my childhood friend is still there! If you’re not going to save him, are you going to kill him? Shouldn’t we be killing the disciples of the Demon God Pillar?”

“So what kind of decision is this?! How can it be so sudden?? It hasn’t been long; have you even thought of a solution before doing something so extreme?”

“Using the amplification array to amplify a super magic to bomb the base of the altar?? What exactly are you trying to do? Look at the sky! That’s Her Majesty the Goddess! Are you trying to bomb the goddess?? What exactly are you thinking?!”

“That’s right, talking about no hope and all that, but that’s Her Majesty the Goddess! The Goddess has manifested, and you’re still saying there’s no hope?!”

“Goddess of Radiance above! Please save us, save your loyal followers and believers!”

“You’re going to point the cannon at the goddess?? Then kill us first! Otherwise, we won’t let you get close!”

“We won’t let you interfere with the goddess!” Among them, a red-haired girl with a church background was particularly agitated, reluctant to leave the side of the blood altar.

The combat instructors present tried to explain the stakes to them, but they didn’t listen, instead retorting even more fiercely.

“Teacher, we don’t agree with your explanation; that’s the goddess descending to earth, we saw it with our own eyes! How can you not even trust the goddess?!”

“That’s right, the goddess wouldn’t abandon those poor classmates like you; she will save them all along with us!”

The instructors explained to them that the process of humans turning into servants of the Demon God Pillar is irreversible, like time reversal, and they can’t change back, but the students had their own explanations.

“Teacher, do you believe in miracles? This is a miracle!” One student pointed at the Goddess of Radiance in the sky with fervor.

“Praise the goddess!”

“There’s nothing the goddess can’t do! I was just saved by Her Majesty, with a slight effort, she healed my wounds, and with a breath of holy fire, millions of fanatics were annihilated in an instant!” Fanya spoke with conviction. “I saw it with my own eyes! If you don’t believe me, ask the students I protected earlier; otherwise, how could I, who was supposed to be dead, still be alive now?!”

“That’s right! You don’t even believe in the goddess and dare to point the cannon at her, you apostates!”

“Turn off the screen.” Just looking at the overreaction of these church-background students made the Vice Principal feel his eyebrows involuntarily twitching.

“Have the combat instructors forcibly pull those students back, and then we’ll activate the amplification array.”

“Understood.” Norton compiled.

“Vice Principal…” Mirexia wanted to say something more, but the old man interrupted her.

“Mirexia, the situation is urgent; you should also hurry back to the shelter. It won’t be safe here soon.”

“…” Seeing that the other party had issued a clear dismissal and didn’t want to hear her continue, Mirexia could only slightly lower her eyes and remain silent.

“Goddess! Goddess!” On the other hand, in fact, when Vanessa flew to the blood altar and confronted it with a dazzling light in the endless dark night, almost all the students saw her.

Support for her came in waves, one after another, from students of all ages.

“Is that… Goddess of Radiance??” In the shelter, Shikondel stared blankly at the dazzling cherry-colored figure in the sky.

It was her first time seeing the goddess manifest, and of course, it was the first time for everyone present.

But…

She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she felt that girl was somewhat familiar.

Milian beside her had the same feeling.

As for those students who had seen Vanessa in the maid cafe, the contrast in her demeanor and attire was too great, and they completely didn’t remember having seen her before.