The news that the former saintess had taken control of the chaotic lands reached the imperial power center, and no one could believe it.
After all, Angelina had always been merely a facade of the church, a mere ornament.
None of them had taken this woman seriously. In their eyes, she was just better looking and possessed higher magical talent.
Although she came from a noble family, she had been raised too naively and innocently by the church. At best, she would only marry a high-ranking official of the empire or the church.
So, when Angelina was exiled, they felt a sense of "as expected."
They awaited the news of this "Rose of the Church" withering. While it was a pity about such a beautiful face, she was just a woman.
Compared to the power of the church, none of them would risk conflict with the church for a woman.
Apart from those who coveted her beauty and felt pity for her, others were indifferent.
Some even privately dispatched teams to bring her back while she was in distress, intending to keep her as a mistress. However, they later abandoned this idea.
Little did they expect that this woman, far from being dejected, would instead bring the chaotic lands under her control, accomplishing what many had failed to do.
This was originally a lawless area. Now that it belonged to Angelina, it was equivalent to belonging to the empire.
For the emperor, she had rendered meritorious service. No emperor would refuse an expansion of his territory.
The emperor, overjoyed, prepared many rewards and sent an envoy to Lin Yan's territory. Simultaneously, he sent a new letter of appointment.
Even if the great nobles dared not believe it, the news was true. They prepared to send people to the chaotic lands to investigate thoroughly what methods that woman had used to subdue it.
The envoys, carrying the emperor's rewards and appointment letter for Lin Yan, set off on an autumn morning.
Also departing with them were members of the Liandell family.
Egbert was still very worried about his sister. Now that his health had improved, he decided to travel to the chaotic lands with the imperial envoy.
Until they saw with their own eyes that their sister was doing well, they could not be completely at ease.
The envoy's procession was long and moved slowly. Although they had spatial storage items, carrying the emperor's gifts in them would have prevented people from realizing the emperor's重视 (zhòngshì - importance) of this matter along the way.
Therefore, upon leaving the capital, these items were packed in boxes and transported by carriage, with a guard of dozens of knights surrounding them.
The procession was long and moved slowly. Along the way, these boxes fully demonstrated the emperor's high regard for Lin Yan's conquest of the chaotic lands.
Three days after leaving the capital, the envoy finally transferred these boxes into a storage ring, and the carriages were put away as well.
The knights rode their horses, and each also brought a spare horse. By switching horses, the procession's speed increased considerably.
Egbert had also brought many things, the latest fashionable items from the capital, all prepared by Lady Liandell for her daughter.
She was very worried that her daughter might suffer where she could not see her, and she felt that the chaotic lands must have very poor conditions, lacking food and clothing. So, she bought many things from the capital to send to her.
Egbert had also prepared a lot. He had not seen his sister for a long time. The last time he saw her, she was only fifteen years old, and at that time, she was still the saintess of the church.
Four or five years had passed. Due to the poor health of himself and his mother, and his sister's busy schedule at the church, they could only meet once every few years.
Because he was accompanying the envoy's guard, Egbert had not brought many people. Apart from servants to take care of his daily needs, he only brought a few knights for his own protection.
Along the way, he carefully inquired about His Majesty's opinions of his sister, seeking more information from the envoys to see if he could help his sister.
The envoys understood the brother's concern for his sister, so they told him some non-critical information.
Listening to the envoys, Egbert felt a little more at ease about his sister's situation.
"I never expected that even in such a place, she could accomplish this." The Son of God slammed his wine glass onto the table with force.
The wine glass was made of crystal, and it landed on the marble tabletop, making a crisp sound.
"Your Grace, our people have been discovered by her. It will be difficult to approach her again in the short term." The subordinate looked at the Son of God's angry expression. Although he did not want to provoke him further, he still had to say what he had to say.
"Then send more people. That broken place of hers is short of manpower everywhere. Send more people, and don't stop until you know all her news!"
"Yes, Your Grace."
A servant in white hurried over from outside. When he reached the Son of God, he slightly bowed and said, "Your Grace, the Saintess is here."
The Saintess? Hadn't the Saintess been exiled to the chaotic lands?
He suddenly realized that the Saintess had been replaced. However, he really didn't think much of this new Saintess.
It wasn't just him; perhaps very few people in the entire church thought highly of her.
After all, with Angelina being such a shining example, how could anyone who wasn't more outstanding than her be able to compare? Let alone replace her position.
However, this new Saintess wasn't without her merits. At least, she was obedient.
"Let her in. You may go now." The person who had just replied spoke again.
"Yes." The person bowed and began to retreat.
Just as he was about to reach the palace door, he brushed past the Saintess who was about to enter.
"Greetings, Your Saintess." He stopped to pay his respects.
"Mhmm." The Saintess perfunctorily nodded at him and continued to walk inside.
Despite being treated so dismissively, he didn't mind. She was just a beautiful ornament, not worth bothering about.
"Brother Son of God, I have a question for you." The new Saintess's voice rang out, sweet and charming.
"What question?" The Son of God's voice was very gentle.
As he left, the man saw the doting smile on the Son of God's face.
It was completely different from his expression when he faced him earlier. Now, the Son of God was gentle and doting, as if he were facing his beloved.
However, this man knew for sure that the Son of God would never fall for this new Saintess, or at least not at this time.