When Maggie returned to the palace, all the palace guards and palace magicians had already returned and were now lined up in the castle hall, ready to fight.
The paladins, holding several richly dressed nobles captive, were kneeling before the throne, facing forward.
As Maggie entered the hall, she could see His Majesty the Emperor sitting in the main seat, his imposing face ashen.
Eve stood beside the Emperor. Her eyes lit up when she saw Maggie, but she had to stay put because her father was still there.
Maggie calmly walked forward, while Nesser, feeling shy, stood down behind her, and Perkin stood on his other side.
But in this scene, he really does act like a personal bodyguard.
"Your Majesty the Emperor."
Maggie stepped forward and bowed respectfully, neither humble nor arrogant. Since His Majesty the Emperor already knew most of the matter, there were some things that were no longer her place to say.
As expected, the emperor maintained a dignified demeanor, but still expressed the proper gratitude to Maggie.
"Thank you, Your Highness, for your help in turning the tide and saving the kingdom."
He stood up and bowed deeply to Maggie.
"As a believer of God and a saint, it is my duty to have mercy on the world and thwart the conspiracy of the dead."
Maggie also took a half step back and bowed to His Majesty the Emperor.
This is proper etiquette; to accept someone's thanks so easily is somewhat disrespectful.
"The saintess is of noble and benevolent character, and the kingdom should offer you a gift of gratitude."
His Majesty's choice of words was extremely weighty; using the word "offer" between the Emperor and the Holy Maiden of Light was still too much of an overstatement.
However, it's clear to some extent how grateful he is to Maggie.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, but... it seems you still have other matters to resolve?"
Maggie nodded in agreement, but her gaze turned to the kneeling nobles, her words carrying a suggestive undertone.
Maggie's words were a bit inappropriate, but she really wanted to see with her own eyes what would happen to those who dared to scheme against her.
Of course, more importantly, it was the person who hurt him.
The emperor could see Maggie's disheveled appearance; she had been too rushed to tidy herself up. Upon hearing this, he immediately understood and raised his head to give a stern command to the palace guards.
"Bring the person up."
Maggie also stepped aside and calmly looked at the person who had been brought out from another place.
One of them is... Motley Lynn.
Her eyes were bloodshot, her hands were tied behind her back, and she was being pushed up, staggering. The moment she saw Maggie, boundless hatred burst forth in her eyes.
Maggie was not at all surprised to see her here, and gave her a defiant smile that only a victor would have.
As expected, Motley Lynn was provoked on the spot and became even angrier.
"You! You damned saintess, you killed my brother and my elder brother!"
She seemed to have seen Joyce being turned into a dried-up corpse, and her voice still faintly contained screams.
"Shut up!"
Upon seeing the emperor's furrowed brow, the guard beside her immediately pressed down on Mortley Lynn's head, forcing it down deeply.
Now she couldn't even look Maggie in the eye, let alone yell at her.
"Colluding with the dead, intending to overthrow the kingdom, do you have anything else to explain?"
The emperor sat back on his throne, a deep murderous intent flashing in his eyes as he spoke.
"I don't."
When asked this question, Motley Lynn did not answer, but instead retorted with a stiff neck.
The head of the family beside her bowed his head in fear and answered.
"Your subject was unaware that they had actually committed... a betrayal of the kingdom."
Maggie glanced at the middle-aged man, Joyce and Lynn's father, and could tell he was genuinely flustered, not lying.
Therefore...
This unfortunate guy was dragged down by his children.
Even if he was unaware of it, such a heinous crime would have made it impossible for the Motley family to continue existing.
"have no idea?"
The emperor tapped the throne lightly with his fingertips, his voice devoid of any emotion. Fortunately, it did not cause too terrible a price, and he quickly calmed down from his rage.
Maggie glanced at the emperor with a cryptic look. As expected, the emperor who could personally slay his daughter's undead and rebuild the Kingdom of Saint Na after the arrival of the undead calamity was more clear-headed than she had imagined.
"Your subject truly has no idea!"
The head of the Motley family knelt on the ground in fear and unease, his gaze constantly shifting to his daughter beside him, his expression a mixture of hatred, urging, or something else entirely.
But ultimately, I just wanted her to say a few words.
"No? Then why did you lead people to ambush and kill Her Highness the Holy Maiden's attendants?"
The emperor's gaze returned to Lin.
"She killed her younger brother and older brother; I just wanted to teach her servants a lesson!"
Lin was still struggling to argue her way out of it.
Because she didn't appear directly at the teleportation array, she still had room to struggle.
"Brother, it was because of this saintess that he was killed by the undead!"
She insisted it was Maggie's fault; Joyce hadn't become a ghost, but a dried-up corpse, resembling a sacrifice.
If one insists on trying to explain it, it does make sense.
A moment of silence fell over the room, which was quite different from what Princess Eve had just said.
However, no one dared to truly doubt the Holy Maiden of Light, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense.
Lin's plan to smear others was very effective.
Maggie's heart stirred slightly. She suddenly remembered what the little ghost had mentioned before—that there were traces of vampires. So she asked.
"Your Majesty, have you caught any vampires? They might be cooperating with each other."
Maggie's words made Lynn tremble, but she bit her lip tightly.
"They didn't catch them... but the ones who attacked the paladin and the court mage were vampires."
The man standing at the very front of the magicians stepped forward and answered the question.
"good."
Maggie's heart sank. It seemed that the enemy was stronger than she had imagined, and even the paladins had not been able to capture them.
Suddenly, she felt her clothes being tugged, and when she turned around, she saw Nesser looking up at her.
Nesser silently mouthed a sentence.
'The one who intercepted me was a bone lord from the undead.'
Maggie paused, some plot points suddenly flashing through her mind, but she still nodded almost imperceptibly to Nesser.
The Bone Lord... a very special type of undead, who has only appeared once even in the comics.
Could it be the one from the story?
Maggie wasn't sure.
However, there were some clues, and there was evidence to support Lin's easily debunked claim.
“Your Majesty, the Bone Lord left traces wherever he went. We can search the Motley mansion.”
It just so happens that she had Perkin follow Joyce, so finding their hideout shouldn't be too difficult.
"Can."
The emperor nodded slightly. He wasn't stupid; he could see that Lin was being stubborn. So he simply presented the evidence, leaving her with no room for rebuttal.
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