Silphiel opened her eyes and tried to move her limbs, only to find herself completely immobile.

As her thoughts snapped back to reality, she gasped—she was bound in an all-too-familiar M-shaped position to a library chair!

The ropes bit tight. Every slight struggle only accentuated her delicate curves, especially those mouth-watering peaks beneath her dress.

Across the table, Gao Ying sat watching her with unabashed interest.

He even licked his lips.

Silphiel’s face burned crimson. From this angle, the Hero had definitely seen everything under her skirt!

"...Gao Ying, what are you doing? This isn’t funny!" she forced a smile, testing a Divine Art—but the Goddess gave no reply.

*Level 76. Holy Maiden. Even without divine power, my physical strength should snap these ropes easily.*

Yet the tighter she struggled, the tighter they gripped. She could barely breathe. *What’s this Hero playing at?*

*Does he have... unusual tastes?*

Gao Ying steepled his fingers, gaze sharp. "Silphiel. Did you never imagine this day would come? I know exactly what you’re scheming—using me as your pawn to pave your ambitions. Did you think I’d believe you?"

Cold sweat slid down Silphiel’s temple. "Gao Ying, what nonsense! I’m the Holy Maiden! My only wish is world peace!"

"Then I’ll have to make you talk."

He rose, plucked a glowing branding iron from the fireplace with tongs, and held it before her terrified eyes.

"Choose. Which stick do you want?"

Silphiel’s eyes widened in fury. "You dare?! I refuse both! This is the Divine Court headquarters—you’ll pay for this!"

Gao Ying sighed, ice in his voice. "What a shame."

*Wait—he was actually going to do it?!*

His hand shot out. *Rrrrip!* Fabric tore. Her hidden landscape lay utterly exposed.

He wasn’t bluffing.

"...S-Stop! Damn you!"

Silphiel jolted upright from the desk, drenched in cold sweat. The library’s quiet shelves came into focus—just a nightmare.

Gao Ying’s coat slipped off her shoulders. *There.* The source of the nightmare.

*This damn Hero’s stinking jacket!*

She longed to shred it underfoot—but her hands gently folded the coat onto the table.

"Where’s Gao Ying?" She scanned the towering bookshelves. Voices drifted from afar. She followed them, rounding a corner—

—and froze.

Bathed in cerulean mage-light, Gao Ying chatted warmly with a female knight. His voice carried clearly: "Lady Rodrika, will you be my knight?"

Rodrika’s cheeks flushed. She bowed deeply. "If the Hero deems me worthy... I accept."

"No!"

The word tore from Silphiel’s throat before she could think.

*So while I napped, a cat tried to steal my fish?!*

*The Hero is mine. "The Holy Maiden is the Hero’s lover"—hasn’t the Goddess’s decree reached your ears? With divine backing, you dare steal what’s mine?!*

She stormed between them, blocking their "lovestruck" gazes, hands on hips. "Gao Ying! I won’t stop you from choosing a guard—but never Rodrika!"

Rodrika flinched under Silphiel’s glare.

Silphiel sniffed, chin high, eyes dripping contempt. "She’s Bishop Radel’s daughter—the traitor who murdered the former Pope and plotted against the Divine Envoy! Only His Holiness’s mercy spared her!"

"Hmph. Letting this traitor’s daughter guard you? The very thought is sinful!"

Her words were steel, her stare a clear warning.

*Ordinary knights? I’d ignore them. But Rodrika? Her infamy echoes through every hall of the Divine Court.*

*This lowly worm dares covet my Hero? What a delusional dream!*

"His Holiness showed mercy by punishing only her father," Silphiel pressed, "yet Rodrika repays it with hidden malice! For your safety—mine and the Pope’s—we forbid it! I’ll find you worthy knights later."

Rodrika’s hopeful light dimmed to ash.

A smirk tugged Silphiel’s lips. *I made sure her name became poison. I don’t hate her... but her timid nature is just too fun to torment.*

*Now this human punching bag—the library’s eternal clerk—dares touch my Hero? How dare she?!*

Yet—

"Silphiel. You called her a traitor’s daughter. The traitor was her father. Not her. Right?"

Silphiel whirled, stunned. *That should’ve crushed his resolve!*

*She’s the Court’s most hated woman!*

"Besides," Gao Ying added calmly, "His Holiness punished only Bishop Radel. That was mercy."

"But—" Silphiel sputtered, words failing.

*Rodrika’s not as pretty as me, but that pitiful look... Men always fall for it. Is the Hero actually smitten?*

*Ugh. Blind fool.*