I will not die a Villainess's death

"Oi, It's your lucky day. I heard that the Saintess is headed this way right now. Aren't you lucky?"

The guard looked around happily, not letting it show that they were here to kidnap the Saintess. Lord Lucas had given them strict instructions to not let themselves be caught until it was time.

As such, the guards had to act carefree to not attract attention. Otherwise, even death was not out of the bag for them.

Currently, a few of their men were mixed in with the normal royal army and were acting as messengers for Lord Dirac.

"Still, you did bring the symbol we have to gift her with, right? You will die a horrible death if you forgot to get that."

The first guard asked, fear seeping into his voice. No one could see the terror-filled expression he supported at the notion of not being able to carry out his mission.

"Of course, I brought it with me. I have no intention of dying."

The guard brought out a gift envelope usually used to make huge amounts of donations. It was their ultimate trump card against the tower's defense.

Now they only had to wait for the Saintess to show up and their part would be finally over with.

"Look, the Saintess finally came out. Hurry, gather the gifts we need to give her. Hopefully, we will be able to please her."

Someone from the actual army whispered those words. The guard felt bad for him since all his hopes were going to be dashed once the Saintess runs away.

These soldiers were innocent and were just trying to live in peace. But their foolish lords had no idea what kind of world out there was.

As such, these soldiers were going to end up as war casualties soon enough.

"Let's hurry up and get this bomb off our hands."

The guard whispered to his partner as he held the envelope up. The Saintess spotted them and luckily headed toward them.

"Is this a special donation? Can I know the name of the generous gentleman who decided to make this contribution?"

The Saintess gave off a warm and powerful feeling which made the guards look away from her. Her presence made them feel like they were not worthy of her attention.

Still, the first guard managed to gulp down his fears as he looked toward the priestess.

"The sender did not give us a name when he asked us to deliver this to the temple. He just hopes that the Saintess can find comfort in this offering and bless the lord."

The guard did as he had been instructed to and waited for any sort of confirmation to come his way.

Lord Dirac had said to not make it obvious that he was eager for a response but the guard could not help it. It was his life on the line here.

"I see. I think I know which generous lord asked you to give this to me. I will make good use of it."

The Saintess did not linger around for long as she left the gathering. Her short yet impactful presence caused everyone to hold their breaths.

They finally felt like they could breathe again once she was gone.

"Finally, our part is done. We will live to see more days."

The guard whispered happily as he marched out again. His work here had been done and over with.

_____________________________

"We got a generous donation today. Here, give it to me so that I can hand it to the treasury."

The sister who had accompanied Eve spoke with greed in her eyes. It was not often that such generous but hidden donations were given to the temple.

And since the sender had not given a name for it, no one could prove its existence. Even if someone came forward to claim it, the temple would have an excuse to deny it.

As such, it was a prime target for the sister to keep her eyes on. She could steal the money inside and then use it for her gain.

"I cannot give it to you. Since it's the temple's donation, I will hand it over to the authorities myself. You should stay here for the time being."

Eve made the show of taking the envelope and putting it into her bag. But she let the donation slip from the bag on purpose.

She could see that the greedy sister had her eyes aimed at the envelope in an attempt to steal it. And it would not take long before the sister would leave her alone.

"D-Do you need me to accompany you?"

The sister asked as she positioned herself above the money envelope. She might think she was being sneaky but she was falling right into Eve's trap.

"Ah, no need. I will just take one of these royal guards with me for protection. It won't be a problem then, right?"

Eve asked and the sister did not hesitate to agree. Her mind must be full of all the riches she would get once she sold off the donation inside.

'Poor fool. The temple keeps all tracks of donations, even the hidden ones. Once this donation is noted you will be in a lot of trouble.'

Eve had been fed up with these sisters who were there just to keep an eye on her. So, to take revenge on them felt rather sweet for now.

"Can someone accompany me to the treasury?"

Eve made a show of asking but she did not accept anyone's help. The guard who had been elected to follow after her did so out of his own accord and that was how Eve knew that this was one of the royal guards.

She managed to knock him out rather quickly and then hid his body in one of the hidden passages that were around the temple.

Once that was done and over with, it was finally time for Eve to escape. She made her way to the royal cart that the soldiers had come out of and looked around for the symbol that had been agreed upon.

Eve's hand rested on Elysia's handkerchief that she had given to the older female some time ago. And Eve instantly knew that this was the right cart.

Soon the soldiers came marching back and Eve braced herself for the confrontation that was to happen. There was a security post approaching and Eve knew it was her cue to leave.

The wagon stopped and Eve got out of the basket.

The guard who saw Eve leave just gave her a nod to show that he was on her side all along. And Eve made sure to remember his face so that she could thank him later.

No other guard tried to reach for her which meant that Eve was safe for the time being. It was easy to sneak around the soldier's group as well.

From here on, Eve needed to head toward the Dirac estate that was abandoned in the capital. That was where Lord Dirac had gathered his forces and asked Eve to head toward.

"Remember, this is all for Elysia's sake. Soon she will be back where she belongs and that is with me."

Those words were what had kept Eve going even when everything had felt wrong and gloomy. The outside world gave Eve a taste of freedom she ahd missed greatly.

"Now then, let's get this show started."

Eve quickly broke an orb to turn her bright red hair into a dull shade of brown and then she was ready to head out.

The Dirac estate was in a state of abandonment and it lacked care. But Eve did not allow it to hinder her progress. She knew she needed to go in since that was what Lord Dirac had asked her to do.

At first, she saw no one in the vicinity. But then she felt a familiar presence rushing toward her.

Eve quickly invoked a defensive shield but it did not work against Sara's tight hug.

"You are finally here. I am sorry. I am so sorry that I was of no help to you. I tried to fight against the temple but they banished me instead and…"

"I know that it was not your fault I ended up being locked and I also know that you tried your best to free me. You are my familiar so of course, I know you the best. So believe me when I say that it is not your fault."

Eve's eyes were filled with tears at seeing that familiar face in front of her. She had missed Sara a lot.

She had missed everyone a lot, even Adam (though she would never admit that fact.)

"Now hurry up inside. We have the plan to save our captured princess and Lucas needs you to be an integral part of that plan."

Sara explained and Eve finally stepped inside the Dirac grounds.

The real fire of rebellion had started to blow. And Eve was in the center of it all, ready to ignite it.