...The Convent, Guest Room.
Cecilia lay sprawled on the windowsill, feeling like she was about to see the Dragon God.
Hungry.
So hungry.
That kind of hunger wasn't just an empty stomach; every cell in her body was screaming. She was a Dragon, and her deep-sleep evolution had consumed a massive amount of energy. After waking up, she had used magic, and now she desperately needed high-calorie food to replenish herself.
Even if she were given a whole cow, she could swallow it whole, bones and skin included.
But what did these nuns give her to eat? Grass!
"That bastard Caesar..."
Cecilia gnawed on the wood of the window frame while cursing in her heart.
If he didn't come soon, she really was going to break out. To hell with being a Saintess; she'd fly out and catch two sheep to eat first.
Just as she was thinking this, a dark shadow suddenly popped up beneath the window.
Cecilia jumped in fright, quickly spat out the wood chips in her mouth, and struck a dignified pose.
"Who is it?"
"It's me."
The shadow pulled back the cloak, revealing a face covered in deep blue scales and that signature shark fin.
"Waaaah!"
Tears instantly streamed down Cecilia's face.
Family! My savior!
The silver-haired Saintess was overjoyed to see her rescuer. She almost cheered but remembered there might be nuns guarding the door, so she quickly covered her mouth.
She scrambled to disguise the bed to look like someone was sleeping soundly, then prepared to climb down the window.
Caesar watched her clumsy movements and couldn't help but remind her, "Can't you fly?"
Cecilia froze.
Oh right, This Young Lady is a Dragon!
She immediately reverted to her round Silver Dragon form and used [Minimize]. Her body shrank to the size of a palm, and flapping her tiny wings, she wobbly flew out.
Since they were both starving, the two little dragons decided to find a place to fill their bellies first.
"To the kitchen! To the kitchen!" Cecilia strongly suggested. "My intuition tells This Young Lady that the kitchen definitely has the good stuff hidden away!"
She held a deep grudge against that earlier meal of watery soup, the 'Ascetic Holy Meal'.
Caesar had no objections; he also wanted to discuss the next steps of the plan with this silly dragon.
The Convent only hosted women, and the Paladins were mostly patrolling the perimeter, so internal security was lax. The two little dragons sneakily bypassed a nun patrolling with a lantern and slipped into the kitchen along the cold stone walls of the Gothic building.
"Meat! Where is the meat!"
The Silver Dragon reverted to her original size as soon as she entered and began rummaging around, her nose pressed to the floor, sniffing like a police dog.
Caesar casually closed the door, pulled a large bag of dried meat from his storage ring, and tossed it over.
"Tide yourself over with this first."
Cecilia caught the dried meat and didn't even bother tearing the wrapping cloth, biting right into it.
"Mmm mmm... so good..."
She mumbled unclearly, clutching the dried meat with both claws and gnawing wildly, her tail wagging behind her like a propeller.
Caesar ignored her and walked straight to the stove.
There was half a pot of cold soup left, a few strings of onions hanging nearby, and half a basket of eggs.
The conditions were a bit simple, but it was better than nothing.
Having stayed in the cave for half a month, Caesar didn't have much stock left in his storage ring, only some poisonous mushrooms. Seeing the meager ingredients in the kitchen, he decided to just light a fire and boil some soup.
Some readers might ask: aren't you two sneaking around the Convent? How do you dare have a midnight team-building session in someone else's kitchen?
Don't ask. If you must know, it's the Assassin's Creed logic—as long as there are no witnesses, it's a perfect stealth mission.
Before long, a rich, savory aroma wafted through the kitchen.
*Slurp...*
Cecilia tossed aside the dried meat, flew to the side of the pot, and stared longingly at the bubbling soup, her drool nearly dripping into the pot.
"Is it ready yet?"
"What's the rush?"
Caesar stirred it with a spoon and handed her a bowl. "Careful, it's hot."
Cecilia couldn't care less. She grabbed the bowl and began drinking greedily.
"Ah... I'm alive again..."
She let out a burp and slumped onto the stove, rubbing her bulging belly with a look of satisfaction.
Caesar shook his head at her pathetic display.
"Are you full?"
"Full, full."
"Then let's talk business."
Caesar found a chair and sat down, his expression becoming serious. "For the next few days, you need to continue playing the Saintess."
Cecilia's face immediately fell. "I still have to act? That Knight Captain looks at me strangely, and the food here is really terrible..."
"Endure it."
Caesar shook his head. "The identity of the Saintess is still useful. I just got intel that there's good stuff beneath this church. You stay inside as an inside agent to make it easier for me to move."
Cecilia shook her head like a rattle. "I don't want to! Those nuns make me eat grass! And... and I forgot what that Saintess looks like!"
She had released her Transform too quickly earlier; she was so focused on being hungry that she didn't memorize Saintess Colette's face at all.
If she looked different when she transformed back, wouldn't she be exposed on the spot?
"I knew you'd say that."
Caesar sighed, wiped the grease off his claws, and pulled a long object from his storage ring.
*Thud.*
A corpse was tossed onto the kitchen counter.
It was the deceased Saintess Candidate, Colette.
Except she looked a bit miserable now. Her neck was broken, and her head was only connected to her body by a layer of skin, wobbling back and forth.
"Transform based on this," Caesar said, pointing at the corpse.
Cecilia shrank back in fear. "You... how could you carry her with you? How terrifying!"
"What's there to be afraid of? She's been purified. If she rose from the dead, she'd probably thank you."
Caesar pointed at the corpse's face. "Remember every detail, especially the moles and scars. If you transform incorrectly and get recognized, those Paladins will skin you alive."
Cecilia had no choice but to lean in and observe the corpse while gnawing on a potato.
The light in the kitchen was too dim to see clearly.
Cecilia raised her claw and activated [Celebrate].
A few silent little fireworks exploded in the air, and by that faint light, she finally saw the pale face clearly.
"This neck... how did it break like this?"
Cecilia reached out with a claw, wanting to straighten the 'teru teru bozu'. But as soon as she touched it, the head rolled right off the neck, stopping only when it reached the edge of the table.
"Gwa!"
The Silver Dragon jumped three feet into the air.
"Now she's Mami Tomoe." Caesar also found it hard to keep a straight face. "Hurry up and transform. I'm going out to scout the situation."
With that, he donned his cloak and merged back into the night.
Only Cecilia, a headless corpse, and a head that had rolled to her feet remained in the kitchen.
The Silver Dragon tremblingly picked up the head of the 'teru teru bozu' with her two front claws.
Afraid that blood from the head would dirty the floor, she looked around and conveniently placed the head on a clean dinner plate nearby.
"Sorry... I didn't mean to..."
Cecilia stared for a while until she had a general impression, then turned to examine the body—
Just then... heavy footsteps came from the hallway outside, accompanied by the jingle of a bunch of keys, drawing closer.
Someone was coming!
Cecilia turned pale with fright. She scrambled to stuff the corpse back into the storage ring and then dove under a cabinet to hide.
The doorknob turned.
"Creak—"
The old wooden door groaned, and a plump figure squeezed inside.
Cecilia didn't dare breathe in the darkness... but then she suddenly remembered something fatal!
She seemed to have forgotten the head!
Fortunately, the kitchen was very dark, and the other person didn't seem to notice. The Silver Dragonheld her breath, preparing to secretly knock down the plate with the head... Sister Medi was very unhappy today.
As the old nun in charge of the kitchen, her greatest daily pleasure was sneaking into the kitchen for a snack after her night rounds.
But today, a big shot had arrived at the Convent: a Saintess Candidate.
A strict order had been issued from above, forbidding her from approaching the kitchen. It was said that the Paladin Order had sent a special female knight to prepare dinner for the Saintess.
Who knew what kind of delicacies such a big shot would eat.
The other party's entourage was too large; they even brought their own chef, leaving her no chance to skim off the food budget. Moreover, the Knight Captain had strictly forbidden anyone from entering the kitchen, cutting off her path to a midnight snack.
"Hmph, what Saintess? She's just a little girl who hasn't grown up yet."
The fat old nun, Medi, thought to herself as she tiptoed into the kitchen, hoping to see if there were any leftovers.
As soon as she pushed open the door, she smelled a rich aroma of meat that hadn't yet dissipated.
"Ha! I knew it!"
Medi was overjoyed. The Saintess's dinner was indeed lavish; they didn't even finish such a fragrant soup?
She hurried toward the stove. As she passed the counter, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a plate on the table with something round on it.
It was so large, sitting right there on the table.
Because the light was so dim, Medi's first instinct was to take it for something like a roast turkey.
Until she struck a match and locked eyes with those lifeless purple pupils, she maintained a cheerful attitude, as if preparing to unwrap a gift—
But clearly, it wasn't a roast turkey.
Medi's smile froze on her face.
The next second, a scream that pierced the night sky exploded within the Convent.
"Gyaaaaaah—!!!"