Forced to Play the Villain, but the Saint Was My Fan
READING AGE 12+
The royal church ordered me to become the monster in its next public miracle. I was a necromancer who fainted at the sight of blood, barely tolerated conversation, and had spent six years trying to grow the sweetest enchanted cabbages in the kingdom. Now the Church of the Dawn wanted me to curse the capital's water supply during the Lantern Rite, so its Saint could appear to defeat me before thousands of witnesses. The Saint, Julian Vale, arrived at my cottage with a stack of my gardening notes and the alarming enthusiasm of a man meeting his favorite author. He also knew the miracle was a lie. If I refused, the Church would destroy my farm and call it justice. If I played along, I might help it bury a much bigger crime. And I still had no idea whether the Saint admired my work enough to trust me.
Unfold
I entered the chapel with Julian, Dr. Fen, and two city apothecaries at my side.
The High Synod had agreed to open the laboratory after the crowd refused to leave the square. They had not apologized. They had not withdrawn the accusations. They had only agreed to let the city inspect the room.
The chapel smelled of wax and stone. ……
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