I Was The Hero, But I Woke Up as a Phoenix Princess! – Chapter 870

Chapter 110 Hatred Hidden in the Heart
The girl’s clear, moon-like eyes were gorgeous and flawless, watching her quietly. Ain fiddled nervously with her dress, her voice gradually ceasing.
She knew in her heart that Verafia of course had a reason to resent Belternan. After all, to be framed and face the danger of losing her life for no reason—no one could easily let go of such a thing.
Even Ain herself, when she learned the truth a few days ago, for the first time felt anger towards the Great Elder, along with guilt towards Verafia.
But, but…
“Are you worried that this young lady will seek revenge on that old man?”
Miss Verafia’s Big Eyes glanced at her, shaking her head slightly. “Of course not. This young lady isn’t so petty as to trouble a dead person. Moreover, if I really had such intentions, why would Belternan’s funeral have been so peaceful?”
Yes, Verafia was also present at Belternan’s funeral. Although she wasn’t as sad and mournful as many elves, she had stayed quietly by the side, not making much of a fuss.
Although this was partly to give face to Seraphilis, and partly because she couldn’t afford to offend the elves who were deeply indebted to Belternan, it was ultimately because Miss Verafia was magnanimous and didn’t bicker with the dead.
The girl nodded with satisfaction, raised her pure white chin, and her gold eyes scanned the Wood Elf’s face.
“After all, she’s just a little elf, only a little over ten years old. Even among humans, at this age, she’s still just a child.”
Therefore, Ain knew that Verafia was angry and guilty only after she was harmed by Belternan. In her heart, she felt she had put her friend in a dangerous situation… But after learning that Belternan had truly died, she started to pity and blame herself again.
Verafia could understand. In the past, she had heard Belternan’s name several times from this elven lady. For Ain, having been looked after and raised by the elven elder since childhood, no one could sever such familial ties, right?
“The conflict between kinship, friendship, justice, and righteousness… My, no matter how you look at it, it’s a very classic plot.”
Resting her chin on her little hand, Verafia said with great interest, “However, this young lady doesn’t like these boring, third-rate stories.”
“Then, why is Miss Verafia here?” Ain asked, a little confused.
“As I said, I’m passing by and came to see this Great Elder.”
Verafia said cheerfully and walked closer to Belternan’s tombstone.
The resting place of this renowned legendary powerhouse was exceptionally simple. The only tombstone bore elven script detailing his achievements, but only one piece of elegant handwriting caught Verafia’s attention.
“He was loyal to the glory of the Goddess throughout his life. May he find peace in the embrace of the Goddess.”
This was of course Seraphilis’s handwriting. In the eyes of ordinary people, this was the “Emerald Singer’s” remembrance and regret for this highly respected Great Elder, but in the eyes of someone like Verafia, who knew the inside story, it obviously hid a different meaning.
“Speaking of which, the Wood Elf Great Elder Belternan, this young lady’s initial impression wasn’t bad.”
Verafia slightly raised her gold eyes and softly read, “It’s no wonder. An elf with noble character, who exhausted himself to maintain the future of his tribe and was willing to sacrifice his own life, would, in anyone’s eyes, be undoubtedly a saint.”
“Moreover, he also told me that if her will ruled the new goddess, he wouldn’t mind being killed by me herself… If the person chosen as the sacrifice wasn’t me, perhaps this young lady would have praised his character, and at most, just mourned for that sacrificial lady?”
Given Belternan’s identity and strength, if he had wanted to avoid this upheaval, he would have had more than one option.
However, Belternan simply spared no expense of his life, not even caring about the infamy that would follow him, willing to bear the reputation of betraying the goddess, all he wanted was to save his tribe.
After all, it was not the true Goddess of Life that emerged after Belternan’s ritual, which was enough to make many elves think, but they did not mention it because they considered Belternan’s achievements and death.
“Veer, did you forgive him?”
Ig approached her side. She seemed to want to gently stroke the girl’s golden hair as usual but hesitated for a moment, mindful of her current status.
“Of course not!”
Verafia suddenly raised her head, her delicate lips pouting with displeasure. “I was the one chosen as the vessel. I’m not someone who’s easy to talk to, and words like ‘kind’ and ‘saintly’ don’t apply to me at all.”
“Not to mention, that old man forced me so hard back then, and even threatened me with you and Little Fei. At that time, I was so angry I grit my teeth, and even thought after I approached the Holy Spring that if he were still alive, I’d definitely let this old elf experience my methods.”
“But he died in battle.”
Ig said, raising her head.
“Yes, by the time this young lady truly woke up, he was already dead.”
Verafia slowly turned her face, her youthful countenance slightly reflecting the cold gleam of the tombstone.
Seraphilis said that Belternan was fortunate to have died before meeting Verafia.
I wonder if Seraphilis meant that Belternan died in hope, without seeing his plan fail, or if he died in time and did not suffer her retaliation?
Well, given Belternan’s choice, the former was more likely.
“However, it was timely for this old man to die early enough that this young lady didn’t have to make a move herself,” Verafia murmured, her gold eyes slightly raised.
Given Belternan’s high prestige among the elves, even if he had acted against her first, those elves would not have stood by and watched her kill him. Even Seraphilis might not have helped her.
Not to mention, and quite unexpectedly, Verafia did not obtain the status of a goddess. She was still just a Star, and even facing a dying legend, it remained to be seen whether she could win.
And…
Her gaze shifted slightly.
With Belternan’s death, the hatred and anger in her heart seemed to have dissipated a lot. Therefore, Verafia was able to view Belternan more peacefully, from a third-party perspective.
Of course, the most important thing was that Verafia herself, as well as Ig and Little Fei, had not been harmed.
This was the most important point.
Verafia tilted her flawless snowy cheeks, her gold eyes blinking slightly, and softly said, “Anyway, he was a stranger to this young lady.”
She indeed didn’t have much friendship with this Wood Elf Great Elder. Even, as an experience of Lothel, calling him a stranger was not an exaggeration.