After discussing with Natalie, Edwina spent about three days in the dimly lit prison cell, roughly understanding the situation on this side and the enemy’s activity patterns, patiently waiting for the right moment.

There were two types of guards. One was like those she had seen before, wearing black robes, their faces obscured, transformed into puppets. The other type usually dressed more casually, disguised as common residents of the kingdom, seemingly possessing complete sanity but emitting a faint smell of decay when approached closely.

The latter should be the ones Edwina had fought against before, those things that abducted little girls, formally known as members of the so-called “Eternal Throne.”

The puppets controlled by drugs seemed to follow the commands of these seemingly lifeless individuals.

However, the undead didn’t often come to the dark, damp, and extremely poor-quality prison cells. Most of the work was done by the puppets.

This, as Natalie mentioned, was the opportunity.

Clang! The iron door was forcefully pushed open again.

Four or five black-robed puppets entered in a line, checking the forms in their hands, walking back and forth, and finally reaching Edwina’s cell.

The leader took out a large bunch of metal keys from his pocket, slowly found the one corresponding to the gate in front of him, opened the grille door, entered one by one, and surrounded the young Holy Knight who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, eyes closed in meditation.

They didn’t speak, only silently reached out to pull the face of the blonde girl, who looked somewhat worn out after three days of harsh imprisonment. The puppets, ignorant of any compassion, pulled with great force, nearly causing Edwina to stumble and fall to the ground. However, she kept her head down, not resisting or uttering a word of protest, as if she had completely given up hope.

Due to Edwina’s full cooperation, the puppets did not inject her with the strange drug that could cause unconsciousness. With one side pulling and the other walking, they leisurely exited the prison cell, beginning to move towards the outside.

However, the puppets, capable only of executing simple commands and judgments, did not notice the subtle movements of the knight’s lips and the pure holy light waves deliberately suppressed within her body.

In the adjacent cell, there was another young woman with shoulder-length silver-white hair, slightly disheveled. She leaned against the railing, silently observing the group walking towards the outside, just as she had done every time.

However, her lips also moved slightly, seemingly corresponding to the holy knight’s chanting.

And when the entire team left Edwina’s prison cell, passing by the adjacent railing, a sudden change occurred!

“Oh, Almighty Master, bestow upon us your magnificent power! / Compassionate goddess, please bring down the light of purity!

The silent recitation suddenly turned into a loud plea. Two dense golden radiance simultaneously emanated from the Holy Knights inside and outside the cell, transforming into the pure power of holy light.

“Union Prayer—Light of Complete Purification!” x2

The light summoned by Edwina spread outward, forming a golden barrier that covered herself and all the surrounding puppets. Meanwhile, Natalie, who had been ready to act, infused the golden radiance into the curtain at the same time.

An invisible mist of light filled the space inside the barrier. With the two Sky-level Holy Knights chanting together, this high-level faith-based magic instantly exerted its full effect.

Some of the slower puppets failed to respond immediately. The hasty signals they emitted were completely blocked by the barrier. The mist of light permeated, and they suddenly froze in place, then…

Ding, clatter, clatter.

Swords fell to the ground, and the puppets collapsed with wailing cries. They convulsed violently, like fish drowning, and the hoods covering their heads fell off, revealing their true faces.

“Hey? You are…!”

Edwina, who was rummaging through the keys on the male leader, inadvertently caught a glimpse of one of their faces. She was shocked, her mouth gaping, and her actions paused involuntarily.

The girl with short hair tied into a ponytail was none other than the adventurer she had seen when she first woke up, the one taken for experimentation!

She hadn’t come back since that time, and in just three days, the lively adventurer who had resisted fiercely had become this lifeless figure. Edwina hadn’t even noticed before.

Like other puppets affected by the white mist, the girl writhed on the ground, howling in pain, rolling back and forth.

The joint purification performed by Natalie and Edwina, called “Complete Purification of All Abnormalities,” wouldn’t kill her. Instead, it weakened the drug’s impact on her, and both sides struggled for control of the body, resulting in the current situation.

This was exactly as Natalie had predicted.

Compared to her appearance when Edwina had accidentally glimpsed her, she had visibly lost some weight. Her delicate face was slightly pale, and the ill-fitting black robe and exposed skin were covered in dirty dust. Her arms and neck bore numerous marks from injections.

The girl rolled her eyes, saliva unconsciously flowing out. She could only emit hoarse and sorrowful moans like “heh heh.” Even though harmless magic had been used to purify abnormalities, her appearance showed the extent of the abuse and cruel experiments she had endured.

“Damn it, damn them! These inhumane bastards! I will never let them go! I will definitely send them all to the gallows! Bastards!!!”

Edwina angrily pounded the ground with her fist, disregarding the faint red splatter above. In her current state, this was the only way she could vent the intense negative emotions in her heart.

“Enough, stop the futile rage. Does it make any sense? Quickly help me open the prison door. We can discuss things after escaping.”

The other holy knight appeared relatively calm, likely accustomed to similar scenes. Her experience and maturity surpassed Edwina’s.

“Oh… sorry, I got carried away. Right away!”

Frantically retrieving the keys, Edwina regained her freedom, and the difficult sisters began executing their plan to escape the dark cells and the Iris Orphanage beyond.

Although reluctant, they currently lacked the ability to rescue others. The ones with strength were just a few, and most of the hundreds of cells held ordinary residents of the capital who had been captured, many of them quite young.

Due to the crude conditions, harsh treatment, and various experiments, they were extremely weakened. Walking was even difficult for them. The two holy knights themselves were struggling, so how could they manage to escape with so many burdens?

They were already the strongest prisoners here, and their trust was based on their shared identity as Holy Knights. Bringing others along would be unpredictable and could have dire consequences.

After all, in times of crisis, the true test of human nature becomes more evident.

Of course, this was a cooperation condition proposed by Miss Natalie and had been discussed in advance with Edwina. Otherwise, given Edwina’s naive thought process, who knows what foolish things she might do.

Since it was agreed upon, Edwina wouldn’t shamelessly bring up anything like “let’s save everyone together” again.

“Miss Natalie, do you know where our equipment and personal items are? Without weapons, it might be difficult to break out of here.”

Miss Pure White Lioness, already weakened from torture and just releasing a high-level faith-based magic, took a moment to catch her breath, then nodded slowly.

“Yes, I know. When they took me for experimentation, I happened to see someone putting the belongings of newly captured victims into a certain room. Barring any unexpected changes, our things should be there. Follow me.”

“Alright, thank you.”

Edwina glanced back at the few puppet adventurers who had fallen into unconsciousness, and her gaze swept over the innocent ones in the cell, weak to the point where they could hardly move or speak with hope in their eyes…

The young knight turned around, and with her companion, walked briskly towards the faint light shining through the iron door.