God Said She Lied - Chapter 13
Chapter 13
We didn’t escape the Underground Dungeon.
Just as we reached the end of the passage, the Dean and his men blocked our way.
He saw me supporting Lian, and no surprise registered on his face.
“Miss Evelyn, you always disappoint me.”
“The honor is mine,” I replied.
Lian whispered, “Get behind me.”
I didn’t move.
“Say that again, and I’ll leave you here right now.”
He turned his head to look at me.
Surprisingly, he actually smiled.
It was a faint smile. There was blood, exhaustion, and a hint of the youthful spark I hadn’t seen in a long time.
The Dean said coldly, “Take them back to the Sanctuary.”
The final trial was forced to continue.
A crowd had already gathered outside. The students of the North Tower had rung the old bell.
That bell only ever rang when the academy faced a foreign enemy.
Today, they treated the Inquisition as the enemy.
Lian and I were forced onto the stage.
He couldn’t stand steadily, so I supported him.
No one dared to curse me anymore.
They had all seen it. The blood of the Candidate Saint dripped onto the Sanctuary floor.
Drop by drop.
It was as if it were staining a holy statue.
The Dean announced, “Lian has confessed to the murder of Edmond. Evelyn has admitted to willfully committing perjury three years ago. The testimonies of both are unreliable.”
He wanted to use our sins to invalidate our words.
I had long ago guessed this would happen.
So I didn’t argue. I only asked, “Must everything a sinner says be a lie?”
The Dean replied, “You have no right to speak of the truth.”
“True.” I nodded. “I don’t.”
I looked at Lian.
“Neither does he.”
A low murmur rippled through the gallery.
I continued, “So we aren’t asking you to believe us. We demand that the Holy Ark be opened and all archives of cold cases be made public.”
The Dean’s expression shifted.
This was his Achilles’ heel.
Not me. Not Lian. It was those hidden names.
Lian took over from me.
His voice was hoarse, but clear enough.
“The Holy Ark requires three keys. One for the Dean, one for the Candidate Saint, and one for the Chief Secretary.”
He raised his injured hand.
A small key lay in his palm.
“Mine is here.”
Everyone looked at the Dean.
The Dean sneered, “The Chief Secretary will not agree.”
In the South Tower seating, an elderly woman stood up.
She was the Chief Secretary. She was also the first person to have put down her pen earlier.
She removed the key from around her neck.
“I agree.”
The composure on the Dean’s face finally shattered.
He said, “Do you know what you’re doing? If the cold cases are publicized, Saint Mercy Academy will be destroyed.”
“Then let it be destroyed,” Lian said.
His voice was soft, yet it sounded like the snapping of the final support beam.
The Dean was forced to surrender the key.
The Holy Ark was opened before everyone.
Crate after crate of archives were carried into the Sanctuary.
Names. Testimonies. Autopsy reports. Tampered verdicts. Photographs salvaged from the flames before they could be consumed.
The cleanest hall in Saint Mercy Academy’s century-long history was, for the first time, piled high with things that could never see the light of day.
Some people wept. Some cursed in rage.
Some rushed forward trying to tear up the records, only to be pinned down by the North Tower students.
In the chaos, the Dean suddenly drew a guard’s dagger.
He didn’t lunge at Lian. He lunged at me.
Because I was holding Damian’s photograph.
Lian was faster than everyone. He shoved me aside. The blade grazed his shoulder. Blood splattered across my face.
I heard myself scream his name. It was shrill and jarring.
As Lian fell to his knees, he was still gripping my hand. His fingertips were cold.
“Don’t cry,” he said.
Only then did I realize that tears were falling.
“Who’s crying?”
He gave a small smile. “You are.”
I pressed down on his wound, my hands covered in blood.
“Lian, if you dare die, I really won’t forgive you this time.”
He looked at me. His eyes were bright, like the person at the end of the rainy corridor three years ago who hadn’t yet been completely broken.
“Alright,” he said. “Then I won’t die.”
