There were two types of people in the temple - those who wanted fame and power and those who wanted to earn money.

Both sides agreed on a simple matter—not to agitate Duke Lockhart and his household. Agitating them was problematic, and the Duke could even have caused the royal family to be moved.

Layla used the Duke's name before any danger could break out, and she had to fight. She wanted to resolve this matter with her words alone.

But she should have known better.

The temple's fighter looked at Layla with annoyed eyes before scoffing at her.

"Fuck! It's a kid who is trying to stop us. I feel annoyed because you are trying to stop us from doing our sacred duty. For this sin, you should die under Goddess Kara's banner.

As for the Duke? I am sure he will manage to lose one of his sponsored children. It's not like the Duke lacks for people like you. Losing one or two of you arrogant kids would only benefit society."

The man spoke with conviction, and Layla flinched as she felt the Javelin the priest carried to be thrown toward her.

Luckily, she had made instant-protection charms that activated, and they stopped the Javelin throw.

Layla was able to protect herself, but that did not sit right with the priest who tried to kill her.

The priest looked annoyed and angry. He instantly picked up his weapon and tried again, only for Layla to stop his throw.

But dodging was not a strategy Layla could keep up with alone. She needed time to counterattack.

She aimed for the priest's wrist before he could throw again.

She warped her magic around the priest, and he did not notice her doing that before it was too late.

Layla snapped her finger and twisted it, causing the man in front of her to grit his teeth as his arm was yanked and then broken.

"Fuck! You little shit-! How dare you do this to me? Do you think I will not retaliate against you if you do that? Ugh, moving my arm hurts so much."

The man yelled and cursed as he tried to calm himself down. He cradled his broken fist in his hand, and he continued to look at Layla with angry eyes.

Before Layla could say anything, the cursing man raised his weapon with his other hand and raised it.

"Brothers, no more holding back! I am giving you the full freedom to do whatever you want to her. She is no longer seen as a human being but as a dark elf sympathizer. Kill her right now."

The man who led the group yelled, and his people looked stunned.

They all knew their leader was being unreasonable, and the child in front of them did not deserve all the hate she got.

And she was also from the Duke's household.

There was a solid chance she was here on the Duke's orders, and the Duke might take offense if anything happened to her. No one wanted to take that risk.

"What happened? Are you all cowards who could not step forward and do this simple task? *sigh* Looks like I will have to take care of this myself."

The man still had a broken wrist, but this time, he no longer cared about it or anything related to it. After all, it was not like he needed both hands to deal with a kid. He could also take care of her with a single hand.

"Young miss, are you alright? Do you need help?"

A dark elf asked from inside the barrier.

The elf queen's barrier was translucent from the inside and opaque from the outside. It was tough to tell what was happening if you were inside.

"Don't come out. I promised your queen I would protect you all and intend to keep his promise."

Layla spoke with 100% conviction before she readied herself to attack these people in front of her.

She did not have as much magic or expertise as these people had not to feel bothered, but Layla did have one advantage over them all - her preparations.

Layla knew something like this was possible, so she stored spells and other scrolls for use at such times.

"I did give you a chance to make peace with me. I am afraid that peace is no longer an option now."

Layla spoke but did not see arrogance on the faces in front of her.

It made her sigh before she lowered her hand, and the motion was followed by the formation of magic circles over her opponent's heads.

There were about a dozen of them, and they all were crafted to restrain the enemy and make sure the enemy could not move a single inch.

"I told you before as well, right? You will regret going against me."

Layla spoke before she let the magic fall. Fireballs and other weapons rained down, but they were all at a non-lethal level to not kill her enemy.

All this surprised the people of the temple, and their surprise made them forget to counter this attack.

Layla watched as they all got stuck by her attack before they collapsed.

'These people were not much, for all their talk about power and bravery. I guess I overestimated them a little bit.'

Layla sighed in a slightly cocky manner as she brought her hand down. She knew she had won this time but did not antagonize her enemies.

"This will be your last warning. Please, leave or else-"

"Or else what? Just because you managed to catch me off-guard once does not mean you will get to win and have the last laugh. I have been holding back because you are a kid, but that all will end now.

I will make sure-"

The man spoke, but that was the second something heavy jumped at the man's back and knocked all the wind out of him.

"Oops! Looks like I landed on something I was not supposed to. Young Miss, are you alright? Did I cause any trouble for you?"

Mary was back, and she looked unharmed after her battle.