Chapter 48
I released Estelle from my arms and lifted my head.
Then I turned toward the direction of the voice I had heard.
“Oh my, you are…?”
Golden hair tied into a single braid that fell to the side, and amethyst-like purple eyes that shone brightly. A look of sanctity and grace.
“Well, well. It’s been a long time since we last met.”
It was Welfion, whom I hadn’t seen in half a year.
“Bishop Welfion?”
I never expected to meet him like this.
I was so stunned by the sudden encounter that I could barely react.
I looked at Welfion with a dazed, almost vacant expression.
“That’s right. Surely you haven’t forgotten me, have you?”
Maybe because I hadn’t visited the temple for a while…
It really had been a long time since I had last met Welfion.
It had already been half a year since I had gone to the temple so that Estelle could receive his prayers.
I quickly shook my head at the disappointment and hurt I heard in his voice, then hurriedly offered an explanation.
“Of course I haven’t forgotten! It’s just… it’s been so long since we last met!”
“Hehe. I’m just teasing.”
Welfion laughed, covering his mouth with his lightly clenched fist.
For a moment, I felt a mixture of relief and lingering resentment, and I pouted for no reason.
“Oh dear. I apologize. I was just so happy to see you. We’re not that close yet… I hope you understand.”
Seeing my lips pouted, he arched his eyebrows in a somewhat dramatic expression.
Seeing that, I immediately pressed my lips back into place.
‘So that’s the power of a handsome face.’
Somehow, his melancholic yet beautiful face, looking at me with a mixture of awkwardness and apology, made my resentment melt away.
I quickly waved my hand.
“I’m not upset! It’s fine!”
“That’s a relief. Have you both been well all this time?”
“Yes. Estelle and I have been well. And you, Bishop?”
“I am well, too.”
Welfion nodded slightly as he answered.
Then, unexpectedly, he quietly smiled at both Estelle and me as he looked at us.
“Wh-why are you smiling like that?”
“I’m relieved.”
Relieved? What did he mean by that?
I tilted my head in confusion.
Then Welfion, pressing his hands together as if in prayer, continued speaking.
“The gods had told me that the two of you were entangled with a dangerous being. I wanted to visit and hear your situation, but the temple’s duties kept me occupied…”
“A dangerous being?”
Estelle frowned slightly, repeating the words.
She didn’t seem to guess who the dangerous being Welfion was talking about could be.
Unlike Estelle, I immediately realized.
A dangerous being.
It was…
‘Basago.’
It had to be Basago. The only beings that even the gods—or their servants, the clergy—would call dangerous were demons.
“Still, it seems that the bond with the dangerous being has loosened slightly for both of you now. That is truly fortunate.”
Was it a sigh of relief?
He exhaled briefly and looked at Estelle and me.
“Who… could it be…”
Estelle murmured, lost in thought.
She seemed curious about who that dangerous being could be.
But I had no intention of answering. Some things were better left unknown.
Welfion seemed to think the same.
He pressed his lips tightly together, looking at Estelle instead of answering.
“Ah.”
Welfion suddenly made a small groaning sound as he looked at Estelle.
Then, turning to me with a strangely tense expression, he whispered softly.
“Still, be careful. The connection isn’t completely broken yet.”
Even though his tone wasn’t forceful, I felt a chill run down my spine as I heard his warning.
After all, he was a clergyman.
He wouldn’t casually speak of something like this.
But it wasn’t only that which made me shiver.
“You will surely come looking for me first.”
I recalled what he had said the last time I saw Basago.
He had spoken with certainty that I would be the one to seek him out first.
‘I have to be careful.’
It was a warning from Welfion himself.
A warning from someone so beloved by the gods that he was even considered a candidate for the next cardinal.
Basago’s words could be dismissed as empty threats from a demon, but not Welfion’s.
He would not speak carelessly.
I resolved then and there.
I would make sure Basago could not meet Estelle, or at the very least, prevent him from reaching her.
“By the way, where are you two heading?”
Just as I gathered my resolve, Welfion tried to lighten the mood, looking alternately at Estelle and me as he asked.
I lightly lifted the paper bag I was holding.
It contained a book I had bought from the bookstore. I had taken it from Estelle because she said it was too heavy for her to carry.
“Today is Estelle’s birthday. So we just bought her a present at the bookstore and were on our way back.”
“Ah, it’s your birthday. I didn’t realize.”
Welfion’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Oh dear, I haven’t prepared anything…”
He looked apologetically at Estelle.
Then, snapping his fingers as if he had an idea, he knelt down to meet Estelle’s eyes at her level.
“This is all I can offer right now. Congratulations, Sister Estelle.”
“May the laughter of the gods always be with you.”
Welfion pressed a hand to his chest, closed his eyes slightly, and whispered a blessing for Estelle.
Perhaps it was thanks to his prayer that my anxious feelings from earlier began to calm.
After the short blessing, he opened his eyes and, still kneeling, said:
“I also want to give you a gift.”
“A gift?”
“Yes. I don’t have it with me right now… but seeing you, Estelle, reminded me of something I want to give as a present.”
Welfion smiled gently, a mixture of melancholy and kindness in his expression.
“Could you visit the temple during the festival instead? It will be a late gift, but I truly want to give it. And there is a story I wish to share with you.”
He looked beyond Estelle, at something else.
As if he were gazing at something that didn’t exist.
“So please, come. I will wait.”
But it lasted only a moment.
His gaze returned as if nothing had happened.
“Oh, it’s already this late. I’m sorry, but I must take my leave.”
Checking the time, Welfion stood, speaking apologetically.
“Then, I will see you next time.”
With that, he left at a brisk pace, gradually disappearing from view.
After parting ways with Welfion, Estelle and I wandered through the town.
If we saw a flower shop, we went in to look at the flowers; if we saw a dessert shop, we bought some treats.
We wandered into alleys we had never seen before, following our curiosity, and when we got hungry, we went into the nearest restaurant to eat.
We roamed freely, letting our eyes and feet guide us.
After enjoying our little adventure, we returned home.
“Oh? There’s someone at the door.”
Estelle pointed to the front, holding a flower she had received from the flower shop for her birthday in one hand, and my hand in the other.
“Really?”
Even though the sun had just set and it was getting dark, we could see clearly enough.
A shadow of someone standing at the door, just as Estelle said.
“Who could it be?”
We tilted our heads at each other, puzzled.
We weren’t expecting anyone, and no one came to mind who might visit.
It would have been nice if we could at least see the face, but the surrounding darkness made it impossible.
The only things visible, faintly, were the upright posture of the figure, their well-dressed attire, and the large carriage behind the shadow.
“A carriage like that isn’t common in a neighborhood like this…”
“Indeed. Who could it be?”
Though close to the capital, this was still a suburban area.
Small carriages were common for going around the village, but a large carriage like that was rare.
So whoever had come in that carriage and was standing at the door could not be an ordinary person.
Curiosity getting the better of us, we slowly walked toward the door, though with a hint of caution.
Perhaps sensing our movement, the owner of the shadow, who had been staring at the house, turned their head toward us.
“Good evening, Lady Reina. And Miss Estelle.”
As they turned, the light from the neighboring house revealed their face.
Seeing the face, we relaxed our guard.
“As you may already know, I am Cain, serving Lord Claude.”
Cain, who always guided us when visiting the Genopecia dukedom and stood beside Claude.
Claude’s secretary, Cain.
