~Chapter 28~
“His Grace the Duke could not attend today. Something happened at the northern wall that needed his attention.”
“Oh, but since you’re here, Madam, there’s no problem. Actually, supporting the cathedral is always the lady’s responsibility, so you are exactly the right person to be here.”
The archbishop seemed to have some feelings against the duke, who had ignored religion for a long time.
Honestly, the duke had his own reasons for staying away from the church, but I just nodded without showing anything.
At that moment, someone popped out of the crowd.
“Madam!”
When I turned, I saw trainee Joseph, some volunteers from the monastery, and as always, Brother Vincent in his simple black robe.
They all came running with happy faces, eager to tell me how much the monastery, clinic, and attached buildings had improved.
Young Joseph especially spoke excitedly.
“Now it doesn’t leak when it rains, and we don’t have to worry about anything falling from the ceiling! It’s so nice, it doesn’t even feel like the same monastery!”
“Everyone truly thanks you, madam.”
“You can praise me all you want, but you’re not getting anything for it.”
“It’s not just flattery! Everyone in the town feels the same. The officials never cared about us outside the inner wall. Everything is better now because of you.”
“If you want to say thank you, save it for the important guests coming from the Holy City soon.”
I didn’t hide the real reason for all this work.
Everyone knew the main purpose was to welcome a VIP, sent by the Pope himself, who the duke especially cared about.
That’s why such a huge budget—twenty thousand gold coins—was approved so easily, even though some officials thought fixing the churches outside the walls was pointless.
‘I always wanted to try a big public project like this.’
The construction took longer because of the work on the churches outside the wall.
Inside the inner wall, people were richer and there were more donations, but the churches outside barely survived, living day to day.
Out there, things like clinics, libraries, and schools were often part of the church itself.
A lot of people complained during construction, but now, everyone’s life would really get better.
‘That’s what you call killing two birds with one stone.’
Of course, I really didn’t care about people’s lives anymore. The biggest reason for the project was to impress the Inquisitor!
Smiling secretly, I looked around.
“Brother Vincent, it feels different seeing you here today.”
“I feel the same, Elysia. It makes the ceremony feel even more special.”
The other priests were wearing fancy robes with silver embroidery for the event, but Vincent wore his usual plain clothes.
Wouldn’t the archbishop or someone else scold him?
I was about to ask when Joseph jumped in with shining eyes.
“Madam, if you’re not busy, could you come visit the monastery in a few days? We’re having a small celebration dinner, and everyone would be so happy if you joined us…”
“How dare a lowborn from Lombard ask for such a thing!”
Before Joseph could finish, a sharp smacking sound rang through the hall.
Mrs. Olden, who I thought was talking to the archbishop, had hit Joseph’s hand with her fan.
Even Baron Conte, who had been quietly chewing on his handkerchief in the distance, flinched at the loud sound.
“Get back right now!”
“S-sorry…”
Joseph, shocked and almost crying, quickly stepped back.
Everyone around turned and stared. People started whispering.
“Lowborn from Lombard.”
To say that at an event full of Lombard people was basically an insult to me, their leader.
Could Mrs. Olden, who spent so long in the palace, not realize this?
It couldn’t be an accident.
‘So, what should I do now?’
Honestly, I didn’t care about my reputation. This was my last official event anyway.
But Joseph’s silent crying really bothered me.
He was an orphan, just like I once was.
In the end, I raised my hand to stop Mrs. Olden.
“Don’t be so harsh.”
“But madam!”
“Today is a good day. It’s not right to raise your voice in a holy place.”
As expected, Mrs. Olden glared at me in silence.
When I didn’t back down, she gritted her teeth, then for some reason glared at Vincent instead and turned away.
Brother Vincent shyly hid behind me.
“Did I do something wrong?”
“Who knows.”
He was a head taller than me, but still tried to hide.
I made something up to comfort him.
“She’s probably just shy. When Mrs. Olden likes someone, she acts grumpy.”
“…Really?”
Vincent looked at me like I was crazy, so I hurried to add,
“Haven’t you looked in the mirror? You’re really good-looking, Brother. It might be rude to say to a priest, but it’s true.”
“M-me? Good-looking?”
“Why are you making that face?”
“I-it’s just that… no one’s ever told me that before.”
“People from the Holy City must all be blind, not seeing how handsome you are.”
I didn’t want to admit it, but honestly, the duke was the best-looking man I’d ever seen, but Vincent was almost as handsome in a different way.
If the duke looked elegant and noble, Vincent was more like a bright, beautiful rose.
Vincent was the only priest who looked odd in his robes.
‘Maybe God really is fair, giving him some flaws in personality to balance things out.’
I left Vincent talking to himself and went inside.
The ceremony ended, and the scripture reading began.
The archbishop gave thanks in front of the huge crowd and then called me up to the podium.
Normally, only priests could go up there—so this was a special honor.
“Now, let’s hear a few words from Madam, who supported the building of this cathedral.”
Feeling like all my money was worth it, I stepped forward. Mrs. Olden quickly followed.
Suddenly, I remembered the past.
I’d seen the Duchess of Lombard from far away before.
No matter how wild Elysia acted, at important events she always had to appear, surrounded by Mrs. Olden and other maids from the capital.
No one could get close to her, and eventually people just avoided her altogether.
Now I realized it wasn’t to protect her, but to keep her isolated on purpose.
But why?
‘No matter how much I think, I just don’t get it. Why would she attack her own mistress?’
I was curious, but decided not to think about it too long. I’d find out the reason soon enough.
I pretended to fix my dress and gripped the edge of the podium.
My dress was so fancy, nobody would notice if a few threads got caught.
As I turned, the cloth covering the podium came loose and everything on top—candles and decorations—fell to the floor with a loud crash.
“Are you hurt, madam? The cloth should have been fixed better—I’ll punish the manager. Please let a doctor check you!”
The shocked archbishop ran over, worried.
I shook my head.
“It’s fine, Archbishop. It was my fault. Don’t blame anyone else.”
“If you say so… Thank you for being so understanding.”
Seeing that I wanted to keep things quiet, the archbishop ordered people to clean up the mess.
Someone tried to bring a new cover for the podium, but I stopped them and went ahead with the prayer as planned.
After that, I thanked the archdiocese for their hard work and pulled out a thin check and a pen.
I wrote an appropriate amount and handed the check to Mrs. Olden.
“I want to offer this to the cathedral. On such a good day, I want to share this happiness with everyone.”
“Oh, madam!”
The archbishop looked like he wanted to kiss me if nobody was watching.
He remembered how generously I’d given in the past, so his eyes were full of hope.
Mrs. Olden followed the steps—she put the check in an envelope and went to seal it with my wax seal.
“Could you help me down the steps? I feel a bit dizzy.”
“It’s an honor to help, madam.”
Sister Godellina, one of the archbishop’s aides, helped me down.
As I went, I looked at the podium—there were deep scratches, as if from a pen tip.
