CHAPTER 15……………………………..
A few days later, the new weekly score announcement marked the start of a new week.
As soon as she finished breakfast, Leia rushed to the temple entrance where the score sheets were posted.
A crowd of trainee priests had already gathered in front of the board.
Leia shoved aside the others’ shoulders to get to the front.
“Move. I need to check my score.”
Marie, whose shoulder Leia bumped, let out a small cry and clutched it, glaring.
“Ow—stop cutting in line! We’re checking in the order we arrived!”
Leia looked down at Marie with an overbearing expression.
“If you didn’t want to get bumped, you should’ve moved out of the way.”
Marie was angry, but the moment she saw Leia’s face, she shut her mouth.
Leia…!
Leia’s cruelty wasn’t news. If you got on her bad side, she might torment you until the day you left the temple.
“…You’re right. Sorry.”
“Good. Then move. I need to see my score. Though I doubt I need to check—I’m obviously still top rank.”
Smiling, Leia stepped in front of the score sheet.
Since coming to the Holy Kingdom, she had never once lost the top rank. That was because she had bribed Robert—who managed the promotion scores—quite heavily.
But last week’s score announcement…
“Second place: Leia Sefentus.”
Leia nearly lost her mind the moment she saw the sheet.
Born a marquess’ daughter, she had always ruled over others. Seeing someone else’s name above hers had been humiliating beyond words.
With 100 points deducted, she must’ve fallen way down the bottom.
Leia giggled, imagining Sonia crushed by failure and unable to promote.
But when she finally checked the sheet, she could only gape like an idiot.
Arriving belatedly, Marie glanced at the sheet and said beside her,
“Sonia Priest is first place!”
“First place: Sonia Theodore.
Second place: Leia Sefentus.”
There had been no change in ranking at all.
***
The morning after I lost 100 points, before dawn—
Cassius, who had been teaching me how to store pheromones as usual, spoke.
“About the updated promotion scores being released soon.”
So word traveled all the way to him already.
“You caused quite a commotion, I hear.”
He must’ve heard about the spilled food and the water incident.
My face heated with embarrassment, and instinctively, a bit of pheromone leaked out.
Dismay, anger, and a bit of worry.
He must’ve sensed the emotions mixed in the scent, because he chuckled.
“I didn’t mean to scold you. I’m simply concerned—at this rate, you may not qualify for the Saint’s Office.”
He clearly knew my exact score.
“Your Holiness even checks trainee priests’ scores?”
“Normally, no. But this time, I’m observing closely. After all, we might be working together in the future.”
“I don’t even know my own score yet.”
“I can check every day.”
Lucky him. I only found out once a week.
It would take another five days before my deducted score appeared in the official announcement.
“…Did the deduction push me down a lot?”
“Yes. If you fail at this level, you may have to start again from basic theology.”
I stared at him, stunned.
“Start basic theology… again?”
“That’s correct.”
I could almost feel my pupils trembling.
The theology instructor was extremely strict—there were nights I had stayed up transcribing scriptures until dawn.
And theology training required the Great Silence: every night until morning, not a single word allowed.
Three more years of that? Unthinkable.
I have to get promoted!
How would I fix the deduction?
I sank into thought.
Cassius broke the silence first, as if he disliked the quiet.
“You were unfairly penalized, that much is certain.”
Unfair treatment of trainees was common.
But complaining to superiors was pointless. The answer was always the same: “Endure it as the deity’s trial.”
“Shall I help you?”
Cassius offered without hesitation.
His offer was tempting…
“But if Your Holiness steps in, this will get too big.”
If Cassius personally investigated, evidence of Leia and Robert’s collusion would surface immediately.
But then the entire Holy Kingdom would erupt in chaos—after all, the Pontiff himself would be launching an investigation.
Leia will drag noble families into it again…
With her personality, she’d twist a temple issue into a political fight between noble houses.
Her family had little to lose, but a feud between a marquess house and an earl house could complicate things for Cassius.
I just need to get promoted.
As if reading my thoughts, he said:
“Then rather than investigating, how about awarding bonus points?”
That was… not very fair.
I gave him a sideways look.
He had gone through the same priest training I did.
He never used his status as Pontiff—he finished ahead of everyone purely on his own merit.
Every morning during prayer, I thought about how admirable that was.
“I appreciate the offer. But I want to be confident in myself.”
Just like Your Holiness.
“…Wait.”
I did know a method—a method Cassius used as a trainee to quickly accumulate promotion points!
“Counseling Prayer!”
There were two kinds of prayers involving visitors:
Counseling prayer, and confessional prayer.
Only full priests could conduct confessionals, but counseling was different.
Listening to people’s worries, praying for them, and easing their hearts—that was something even trainees like me could do.
It was emotional labor, and exhausting, but noble families often visited—and if they offered large donations, the promotion points skyrocketed.
I beamed, having found the perfect solution.
“I’m skilled enough at pheromone storage now. I can handle counseling sessions, right?”
“To my eyes… you still lack something.”
Judging by his expression, I must’ve accidentally released pheromones again.
“Oh—sorry, it slipped out…”
The excitement of possibly earning enough points made me lose emotional control.
I swept the back of my neck, calming the glands.
As my mood settled, another issue came to mind.
“…But even if I can do counseling, no one would ask for me.”
Cassius, being considered of divine blood—the royal line of the Holy Kingdom—was immensely popular; his counseling bookings were always full.
Meanwhile, I was just an unknown trainee. No one would seek me out.
And without visitors, I wouldn’t earn the points.
Disappointing.
This time, though my mood dropped sharply, I held my pheromones in check.
“Many are seeking Sonia for counseling.”
“…What? Really?”
“Yes. Rumor says the ‘mad dog’ has become gentle, so nobles with troublesome children are eager to book with you.”
Gentle? Me?
“I haven’t heard anything about this. I’ve never received a letter.”
Counseling sessions required reservations. Requests arrived via letter.
And I never received one.
“I instructed them to refuse all reservations addressed to you until you mastered pheromone storage.”
Which meant: counseling was impossible unless Cassius approved it.
“Your Holiness! May I accept counseling reservations now?”
I understood why he had blocked them.
If I accidentally released pheromones in front of an Alpha, it would be trouble—not only for me, but for him.
But still—please, please allow it.
“I’ll stay alert and keep everything stored properly.”
If he didn’t let me, I might seriously consider sneaking into the mail storage room to steal the letters meant for me.
“Please…”
He stared at me for a long moment… then nodded.
“Very well.”
***
Cassius stepped out of the prayer room before Sonia, letting out a quiet sigh.
She had grown adept at storing pheromones.
She still couldn’t fully control extreme emotional shifts—she hadn’t found the “last missing piece,” the person she liked—but in daily life she did well enough.
Frankly, she no longer needed instruction. Yet he continued attending morning prayers.
Because he was still not used to her pheromones.
He tried to endure it as the deity’s trial, but made no progress at all.
He needed to find another way to stay calm around her.
But more importantly—
He had never intended to allow her to do counseling.
Even if she mastered storage, he didn’t want her doing anything like that.
She was the first Omega he had ever found. The thought of her meeting others—especially Alphas—was unbearably unpleasant.
He wanted to confine her in his arms until she smelled only of him.
But she wanted counseling sessions.
He didn’t want to stand in the way of something she desired… so he agreed.
She had smiled with her eyes when he did.
And though she stored her pheromones properly, if she had released them, the room would’ve filled with a thick, joyful floral scent.
The mere thought of her brimming with happiness thrilled him.
He wondered what she wanted, what she longed for, what dreams she held.
Whenever such desires surged, it became increasingly difficult to suppress his abilities.
But he had to restrain himself.
Because using his power on another person… never ended well.
