Chapter 166
Selina followed the maid guiding her and arrived at the VIP room. Once the maid left, only Selina, Simon, and Veronica remained inside.
Seeing Selina standing there blankly, the two exchanged glances.
They had just witnessed so many unbelievable things that they were still dazed even now.
“Um… Miss Selina—”
Just as Veronica was about to muster the courage to speak, Selina suddenly collapsed forward with a small coughing sound.
“S–Selina!”
“Apostle!”
Selina couldn’t stop coughing. Worse, fresh blood began to seep through the hand she used to cover her mouth.
They didn’t know why she was suddenly coughing up blood, but there was no time to think—both of them hurriedly used their divine power to treat her.
Cough! Cough!
She desperately wanted to breathe, but clots of blood kept rising up, obstructing her breath.
From the moment she had drawn upon Lunios’s power, an unknown pain had continued to surge through her body. As time passed, the pain grew so intense that it became unbearable.
To be honest, she could barely remember how she had managed to stand before the Emperor at all.
They said the aftereffects would be severe. This hurts like hell.
“Myaa—”
[See? I told you to stop. Just how many times have you used my power already?!]
Hearing Luna’s nagging, Selina let out a weak chuckle. But before the smile could fully form, another uncontrollable cough interrupted her.
“Cough… haa…”
At last, the coughing stopped. When she came to her senses, she saw blood clots splattered everywhere.
There was so much blood that anyone who saw the scene would probably think a murder had taken place.
“Oh wow… I’m dizzy.”
“Are you all right?”
“How long have you been in this much pain? We can’t heal you any further with our power.”
The two scolded Selina at once. Judging by their reactions, the situation was quite serious.
“Thanks to you both, I feel a lot better now.”
“Good grief… Apostle, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”
Hearing them, Selina grinned through her bloodstained lips.
“By the way, how was I just now?”
“You were so fearless that I was worried something terrible might happen.”
“I’ve never seen those arrogant nobles look so flustered before.”
“Really? Then I guess my plan worked.”
When Selina laughed loudly, the two stared at her like she was insane.
She had boldly said everything she wanted in front of the Emperor, then suddenly coughed up blood—and now she was laughing as if refreshed. They couldn’t understand her at all.
Knock, knock.
At the sound of knocking, Selina and the two turned their heads toward the door after briefly exchanging looks.
“Selina, I’m coming in.”
It was Fryman’s voice. Everyone’s faces instantly turned pale, and they hurriedly stood up to stop him from entering—but the door opened faster.
“I’m sorry for calling this meeting so suddenly today—”
Fryman entered while rubbing his tired face, only to see two subordinate priests reaching toward him and Selina sitting with her back turned.
The strange sight made him pause briefly—then he caught the faint smell of blood.
Noticing the blood scattered around, his face hardened instantly. He strode forward and grabbed Selina’s shoulder, turning her around.
Her mouth was smeared with blood, and she was smiling awkwardly.
“H–Haha… Dad…”
“…Explain.”
That was all he said, but it was enough. The murderous edge in his voice made all three of them break out in cold sweat.
In the end, Simon and Veronica were kicked out, and Selina raised both hands slightly as she confessed everything. Fryman pressed a hand to his forehead.
“…Are you angry?”
“………”
“I’m fine right now! Look! I’m totally healthy—cough!”
She tried to prove it, but her tactless body betrayed her again, spewing blood. Fryman hurriedly wiped the blood from her mouth and let out a deep sigh.
“With you like this, how am I supposed to ever take my eyes off you?”
Selina grinned, and Fryman, helpless, patted her head.
Then he took her hand and began proper treatment. As he assessed her condition, his expression grew serious—it was worse than he’d expected.
“I knew it. You’ve been overusing your power. You’re reckless, just like your mother.”
“Mom was like that too?”
“Yes. That might be why she fell ill so early.”
Fryman smiled bitterly.
“If something like today happens again—if you overuse your power or need treatment—you must tell me. You may be able to use divine power, but in the end, it’s still the authority of a god. Even if you’re healed immediately, the side effects can come back later.”
“I know. That’s why I didn’t use divine power.”
She’d already ended up like this just from borrowing Lunios’s power—there was no way divine power would be free of consequences.
“What happened after I left?”
“His Majesty agreed to reopen the matter through a noble council. On the condition that several priests of the Moon also participate.”
“That’s a relief. I guess what I did wasn’t pointless.”
“Yes. We got past the immediate crisis, at least…”
Fryman shot Selina a sharp glare.
“Don’t ever do something like that again. No matter how much of an Apostle you are, you must always be careful around the Emperor.”
“Yes, I’ll be careful.”
Selina answered obediently, but she had a habit of leaping into unexpected situations, and Fryman couldn’t bring himself to relax.
Even under his suspicious gaze, Selina simply grinned.
* * *
“Whew…”
Arnold ran a hand roughly through his hair as he let out a sigh. He had been so close to placing Selina into his wife’s arms—but just before the decision, the Emperor suddenly changed the subject, bringing everything back to square one.
He was clearly reacting positively.
The Emperor had seemed to agree with him. Why he suddenly changed his mind was beyond understanding.
As Arnold removed his outer coat, he noticed Anais standing there blankly and let his shoulders slump.
He himself was furious—how much worse must it be for Anais, the one directly involved?
“Dear… I’ll bring that child back for you no matter what. So don’t worry—”
As he embraced Anais, Arnold felt her body trembling violently. His eyes widened as he examined her condition.
“What’s wrong? Anais?”
Her face was deathly pale, as if she’d seen a ghost. No matter how much he called her name, her eyes were unfocused.
“Anais!”
Only after he grabbed her shoulders and called her again did light return to her eyes as she looked at him.
“Did something happen? You didn’t answer no matter how much I called.”
Anais stared at him blankly—then burst into tears. Arnold was utterly flustered by the sudden turn of events.
“H–Honey, what do I do? My child… Rin… remembers everything from when she was little…”
Arnold’s face stiffened.
“She remembers that I abandoned her… She says she’ll never come back to me…”
Anais finally collapsed. The foolish mistake she had made in the past had now returned as a massive spike, driving itself deep into her heart.
“I shouldn’t have done that… I shouldn’t have abandoned Rin…!”
Arnold silently pulled the sobbing Anais into his arms and closed his eyes in pain.
Anais continuously confessed her sins, begging forgiveness from Rin—no, from Selina—who wasn’t there.
* * *
“Anais! You’ve got a guest!”
“Yes, I’m coming!”
Twelve years ago, Anais worked as an employee at a small village inn.
Less than a year after her child was born, her husband died suddenly in an accident. She needed money to raise the child.
Anais was beautiful—beautiful enough that anyone would glance back at her. But for a widow, such beauty became not an advantage, but a fatal flaw.
Once men realized her husband had passed away, they began to harass her. Some even offered money if she would become their wife.
Working day after day to earn money, fending off men who approached her, and raising a child in such harsh conditions was never easy.
At first, she had vowed to raise her child well for her late husband—but as time passed, exhaustion set in, and negative thoughts crept in more and more.
While washing dishes in the inn’s kitchen, Anais sighed and pressed a hand to her throbbing head.
Perhaps because she’d been pushing herself too hard lately, the headaches never stopped.
“You worked hard today. It’s payday, right?”
By the time evening came and her work ended, Anais received her wages from the innkeeper and bowed deeply.
Seventy silver coins. She’d barely manage to survive another month with this.
“Let’s see… pay some overdue rent, buy food, and Rin’s clothes are getting small again…”
Thinking of her child made her sigh automatically.
Why do children grow so fast? No matter how large the clothes she bought, they became too small in the blink of an eye. Child-related expenses added up quickly.
Anais entered the shabbiest building on the street. When she reached the first-floor counter, she saw a small child sitting on the elderly landlady’s lap.
“Rin, look who’s here.”
At the old woman’s words, the child hurriedly turned her head. Her chubby cheeks and bright purple eyes sparkled.
“Mom!”
Rin ran straight toward Anais. Until that moment, Anais’s face had been blank—but now, a faint smile appeared.
“Thank you for watching her. I got paid today, so I’ll give you what I owe along with it.”
“Oh my, I told you so many times—you can pay the overdue rent slowly. Take your time. Go buy that little darling a piece of candy instead. She waited so nicely for you today.”
“Mom, Mom! Grandma braided my hair! Isn’t it pretty?”
Rin proudly showed off her single braid. No matter how hard things were, her child always gave Anais a bit of strength.
“Yes, I will. Then I’ll head upstairs now.”
“Alright, alright. See you tomorrow, little miss.”
“See you tomorrow, Grandma!”
After saying goodbye, Rin tightly held Anais’s hand as they entered the room.
It was a ridiculously small room where everything was visible at a glance. Her breath caught for a moment.
Her slightly lifted mood sank instantly.
“How long do I have to live like this…?”
Seeing Anais mutter gloomily, Rin hesitated. Glancing around nervously, the child remembered what she had learned today and stepped forward.
“Mom! Look at this!”
Anais turned her head. Rin was forming a shape with her tiny hands. After fiddling for a while, she beamed and showed it to Anais.
“Grandma taught me today! What do you think? Doesn’t it look like a wolf? Awoooo!”
Making a wolf shape with her hands, Rin circled around Anais while imitating a wolf. Still, Anais’s eyes remained empty.
“I learned something else too! This time—!”
“Rin, stop and let’s eat. Mom’s a little tired.”
“B–But if you do this, it becomes a bird—”
“I said I’m tired.”
At the sharp tone, Rin shrank back. Watching her mother walk away, the little girl looked down at her hands.
“I wanted to show Mom the bird…”
She lifted her head again, watching Anais busy herself.
Lately, she hadn’t seen her mother smile at all.
What do I have to do to make Mom smile?
