CHAPTER 76……………………………………………………
Mikael looked embarrassed.
“I can only talk at night.”
I felt the texture of Mikael’s fur.
“It’s really soft.”
“Right? My master’s holy power is strong, so it gives my body a sheen.”
“Then why can’t I touch such proud fur during the day?”
“During the day, I didn’t seem to like you very much.”
That stung a little.
“But it was fine last time, wasn’t it? I even patted your backside.”
“Ahem… back then, I forced myself because of my master… More importantly, I should apologize for scratching you before. During the day, my power weakens, and sometimes I really turn into a cat.”
Cats can scratch or bite people for no reason, even when in a good mood. That meant Mikael, being a real cat, might scratch me.
I almost got mesmerized by his fluffy tail, but I promised myself never to touch daytime Mikael.
As we talked, it seemed Mikael remembered what happened during the day.
Then, does that mean he knows everything I talked about this morning with Sertina and Cassius?
“You remember what we talked about with Her Highness this morning, right?”
“Of course. I also heard what you think about your master.”
“Please keep it a secret from His Highness.”
“You’re just going to tell him as soon as you get back anyway, right?”
That’s true, but I didn’t want him to find out through someone—or rather, some animal—else.
“I want to tell him myself.”
Mikael’s short ears twitched as if focusing on some sound.
“Understood. But you handle this place.”
“Huh?”
“The holy knights are coming! Keep it a secret from me.”
With that, Mikael transformed into a small cat and dashed outside through the collapsed wall. It seemed his true form shouldn’t be revealed to others easily.
Moments later, my door burst open with a clamor.
All the patrolling holy knights had apparently come here—five in total.
Most were familiar faces, and one even mentioned hearing about a merchant visiting before the bedtime bell.
“Priest Sonia, what happened?”
“Ah, well…”
The holy knight glanced around my room.
“My goodness, the whole room is destroyed! Who is that person? Explain properly!”
It looked like a bomb had gone off inside.
‘How am I supposed to fix all this?’
I decided to tell as much of the truth as possible.
“A stranger entered my room, and we fought.”
“You threw that person?”
Looking at the collapsed wall, there would be no other explanation. In truth, I was struck by Mikael’s front paws and thrown into the wall.
“…Yes. I was too shocked.”
“Wow, I thought you were skilled in physical tasks, and indeed.”
A familiar holy knight admired me.
“You seem suited to be a holy knight. How about transferring your affiliation?”
That was why he was familiar—I had been encouraged several times to become a holy knight during training because of my natural strength. Training would make me even stronger, he said.
Luckily, since these were knights who knew me, I could avoid mentioning Mikael and get away with a flimsy excuse.
‘Seems like I managed to handle it roughly.’
Other knights approached the collapsed merchant.
“Who is this person? Do you know?”
I remembered.
“It’s the merchant I reported on earlier.”
“I saw him go outside, but he must have sneaked back in. We’ll lock him up for now.”
The knights also checked the shattered potion bottles on the floor. If any potion remained, it could reveal that he was from the Mage Tower, but unfortunately, it had all been absorbed into the floor, leaving no evidence.
Finally, the knights bound the merchant.
Cleanup was done, but something felt missing. Luckily, I quickly realized what it was.
“Right! He’s the merchant summoned by Her Highness.”
We needed to confirm her safety too. Understanding the situation, the holy knight nodded.
“I’ll check on Her Highness immediately.”
Fortunately, Sertina was sleeping soundly in her room. Awakened by the commotion, she was shocked when the knights explained.
“The merchant broke into Sonia’s room?”
It was Sertina who invited someone from the Mage Tower into the Holy Kingdom. If this got revealed here, it could be a serious problem.
I was the only one who knew her true situation. Recently, I had also been taking care of Sertina. Since my trainee caused this incident, I had to handle the aftermath.
“I’ll explain everything to Her Highness myself.”
“Understood. We’ll check the surroundings.”
The holy knights went outside to see if there were more intruders, leaving only Sertina and me in the room.
I wondered how to explain things, but Sertina spoke first.
“You’re scratched.”
That guy had slammed me to the floor and pressed my chin with tremendous force. I had struggled to escape, and apparently, something scratched me in the process. I asked reflexively.
“Where?”
“Here.”
Sertina touched near my lips.
When she did, a sharp sting spread. It didn’t seem to be a deep wound. Pulling her hand away, Sertina said:
“Why would someone who came to see me go after you? If you were hurt this badly, it wasn’t just a conversation, was it?”
Sertina seemed angry, so I quickly told the truth.
“He tried to take me to the Mage Tower.”
“Ha! That guy wants to see another Holy Beast War?”
The Holy Beast War was fought centuries ago between the Mage Tower and the Holy Kingdom.
The Holy Kingdom won. Those from the defeated Mage Tower were shackled with restraints made from earth-element holy power.
The Empire, caught in the middle, initially sided with the Mage Tower but switched to neutrality after losing half of its knights.
Why was my mind suddenly on the Holy Beast War?
‘Ah, I am a priest of the Holy Office.’
If the Mage Tower dared touch a priest of rank, the Holy Kingdom would naturally intervene. That was part of why I became a priest—to be protected.
But my goal was not war.
It was to uncover the secret of the Omega fever I had stumbled upon, and for now, to tell Sertina the truth.
I told her about the deal between Shane and the Mage Tower lord, which I planned to explain tomorrow.
She listened quietly and said she would look into it.
I hadn’t heard her decision yet, but I trusted Sertina would make a wise choice.
After sending Sonia out, Sertina was left alone, dazed.
She had sensed some irregularities in her dealings with the Mage Tower. Her keen intuition, honed while running the guild, had repeatedly warned her that something was off.
But she had ignored it, not wanting to lose hope of fixing her legs.
“Sigh…”
How many times had she felt foolish, obsessed with her legs?
First, she had been toyed with by past priests; now, it was the Mage Tower.
“No… I need to investigate first.”
Even though it was a trial potion, it had definitely allowed her to walk with both legs. Having tasted that sweet relief once, she couldn’t forget it easily.
But Sonia had risked herself to protect her; she couldn’t be lying.
With a dazed expression, Sertina opened a drawer and took out a piece of stationery.
She wrote a request to investigate information about the horses Shane possessed. Only one group was capable of such intelligence.
‘The Black Ghost.’
It was the assassin and intelligence network run by Schwarz.
The downside was the high fee, but it was manageable to avoid unnecessary expenses.
And the results would arrive sooner than expected.
The incident was resolved for the time being.
Sertina said she had matters to consider and didn’t need my help for a while. It was important for her to think through her decisions, so I let her be.
With fewer visits to Sertina during my daily routine, I gained some free time.
Having completed all my duties as a confessional priest, I arrived at my new room. My old room had a collapsed wall, so I would only use it until repairs were done.
From the window of the new room, I could see another building’s wall.
It was a frustrating view, but one thought occurred to me immediately.
‘It’s closer to His Highness’s office now.’
At a brisk walk, it would take less than three minutes—very close. Since the unrequited love rumors hadn’t been resolved, perhaps this room was deliberately given near Cassius. I felt a little pleased.
Wait a moment.
‘Closer to the office… so what?’
Embarrassed at suddenly thinking of him, I calmed myself and tidied the room. The first thing I took out was the perfume Lancelot had sent me.
‘It was very effective.’
Lloyd had cried, sniffled, and coughed uncontrollably after smelling the pheromone.
Those hostile to me were Shane and Lloyd. Both were alphas, so carrying it for self-defense seemed wise.
‘I wish I had more.’
I had already used it twice, leaving just one dose.
No need to overthink—I immediately wrote Lancelot asking him to make more.
On the morning Cassius returned, Lancelot’s reply arrived.
Before meeting him, I read Lancelot’s letter.
“To Sister Sonia,
I would like to make more perfume as you requested, but I’ve run out of materials.
I’ll try to find some, but the ingredients are extremely rare, so I’m not sure if I can get them.”
Lily of the valley had always been a rare flower.
Nothing in this world came easily.
