Chapter 11
As I followed Perion into the emperor’s office, I saw a familiar scene.
Linen looked half-dead beside him, and Perion’s desk was piled high with documents.
He looked extremely busy, so I wondered why he had called me at this moment. Then his voice broke the silence.
“So, for what reason did you wish to see me?”
“Yes, I would like permission to go out!”
At my words, Perion stopped walking and looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Is that all?”
“Y-Yes, that is all.”
“How admirable.”
He let out a dry laugh and returned to his seat.
That was definitely sarcasm. I had no idea what he was dissatisfied with this time. Still, I smiled brightly.
I firmly believed in the saying that no one spits on a smiling face.
Perion raised one eyebrow, clearly annoyed.
“Fix your expression.”
“Yes, sir.”
I had briefly forgotten that this man would spit even on a smiling face. I quickly returned to a blank expression.
“Where are you going?”
“I plan to visit the temple.”
“The temple?”
His face clearly asked what on earth I planned to do there.
It wasn’t common for a seer to visit the temple.
I had expected this question and answered calmly.
“I want to observe the temple’s movements after the announcement of the imperial palace seer. Since my face isn’t well known, both nobles and priests will feel comfortable speaking freely around me.”
Fortunately, Perion seemed to accept my reasoning. I thought it would end there—but he rested his chin on his hand and fell into thought.
“The temple…”
An uneasy silence followed. I had no idea what he would say next.
But unexpectedly, he agreed without resistance.
“Very well. You may go out in three days.”
Earlier he had acted like my request was trivial, yet now he was setting a specific date.
I didn’t know why it had to be three days later, but I nodded.
“Leave.”
I immediately exited the office.
Every time I talk to the emperor, I feel like my lifespan shortens by three seconds.
An uneasy feeling lingered, but I brushed it off as imagination and returned to my office.
Finally, the day of my temple visit arrived.
I asked Benji to help me prepare, and she gladly agreed. But when I said I was going to the temple, her expression became slightly strange.
It was true—the temple and a seer were not a natural combination.
Still, all the information I needed was there. The imperial palace and the temple might not get along, but that didn’t mean the nobles avoided the temple.
Many noble families visited it frequently. It was a place where rumors gathered.
And most importantly—
Information about the original heroine, Juna, would only exist in the temple.
Even if I had to hide my identity as a seer, I had to go.
Although I had an important reason, I couldn’t deny I felt a little excited. It was my first outing since coming to this world.
Just as preparations were going smoothly, someone knocked.
“Who is it?”
“It is the chief chamberlain.”
The chief chamberlain?
That name alone told me something unusual was happening.
When I opened the door, I froze.
Behind the chief chamberlain stood a long line of maids holding luxurious dresses.
I was speechless at the strange sight, but Benji calmly spoke.
“Please come in, Chief Chamberlain.”
As they entered, I finally asked,
“What is all this?”
“His Majesty prepared these for Lady Rani’s outing.”
The chief chamberlain looked oddly excited.
My thoughts were very different.
They were noble lady dresses straight out of a novel or webtoon—covered in lace and frills. Just looking at them gave me chills.
Even in my past life, I dressed casually. Frills alone made my muscles stiffen.
I wasn’t grateful at all.
I had planned to go quietly while hiding that I was a seer. If I wore something like this, I would stand out immediately.
“Benji, can I just wear my own clothes today?”
The answer came from the chief chamberlain, smiling politely while clearly refusing.
“His Majesty strongly instructed that, as the imperial palace seer making her first visit to the temple, you must not go dressed in rags.”
Haha…
At this point, I couldn’t pretend I didn’t understand.
Perion must see me as some kind of rival to the temple. Wasn’t this basically telling me to flaunt my position proudly?
I remembered the ominous silence from three days ago.
He must have been planning this.
‘But I’m just one person, and the temple is an entire organization! How is this even a fair fight?!’
But as always, there was nothing I could do.
“Bring them…”
I chose the least flashy dress among the extravagant options.
In the end, I wore a purple sheath-line dress.
It was heavily decorated with jewels, almost excessively so, but it had the least lace and frills.
After always wearing comfortable clothes and a robe, the dress felt stiff and unnatural.
I carefully made my way down the stairs to where the carriage waited.
I didn’t even understand why I needed an escort—but Perion had assigned Devon as my guard today.
I wanted to refuse, feeling it was too much, but when Perion said, “What if you run away?” I shut my mouth.
I got into the carriage first and waited for Devon.
Then I heard whispers from outside.
“Who is that woman for Sir Devon to escort her?”
“I know, right? His Majesty is so careless. Assigning Sir Devon to guard a lowborn woman like that.”
“Ah~ I should’ve been born with a clever tongue instead of strength. Life must be so easy for her. I’m jealous.”
“Hey, did you see her figure? Amazing. Maybe she caught His Majesty’s eye that way.”
Their snickering reached inside the carriage.
Honestly, being called lucky or lowborn didn’t hurt much.
It was true, after all.
But this—
Sexual harassment was a different matter.
I gripped the carriage door handle tightly in anger.
As if I had anything going on with Perion.
We were nothing more than a powerless person who wanted to live and a powerful man who could kill me anytime.
How could they see it that way?
I flung the door open.
Two knights startled and turned toward me.
I gave them a sweet, charming smile.
“Oh my~ Big brothers, you say you’re good with your bodies? Hmm… I’m not so sure. They don’t look that impressive to me.”
I let my gaze drift downward slightly.
Their faces turned red.
“What nonsense are you saying! How dare a lowborn seer—!”
“Big brothers, watch your words. I can already see it—you’ll ruin your lives one day because of those loose tongues.”
I wasn’t joking.
Men like them always destroyed themselves with careless words.
I glared at them sharply. They flinched.
Cowards.
Just as I was about to close the door, a heavy voice rang out.
“What is all this commotion?”
