CHAPTER 67………………………..

“I clearly saw you heading to the temple, and we never received any notice that you had returned.”

Zenya answered with a bright smile.

“I guess your information network isn’t very good.”

She was smiling, but the sarcasm in her reply was obvious, and the priest shouted angrily.

“Your Highness!”

At the loud shout, the smile disappeared from Zenya’s face. Her eyes, cold as if frosted over, slowly scanned the priest from head to toe.

“That’s right. I’m a member of the imperial family. As you know.”

No matter how suspicious things seemed, as long as Zenya had Jeremiah’s face, this was a situation she couldn’t lose.

How dare a priest raise his voice at a member of the imperial family? No matter how powerful the temple had become, that was still unthinkable.

And above all, this was the imperial palace.

“So are you telling me, to my face, that you’ve been investigating me?”

Maintaining her domineering attitude, Zenya watched as the priest trembled with anger.

Judging by his reaction, he seemed the type who took considerable pride in being a priest.

His face flushed red as he seethed, pushing aside the other priests who were trying to restrain him before throwing out a threat.

“Being this uncooperative won’t be good for Your Highness either.”

“Pressuring me like this won’t be good for your future either.”

If Zenya truly were Jeremiah, then the priest’s future really would be heading into darkness.

“……”

As if he understood that, the priest fell silent. The other priests beside him did the same.

Zenya decided to drive the point home.

“You should focus on the work you were assigned. And don’t you dare block my path.”

After delivering the cold rebuke, Zenya tried to leave with Lumiere, but the priest stubbornly grabbed hold of her again.

“Yes, then I’ll do my job.”

What he said next made Zenya’s face twist.

“I’ll need to see the face of the person with you.”

She had miscalculated. A cornered rat would bite the cat.

Rather than lose his future by being marked by the princess, the priest had decided to pursue the suspicious individual to the end.

If Zenya really was the princess, he would fall into ruin—but if not, he could rise again.

And his gamble wasn’t wrong.

When Zenya turned to him, hiding her frustration, he gave a crooked smile.

“My current task is to find suspicious individuals.”

The expression on his face said that since he was simply doing his duty, she had no grounds to stop him. Zenya bit the inside of her cheek.

“Even if they’re Your Highness’s subordinate, don’t you think their appearance right now is a bit questionable?”

While thinking about how to get through this predicament, Zenya did not avoid the priest’s gaze.

As the silent staring contest dragged on, Lumiere—who had been quietly standing behind her—whispered,

“It’s too late.”

He gestured toward a side alley. When Zenya turned her head, a group that appeared to be knights was just entering the alley.

The priest might have been forced to retreat because of his earlier rudeness, but the knights were different.

They had not been disrespectful to Zenya, and a princess could not overturn an order given by the emperor.

No matter what happened, it was only a matter of time before Lumiere’s mask would be removed.

“This won’t work. Even if we end up being chased directly, we should run—”

Zenya whispered to him quietly, but Lumiere grabbed her hand and shook his head.

Then he moved her behind him and stepped forward.

No way.

Watching Lumiere’s hand rise toward his face, Zenya tried to deny the possibility that came to mind.

She hurriedly grabbed his collar to stop him, but he gently removed her hand with a faint smile.

And then he finally took off the mask.

“I’ve caused trouble for Jeremiah.”

The inky black color faded away like diluted ink, revealing brilliant blond hair.

At the same time, the face hidden beneath the mask appeared.

“It’s me.”

Shock spread across the faces of the temple officials.

If they were important enough to be sent to the imperial palace, of course they would recognize Lumiere’s face.

“…L–Lord Lumiere?”

The tall priest’s jaw trembled.

“Why? Can’t you recognize my face either?”

Though he wore a gentle smile, there was a sharp edge to Lumiere’s question. The other priests, who had frozen in place, began speaking all at once.

“You’re alive!”

“My goodness, how could this be!”

The priests hurried forward, but Lumiere raised his hand to stop them.

“Rather than greetings, you should apologize. That was extremely rude—and presumptuous.”

Lumiere turned back to Zenya and held out his hand.

When she took it reflexively, he looked at her with an apologetic expression.

“I’m the one who asked for help, so I’m sorry.”

Lumiere kissed the back of her hand in a gesture of courtesy. The priests, who had been staring blankly at the scene, fidgeted before bowing their heads.

“We’re sorry, Princess!”

Zenya tightened her grip on his hand as if to say what are you doing?, but Lumiere only smiled with his eyes, as if asking her to play along.

“What—”

“The people from the palace are here as well. I seem to be causing trouble in every direction.”

Noticing that the imperial knights had already approached them, Zenya finally closed her mouth.

In the meantime, Lumiere easily took control of the situation.

“While I was recovering, strange rumors started spreading. So I asked Jeremiah for help.”

After explaining the situation to the knights who had come closer, Lumiere said Jeremiah seemed shocked and that he would like a moment to talk with him, sending the others away.

As soon as they had some privacy, Zenya gritted her teeth and said,

“Are you crazy?”

“Zenya, this is the best option.”

“But—!”

“More and more people are gathering.”

Lumiere carefully raised his hand and gently smoothed Zenya’s hair so it wouldn’t fall out of place.

“Fortunately, Lerajie is almost here. If you go straight down the left path, you’ll reach it.”

Zenya stamped her foot.

“Is that what matters right now?”

“It’s better than you getting caught.”

“But you’re the one getting caught!”

Zenya exclaimed while glancing around nervously. Lumiere silently smiled as he tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

The smile was beautiful, but Zenya wasn’t foolish enough not to notice that it was fake. She grabbed his wrist.

“You hate the temple. You didn’t want to go back.”

It felt ridiculous now that she had once suggested it might be better for him to return there. Zenya didn’t want to watch Lumiere go back like this.

“Even now, try to think of another way, okay?”

Revealing his identity in a place full of people couldn’t be undone.

But maybe, just maybe, she could still stop him from going to the temple right now.

“Say you have somewhere else to go with me, or that we should search for the intruder together—”

She was speaking rapidly when Lumiere leaned closer.

“Zenya.”

He gestured toward the temple officials in the distance, who still hadn’t taken their eyes off them.

“It’s impossible. You can see they’re desperate not to lose me again.”

As if to reassure her, Lumiere smiled sweetly and gently traced his fingers over her wrist.

“For now, it’s more advantageous for them to have me than to create a new hero. I’ll be fine.”

Zenya grabbed that ticklish hand and held it tightly, glaring at him.

“So as long as your body’s fine, that’s all that matters?”

“Zenya, you wanted me to go back too.”

Her breath caught at those words. That was unfair.

She could clearly see Lumiere’s intention—to provoke her guilt and somehow make her let him go.

But even knowing that, the words wouldn’t come easily.

Lumiere fidgeted with the hand she was holding and gave a bitter smile.

“So let’s just do it this way. You can’t get caught.”

He wrapped both hands around Zenya’s and brought them close to his face. Then he spoke to her hands as if praying.

“You heard how the emperor used you. The temple isn’t any different. I know how the temple might try to use you in the future.”

Lumiere gave a bitter smile.

“I don’t want you to end up like me.”

He pleaded with her.

“So… leave me here and go back.”

A small breath escaped her lips.

Even in this situation, he was more worried about Zenya than himself. She couldn’t bring herself to push someone like that away.

The hand that had been weakly dragged along by Lumiere suddenly tightened. Zenya pulled him strongly toward her.

His face was suddenly right in front of hers, and she glared at him fiercely.

“I don’t want to.”

Lumiere’s eyes widened.

Looking straight into the clear, lake-like eyes, Zenya said,

“I said I don’t want to leave you behind.”

Joy filled his widened eyes.

The gentle curve of his eyes, the sparkling gaze, even the soft swell beneath them—there wasn’t a single part of his expression that wasn’t beautiful.

Perhaps that was why she relaxed without realizing it. As always, she thought he would give in.

But that was Zenya’s mistake.

“I’m sorry.”

For what?

By the time Zenya snapped out of the smile she had been lost in, it had already happened.

A soft sensation touched her lips. Startled, she tried to pull back, but a hand held the area beneath her ear and the back of her neck.

As Lumiere tilted his face, their lips pressed together more deeply. The gentle motion of him softly tugging on her lower lip made her feel as if her mind were drifting away.

What is happening right now?

His moist lips captured hers again and again, sucking softly before releasing. And then something softer and unfamiliar brushed against their overlapping lips.

But Zenya couldn’t react at all.

Was it because she had completely frozen from experiencing something like this for the first time? Or because his tongue hadn’t yet entered her mouth?

No—
it was because of the eyelids trembling right in front of her, filled with desperation and emotion.

Zenya neither fled nor responded properly. She simply blinked blankly until he slowly pulled away.

Smack.

Their lips separated with a faint, damp sound, and his rough thumb gently rubbed her swollen lower lip.

“I’m really sorry.”