Chapter~35
Unaware of the storm of emotions inside me, the Young Marquis briefed me matter-of-factly.
“The reliquary in the main temple is usually closed. Except for special occasions, entry is completely impossible, so in theory, it’s impregnable.”
It’s already been breached, though.
The Heart of the Saint (the genuine article), which should have been stored inside, is in the hands of some underworld lord. How did they even steal it?
Or maybe it wasn’t stolen, and Mephisto got scammed…
“Uh… do they inspect it regularly?” I asked.
“Inspect?”
“Like, checking if someone broke in or secretly removed it… things like that.”
“No way. Even on special occasions, only someone at the level of a cardinal or higher is allowed inside. Frequent inspections would actually weaken security. From what I’ve heard, the vault is opened maybe once every ten years.”
“Don’t they maintain the relic?”
“The interior is perfectly controlled, and it’s a relic, so it doesn’t rust or decay even if left untouched for a long time.”
That made sense.
“They boast that it has never been breached even once, a true stronghold of God,” he added.
The temple still believes the Heart of the Saint is genuine.
The so-called stronghold of God was already breached years ago!
“Impressive…” I muttered.
“Yes. So unless the vault is opened, security isn’t that tight.”
“Then the reason for asking us to help with security is probably because they worry someone might steal the relic when it’s taken out, right?”
“Exactly. Once the relic leaves the vault, security drops drastically. Many people covet it.”
“Ah…”
“I’ve heard that before the authentication ceremony, they open it once to verify the relic, and afterward, the two items are displayed outside the vault separately until the ceremony. Opening the vault multiple times is considered worse than this.”
Verification, huh.
At least it’s verified. Once verification happens, the so-called impregnable title of the vault will be meaningless, but at least a disaster won’t occur during the ceremony itself.
“We’ll have to make sure no one tampers with the relic until then.”
“Yes. It’s a sensitive matter.”
The issue must be that bloodline controversy, I thought, keeping my mouth tight.
“The vault will open in a week. Prepare thoroughly.”
“Yes.”
No matter how grand the power struggles upstairs are, a normal knight has a set duty.
I’d better focus on the work. After all, the Young Marquis trusted me with this task.
After visiting the main temple, I contacted Mephisto that evening.
“Partner, did you hear that the Heart of the Saint will be used in the authentication ceremony?”
—Yes. It was one of the expected scenarios.
“They said the relic appraisal will be in a week. What do you think about that?”
—It’ll be quite a comical sight. A ceremony meant to show off the temple’s prestige is about to be shattered. It’s a shame I can’t see it in person.
“They’ll hold the authentication for everyone to see, but the appraisal is only for a select few. Do you think they might try to hide that it’s fake?”
He chuckled softly.
—Among those select few will be the Princess. They’re sending someone to watch in case anyone tampers with the relic. Likely, the 2nd Prince’s side will send… Damia Cartier. No other choice.
“So even if they tried to hide it, they couldn’t in front of both of them.”
—Exactly. So no need to worry.
The Princess would never allow the 1st Prince’s faction to conduct an authentication using a fake relic.
And the 2nd Prince’s faction cannot show support for a ‘fake relic’ if they want to dispel controversy.
Only by proving it with the real relic in front of everyone can the bloodline controversy be dismissed.
They’d try to switch it secretly, if at all. Without anyone noticing.
“But if the Heart you have is real, how did they even get it out of the vault? It’s supposed to be normally inaccessible and only trustworthy people can open it.”
—I only purchased it… but I have a guess.
“What is it?”
—An insider. Who among the cardinals wouldn’t be tempted to betray?
“Even so, to put it up for auction as a necklace… they really wanted to mock God, huh.”
—I don’t know how the theft went down, but the listing seems to have been done by dark mages. Since they couldn’t enter the temple themselves… it’s assumed they took it from the original thieves.
“Dark mages again… aren’t they involved everywhere?”
In games, they’re the root of all evil, and in reality too. I muttered in exasperation, and he chuckled.
—Even someone who was my enemy was tied to them… they’re everywhere, indeed.
“Anyway, the 1st Prince’s side knowing it’s fake—was that you telling them?”
—Yes.
“Didn’t they ask for the Heart of the Saint? They must have coveted it.”
—I won’t give it unless I get proper compensation. We are collaborators, after all.
“They might try to betray you… what if they try to push me away?”
—We already have leverage over each other. No need to worry.
As he said, there seemed no need to worry.
“Got it~ Ah, if you’re free, give me some dating advice too.”
—I’m busy. Ending the call.
“Tch.”
Maybe because I often use him as a consultant, Mephisto always ran if he thought even a hint of dating talk would come from me.
I put down the abruptly cut communication device and lay on my bed. Tomorrow, I’d be stuck with the Young Marquis again…
“…what if I get caught?”
We’d gotten close, and if he saw my feelings and drifted away, I’d be sad.
Fortunately, while on guard duty, we didn’t speak much.
Both of us seemed to maintain the mindset of keeping public and private separate.
Even so, being alone together made me conscious of him, so I tried to distract myself as much as possible.
After some time, the deputy commander’s squad came over to relieve us.
“Time for a shift change, Young Marquis.”
“Are the other knights being relieved as well?”
“Yes. You can go rest now.”
“Alright, I’ll take over next.”
“Thank you for your efforts!”
Half the knights from the temple, half from the Marquis’ household—rotating like this into four shifts was proceeding smoothly.
The vault hadn’t opened yet anyway, and even when it did, the imperial court’s involvement in the temple would prevent any random third party from approaching.
“Sonnet, planning to head straight home?”
“Huh? Yes, yes.”
“Since it’s like this, how about we go to the Marquis’ residence together? We can strategize along the way.”
I was trying hard to divert my thoughts elsewhere, but the Young Marquis’ few words erased them all.
My legs moved faithfully outside, but my mind froze.
It was true, but I wanted to postpone it as much as possible. Being with him stirred my heart.
“…Even if that’s not the case, I want to spend time together.”
“Ugh…”
Especially when he wore that sulky, puppy-like expression!
“Of course, if it disrupts your rest or makes you uncomfortable, I won’t force it…”
Why is he so cute?! Getting cuter and cuter?!
“Th-that’s f-fine—”
Just as I was about to respond affirmatively, someone charged at me.
Reflexively, I pulled the small figure into my arms, hearing a cheerful voice.
“Unni!”
Looking down, it was my angel.
She was adorable, fixing her fluffy pink hair as she looked up at me.
“Mabel! What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to see the main temple and also see you! I waited outside because I wanted to explore together!”
“You should’ve told me! Wasn’t it cold?”
“I didn’t mind, thinking about you!”
I was so caught up in talking with Mabel that I momentarily forgot the Young Marquis’ presence.
“Long time no see, Miss Mabel.”
“Oh! Young Marquis? Hello! You’re leaving work, right? I’ll take her!”
“…Alright.”
I was oddly conscious of the Young Marquis’ sulky face, but Mabel took my arm first.
“Let’s go, unni!”
Seizing the opportunity to escape, I jumped at it.
“Sorry, Pierre! See you tomorrow!”
“…Yes, see you tomorrow. I hope tomorrow I have some free time.”
“Haha…”
“Unni!”
“Ah, yes!”
I felt his intense gaze on the back of my head but ignored it.
“Unni.”
“Yes?”
“I don’t mind if you date the Young Marquis, but if I’m not first, I’ll be mad!”
“Got it, got it.”
“We haven’t spent much time together lately! Make up for it!”
“Okay!”
It seemed Mabel came partly out of jealousy and to express dissatisfaction.
Come to think of it, the Young Marquis also had that sulky expression when using Mabel as an excuse.
Are they both jealous of losing a friend-like presence?
Either way, it was unbearably cute.
