Chapter 10
That moment, the Arte sect after Cierra left.
“Aah! The sect leader was right! The Saintess was real!”
“Kheugh! We, we can really live too! Aah, Saintess! Arte-nim!”
The devotees who had met Cierra were all shedding tears of emotion, unable to contain themselves.
How many things had happened over the past five years?
Not to mention the disgraceful nickname of being a vicious fraudster sect, they had strived tirelessly to interpret Arte’s oracle.
Especially, the path they had taken to interpret the word ‘Jonbeo’ was nothing short of madness itself.
Not only did they try to infiltrate the four major religious orders to steal ancient texts, but one devotee even attempted to get into the imperial palace.
They had actually succeeded a few times, but they couldn’t find the meaning of ‘Jonbeo’ anywhere.
‘Kheup, those were truly difficult days…’
The sect leader watched the weeping devotees and recalled the memories.
Lately, he had been suffering from frequent divisions among the devotees.
‘Not that I don’t understand.’
But still, treating the sacred oracle as false was truly crossing a line.
‘But it’s a relief that the Saintess appeared like this.’
If it had been any later, the sect would have likely disbanded.
The sect leader dabbed away his remaining tears with the white handkerchief he was holding.
Just then, a priest approached him.
It was Priest William, whom the sect leader had trusted and relied on the most lately.
“Sect Leader, the Saintess’s appearance is a good thing, but I am worried.”
“Hmm? What is it, Priest William?”
“I’m wondering if we were too hasty in concluding that she is the ‘Saintess’…?”
Indeed, Arte’s oracle did not mention the Saintess’s name.
Even the oracle delivered today only contained one character meaning ‘comes’.
“With swindlers running rampant in the capital lately, I wonder if it’s alright…”
“Hoho, well. I know that person’s identity well. She is absolutely not a swindler!”
“…I see.”
At the sect leader’s answer, devoid of any doubt, a shadow fell over William’s expression.
After a long silence, just as the sect leader, feeling puzzled, looked at him—
“Sect Leader, shouldn’t we do something to commemorate the Saintess’s appearance?”
As if asking when he ever made a dark expression, Priest William asked the sect leader with sparkling eyes.
“How about trying something different? Now that the Saintess is here, shouldn’t Arte-nim’s influence spread beyond the continent?”
It was a reasonable point. The sect leader, seemingly already persuaded, nodded his head several times.
“That’s right! The time has finally come!”
“Haha! I will look for an item worthy of Arte-nim!”
An ‘item’ worthy of a god.
While one might think such a thing doesn’t exist in this world, for some reason, William’s words seemed believable.
“Excellent! I’ll trust you, Priest William!”
Eventually, the sect leader readily accepted his proposal.
Little did he know, dreaming of what kind of ‘item’ would arrive before him.
***
By urging the coachman, we traveled at twice the usual speed and managed to arrive at the mansion’s reception room where Shine Adielle was waiting.
“Haa, hooh…”
Having rushed over, I caught my breath, and the perceptive butler knocked and ushered me inside.
“…You’re early.”
As expected, Lucian was sitting in the reception room.
And.
“It’s been a while, Miss Cierra.”
Him, Shine Adielle was there too.
Those who knew him all praised Shine in unison.
Long blue-silver hair mixed with silver, and green eyes as if filled with spring.
Everyone said their hearts melted just by looking at him. Like the epithet of the god he served, he was a person filled with benevolence.
But the moment he looked at me—
“You look well. I’m glad you’re alive.”
Contempt, of unfathomable depth, swirled intensely across the face that should have been benevolent.
It was hard to endure those wintry, sharp eyes that seemed to pierce through me.
‘…This is why I didn’t want to face him.’
Even though I had been notorious to everyone, there was one person I was afraid of.
For me, that person was Shine Adielle.
He was someone whose feelings of contempt for me were more evident than anyone else’s.
‘It’s not that I don’t know why he dislikes me.’
It’s because I’m a devotee of the Envy Church.
‘And not because of piety, but because Izel is the Saintess of the God of Envy, so I went there to cause some trouble…’
Now, there was one more reason added.
He was one of the sub-male leads in the novel I wrote, <Izel: The Men of the Saintess>.
‘I’m not supposed to get involved with the original novel’s main and supporting characters.’
Because if I did, life would become oh-so-dramatic.
‘My life is already hard enough; I don’t want to get more involved.’
“…Thank you, High Priest.”
I gave him a perfunctory greeting. I didn’t want to do anything to upset him, so I lowered my eyes, but something felt strange.
‘…What?’
Shine was staring intently at me like that.
Feeling flustered by his gaze, I rolled my eyes, and at that moment, Shine suddenly started walking towards me, step by step.
‘Why, why is he coming closer?’
I had always found him difficult. But now that this person, who never tried to get close, was rapidly closing the distance, my body stiffened rigidly on its own.
“Hmm.”
Before I knew it, Shine was right in front of me, his green eyes flashing as he began scrutinizing me from head to toe.
His eyes were still filled with sharpness, making me feel like I’d get cut by his gaze if I made a wrong move.
Just as I was about to turn my head away from the pressure—
“Ugh…!”
“Look at me, Miss Cierra.”
He suddenly grabbed my chin roughly and lifted it upward.
I frowned from the tingling pain, but he showed no benevolence towards me.
How many minutes passed as I was forced to meet his eyes? Just as I thought my jaw might shatter if this continued, he lowered his hand and spoke.
“Just as the young duke said. I sense divine power from Miss Cierra.”
“Gasp, is that true?”
Lucian, who had been watching us anxiously, exclaimed.
Yet, he still didn’t remove his suspicious gaze.
‘Well.’
It made sense. Divine power?
‘I’m someone who couldn’t receive even a speck of divine authority from any temple.’
To be more precise, I am a body that hasn’t received a god’s love.
But suddenly, after dying and coming back to life, I have divine power emanating from my body?
‘Moreover, I even healed Jenna yesterday.’
Shine, having likely heard about it from Lucian, continued immediately.
“The ability of ‘healing’… Even while seeing the divine power, it’s hard to believe readily. It seems certain that Miss Cierra met a god after her death, though.”
*Squeeze.*
The hand holding me tightened even more fiercely. His gleaming green eyes were quite persistent.
After staring at me as if peeling away layer after layer for a long time, he slightly furrowed his brow.
“It’s a truly peculiar divine power. Miss Cierra, what exactly happened?”
At that question, Lucian also stared at me piercingly. His eyes held surprise and expectation.
While I was pondering how to answer, one fact suddenly came to mind.
‘Come to think of it, don’t I need to remove my name from the Church of the God of Water and Benevolence?’
That was the only way I could join Arte’s sect.
While it was acceptable to be registered in the devotees’ list of the other four major ‘Churches’ simultaneously, Arte was still just a ‘sect’, considered heretical, so I couldn’t register my name with them.
‘Should I just tell the truth outright?’
Since Shine had noticed the divine power, denying it would be strange, and naming any of the other four gods would also be a self-destructive move.
‘Let’s do it!’
My decision was quick. I immediately opened my mouth.
“Yes, as the High Priest said, I met one.”
“Then it must have been Envy-nim—”
“No, it was Arte-nim.”
“…Pardon?”
Looking at Shine’s dumbfounded expression, I smiled as charmingly as possible.
‘What, did you think I was going to say it was Envy-nim?’
This High Priest has high hopes, doesn’t he?
After grabbing my chin so roughly, he expects the name of the god he serves to come out of my mouth?
Moreover, ‘Healing’ isn’t even one of Envy’s abilities!
‘Hmph, in your dreams!’
Suppressing the urge to let out a shaky laugh, I maintained the most pious face possible.
Then, I clasped my hands as if in prayer and continued.
“The one I met was none other than Arte-nim. Aah, she guided me back to life!”
In reality, she had grabbed my sleeve and begged pathetically, but describing it that way would undermine the god’s dignity.
I nodded slightly and gently touched my forehead with my hand as if in prayer.
“Huh, to have met a false god—”
“Shhh. Just a moment, High Priest. I’m in the middle of prayer.”
“…”
And you call yourself a High Priest? Don’t you know to be quiet during prayer?
I gave him a pointed glare and then closed my eyes again. It was an action meant purely to annoy him, but it unexpectedly came with a benefit.
*Ding.*
[Arte-nim has donated 52 Florins!]
[You’re praying for me. Cierra, huuuung…]
‘Yes, 52 Florins!’
I just pretended to pray and made money. At this rate, won’t I become rich before I even become famous as a Saintess?
