Chapter 52
Even in the darkness, hair as brilliantly golden as sunlight could be seen.
The man, who had been blankly staring at that golden hair without realizing it, suddenly noticed that those darkened, ash-gray eyes were looking back at him. He hurriedly lowered his head in panic.
He was the one who conveyed the will of God to the world—the leader of all the priests in the temple, including himself.
The divine agent born into the body of a mortal was impossibly beautiful.
Golden hair that shone like the sun, and eyes the color of a cloudy sky after the sun had disappeared—together, they doubled his mysterious aura and made his very existence feel sacred.
“Yes, it’s assumed that he’s trying to expose the rat hiding inside his manor. Or perhaps he intends to identify and track suspicious individuals showing unusual movements outside.”
The man bowed so deeply he was nearly flattened to the ground as he answered Pope Avelius.
“Although we can’t know the exact details since no one but the steward’s designated soldiers can approach near the Duke of Luhanes’ chambers, it’s said his collapse looked more like a staged performance.”
“I see.”
Avelius responded without much surprise. After falling silent for a moment, as though lost in thought, he suddenly asked:
“And the children the duchy took?”
By some unknown means, the red rats who had escaped the slums ended up in the hands of Rixion Luhanes of all people.
With their great cause approaching, it was irritating that the spark they had failed to extinguish had fallen into the enemy’s hands.
“They say the children are under strict surveillance, so at the moment, there’s no way to know their condition.”
“So they don’t even know whether they’re alive or dead.”
“My apologies. We will secure custody of the children as soon as possible.”
A short sigh brushed past the man’s ear, as though blaming the priests’ incompetence. He swallowed nervously.
“And… there was one more thing.”
He hesitantly trailed off and once again searched the pope’s expression.
But Avelius’ ash-gray eyes remained unreadable, and the man hesitated. It didn’t seem important enough to report, yet just in case—
“The young lady of the Christener Marquisate is staying at the duke’s estate. She’s said to be currently in marriage talks with the duke, and after her visit, the duke personally brought priests and physicians into the manor.”
“Elizabeth Christener?”
This time, Avelius reacted immediately—unexpectedly.
Startled by the rare display of emotion, the man stuttered.
“Y-yes. I was told it is Lady Elizabeth Christener.”
“Why… is she staying at the duke’s estate?”
“It seems marriage discussions with Duke Luhanes are underway. We assume she is staying there because she was worried about her lover.”
Those ash-gray eyes staring at him were growing increasingly cold.
The man began sweating profusely, unsure what he had said wrong.
“…Was this officially announced?”
“No, it hasn’t been. Since the Marquis of Christener is currently out of the Empire, we believe they intentionally postponed the formal announcement.”
A union between the Duke of Luhanes and the Christener Marquisate—two families with enough political power to topple even birds from the sky—was indeed threatening.
The Christener family was one of the Empire’s greatest financial powers, and the value of their merchant guild, Dion, was astronomical.
If the wealth of the Christeners were added to Rixion Luhanes, the imperial watchdog, and used to pressure the temple, it would be troublesome.
Relations between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom had worsened since the previous emperor’s reign, and by the current emperor’s rule, hostility was outright.
Across the entire continent, the only nation the Holy Kingdom couldn’t fully control was the Kaiden Empire.
The sole reason that the precarious balance between imperial authority and sacred authority had not tipped was Rixion Luhanes himself.
Because of that, even this matter of engagement should not have been taken lightly.
‘I should’ve ordered a more detailed investigation into this as well.’
The man trembled with regret for not considering it sooner.
“The Christener family has always been friendly to the temple, so—”
“Assign someone to Elizabeth Christener as well.”
The pope’s unusually cold voice cut him off.
“From now on, every single thing she does is to be reported to me.”
Assigning a white rat even to the duke’s potential fiancée made the man’s eyes widen.
Lady Elizabeth Christener seemed like an ordinary noble lady. He didn’t understand why she needed surveillance too, but he pushed aside his doubts and answered quickly.
“I will assign someone immediately.”
After all—who stood before him? Their future ruler, the one destined to dominate the continent.
He was a mere human. How could he hope to understand such a person’s thoughts? There must be a reason.
As if the conversation were over, Pope Avelius stepped into the darkness beyond the reach of the candles—then suddenly stopped.
“And—”
He turned back to the man.
“I’ll be leaving the temple for a while. I’m going on vacation.”
“V-vacation…? Yes, ah—understood!”
The man panicked. The pope, taking a vacation? It was unheard of since the day he had first served him.
The pope had always devoted everything to the Holy Kingdom Astell, never once leaving the temple. The man couldn’t help but worry about the shockwaves this news would cause.
“M-my apologies, but… may I ask where you plan to go, Your Holiness?”
At the question, Avelius—no, Jade—lowered his gaze quietly.
Recently, a memory had begun clawing into his mind, one that filled him with unbearable irritation.
“May you stay in that seat for the rest of your life.”
Those blue eyes filled with mockery as they stared at him. That voice that dared to speak so freely while knowing nothing.
“A cowardly Holy Father who doesn’t even have the courage to confess his feelings.”
Never before had he felt such boiling rage.
At that man who dared mock a feeling so precious he couldn’t even bring himself to take it out.
At himself for being so taken aback he couldn’t retort a single word.
Unable to bear the fury, Jade looked back at the man waiting for his explanation.
A faint smile spread through his once-cold gaze.
“A filthy dog is coveting my sanctuary…”
Whether that smile hid his rising anger, or he was genuinely looking forward to the upcoming “vacation,” Jade himself wasn’t sure.
He turned away.
“So before it’s completely stolen, I should take it back.”
His voice was relaxed, but his footsteps, leaving the candlelight behind, were quicker than ever.
‘Yes. Letting it be taken like this makes no sense.’
Even walking fast felt too slow.
Jade nearly tore off his papal robes and slipped a ring from his pocket onto the thumb of his right hand.
‘I need to go and check on Liz.’
His golden hair shimmered before turning pitch-black in an instant, as if it had always been that way. The now-dark hair fluttered in the wind.
He gathered the long hair with one hand as if annoyed by it, then slowly opened and closed his eyes.
Whether his eyes were open or shut, the image of that beloved person was always there—clear and vivid.
Her bright smile meant only for him, her angry face, her emotionless expression—every one of them made his heart tremble helplessly.
‘What if that man is dragging her around against her will?’
His steps felt strangely light as he walked.
It was the first time.
The first time he had allowed himself something called a “vacation.”
The first time he wasn’t waiting for the person he loved to come to him, but instead was going to her himself.
‘I wonder if she still remembers our promise.’
The anger filling his chest melted away, replaced by an exhilarating thrill.
“Hey, kid.”
It had been on a day just like today—when frozen ground thawed and every living thing burst into life.
“That’s right, you. Hmph. Are you not coming here?”
That was when Jade first met the little girl with hair the exact same color as his.
“If someone wanted to get out of here, how would they do it?”
The girl who had found everything bothersome, yet effortlessly broke down the wall and entered his world.
