Chapter 37
Of course, Damien hadn’t committed any sins yet.
‘The Emperor and Empress are fine, and so is Father.’
Even if he was pretending to love me, it would probably be because he needed Father’s support at most.
‘If he allied with the leader of the Emperor faction to escape being checked, I can understand that.’
But if that were the case, the balance would inevitably tip to one side.
Considering his usual behavior of prioritizing the empire, sending Theo and Estelle would have two purposes: to keep the Duke in check and to purify the Land of Death.
‘If I can persuade him well, maybe I can loosen his guard toward the Duke’s family.’
On top of that, the existence of the Saint must be kept secret. Even if Estelle later goes to purify it, Damien must not be involved.
I gave him a small smile and asked in a lively tone,
“Damien, is that book interesting?”
“It’s similar to other books,” Damien replied casually with a smile. I blinked.
“Tying the empire’s history with religion—what a fresh perspective.”
At my words, Damien’s eyes briefly flickered. He asked,
“Have you always been interested in religion?”
“Not really, but I’ve looked through historical books in the royal library. I’d never seen them interpreted in that way before.”
In this world, there is a Saint. And since there is a Saint, there is also religion.
It’s weak and almost like folk belief, lacking a central point of faith.
‘Even folk beliefs are often closely linked with legends or myths.’
Seeing Estelle, who became the Saint, purify the Land of Death, there had to be some kind of connection.
I leaned down to look at Damien and blinked several times rapidly.
“I want to read it too. Can I borrow it?”
“…Of course, Rose.”
After a brief silence, Damien handed the book over obediently. It was heavier than I expected.
“You’re lending it right away?”
I asked cheerfully, and Damien shrugged playfully. He smiled.
“You might get motion sickness on the carriage, so it’s better not to read it there.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
I hugged the book carefully.
As Damien said, reading on a carriage was quite difficult.
The book was heavy, resting it on my thighs strained my neck, and the further we went from the capital, the bumpier the road became, making it hard to concentrate.
I could finally open the book when we arrived in a village for lunch. The restaurant was quiet, and a teacup was left on our table after our meal.
Damien sat quietly, lost in thought. I read through the text in the book.
‘Hmm, interesting, but…’
I flipped through quickly. The book also contained stories about curses.
It said that the last emperor of Tehit could not lift a curse, which left the land devastated.
‘But who placed the curse?’
If it’s a curse that even the emperor of the magic empire couldn’t undo, it would have to be someone close to a god, wouldn’t it?
Yet, like in the legends, this book omitted specific details about the curse. Instead, it included various hypotheses about ways it could still be broken. I easily found a mention of the Saint.
[The fifth method interprets the “star” in the prophecy as a “person.” However, due to weak evidence, it is not considered a widely accepted theory.]
That was the correct answer. I exhaled. Though the mention was eerie, it didn’t seem worrisome.
“Why do you look like that?”
Startled by the voice beside me, my heart nearly jumped out, then sank back.
I glared at the man who approached me—it was, of course, Damien. His gaze was fixed on the page I had opened.
“Do you really think the Land of Death can be restored?”
I hoped he wouldn’t be interested in the Saint. I fiddled with the edge of the page. Damien tilted his head slightly.
“I hope it’s possible, but it’s hard to trust this book.”
I gauged the remaining pages by hand. There were still quite a few, but judging from the previous excerpt, nothing important seemed to follow.
I closed the book and handed it to Damien.
“I think I’m done reading it.”
“Weren’t you interested?”
“It’s not that interesting. I thought there would be more diverse stories.”
“What kind of stories?”
Damien took the book and lightly brushed his hand against mine. Though it soon separated, a strange warmth lingered.
I straightened my hunched body and muttered,
“The curse received by the emperor’s sibling… who placed it?”
“Are you interested?”
“Isn’t it strange not to be? It’s the cause of everything.”
I smiled awkwardly. He stared at me for a moment before speaking.
“I didn’t expect you would take it seriously.”
“And you, Damien?”
“I have no choice but to believe. I saw it myself.”
He fell silent, staring down in deep thought. After a while, he continued.
“Most say it’s a punishment from the gods, but some claim it was the emperor’s own plot.”
A plot by the emperor…
But then, for what purpose? I recalled the emperor who couldn’t bring himself to kill his own sibling.
“An emperor’s plot is strange. I don’t even know the purpose.”
The atmosphere sank. Damien nodded.
“It’s just another hypothesis. We can’t know the truth.”
He rose to his feet. I blankly looked at the hand he offered.
“Let’s head back to the carriage.”
His hand was warm when I took it. He was right—there was no way to find information about things that weren’t in the original story.
I was curious, but it wasn’t important. What mattered was that Estelle could break the curse.
‘I hope Damien becomes more curious about the curse itself.’
Then he wouldn’t think about the Saint. I returned to the carriage with him.
Damien quietly watched Rosaline sleeping. The closer we got to the Land of Death, the rougher the roads became. She had been struggling with motion sickness but had just fallen asleep.
Soft breaths escaped through her slightly parted lips.
‘Why…?’
Why had Rosaline suddenly taken an interest in curses and legends?
I knew she liked books, but before, she had only been interested in culture or romance.
Did she like scary stories? Not really. She didn’t dislike them either.
<Theo, it’s okay. Don’t be afraid.>
I recalled Rosaline, whispering gently to comfort Theo when the dark night brought the cries of the owls.
<Rose, aren’t you scared of ghosts?>
<No. If I think of them as people I know, it’s okay.>
Her peaceful whispers even made Damien unafraid of ghosts.
‘Is it because the Land of Death is expanding?’
That could explain why she took an interest in it and why she tried to help.
But Rosaline went too far.
What was she hiding while pretending to love him?
<They say Sardena has the blood of mages.>
Damien quietly observed her—the slightly messy hair, her chest rising and falling with each breath.
His hand reached toward her but froze in the air before falling limply.
“As expected, I don’t like it.”
Damien turned his gaze out the window. Branches were within reach, able to be snapped if necessary.
The road was narrowing.
“We’ve arrived.”
The journey of several days was over. Long-distance travel didn’t suit me. I rubbed my sore back.
In my past life, even trains or planes lasted only a few hours. Looking around, everyone seemed tired, aching all over.
Everyone except Damien.
He showed no signs of fatigue, standing straight as if he hadn’t spent hours sitting on the carriage.
“Rose, are you okay?”
He asked with concern. I gave an awkward smile.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
I stretched my arms toward the sky. I wanted to stretch my legs too, but that would be difficult.
“Is this Sardena Castle?”
“Yes.”
The open garden and the quiet fortress came into view. The gray walls, and ivy climbing along them, were striking.
If well maintained, the ivy wouldn’t have grown like that. The rocky path leading to the door was smooth without cracks, but the exposed soil suggested new stones had been laid.
The servants who came to greet us were similarly awkward. Their movements and downcast eyes didn’t look like those of experienced workers.
Even the head maid appeared tense.
