Chapter 49
The Emperor’s idea of “assigning a 24-hour escort knight” was all well and good, but it had one drawback.
I couldn’t sneak out at dawn anymore, which meant I couldn’t start my day by looking at His Majesty’s face…!
Thinking back to when Morning His Majesty was the source of energy in my life, my current situation was nothing short of torture.
Ugh… I oppose this. I strongly oppose this.
I did try to go out at dawn after the escort knight was assigned, but—
Getting past the first gate, escaping my room, wasn’t easy.
“Saintess, it’s still dawn. Are you going out?”
“Hahaha. No. I was just checking on you. You must be tired from staying up all night, right? If you’re tired, why don’t you go back and rest?”
“How kind of you. I’m fine. Please go back and rest, Saintess.”
“Yup.”
I couldn’t exactly bring an escort knight along on my way to see His Majesty.
There must be no witnesses.
Why do you think I’ve been dodging the guards all this time…!
If the escort knight came with me, all my efforts would be for nothing.
If rumors started spreading among the knights that the Saintess went outside the palace every dawn just to see the Emperor’s face, I’d be labeled a stalker in no time.
‘My Saintess image would be over that day….’
Even though I worked as a chapel cleaner and a dessert recipe developer, my main job was still being the Saintess.
If I didn’t want to trouble His Majesty, I had to manage my image…!
“Wasn’t there a knight assigned for night duty?”
As if he knew how I felt—or maybe he didn’t—the Emperor asked.
“There was…?”
Today’s night guard was Sir Slin.
Unlike Hufferson, Sir Slin was a morning person, so he was weak against all-night shifts.
So while Sir Slin was dozing off, I came out to the balcony of my third-floor room and climbed down the wall.
“Then why did you come alone?”
“I came secretly…?”
Unlike my bold escape, I was desperately watching His Majesty’s expression.
I thought it was a good chance to come out since I had something to consult His Majesty about and Sir Slin was asleep.
But thinking about it, it wasn’t just me who would get in trouble.
Sir Slin’s only crime was fighting a battle against sleep…!
“I hope you won’t scold the escort knight….”
“Well. First, I’ll ask Henkel who was assigned to the Saintess’s escort—”
“Eek. No, please don’t ask the Captain!”
I crossed my arms in an X to stop him.
His Majesty looked at me and sighed.
“I assigned an escort because I was worried.”
“Worried?”
“There’s no guarantee that something like last time won’t happen again. And I can’t always stay by your side, so at least having an escort puts my mind at ease.”
What. Always staying by my side, His Majesty.
My heart wouldn’t survive that. But still… still…!
This wasn’t the time to be lost in happy delusions.
I would protect my escort knight.
I nodded with a deeply remorseful expression.
“You’re right, Your Majesty. From now on, even if I want to see your face at dawn, I’ll endure it….”
His Majesty was sitting at his desk, and I was standing in front of him.
It felt like I was a student being scolded in the teachers’ office.
Back in my youth, I was quite good at reflecting on my mistakes.
My body remembered how to get teachers to say, “Do better next time. You can go.”
The tone of voice, hands clasped in front, deeply bowed head, the timing of glancing up.
My repentance skills were still alive.
As silence fell, I heard His Majesty let out a short laugh near my ear.
‘Why is he laughing?’
My acting should have worked.
“Coming out on your own was your fault. So I’ll be the only one to get scolded—”
“Right.”
“…What?”
“Since you know you’re at fault, I won’t hold Slin responsible. The Saintess will bear all responsibility.”
“Gasp. You knew it was Sir Slin?”
When I looked up in shock, His Majesty was resting his chin on his hand, looking amused.
Haha… I’m in trouble.
Today’s His Majesty is dangerous.
His words about me taking responsibility echoed in my ears.
In times like this, what do I do?
I need to make a good impression on His Majesty right now.
I smiled brightly, and His Majesty lightly smiled back.
“I’m curious. How will the Saintess, who’s good at acting, take responsibility?”
“Haha…….”
We looked at each other and smiled.
His Majesty dangerously, and me out of fear.
A chill ran down my spine.
“Saintess, about your last wish.”
“W-w-wish?”
“Let’s attend the ball together.”
It’s been a while since I thought about His Majesty’s genie era.
A ball is a no. A ball is absolutely not.
I’d rather do military drills than dance.
‘There hasn’t been talk about a ball recently, right…?’
While I was digging through my memory, His Majesty opened his desk drawer.
“W-why the drawer?”
“I recently visited the Nisephorel Temple.”
“Really? You should have taken me with you!”
I had already sent letters to the kids saying I’d visit soon, so I was looking for a chance.
If I had known His Majesty was going, I would have followed him.
As I couldn’t hide my disappointment, His Majesty looked at me as if I were ridiculous.
“…Didn’t you say you didn’t want to go?”
“When did I say that?”
I blinked.
“There’s no way I said I didn’t want to go.”
“A few days ago.”
“Specifically…?”
“Six days ago. We had lunch at Prodinta Palace.”
I thought back carefully.
That was when I was agonizing over Delcan’s confession…
“Ah.”
A memory surfaced.
“…I’m going to go there. Will you go?”
“What?”
“Are you going tomorrow?”
“Ah, no. I have plans tomorrow.”
Was that it?
He suddenly asked me to go somewhere, and I refused.
Because I was supposed to give Delcan my answer the next day…
Ugh. Right. I rejected it.
Meanwhile, His Majesty took out a white flower crown from the drawer and handed it to me.
“What’s with the flower crown?”
The flowers and grass were so fresh I thought they were artificial, but when I touched the leaves, they were real.
It looked newly made.
No one would have made a flower crown and brought it here at this early hour.
“Did you make it, Your Majesty?”
“Do you think I made it?”
“No. I was just asking.”
There was no way His Majesty made it.
“When I went to the temple, Noel gave me one she made. She preserved it with holy power.”
“You can do that with holy power?”
“It’s possible. But difficult.”
For His Majesty to call it difficult…
There must have been a reason the temple kids all said, “Noel is good at everything.”
The flower crown was so well made that people would line up to buy it.
Several large white flowers as focal points, decorated with small flowers, with grass added in between to balance it naturally.
At this rate, Noel could become a master of flower crowns someday.
But Noel was a future high-ranking priestess, so the flower crown world lost a great talent…
“She probably wanted to give it to the Saintess, but since you didn’t come, I took it instead.”
“You took it…?”
While admiring the crown, I froze at His Majesty’s words and slowly turned my gaze away.
It was preserved with holy power.
There was no way he just held it and left it at that.
A flower crown is usually worn on the head!
“You took it… and wore it on your head…?”
“Where else would you wear a flower crown?”
His Majesty answered as if it were obvious.
“Gah.”
I covered my mouth with one hand.
Oh my god. Why didn’t I go, past me…!
No, if I had gone, it wouldn’t have gone on His Majesty’s head…!
Does that mean I’ll never see His Majesty wearing a flower crown again?
Why…! Why can’t I be happy!
“…….”
Regret and resentment crossed in my heart.
I alternated between looking at His Majesty’s face and the flower crown, then moved as if possessed.
By the time I came to my senses, my hand had already placed the flower crown on His Majesty’s blond hair.
“What are you doing?”
His Majesty frowned, displeased, but didn’t take it off.
I slowly stepped back two steps from the desk.
Oh my god. If Aphrodite were a male god, would he look like this?
No, His Majesty wins.
This isn’t a god of love and beauty, this is a god who monopolized love and beauty.
Golden hair shining in the sunrise. A perfect upper body that suggested incredible proportions even while seated.
And his face with the flower crown.
The crown, which I thought was flashy, had long been reduced to a mere accessory in comparison to His Majesty’s looks.
And on the desk, Al, who didn’t match His Majesty at all, was captured in the same frame like a doll.
I’m going insane. Seriously. What do I do?
“Cu—”
“Cute?”
I realized what I was about to say and staggered back in shock.
“N-no.”
“Saintess, you seem to be breathing heavily.”
His Majesty stood up as if to check on me.
Wait, if you come closer now…!
“Ah, it suddenly got hot! Right? Maybe because the sun came up! Your Majesty, I’ll leave before Siana comes. I didn’t realize so much time passed! Enjoy your breakfast and have a great day!”
I fired off words rapidly while stepping back, then opened the door and ran out.
Shin Ari hurried out of the study and walked down the corridor at a fast pace.
Turning the corner as if fleeing, her legs gave out and she slid down while leaning against the wall.
Her round eyes were filled with confusion and panic.
Shin Ari looked dazed.
Rapid breathing, a heart pounding without rest, a face flushed red.
They were her usual reactions when facing the Emperor…
But Shin Ari pressed her face, which was red and hot all the way to the back of her neck, with both palms.
“I must be crazy.”
Her trembling voice muttered with a possessed expression.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Even without focusing her hearing, the sound of her violently beating heart rang clearly in her ears.
Just earlier, the image of Alend holding a doll while wearing a flower crown.
“I almost said he was cute….”
Shin Ari dropped to her knees as if recalling her earlier emotions again.
Overwhelmed by despair, she couldn’t lift her head and rested her elbows on the floor.
Being faithful to her instincts for faces, she was also sensitive to her own emotions.
“Just a temporary thought… No, I think my life is completely screwed…”
She immediately entered denial, but this was clearly a prelude to the feelings her subconscious was guessing.
“No. People can get weird when they’re too surprised. Yeah, I must have been temporarily weird after seeing that face… Aaaah….”
Shin Ari suffered in that position for a long time.
Later, when Henkel came to find Alend and saw the Saintess repenting in the corridor, he was deeply moved—
but that is another story.
