Chapter 06
“Hmm?”
Temio’s expression stiffened even more. Sure enough, the crystal orb, which had previously shone brightly whenever the children raised their hands, now showed no reaction at all.
“What’s going on?”
Whispers came from the children and priests watching. The priest with messy hair glanced nervously at Temio, his face pale, before stepping closer to the crystal orb.
“Is… is it broken?”
The messy-haired priest roughly pushed my hand away and placed his own over the orb. With a soft pop, the crystal, which had been unresponsive when I touched it, suddenly glowed even brighter, radiating a dazzling light.
At the same time, the priest’s face went even paler.
“Ah… no.”
He looked back and forth between me and the orb, trembling uncontrollably.
“Who are you?”
Temio muttered ominously. All eyes in the hall turned toward him.
His anger flared to the tips of his hair, and his face reddened.
“Who are you!”
Shaking with rage, he suddenly shouted and smashed the orb the priest was holding.
Shards of crystal scattered across the marble floor.
“Who brought such a worthless thing into the sacred domain of God!”
Temio shouted, glaring at the messy-haired priest as if he wanted to kill him.
The priest, who had been pale with fear, gradually turned almost black from terror.
“I asked who you are!”
Just as he shouted, veins bulging in his neck, a clear, low voice echoed through the hall.
“It’s me.”
“You! Who… who are you?”
Temio, shouting loudly, froze and stopped moving.
The messy-haired priest looked toward the entrance of the hall where the voice had come from. Shocked, he immediately knelt and prostrated himself.
“Delmel, servant of God, greets the Apostle who delivers God’s voice!”
Following him, everyone in the hall also bowed deeply toward the entrance.
“We greet the Apostle who delivers God’s voice.”
When I turned my gaze to the entrance, I saw the ash-haired girl who had disappeared earlier to get my meal, and a man standing with Selafi. A handsome man who had once held my hand and cried while speaking words I didn’t understand.
“Te-Temio, servant of God, greets the Apostle who delivers God’s voice.”
Even Temio, trembling with anger, bowed deeply before the man.
Everyone else remained prostrate, and I awkwardly stood there.
Should I… bow too?
As I hesitated, trying to bend my knees, the handsome man called the Apostle calmly walked closer to me, as if nothing unusual was happening.
“Are you feeling alright now?”
He smiled warmly, asking about me with gentle concern.
Seeing his sculpted, flawless face up close, I couldn’t speak properly.
“Y-Yes…! I-I’m fine.”
It was like finally meeting my favorite celebrity in real life. My heart pounded, and my mind went completely blank.
‘Wow… is this even real? Can someone really look like this?’
His beauty was unlike anything I had seen in novels or anywhere else—stunningly perfect.
“That’s good. Are you in any discomfort?”
“No, I’m fine!”
“Hohoho, good. Seeing you healthy puts my mind at ease. If you need anything, just tell me. This is your home, your sanctuary. Anything you wish for, I will provide.”
Although his tone had the warmth of a much older man, the refreshing appearance of this young man was striking. His face alone commanded attention.
As I stood there dazed by his brilliance, Temio, who had been bowing, spoke up.
“Apostle, you say this is her sanctuary! This goes against the law! She possesses no divine power. How can you allow her to remain in the temple? I beg you to reconsider!”
The priest glanced at me and glared. Others who had been watching Temio also agreed with his words.
“Please reconsider, Apostle!”
Upon hearing that, the handsome man, who had been smiling kindly, stiffened.
“Temio, you insolent fool! How dare you speak of divine law to one who delivers God’s words!”
The man’s face turned red with fury, and his booming voice filled the hall with tension.
“If God has given you eyes, look properly at this child! Do you not see her sacred white hair and red eyes?”
White hair and red eyes.
In a world of colorful eyes and unusual hair, I had never seen anyone else with white hair and red eyes besides the man before me.
“Even after seeing the holy sign granted only to those directly created by God, you dare to defy His will?”
Suddenly, a boom! of thunder cracked in the sky, which had been clear just moments before. Temio trembled as the Apostle’s shouts and the thunder continued.
“I… I was wrong! I acted foolishly, Apostle! Please stop!”
“Please stop, Apostle!”
“I was wrong! Forgive me…!”
The priests who had been kneeling behind him trembled, trying to calm the furious Apostle.
“These foolish ones call themselves servants of God… what am I to do with them?”
After venting his anger for a while, the man sighed.
“Sister Kae. Let us return now.”
Before I knew it, Selafi approached me and bowed.
“There is nothing here worth seeing.”
The ash-haired girl took my hand.
“Come, let’s go back to your room.”
Leaving the furious Apostle and the trembling priests behind, I followed Selafi and the girl toward my room.
“You can ignore what that priest said,” the girl said with a smile.
“As the Apostle said, this is your sanctuary, Sister Kae. Don’t worry and rest comfortably.”
Selafi nodded in agreement.
“Did he bring me here?” I asked.
“…Yes.”
The handsome man called the Apostle had found me floating in the river while on a walk with the priests. Despite the priests’ warnings that I was dead, he saved me. Miraculously, I still had life.
Calling it a miracle of God, he brought me to the temple and cared for me with costly divine power during the three months I had no consciousness. Judging by his actions, it seemed he intended for me to remain in the temple.
How long had it been since I had slept on freshly laundered bedding and smelled clean clothes?
I truly loved this place, free from the cruel orphanage and the Rosevalier family who had relentlessly hunted me.
If I could stay here, I might even convert fully to the Terina Church, forgetting my previous life without religion.
Lost in thought, I soon arrived at my room.
“Sister Kae, go in and rest. I will prepare breakfast and bring it to you.”
Selafi opened the door kindly, bowed, and walked down the hall.
“If anything happens, call me anytime! I’m in the next room!”
The ash-haired girl ran to the door of the room next to mine and shouted cheerfully.
By the way… what was her name? I knew Selafi’s name, but not the girl’s.
I needed her name if I were to call her, so I shouted as she tried to enter the room.
“My name is Kae. What’s your name?”
The girl paused, then replied.
“B-Bri. My name is Bri.”
“Bri…”
A nice name, I murmured. She smiled brightly.
“Then I’ll be resting for now. Call me if you need anything!”
Bri closed her door, leaving me alone.
I trudged into the room and flopped onto the bed, staring at the white ceiling.
Haha… when I first woke in this world, I had seen only a dilapidated ceiling with cobwebs…
The Terina Church temple in Zeronia, far from the capital.
Originally, following the novel’s plot, the orphan Kae would have entered the Rosevalier family, become a villainess, and ultimately be killed by the protagonists. But after inhabiting this body, I had completely changed the flow.
Yes, if the villainess disappeared quietly in this story, the protagonists would abandon thoughts of revenge and continue their lives. A win-win.
Knock knock knock.
“You must be hungry, Sister Kae.”
Selafi appeared with a tray steaming with food, her soft voice calming me.
“I heard from Sister Bri that you’ve temporarily restored your body with divine power. Unlike yesterday, you can now have a proper meal.”
On the tray were warm meat soup, soft white bread, and sausages…
“Still, chew carefully and take your time.”
Selafi smiled.
Recalling the days I had survived on foul-smelling scraps, tears welled up.
I had escaped that hell. Truly.
“Oh my, are you hurt?”
Selafi patted my back, concern written on her face.
It had been so long since I’d felt another’s gentle touch. Once the tears started, they couldn’t stop.
“You’ve worked hard, Sister Kae.”
Held in Selafi’s comforting arms, I cried for a long while before finally drifting to sleep.
Thus began my life at the Terina Church temple in Zeronia.
