Chapter 54
“What? Marriage? Saintess, are you joking with me right now? Didn’t you say Lord Anishu had given us a solution!”
The emperor’s eyes bulged as he shouted.
“Marriage, you say! Haven’t I already told you all the reasons why Kyle must not be married?”
Angelus only smiled gracefully, watching the furious emperor in silence.
The emperor, who had been yelling endlessly, shut his mouth again at the sight of her serene face.
“Your Majesty, have you calmed down a little?”
Angelus slid the teacup on the table toward him.
The emperor downed the half-filled tea in one gulp.
“It’s not anger… more like shock. To think that Lord Anishu would tell me to marry Kyle off, when I’ve always opposed it—that’s what surprised me.”
A clear, melodious laugh escaped Angelus’s lips.
“I thought as much. How could I not know the depth of Your Majesty’s worries?”
The emperor coughed awkwardly a few times.
“Th-then… tell me why Lord Anishu would command that Kyle be married.”
“Your Majesty wishes for Grand Duke Kyle to be distanced from the throne, is that not so?”
“That’s right.”
“But the nobles want to marry their daughters to him, and that’s why they keep pressing for banquets.”
The emperor’s brows twisted in frustration.
“And so, He has given us a way to satisfy both conditions.”
“That is… marrying Kyle?”
Angelus shook her head firmly.
“It isn’t marriage itself that matters. What matters is who he marries.”
“Who…?”
“Your Majesty, you should wed Grand Duke Kyle to me.”
The emperor’s eyes widened.
“What are you saying? For Kyle to marry the Saintess?”
“Your Majesty, priests do marry.”
“That’s true.”
“And there is no law that forbids the Saintess from marrying.”
The emperor, still dazed, could only nod.
“I belong to the temple as the Saintess. If Grand Duke Kyle marries me, then naturally he too will belong to the temple.”
Whether from the tea or the shock, the emperor’s eyes began to lose focus. Angelus quickly pressed on.
“Appoint Grand Duke Kyle as High Priest. Entrust the temple to him and me.”
The emperor’s wavering eyes cleared suddenly.
“Indeed… such a method exists.”
“The High Priest must serve God for life and live only within the temple’s walls. The throne will never even be within his dreams.”
The emperor burst into loud laughter.
“Perfect! By marrying Kyle, I satisfy the nobles’ demands. And by sending him to the temple, he’ll never come near the palace again.”
“Exactly so, Your Majesty.”
“Truly, Lord Anishu has not abandoned me. No—because of you, Saintess, I can hear such words. You are indeed the incarnation of Anishu Himself.”
The emperor’s satisfied laughter went on and on.
Ha… how long will you keep laughing? Is it really so astonishing? The fool is you for not thinking of it sooner.
A mocking smile curled at Angelus’s lips.
“I shall summon the nobles tomorrow and announce a banquet for Kyle’s marriage.”
Finally, the words Angelus had been waiting for slipped from the emperor’s mouth.
It was time to move to the second step.
“No… there’s no need to indulge them. I’ll simply proclaim tomorrow that Kyle’s bride is the Saintess.”
“Your Majesty…”
She called him softly.
“Why? Is that not acceptable? Must we really hold a banquet?”
“Your Majesty’s affection humbles me. But if you suddenly declare that a Saintess they’ve never met is to be his bride, won’t there be backlash?”
The emperor stroked his brown beard.
“Hmm… that may be true. Troublesome noise is bothersome.”
“Exactly. So why not proceed with the banquet as planned, and then announce it while I stand beside Grand Duke Kyle?”
Angelus was confident that at the banquet she would be the most beautiful of all.
An absolute beauty, impossible to deny.
She knew better than anyone that beauty was a weapon capable of silencing all objections in an instant.
“Yes, that will do nicely. Imagine their faces when their empty dreams of wedding Kyle to their daughters collapse at once.”
The emperor smirked cruelly.
After laughing so heartily, he felt thirsty. A fresh pot of stronger tea had been brought in.
“Bacard’s tea never disappoints.”
First, he had been intoxicated by Angelus’s beauty. Then by the Bacard family’s tea.
And at last, by her serpent-like tongue.
The emperor reclined heavily against the large cushions.
“After speaking with you, Saintess, I feel all my worries vanish.”
As his words slowed and slurred, Angelus rose and stepped outside.
She brushed her dress irritably, as if something foul had stained it.
From within the chamber, the emperor’s faint, incoherent muttering drifted out.
“Your Excellency, Lady Charlotte has arrived.”
“I’ll be right out.”
Kyle was adjusting his attire one last time before the mirror.
Today was the day he would finally meet Naz, the capital’s most renowned fortune-teller and tarot master.
This was no simple consultation.
It was a crucial meeting to determine whether Naz was someone who could truly walk alongside him.
He could not help but pay extra attention to his appearance.
Surely Naz had already heard much about him.
Some of it true—most of it gossip from idle tongues.
I can’t know what judgment Naz has made of me from those rumors.
Kyle knew that first impressions mattered.
If necessary, he was even willing to lay bare his true purpose.
After patting his chest twice with a fist, he left his room.
Downstairs, in the parlor, Alfred and Lady Charlotte were having tea.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Lord Kyle, you’ve grown even more handsome since I last saw you.”
At her greeting, Alfred grimaced.
“My brother may have been the one escorting you like a knight everywhere, but don’t forget—it was I who practically raised you while you lived in the capital.”
“Yes, I know well.”
Kyle barely held back a laugh at Alfred’s weary eyes that all but said, Not this again.
“That’s why I too have every right to feel proud, seeing how much you’ve grown.”
When Kyle offered his arm, Lady Charlotte quickly looped hers through it.
“I’ll be going, brother.”
Inside the carriage, Kyle asked,
“There won’t be others visiting today, will there?”
“Of course not. Master Naz only sees people by appointment. He held a salon gathering just yesterday, and today both the salon and the tarot shop are closed. It will be very quiet.”
Kyle nodded.
Harfa said she’s resting today as well, so Lady Kuna won’t be around either. Then… Everett must be resting at the estate, too.
Though meeting Naz pleased him, of all days, it had to be on one of Everett’s lesson days.
If I return quickly enough, perhaps I can at least see her for a moment.
Ever since learning where she lived, he had longed to see her more often.
“We’ve arrived, Lord Kyle.”
As Lady Charlotte had said, the entire street was dark.
All the nearby shops catered to patrons who came for iced Kuna.
And since Kuna was closed today, so were they.
“Quiet indeed.”
Stepping down from the carriage, Kyle looked up at the second-floor tarot shop.
“There’s no light… could she not have arrived yet?”
Lady Charlotte gave a knowing smile.
“You’ll see once you go inside. A small hint—Master Naz’s space is extraordinarily beautiful and special.”
“Special?”
She led the way inside.
The carriage was left blocking the alley leading to the tavern.
Kyle’s knights hid in the surroundings, keeping watch.
As they climbed to the second floor, Kyle asked,
“Madam, did you tell her it was me who was coming?”
“No. I only said I’d be bringing a very important guest I wished to introduce.”
At the door, Lady Charlotte knocked gently.
“It’s me, Charlotte.”
“Please, come in.”
A woman’s low voice replied.
Lady Charlotte stepped aside, letting Kyle enter first.
He cleared his throat lightly and stepped into the tarot shop.
“Uh…”
But he stopped short, eyes wide, staring.
Lady Charlotte chuckled softly at his reaction.
“This place… it’s like…”
She nudged him gently in the back.
He stumbled forward with a small gasp, as though pulled inside.
“Ha!”
Above him, countless stars glittered across the ceiling.
The walls rippled endlessly with thin curtains, as though stirred by a constant breeze.
Though dimly lit, the room did not feel dark at all—only wondrous.
The scent of a deep forest in the night air… the smell of wind…
Kyle unconsciously drew in a deep breath.
It felt like a place he had known long ago, somewhere he could not quite recall.
Kyle? Why is Kyle here? Don’t tell me… the “important guest” Lady Charlotte mentioned was Kyle?
Behind her mask, Everett’s eyes went wide.
The moment the door opened and she saw Kyle, her heart plummeted.
She had thought Lady Charlotte’s precious guest would simply be some higher-rank noblewoman.
Never… never did I imagine it would be Kyle.
