~Chapter 03~
Floria didn’t even think to ask what was happening—she just froze, eyes wide in shock.
A white light had formed into a glowing orb and then entered her body.
In that moment, she realized something.
Her exhaustion was completely gone.
She had been healed in the blink of an eye.
‘…Is this what a real Saintess is like?’
She was so amazed she couldn’t even speak.
“Are you feeling okay now, Priestess?”
Rose asked shyly, as if unsure whether what she did had helped.
Floria was still too stunned to reply.
“I heard you had a really hard day today because so many believers came… This always helped my tired friends feel better.”
Rose lowered her head nervously, her confidence fading fast.
Her little fingers fidgeted in worry.
She probably thought Floria wasn’t moving because she was upset or shocked in a bad way.
Realizing this, Floria quickly grabbed Rose’s little hand.
“Thank you, Rose. I was just surprised—healing me that quickly was amazing.”
“Really? I’m so glad!”
After gently reassuring her several times, Rose finally lifted her head.
Tears had started to form in her eyes earlier, thinking she had done something wrong.
Floria felt bad just looking at her.
Once again, like yesterday, she softly patted Rose’s messy hair.
‘…So this is why Floria in the book wanted to use this child. She’s so pure, yet has such incredible power.’
But then Floria realized something strange.
Rose said she had healed her “tired friends” like this before. So why didn’t anyone at the temple ever mention Rose?
If they had, Rose might’ve become the Saintess much sooner.
“Rose, who are your friends?”
“Um… they live in the forest.”
“The forest?”
“Yes. The deer and the squirrels were the only ones who played with me.”
Ah.
Floria nearly pressed her fist into her mouth to stop herself from crying.
This poor girl had only animals for friends.
And someone had the nerve to bully and torment her in the original story?
Unforgivable.
She had to tell the High Priest right now that the real Saintess had appeared!
She was just about to jump up when—
“…Ugh.”
“Rose? What’s wrong?”
Suddenly, Rose clutched her stomach and let out a soft groan.
Floria, who had been standing, quickly caught her in her arms.
“Ah…”
Rose couldn’t hold herself up and collapsed into Floria’s embrace.
If she had fallen just a second later, she would’ve hit the cold, hard floor.
“It’s been a while since I used that power. I got a little dizzy. Hehe… Sorry, Priestess.”
Her eyes rolled tiredly, drifting off to the side.
Floria held her close, her eyes shutting as she felt how light and thin Rose was.
She was so small, it was hard to even feel that she was in her arms.
“…”
No, not yet.
Rose wasn’t ready. She was still too fragile and weak.
“Oh, right… While I was waiting earlier, a believer gave me this to pass on to you…”
“Hm?”
Still barely conscious, Rose pulled something from her pocket and handed it over.
It didn’t look like it was made by a jeweler—or even someone who had seen a real ring before.
It was rough, clumsy, and childish.
Floria took the ring without much thought and gently helped Rose close her eyes.
“Rest now, Rose.”
“Okaaay… Thank you…”
This ring… why does it look so familiar?
But the thought vanished quickly.
She was too worried about Rose’s health to dwell on it.
Floria simply placed the ring into the top drawer of her desk—and completely forgot about it.
***
Why? Why again?
Why is this happening?!
Floria grabbed her head in frustration as she looked out the window.
The very same people from yesterday were now back again—louder than ever—chanting her name and praising her.
And behind them… even more people had joined the crowd than the day before.
“Amen.”
“Amen!”
Voices echoed from all directions, and then…
“Saintess Floria!”
What?
They were calling her a saintess now.
Floria waved her hands wildly at the window in panic—but no one saw her.
“I’m not a saintess, okay?! Please!”
She felt like bursting into tears with her fists clenched.
She had held back yesterday, but now she was at her limit.
Just then, a luxurious black carriage began making its way toward the temple.
It was far too elegant to be from a common visitor.
People began murmuring as they noticed the crest on the carriage, and soon the entire area fell silent.
The moment the door opened, the crowd split down the middle—
as if they had practiced this reaction in advance—clearing a path to the temple doors.
Then someone stepped out of the carriage.
‘…Who is that?’
Floria scratched her head.
She had expected a familiar face, but she didn’t recognize him at all.
His hair was darker than the black horse crest on the carriage, and his skin was pale in contrast.
His golden-yellow eyes, paired with sharp features, gave off an almost mystical aura.
‘Was there someone like him in the original story?’
She tried to remember.
Maybe he wasn’t important yet since the main characters were still kids.
Still, with looks like that, he could rival even the male lead.
Her eyes moved to the carriage’s crest again.
A black horse standing on its hind legs, reaching toward the sky.
‘That must be the crest of House Vonhas.’
She dug deeper into her memory.
But the novel only briefly mentioned them—a single line saying the young heir took over the title after the previous duke’s death.
This must be that young duke.
Judging by his face, he couldn’t be older than his mid-twenties.
He entered the temple confidently, escorted by his knights, and looked around.
Then, as if spotting something, he strode forward.
And—
‘Is… is he coming this way?’
Floria forced herself to look away and even started humming.
“Priestess Floria.”
But it wasn’t a mistake.
The man walked straight up to her and called her by name—how did he even know what she looked like?
“…Yes?”
She responded, trying to act calm, but her voice came out loose and awkward.
He was unbelievably handsome up close, and she hadn’t expected him to talk to her—at all.
He gave a smooth smile, clearly thinking she was stunned by his looks.
Then he suddenly reached out his gloved hand and said,
“May I confess to you?”
……
“…Excuse me?”
Are you crazy?
Floria barely managed to stop the rude words from flying out of her mouth.
She hated how the villainess’s bluntness kept leaking into her speech. But this time?
She wanted to say it.
Because this was ridiculous.
Floria was just a regular priestess. A commoner with low divine power.
The man before her? Probably a duke.
Nobles—especially dukes—never confessed to regular priests.
They usually met with the High Priest directly.
This made no sense.
“Duke Vonhas! Welcome to the Temple of Elio!”
Thankfully, before Floria could accidentally ruin her life, the High Priest appeared, running toward them.
She sighed in relief.
Thank goodness he came before she said something awful.
‘So he is the duke…’
A few seconds later, and she might’ve gotten herself executed for insulting him.
“You didn’t send word before your visit,” the High Priest said, panting and slightly bent over.
He looked clearly flustered and quickly bowed.
He assumed, of course, that the duke had come to speak with him personally.
But the duke didn’t like that assumption.
He frowned and pulled off his black gloves, handing them to his knight.
“Do I need to make an appointment just to visit a temple?”
His lips curled into a smirk, and his rare golden eyes flashed sharply, like a predator watching prey.
“N-no, of course not, Duke. Please, come inside.”
“I’d rather just speak with Priestess Floria.”
He grumbled under his breath—very unlike the graceful nobles she was used to.
Still, the high priest wiped his sweating forehead with a handkerchief and gently led the duke toward the guest hall.
Floria almost clapped at how smoothly the High Priest handled the situation.
She nearly refrained from clapping.
Now was her chance. Run!
Thinking fast, she turned to sneak away.
“Ah, Priestess Floria. You’re coming too.”
But the High Priest suddenly remembered her and turned back just in time and stopped her silent escape attempt.
Can’t you two just… work this out without me?
“Haha… Of course.”
She laughed awkwardly and followed. She was just a temple employee—saying no was not an option.
She swallowed her tears and her pride.
Nothing ever went her way.
