Chapter 3
The head priest acted petty until the very end. He said that the cheap dress and shoes Lily was wearing all belonged to the temple and could not be taken. Even the water priestess joined in, raising her voice, insisting that everything Lily had was temple property.
It was Stuart who settled the situation.
“Well, isn’t it fine? Miss Lily wouldn’t have wanted to take such shabby things with her anyway.”
At those words, the head priest and water priestess flared up in anger, but they dared not confront Stuart openly. Whether or not the temple was on bad terms with him, the head priest and water priestess were commoners, and Stuart was a noble, the son of a duke at that. If it weren’t for the head priest, Stuart could have even said “You bastard” and the priest would have had to bow his head.
Only after Stuart’s servant bought clothes for Lily to wear was she able to leave the temple. No one mourned her departure; everyone was just worried about who would be the next target.
Leaving behind that bleak scene, Lily climbed into the red carriage bestowed by the emperor.
“I hope we meet again next time.”
The head priest greeted Stuart on his back. Stuart, who had turned away without a word before, looked back. The once gentle smile when Lily was there had now turned cold and hard in his eyes. Seeing the young man stiffen his neck like that, the head priest clicked his tongue inwardly.
“He’s just like his father. Every move they make is annoyingly unlucky…”
If it were still the powerful time when the temple was considered ‘exempt from law,’ he might have been able to crush that arrogant face… but since the previous head priest died, it hadn’t been so easy.
After waiting for a response in vain, the head priest gritted his teeth.
“I pray for the blessings of the gods on your journey.”
“Not really needed… the blessings can stay in the temple.”
Stuart openly sneered, then got into the black carriage engraved with the crest of the Duke of Yvonne family. The head priest, who carefully observed the carriage with dry smile, sent them off.
‘Lily cannot be allowed to go north.’
Lily had to stay here. Her sacred power must not be revealed to the outside world.
The head priest signaled with his eyes toward the knights standing behind him. The leader of the knights nodded, subtly stepping aside and heading toward the head priest’s room.
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Inside the carriage Stuart rode, tension hung thickly. Stuart never took his hand off the sword at his side, and the servants sitting across from him stared wide-eyed.
“There are quite a few pests clinging to us, my lord.”
Nathan, the leader of the guardian knights disguised as a servant, continuously scanned for any signs of enemy approaching the carriage. Stuart, arms crossed, coldly responded without much expression.
“It’s about time to handle them properly.”
“Oh? Do you really think my lord will step in?”
The knight leader bowed politely and chuckled.
They said all the knights in the system were well-bred. The knights seen in the temple all had delicate palms, carefully manicured nails. Even though they bore the shame of their knighthood on their sleeves, they seemed unashamed, their pale faces shining uncomfortably in the sunlight.
“They are too dull to even notice our true identities. Such insignificant foes don’t warrant the use of my lord’s sword.”
It seemed those knights had no idea that all the servants Stuart had brought were actually guardian knights. Stuart sharpened his senses toward Lily’s carriage ahead.
“By the way, is she someone who needs this much protection?”
“Didn’t you see what the head priest did? It’s obvious.”
Stuart smiled dryly. Just thinking about Lily trapped in that underground room made his whole body boil with anger.
“Would they really treat a mere candidate for sainthood like that?”
“Of course, there was something suspicious…”
“This.”
Stuart took a bundle of papers from the luggage and placed it on the knight leader’s knee.
The papers were filled with charts but the content was simple: it compared the publicized first manifestation of Lily Hegelston’s sacred power with the time when the head priest’s public activities increased.
“…No way.”
“Just seeing these petty fools they send… isn’t that enough reason to doubt?”
“I don’t know what criteria they use to elect the head priest. Is it how utterly lacking in morality they are?”
The knight leader shook his head.
When Stuart first shared his thoughts with his parents and the guardian knights, everyone opposed it. They said the temple people couldn’t be trusted, and that they had been doing fine without such things.
But in recent months, attacks by beasts had become frequent. The knights, tired of unprecedented assaults, finally agreed with Stuart. Even Duke Yvonne, who cared for the knights like family, had no choice but to give up.
Meanwhile, inside the carriage Lily rode, it was very peaceful.
Lily had been abandoned at the temple as a newborn and had never traveled outside the system before. Everyone said travel was just tiring, so she assumed it was true. But the farther she went from the system, the more her heart felt energized. Just pressing her nose to the window and watching the passing scenery made her mind feel refreshed.
She wanted to get off, see the surroundings, breathe the cool air, and travel slowly—but that wasn’t possible. Riding in the carriage was already a luxury.
Trying to calm herself, Lily rubbed her cheek against the cold window.
Suddenly, the carriage began to slow down.
‘Did something happen?’
Wondering if the carriage was broken, Lily opened the door. But it wouldn’t open, and shut again immediately because Stuart was firmly holding the door.
“D-Duke?”
“A wild animal suddenly charged.”
Stuart winked playfully from beyond the window. Contrary to his teasing attitude, he blocked the door and had no intention of moving.
“We stopped to catch it.”
“Oh… then I’ll help—”
“Just stay inside. If anyone gets hurt, we’ll bring them in for treatment.”
“Oh, yes. Understood.”
Lily answered stiffly, and Stuart smiled slightly. Behind Lily’s shoulder, the curtain by the window was pulled back. Stuart motioned toward it.
“The sun is strong; wouldn’t it be better to close the curtain?”
“Oh, yes!”
While Lily hurried to close the curtain, Stuart shut the carriage door. Blinking, Lily straightened her posture.
‘Are all northern people kind?’
She sank deep into the soft backrest. The carriage, given personally by the emperor, hardly shook and the seat was very soft and comfortable—completely different from the short carriage rides she’d had before.
‘Seems there are a lot of wild animals around.’
Outside, she could hear shouts mixed with the clash of blades and something howling.
The few knights brought along were all servants, but it seemed even the servants in the north were skilled with swords. Lily stared wide-eyed at her own palm.
‘I can learn well, too. I have good reflexes!’
Even if she couldn’t, she thought she should try her best. As she was repeating this to herself, the commotion suddenly stopped. Soon after, the servants’ murmurs filled the silence. Judging by words like “It’s nothing,” and “That was easy,” no one seemed seriously hurt.
‘Is the young duke okay?’
She shouldn’t move on her own since she was just a guest. Still, being alone inside while a noisy fight was going on outside made her feel quite restless.
At that moment, through a small window at the front of the carriage, she saw the coachman dusting off his clothes and climbing up. Lily opened the window and cautiously asked:
“Excuse me, is anyone hurt?”
Startled by the sudden voice, the coachman sighed in relief and smiled kindly.
“No, if anyone was hurt, it wouldn’t be worth their name.”
Indeed, it was unlikely that any knights were hurt just by some wild animals… especially the guardian knights. The coachman cheerfully continued:
“The road north stretches across a wide mountain range, so wild animals often appear. But everyone here knows this path well, so don’t worry.”
“I see. If anyone does get hurt, please let me know. I’m confident in treating wounds.”
“That’s reassuring to hear.”
Seeing the coachman laugh heartily, Lily closed the window.
As the anxiety faded, sleep finally caught up with her. Since she hadn’t really slept in the basement, she had stayed awake most of the previous night. Blinking slowly, Lily yawned deeply.
❀ ❀ ❀
Screeeech!
The carriage stopped abruptly. Lily, who had been sleeping soundly, was thrown forward and slammed her forehead hard against the window. Holding her reddened forehead and groaning, the coachman rushed over shouting:
“It looks like the wheel hit something. Are you alright?”
“Ah, yes, I’m fine.”
Rubbing her stinging forehead, she answered as the coachman hurried behind the carriage to check the wheel. Even after the pain eased, the carriage showed no signs of moving again.
“Did a wheel come off?”
If it was a minor problem, that would be fine, but if the stone road had severely damaged it, the coachman wouldn’t be able to fix it alone. Yawning widely, Lily opened the carriage door.
“Shall I take a look?”
Because the temple never leaked information about sacred power, people outside the temple didn’t know much about it. For that reason, the public regarded sacred power as some kind of “restorative,” but in truth, it was not that kind of power.
Rolling up her sleeves, Lily stepped out of the carriage and blinked at the unexpected scene. While she had been asleep, the carriage had stopped on a desolate forest path.
It looked narrow for a northern road and showed few signs of people passing, but Lily didn’t feel strange. This was her first time out of the system, much less heading north, and she had only heard legends about how harsh the northern roads were.
“Miss?”
The coachman blinked in surprise when he saw Lily outside the carriage.
“Please, get back inside…”
Lily tilted her head in confusion. Hearing his voice alone, she didn’t recognize him—it wasn’t the same coachman she’d seen when she first got in.
Watching the coachman’s trembling fingers holding the carriage wheel, Lily quickly scanned the surroundings.
“Who’s there!”
A hoarse voice cut through the dark forest. Startled birds flew up into the sky.
From nearby, faint signs of movement began to show…
