CHAPTER 17
“…My lady.”
Jacqueline looked on the verge of tears as she shut her eyes tightly.
She clung to Adele’s arm and shook it as if pleading do something, but it’s not like Adele had some secret solution either.
“This is just straight-up telling us to get lost, isn’t it?”
“Shh, quiet. They’ll hear.”
Adele gave a warning to Jacqueline while smiling brightly at Sister Rebecca, who was explaining something cheerfully. But no matter how you looked at it, this was a lost cause.
She had hoped for something like the weapon storage near the knights’ quarters or maybe the main temple’s library—those would’ve been perfect.
But what was piled in front of her now were neither weapons nor books.
‘How many servings is all this supposed to be?’
To exaggerate a bit, the dirty dishes were stacked up to the ceiling. One wall was filled with freshly delivered food supplies.
Now it was clear just how much patience Sister Rebecca had exercised.
“Is it too much? You don’t look very pleased, sister.”
“Oh, no, not at all.”
“I thought not. Anyone else, perhaps, but I knew Sister Agnes would be more than capable. The knights do eat a lot, after all.”
Rebecca’s eyes sparkled. She was clearly waiting to see just how disappointed Adele would look—but strangely, Adele remained indifferent.
‘Did she go into shock?’
Understandable.
Rebecca, though of lower noble status, was still born to a southern aristocratic family, so she certainly knew of House Sergio’s reputation.
Could a young lady from such a prestigious family have ever washed even the teacup she drank from? The idea was laughable.
‘Yeah, right.’
Realistically, even with ten people working together, this would take at least an hour.
After being given full authority by the High Priestess yesterday, Rebecca had intentionally sent all the outside kitchen staff away. She had also stockpiled dirty dishes from three full meals.
As someone who served a god, she felt a little guilty—but she consoled herself that at least it was limited to just the main kitchen and not the entire annex of Saint Fidelio.
She absolutely could not tolerate anyone who took the sacred temple lightly.
‘“Agnes,” huh? Give me a break.’
The rumors about that family’s chaotic religious beliefs were rampant.
All three siblings had different mothers and had received different baptisms, apparently.
The High Priestess might keep her lips sealed, but Rebecca had no such intentions. She was determined to show Adele what true temple discipline looked like—until she cried.
“I seem to be interrupting the two of you. At this rate, I’m not sure you’ll finish today.”
“…Pardon? Then, dinner—”
“Oh, you’ll be welcome to eat once you finish the work. If you find it too difficult, just let me know—I’ll have a carriage prepared to send you home.”
Rebecca looked at Adele with a smile she barely restrained.
She couldn’t tell if Adele was still in shock or just refusing to accept reality, but the familiar, brazen smile had completely vanished from her face as she stared up and down at the mountain of dishes.
‘See, you should’ve known your place.’
When Sir Killian first arrived at Saint Fidelio during the year of the great fire, about four years ago, and again six months ago when he returned from three years of training in the Ice Cavern—even the trainee priestesses sworn to a life of asceticism had been stirred.
Since then, he had rarely stayed in the temple, participating in the Grand Tournament of Tilan and other events. But now that things had calmed down, he was bound to appear more often as Knight Commander.
Rebecca was determined to drive Adele out once and for all.
She had to eliminate all worldly hands reaching toward this sacred place.
Once the word got out that even a high-and-mighty woman like her had surrendered and gone home, no woman would dare come near Sir Killian again.
Adele would serve as the prime example.
“You were so eager to serve the knights—what better opportunity than this?”
“Of course. I must obey Sister Rebecca’s instructions.”
She might come from a proud house like Sergio, but so what?
Just as Rebecca’s eyes glinted with meaning, Adele met her gaze with a calm, unwavering one, making Rebecca flinch.
“Sister Rebecca, may I ask something?”
“What is it…? Oh, don’t tell me you don’t know how to wash dishes.”
“It’s not that. I just wondered… has this really been done by just two people?”
Adele’s innocent smile didn’t waver.
“Three hundred and thirty-six plates, four hundred and thirty knives, and two hundred and seventy glasses. Seems a bit much for two people.”
“T-That’s… well, it depends on the day… Wait, were you counting while I was talking?”
“It’s a habit.”
Whether money or numbers—Adele always counted whatever was in front of her. She waved a hand in front of Rebecca’s stunned face.
“Ah, don’t worry. If it were anywhere else, I’d think someone gathered every dish on purpose—but surely not in a sacred temple serving Enes.”
“Hmph… of course not.”
“If it’s Sister Rebecca’s word, I must believe it. How could I possibly doubt someone who acts according to the will of the god?”
Adele even clasped her hands together as she looked at her, leaving Rebecca flustered and raising her voice.
“I—If you understand, then get started! If the kitchen work falls behind, you’ll be responsible!”
“Of course. But really, I’m so grateful you thought of me like this. If I ever meet the god Enes, I’ll be sure to mention Sister Rebecca’s thoughtful grace. You too, right, Jackie?”
“Uh… yes, of course…”
Jacqueline, asked for confirmation, nodded with a pained smile. Rebecca turned deathly pale.
Whip!
As soon as Sister Rebecca turned around, Adele whispered sweetly toward her retreating back:
“We won’t go too far. You know how busy I am.”
“…Hah!”
How could she be so shamelessly honest?
Once Rebecca was completely gone, Adele relaxed and let out an amused breath.
True to a priestess raised in the temple, Rebecca’s thoughts showed on her face like a neon sign.
“She’d never survive in business.”
“Miss, really—why did you even bother being polite when you knew she was setting us up?”
Jacqueline tugged on Adele’s arm, clearly annoyed. She knew Adele had her pride, but they needed to face reality.
“Just look at this! This could feed people for three days!”
“I know.”
“Then why are you just standing there calmly? When are we supposed to finish all this? Obviously, she’s working us to the bone just to find a pretext to kick us out!”
“…Well.”
That much was obvious.
Adele neither confirmed nor denied it, simply stood before the mountain of dishes. Even just eyeballing it, this temple clearly produced divine amounts of dirty plates.
“Hmm… yeah, there’s a lot.”
“That’s what I’m saying! Honestly, it would’ve been better to throw a fit and walk out from the start.”
“Why get angry? It’s only natural Sister Rebecca would act like this.”
“Ugh, miss, why are you suddenly talking like some saint?”
“I’m not a saint. She’s just a person.”
It wasn’t an act—Adele truly didn’t dislike Rebecca all that much.
Living without much hardship was one of the perks of being born a chaebol’s daughter.
She had never been crushed by financial pressure. Except for that Xerox scandal, things had always gone her way. So naturally, she was pretty tolerant.
Why should someone who has everything waste energy hating others?
In a world where even spending my money takes up all my time—why bother?
As long as someone didn’t harbor any deeply malicious intent, Adele could usually just shrug and let it go with a laugh.
“This is why being a chaebol daughter is the best.”
The power of money—it even brings out kindness you didn’t know you had.
Compared to people constantly threatening you with metaphorical knives, someone like Rebecca was practically cute.
While Adele looked around the kitchen without much concern, only Jacqueline was panicking.
“If I’d known this was going to happen, I’d have kept some cash before we sent the carriage back. Then we could’ve hired someone to help.”
“They probably chased everyone off anyway.”
“Seriously? You didn’t keep anything?”
It was Jacqueline’s first time seeing her lady penniless. She pouted in frustration. But then Adele rolled up her sleeves, and Jacqueline’s eyes went wide.
“W-Wait, you’re really going to do it? Miss, you’ve never done anything like this before!”
“…Who says?”
Heh.
Adele’s smile was full of meaning.
It’s been a while.
Her graceful hands, tying back her silky black hair, moved with expert ease.
I used to be in sales, you know.
Counting the number of meals she prepared and served with these hands—especially during Buddha’s birthday and Christmas Eve—she could rival any priestess.
To take care of something like this, analysis was key.
She picked up a dish from the top and carefully ran her finger over it. Almost no leftover food, not greasy either…
“…Looks like a Buddhist temple meal.”
