Episode 10
The moment Hayden turned to me with a surprised look, a loud shriek came from behind.
“Miss Carl Suilen! That’s my seat!”
“I know. But I like this seat too. Is that a problem?”
I looked up at Hayden as I asked. Without even taking a breath, he answered:
“It’s fine.”
“No, it’s not! Sir Hayden! I was here first—”
“It’s fine. Miss Suilen, please stay seated.”
He sounded so desperate to say yes that Mei, who was watching nervously, lowered her head to hide a smile.
“Miss Carl Suilen!”
Karen rushed over, almost throwing her bag aside, and pressed her face close to my shoulder. A strong perfume, which suited her well, suddenly filled my nose.
“You said you’d help me! Why are you doing this now?”
“Help you with what?”
“You promised to help me get along with Sir Hayden since you two seem to match so well!”
“Did I?”
I let out a short laugh. Karen hit her chest in frustration.
“Don’t play dumb!”
“Well.”
Even if I had said that, wasn’t it silly to believe me so easily? She must have grown up spoiled, thinking everything will go her way.
“Let’s just say I changed my mind. I’m fickle like that.”
I smiled lightly and drew a line. Her eyes widened in shock.
As we whispered closely, Hayden glanced at us briefly before asking,
“Shall we begin now?”
“Fine. Let’s get it over with.”
No one here probably prepared anything serious anyway.
I placed the withered flowerpot I had picked up that morning on the desk, along with a silver-decorated box. Karen, moving reluctantly to sit beside Jin, also pulled out a small box.
Hayden’s eyes stopped on Mei’s large holy tool.
“What is this?”
“A sacred tool for controlling dreams.”
It was quite a high-level object, but everyone except Hayden listened to Mei’s explanation with bored faces.
Magic related to dreams was illegal to use on humans. So that tool could only be used on animals, which made it not very profitable.
“With this, you can safely train animals or heal their trauma.”
‘Underground, though, it could make money.’
Especially if war broke out, it would be extremely useful. (Though until I died, no real war had ever come.)
“Miss Suilen.”
Lost in thought, I realized it was my turn.
“Ah. I’ll try to revive this dead rabemechu plant.”
I naturally lifted the flowerpot to my chest. Hayden raised an eyebrow.
“A plant?”
Why that reaction?
He made the same face earlier when I had answered “music box” to Karen.
The Purification Department was basically a group of random people with different specialties thrown together—except for Hayden. This training was only possible because Hayden kindly allowed us time for personal practice.
So, if someone reused an old idea when short on time, no one should care… right?
While I wondered, Jin clapped his hands together.
“Priestess Carl Suilen, you’ve been steadily working with plants for a whole year now. Your persistence is impressive.”
“Oh my, a year? Miss Carl Suilen, if you ever quit the Caien Knights, you could open a flower shop!”
“Ah, it’s already been a year?”
So that’s why Hayden’s face looked so stiff.
“But don’t you think it’s time to stop? This isn’t teatime.”
“Karen, that’s not what I meant at all! If you say it like that, my compliment sounds twisted. Priestess Suilen, you don’t misunderstand, do you?”
Ignoring their argument, I tapped the empty pot with my fingernail.
A whole year of slacking off, huh? I had tried to let it slide, but that was pushing it.
Looking up at the ceiling, I thought for a bit, then recalled a suitable spell.
“Alright then. Instead of that, I’ll make a poisonous flower grow edible fruit without any special processing.”
It was a spell I had planned to present two years later, but since it was already finished, why not now?
“Did you just make that up on the spot?”
“If I had, do you think I’d still be working under this man? Karen, for your own safety, you’d better stay quiet for a while.”
I warned her firmly. Karen frowned.
Hayden sighed, but I calmly went to my desk and pulled out a pouch of seeds. Inside were corydalis seeds.
“Mei, could you fill this cup with water, and bless it with holy power?”
With the water in one hand and the seed pouch in the other, I chanted inwardly. A huge magic circle spread across the Purification Room.
Boom!
Light exploded like a bomb. Screams followed.
“Ugh, so bright!”
“Miss Carl Suilen! Next time, warn us before casting something that big!”
“Oh right. I lost control of the output.”
Yesterday I had used magic so intensely that my body defaulted to that power level.
I focused, shrinking the giant circle back into nothing.
Since unrefined holy power was dangerous, everyone quickly brushed off their clothes where the light had touched.
“One more mistake and you’ll kill someone.” Hayden muttered.
Mei nodded while opening all the windows.
Meanwhile, I went through the usual ritual and summoned spirits.
Light shattered, spirits darted out, and changes began.
From the empty pot, sprouts grew, then stems, leaves, and buds. Flowers bloomed fully—then dropped, leaving six long, glowing blue fruits behind.
The greedy spirits even carried away the fallen petals.
Mei watched with wide eyes, covering her cheeks with her hands.
“Wow, beautiful! Priestess Suilen, can we eat these?”
“Yes… but it’s safer if processed first.”
But why were they glowing?
The fruits hanging there weren’t just berries. They gleamed like sapphires.
I quickly opened my supply box—only to find the unicorn horn I had carefully stored was gone, along with the deer antler I’d planned to use.
…These thieving spirits! I told them to take tree roots, not that!
“Miss Suilen, can this magic be used on other plants too?”
I swallowed my sigh and nodded.
“Almost any plant. Each with different effects.”
“And how long do they last?”
“Naturally about three days. The fruit won’t rot, just vanish. For long-term storage, it must be processed with holy power.”
Hayden touched the pot carefully, afraid to harm the plant. I picked one fruit and placed it in his hand.
“Normally, corydalis has many effects, but here I only applied its edible property. Since the price I paid was steep, the result is strong. Just one will feed you for a whole month.”
“Can you also enhance specific properties?”
“Of course. If I had boosted its natural poison, sedation, or narcotic effect, it would need to be ground into powder for use.”
“Priestess Suilen, didn’t your spell require divine blessing too?”
“Yes, plus contracts with earth, water, wind, and light spirits—and mid-level spirits of flowers, fruit, and poison.”
“So it can’t be mass-produced, then?”
“It was designed for emergencies. But if several people work together, it’s manageable. Growing fruit from edible flowers doesn’t even need high-level spirits.”
I answered smoothly. Jin looked shocked, staring between me and the pot.
“Priestess Suilen, when did you prepare this?”
I had always been ready. They just never noticed, since I usually did sloppy work related to Hayden.
Karen cut in with a sour expression.
“Is this really so great? Can’t Sir Hayden do it too?”
“I can imitate it on a small scale, but not this cleanly.” Hayden replied.
I glared at him unconsciously. I spent half a year perfecting this, and he says he could copy it at a glance?
“Miss Suilen, if the fruits spoil so quickly, what do you plan to use them for?”
“I’ll process them into nutrient powder and make supplements. Why? Do you need some?”
“…Could you spare a week’s worth?”
So he really hasn’t been sleeping lately. For him to ask me that.
“That much is fine. But my medicine is expensive.”
I agreed easily. Karen, Mei, and Jin all traded shocked looks.
Hayden, however, remained calm and simply asked:
“How much?”
I wrote the price in his palm. His brow furrowed slightly.
He wasn’t surprised I agreed to his request—he was shocked at how expensive my medicine was.
