15.

The temple that Charlie had turned upside down was quiet.

Like the calm before a storm.

And Charlie was facing another obstacle.

“……”

Smiling brightly.

His gently curved eyes formed a beautiful arc, and his turquoise hair swayed lightly as he tilted his head in apparent amusement.

What kind of situation was this now?

Charlie blinked as she looked at Noel.

“I’ve come here, risking impropriety, to express my gratitude for the other day.”

Kieran, unable to bear it any longer, spoke with a sigh.

When Noel said she would visit Charlie, Kieran couldn’t believe her ears.

It was an unusual move for Noel, who typically avoided anything that could entangle him politically.

Moreover, visiting Charlie at this time was tantamount to confronting Kaisis. And the Hunt family too.

But to make such a difficult visit and then just smile brightly? It was a situation that could only elicit a sigh.

“I see.”

It wasn’t Charlie who answered.

It was Michael, sitting directly across from Kieran at the round table, who spoke.

Just as he hadn’t stopped the Hunt Knights, Michael didn’t prevent Noel’s visit. And Charlie too said she would meet Noel, who came with Kieran.

It was because of Josh’s incident and her curiosity about why they had come to see her.

“Now that you’ve given your greetings, have you finished your business?”

Regardless of what Michael said.

Noel kept his gaze fixed on Charlie as if she were the only one present.

Smiling brightly–

This scent penetrating his nostrils… though masked by Hector’s scent, it couldn’t hide its sweetness.

The saintess.

At first, he thought she was the lost imperial princess.

Then, considering Josh’s incident and the expedition schedule, she thought she was Hector’s person.

But Charlie headed to the temple.

Moreover, now, Hector and Kaisis were in a state of confrontation as if they might start a war at any moment.

Meanwhile, the saintess had turned the temple into a mess.

What could be more interesting than this?

“Don’t you like it?”

A light, fresh voice crossed the table.

Charlie’s brow furrowed at Noel’s abrupt, disjointed question.

“What?”

“Carrot cake.”

Tap tap.

Noel gestured with his eyes towards the large cake.

“I heard you like this, so I had it specially made.”

Charlie finally looked down at the cake in front of her.

“No? Do you like something else?”

Noel muttered as if talking to himself, wondering if he should have brought venison instead.

“……”

Charlie didn’t particularly like carrot cake.

Or more accurately, she had grown to dislike carrots because she had eaten so many because of Mateo.

And seeing the carrot cake reminded her of Hector, making her dislike it even more just now.

“But.”

Charlie raised her eyes to look at Noel.

“Yes?”

“Why are you speaking informally to me when we’ve just met?”

“We’re not meeting for the first time.”

Clink–

As Noel tilted his head upwards, the jewels on his long earrings collided, making a clear sound.

“……”

Noel was right.

They had encountered each other during various incidents on the expedition.

But this was the first time they had a proper conversation.

“We never agreed to speak informally.”

“Do we need to agree on such things?”

Charlie, at a loss for words, stammered.

Kieran, watching, let out a sigh. Michael looked back and forth between the two, wondering what was going on.

Noel was a duke. Charlie was a Zero. Even if Charlie received the title of saintess, she would be equal to Noel.

“Then you speak informally too.”

“……”

Was there no option for both to use polite speech?

Perhaps because Charlie knew Noel’s personality from reading the novel, she wasn’t angry.

No, rather, she was on the verge of laughing because Noel was so similar to what she had imagined.

The way of speaking that skipped introductions and went straight to the point, his free-spiritedness, and even arrogance.

“Do as you please.”

Charlie shrugged as if giving up.

Noel smiled even more brightly and deeply.

They didn’t know how much time had passed.

Noel, his smile fading, opened his mouth.

“Thank you for saving Kieran.”

“Yeah.”

Charlie answered carelessly without even looking at Noel.

“And I’m sorry.”

“……?”

Surprised by the unexpected words, Charlie’s widened eyes looked at Noel.

The great Noel is apologizing?

It was the same for Kieran as well.

However, that emotion didn’t last long due to Noel’s next statement.

“Are you going to marry the Grand Duke of Hunt?”

“Eh?!”

* * *

[Want to join our family? The position of duchess is vacant.]

Inside the Espenon Temple after Noel left her bombshell statement.

Charlie, back in her room, clutched her head.

[It’s interesting.]

You want me to be your wife because it’s interesting? Why don’t you bet your life on fun while you’re at it.

“Ah, right. That’s how he died.”

In the original story, he died pursuing Liliana out of interest. So it wasn’t entirely wrong.

But why so suddenly.

And why to her?

“Go say that to Liliana.”

Charlie flopped down on the bed.

“Because I saved Kieran?”

It was quite a plausible reasoning. Kieran was a family he cherished more than his own life and someone he prioritized even over Liliana.

[If you need anything, just say so. Anytime.]

Michael didn’t stop Noel. Wherever she stayed was Charlie’s choice, and Michael had no intention of interfering with that.

“Why is everything getting so complicated?”

From Kaisis to the Grand Temple. And now even Noel.

[Thank you for saving Kieran.]

Then, remembering Noel’s apology, Charlie’s furrowed brow smoothed out and she pouted her lips.

Still, it was fortunate that Kieran didn’t die and lived, so Noel wouldn’t have to cry anymore.

“Let’s just get through this week well.”

Charlie thought this as she closed her eyelids.

Although the sun hadn’t set yet, she had exhausted all her energy.

* * *

The red sunset was now illuminating the Grand Temple.

Daniel looked out the window at the sinking sun.

[If you’re going to spout nonsense to someone’s face, you should have been prepared for the consequences.]

Daniel chuckled, recalling Charlie.

It was similar to what Alexandra had said when she was alive.

[If you’re going to come at me, you should have been prepared to die.]

Then the smile on Daniel’s face gradually faded.

At the meeting, Charlie’s momentum was certainly good. She was quick-witted and could be called intelligent.

But the Charlie that Daniel saw seemed pure.

Divine revelation. It might buy time for now. But it’s not a complete solution.

Bael wasn’t one to back down like this.

[As death approaches, regrets only increase. Do you know what I regret the most?]

Daniel closed his eyes tightly, recalling Alexandra’s last moments.

[It’s my cowardly self.]

* * *

Late at night.

A figure in a deeply pulled-down robe hurried along.

“Damn it.”

Damn. Goddamn. Damn it all.

The figure muttered quietly with each step.

But they didn’t utter worse curses. Even this much was very blasphemous. If they went further, who knows what price they would have to pay.

Yet, the reason they couldn’t stop cursing ‘damn it’ was because the situation they were in was so desperate.

Surely this much cursing would be forgiven.

“How can I go back there……”

Damn it.

Unable to even finish the sentence, they gritted their teeth and ended with a curse.

“This is really too much.”

It’s too much, right? This is really too much, even for you.

“You might as well tell me to die. Going back there… damn it all.”

Once again gritting their teeth, the figure dragged their feet in irritation.

But their advancing steps didn’t stop.

No, they couldn’t stop.

Although stripped of the cardinal title, they had once been a vessel for God’s will.

Clearly and specifically, there was no way to ignore the oracle telling them to go to the ‘Grand Temple’.

How much time had passed?

Just as the roof of the Grand Temple they never wanted to see again came into view, the figure’s steps halted.

[For daring to go against God’s will and committing wicked acts, we strip Cardinal Johanna of her position and banish her from the Grand Temple.]

She hadn’t done anything.

More precisely, she had only said one thing out of disgust for the corrupt temple.

[Be grateful you’re still alive.]

Even the Pope can’t arbitrarily kill a cardinal.

So she had been beaten just short of death and driven out penniless.

Johanna clasped her hands together reverently.

“Oh, God. Could you not give me another oracle just once more?”

Muttering.

“Although I was stripped of my position as cardinal, I never missed even one of the eight daily prayers. Even when I was so poor that I had no bread for tomorrow, I didn’t pass by hungry children without sharing.”

Muttering, muttering.

“It wasn’t a good deed, but don’t you know I did it all to survive? From now on, I’ll never……”

That’s when it happened.

“But wasn’t the fortune-telling shop too much, Cardinal Johanna?”

“……!”

The figure who had been praying suddenly turned their head at the voice.

“I was going to charge you with the sin of disobeying the oracle if you didn’t come today.”

Michael smiled gently as he looked at Johanna.

* * *

“It’s unacceptable!”

Inside the Grand Temple.

As expected, voices strongly opposing Johanna’s return erupted.

Johanna gripped her fingertips, overwhelmed by fear.

She was afraid.

It wasn’t them she feared.

It was because the memory of being beaten nearly to death came flooding back.

Blood spurted, flesh fell off, and bones broke under the striking clubs.

In indescribable pain, Johanna begged to be killed instead.

She even cursed inwardly that there was no God, or if there was, you weren’t God but a demon.

“To not only bring back someone who violated God’s will and lost their qualification, but to make them a cardinal again!”

“This is unthinkable!!”