He examined the stained glass model with a peculiar expression, then approached the work desk where I was sitting and asked in a subdued voice:

— So you still don’t have time to play with me?

It was an ambiguous voice, neither angry nor anything else. The hand stroking my disheveled hair was gentle.

I pretended not to notice his suggestive touch with obvious intentions and bent my head deeply toward the glass piece I was working on.

— No, I don’t!

— I find that hard to believe.

— It’s not impossible that it’s not impossible.

— It’s not impossible that it’s not impossible….. What does that even mean?

— I don’t know either.

I could feel Viett glaring at me silently for my mischievous response. Finding his sulking amusing, I hummed a tune while pretending to pour my passion into the work.

— Is there anything you want?

When I suddenly asked him casually, Viett sat on the edge of the desk and answered curtly:

— No. Unlike my father, I hate seeing my wife’s hands get all roughed up.

— What’s wrong with my hands?

I looked up and spread both hands wide in front of him.

— These are an artist’s hands. I’m very proud of my rough hands.

— An artist……

After looking around my studio with a thoughtful face for a moment, he blurted out:

— If you have time later, make me a wax doll that looks just like you.

— Why? So you can use it as a candle when you’re mad at me? I suppose nothing would be more satisfying than burning the wick stuck in the top of my head.

— I want to put it on my office desk.

Viett grumbled as he twirled my hair around his finger.

— Alright. I’ll make one that looks like you and one that looks like me, and we can each keep one. We can take out our anger on them after marital fights? How about that?

Despite my silly joke, he smiled leisurely.

— Let’s agree to display them side by side on the bedside table.」

* * *

The cathedral model Phenelity completed was perfect. So perfect that Amelia burst into tears like a child reminiscing about her childhood memories as soon as she received the gift.

“Thank you so much, Pepe!”

But the joy and emotion didn’t last long. After an article was published about the strange and peculiar gift the new crown princess gave to the former crown princess, the large-scale bombing points in Easton gradually began moving south, eventually reaching Riul, a quiet outlying region.

The terrible incident occurred in the early dawn. One deep night, Viett and Phenelity were roused from sleep by the chief chamberlain urgently looking for them.

Even though no air raid siren had sounded, the chief chamberlain’s face was as pale as someone facing an approaching tank battalion.

“Your Highness!”

“Wh, what’s happened?”

“A terrible thing has happened. Due to the recent bombing, Riul Cathedral caught fire……”

That explanation was sufficient. Phenelity screamed and ran to Amelia’s room. Viett followed her with a sigh.

Amelia, who had received the news before the couple, was bedridden from the great shock. She tried to deny the fact that the cathedral had been consumed by fire without even leaving its framework.

Restoration would somehow be possible with the blueprints, but unfortunately, one problem remained that couldn’t be solved with blueprints alone.

It was the stained glass that had shattered without leaving any trace of its form. No records existed about the creation of the stained glass. The design existed only in the mind of its creator Latiel, who had already departed from this world centuries ago.

Viett summoned the ministers as soon as day broke to establish countermeasures. Ministers from the Riul region came to the palace with particularly troubled faces.

“Since it’s a famous work, there must be many photographs documenting the stained glass.”

“Those are all black and white photographs! Stop talking nonsense!”

“What? Nonsense?!”

“It was a work made of 399 glass pieces! Moreover, there were twenty-three different colors used to paint those pieces! Is there anyone who can remember the exact color and position of each piece?”

One minister pointed to the stained glass in a black and white photograph from an art book. Viett watched the ministers’ argument before speaking.

“What, what about the opinions of cle, clergy and artists?”

“We gathered everyone’s opinions, but naturally, since each person’s memories are fragmentary……”

Hinler answered with a troubled sigh.

“The opinions vary so much that it almost led to serious fights.”

“Riul Cathedral is a building that symbolizes Westenia’s state religion. If the citizens’ shock and sorrow deepen like this, it could greatly impact the morale of soldiers on the battlefield……”

One minister trailed off with a grief-stricken face. The atmosphere weighing down on Viett, the Prime Minister, and the ministers was equally heavy.

“Excuse me……”

Just then, one of the ministers offered an opinion in a gloomy voice.

“Couldn’t we proceed with restoration work based on the model that Her Highness the Crown Princess gave to Lady Amelia?”

The room suddenly fell silent. Viett’s eyes lit up brightly like someone who had found an unexpected breakthrough.

“Don’t be ridiculous. How detailed could that mere model possibly be……”

A young minister snorted with his arms crossed.

That bastard has done nothing but sneer since earlier. Viett glared at the minister who dismissed his wife’s skills with fierce eyes.

“You’ll, you’ll change your mi, mind when you see it in person.”

He called Second Lieutenant Peter, his aide, and ordered him to bring the Riul Cathedral miniature immediately. Fortunately, Amelia willingly provided the model she had received as a gift from Phenelity.

Second Lieutenant Peter entered the conference room carrying the massive building model on a mobile trolley.

Everyone gathered around the cathedral model with exclamations of awe. Even the expression of the young minister who had been examining the model with an arrogant posture gradually turned foolish.

“O, open the mo, model.”

Viett commanded with a pleased face. Second Lieutenant Peter carefully felt around the side of the cathedral’s bell tower. After pressing firmly on a shallow gap with his fingernail, he carefully opened the left body of the cathedral model sideways.

The cathedral opened wide like a dollhouse. The ministers widened their eyes at the perfectly implemented interior, including the main altar, pews, holy water font, pulpit, baptismal font, and crucifix.

“It’s…… just like the real thing……”

Even the young minister who had objected adjusted his glasses and brought his face closer to the building. Viett added a word with satisfaction.

“And a, above all…… the sta, stained glass looks the mo, most authentic.”

The ministers’ gazes shifted to the central window of the altar. The stained glass filled the huge arched window, capturing the figure of the Holy Mother.

“My, my wife invested a lo, long time to perfectly re, replicate the actual colors of the glass.”

The ministers nodded with satisfaction after confirming the intricacy displayed by the colorful glass pieces with their own eyes.

Minister Hinler alternately checked the black and white photograph of the actual stained glass window and the window in the cathedral model. He too nodded while smiling faintly.

“This will make the future building restoration work much easier.”

“Indeed. It’s truly admirable how she made the interior so eerily identical.”

“I had no idea Her Highness had such skill.”

The ministers each said a word. Viett snorted at them who had quickly changed their attitudes. The minister who had first mentioned the cathedral model was smiling with satisfaction.

Viett went to Phenelity immediately after the meeting ended to deliver this good news.

He expected her to jump up and down with childlike joy since her work had been crucial in helping restore a historic ancient building and artifact. But contrary to his expectations, Phenelity’s reaction was utterly lukewarm.

“It won’t match the dignity of the original…… but I guess we have to be satisfied with this.”

Phenelity muttered with a strange expression. She showed no sign of joy at all. But she did provide the cathedral model blueprints she had written and the color chart she had used when painting the glass without complaint.

The biggest problem started right after that. The issue of restoration costs was ignited.

In a situation where massive funds had already been drained from the treasury due to war expenses, it was practically impossible to pour money into the Riul Cathedral restoration work.

Riul Cathedral wasn’t the only building damaged by bombing. Most of the historic sites in the Riul territory had been lost to fire.

If restoration work began only on Riul Cathedral, issues of fairness would arise, likely leading to troublesome class conflicts.

One minister proposed collecting donations, but it was questionable whether citizens struggling with hardship from the long war would readily donate to restoration costs.

Viett resolved to cover the expenses from his private assets. He didn’t mind since money had piled up in his vault while he was serving in the army.

At that time, the Cochrun family stepped forward, offering to cover the restoration costs for all historic sites including Riul Cathedral. It was the first official action taken by the count family, which had been living inconspicuously due to assassination suspicions.

It was clearly to restore the family’s prestige, but Viett accepted the count family’s donation for his wife’s sake. He also covered some costs from his private assets.

Only then did opportunistic nobles and businessmen begin to step forward one by one. They belatedly offered donations, claiming to be deeply moved by the count family’s example. The names of families on the donation list increased one by one.

Regardless of their individual positions and justifications, the cathedral most beloved by Westenian citizens would stand tall again from the ruins.

“Even if it’s completed, it will only be an imitation…… Why are people so happy about it?”

Phenelity muttered while reading an article announcing the cathedral’s restoration. She happened to be reading the “Evening Whisper” where the novel “Pepe” was published. Viett answered in an awkward tone, finding it unfamiliar to see his wife holding a newspaper.