“Yes, Miss. Just looking at them makes me feel motivated, hoho.”

The maids, with excited faces, began organizing the gifts. Even as their hands moved busily, their mouths never stopped.

“Truly, His Majesty is the best Emperor and groom!”

“And his face! I’ve never seen such a handsome man in my life.”

“His manners are perfect. He’s kind not only to Miss but also to us.”

“More than anything, his body… Just looking at that physique gives me goosebumps…”

“Oh, you! That’s crossing the line!”

The maids giggled as they opened boxes and organized the gifts. Listening to their chatter from a distance, Aristie felt both pride and a sense of loss.

Loss. For having what was hers taken by Estelle.

But that’s a contradiction. I never considered him my possession in the first place.

“Oh my! Miss, you’ve received wedding dresses too?”

“Three of them, no less, three!”

The maids, excitedly shouting, discovered the wedding dresses while organizing. They were wedding dresses of a different dimension, brilliantly beautiful.

The maids were cautious even to touch them, admiring them with their eyes. Then, driven by curiosity, one maid brought Aristie over to ask her opinion.

“Miss, which one do you like best?”

“I’m curious too. Which one will you wear on your wedding day?”

At that moment, another maid interjected.

“But the dress for the wedding is already being custom-made.”

“That’s right. Miss put a lot of thought into choosing it!”

The maids quickly split into two groups, debating.

Opinions clashed between those who thought the dress Aristie ordered was the prettiest and those who believed the dresses gifted by the Emperor were also top-notch.

As soon as someone suggested accepting the Emperor’s sincerity, there was an immediate passionate argument that the bride’s taste should be prioritized for the dress.

The only one who could end the inconclusive debate was Aristie.

“Miss, please decide!”

“Otherwise, we won’t be able to sleep tonight.”

Surrounded by the maids, Aristie found herself in a difficult position. Honestly, she doesn’t know what to choose either…

As she hesitated, Khalid’s eyes, which had once met hers, suddenly came to mind.

—If only I hadn’t known Estelle, would you be different now…

Those golden eyes, which flickered with longing, solely desiring only her… at least in that moment.

What did he see in my eyes? Did he, even for a moment, find what I couldn’t recognize?

“Miss, we’re so curious. Please choose quickly, yes?”

Snapped back to reality by the maids’ urging, Aristie hesitantly began to speak.

“I…

Chapter 6

A few days after the blessing ceremony at the temple, Marquis Vascus visited the High Priest.

“Thank you for making time for me, Your Excellency.”

“Not at all. It’s unexpected to see the Marquis here at the temple, though.”

The High Priest stroked his beard, scrutinizing the other person with a probing gaze.

Marquis Vascus, who rarely set foot in the temple unless for significant national events, had unexpectedly brought his entire family to the blessing ceremony, sitting in the front row and attentively listening.

He was accompanied by his wife, two sons, and even a newly adopted daughter.

Naturally, this raised suspicions about his intentions. Had he suddenly had a change of heart?

…Wait. Come to think of it, I heard the Vascus family has rapidly increased their wealth recently. Could he be thinking of donating?

“Since you’re busy, I’ll get straight to the point. Actually…”

As the Marquis began to speak, the High Priest, secretly hoping for mention of donations, listened intently. But what he heard was about a person, not money.

“My daughter seems to be a candidate for a saintess.”

“A saintess… you say?”

The High Priest replied incredulously. He wasn’t particularly surprised.

The temple was full of people dragging their daughters, claiming they could be saintesses.

Having a daughter was fortunate; some even dressed their sons as girls or presented elderly women. Being chosen as a saintess was the easiest way to gain both status and honor, if selected.

“Her foresight is extraordinary.”

“I’m sorry, Marquis, but becoming a saintess isn’t a status easily recognized.”

The High Priest cut him off. Internally, he thought, ‘This unbeliever is underestimating the temple.’

Marquis Vascus seemed to anticipate the High Priest’s disbelief and lowered his voice to persuade him.

“I understand. But if you hear what I have to say, your thoughts might change.”

“Hmm, then please, go ahead.”

“First, I ask for your promise. What I’m about to say involves the honor of my family, so I ask you to swear to keep it a secret before the gods.”

“Well…”

The High Priest, despite being taken aback, was intrigued and agreed.

“Very well. I swear before the gods.”

“Thank you. Actually, my daughter, Estelle…”

The Marquis blended truth and lies as he explained the miracles Estelle had performed.

Touched by her gentle nature, his wife had shown kindness, and Estelle, opening her heart, began to make predictions.

Those predictions were so accurate that they led to their recent wealth.

Out of gratitude, they adopted her, and recently Estelle tearfully requested—a complete fabrication—she wanted to use her abilities not for the family’s gain but for the people of the empire.

“So, I came to you to fulfill her request.”

“From what I’ve heard, her abilities are certainly not ordinary.”

The High Priest responded with a tempted expression.

Indeed, the sudden rise of the Vascus family’s fortune and the unexpected adoption of a daughter were both suspicious.

The explanation cleared those doubts, so he couldn’t help but be interested.

“I swear Estelle’s predictions have never been wrong.”

“Yes, I don’t doubt that. However, to be recognized as a saintess, a more explicit oracle related to the nation’s major affairs must be presented.”

Of course, the temple also earnestly desired the emergence of a saintess. But mere luck, intuition, or fortune-telling skills were not enough.

The duty of a saintess was to receive oracles predicting the empire’s destiny.

Thus, to be recognized as a saintess, a very clear and specific prophecy related to the nation’s safety was necessary, along with the ‘Saintess’s Mark,’ which is said to appear with the first oracle.

However, more than a hundred years had passed since the last saintess’s death, with no successor in sight.

It seemed plausible that the empire’s peace was the reason, but even during the war several years ago, no one received an oracle, leading to speculation that the saintess’s line had truly ended.

“Fortunately, the empire has regained stability. In these peaceful times, there’s no particular reason for an oracle to descend, is there? Even during the war, there was no saintess.”

“I thought so too. But my daughter declared she’d receive an oracle tomorrow night.”

“What?”

“She said the gods would speak through the Blue Moon that will rise in the sky.”

“The Blue Moon?”

The High Priest’s expression turned serious.

“Is the Blue Moon rising tomorrow?”

“I don’t know. But my daughter, who predicts the future accurately, said so, so I have no choice but to believe her.”

With the situation slightly changed, Marquis Vascus became more confident. Estelle had said it would be a week after the temple’s blessing ceremony, so it must be tomorrow.

“According to Estelle, tomorrow’s Blue Moon is arranged by the gods to announce her as a saintess to the world, along with an oracle.”

“Oh…”

“The emergence of a saintess will greatly benefit not only the empire’s prosperity but also the temple’s prestige. Why not watch and see, even if you think it’s a long shot?”

“That’s quite something…”

Faced with the sudden proposal, the High Priest was in a dilemma. However, there was no reason to refuse since accepting it wouldn’t cause any harm.

“Very well.”

The High Priest agreed, thinking that if the Marquis’s adopted daughter truly was a saintess, it would be a blessing incomparable to any donation.

“Let’s meet tomorrow. I’ll instruct the priests to prepare.”

* * *

The next night.

The soft moonlight filtered through the tall windows, casting a sacred glow inside the temple. In the center of the temple, where black and white intersected, the priests watched Estelle with solemn and tense expressions.

They were filled with anticipation, yet inwardly skeptical.

It had been over a hundred years since the saintess disappeared, meaning none of them had ever seen a saintess in person.

Instead, they had seen plenty of people adamantly claiming to be saintesses. Was this woman, personally chosen by the High Priest, truly the real saintess…?

“The time has come.”

Estelle lowered her eyelashes and parted her lips. As she knelt devoutly, a few priests swallowed dryly.

In the heavy silence, her pure voice flowed like a spring.

“Almighty Celestial God, please deliver your revelation through this humble servant.”

As she placed her forehead against her clasped fingers and then lifted her head, the moonlight suddenly intensified, illuminating Estelle with a powerful glow. A crescent-shaped mark appeared on her forehead like an illusion.

It was the saintess’s mark that was said to appear when receiving the first revelation.

“Oh…!”

“Oh God!”

The priests exclaimed in admiration. Bathed in moonlight, Estelle’s monochromatic glow was undoubtedly the saintess they had all longed for.