“Your Highness the Queen! No, Lady Selvia!”

Belrocan quickly came out to greet her. Selvia showed the documents in her hand and smiled brightly.

“Sorry I’m later than expected. Please call me Selvia from now on, since I just got expelled from my family.”

Though he was internally surprised at the mention of expulsion, seeing Selvia’s bright face, he nodded and said.

“Not at all. You’re not that late. More importantly, did everything get resolved well……”

“Thanks to you, it’s all resolved well.”

Only then did Belrocan breathe a sigh of relief.

“His Majesty has been waiting all this time. However, there’s a guest right now, so it might be better to go later.”

“I’ll do that.”

Selvia glanced at Ratius’s office and followed Belrocan’s guidance to her room.

“Shall I have warm tea prepared?”

“No, it’s fine, go about your work.”

She desperately held back a cough while waving her hand.

Belrocan left the room as if being chased out.

She immediately closed the door and covered her mouth with a handkerchief. More blood than usual came up suddenly.

“Haah. I should visit the temple tomorrow.”

Maybe there would be some solution.

She thought Ratius might be ‘the one who wields the power of god’. But there was no way to confirm it.

Would it be alright to ask him directly?

Perhaps if she went to the temple, she might find some clues about him.

The Empire must not know about her illness.

Selvia leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

‘It will take at least two days for the divorce to be fully processed.’

Now there was nothing of Delpheron here.

“Ah, these clothes remain.”

Except for the clothes she was wearing, she hadn’t brought anything that Beatus had touched.

Of course, she hadn’t been foolish enough to bring nothing at all.

The contract specified details about alimony.

Though the official reason for divorce was her failure to fulfill her duties, Selvia had extracted substantial alimony from Beatus as she had told him. When she threatened to reveal that Leliana was pregnant, Beatus signed despite his displeasure.

“Should I have squeezed out more?”

She did feel somewhat regretful.

But her ties with Duke Flandre had also ended, so she was truly free.

After the day of prophecy passes, she would divorce Ratius too.

By then, she would enjoy complete freedom.

“I’m scared I might start liking this place.”

Unlike in Delpheron, she liked how people treated her kindly here and respected her very existence.

They were treating her with sincerity, not pretense.

Selvia suddenly remembered the people of Delpheron who had been kind to Leliana because she was likely to be God’s child.

“I wonder what expression they’ll make when they learn Leliana isn’t the child of God.”

Selvia sat on the bed with a tired look.

“……When did they prepare this?”

Now she noticed a bouquet placed on the table.

It was blue delphinium that reminded her of him.

Opening the small note, she saw neat handwriting that resembled him.

[I hope I can be your comma.]

This note was concise too.

Delphinium…… huh.

Selvia quietly examined the bouquet.

“I didn’t expect this.”

She recalled one of the flower meanings of delphinium.

‘Please understand my feelings.’

She thought of Ratius as she got up and fiddled with the delphinium for a moment.

But fatigue soon overtook her and she returned to lie on the bed.

Cough.

With a sudden cough, blood stained the blanket. After wiping her mouth with a handkerchief, a sigh escaped Selvia’s lips.

“Oh no……”

After some consideration, Selvia carefully pulled the bell cord.

The door opened and a familiar-looking maid appeared.

It seemed Ratius had assigned Mellin, who had served her before, to help Selvia adjust to the Empire.

‘He even considered such details.’

Though she hadn’t seen him since arriving at the Karina Empire, Ratius had prepared even the small details for Selvia in advance.

Mellin bowed politely to Selvia.

“Let me formally introduce myself. I am Mellin Abonita. From today, I will be Lady Selvia’s dedicated maid.”

“Good to see you again.”

Brown eyes curved gently towards her.

“I am also honored to be able to serve you, Lady Selvia. Please feel free to call me Mellin as before.”

“Alright. I will.”

Selvia looked at Mellin with a more relaxed expression.

“What did you call me for?”

“I have a favor to ask.”

Selvia looked at the blanket with troubled eyes and spoke carefully.

“I got a nosebleed because I’m too tired. It’s nothing serious, but I’d like to keep it quiet.”

“Oh my!”

Mellin exclaimed in surprise as she approached the blanket.

“Should I call a physician right away?!”

Selvia immediately stopped her. It was obvious things would get complicated if this escalated.

Even if a physician came to examine her, they wouldn’t find a diagnosis. However, she didn’t want to burden Ratius with her health condition.

“I’ll be fine after some rest. But if His Majesty finds out about this, he’ll worry.”

Mellin thought for a moment before nodding decisively.

“Then I’ll move it to the laundry. However, please understand that if His Majesty asks about it, I’ll have no choice but to tell him.”

“That’s fine. I don’t want you to get in trouble. If His Majesty asks, you can tell him the truth anytime.”

Selvia smiled faintly and stepped back. Mellin immediately rolled up the blanket.

“I’ll leave this at the laundry and bring some tea that’s good for fatigue.”

“Thank you.”

Mellin blushed shyly at her words.

“Please wait a moment.”

Mellin left the room quickly after leaving just those brief words.

After some time passed, Mellin returned.

“I’m sorry I’m a bit late.”

Mellin carefully placed the teapot and cup from the tray onto the table.

“I was late looking for dried flowers. This will help you feel better.”

The well-dried deep pink flower petals caught her eye.

Taking a sip, a subtle fragrance lingered at the tip of her nose.

It was a scent she had never smelled before. It had a mild grass scent mixed with herb fragrance.

There was also a slightly tangy taste.

“It smells nice.”

“It’s a flower called echinacea. It’s often used as an antibiotic and is also good as a hemostatic. I added dried lemon so it should have a more refreshing scent.”

Mellin seemed to have extensive knowledge about flower teas and medicinal herbs. Selvia, who had been staring at Mellin while drinking the tea, said.

“If it’s alright, could I ask for this tea every day?”

“Of course! The effects are even better if you drink it consistently.”

Mellin nodded with a bright smile.

“Lady Selvia. This might be presumptuous but…… when you’re in trouble or feeling ill, please call for me at least.”

Mellin’s eyes looked somewhat sad as she said this.

“I absolutely won’t tell anyone else. I know about medicinal herbs well, so I can be helpful to you, Lady Selvia.”

It was pure goodwill. She must have been concerned about her being alone here.

“Is there anything else you need?”

“After I finish the tea, could you call Advisor Belrocan?”

Since Ratius was meeting a guest, it would be fine to visit him later to talk.

After Selvia finished her tea, Mellin arranged the teacup on the tray and left the room.

Not long after Mellin left, Belrocan appeared.

“I heard you were looking for me.”

“Ah, I think I’ll visit the temple.”

“Right now?”

Belrocan glanced at the clock discreetly.

“I believe His Majesty said I could go anytime.”

“I’ll guide you. I’ll report to His Majesty separately.”

“Thank you.”

Selvia immediately followed Belrocan.

“Ah, could I possibly get a priest’s robe?”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why do you need a priest’s robe?”

“I think it’s better to be careful since it’s premature for my presence in the Empire to be known.”

No word about Selvia had spread in the Empire yet.

People believed that Selvia had returned to the Kingdom of Delpheron.

What rumors might spread if they saw her openly walking around the temple?

At times like this, she needed to move cautiously. Selvia wanted to act to prevent unnecessary talk.

Belrocan nodded in agreement with her words.

Indeed, it would be strange for a queen who should be in the Kingdom of Delpheron to appear in the Empire.

“I understand. As it happens, I have one you can use.”

Though she didn’t know why he had a priest’s robe, Selvia felt relieved.

Belrocan disappeared briefly and soon returned with a priest’s robe in hand.

“You can wear this.”

Selvia immediately put on the clothes and pulled the hood over her head.

“You only need to wear it on the way there. You can be comfortable once inside.”

Belrocan whispered softly.

The temple was where those who communicated with God stayed, along with the prophecies.

It was natural to restrict others’ access.

Unlike the Kingdom of Delpheron, they were thorough in managing the temple.

‘I won’t be able to stay long, so let’s look around quickly today.’

Holy power flowed through the temple. Therefore, for Selvia, who had stronger dark power than light power, staying long would be difficult.

Selvia found it ironically amusing that her body rejected good power despite being a child of prophecy.