Knock knock

“Master, it’s almost six o’clock. May I come in?”

“Is it that time already? Yes, come in.”

Until then, Ariel had been smiling and couldn’t take his eyes off Merrien, only now realizing it was getting dark outside.

Upon his permission, several servants entered in formation.

Among them, a man with neatly tied brown hair wearing a monocle approached Merrien without hesitation and bowed.

As if he had expected this exact situation.

“Greetings, Saint. I am Alex, the butler of House Hartez.”

“Ah, hello.”

Perhaps because he was different from what she had imagined a butler to be, Merrien stumbled over her words.

In truth, his appearance was exactly what one would expect of a butler.

She had just expected someone elderly with graying hair, but this man appeared to be around the same age as Merrien and Ariel.

“As it’s evening now, we’ll prepare dinner. Shall we head to your room?”

“See you tomorrow, Merri.”

It seemed six o’clock really was the absolute deadline, as even Ariel waved his hand gently from the bed, issuing a friendly dismissal.

The sun was about to set.

***

“…This is my room?”

“Yes, Saint. This is the room the Duke ordered us to prepare for you. Do you like it?”

Though the butler watched for her reaction, there was no need.

As soon as Merrien arrived at her room, she couldn’t hide her joy-filled face and gaped.

“I love it!”

With slight exaggeration, it seemed at least ten times larger than her room at the temple.

Forgetting that the servants were watching, she ran to the bed and jumped on it.

“Ahh…!”

‘This is it!’

The mattress was so soft it cradled her body – soft enough to fall asleep instantly. No more worrying about breaking her back from sleeping wrong.

Plus, it was so large that even with her terrible sleeping habits, she wouldn’t fall off no matter how much she rolled around.

“I’m glad you like it. We’re preparing dinner – are there any foods you cannot eat?”

“None.”

Merrien, already under the covers, poked her head out and smiled brightly.

“Then is there anything specific you’d like to eat?”

“Hmm, meat.”

“Understood. I’ll prepare it right away.”

Just as she was about to drift off comfortably, a savory aroma tickled her nose, making her sit up straight.

“Saint, dinner is served.”

Not only was there light soup and salad, but also a juicy steak and mashed potatoes, all laid out as if it were perfectly natural.

After she wolfed it down, maids appeared to help her wash up and change into nightclothes.

“The washing water has been infused with aromatherapy.”

“We’ve prepared light sleepwear for your comfort.”

‘…This is exactly the transmigrated life I dreamed of!’

She felt this might be the perfect moment for tears of joy.

Though she had thought he was Whitey, in a way, she had fooled herself.

While Ariel had technically kidnapped(?) her, they had reached an agreement of sorts.

‘As long as I don’t die by the Tower Master’s hand.’

Lying back down on the comfortable bed, she felt sleep creeping in.

‘I’ll work hard on healing…’

It was the most passionate day she’d had since transmigrating.

***

[Saint, we will take good care of the temple. Please take good care of Duke Hartez!]

“These heartless priests.”

Merrien’s face hardened as soon as she saw the letter from the temple.

After she had written in detail about her current situation and House Hartez’s support, they replied without showing even a hint of regret.

“Cutting ties just like that, these bastards…”

What little sympathy and attachment she had felt for her fellow victims crumbled like the letter now crushed in her hand.

But that was the extent of it.

After all, she herself had been so satisfied with her current life that she had completely forgotten about the temple until suddenly remembering to hastily scribble a letter.

After tossing the ball-like crumpled letter into the trash, she made her usual way to Ariel’s room.

“Ariel, I’m here.”

But for some reason, Ariel was silently staring out the window with his chin propped up.

Already pale enough to see his veins clearly, wearing just an oversized white shirt, he looked frighteningly fragile, as if he might die at any moment.

“Merri. The leaves outside are falling.”

“So they are.”

After a brief silence, Ariel murmured in a slightly trembling voice.

“When that last leaf falls…”

“Well, new ones will grow next year.”

What kind of act was he putting on today?

Merrien felt annoyed at even seriously considering it.

So she answered casually and pulled up a chair to sit close to Ariel.

“Merri. Aren’t you being too cold? That leaf is struggling with all its might to live through today.”

Ariel pointed outside with a pout.

Merrien’s eyebrow twitched as she noticed his hand deliberately trembling for show.

“Ah, are you saying you’re that leaf?”

“Yes.”

Ariel beamed, pleased that she had finally understood his meaning.

“Didn’t you say you’d be strong enough to make the Tower Master kneel before me once you’re healed? What, are you some iron leaf?”

But Merrien raised her hand, completely unmoved. There wasn’t a trace of sympathy in her tone.

She had good reason.

Ariel had shown her proof of the ‘Death Magic’ contract with the Tower Master promising not to kill her, just days after she arrived.

Since it had clearly come from the ‘Magic Tower,’ it couldn’t be fake.

“Besides, you’re healing well, so why act so weak?”

‘Death Magic’ was supposedly a terrifying spell that caused instant death if the contract was broken.

Thinking about it again made the man’s act of fragility before her seem ridiculous.

As she snorted and began channeling Holy Power, she could feel it flowing naturally into Ariel’s body, like an IV drip.

It had been a week since she came to the Hartez mansion.

Which meant it had also been a week of Ariel saying strange things during every healing session.

“Ah, it’s not working.”

Ariel made a deflating sound, seeming genuinely disappointed.

“I heard women these days like men they want to protect.”

Merrien looked him up and down with disgust. His top buttons were undone showing his collarbone, and his hair was deliberately disheveled as if he’d planned something.

“Ugh, who told you that? You just look like a perfect patient to me.”

At those words, Ariel’s eyes sharpened as he jerked his head up. For some reason, the butler standing far away cleared his throat.

‘That’s more like it.’

Unlike his composed first impression, the people here seemed more careless the more she saw them.

Merrien shook her head and refocused on healing.

“So that’s why you healed me.”

“…What do you mean?”

But she couldn’t help hesitating at his suddenly deepened voice.

The incomprehensible words made her Holy Power flow break for a moment, causing her to scramble to reconnect it.

When she slowly raised her gaze to look at Ariel, their eyes met immediately – he must have been watching her for some time.

Those blue eyes held a hint of interest or perhaps vitality.

“Previously, every priest brought from other temples would either vomit or couldn’t hide their disgust at seeing my dark red blood. But you started healing me as soon as you saw it.”

Though of course, he was a dog then.

His gentle addition clung to her with his breath, making Merrien feel as if the fine hairs on her face were standing up.

Uncomfortable with his searching gaze that seemed to want something, she turned her head away.

“…How could anyone just watch when you were coughing up blood and collapsing.”

Merrien scratched her face which had suddenly started itching.

“Like you said, you were a puppy too. Though I would have healed a person coughing up blood and collapsing too. Those priests were the strange ones.”

Though she had transmigrated as a Saint, she didn’t particularly have a sense of justice.

But she wasn’t cold-hearted enough to ignore a dying life right in front of her either.

‘…Wait a minute. Something’s odd.’

She whipped her head back around.

“Then what happened to those priests? They were sent back, right?”

Merrien opened her eyes wide with concern, but no answer came.

Strangely, Ariel just smiled.

“They went to a better place.”

He murmured those chilling words.