***

What else can I do?

As long as the person who reports him isn’t ‘me’, it’s fine, right?

So I went to the temple to meet Cynthia.

“Lady Rosemary.”

This time, without wearing a robe or mask.

Seeing me arrive at the Grand Temple, Cynthia ran over with light steps and suddenly embraced me.

“Have you been well?”

Surprised by the sudden physical contact, I froze stiffly.

I was wondering if I should hug her back when, fortunately, Cynthia released me.

“I’ve been the same as usual, but has the Saintess been well?”

When I asked awkwardly with a smile, Cynthia nodded with a faint smile.

“Actually, I saw Lady Rosemary at the Imperial banquet hall. I wanted to greet you, but the situation wasn’t favorable. Especially since Marquis Berto wouldn’t leave your side.”

“Ah….”

Come to think of it, I hadn’t told Cynthia about what happened with Lucian yet.

The last time Cynthia and I exchanged letters was before Lucian was found not guilty and proposed to me.

Unless Adriel had told her separately, Cynthia wouldn’t know about what had happened to me in the meantime.

And as if confirming my thoughts, Cynthia asked me.

“Shall we go inside and continue our conversation, Lady Rosemary? We have a lot to talk about.”

“Yes. That would be nice.”

I followed Cynthia into the Saintess’s reception room, intending to explain the situation one by one.

However, Cynthia spoke before I could.

“Lady Rosemary. First, I think I should apologize.”

“Pardon?”

At my puzzled look, Cynthia lowered her eyes dejectedly and spoke slowly.

“Despite all your help… we ultimately failed to secure a guilty verdict for Marquis Berto.”

“Ah….”

I knew about this roughly from what I’d heard.

Even after submitting the magical recording device, he was released due to insufficient evidence?

If he received a not guilty verdict despite clear evidence containing Lucian’s voice, it could only mean that external forces had intervened in the trial to overturn the judgment.

Who could it be?

In truth, since Lucian was one of the empire’s great nobles, he would have many connections. But someone who could intervene even in a temple trial…

While I was lost in thought, Cynthia said to me.

“It’s just a guess from Lord Adriel and me, but we think the High Priest may have intervened in the trial.”

“The High Priest, you say?”

Cynthia nodded toward me, who couldn’t understand what was going on.

“We’ve detected suspicious activities suggesting some kind of deal between the High Priest and Marquis Berto. It’s still just speculation, though.”

The High Priest and Lucian?

It was a combination I hadn’t expected at all.

I sighed involuntarily at how things were becoming more complicated than I thought. Cynthia looked at me with eyes full of guilt.

“This isn’t something the Saintess should apologize for, so please don’t apologize to me.”

As I waved my hand, saying it was fine, Cynthia suddenly spoke with a grave expression.

“Although we failed to detain Marquis Berto, I promise to protect Lady Rosemary from any threats from the Marquis. I stake my honor on it.”

What? Me?

When I pointed at myself with my finger, Cynthia nodded resolutely.

“I heard that the Marquis has proposed to Lady Rosemary. I wonder what scheme he’s plotting now.”

With the topic of Lucian coming up, I slowly explained what had happened to me.

I told her that for some unknown reason, Lucian had suddenly started bothering me with confessions and proposals.

That such a Lucian was very suspicious, but for now, I was using his proposal for my own purposes.

“Lady Rosemary’s purpose…”

Cynthia carefully asked, curious about what my purpose was.

But I told her that I couldn’t reveal it yet and would explain everything once it was all over.

At my words, Cynthia showed slight disappointment but soon understood, saying I must have my reasons.

“By the way, Saintess.”

After exchanging some small talk with Cynthia, I changed the subject, thinking it was time to get to the main point.

“Has anyone strange been following the Saintess recently?”

Cynthia looked at me as if wondering how I knew that. Then, as if she understood what was going on, she asked me.

“Did you hear it from Lord Adriel?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I thought so.”

Cynthia nodded as if she had expected it.

“It’s not the first time I’ve experienced such a thing, but recently it’s gotten worse and has been giving me a headache.”

I spoke to Cynthia, who sighed quietly as if troubled.

“Actually, that’s why I came to see the Saintess today. I know who the culprit is.”

“What? Lady Rosemary?”

I nodded.

“The young Count Ferial. In other words, the scoundrel from our house is certainly the one who did it.”

***

Clang-!

“Ugh…!”

The Holy Knight who couldn’t withstand Adriel’s strength dropped his sword and fell to the ground.

Adriel’s expression was cold as he looked down at his subordinate, who was rubbing his wrist with a face contorted in pain.

“Get up.”

“Vice-Captain. I can’t go on anymore!”

“Will you make such weak excuses on the battlefield, too?”

The knight groaned at Adriel’s cold voice.

The Vice-Captain had been strange since yesterday.

On the surface, he seemed as cold and composed as usual, but it felt as if emotions he couldn’t quite control were leaking out in subtle ways.

What kind of person could have disturbed our Vice-Captain’s mood?!

The subordinate’s gaze turned toward Adriel.

After appearing lost in deep thought for a moment, Adriel gripped his sword tightly.

‘Why would an unmarried noble woman of marriageable age go to an unmarried noble man’s house?’

Once again, Rosemary’s voice stirred wildly in his mind.

At the recent Imperial banquet, Adriel had heard that the reason Rosemary suddenly returned to Count Ferial’s mansion was because of Marquis Berto.

But he couldn’t ask what he was most curious about—why Marquis Berto had suddenly proposed, or what Rosemary thought about the proposal.

Because…

‘Then you should only look at me. No one else.’

With that one sentence from her, all the questions swirling in his mind had evaporated in an instant.

What did that mean?

Adriel had been walking around in a daze for a while, thinking about the meaning behind Rosemary’s words.

If he thought she might have come to like him again, a different feeling from before would well up. A tickling in his chest, as if his body was buried in cotton candy.

One day, while waiting for an opportunity to ask what she meant by those words, a chance came to Adriel.

An incident occurred where someone secretly followed the Saintess.

Not long after, the Holy Knights caught the culprit.

The ordinary-looking man with black hair claimed he was acting on orders from a noble, and perhaps wanting to confuse the investigation, he began naming various nobles.

After checking alibis one by one and crossing names off the list, they ended up at the Ferial Count’s mansion.

When the knights were selecting someone to visit the Ferial residence, Adriel volunteered without hesitation.

‘I’ll go.’

He was unknowingly excited at the thought of finally being able to learn the truth about that day.

However, upon arriving at the Ferial mansion, Adriel heard shocking news.

‘Are you saying the Lady is currently at the Marquis’s residence?’

The moment he heard those words from the young Count Ferial, he felt his heart plummet to the ground.

Why would she be at Marquis Berto’s…

Inexplicable anxiety and impatience filled his heart.

So Adriel couldn’t easily leave the Count’s mansion and stood rooted at the front gate, as if nailed to the spot. Even until sunset, when the sky turned red.

Clatter-

Just then, he heard the sound of carriage wheels rolling.

Adriel, who keenly caught the sound, raised his head.

In the distance, through the open door of the carriage, Rosemary was stepping out, her pink hair that looked as sweet as a peach neatly tied back.

For a moment, Adriel stared at her, completely entranced. But as soon as their eyes met, he quickly changed his expression.

‘I went on a date with Marquis Berto. Is that enough for you?’

That day was the problem.

He had gone to hear the truth, but instead his mind turned blank white while his insides burned black.

Upon returning to the temple, Adriel had to swing his sword even in the middle of the night to sweat out and try to forget Rosemary’s words.

But no matter how many times he swung his sword, the voice echoing in his head wouldn’t disappear.