So Father still thinks of me as just a child.

Only then did Florencia hesitantly approach him. Unlike her tentative embrace, Ludwig’s arms were surprisingly broad and warm. She instantly felt her heart become peaceful.

“Father, you’re so warm……”

“If you like, you may stay in my arms.”

“But you’re always busy, Father, and I can’t let you work like this. I should go back soon too.”

Florencia, now completely at ease, finally smiled a little.

“……You look tired, how about resting here a bit before you go?”

“Then I’ll impose on you just a little, Father.”

Ludwig nodded as if in agreement.

In this world, the only one I can trust…… is Father Ludwig.

Florencia thought, feeling her eyes slowly closing without a chance to resist the sudden wave of deep sleep.

“How much did you cry alone? Your eyes are all red.”

Gently caressing her swollen eyes as she slept deeply, Ludwig sighed long and painfully.

Florencia, lying straight on the sofa in the Temple reception room, had been completely undressed. Her porcelain-white n*ked body was covered in wounds. It was just as he had expected.

“I want to take the lives…… of those who dared to make you like this right now.”

He actually had the power to do so. With the authority of the future Pope, possessing the strongest holy power on the continent, destroying a mere count’s family would be nothing.

On the other hand, he also had reasons why he couldn’t do as he wished right now.

“But Laura, this incident brought you back to me. So, I don’t know how I should take it.”

Of course, your family who doesn’t know their place will need a light warning about this incident, he added, sighing briefly once more. Deep regret permeated Ludwig’s gaze as he looked at the small body covered in mottled bruises.

“……Do you know that your face is always crying when you come to me?”

Ludwig’s elegant fingertips gently stroked the injured delicate skin.

“I sometimes wonder. If they hadn’t tormented you, would you have relied on and followed only me like now? Would you have continued to seek me out and perfectly believe only what I say?”

Do you think I’m too cruel for not immediately rescuing you from that hellish house? He murmured in a quiet, soothing voice as he pressed his lips against Florencia’s wounds.

“But Laura, I promise you this clearly.”

He whispered like a vow, bringing his face close to Florencia’s soft cheek as she slept.

“On the day you become completely mine, I will let you see with your own eyes how those who tormented you fall apart.”

The white face, sleeping deeply like an angel, continued to breathe evenly with no response. He raised his hand again and caressed the small, wounded body. Under his palm, which released holy power, red light gathered and grew larger. The sphere with a red, bloody hue gave a frightening impression just by looking at it, but Ludwig grasped it without hesitation.

“……Ugh……”

The red sphere seeped directly through her skin, spreading pain throughout her body. For a moment, it felt as if her bones were being crushed. Though her body wasn’t actually damaged, it allowed her to feel pain tens of times greater than what she had experienced. His well-shaped eyebrows furrowed slightly, but that was all; Ludwig endured the pain boring into him for a long while without making a sound. At the very least, he couldn’t forgive himself if he didn’t do this much.

“……How much must it have hurt with this small body.”

His voice, filled with anguish, brushed past Florencia’s ear as she slept, oblivious to everything. As if wanting to alleviate even a little of the pain from the bruises coloring her fragile body, Ludwig meticulously licked each and every wound remaining on her body for a long time.

* * *

Florencia was having another career consultation with Lady Haley, the Countess who was in charge of her Academy class.

“So, just like our previous career consultation, Lady Hazel, you’re saying you want to become a saintess at the Temple after graduation?”

“Yes, Professor. About the interview you mentioned…… I’m sorry about that.”

“No, if that’s truly your wish, there’s nothing to be done. I thought it would be a good position for you, which is unfortunate.”

She wrote something down on the papers with a somewhat resigned expression.

“Miss Florencia, a saintess’s life won’t be as easy as you might think. Especially for you, who isn’t a case of being born with holy power, you’ll struggle even more.”

Religion served as the binding force in relationships between various countries. Particularly on this continent, where natural disasters like droughts, floods, tsunamis, and unknown diseases never ceased, the influence of priests and the Pope who resolved these issues with holy power was truly enormous. It was said that only the Emperor of the Holy Empire of Lebleia, the largest on the continent, could match the Pope’s authority.

However, not all clergy received people’s respect. That applied only to holy priests who were born with holy power, chosen by God.

God’s power typically manifested from infancy or showed unmistakable changes from within the mother’s womb. Those with even a small amount of holy power were completely separated from their parents at birth and raised by the Temple. It was a lonely life where they could never marry or create a family, not even knowing the parents who gave birth to them, but this too was the will of God who governed all things.

Holy priests, beings who loved and saved everyone with God’s power, were called God’s representatives and received deep respect. Also, the greater their innate holy power, the more wealth and power they could possess, to the extent that even the imperial family couldn’t treat them carelessly.

Parents who had their babies taken by the Temple also kept their mouths shut forever, receiving enough wealth in exchange to never worry about their livelihood. That’s why poor families became even more devout, thanking God for allowing a chosen one to be born through their humble womb.

On the other hand, there were also ordinary priests and saintesses without holy power. Most of these were devout orphans raised in monasteries or temples who chose this path. Since holy power never manifested later in life, even if they lived their entire lives serving God’s words, they remained only in the positions of lower priests or saintesses.

A monotonous life of handling the Temple’s menial tasks, permitted only poverty, purity, and prayer. It wasn’t an easy path to choose without considerable determination. This was especially true for a noble lady like Florencia. Unless her family had completely collapsed, leaving her with nowhere to go.

“Lady Hazel, when you become a saintess, commonly called God’s bride, you must live a life solely serving God without yourself. A normal life of marrying, bearing and raising children of your own blood…… it might seem like nothing special, but it’s quite happy in its own way.”

As she spoke, Countess Haley glanced at the small portrait on her desk. It showed her three children with small age gaps, smiling brightly.

“Once you officially become a saintess and your name enters the register of saints, you can never remove it by your own will. You know what it means to be abandoned by God, don’t you?”

“……Yes, I understand well.”

A moment of silence passed between the two. Finally, sighing as she put down the career counseling documents, Countess Haley spoke without even looking at her.

“Well, anyway, you still have a few months until graduation from the Academy, so think about it carefully during that time. If you change your mind, let me know anytime. By the way, all the other ladies in the class, except for two who are going to study abroad, have written that they plan to take bridal lessons in their career plans. Your sister Eriendna too.”

“Yes, I understand.”

As she gestured for her to leave, she called Florencia back and said,

“Oh, Miss Florencia. I’ve contacted the Lebleia Temple about your matter. When I told them there was a student hoping to become a saintess after graduation, they said you should visit the Temple 2-3 times a week during the last semester for basic education.”

“I’ll do that, Professor.”

Florencia bowed her head in greeting, then quietly closed the door as she left to avoid making a loud noise.

“Are you Lady Hazel by any chance?”

Just as Florencia had finished her consultation and stepped into the corridor, a maid with her brown hair tied in a ponytail approached and spoke to her.

“There’s a visitor looking for you. I went to the dormitory, but you weren’t there, so I’ve been searching for you.”

“A visitor for me?”

Who could it be? Florencia hurried toward the Academy’s main gate with curiosity.

“Sister!”

As soon as she arrived, a young boy who had been crouching in the corner stood up and threw himself into her arms. Florencia’s eyes widened as she embraced the child.