However, Cardien’s feet suddenly stopped in front of the door.

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

When Hysterion turned to look at him, Cardien replied in an indifferent voice.

“You go in first.”

Hysterion seemed puzzled but nodded after seeing the direction of his gaze and entered the room.

Cardien took a step again.

Where he stopped was……

“Tutor.”

I was blankly staring at him approaching when I suddenly heard the title and slightly shuddered, raising my head.

Cardien was looking down at me with his usual indifferent eyes.

He parted his lips, then closed them again.

I quietly looked at him.

Eventually, Cardien’s lips slowly parted.

“……I don’t know why I got angry either.”

“……Your Grace?”

What is he saying now?

“I just got angry seeing you being dragged away by another man. At myself, and at him.”

Cardien, trailing off at the end, let out a low sigh.

“……So I took it out on you unnecessarily. What I want to say is.”

For a moment, I couldn’t understand what Cardien was saying and just stared blankly.

Soon, as he turned to leave, he left his final words.

“You don’t need to be mindful of me, Tutor.”

Tak.

Leaving only those words, Cardien entered the room.

I just stared at the closed door, unable to say anything until the end.

I blinked blankly for a while before belatedly realizing what Cardien had said.

Oh, so……

‘Was he being considerate of me?’

No need to be mindful?

‘No, is this behavior even worthy of being called consideration?’

It seems a bit different, I’m not sure.

My head was blank. I never expected Cardien to say such things to me.

‘What kind of words are those?’

I threw a question at myself as I stepped back towards the wall.

I looked at the white door guarded by about a dozen men.

And I mulled over Cardien’s words.

‘He said he got angry seeing me being dragged away by Hysterion.’

Why?

Of course, Cardien and Hysterion pursue a way of speaking that involves smilingly giving each other a hard time, but that doesn’t mean they have a bad relationship.

Even now, just looking at them entering the room alone to talk shows that their relationship isn’t bad.

It’s not like Hysterion has harmed me or Cardien.

‘That’s not it either.’

His method was rough, but was it enough to provoke Cardien’s anger?

Well, if even he doesn’t know why he got angry, how could I understand what’s going on inside him?

‘I really don’t know.’

Thud.

I leaned my back against the wall.

As I did so, I took my eyes off the door and looked around.

My head was so full of what Cardien had said that I felt unsettled.

‘Let’s take this chance to see what the temple looks like.’

Not just anyone can enter the temple.

And I belong to that category of ‘not just anyone’.

‘I’ve read descriptions in the original work, but.’

That was a description, and seeing it in person feels different.

I first looked towards the baptismal hall, which was half-covered by curtains.

The soft sound of the orchestra playing hymns and the conversations of people mixed in between.

The glimpse of the priests makes it feel real that this is indeed the baptism ceremony site.

‘And here, today, the incident will occur.’

The incident that happened in the original work.

And because of that incident, Hysterion falls for Celestina.

‘I guess it’ll be the same this time?’

I turned my head to the opposite side.

I could see a corridor stretching so long that the end wasn’t visible.

White marble floors and equally white walls.

This corridor must not be used often, as there were no people passing by.

Not even the sight of a priest.

‘Is that why they made private rooms here?’

Because it needs to be secretive, literally.

Well, originally, there would be almost no one using the private rooms.

‘It’s a big loss to leave this goldmine even for a moment.’

The baptism ceremony attendees are all the empire’s top figures.

With barely enough time to make acquaintances with such people, private rooms are a luxury.

‘Except for figures like the Crown Prince or a Duke.’

By the way……

“This corridor seems familiar somehow……”

I muttered quietly.

Indeed, the scenery of the corridor was really familiar to my eyes.

From the delicate temple patterns engraved on the walls to the snow-white floor, and even the appearance of the corridor getting darker towards the end, making it impossible to see where it ends.

I tilted my head in confusion.

Where have I seen this before?

‘Did I read it in the original work?’

If I had seen a description, it might feel familiar.

‘But I don’t think that’s it.’

Not in the original work, but somewhere else……

That’s when it happened.

“Hm?”

Suddenly hearing a presence, I quickly came to my senses and turned my head.

The owner of the presence was Hysterion.

Having finished their conversation, he came out of the room first and, noticing me, approached with a familiar greeting.

Behind him, Cardien walked out and our eyes met.

“Pell……”

“Y-Your Grace!”

Hysterion tried to say something to me, but a step ahead of him, I ran to Cardien.

Just, somehow, it felt like I had to.

“Is your conversation finished?”

When I rushed over and asked, Cardien, who seemed a bit surprised at first, nodded slightly.

“I, I see. Haha……”

I let out an awkward laugh and glanced at Hysterion.

“Hmm.”

He looked at Cardien and me with a meaningful smile.

What’s with the ‘hmm’?

‘Now go back to your place as the male lead.’

Soon the baptism ceremony will start, and Celestina will appear. From that moment, Hysterion becomes the male lead of “Everyone Loves Only the Saint”.

‘As a reader, it’s already grateful enough to be able to witness that historic moment with my own eyes, but.’

Right now, Cardien is more important to me.

Of course, Cardien said I don’t need to be mindful of him, but.

‘Should I call it being mindful?’

I just cared about Cardien. He must have had a good reason to say such things.

But Hysterion didn’t disappear immediately as I wished.

Looking at me with strange eyes, he suddenly smirked and said,

“I’m hurt, Miss Pellington. Are you ignoring me twice?”

“……Wh-What?”

What’s this all of a sudden?

I looked at him with a perplexed expression.

“What nonsense are you spouting now.”

Cardien also chimed in, seemingly incredulous.

But Hysterion continued without minding,

“The prince’s home tutor.”

“……Huh?”

Hysterion grinned and continued.

“I was the one who proposed that home tutor position to you.”

“……Your Highness did?”

When I asked back with an unbelieving face, he nodded and stroked his chin.

“I had forgotten too. Well, that’s because you, Miss Pellington, immediately rejected the offer as soon as it was made.”

“Ah, that’s……”

I laughed awkwardly and trailed off.

‘Back then, I had no intention of becoming a home tutor at all.’

Right after rejecting that offer, my father passed away and the Magic Disease broke out, leading me to become Mercedes’ home tutor.

The time gap wasn’t that long, so I trailed off with an embarrassed expression.

But to think that the person who made the offer to me was Hysterion.

‘I had no idea because only the imperial seal was on the proposal.’

Moreover, I had no intention of becoming a home tutor then, so I didn’t even think about finding out who made the offer.

Somehow, it made me feel a bit strange.

Apart from the original work, it felt somewhat satisfying to have been recognized…… No, wait, why does the back of my head feel so hot?

From the moment Hysterion revealed this shocking truth, someone’s gaze has been making the back of my head tingle.

I think I know who that gaze belongs to without looking.

Hysterion’s words weren’t over yet.

Hysterion looked at me and grinned broadly.

That smile was as bright as the sun.

Indeed, he’s not the male lead for nothing.

“You might not know this, Miss Pellington, but I was quite disappointed when I heard you rejected.”

“……Your Highness was?”

I asked with an incredulous face.

And for good reason, apart from being the male lead, what reason would he, the Crown Prince, have to be disappointed about not being able to scout me?

There must have been far more outstanding talents lining up to become the prince’s home tutor.

“I had been keeping an eye on you since you were studying at the Academy. Although my offer came late because I missed the timing.”

“Ah……”

“But the place you went after rejecting my offer.”

Hysterion’s gaze shifted behind me.

“To think it was Mercedes, you’re lucky, Duke.”

“……”

Cardien remained silent.

Hysterion didn’t seem to expect an answer anyway, as he shifted his gaze back to me.

He whispered in a low voice.

“Still, if you ever change your mind, you can always come back. The doors of the Imperial Palace are always open for you, Miss Pellington.”