“Then this may be a good thing after all! The holy power that was divided among many saintesses has now been gathered in the Grand Duchess.”

Shar nodded once as he spoke.

‘What a fool.’

‘If you say that out loud, you’ll be arrested for insulting royalty, Lord Elysion.’

Jaina looked at him in alarm and spoke inwardly. Elysion drew his brows together slightly and clicked his tongue under his breath.

‘For someone who is to become emperor, his reasoning is lacking. How can the idea of concentrating scattered holy power into one person possibly be a good thing?’

‘From the Crown Prince’s perspective, however, it may seem reasonable. He has seen countless saintesses collapse while raising the barrier, leaving only the barest trace of holy power behind. If that power had overflowed from the beginning, the barrier would not have failed midway through. That is likely why he believes it would be better.’

‘Even so, is it beneficial to concentrate all holy power in one person? The answer reveals itself with the slightest use of reason. Would it be more efficient to have one saintess deal with monsters across the entire human realm, or to have several saintesses divide the regions and handle them separately? Only a fool would fail to see the difference.’

“Ah…”

Only then did Jaina let out a soft exclamation and nod in agreement.

Unaware that the two of them had been talking, Shar looked at her, confused. Jaina offered him an awkward smile.

“In any case, I will do my utmost to eliminate the monsters and restore the barrier.”

“That would be much appreciated. But don’t overexert yourself. If the Grand Duke finds out that you’ve injured yourself, I dread to think what reprimand I’d receive.”

Shar said this with a quiet chuckle.

‘Tomorrow, I should summon your husband here.’

At that moment, as he gazed toward the detached palace drawing nearer, Elysion murmured.

Jaina looked at him, puzzled.

‘Why him?’

‘This does not appear to be a matter you can resolve alone. Because…’

Elysion nodded towards the palace.

Jaina turned her head to look, and her face hardened instantly.

The palace looked distorted, as though two Elim Trees were layered over one another, their forms overlapping in a faint, shimmering double image.

‘If you enter the false palace, you will surely be in danger. Even the symbol of your bond may not be able to protect your holy power.’

‘What on earth….’

Although she could see it with her own eyes, Jaina could hardly believe what she was seeing. This was on a completely different level to when the Elim Tree had appeared doubled.

The two identical palaces were so similar that she could not choose one over the other.

‘When it was the Elim Tree, one side at least felt alive. But this… I truly can’t tell.’

‘Most likely because your husband is not beside you.’

According to Elysion, Cadel was best able to discern the dark magic cast by a dark mage, despite his power being similar yet fundamentally different — a black mana of its own kind.

‘Would it be difficult for you to find it instead, Lord Elysion?’

At her question, Elysion turned his gaze to her.

‘It would not be difficult. But I must not.’

The reason for his refusal was probably simple: spirits were not meant to interfere too deeply in human affairs.

For a fleeting moment, Jaina wondered whether she might never have needed to marry Cadel at all—if only Elysion had been free to involve himself in human affairs as he pleased.

The thought sank heavily into her chest. As if sensing what was on her mind, Elysion spoke firmly.

‘You cast aside your own life and returned to the past for a reason. The life you now live was not chosen by you. Therefore, you cannot alter its destiny entirely according to your wishes.’

Her face stiffened.

Just because she had chosen this life for herself, meaning her fate could not be changed, did that mean she was destined to live the same life as before?

‘That is not what I mean. In this life, you left your family by your own choice. You sought out the village of spirits and received blessings from many people, including me.’

‘Then I’ve already changed my fate. So what do you mean when you say I cannot change it?’

She frowned faintly, unable to understand.

Elysion turned his gaze back toward the two detached palaces.

‘The destiny that allowed you to live. And the destiny that will continue to let you live. Their foundation cannot be altered.’

‘…I truly don’t understand. What you say is always difficult for me, Lord Elysion.’

‘When the time comes for you to realize it, you will understand my meaning, Jaina.’

“Why are you not entering?”

Shar asked, looking at her with confusion.

‘Your husband will soon cross over using the teleportation stone. Tell him that you will go with him.’

At Elysion’s words, Jaina turned toward Shar.

“The Grand Duke will arrive shortly. I will enter together with him.”

***

As soon as Elysion lifted the restriction on the transfer stone, Cadel travelled to the Imperial Palace.

With his help, Jaina was able to identify the fake palace. She easily purified the real palace and raised a barrier around it.

Cadel insisted that they hold hands as they entered — ‘Just in case— and so Jaina found herself clasping his hand once more. Seeing this, Shar smiled and remarked that the Grand Duke and Duchess seemed truly harmonious.

Cadel responded to Shar with the same composure he had shown Adil, but he never forgot that this was the man he was destined to serve. His tone remained properly respectful.

After swiftly restoring order to the palace, Jaina accompanied Shar to meet the Emperor and Empress. There, she cleansed the thick, dark magic clinging to their bodies and raised protective barriers around them.

“Tomorrow, I will purify the main palace. Until all the palaces have been inspected and new barriers put in place, it is safest for Your Majesties to remain here in the detached palace.”

Upon hearing this, the Emperor and Empress readily agreed and expressed their gratitude.

Although they were concerned to learn that the Grand Sanctuary’s saintesses had not yet regained their holy power, they were reassured by the fact that the Grand Duchess’s power remained intact. They even expressed relief, stating that the black mana of House Edgar would safeguard her sacred strength.

As they continued speaking, the sun slowly began to set.

As they left the reception chamber, Jaina was the first to notice the beads of sweat forming on Cadel’s brow.

“You should return now.”

“What…?”

Cadel looked at her in surprise.

“There is no safe place outside the palace you have protected with a barrier. You must come back to the Grand Duke’s castle with me. We can return together in the morning.”

“There’s no need. I will remain for the time being in the room His Highness the Crown Prince has prepared.”

“But dark enchantments still linger throughout the palace.”

“You needn’t worry. Lord Elysion… no, the Grand Hierophant, will remain with me.”

Jaina glanced at Elysion, who stood at her side.

Cadel regarded him with a cool gaze.

“I was meaning to ask. Since when did this Empire have a position called Grand Hierophant?”

“……!”

“And why is this spirit wearing a human form and pretending to be one?”

When Cadel spoke, Jaina’s eyes widened as though they might fall out.

From the moment Elysion materialized, everyone had treated him as though he had always been the Grand Hierophant.

‘Then why is he…?’

She turned to look at Elysion.

Elysion was staring back at Cadel with a gaze no less cold.

“Hmph. To ask what you already know, merely to confirm it—how petty, human.”

“I simply thought confirmation was necessary, seeing as you clung to my wife like a burr while she was raising the barrier.”

“You insolent wretch. Show proper respect to this one.”

“And you are hardly showing proper respect to me.”

“Ha!”

Elysion’s expression twisted into something peculiar.

In some ways, he found Cadel impressive — a human who had reached the Spirit Village without cloaking himself in holy power. The village itself had allowed Cadel entry, which made Elysion curious about him. After all, it was rare for a human to even see the Spirit Village with their own eyes.

“So, Jaina. Why are you with this spirit?’

The sky was growing darker and Cadel’s brow was growing increasingly sweaty. Instead of returning to the north, however, he chose to question her.

Jaina knew that prolonging this would only make Cadel more uncomfortable and ruin her mood. It would be better to give him the answer he wanted and send him back as quickly as possible.

“He is the one who granted me his blessing. He is protecting me.”

“Very well. Then you can return to your own domain at once. Jaina will spend the night with me.”

At those words, Cadel’s face turned glacial.

“…What?”

“Your hearing is supposed to be the most remarkable of your senses, and yet you pretend not to have heard.”

Elysion snorted and gave a dismissive shrug.

“If you wish, I will repeat myself more clearly. Leave Jaina to this one. Dark magic still lingers everywhere. Until the purification of this place is complete, I will remain in the same room and guard her.”

“What—!”

Before he had finished speaking, Elysion suddenly kicked Cadel in the back, propelling him into a teleportation stone that had opened up behind him.

With a sharp snap of his fingers, he extinguished the stone’s light and sealed its entrance.

“I suppose I’ll have to make sure he can’t use the teleportation stone again until tomorrow morning.”

Jaina stared at Elysion in disbelief, then slowly turned her head to look at the spot where Cadel had disappeared.