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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 95
Chapter Title: A Map of Malice
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Even children know the Pope's name!
It was the kind of information that could completely shatter one's trust.
But it was too unsettling to dismiss as mere nonsense.
After all, there was no episode related to the Consecration Ceremony in the novel.
The heroine's childhood had been so peaceful that the word "kidnapping" never even came up.
I mulled over Cheshire's short note again and again.
I didn't know if the Pope's goal was to get my sister out of the Grand Temple, or to get rid of her life entirely.
Seriously, was he going to turn on my sister this quickly?
In the novel, he'd gone on and on about how he'd trust and follow her until the day he died!
“Ugh.”
In the novel, my sister's only weakness was that her divine power disappeared when the second moon rose.
But now I saw she had one more.
Her terrible judgment of character.
The Pope, and the Crown Prince, too.
—Can you believe he asked me to attend the imperial ball and sing a song praising him? And then he told me he'd made a bet with the other young lords, so I should do something funny with my divine power to make them laugh.
The Crown Prince wasn't a swordmaster yet, so he would definitely lose a fight against my sister now. I had no idea why he was trying to pick a fight with her.
Just as I was about to store the note away, Mera came in.
“It’s time for bed, Little Madam.”
Mera placed the cleaned cat doll in my arms and tidied the bed.
“You have to sleep early to grow up big and strong like the Saintess.”
As I lay down obediently, Mera tucked the blanket over me.
I stared at her blankly.
“Mera, what did you think of my sister?”
Mera gave an awkward smile, as if recalling the time she was forcibly healed by my sister.
“She was remarkable in many ways, wasn't she? Oh, and this was a good opportunity to learn a lot about Count and Countess Mayol.”
Huh?
But Mera had only met my sister, so how?
The corners of Mera's lips curved into a gentler smile than before.
But her eyes were as cold as ice.
“Those two should never be allowed to raise children. Even the Saintess, whom they supposedly favored so much, didn't look particularly happy.”
“……”
While I mulled over her meaning, Mera dimmed the lights.
“Sweet dreams tonight, Little Madam.”
Mera closed the door and left.
I stared up at the ceiling with wide, alert eyes.
“I can’t sleep…”
My body refused to sleep, thanks to the pleasant nap I'd taken on the plush cushions in the carriage.
Still, I decided to give it a try and squeezed my eyes shut.
But that only made me more awake, and even the sound of the wind rattling the windowpane became crystal clear.
I tossed and turned for a long time, kicking the covers on and off.
I even nearly fell off while rolling around the bed with my cat doll.
“Whoa!”
I grabbed onto the bed, half-slid off.
Th-that was close.
As I slowly crawled back up, I heard Kivrin's voice from beyond the secret door.
“Ch-Cheria? Can’t you sleep?”
I shot up.
“Yes! I can’t sleep!”
I scurried over, and Kivrin opened the door for me.
A look of dismay appeared in his golden eyes.
“B-but I was just going to say that you should be sleeping…”
He hadn't called me over to play!
For some reason, I felt betrayed.
“Why aren’t you sleeping, Kivrin?”
“I was… j-just tidying up.”
Kivrin pointed to his desk.
On it was a map that depicted the terrain in much greater detail than the one in Viscount Rose's study.
Kivrin had covered it in marks, which piqued my curiosity.
“What are these marks?”
“These are the p-places where the magic circles were. There might be an e-error of one or two, but I've f-found almost all of them.”
My eyes widened.
“Already? How?”
“I… j-just asked.”
“……”
“My… animal friends.”
Kivrin explained, borrowing my phrasing.
Even so, I couldn't close my mouth.
There was a reason Viscount Rose had been so sure Kivrin wouldn't let this go.
“You’re amazing, Kivrin. Was it hard for you?”
Kivrin shook his head.
“It was nothing. It took a l-long time because it's w-winter… A-anyway, they're all gone now, only traces are left.”
In other words, my nosebleed had been very worthwhile.
I took a closer look at the map.
“Huh? The magic circles were only in the Empire?”
Kivrin had even marked one on the small estate of the Rington Viscounty.
I tried to count them one by one but gave up after passing thirty.
“So His Holiness the Pope was planning to frame me for all of this…”
I suddenly remembered the culprits we had met in the marquis's garden.
Had Emil found anything out when he used physical force?
But Kivrin shook his head at my question.
“Those men only said that Marquis Ingram o-ordered them to do it. Back when they c-could still speak.”
“Oh…”
It was a response that made me not want to know what happened to the culprits afterward.
Kivrin put the map away.
“It’s not good to look at a-annoying things, so let’s look at something nice.”
Then, Kivrin took a book from his bookshelf.
…?
As if it were a series with sequels, the title was followed by 'Volume 1'.
Ignoring my peculiar expression, Kivrin's eyes crinkled into a smile.
“Since you said you were trying, Ch-Cheria, I wanted to help.”
This isn't a good thing!
I had been expecting snacks or something, and I unconsciously took a step back.
Kivrin took my hand, his eyes filled with anticipation.
“There are ten volumes, so I can r-read to you every day until we go to the c-capital. N-not that you'll ever be a-alone with the Saintess, but… it doesn't hurt to be c-careful.”
“……”
“You can’t get sick a-again.”
Ugh.
Not wanting to worry Kivrin any further, I sat down.
And just as he promised, Kivrin read to me every single night.
* * *
I set foot in the capital three days before the Consecration Ceremony began.
“The weather's gotten much warmer, don't you think? The flowers will be blooming soon.”
Kivrin stared at me intently.
“Do you… want to see the flowers?”
“Yes! Oh, right, Mother said she’s going to hold the spring festival again this year, so I really want to see it. She said that watching the flowers at Full Moon Lake really lifts your spirits.”
When I beamed and nodded, Menelik looked satisfied.
“Flower viewing should be done on the ducal estate. Not in a desolate place like the capital.”
Haha.
Menelik seemed to take great pride in the scenery of the ducal estate.
He had said the same when I told him I'd visited the marquis's garden, claiming the gardens of Crescent Moon Castle were far more spectacular.
Instead of scorning Menelik as usual, Kivrin merely gave him a light glance and said nothing.
On the way to the capital, I had been diligently observing whether there was any room for Kivrin and Menelik's relationship to improve.
Thanks to my active efforts to include them in conversations, the two of them had started exchanging words for at least five minutes a day.
I excitedly reported this to Winter via the communication stone, and while she listened with a pleased expression, she was also worried about me.
[You're having a hard time because of that man who'll likely be childish until the day he dies and that boy who grew up too fast. Don't you dare skip any meals, and tell Yelena if you feel even a little bit sick. And don't forget you can come back to the castle anytime.]
“Yes! Mother, can I call you again?”
[Hehe, you're welcome anytime. Hearing your voice makes all the fatigue of the day just melt away.]
Beside me, Menelik protested, asking Winter why she wasn't taking his calls, but the connection was mercilessly cut.
We spent the first day resting, and the next, we visited an old temple on the outskirts of the capital as a test.
“E-excuse me, are you perhaps Duke Nectarian?” a priest who was guiding visitors asked, trembling.
Menelik casually denied it.
“No.”
“But your attire, anyone can see…”
He couldn't bring himself to look directly at our obviously well-dressed group, instead sneaking glances.
Menelik cast a chilling gaze at him.
“Are you going to keep bothering us?”
“No, sir! I’ll leave at once!”
The priest scurried away and didn't bother us again.
Under Kivrin's and Menelik's watchful eyes, I checked my condition.
This temple had only one resident high priest.
Thanks to that, when I held Kivrin's hand, the divine power was only mildly unpleasant.
There was also a difference in how much my skin itched depending on whether Kivrin was by my side.
It felt like I had been prescribed the perfect sedative.
“For some reason, having you next to me feels much more effective than that mind-mastering book, Kivrin.”
I stretched lightly.
This must be the influence of my past life, right? It must be related to the rumor that Del went mad and died.
“I-I’m glad I can help.”
Kivrin just smiled, his silver lashes fluttering.
But I was recalling what Kivrin had said—that Jaehae had probably died back then, too.
