Previously
Cecilia enjoys her new life as the beloved fourth princess, observing her beautiful siblings Theodore, Rebecca, and Roselia. She realizes her family members are destined for greatness based on the original novel's plot, with Roselia becoming a Knight Commander and Rebecca a Papal candidate.
That was the very first day I left the nursery since being born as Cecilia. It had been decided that I would receive my baptism to mark my first birthday.
Though she could hardly expect me to understand, the nanny chattered the entire time she was dressing me, telling me everything that would happen during the ceremony.
For my part, I welcomed it.
“Once you are baptized today, you will officially be a member of the imperial family. I wonder how great your power will be? I imagine everyone will be astonished.”
As if adding the final touch, the nanny carefully pinned a headband onto my head.
She took a step back, a warm smile gracing her face as she looked over my appearance for the first time with the headband on.
“Oh, Your Majesty, she looks as though a little angel has descended.”
“Really now, the things you say.”
Mother chided her lightly, but clear satisfaction lilted through the end of her words.
Though past forty and having borne five children including me, Mother still possessed an enchanting, pure beauty.
And in her breathtaking ceremonial gown, she was truly captivating.
Truly… wasn't this the very essence of fantasy?
“Cecil, my little one. Even if you possess immense Holy Power, no one will ever harm you. And even if you don't, you will always remain our beloved youngest.”
Mother lifted me into her arms and whispered softly, overflowing with love.
Because she wore lipstick, she seemed hesitant to kiss me, settling instead for rubbing her dainty nose against mine.
‘Ah, she smells so nice.’
‘Though despite all those sweet words… disappointment in a child can strike in an instant.’
Those cold glares my parents had given me in my past life… as if to say, “I knew you'd end up like this.”
‘At the very least, I hope the result is decent.’
This country… Asurama… well, whatever its full name was, was a religious realm, meaning potent Holy Power was considered one of the foremost qualities in a successor.
Because of that, Father—the second son of the late Emperor—and my eldest sister Grace, who was to be invested as Crown Princess this year, both commanded tremendous Holy Power.
‘That's why they measure it at such a young age. With Emily, they didn't measure it until she was almost of age.’
Recalling that episode, which had served as the prelude to the secret-of-birth trope—a quintessential plot device—I left the nursery in my nanny's arms.
Although all of us—myself, Mother, and the rest of the imperial family—were dressed in formal attire, the ceremony was not lavish. The baptism was held in a chapel within the palace, attended only by immediate family and a few close confidants like the nanny.
I had left the nursery, yes, but I still had not set foot beyond the palace walls.
‘I won't even be allowed to appear at public events until I turn ten.’
They said it was a tradition meant to protect the imperial bloodline.
“Greetings to the Light of the Empire. Thank you for making the journey despite the hardship.”
“It is quite close by. Your Majesty seems to be in better health. I hear the family has grown far more harmonious thanks to the youngest princess.”
“Haha, it seems word has gotten around.”
The elderly gentleman shaking Father's hand over there… that had to be the Pope.
The main temple was located near the palace, yet His Holiness appeared so frail that they thanked him just for coming.
“So you are Cecilia.”
“Cecil, this is your great-uncle. His Holiness the Pope.”
…Right. Since the greatest reserves of Holy Power were concentrated within the imperial family, the Pope was often drawn from its ranks. That was why it was hardly surprising that Rebecca was considered a candidate for the Papacy.
‘It's rare for anyone outside the imperial family to be born with comparable Holy Power, unless they're the child of a saintess. Even high priests hail from the nobility.’
While I, a one-year-old, blinked my eyes and reviewed this world's lore in my head, the Pope patted my head with a gentle smile.
“Come now, Cecil, let us examine you.”
Since it was an intimate family ceremony, there were no elaborate procedures.
Only a few priests accompanied the Pope, along with the court painter tasked with recording the event.
Father took me from the nanny's arms and stepped toward the dais with Mother.
“Lift the child.”
Father and Mother knelt, then lifted me beneath my arms toward the Pope.
Suspended in Father's hands, I looked like a little lion cub being presented as an heir in an animated movie from my previous life.
‘If Father weren't strong enough to hold me steady, this would really hurt…’
Just as I began worrying about the firmness of his grip, the Pope dipped his hand into the holy water from the chalice, placed it on my forehead, and began to chant.
Warmth washed over me, and my vision flared with light.
‘So Holy Power can manifest like this.’
When Rebecca regulated my body temperature, I had felt only warmth or cool relief.
Was the effect visually apparent because this was a blessing?
“May the radiant beams of light walk with Cecilia all her days. And may she grace the world with the moon's gentle benevolence.”
The light resonated with the Pope's words, then dimmed and rushed toward my head as though being absorbed within. I stared at the sight, spellbound.
‘Now this is the true taste of fantasy.’
When the Pope clasped his hands and bowed, everyone followed suit.
“Very well, then.”
The priests then wheeled forward a small cart carrying a strangely shaped crystal, resembling a cluster of hexagonal pillars.
‘The Holy Power measuring device…!’
It was just as I had read in The Violet of the Duchy.
‘Emily used this at the main temple… It seems they brought it here.’
Emily, the heroine who hailed from a remote province, hadn't been able to receive her baptism until she came of age because there was no temple nearby.
And when she finally underwent the rite, her Holy Power was so immense it stunned high society. That level of power simply did not emerge from an ordinary baronial family.
‘As expected of a heroine… she has to have a cheat ability.’
She cultivated that power with ease, eventually growing strong enough to heal her lover in the heat of battle.
The moment she placed her hand on the crystal, brilliant white light had burst forth… I remembered that scene. Now that I was living it myself, my heart thudded in my chest.
‘Is this how a successful fan feels? Or is it like riding an attraction based on a blockbuster film?’
Though I had never traveled abroad, so it was all just imagination anyway.
Once the priests set the crystal stone upon the altar, Father carried me toward it.
‘Simple as it is, I'm nervous.’
Last autumn, my eldest sister Grace had celebrated her coming-of-age ceremony and received the title of Crown Princess, so my Holy Power had no bearing on the line of succession.
Even so, a test was still a test!
Having survived an intensely cutthroat society in my past life, I swallowed hard against the deeply ingrained tension.
‘The greater the Holy Power, the brighter the light. I just hope the result is modest… If Grace marries and has children, they'll be around my age, and friction could arise between us… Should I follow Rebecca and devote myself to the faith instead?’
Amid those worries, my tiny hand was guided forward by Mother until it touched the cold surface of the crystal.
“…?”
How much time had passed?
‘…Wait, really?’
To my utter shock, nothing happened.
Silence fell over the chapel.
The Pope, the priests, the imperial family—no one uttered a single word. Even the court painter froze, paintbrush hovering in the air.
“This is… strange.”
One of the priests stepped forward to inspect it, and the instant his fingers grazed the crystal, it burst into a brilliant white glow.
Then silence fell once more.
“Let us try again.”
The Pope spoke in a calm voice, gesturing with his hand. Yet I could clearly hear the faint tremor at the tail end of his words.
When my hand carefully met the crystal once more—
“Could you keep your hand on it a little longer?”
Even though my hand had been resting there for plenty of time, not the slightest change appeared. Meanwhile, the priest had made it blaze with a mere touch!
What was this? How utterly humiliating!
“Waa, waaaah…”
I felt like crying from sheer embarrassment.
Was it because I was an infant that my tears took a moment to catch up?
While I was trying to express my shame by crying, real tears began pooling in my eyes—and Mother swiftly gathered me into her arms, patting my back to soothe me.
“Hush now, Cecil. It's alright, it doesn't matter at all.”
Doesn't matter at all?
I had seen it. The instant Mother's hand lifted from patting me, the crystal had glowed faintly.
Should she really have checked further…
Yes. Incredibly, I was the very first case in the entire history of the faith to possess no Holy Power whatsoever.
‘They say everyone living in the age of sanctity possesses at least a sliver of Holy Power, so how could I, a member of the imperial family… Wasn't I supposed to be rewarded after a loveless life?’
The Pope and the priests could hardly believe it. They tried infusing their own Holy Power into me and ran several tests, but nothing changed.
‘Is it because my soul came from another world?’
Once I moved past my embarrassment, I arrived at that plausible deduction in my own way, but my family seemed to draw a completely different conclusion.
“Mother, how about I assign some knights from my personal guard to Cecil? I will take full responsibility for protecting her!”
“A fine idea. Let us choose five… no, ten. And we must assign dedicated maids to her at once.”
“I will seek out maidens from trustworthy families.”
“Please do.”
The moment the baptism concluded, everyone began proposing excessively protective measures for me.
Assigning a private priest, constructing a medicinal herb greenhouse in the garden, doubling the magical barriers around the nursery, preparing magical defense artifacts…
‘All of this is truly over the top.’
Still, I understood why.
Holy Power was not only used to purge dark energy or heal others; it also aided recovery from illnesses and accelerated the healing of wounds.
It served as a kind of immune system… which was why they were treating me like a sugar confection that might crumble at a touch.
‘At least they don't seem disappointed in me.’
In my previous life, I had been singled out for harsh treatment for no reason at all. How much worse could it have been when the flaw involved Holy Power, the very basis of imperial legitimacy?
‘In my past life, even though I was the eldest who carried all the household chores, put myself through school and work, and tried to be the perfect friend and girlfriend, everyone still…’
Just thinking about that life where I always came dead last cast a gloom over me. At the same time, I felt deeply grateful to my present family for not discarding me despite my deficiency.
As I sat in my crib watching them discuss the matter so solemnly—
“Very well, let us leave it at that for now.”
Mother brought the discussion to a close, and every head turned toward me all at once.
“Hic…”
Though I realized they were looking at me with concern… having so many eyes fixed squarely upon me made me feel as if I had done something terribly wrong. Tears welled up in my eyes.
“Waa, waaaah…”
‘Even if I have no Holy Power… I won't disappoint you in anything else!’