Chapter 28

“The duke was unavoidably called away. Something happened on the Northern Wall that required his immediate attention.”

“Oh, but with the duchess here, what problem could there be. Sponsoring the sacred temple has always been the lady of the house’s responsibility. One could say the rightful person has arrived.”

The archbishop clearly held resentment toward the duke, who had neglected religious duties for a long time.

The duke had his own reasons for distancing himself from religion, but I simply nodded without showing any reaction.

Just then, someone pushed through the bustling crowd.

“Madam!”

I turned to see Joseph the trainee monk, a few volunteers from the monastery, and Vincent in his usual plain black cassock.

They ran up with excited smiles and began talking over one another about how wonderfully the monastery, the clinic, and all the attached facilities had been renovated.

Especially Joseph, who was practically bouncing as he spoke.

“It does not leak anymore and we do not have to worry about anything falling from the ceiling. Madam, the place has changed so much I cannot believe it is the same monastery.”

“Everyone is truly grateful to you, Madam.”

“You will not get anything from flattering me.”

“It is not flattery. Not only us but the entire village thinks the same. The officials never care about the outer wall where we live. It is all thanks to you.”

“If you want to thank someone, you can thank our guest from the Holy City when they arrive in Lombard.”

I did not bother hiding the real purpose of this project.

I openly stated that it was to welcome an esteemed guest sent by the pope himself, someone the duke was paying particular attention to.

That was why an enormous budget of two thousand gold coins had passed without much opposition.

Even though this project included all the sacred temples in the outer wall, which the officials usually considered useless.

‘I always wanted to try my hand at improving public infrastructure.’

The project took longer than expected because of the outer wall temples.

Inside the inner wall, people lived well and the churches were supported by ample donations. But the outer wall temples barely survived day by day.

Many of them had to run clinics, scriptoria, libraries, and even schools as attached facilities because the area lacked independent buildings.

There had been complaints during construction, but from now on the people’s lives would improve.

‘Truly killing two birds with one stone.’

Of course, I had no interest in the people’s well-being. The real reason was to leave a good impression on the inquisitor.

Hehe. I gave a sly little laugh to myself and turned my head.

“Brother Vincent, seeing you here feels strangely new.”

“It is also refreshing to see you in a sacred temple, Elicia. It makes today’s ceremony feel even more meaningful.”

Unlike the other priests, who wore embroidered ceremonial vestments for the consecration, Vincent wore the same plain outfit as always.

Would someone scold him for that, like the archbishop?

I was about to ask when Joseph suddenly cut in, eyes sparkling.

“Madam, if it is not too much trouble, could you visit the monastery soon? We are holding a simple feast to celebrate the completion in a few days. If Madam could grace us with your presence, everyone would…”

“You insolent Lombard wretch, how dare you speak so familiarly!”

Joseph had not even finished speaking before a sharp slap sound rang across the corridor.

Lady Olden, who I thought was still speaking with the archbishop, had smacked Joseph’s hand with her fan.

Even Baron Conte, who never dared approach me and kept chewing his handkerchief from afar, flinched at the loud sound.

“How dare you. Step back at once.”

“S, sorry…”

Joseph stumbled back, eyes welling with tears.

Every gaze around us turned our way. People whispered quietly.

Insolent Lombard wretch.

To say that at an event attended mostly by Lombard-born residents was the same as throwing mud on my face.

Could Lady Olden, who had spent so many years in the palace, really not understand that?

It was hard to believe this was a coincidence.

‘So, what should I do now.’

Honestly, my reputation did not matter anymore. I had no intention of appearing at public events after today.

But Joseph’s trembling sniffles bothered me.

He was an orphan like I had once been.

With a sigh, I finally raised my hand to stop her.

“Do not go too far.”

“But Madam.”

“Today is supposed to be a happy day. Raising our voices in a sacred place is not appropriate.”

Just as expected, Lady Olden glared at me in defiance. She stared straight into my eyes as if trying to force me to back down.

When I did not yield, she ground her teeth, then for some reason narrowed her eyes at Vincent before turning sharply away.

The timid brother crept behind me as if hiding.

“D, do you think she is angry at me?”

“Who knows.”

He was taller than me by a whole head. Hiding was pointless.

I offered a random excuse for his sake.

“She is shy. She gets prickly when she likes someone. Probably.”

“…What?”

Vincent looked at me as if I were an absolute lunatic, so I quickly added more nonsense.

“Have you never looked in a mirror. I know it is rude to say this to a priest, but you are handsome, Brother.”

“I, I am handsome?”

“Why do you look like that.”

“I have never heard anyone say that before.”

“The people of the Holy City must all be blind. Not recognizing a handsome man like you.”

I hated to admit it, but the duke was the most handsome man I had ever seen, yet Vincent was not far behind.

If the duke was a pure white lily, elegant and noble, Vincent was a vivid rose, striking and dramatic.

No priest looked less suited to a cassock than Vincent.

‘Considering his personality is a mess, I guess God balances things out in His own way.’

I ignored Vincent muttering to himself and went inside.

The consecration ceremony ended and the Scripture reading began.

After offering a prayer of gratitude before the gathered congregation, the archbishop invited me to the podium.

Normally, only the officiating clergy were allowed up there.

Meaning, this was a special courtesy.

“We will now hear from the duchess who sponsored the construction of the sacred temple.”

Feeling it was money well spent, I stepped forward. Lady Olden followed close behind.

Suddenly, I remembered something from the past.

Back then, I had glimpsed the Lombard duchess a few times from afar.

Even someone as self-indulgent as Elicia had to appear at important events like the Harvest Festival and the Victory Fair.

Lady Olden and the other attendants from the Capital always surrounded her in a tight formation.

People could not approach. Eventually no one even tried.

Looking back, Lady Olden had not been protecting Elicia out of loyalty. She had been isolating her.

But why?

‘No matter how I think about it, I cannot understand why she would attack her own mistress.’

It was a curiosity, but something I decided not to dwell on.

The reason would become clear soon enough.

Pretending to adjust my dress, I grabbed the edge of the podium cloth.

My dress was so elaborate that a few decorative tassels getting caught would not be noticeable at all.

The moment I turned, the velvet cloth covering the podium slid off helplessly.

Everything on top, including candlesticks, crashed loudly to the floor.

“Duchess, are you hurt. I should have ensured the cloth was secured more tightly. I will severely reprimand the manager. We must bring a physician immediately.”

The shocked archbishop rushed over, more concerned about my safety than the mess.

I shook my head.

“I am all right, Archbishop. It was my mistake. There is no need to scold anyone else.”

“If you insist on being so gracious…”

Realizing I wanted to move past it quietly, the archbishop ordered the space to be cleaned.

They tried to bring in a fresh podium cloth, but I refused, saying too many people were waiting.

So we proceeded with the prayer.

Afterward, I took a thin checkbook and pen from my sleeve and addressed the efforts of the archdiocese with gratitude.

I wrote a suitable amount and handed the check to Lady Olden.

“This will be my offering to the sacred temple. It is a joyful day, so I wish to share that joy with everyone.”

“Oh, Duchess.”

If no one were watching, the archbishop looked ready to kiss my hand from excitement.

He knew how generously I had donated before. His eyes sparkled with expectation.

Lady Olden stepped away to place the check in an envelope and seal it with my crest.

“Could you assist me. I feel a bit unsteady on my feet.”

“It is my honor, Duchess.”

Sister Godelina, one of the archbishop’s trusted attendants, supported me.

As we walked down the steps, my eyes drifted toward the podium’s wooden surface, deeply scratched by a pen tip.