<Chapter 60>

*  *  *

Dear God.

Please, I beg you, answer me.

“Why is it that I can never be happy for even a moment?”

A fierce wind howled, strong enough to not only make my clothes flutter but to sway my entire body precariously.

The ground below was so far away that the tall trees looked no bigger than my fingers.

If I fell from here, survival would be impossible.

“Dear God. This is my final prayer!”

But even in the last, ultimate moment, God remained silent.

No matter how many hundreds or thousands of times I cried out, there was no response. What meaning could there possibly be in an act like prayer?

“In that case…”

I tore off the pendant hanging around my neck and hurled it to the ground beneath my feet, then stomped on it with all my strength.

“Did you see that? Of course, you didn’t. You’ve never looked at someone like me, not even once! You didn’t abandon me—I abandoned you…!”

—At last.

“Huh…?”

—Your voice has reached me.

A serene voice echoed in my mind as though it pierced straight through my consciousness.

—to you…

At the same time, a pure white light enveloped my entire body. Though more words followed, I couldn’t make out a single one of them…

My unsteady body lost balance and fell.

Down from the tower. Rapidly, mercilessly.

*  *  *

“Gasp!”

A cold sweat trickled down my back. At the same time, a tear escaped from the corner of my eye.

‘What was that just now?’

Was it a dream?

‘Or rather… it felt more like… an old memory.’

I placed my hand over my chest.

My heart, pounding abnormally fast, made it clear that the dream I’d had last night was no ordinary one.

I let out a sigh as I replayed its fragments in my mind.

‘So I only closed my eyes for a moment while Temenos went to the jail…’

The surroundings were still dim, suggesting dawn had not yet broken. The faint glow of light from an alert window caught my attention.

“…Huh? What is this?”

Achievement Unlocked! <The First Holy Knight in 300 Years>

The Guardian, a special holy knight tasked with protecting the Saintess, has awakened. As a reward, you have received 1 Divine Oracle Token.

“Huh? H-huh?”

A special holy knight protecting the Saintess? The Guardian? What’s that?

‘Even in the novel, something like this never came up…’

In this world, aside from the Pope, the Saintess, and Saintess candidates, the ranks of the clergy and holy knights were as follows:

Apprentice Cleric, Cleric, Bishop, and Archbishop.

Apprentice Holy Knight, Holy Knight, Paladin, and lastly, the Inquisitor.

Clerics could advance to Bishop and Archbishop as their divine power grew, but holy knights were different.

No matter how much divine power one possessed, to become a Paladin, they had to manifest their divine weapon.

As for becoming an Inquisitor…

‘It was written that the Pope simply chose someone from somewhere.’

The Inquisitors were loyal secret knights who followed the Pope’s orders alone. They were described as extraordinarily strong…

‘Anyway, I’ve never heard of anything like a Guardian.’

A special holy knight protecting the Saintess… Who could that even refer to?

‘Well, I’ll probably come across them sooner or later if they’re around me.’

In any case, getting a free divine oracle token is nothing to complain about.

Ecstatic, I checked the divine message window.

◆ Ultimate Objective: Save the World

◇ Current Objective: Raise Northern Faith to 5,000 | Confessions 9/10

 

*Northern Faith: 4,367

*Familiar: Flurry (Hamster)

*Key Items in Possession: 3 Divine Oracle Tokens

 

▼ Replay Divine Oracle

Thanks to diligently healing people, the Northern Faith score had surpassed 4000, and with the recent achievement, I now had three divine oracle tokens.

Feeling proud, I stared at the divine message window and clicked the “Replay Divine Oracle” button.

BEST
LilyoftheValley

In fairy tales, a prince’s kiss wakes the sleeping princess. And in romance fantasy novels, the one who calms the rampaging male lead is… mmph

Only one window appeared before my eyes. The “find-my-brother” comment from last time was nowhere to be seen.

‘So that man from yesterday really must be my brother…?’

But why did he try to attack me? Could it be he doesn’t know I’m his sister?

‘Or maybe… he realized I’m not the real Inosensia…’

The thought of the late “Inosensia” made my heart feel heavy.

Knock, knock.

Someone knocked on the bedroom door. I quickly dismissed the divine message windows and told them to come in.

The person who entered was Temenos.

“Everything is ready. If we leave for the jail now—”

His voice trailed off abruptly.

Standing in the dim light with a lamp in hand, he approached me silently.

Temenos placed the lamp on the bedside table, knelt on one knee beside the bed, and leaned in toward me.

“Are you alright?”

“Y-yeah, probably? Why?”

Temenos frowned as if dissatisfied with my answer.

“If you’re fine, say so. If you’re not, then say you’re not. What’s with the ‘probably’?”

“I’m… mostly fine?”

I hadn’t felt great when I woke up, but I seemed fine now.

The chill had left my fingers, the cold sweat evaporated, and the dream that had weighed heavily on my mind…

‘Wait.’

What dream was it again?

Just a moment ago, I could recall fragments of it, but now, even those are slipping away.

‘What was it? I’m sure it was important.’

As I racked my brain, folding my arms and groaning, I suddenly felt a cautious warmth brush against my cheek.

Startled, I lifted my head to see Temenos’ face startlingly close.

‘Huh?’

And in that moment, what crossed my mind was the playful penance I had once suggested to Temenos.

“As soon as you meet her eyes, pull her into your arms and kiss her without hesitation.”

‘Huh? Huuh?! Is now the moment for that?!’

I stared at Temenos with wide, trembling eyes, and as the distance between us closed slightly, I shut mine tightly.

But his lips didn’t touch mine. Instead, his fingertips brushed the corner of my eyes.

“Did you cry?”

“…No?”

When I opened my eyes again, Temenos’ face was so close I could feel his breath.

Feeling flustered by the proximity, I avoided his gaze, but unlike me, he spoke without hesitation. “There are tear marks.”

“Tears? Oh… I had a dream earlier. I must’ve cried then.”

“What kind of dream makes you cry?”

“Um…”

I tried to recall, but the details of the dream remained elusive. All I could vaguely remember was…

“It felt like… memories of the past.”

“…Memories of the past?”

“Yeah. Wait, if I think hard enough, maybe I can remember…”

Suddenly, Temenos’ crimson eyes wavered like rippling water.

“No.”

“What?”

Before I could process it, his firm grip seized my shoulders.

My eyes locked with his burning gaze.

“Huh?!”

His lips pressed against mine.

‘Oh my God.’

The clumsy, trembling pressure on my lips felt more like an awkward crash than a kiss.

Was that what he thought too? His grip on my shoulders trembled as if unsure what to do next, but that was all. He remained frozen, holding his breath as if paralyzed.

‘How adorable.’

Had he been waiting for the right moment since leaving the confessional?

‘Oh my, he tried so hard.’  

There’s a Korean proverb that says, “Give an extra rice cake to the one you hate,” but just for today, I feel like giving an extra rice cake to the one who’s giving his best.

I reached out and wrapped my arms around his neck.

One wrist felt the heat of his skin, while the other brushed against the cool, scaled texture beneath my fingertips.

When I unconsciously stroked the scales, Temenos flinched. Before he could retreat, I tilted my head to properly align our lips.

As our lips met fully, the grip on my shoulders tightened momentarily.

When the pressure became uncomfortable, I shifted slightly, causing Temenos to jerk back in surprise and loosen his hold.

Worried he might interpret it as rejection, I leaned further into his embrace.

‘He’s warm…’

Feeling light-headed, I clung to him, tracing the cold scales with my fingers.

As I rubbed them gently, he seemed to relax, and the tension drained from his body.

Then, those powerful arms wrapped around me, locking me in place as though I might escape.

When I tried to adjust my head, his large hand cupped the back of it, holding me steady.

And then, as though sharing his breath with me, he deepened the kiss.

Flop.

Before I realized it, my body was pushed down onto the bed. I stared blankly at the face approaching mine.
 

<To be continued>

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