FMV 35

Chapter 35

“It’s all right.”

Elise remained remarkably calm after hearing the news from Damian.

At her reaction, he leisurely raised one eyebrow.

“You have something in mind.”

“Wouldn’t it be more fun this way?”

How could she possibly have thought of bringing the children from the orphanage?

She could only have come up with such a scheme because she didn’t know the true nature of the orphanage.

“I’ll just pretend to fall for it.”

Elise popped one of the chocolate cookies Seria had baked herself into her mouth.

With a crisp crunch, she smiled contentedly and calmly chewed the cookie.

“Hm?”

Only after taking a sip of the warm milk did she notice Damian’s gaze.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

He simply stared at Elise, the corners of his lips slightly raised.

“Are you worried?”

Maybe she had been acting too unconcerned.

She gave an embarrassed little cough.

At that moment, Damian’s fingertips slowly brushed the corner of Elise’s lips.

“Of course not.”

He casually popped the crumb of cookie stuck to his fingertip into his mouth and gave a small chuckle.

“You just look so comfortable. You look happy.”

At those words, her cheeks flushed peach-red.

“Aren’t you worried? Won’t it look like I haven’t thought of any countermeasures at all?”

“Hah.”

Damian stuffed a chocolate cookie from the plate into Elise’s mouth.

“You must have a reason for being so confident. Am I wrong?”

Then he popped one into his own mouth and continued.

“And even if you don’t have a plan, so what? I’ll be your weapon.”

The movement of her lips as she chewed the cookie stopped for a moment.

“I’m a sword you can pick up and wield whenever you want.”

“Damian.”

“One you can throw away if I’m no longer useful.”

He tilted his head slightly to the side and lowered his gaze.

Elise stared blankly at Damian’s face.

There was a faint bitterness in his expression.

I have rejected Damian so outright until now. Of course he must have been hurt.

She clenched her teeth tightly.

Then, before long, she suddenly grabbed both of Damian’s hands.

“What on earth are you talking about?”

Elise looked straight into his eyes with a resolute expression.

“You never abandoned me, even when we were in danger. So why would I ever abandon you? Besides…”

Her eyes curved gently.

“Where could I possibly find a sword sharper than you?”

Damian was speechless for a moment.

He could feel Elise’s sincerity in the way she looked at him, in her voice, and even in her manner of speaking.

“…All right.”

The corners of his lips slowly curved upward.

Elise also gazed fondly at Damian’s smile. Then, suddenly, a good idea flashed through her mind.

“Damian.”

“Yes?”

“I have a good idea.”

Elise leaned toward his ear and whispered something softly.

As she murmured into his ear, the corners of Damian’s lips slowly curved into a sly smile.

When the day of the Grand Consecration finally arrived, the temple had been decorated almost excessively.

Long banners embroidered with golden thread hung from the ceiling of the central hall of the pristine white temple, while priests burned fragrant incense atop the candle stands.

A thick carpet as white as milk covered the floor, and on either side, the empire’s nobles, ministers, knights, and priests stood arranged along the tiered steps.

It was a perfect scene, one that suited an occasion dedicated to mercy and salvation.

At least, that was how it appeared on the surface.

“Beautiful.”

Eshit stood at the highest point of the altar, wearing an unusually benevolent smile.

He looked every bit like a monarch who had genuinely prepared this entire ceremony for the sake of his people and the Saintess.

Yet beneath his eyes lay entirely different thoughts.

“Today is going to be a wonderful day.”

The smile on her face, one that had seemed so victorious, would finally crumble.

Eshit’s gaze turned toward the main entrance of the temple.

The doors slowly opened.

Having prepared a smile for the occasion, he slowly turned his head.

The ones entering the Imperial Palace under the guidance of a priest were the children from the orphanage.

Yet there was something strangely unsettling about the way they entered in formation.

“Hm?”

Eshit’s brow furrowed slightly as he sensed something unusual.

For children, they were far too quiet.

Some had faces that looked young, but the expressions on those faces were anything but childish.

Their eyes were sunken, and the light in them was faint, as though it had been worn away long ago.

Even as they walked, they instinctively scanned the exits, windows, and the positions of the guards.

That was not a habit children from an ordinary orphanage would have.

It was the habit of those who had learned how to survive before anything else.

Could it be…?

Before bringing Elise to the palace, Eshit had already thoroughly investigated the orphanage where she had been raised.

There had been nothing particularly noteworthy about it.

It was simply an ordinary orphanage.

They probably just grew up without enough food or education.

Perhaps he was simply being too sensitive because he had been so preoccupied with the Grand Consecration.

Eshit brushed his bangs back and headed into the temple. Once inside, he spotted Ian and Leonhardt.

Leonhardt’s expression was quite amusing.

“Looks like he’s nervous.”

He gave a derisive chuckle and headed toward the seat of honor.

But Ian’s expression hardened as one of his eyebrows twitched.

He, too, had sensed something strange about the children from the orphanage.

“Hm, something…”

Leonhardt was feeling the same thing.

Their synchronized steps, their movement without making a single unnecessary sound, and even the way they kept their heads lowered while remaining alert to their surroundings—it was anything but normal.

But that lasted only for a moment.

Soon, food was laid out in abundance, and the children immediately sat down and grabbed their plates as though they had been waiting for it.

Freshly baked white bread, grilled steak, soup, fruit, sweet pies—when such luxurious food appeared before them, they could no longer hold back and began devouring it.

There was no elegance or decorum.

They stuffed the food into their mouths as if they had been starving for days.

And yet, strangely, not a single sound of eating could be heard from the children.

An eerie silence settled over the entire hall of the temple.

The scraping of utensils against silver trays, the sound of throats hurriedly swallowing hot soup, and the speed at which the plates emptied—it was a sight hardly ever seen within the Imperial Palace.

At the bizarre spectacle of their meal, one noblewoman’s hand trembled as she held her fan.

“They’re even more vulgar than I imagined.”

“They’re rather pitiful. Well, I suppose they’ve probably never even seen, let alone tasted, food like this.”

Eshit was momentarily taken aback, but soon he smiled viciously to himself.

Just as I thought.

It was actually better this way. The more the nobles pitied those children, the more perfectly his plan would succeed.

The food had already been tampered with.

Magical stone powder had been mixed into it so subtly that it was neither noticeable nor detectable by its smell.

When it came into contact with divine power, it would react instantly inside the body, causing convulsions and pain, and in severe cases, symptoms approaching death.

A little later, the moment Elise used her divine power, they would all collapse on the altar at once.

The nobles will see it with their own eyes. They’ll watch the people blessed by the Saintess collapse, coughing up blood.

The corners of Eshit’s lips slowly curled upward.