IFGO 05

Chapter 05

Eventually, the door opened, and when I saw the man standing there, I rose from my seat.

It was Rayhas.

Wearing a neat white uniform, Rayhas looked as radiant as ever today.

‘But… is the High Priest really allowed to enter the Saintess’s room whenever he wants?’

I tilted my head slightly as I wondered.

“May the blessing of the Nine Gods be upon the High Priest.”

Suppressing my doubts, I greeted him with the formal greeting of a Saintess that I had recently learned.

“Thank you, Ariel.”

Fortunately, he accepted my greeting with a smile, so I assumed I had done it correctly.

As if he had noticed that I had been writing something, he walked toward me with long strides and asked.

“Were you studying?”

Only then did I remember the calculations I had been writing, and my shoulders flinched.

If he saw them, he might figure out my escape plan.

‘If that happened…’

The memory of his cold gaze beneath his dark lashes flashed through my mind, and a chill ran down my spine.

I quickly moved the memo behind me and held out another sheet of paper with something else written on it, as if to get ahead of him.

“You came at the perfect time, High Priest.”

“What is this?”

Although he looked puzzled, he readily accepted the paper, and I felt a small sense of relief.

He took the paper from me and leaned against the window.

Even without the sunlight pouring in from behind him, he was the kind of man who looked as if he had a halo around him.

His features were undeniably masculine, yet the word beautiful suited his face.

It was still hard to believe that someone like him had killed Annie.

“I wanted you to review the congratulatory speech I’m going to read at His Highness Kyle’s birthday banquet tomorrow.”

Soon, I would have the chance to meet the second male lead of this novel.

The man Ariel had originally loved unrequitedly.

Of course, I had no intention of following the original story, but I had been curious about what Kyle actually looked like.

For the record, the speech I handed to Rayhas wasn’t something I had written.

It was something Ariel had prepared before I possessed her body.

Aside from the title, ‘Birthday Speech for His Highness the Crown Prince’, I hadn’t properly read it.

He began reading while leaning against the window.

“Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to our beloved Crown Prince Kyle. His Highness was born to be loved. And within the life of His Highness the Crown Prince, he is indeed loved. The love of the Nine Gods that began since the dawn of time…”

After a long while, his lips closed.

My face burned with embarrassment.

‘Ariel… I knew you were innocent, but I didn’t realize it was this serious.’

I wanted to disappear from shame.

I had picked this excuse hastily because I was afraid he would discover my calculations, but it seemed like I had chosen terribly.

“Perhaps this is too childish for you to review, High Priest. I’ll rewrite it and—”

I hurriedly continued.

“Love…”

But Rayhas interrupted my flustered words.

My eyes blinked at the word that came from his slightly twisted lips.

Instead of criticizing the ridiculously childish writing of the speech, he suddenly asked about my feelings toward Kyle.

“Do you love Crown Prince Kyle?”

I stared at him blankly.

Since he was standing with his back to the window, the sunlight behind him made his expression difficult to see.

But I could tell that he was not looking particularly pleased.

“That love is… um, it’s not exactly that kind of love…”

I could understand why he was displeased.

A fake Saintess who couldn’t even properly perform her duties falling in love with someone as important as the Crown Prince…

It would certainly look pathetic.

“Like the way the gods love humanity, I used the word ‘love’ as an expression of blessing.”

However, having grown up in a harsh environment, I was quite skilled at escaping dangerous situations and changing the subject.

I immediately wrapped it in a more acceptable interpretation.

“If Crown Prince Kyle does not accept it in that figurative sense…”

But he continued speaking with a dissatisfied expression.

“What will you do?”

My reflection was visible in his golden eyes, which seemed unusually intense today.

‘…Why is he suddenly taking this so seriously?’

I became confused.

Ariel’s speech wasn’t merely a figurative expression.

It was probably filled with all of her sincere feelings.

But the possibility that Crown Prince Kyle would take it seriously was close to zero.

At least, judging from Kyle’s personality in the original novel.

“Hmm. If there is room for misunderstanding from the listener’s perspective, then it should be corrected.”

I answered cleanly because I had no desire to argue with him.

Even if he hadn’t pointed it out, I would have rewritten it anyway.

A congratulatory speech was something I had to read in front of many people.

There was no way I could stand there and read something this embarrassing.

“I thought it was just a misunderstanding.”

At my answer, his eyes softened, and he smiled.

“You seem to have grown quite a lot recently.”

The original Ariel, who had written such a speech, would have teared up at his criticism and shown that she didn’t want to change it.

But I wasn’t Ariel.

“I’ll rewrite the speech and have you review it again.”

Rayhas held out the paper to me with both hands covered in white gloves.

“Yes. I will gladly review it again.”

I accepted the paper, thinking that I would tear it up immediately after he left.

However, the moment I reached for it, the paper slipped from my fingers.

Flutter.

The overturned paper landed on the boundary between the hem of my dress and the floor.

I hurriedly bent down to pick it up, but Rayhas’s quiet voice stopped me.

“Stay still.”

His firm, commanding tone made my shoulders flinch.

Then, slowly, he bent down at the knees and waist.

His upper body, which was more than a head taller than mine, lowered until it was beneath my chest.

For some reason, the sight felt strangely awkward.

His hand, covered in a white glove, reached toward the paper.

When his hand touched the paper, I could feel the movement of my dress brushing against my skin.

I stared down at his head as he knelt beneath me, feeling strangely uneasy.

Slowly, he picked up the paper and straightened himself again.

The slightly disheveled state of his hair gave me an odd feeling.

“Thank you.”

After taking the paper back, I stared at him for a long moment.

Then, remembering Annie’s death, I quickly looked away.

His voice soon reached my ears.

For some reason, it carried a hint of amusement.

“Then, I will see you again tomorrow morning.”

After finishing an early dinner, I headed toward the temple library with the maids.

Since I needed to find expressions and honorifics suitable for the Crown Prince’s birthday speech, I planned to borrow several books related to imperial etiquette and ceremonies.

“Saintess, the books related to imperial events are apparently located on the first floor, in the southeast section, at the corner of the third row.”

Following the maid’s directions after she checked with the librarian, I immediately headed there.

All priests, holy knights, Saintesses, and believers registered with the Elium Temple were allowed to borrow books.

Since Elium was practically the central temple of the Empire, many people wanted to become believers of Elium, but there were not enough positions available.

In the end, only prestigious nobles were accepted as believers of Elium.

Ironically, being a believer of Elium became a measure of one’s reputation.

And naturally, there were people who used that status to act superior.

“I am… a shrine maiden who serves the gods.”

“Just because you serve the gods doesn’t mean you can’t have a meal outside, does it? Besides, you’re not even a proper shrine maiden yet. You’re only an apprentice. I, however, am a believer of Elium.”

I stopped walking at the voices I heard.

One belonged to a young-sounding shrine maiden, and the other belonged to a young man.

Even without seeing what was happening behind the bookshelf, I could easily guess the situation.

“I have already eaten. And whether someone is an apprentice or a full-fledged shrine maiden… the devotion of serving the gods is the same.”

“If it’s not a meal, how about a drink instead? I’m offering to show you the world outside this boring temple, so don’t reject me so harshly.”

“Believer. If you continue insulting me, I will have no choice but to formally report this to the temple.”

I let out a small sigh at the unpleasant situation.

To be honest, I disliked getting involved in the injustice of strangers.

If only the situation wasn’t happening right in front of the bookshelf containing the books I needed to borrow…

And if I didn’t need to finish the speech before tomorrow morning…

I wouldn’t have bothered.

But unfortunately, standing before me were a blue-haired apprentice shrine maiden with a pale face and a man in his mid-thirties who was standing close to her, using his position to intimidate her.

And behind him, I could see the book titled:

『Collection of Imperial Banquet Speeches』

I let out another small sigh and spoke.

“Could you move aside?”