Chapter 5
Yoidel greeted Yulisius with half-open, sleepy eyes.
‘What’s that…? A ghost?’
Long silver hair. White robes.
Am I still dreaming…?
“Wake up.”
“Ah, yes!”
Wait… it’s not a dream!
Startled, Yoidel hurriedly checked his clothes.
Fortunately, he was still wearing the same outfit he’d collapsed in from exhaustion yesterday.
Yulisius had personally come to Yoidel’s room and seated himself at the small table in the corner.
The knights who had suddenly entered the room stepped back at a simple gesture from him.
“Drink.”
“Ah! Yes! Thank you!”
Using magic, Yulisius conjured a cup of tea and handed it to Yoidel.
Why does he tremble every time I speak?
Watching the pink-haired youth carefully blow on the hot tea before taking tiny sips, Yulisius found himself wondering if he had truly come of age.
He looked strangely young.
Yulisius stared at him intently.
“W-Why…? Is… is something wrong? Wasn’t it Priest Geram after all?”
“You were right. Priest Geram had indeed been hiding the missing funds, just as you said.”
“Ah! That’s wonderful!”
Yoidel smiled brightly in relief before hurriedly correcting himself.
“I mean… I’m glad the Grand Temple is safe!”
Yulisius silently studied the determination burning in Yoidel’s crimson eyes.
He had lived far longer than ordinary humans because of his nature.
Over those long years, he had met and judged countless people.
He’s different.
He knew everyone in this temple.
Among them, Yoidel was someone he could never have overlooked.
The old Yoidel had always looked at him with disturbing greed…
Obsession…
Madness.
But this pink-haired boy before him…
It was as if he were an entirely different person.
As the silence stretched on, Yoidel cautiously broke it.
“I-I’m really sorry about yesterday.”
“Don’t offer meaningless apologies that accomplish nothing. They have no value.”
Apparently, that wasn’t what he wanted to hear.
Yulisius replied coolly before quietly setting down his teacup and extending one hand toward Yoidel.
“Place your head here.”
“H-Headbutt it? No! My head isn’t made of stone…”
Hearing the tearful protest, Yulisius closed his eyes with an exasperated smile.
A quiet chuckle escaped him like a passing breeze.
Yoidel instinctively shielded his head with both hands and cautiously backed away.
“What would I gain from hitting a blockhead like you? I simply need to determine how much of what you’ve said is true and how much is false.”
I never said I had a blockhead…
His honest thoughts had slipped out.
Yoidel felt slightly offended but endured it since he was technically the guilty party.
“B-But… if I lie… what exactly can you see?”
“The record of your soul.”
He paused.
“Or would you rather refuse? In that case, I suppose we’ll simply die here together.”
Before he had even finished speaking, Yoidel immediately pressed his forehead against Yulisius’s palm.
“Go ahead.”
She still hadn’t recovered all of Yoidel’s original memories.
Little by little, tiny fragments surfaced with the passing of time.
Just how much can he see?
A warm light spread from Yulisius’s hand.
Yoidel suddenly felt all his fatigue melt away.
His entire body felt refreshed.
Wow… What is this?
Yulisius quietly looked down at Yoidel, whose eyes had become as round as a startled rabbit’s.
No signs that anyone has tampered with him…
But he is hiding something.
The pink-haired boy’s memories were… strange.
There were unfamiliar cities filled with bizarre architecture.
Languages he’d never heard before.
Completely foreign environments.
Is this the precognitive ability he mentioned…?
Has his perception opened so far that it reaches another world?
Whenever Yulisius tried to probe further into those memories, an unseen force pushed his divine power away.
It wasn’t hostile.
An unconscious latent ability?
He wasn’t entirely suspicious.
But neither could he be called completely innocent.
An oddly ambiguous existence.
Still…
His ability to see the future was undoubtedly real.
Yesterday’s events had already proven that.
And he had even exposed someone connected to his own family for the sake of justice.
“My memories… are strange?”
“They’re fine.”
Seeing Yoidel’s lips twitch nervously, Yulisius felt irritation rising inside him.
His lips still remembered the sensation of yesterday’s kiss.
Almost unconsciously, he rubbed them.
The slight swelling remained.
Yoidel’s lips were swollen as well.
Yulisius narrowed his eyes.
“This feels disgusting.”
Far from being the other half of his soul…
This creature couldn’t even contain a fraction of a fraction of his divine power.
He was more like some tiny woodland animal.
Even so…
He had undeniably been useful to the Grand Temple.
Incredibly, he’d solved a problem that had plagued Yulisius for months in a single stroke.
In that case…
He’s worth keeping alive.
After pondering for a long while, Yulisius finally reached a decision.
“As promised… I will spare your life.”
“Really?! Thank you so much!”
Yoidel looked as though his face might split apart from smiling.
“I’ll disappear somewhere no one can see me! I’ll search for a way to undo the pairing and report back regularly! Anything is fine! Thank you so much, Your Holiness!”
He spoke with pure, overflowing joy.
I’ll quietly hide away in some forgotten corner of the Grand Temple.
There has to be a way to undo this pairing somewhere.
Yulisius watched him for a moment before smiling, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Seeing that smile, Yoidel smiled back.
“No.”
“I’ll keep you where I can always see you.”
“Thank you! I’ll remain silent and humble and stay by myself—”
“…What?”
“You think I’ll let you leave? Don’t be ridiculous.”
Though he still wore a gentle smile, his words were spoken through clenched teeth.
“I’ll restore your former lifestyle. As for the crime that nearly led to your execution… I won’t question it a second time.”
Resting his chin on one hand, Yulisius looked at Yoidel as if bored.
Yoidel’s face immediately turned pale.
“N-No… it’s really okay, Your Holiness! I committed a terrible crime! I’m a horrible, frightening, awful person! I might cause you trouble again, and—”
“What trouble could possibly be worse than this?”
Yoidel immediately shut his mouth under that terrifying gaze.
“…Please spare me.”
“I already am. Or would you prefer to die?”
“T-That’s not what I mean… I’ll live quietly where no one notices me. You don’t want me around either, right? If people find out… I’ll search for a solution somewhere far away.”
“If I release you and you run away… or die because of some unforeseen accident… that would be inconvenient.”
Yulisius looked at him calmly.
“Can you give me a single reason why I should let you go?”
He didn’t trust Yoidel completely yet.
Until he did, Yulisius intended to keep him nearby and watch him carefully.
Yoidel looked at him with hopeless eyes.
Amused, Yulisius raised a hand.
“I’ll offer you an opportunity instead.”
In his hand was a notarized contract.
“The grace period will be one year.”
“Within that year, I’ll decide your ultimate fate based on your usefulness.”
“If you can undo the pairing… and earn my trust… I’ll guarantee your complete freedom.”
“You’ll even receive whatever reward you desire.”
“Whether it’s your gift of foresight or anything else… prove your worth to me by whatever means necessary.”
“…Huh?”
“How is this a negotiation? It’s just an order!”
An order with his life at stake.
“Everything depends on how you conduct yourself, Lord Yoidel.”
“If you continue contributing to the Holy Kingdom as you have already done…”
“I may choose to spare you completely.”
He smiled pleasantly.
“I suggest you work very hard.”
“Very hard.”
It was hope.
A chance to survive.
But it was also despair.
A whole year…
I have to keep pretending to be a man while earning his trust…
Can I really do this?
Heart pounding, Yoidel looked at Yulisius.
He was merely a trainee priest…
An insignificant villain.
The man before him was the Holy Emperor, ruler of the land…
And the novel’s male protagonist.
The gap between them was immeasurable.
Finding Yoidel’s stunned expression amusing, Yulisius smiled faintly and produced another stack of documents.
They were petitions from priests demanding Yoidel’s exile after the cancellation of his execution.
“As you can see…”
“You have no choice but to remain under my command.”
“I’m the only one capable of stopping this.”
Leaning comfortably back in his chair with one leg crossed over the other, he gazed down at Yoidel.
“When I summon you…”
“You will come.”
“You will not disobey.”
“And you will faithfully repay the trust and confidence I’ve chosen to place in you.”
How is this guy supposed to be the male lead?
Suppressing the urge to cry, Yoidel met his gaze with determination.
Yulisius chuckled softly.
“Naturally, none of this will be made public.”
“This relationship of subordination will exist only between the two of us.”
“A mutually beneficial arrangement…”
“Designed to ensure you don’t entertain any foolish thoughts.”
At the bottom of the contract were spaces for a signature…
And blood.
Yoidel swallowed nervously and looked up at Yulisius.
Clink—
A sharp fountain pen rolled across the table toward him.
There wasn’t the slightest hint of mercy on Yulisius’s face.
“If you find this unfair…”
“Then your only alternative is to return to the execution platform.”
“What will it be?”
“…Your Holiness…”
“I think you’re a little mean.”
“And yet…”
Yulisius smiled as gently as ever.
“…there are people whose only chance of survival depends on accepting the dirty hand of someone like me.”
Looking at that beautiful, gentle smile, Yoidel steeled his resolve.
Though he trembled for a moment, he finally made up his mind.
“I’ll make Your Holiness trust me.”
“I swear I will.”
Resting his chin on one hand, Yulisius answered with a captivating smile.
“Then do your best.”
