The saintess’s blue eyes shone brightly with clarity.
“If I become friends with everyone, I can give happiness to all of them,” she said.
Amidst her words about ‘everyone,’ John’s story disappeared.
‘As if there’s no ill intent at all.’
If I showed even the slightest hint of feeling hurt, I would become a sensitive woman obsessed with her husband.
The priest who was next to the saintess interrupted.
“Since you are of the saintess’s status, please dine as you would with Lady Blanchet.”
The servants, including Betty, stiffened awkwardly.
Just as I was about to step in, Patricia responded with a blank expression.
“Don’t worry. Lady Blanchet never neglects her benefactors.”
“That’s a relief then. The saintess isn’t good at eating dishes that lack sincerity in their ingredients or are slightly off in preparation. Please take care of that.”
Though it was a polite request, there was an implicit rudeness as if she had delegated the hosting.
“Then I will escort you to the banquet hall. Lady, how about you move separately with the saintess for the dinner preparations?”
Patricia nodded as if she didn’t find it worth responding to, and I was given a brief moment to rest.
‘Anyway, I’ll see soon enough.’
The saintess was the first to stand up. But there was something strange.
‘Nobody is trying to escort her?’
Around us were the knights from the Blanchet family, there to protect me. Yet, none of them stepped forward to escort the saintess.
‘From a knight’s perspective, serving a lady like the saintess would be a great honor.’
Even if not openly, everyone seemed to be reluctant to approach her.
Before I could even arrange for someone to assist, the priest hastily called the household staff and took the saintess to the banquet hall.
‘Is that why she dislikes it?’
I went upstairs to change into a new dress for the dinner.
It was an elegant dress made of blue silk with yellow lace on the short sleeves.
Betty, who had put a sapphire necklace around my neck, said with a competitive look.
“As expected, our lady is the most beautiful.”
Honestly, I found Betty’s words hard to trust.
“Yes, you can tell. The saintess is quite beautiful too, but I couldn’t match the unique aura that you have, Lady.”
Patricia praised me, and I blinked in surprise.
“My aura?”
“You have a distinctive dreamy atmosphere, Lady. That’s why I thought I couldn’t take my eyes off you whenever I saw you.”
Patricia complimented me without changing her expression.
“Th-Thank you.”
“Just a fact.”
Her composed tone made me feel shy, and I blushed.
‘Why is Patricia acting like that all of a sudden?’
In the original story, Patricia was a principled person. As a maid supervisor, she didn’t do anything outside her duties.
‘Now, she seems to keep stepping up for me.’
Unlike others, Patricia’s sudden support was even more confusing.
After thoroughly checking my appearance once more, I went outside. Erich was waiting for me to escort me to the banquet hall.
“The preparations are complete. Shall we go?”
Erich had his bangs down and tied his hair loosely.
‘He must have done that because I told him to.’
Seeing him in knight attire, more knightly than a steward, I asked.
“By the way, it seemed like the knights were avoiding the saintess. Are they doing that because they’re conscious of me?”
“No, it’s merely because they don’t want to get involved with her.”
“But the saintess is a noble lady, that should be an honor for them, right?”
“Actually, the knights of the Blanchet family do not favor the shrine.”
Erich casually said as he escorted me.
“Of course, the saintess herself is somewhat unsettling. Not just me, but all the knights find her whereabouts uncomfortable.”
Erich was unaware, but even the other knights agreed. Betty nodded along.
“Other servants feel the same. Everyone, including the priestess and the saintess, is really unlikable.”
“They say the saintess is a blessed being loved by all.”
“If she’s so blessed, it’s not easy to become that unlikable…”
Of course, that was the story from the biblical saintess.
‘How can she receive everyone’s love so easily?’
Erich frowned at the thought of the saintess.
“I agree. It’s probably not easy at the Blanchet estate either. She seems to be strangely rude to Lady. What on earth is that saintess…”
“Even her divine power can’t fix her personality, it seems.”
“…Kuh!”
Erich clenched his throat as if holding back, but his eyes looked like they might burst into laughter.
By the way, Betty chuckled heartily, saying, “That’s right, divine power isn’t everything,” and burst into laughter.
I patted Erich’s shoulder.
“Just smile happily, what’s the big deal?”
“-Kk, sorry. I wasn’t expecting that at all…”
“It’s okay. Anyway, we’ve arrived at the banquet hall now.”
When we reached the door, the staff opened the way for us.
Stella was sitting right in the center of the banquet hall.
‘That’s the lady’s seat…’
The other Blanchet staff around looked awkward and hesitated, then looked at me.
Stella smiled brightly at me.
“Lady Blanchet, your dress suits you very well.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. As you can see, I am the saintess, so I can only wear priestess robes…”
With a gentle bow, Stella clapped politely.
“Still, I’m glad you’re wearing different clothes, Lady. It makes me happy too.”
“Thanks for the compliment.”
“I should be more thankful to Lady Blanchet for inviting such a splendid feast.”
A lavish banquet was laid out before Stella. She looked at the table with a smile.
“Because of the elegant and warm atmosphere, I feel just as comfortable as I do in the shrine where I usually stay.”
I felt quite uncomfortable because of you.
‘At least I get one thing.’
Stella was looking at me mockingly.
I didn’t know if she had forgotten that I was kicked out last time, but…
All the dishes before me were prepared.
‘This is excessive…?’
It was more grand than the table at Yestella’s, suitable for an empress at an official event.
When I looked at Betty, she whispered just loud enough for me to hear.
“No matter where you sit, you should show that the lady of the house and the guest are different.”
“…When did you prepare all this?”
“I probably won’t be able to get over it, no matter what.”
Betty nonchalantly moved behind me. As I glanced back, all the servants around looked at me with supportive eyes.
‘Is it because of Yestella?’
It seemed like the Blanchet estate was on my side.
Just then, John, who had gone out earlier on some errand, returned.
“Estelle. I’m back.”
John approached me right away, wearing his formal outfit.
His gaze, which looked at me as if I were adorable, instantly cooled when it landed on Yestella.
“Why is she here again?”
Stella’s delicate wrist, holding her utensils, stiffened.
“That…”
“If she dares to crawl back into this house, I told her I wouldn’t let her go easily.”
I gently placed my hand on John’s back and said.
“Today, I was feeling unwell, so I came despite my rudeness.”
“…You were sick?”
John carefully held my cheeks and asked.
“What’s gotten worse?”
“I think it was just from fatigue. I was treated with divine power, so I’m fine now.”
“Is divine power really that effective?”
His red eyes slightly flared with a fierce look.
“If I was treated last time but my condition still worsened, maybe divine power isn’t useful after all?”
The side effects did come quite quickly after the last treatment.
John brought a handkerchief to my lips with a sad expression.
“You got some on it.”
“That’s impossible… I eat so cleanly.”
“In fact, I wanted to wipe your mouth because you’re so perfect, and you’re so unguarded.”
He flashed a sweet, playful smile and whispered in my ear.
“Sometimes I even do it on purpose, make little mistakes. That way, I can take better care of you.”
John immediately sat beside me.
When guests arrive, the lady sits in the middle, with the knight beside her.
But by deliberately choosing to sit next to me, the distance between the saintess sitting as the lady and me grew even more.
‘Is that good for me?’
The saintess looked at me cautiously.
“Don’t worry too much. It was just simple stress; there’s no problem with your health.”
Behind the saintess, another priest placed a luxurious box in front of us. She shyly lifted the box.
“I prepared a gift because I was worried.”
“A gift for me?”
“Yes. It’s a sacred object imbued with my blessing. Would you like to see it?”
Inside the box she offered was a ring with a diamond.
“If you wear this ring, you’re less likely to suddenly faint during a ceremony like today.”
“I didn’t prepare anything…”
“It’s something I made for your health, Lady Blanchet. Please accept it without worry.”
The saintess clasped her hands together, smiling gently.
I looked at her gift.
‘It’s pretty.’
There was nothing strange to my eyes. But I felt a bit uneasy because it was a gift from the saintess.
‘Should I accept this…?’
Suddenly, a large hand reached out and closed the box.
It was John.
He had a languid smile and said.
“I decided to turn the fake into the real thing.”
At that moment, I could feel Betty, Erich, and the other servants around us all rejoicing.
I widened my eyes and asked John.
“What… do you mean?”
“You already know everything.”
His crimson eyes fully conveyed to me.
“I will be with you forever. So I can’t let anyone else take your first time.”
John pulled out a box from his bosom, similar to the one the saintess had given.
‘What the…?’
My mind froze as if everything had stopped.
My heart started pounding wildly.
I stared blankly at John.
His arm moved elegantly, as if dancing, and he slowly lowered himself from the chair, kneeling.
The box was extended toward me.
“Blue is the symbol of the Blanchet family.”
A vintage ring with a sparkling sapphire.
“This is a ring handed down from generation to generation in the Blanchet family.”
“…”
“This ring belongs solely to you, Estelle.”
His handsome face looked at me tenderly.
“I want to give you my future.”
A strange emotion welled up inside me. Tears began to leak from my eyes little by little.
“Thank you.”
In the original story, Estelle could have anything she wished for.
The dark forces filled her world with precious and beautiful things, granting her every desire.
But the ring was different.
As if proving everything was fake, Estelle’s cage could not contain the ring.
“I’m so happy right now.”
“Do you like the ring?”
“This is the first time I’ve received a ring.”
In front of me stood John, the dark lord.
He looked exactly as in the original story. Dazzlingly handsome, with a fine build, gentle yet skillful.
He was a man I couldn’t help but fall for.
But he was entirely different from the original.
“John, put it on me.”
John, without taking his eyes off me, politely slid the ring onto my finger.
Clang—!
Suddenly, Stella dropped her utensils.
The radiant blonde veil she had been wearing was tragically swaying as she removed her veil.
‘The saintess only reveals her hair if she’s a spouse…’
Stella looked at us with a shocked expression. Her elegant face was slightly cracked.
~·~·*· . ·**##^^##**· . ·*·~·~
Hey there, It’s Green Rose 😉
Since I human I might have make some mistakes while translating so please if you find them let me know here in the comments or in the Discord group so I can correct them and be careful in the future so they do not repeat.
Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
~~~Next Chapter~~~
Next chapter will be released Tomorrow.
See you then!!
