Chapter 116
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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Chapter 116
Everything else remains intact, yet only the Temple crumbles—how extraordinary. I've already heard the distressing news that the Palace Temple has collapsed entirely, and it weighs heavily on my heart.
The High Priest thought to himself, 'It didn't actually collapse quite so catastrophically.'
If I were to receive divine blessings, perhaps my spirits would lift a little.
The excuses were truly endless.
She was summoning the High Priest as though he were a merchant from the Costume Department.
Who knows? If I were to speak highly of divine blessings, perhaps they would construct a more fortified chapel within the Imperial Palace?
A priest standing beside the High Priest, reading the letter together with him, burst with indignation.
"Isn't this going too far, truly? She's already acting as though she's become the Crown Princess."
The High Priest stared at the letter and replied.
"She can behave this way precisely because she isn't the Crown Princess yet."
"Pardon?"
"Namia Loapi hasn't accepted the Crown Prince's feelings. She merely keeps him yearning, as though she might accept them at any moment."
"I beg your pardon?"
"At the banquet, she accepted his request to be her partner, yet she didn't dance the first dance with him and left early. And now she's residing in the finest chambers within the Imperial Palace, is she not?"
In his mind, Namia Loapi had already become a master of romance.
"That's why even the Imperial Servants hesitate around her. They've never encountered anyone like this before."
"True enough... An ordinary woman would have begun marriage preparations the moment she received a partner request."
In the end, the High Priest ground his teeth and wrote a reply.
The message stated that he would visit if she would inform him of a convenient time.
"There's no helping it... For the greater cause, I must endure this unseemly display of authority for a while."
If he devoted himself to divine blessings for just a few more days, then subtly requested a private audience with Namia Loapi, he could seize his opportunity.
Now, with the Temple's safety inspection underway, he could not execute his original plan.
He had no other choice.
"Tell her I will visit in person."
After that.
Namia Loapi began summoning him daily, remarking how "divine blessings are truly wonderful," calling upon him as though he were her attendant.
* * *
I had spent a long time as a junior member of the Scroll Management Department.
Which meant that with a single opening remark, I could irritate my subordinates.
"Say, High Priest."
Of course, the High Priest was not my subordinate.
But since he came seeking me out like this every day because he wanted something from me, he was as good as one.
'The chapel has collapsed, and without using me, a private audience with Kiaros is impossible for him.'
I spoke to the High Priest, whom I'd been summoning daily of late, with a smirk.
"Now that we seem to have grown closer, I thought I'd offer you a piece of personal advice."
The High Priest's expression darkened. As expected, most adults disliked the word "advice" when directed at them. I delivered the finishing blow.
"I'm only saying this because I care about you, so don't twist my words."
At this point, he was already displeased without me even broaching the main topic.
For reference, yesterday's remark had been 'Next time, come a bit earlier and wait,' and the day before that, 'You must be bored—isn't it nice to have something to do?' The High Priest had been consistently displeased.
"I'd appreciate it if you showed a bit more effort when using your divine power. Right now, it feels like you're doing it rather halfheartedly."
It would be perfect if I could finish delivering these vague instructions.
I added the comment offhandedly while gazing into my hand mirror.
"I understand your true intentions, High Priest. Since I genuinely feel close to you, that's why I'm saying this. I really do hope things work out well for you."
Even after receiving the divine power, it wasn't over.
I kept him there and rambled on for quite a while about whether or not to accept Crown Prince Kiaros.
"Of course, whenever Crown Prince Kiaros sees me, he keeps saying that my brother Kibon will do anything for me. I'm wondering if I can trust that."
"Well... you should still trust him."
"But it seems Crown Prince Kiaros has only fallen for my appearance, so what if a prettier woman appears than me?"
"...Hmm. Well then, it would be better not to trust him."
"But then again, it's hard not to trust him either. You see, something happened..."
After spending about an hour like this, the High Priest looked utterly exhausted.
This process of wearing him down was absolutely necessary.
So much so that I wanted to execute the plan just to make this patience worthwhile.
"Ah, today was fun too."
After rambling on for a while, I stretched and spoke casually.
"That's right, High Priest. When did you say you were leaving? You said you wouldn't be staying here long, right?"
Then the High Priest smiled subtly and replied.
"I leave in two days, Minister."
"I see."
"And... as you've guessed, the Temple's situation isn't very good. The Imperial Family doesn't show much interest."
"My goodness."
I smiled brightly and rested my chin on my hand.
"If it's in front of me, the High Priest might just have his request granted. Since you're leaving soon, let me quickly arrange an opportunity for you."
At that moment, both the High Priest and I were undoubtedly thinking the same thing.
'He's fallen for it.'
I glanced at Kibon, who stood like a shadow behind me.
I tried to meet his eyes and smile confidently, but for some reason, his expression seemed blank.
'Ever since that day we got trapped in the warehouse together, he's been like that?'
Since that day, Kibon seemed to have genuinely lost his mind about something.
'Is he perhaps thinking about confessing? How cute.'
I sent the High Priest off with a composed expression while quietly laughing to myself.
7. The Circumstances of One Who Confesses
After watching Namia Loapi deal with the High Priest, Crown Prince Kiaros returned to his quarters.
[I'll summon the High Priest every day and make unreasonable demands. I'll attach the condition that you'll grant me a private audience with Crown Prince Kiaros.]
[A private audience with me?]
[To be precise, it will be me, Crown Prince Kiaros, and the High Priest—three of us. Naturally, there will be no guards in that situation.]
Namia Loapi had already explained her trap to him before.
[At that time, conduct a body search. I suspect he might be carrying a weapon.]
[An amusing idea. Do you truly believe the High Priest could harm me?]
[He could use divine power and suggest praying together before launching a surprise attack.]
To be honest, when I first heard that plan, I thought, 'This is a bit sloppy.'
'The High Priest would attempt to assassinate me.... If he were in his right mind, that would be impossible.'
The High Priest could not harm me. That remained an unchanging fact even now, during what he called the Dark Age. Even without transcendent power, Kiaros was more than strong enough.
But Namia Loapi pushed forward with such sparkling eyes that I didn't particularly stop her.
'Perhaps it will unfold as Namia Loapi says. Even if it doesn't, there's nothing much to lose.'
I had often thought Namia Loapi's plans were somewhat sloppy. Yet in the end, everything unfolded according to her will.
Because of that, I had even suspected her more. But.
'If the High Priest really is a collaborator of the Gaejo Faction... I should stop suspecting Namia Loapi now.'
There were quite a few villains who built trust by sacrificing allies like Pirami.
But capturing a collaborator of the High Priest's caliber was a different matter entirely.
No matter how many suspicious points Namia Loapi had, at this level, I had to consider her firmly on my side.
As someone responsible for the Empire, I had no choice but to be cautious.
If I hadn't been in such a position, I would have trusted Namia Loapi from long ago.
'If I were to trust Namia Loapi perfectly as being on the Empire's side... there would be no need to monitor her in Kibon's form either.'
Yet that didn't make my anguish disappear.
Ever since I crossed that very thin line with her in the Temple's warehouse, my heart had been swelling every single day.
Certainly, Namia Loapi had told me, 'I didn't hate being this close to you.' In that moment, I began naming our children.
But the problem was that my true form wasn't Kibon—it was Crown Prince Kiaros....
'Should I just say Crown Prince Kiaros was assassinated? And live as Kibon for the rest of my life?'
Crown Prince Kiaros seriously considered it. But even then, deceiving Namia Loapi would be the same.
"Sigh... I can't confess while hiding something, can I?"
The excitement was so overwhelming that my anguish became too severe, and I ended up expressing it even to my Aide.
"What do you think? Tell me honestly."
Then the Aide spoke honestly as ordered.
"I think that wouldn't be a confession—it would be fraud."
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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