Kalis had cuts all over and looked like a sinner who had been tortured. Still, he was healed to some degree by the healing divine power of the high-level priest.
It had already been a few days since Kalis refused to see any visitors and concentrated only on healing. Sighs came out of his mouth.
A bracelet rattled against his wrist.
It was put on by Kalis's aide. The aide, who was with Kalis the whole time in the carriage, thought that Kalis was really going to die. So he found the magic crystal bracelet that Kalis usually treasured like his life and put it on Kalis's wrist.
“Ha…”
Kalis let out a breath full of pain.
It was truly cruel and horrifying to spit out blood. It was hard and painful as if his chest was on fire.
Suddenly, he recalled the priests in the Berg territory, their tear-stained faces calling him.
“Marquis Haneton! Stern vomited blood at the ceremony. Blood, sir!” (*This was at the wedding when Seria vomited blood and almost died)
“How could you do this to the precious Stern!"
Yes. Seria said she coughed up blood.
It was because he, who promised to marry her, didn't show up.
She stood lonely at the ceremony…
"…."
At the same time, the brutal words he had said to Seria surfaced one by one. The hurt he inflicted on her made his head ring painfully.
His own brutal actions had one thing in common. The fact that Seria was united in her feelings, her actions, and her resentment that she did not understand the care and protection Kalis had poured into Lina.
The fact that he hoped for Seria’s understanding of all that was ridiculous….
Whether he went to apologize or cling, Kalis’s actions were misdirected.
“Ha!”
Kalis was in agony, his chest was clawed out, and thousands of sharp needles seemed to be sticking out of nowhere. Every breath was painful and unbearable.
How could he have been so selfish?
Was he really that crazy?
Ruminating over the tears that were falling down from Seria’s eyes with a blank expression, Kalis hurriedly covered his mouth with his hand. Without doing so, he felt like he would spit out blood again. His eyes instantly became wet.
He felt like someone stuck a knife in his heart and pulled it all the way out, did Seria feel this kind of pain?
Crazy, why did he push Seria away?
And he was the one who almost killed Seria. It was also him who put other women first, not her. At that moment, his head rang terribly with a thumping sound.
“Ha!”
Kalis coughed up blood again. In no time at all, the bedroom became a scene of carnage. It was just after one day that he calmed down. An aide approached him cautiously and spoke to him.
“Marquis. I have a letter from Young Master Kellyden.”
“Bring it to me.”
Kalis received the letter with a stern expression. It was a formal letter of regards.
[Since the Saintess has given me an invitation, I would like to officially visit Haneton’s mansion. I hope that you and I can meet each other. Also, since the Saintess is the hostess of Haneton, it is only logical that I should inform you beforehand…]
Kalis did not read to the end. Instead, he replied shortly with a pen and a paper brought by his aide.
The aide's eyes widened when he received and read Kalis's letter before sealing it. Because the content was too short and calm.
[The Young Master does not seem to be aware of the fact that I am divorcing her. I don't care, do what you want.]
It was an uncharismatic reply, unlike himself, who was always very forthcoming in engaging with Lina. The aide, who was familiar with such tendencies of his master, could not help but be deeply perplexed.
Eventually, Kalis instructed him to fill a box with glittering gold and sterling silver to the brim.
"Send it to Young Master Cassius Kellyden. This is the price of the Berg ring and the invitation he gave me the other day."
“Yes, Marquis.”
The aide bowed politely.
The other day, Cassius had given Kalis the ring and the invitation from the Grand Duke of Berg. It was to soften and resolve the severed relationship.
But Kalis drew a definite line in return. Haneton and Cassius will never be able to return to their former cooperative relationship.
On the other hand, Kalis had really overpaid for the ring and the invitation. The box was very heavy.
Soon Kalis collapsed, coughing up blood again. The healing priest once again infused him with divine power. While the aide seemed to faint, every time he woke up and came to his senses, he felt sorry for his master, who was looking only at the magic crystal bracelet as if he were an insane person. (*it was the bracelet Seria gave Kalis as a gift long ago.)
***
Some times later.
Seria heard the news that Linon had returned to the capital.
At the same time, old acquaintances came to the Berg residence.
Abigail, Linon, and Alliot.
“Bibi!”
“Lady.”
Abigail looked at Seria and smiled.
She was ‘boo’ when she showed her sacred power, but the aftermath was not. The knights of the family, along with the holy knights, officially confirmed that the land had been cleansed, the priests documented it, and so on. It took a lot of manpower.
“Grand Duchess, all the people you purified showed abnormalities.”
“All of them?”
“Yes. Those on my side did. People who fainted or had hemoptysis are also shown separately."
It was worthwhile to intentionally stand three people among the Berg knights. Alliot and Abigail seemed unscathed and firm, while Linon was a soft seaweed. Seria told the people to go rest and talk later.
"Bibi? Bibi, go and get some rest, too. Why aren't you leaving?"
“Young Lady.”
Abigail, who had remained alone, approached Seria with quiet steps.
“One of the men you asked me to check on was looking a little strange.”
"Strange?”
“He coughed up something black, and his face melted and stuck back together.”
“…What?"
Seria froze in place.
***
“Hmmm.”
Lately, Queen Ekizel was not in a good mood.
This was because the purification ceremony done by Seria Berg completely overturned the capital. It was so sacred that the whole empire, perhaps the whole continent, was surprised and was in an uproar.
"I can't believe that crazy foal is a Saint."
And suddenly her position became ridiculous as she caught the rope that was Lina.
The Queen, who had heard Lina had boldly confronted Seria Berg at the Duke of Howard's residence, quickly sent her precious treasures and even invited her to the Imperial Palace.
It was already an open secret that Seria’s sacred power was so tremendous that even Lina could not keep up. There was no noble who did not know that.
A Saint who was the same only in name, Seria had emerged as the one and only.
As Queen Ekizel wrinkled her enchanting brow, the imperial lady-in-waiting gently brought in a glass bottle.
"My Queen, the Saintess presented you with a gift, holy water, which she brought from the Great Temple."
“Who is the Saintess?"
“Oh, Saintess Lina….”
“Put it away.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Countess Kutnel, a close aide, looked at Queen’s mood and said,
"But don't be so displeased, Your Highness and the Saintess are both lovely and dignified. She will soon emerge as a social star."
Queen Ekizel laughed aloud.
“What dignity? Even if Baron pinch her and teach her, how would she hide her immaturity?”
“The purity of her appearance is also a factor that attracts attention in social circles.”
“I'm not sure how pure she is. Even if she was a Saint, I expected her to look like an angel without worldly scruples, but she is jealous of Stern, who is also a Saint.”
Still, the Queen thought Lina’s ambition wasn't so bad.
Besides, she was a Saint recognized by the Great Temple.
‘I thought she will be very useful when Prince Jun ascends to the throne.'
Queen Ekizel was only concerned about the issue of her son, Prince Jun, ascending to the throne. Although the Prince was already in his early twenties, the emperor had not decided on a Crown Prince.
The emperor was weak against the queen for one reason or another, but the issue of succession to the throne was another matter.
‘I can only be concerned because the sinking emperor would not answer me.’
Queen Ekizel took a sip of tea.
‘The Emperor is a cruel man.’
The ladies pretended not to be accustomed to hearing. These were the words that Queen Ekizel muttered with a laugh.
A cruel Emperor from her point of view.
A heartless emperor who lived with only the dead empress in his heart.
When the Queen was young and innocent, she was greatly hurt by that fact. She even cried for days in front of the emperor. She didn’t know how other concubines felt, but she really loved the emperor.
When she thought of the death anniversary of the deceased empress, she remembered the incident when Prince Jun went missing.
The emperor expressed great sorrow to her at that time and listened to what she had to say, but that was all.
The emperor was a man whose first love was his last love. Because of that, the affection of Queen Ekizel was frozen, and all she could do was just wait for her own bloodline, Prince Jun, to take the throne.
What was important about her title? She would be called Empress Dowager.
It should be recorded in history forever.
“How is Prince Jun doing?"
The Imperial physician bowed his head.
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness. He is recovering well."
"Take good care of him.”
During the last purification ceremony, many people fell ill, including Prince Jun.
The rumors were about to get worse, but fortunately, the first Prince also collapsed. However, each of them had already begun to donate many offerings to the Great Temple.
“I heard that Saint Lina has visited Prince Jun.”
“I see.”
In the midst of all this, there was no change at all in the expression on Queen Ekizel’s face when she heard that Lina had come to visit Prince Jun.
"The Saintess is a candy that has already lost its sweet juice, and I still have to capture the heart of the Grand Duchess of Berg after all…"
The Queen sighed. Why did Prince Jun make such a big deal about wanting the blue diamond before? If only her family didn’t have a bad history with Seria Stern, she could have approached Seria more easily.
In the meantime, she felt that she had to put aside her pride as an imperial Queen and present Berg with a gift.
The gift had to match the status of the recipient.
The other day she gave Lina a model of the insignia made of black stone. Then she had to send Seria at least one made of diamonds.
‘… I have to spend quite a bit of my personal money.’
If it wasn’t a gift of that magnitude, Seria would throw it away. She wouldn’t be the only one who would send Seria a gift.
“My Queen.”
It was then that a maid of honor approached and delivered the unexpected news.
“The Grand Duchess of Berg is here.”
"….?"
At that moment, the hands and eyes of the noblewomen, including Queen Ekizel, stopped at the same time.
