“I’ll go look for it right away!”
Elent dashed into the chapel, his gaze sweeping rapidly across the tables.
The Basket filled with desserts that Yuna had delivered earlier was still sitting in the corner of the table, adorned with a decorative Black Ribbon.
That’s it!
Elent grabbed the Black Ribbon in one swift motion and ran back to the entrance.
Celia was still standing there, her hands covering her eyes. Tears seeped through her fingers, sliding down her cheeks and sparkling under the white glow emanating from her body.
“Found it, Priestess.”
Celia let go of her hands and raised her head slightly. Those emerald green eyes were reddened from the irritation, making her pallid, glowing face look especially fragile.
Elent forcibly suppressed the restless surge in his chest and moved behind Celia.
The Black Ribbon was laid over her eyes and tied into a knot at the back of her head.
The blinding radiance, once impossible to look at directly, was now blocked by the ribbon.
“Phew, much better.”
Celia let out a long breath; the world was finally peaceful again.
The scorching white light that felt like it would burn through her retinas was now kept at bay.
Though her eyelids still sensed the heat, it was no longer the agony of staring into the sun.
“Nice work, Hero.”
Celia turned and started toward her room, only to immediately bump into the wall.
“Ouch!”
“Priestess, are you alright?” Elent asked with genuine concern.
“I’m fine. My eyes are just not used to being covered yet.”
In the end, Celia managed to return to her room relying on memory.
“I’m going to sleep. Even if the sky falls, don’t wake me.”
The door closed, shutting out that human-shaped light source.
Elent stood in the empty courtyard, looking at the tightly closed door, then at his own hands.
It felt like he could still sense the touch of fine hair brushing against his fingertips.
Seal.
Those two words suddenly flashed through Elent’s mind.
To prevent the overflowing Saint Celery from harming mortals, she had to seal her own eyes in this way.
Is this why the Priestess insisted on using black?
Elent picked up the broadsword from the ground and returned to the center of the courtyard.
Tonight, nothing would breach this line of defense.
……
Early the next morning.
Lynn stepped out of her room.
“Good morning, Lady Celia, Mr. Elent…?”
Lynn’s greeting caught in her throat.
On the wooden wall of the courtyard, there was a Human-shaped Pit imprinted, with several broken daggers scattered around and scorch marks on the ground.
At that moment, Celia was sitting on a lounge chair under the eaves.
She was still faintly glowing. Though the light was dimmer than last night, it was still eye-catching in the morning light.
What puzzled Lynn even more was the Black Ribbon covering Celia’s eyes, giving her a chilling, aloof aura that kept others at a distance.
“What happened here?!”
“Shh—”
Elent, who was cleaning the courtyard, raised his finger in a Silent Gesture and lowered his voice:
“There was an enemy attack last night.”
“Enemy attack?!” Lynn’s eyes widened.
“Yes, but they’ve already been repelled.”
Elent glanced at the unmoving figure lying on the chair.
“The Priestess had to unleash her suppressed power to drive off a powerful foe. That energy still hasn’t calmed, so she must temporarily seal her sight this way to avoid hurting us by accident.”
“Lady Celia, to protect us, she actually sealed her own eyes?!” Lynn covered her mouth, looking deeply moved.
Just then, Celia shifted on the lounge chair.
She’d been awake for a while now.
Or rather, hunger had woken her.
The Saint Celery inside her was still overflowing, but no longer as violent as last night.
What replaced it was a stomach that felt like a bottomless pit.
The energy from the Magic Wolf Meat was completely spent. She desperately needed more carbs.
Celia sat up. The Black Ribbon blocked her sight, and all she saw was darkness.
She was about to take it off, but stopped halfway.
The light seeping through was still strong—taking it off would probably make her tear up again.
In that case, she might as well keep it on.
After all, this was her own home—she could walk around with her eyes closed.
Celia stood up and took her first step.
As expected, she didn’t bump into anything.
A strange sensation washed over her.
Though she couldn’t see, it was as if everything around her appeared in her mind in a different way.
The subtle tremble of leaves in the wind, the sound of Elent’s broom scraping the ground, Lynn’s quick breaths, even the trace of dust floating in the air.
She could sense it all clearly.
Could this be the enhanced perception from eating Magic Wolf Meat?
No wonder it was a C-Rank Monster—even its meat was this useful.
Celia locked onto the direction of the dining room by smell and walked forward a few steps.
No collisions—seems doable.
“Lady Celia, let me help you!” Lynn’s flustered voice called out.
“No need.”
Celia lifted her hand, the Black Ribbon fluttering lightly in the morning breeze.
“My Heart Eye is open. All things are before me…”
Clang!
Before she finished, Celia’s foot struck the Sharpening Stone Elent had left by the roadside yesterday.
“Ugh!”
Pain shot from her toe to her brain, throwing Celia off balance as she pitched forward.
Yet the expected face-first disaster didn’t come.
A strong, steady arm wrapped around her waist, another hand bracing her shoulder.
“Careful!”
Elent’s voice was right beside her ear, tense and warm.
Celia, still shaken, clung to Elent’s arm, her heart pounding twice.
That was close—she almost fell.
She quickly regained her balance. Her toe hurt so badly she wanted to roll on the ground, but she kept a straight face.
“Ahem, this is all part of my training.”
Celia lied without changing expression, though with her eyes covered, she was actually talking to the air.
“I was testing the hardness of this Sharpening Stone—and your reaction speed. Hero, you barely pass.”
Elent looked at the Priestess’s slightly trembling toes and the touch of blush at her ear, holding back laughter as he replied loudly:
“Yes, thank you for your guidance!”
……
In the dining room.
On the table were black bread and jam, along with a few leftover golden potatoes from last night.
Celia sat upright in her chair, the Black Ribbon making her look as though she were performing some sacred rite.
In truth, she was struggling with a lump of mashed potato.
She could smell the aroma, and sense the approximate location, but for a novice blind person, judging the distance between the spoon and her mouth was far too difficult.
The spoon wobbled in the air—first bumping into her chin, then almost poking her nose.
Celia’s hand holding the spoon froze mid-air, caught in an awkward dilemma.
This was too embarrassing. She’d just boasted about her Heart Eye, and now she couldn’t even feed herself.
“Um, Priestess.”
Elent, who had been watching, finally couldn’t take it anymore. He reached out and gently took hold of Celia’s wrist.
Celia instinctively tried to pull away, but thought better of it—she did need a little help.
“A little to the left, yes, and now raise it slightly.”
With Elent’s guidance, the spoonful of mashed potato, which could never find its way before, finally made it to Celia’s lips.
Celia opened her mouth and took it in, the soft texture melting on her tongue.
“I can do it myself.”
Celia swallowed the food, insisting stubbornly.
“By the way, the wall’s broken—make sure you fix it.”
To cover the strange, rising tension, Celia deliberately put on a stern tone.
“And patch up the Human-shaped Pit in the wall properly. I have obsessive-compulsive disorder—it’ll bother me if it’s not smooth.”
“But Lady Celia, you can’t see right now, can you?” Lynn asked from the side.
The air fell silent.
Celia turned her gaze toward Lynn. Even through the Black Ribbon, Lynn could feel a chilling intent.
“I’ll see it with my Heart Eye! Heart Eye! Understand?!”