Chapter 14: Just Some Commonplace Vanity

At the market, Selis weaved through the crowd, feeling unusually relaxed.

How long had it been since she last visited a place so full of life?

She couldn’t quite remember.

All she knew was that ever since becoming the Saintess of the Oracle Hall, her days had been spent facing the cold Goddess Statue.

The only time she felt truly alive was when teasing the maid Renia.

But later, the affairs of the Rose Knights had kept her busy.

As she wandered through the market, tasting various delicacies, she also felt many gazes fixed upon her.

Yet she paid them no mind.

There was no helping it—great charm made her the center of attention wherever she went.

As the Saintess of the Oracle Hall, she was long since immune to such stares.

“Eh? My kite!”

A slightly crying voice of a young boy came from ahead.

Selis looked up and saw a red cloth kite caught in the branches of a tree, stuck fast no matter how it was tugged.

She stepped forward and stood beneath the tree.

With a wave of her hand, the kite that had been trapped on the branch broke free and drifted gently down.

“Here you go.”

She handed the kite to the boy, who wiped away his tears and covered his mouth in astonishment.

“Magic! Sister, you can actually use magic?”

“Surprised?”

“Of course! My dad says magic users are basically nobles, and nobles wouldn’t come to a bustling market like this, so Sister, are you a noble?”

“No, I’m just like you—a commoner.”

“Eh? Then you mean commoners can learn magic too?”

The boy’s face was filled with admiration for magic, but Selis was momentarily taken aback.

In reality, nobles didn’t monopolize magic in this world; it just required both talent and vast amounts of money to study.

These two barriers alone discouraged the vast majority of commoners.

Yet telling this harsh truth to the boy would have been cruel.

The passersby seemed to instinctively avoid them, unwilling to witness the boy’s despair.

But Selis did not follow their example.

She conjured a pure white flower with magic and gave it to the boy, gently patting his head with a smile.

“Magic is actually like this flower—it’s a feeling that wishes to pass on warmth and courage to others. As long as you hold beautiful wishes in your heart and are willing to work hard, you’ve already rung the doorbell to magic.”

“So that’s how it is, thank you, Sister!”

Clutching the flower in his arms, the boy beamed excitedly.

Selis did not cruelly deny his desire or dreams; instead, she blurred the definition of magic, allowing it to guide the boy to grow up strong and healthy.

However, as she spoke, she could feel the gazes on her growing more intense—like someone was silently observing her, captivated.

Unfortunately, the market was too crowded to discern where that gaze came from or who the owner was.

Shaking her head, Selis chose to ignore it and continued exploring the market.

“小喵！Don’t run off!”

But just then, as two tall steeds passed by her, a black kitten startled and darted wildly through the street.

Behind the kitten, a little girl with an anxious expression followed closely, her eyes only on her pet, unknowingly rushing in front of the horses.

Startled by the sudden appearance, one horse raised its foreleg high, about to stomp heavily on the girl and crush her. At that moment—

“Danger!”

“Watch out!”

Two voices rang out. Selis pushed the girl away, choosing to face the raised hoof herself, but in the next second, the woman on the horse rolled off, tumbling beside her.

Thud-thud!

The horse’s hooves struck the ground heavily, but no one was injured.

The girl, shaken but unhurt, got up and, after thanking Selis, hurriedly grabbed her black kitten and slipped into the crowd.

Only then did Selis look up at the woman holding onto her.

Her hair was gray, loosened from rolling on the ground twice.

Though a bit disheveled, there was an extraordinary heroism about her face.

At this moment, the woman stared at her intently.

Realizing something, Selis touched her own cheek and found the veil that once covered her face was gone.

Glancing at the ground, she found the fallen veil, left the woman’s embrace, and put it back on.

Only then did the woman snap back to reality.

“Sorry, are you hurt?” Selis asked first.

“No, the apology should be mine. My horse was frightened. But you—are you alright? Should I take you to see a healer?”

The woman quickly stood up and stepped toward Selis, seemingly about to grab her wrist and lead her away.

Stepping back two paces, Selis withdrew her hand and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

Brushing the dust from her skirt, she finished speaking and turned to walk into the crowd.

The woman instinctively tried to stop her, but her hand grasped only the lingering scent left behind.

“Wait! My name is Nola. I don’t know who you are—”

By the time the words were spoken, Selis had already vanished.

She really was like a butterfly, gracefully appearing beside her and drawing all attention, yet when she tried to grasp her, the girl only needed to flutter her wings gently to disappear.

However…

Opening her palm, Nola looked down.

There, quietly resting, was a tear-shaped earring emitting a faint fragrance.

It was something the girl had accidentally dropped during the rescue.

Using this earring, Nola could activate her family ability and learn the girl’s identity.

Clenching her palm, she pressed the earring close to her racing heart, unable to stop the smile on her face.

Just then, the maid arrived beside her.

Seeing her mistress lost in love, she sighed, “Miss, she’s already gone.”

“Jenny, I think I’m… in love with her at first sight.”

“‘Think’?” The maid muttered silently in her heart, then said, “Miss, you previously said love at first sight was just lust.”

“You don’t understand. What attracts me isn’t just her appearance, but her character… She’s clearly a noble, yet she never looks down on commoners.”

Nola had seen the scene just now between the girl and the little boy.

The girl’s attire already marked her identity—she was definitely a noble, impossible to be a commoner.

Yet she had denied her noble status just to care for a stranger boy.

For those of them who took pride in their noble heritage, this was inconceivable.

From that moment, Nola was utterly moved by the girl’s pure and noble soul.

Holding out the earring to Jenny, she ordered,

“Jenny, investigate the origin of this earring. I want to know her identity. Also, tell my father—I have someone I love. I won’t be attending tonight’s banquet.”

“That won’t do, Miss. Father said if you skip the banquet tonight, he’ll just find someone to marry you off directly. He even said you can try if you don’t believe him.”

Upon hearing this, Nola’s mouth twitched, falling silent.

“…Fine. They’re just a bunch of dull nobodies anyway. I’ll go to the banquet and just pretend it’s to save face for Father.”