Chapter 21 : Holy Empire Subjugation Force (3)

“You’ll really regret this.”

I figured Princess Kanabi was wary of me because we hadn’t yet formed a rapport, so I let it slide.

After all, it wasn’t causing significant harm to my ability to provide treatment.

But I hadn’t anticipated that the lack of trust in our relationship would lead to a problem like this.

‘Think positively. She already said she sent people into the labyrinth to deal with the monsters. Even if the truth comes out, it might not change anything.’

There’s no point in letting myself grow anxious and end up in worse condition.

If anyone would be doing their utmost to chase after this issue, it would be the princess herself—especially since it’s not just anyone but a princess afflicted by a curse.

Besides, there’s still plenty of time before the labyrinth shifts internally.

‘It can’t be helped. I guess I’ll just have to report to Bishop Haman that things didn’t go well.’

If we can kill the monsters before the terrain shifts, there’ll be no need to go through the hassle of meeting Bishop Haman.

Forcing someone to do something they’re unwilling to do is pointless, so I decided to respect Princess Kanabi’s choice.

“Is the priest behaving strangely? Are you alright?”

The knight’s question made me chuckle.

“He told me to meet the bishop. Claimed the bishop was the best healer for the job, and yet he changed his attitude the moment the bishop arrived.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to issue a warning?”

If it had been anyone else, I would’ve ordered them to issue a warning immediately.

But I didn’t feel the need to do that with the priest.

“It’s fine. He’s just naïve.”

“He might just be pretending to be naïve.”

“I don’t think so. That’s not something you can fake. When he suggested meeting the bishop, he probably genuinely thought it would help me.”

“Isn’t it suspicious that he insisted on meeting the bishop in the first place? A bishop from the Holy Nation is likely to have political ties.”

“True, the bishop is suspicious, but I don’t want to doubt the priest as well. If he were anyone’s pawn, I should’ve been dead long ago.”

“…”

“He’s simply naïve. You can’t fault someone for being used by others. Besides, it’s that very naivety that made me trust him enough to rely on him. Where else would you find a priest as pure as him?”

If you intend to replace him, it’s not impossible.

But how would you fill the gap left behind, and how much time would the verification process take?

Instead of going through such trouble, protecting the naïve priest myself seemed like a much better option.

“Protect the priest.”

“…Understood. I will follow your orders.”

“When you’re blinded by prejudice, you fail to see other things. Be wise.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

After the knight left and I was alone in the hospital room, I turned my gaze to the wilting flowers nearby.

“How long has it been since I received flowers in their purest form?”

I don’t like flowers.

I was planning to decline this time as well.

But when I saw the look in the priest’s eyes as he handed me the flowers, I ended up accepting them.

And, to my surprise, I even sniffed their scent.

It wasn’t intentional.

Smelling flowers after receiving them is natural for most people, but for me, it was something entirely different.

‘After what happened when I was young, just catching the scent of flowers used to make me nauseous.’

When I was about ten years old, a playmate gave me flowers as a gift.

The poison from the flowers was inhaled, and I nearly lost my life.

At first, I thought it had been an accident, an unintended incident.

That’s how the event was officially concluded.

My sister, crying and holding my barely-alive hand, looked so sincere in her apology that I couldn’t detect any lies.

‘So I thought.’

Although I survived, late one night as I lay dazed from the lingering effects of the poison, my sister came to my bedside.

Unable to open my eyes, I heard her whisper into my ear.

‘Don’t wake up. Please just die.’

‘!!!’

I was too terrified to open my eyes.

After repeating those words several times, she quietly left.

The next day, when I saw her acting completely nonchalant in front of me, I felt so nauseous I couldn’t stop myself from vomiting.

It was through her betrayal that I learned what power meant and what being born into royalty entailed.

‘Even after expelling her from the palace, I still couldn’t stand the scent of flowers.’

So why was I able to smell the flowers the priest gave me?

I hadn’t put much significance on the priest frequently stopping by the hospital room to chat about trivial things.

‘I thought that’s all it was, but maybe it wasn’t. Have I grown weak again?’

In my younger days, I was too sentimental, which always led to trouble.

I gave people my affection, only to be betrayed and hurt, until I finally resolved to steel my heart.

Be cold. Don’t trust. Don’t rely on anyone.

‘But now this curse has made me weak again.’

The priest’s unique aura also likely played a role in creating this situation.

He had this uncanny ability to make people feel at ease.

Whenever we talked, I’d sometimes share things and later wonder why I had said them.

‘Other priests have had similar atmospheres, but none to this extent. With this priest, it’s especially strong.’

That’s probably why the knights were wary of him.

Seeing me, someone who usually kept others at arm’s length, grow close to the priest so quickly must have seemed strange to them.

‘I just hope he doesn’t do anything to disappoint me before I’m fully healed.’

When the treatment is done, I’ll make sure to reward him abundantly for his efforts.

But receiving such compensation wouldn’t be easy.

The critical issue was resisting all the temptations around him until my recovery was complete.

“Excuse me, are you Father Arthur?”

“Yes, I am. What’s this about?”

“A word with you, Father.”

“I’m currently on duty. Will it take long?”

“No, it won’t take much time.”

“Then I’ll spare a moment during my lunch break.”

“Understood. I’ll wait until then.”

It was 11 a.m. now, so there was only one hour left until lunch at noon.

“That’s about the same amount of time patients wait at the temple for consultations, so I thought it wouldn’t be a problem and told him to do as he wished.

At that moment, I had no idea what this person had come to see me for, so I approached it lightly.

But when lunchtime came and I met him, I was faced with an outrageous proposal I could never have imagined.

‘I know Princess Kanabi is hospitalized here.’

“…Excuse me?”

“I’d like you to tell me which room Princess Kanabi is in.”

“…Pardon?”

The moment a man I had never seen before mentioned Princess Kanabi, I knew something was off.

“Sorry, but I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

“You seem surprised, but don’t worry. We have no intention of harming you. Besides, we already know that Princess Kanabis’s knights frequent the temple.”

He was certain that Princess Kanabi was here.

Still, I decided to feign ignorance.

Wasn’t the reason Princess Kanabi couldn’t even go out to see flowers in spring because of people like this?

Anyone who robs others of the ability to live their lives as humans couldn’t possibly be good.

“I don’t know where you’re from or why you’re asking, but I can’t share personal information so freely.”

They wanted to know which room Princess Kanabi was hospitalized in?

‘What are they planning to do with that information?’

I was tempted to ask but kept my mouth shut.

‘Knowing the answer might be even worse.’

Just imagining it sent chills down my spine.

They weren’t trying to find Princess Kanabi for her sake.

Watching how cautious Princess Kanabi had been, I figured there must be a reason.

Now that someone was actively looking for her, it gave me an unsettling feeling.

“If you tell us, we’ll reward you generously. For starters, how about this?”

The man handed me a pouch of money.

Princess Kanabi and her people—why were they all so obsessed with money pouches?

Feeling regretful that I didn’t have the donation box nearby, I replied, “Let me make this clear. I cannot share personal information with you.”

“Seeing it might change your mind, Father.”

“I’m not going to take it anyway, so why bother? No, thank you.”

“I understand your hesitation, but sharing the room’s location isn’t a crime, is it? It’s just the location of a room, after all.”

Sure, all I’d be sharing is the room’s location.

But what would happen after they got that information?

‘If they send assassins to the already weakened Princess Kanabi because of her curse…’

And if Princess Kanabi’s knights failed to stop the assassin and someone died?

That would be on me for taking the money and revealing the room’s location.

“Nothing serious will happen just because you share the room’s location. Even if something does, it wouldn’t be your responsibility.”

But this man, claiming to understand my concerns, tried to persuade me with nonsensical logic.

“Which deity do you worship, sir?”

“Of course, I believe in the Sun God.”

“Then, sir, how often do you pray each day? Do you visit the temple at least once a week?”

“I’m busy, so I can’t visit often. But is this really the time to be discussing such things…?”

“If possible, try to attend regularly. The confessional is always open to worshippers.”

“…Pardon?”

Politely bowing to the flustered man, I stood up.

“I’ll take my leave now.”

“You’re rejecting me? Without even confirming the offer?”

The man, rising abruptly to follow me, tipped the pouch over, spilling its contents across the table.

“Doesn’t this tempt you? Surely this much would make you waver?”

“…”

Silver coins? No, platinum coins rolled across the table.

First, Princess Kanabi handed me a “check” supposedly used only for international transactions, and now these people were offering pouches full of platinum coins.

If they had so much money, why not just make hefty donations to the temple instead of constantly making shady proposals?

At least now, I was certain that the Deltrak Empire was an absolute mess.

“I’m not sure what you think would tempt me.”

“Father!”

Before I realized it, the man had moved and was now blocking my path.