Chapter 123
But despite her foreboding, the massive doors opened to reveal Prion himself, proving her fears wrong. It wasn’t a trap. The letter truly had been sent by Prion. Of course… Violet would never betray me.
The moment Alice saw Prion’s face, her anxiety melted away. After all, he was someone she trusted almost as much as Kylus.
A High Priest more honest than anyone, always ready to help her—a man deserving of her gratitude.
Alice stood before Prion with a smile. “High Priest.” “Duchess,” he responded with equal formality.
After acknowledging Alice’s greeting, he turned to Violet. “Thank you for your service.”
When Violet departed, having completed her task, Prion addressed Alice.
“I apologize for suddenly requesting your presence at the temple without explanation. I couldn’t include the details in the letter… I had no choice.”
From the moment she’d received that brief, urgent message, Alice had suspected this wasn’t an ordinary matter.
That’s why she’d come directly to the temple, despite her misgivings.
Something too sensitive to commit to paper…
Alice stepped closer to Prion and asked in a low voice, “Does this concern Lord Helios?”
Her question made Prion’s blue eyes widen slightly.
“Yes, you’re correct. But this isn’t the place to discuss it. I’ll explain in the sanctuary.”
Prion turned and partially opened the large door behind him.
The energy emanating from the entrance suggested it was where priests offered prayers to their deity.
He stepped aside, indicating Alice should enter first.
Alice exchanged a meaningful glance with Prion and moved to enter the sanctuary. Naturally, the knights of the duchy followed behind her.
But at that moment, Prion turned and blocked the knights’ entrance.
Alice halted her steps and looked at him.
“Duchess, I apologize, but your escort knights cannot enter the sanctuary with you.”
Prion explained with an uncomfortable expression. “As a rule, armed knights are not permitted in the sanctuary, but more importantly, what I need to tell you is for your ears alone.”
“What? That’s out of the question. Without my guards, absolutely not—”
“Lord Ostein.”
Alice called to Ruyd, who was stepping toward Prion, and raised her hand to signal him to stop.
“Wait with the knights outside the sanctuary.”
“But, my lady—”
“That’s an order.”
Ruyd looked at Alice as if he couldn’t possibly comply, but at her firm tone, he immediately bowed his head and retreated.
She understood his concern, but if this truly involved the deity, there was no helping it.
Her powerful holy power was a closely guarded secret, and if Lord Helios truly had summoned Alice… not even Ruyd could accompany her.
Alice cast an apologetic look toward the bowing Ruyd before turning her attention back to Prion.
“Shall we enter, High Priest?”
Alice strode into the sanctuary first.
Soon after, she heard the sound of Prion following her inside and closing the door.
The heavy door shut with a weighty thud, and she could hear Prion’s approaching footsteps.
But Alice’s attention was completely captured by the magnificent statue before her.
A colossal sculpture that made the statue of Lord Helios in her private prayer room seem minuscule by comparison.
The enormous ivory statue gleamed with divine radiance as sunlight poured through the windows.
Helios with his head slightly bowed, as if looking down upon humanity. The overwhelming presence inspired automatic reverence.
Alice had been momentarily lost in admiration of the mythical statue of Helios when Prion’s voice brought her back to reality.
“Duchess.”
“Ah, yes, High Priest.”
Only then did Alice turn to Prion beside her.
His face was tense and rigid, unlike his usual gentle expression.
Seeing his lips trembling as if struggling to begin, Alice spoke first.
“Please tell me, High Priest. Has Lord Helios called me here?”
At Alice’s question, Prion’s blue eyes flickered slightly.
Then, as if having made a decision, he took a deep breath and spoke with resolute eyes.
“Yes, that’s correct. This morning, Lord Helios graciously granted me a divine revelation.”
“…A revelation?”
“The deity declared that He would only answer to the Duchess’s faith, and commanded me to summon you, who can call upon His divine manifestation, to the temple. This is the revelation Lord Helios bestowed upon me.”
The Duchess’s faith—the deity seems quite fond of faith…
Alice felt as if she could hear the deity’s voice from yesterday in the spiritual realm.
Those somewhat cult-like words demanding absolute faith in him.
And as a result of her desperate prayer of faith, she had collapsed, coughing blood.
True, she had survived thanks to the deity’s power, but she had also nearly died, which made Alice’s stomach churn uncomfortably.
Yet she couldn’t dare show such impious thoughts before Prion, who stood with a face full of reverence.
Prion placed his hand on his chest as if to calm his trembling heart and slowly closed his eyes. He seemed to be organizing the overwhelming emotions that came with speaking of the divine revelation.
A moment later, he opened his eyes and gazed directly at Alice with his blue eyes.
Alice flinched at the intense emotion she felt in Prion’s gaze.
Of course, it wasn’t anything inappropriate between a man and a woman.
It was more like… admiration? Though that wasn’t exactly right, it was something similar.
What is this…?
While Alice was bewildered by the unfamiliar emotion in his gaze, Prion continued.
“Duchess, you have been chosen by Lord Helios. For the deity to choose someone who is not a priest—this is unprecedented in the history of the temple.”
Prion spoke calmly, but Alice could sense the envy underneath his words.
“Moreover, the divine revelations that had ceased for a hundred years have resumed thanks to you. This is truly an extraordinary blessing. It seems Lord Helios was moved by your exceptional pure heart.”
Alice finally understood the admiration-like emotion she had seen in Prion’s eyes moments ago.
He envied her for being chosen by the deity.
It was understandable. Simply put, she was the person chosen by his ultimate devotion. That’s who Alice was to Prion.
Yet he only envied Alice without feeling jealousy.
An ordinary person would have felt both envy and jealousy. But Prion showed no such negative emotions.
He was genuinely delighted by the divine revelation that had descended after a century and purely envious of her.
He truly was a person with an unwavering, righteous character.
If a textbook on proper living had been born as a person, it would surely be someone like Prion.
So if Lord Helios had been moved by someone’s pure heart, it would be Prion’s, not Alice’s.
She truly believed that. No, it was probably the truth. The deity’s choice of her was unlikely to be for some beautiful reason out of a fairy tale.
The deity knows about my past life.
There was a high probability that the deity had brought her to this world for some reason.
Besides, Alice wasn’t kind enough to move a deity to emotion.
Of course, she wasn’t committing insane crimes like the Empress, but she was a moderately selfish person who always put herself first.
Especially considering her past actions exploiting Prion… she was in no position to be praised for her pure heart, at least not by him.
Suddenly recalling her misdeeds against Prion, Alice awkwardly smiled while avoiding his gaze.
“Haha, you flatter me about my pure heart. Your character is far more admirable, High Priest. But you’re right that it’s a great blessing for Lord Helios’s revelations to return after a hundred years.”
“Indeed. That’s why I’m hoping that today, you will be able to see Lord Helios manifest before you,” Prion replied with a kind smile.
“If Lord Helios manifests in the sanctuary, it would be an incredible blessing beyond compare to a mere revelation. Now, I’ll leave the sanctuary so as not to disturb your prayer.”
With a reverent face, Prion bowed to the deity’s statue and left the sanctuary.
After Prion’s departure, Alice, now alone, surveyed the spacious sanctuary.
Eventually, her gaze settled on the overwhelming statue of Helios.
She had been fine when Prion was with her, but now alone, the silent sanctuary suddenly felt eerie.
The atmosphere made it seem like the eyes of the Helios statue looking down at her might suddenly shoot lasers.
Ah, I shouldn’t have such impious thoughts.
Alice shook off these unnecessary, troubling imaginings.
Whatever the reason, I’ve been chosen by the deity, so I shouldn’t be like this.
“But… do I really need to pray?”
Alice looked up at Helios’s statue.
Prion had said she needed to offer a prayer full of faith to meet the deity, but Alice had already heard the deity’s voice in the spiritual realm.
And the deity had summoned her here.
Usually in books, when situations like this occur… the deity would appear with a “ta-da!” right after the priest leaves.
“Lord Helios…?”
Recalling the cliché she had seen in numerous books, Alice softly called the deity’s name.
