Chapter 67
Chapter 67
“But sis, it seems His Majesty has tasted our Seike wine.”
[Hehe, that’s not what it meant]
[Yeah. Somehow Ijin seems to be getting dumber.]
I thought to myself, ‘That’s not what he meant,’ and said:
“Yes, thanks to that, Seike wine will probably be a big hit again.”
We can’t know for sure whether the Emperor actually drank it or not.
But in truth, that’s not so important.
Whether Ijin intended it or genuinely thought so, he said the Emperor had drunk Seike wine, and the Emperor didn’t deny it.
The mere mention that the Emperor himself, the ruler of the empire, had tasted it will make everyone in the empire pay attention to Seike.
Already, other nobles can be seen preparing to engage in conversation with Ijin.
“I suppose that’s how it’ll be?”
“So prepare well in advance.”
It’s an opportunity to attract good customers, so of course, we need to pay attention to quality control, and service shouldn’t be neglected either.
Noticing my concern, Ijin nodded solemnly, saying not to worry.
“It’s a shame.”
“What’s a shame?”
“If I had been in that position, I would have brought up Luwin’s ice cream instead of Seike wine.”
As soon as I finished speaking, Cassis shuddered.
“The Emperor probably wouldn’t have listened to the end.”
“I know. He would have probably said something like ‘dismissed, get out’ as soon as I mentioned the ‘L’ of Luwin.”
So I’m at a loss as to how we should promote our Luwin ice cream.
I tried to subtly promote it at the party, but considering the treatment Cassis received, I wonder if we should think long-term.
I stuck close to Cassis and looked around.
The gazes that had been fixed on us until just a moment ago had long since dispersed.
People’s attention was now focused on a silver-haired woman who appeared following the Emperor.
Everyone admired her, and unlike the gazes directed at Cassis or Ijin, their eyes were full of admiration and respect.
The woman with brilliant silver hair came forward, slightly lifting her pure white saint’s robe.
I could understand why people were giving her such adoring looks.
Because just looking at her exuded a sacred feeling.
[It’s the Saint.]
[Yeah. Is she our Saint?]
[That’s right.]
[Ah, I only need Irina.]
[Me too.]
Next to her stood a young man who closely resembled the Emperor.
“Is that the prince the Emperor favors most?”
“Yes, Agen Jackmüller. He’s the prince born from a concubine.”
That’s why he seemed to have been chosen as the Saint’s partner.
“Mr. Cassis, it seems the Imperial family and the temple are quite close.”
“They’re not close. More accurately, you could say they move according to their interests.”
Standing beside me is a being that embodies power, known as the god of this world; however, the reality is that in this realm, gods are not nearly as powerful as expected.
The temple was closer to another power institution existing separately from the Imperial family and nobles, based on the power of ‘holy force’.
“And a Saint without authority can be seen as a symbolic existence.”
“A symbol…”
“For that reason, regardless of their relationship with the temple, it’s beneficial for the Imperial family to be close to the Saint.”
Because the Saint cannot have power herself, she cannot have independent authority.
But she is also a symbolic existence of a huge power institution.
Getting close to such a Saint means being able to take all the positive images of the ‘temple’ that the Saint possesses.
“So they’ll probably show off his most beloved prince and the Saint like this in high society.”
The Saint, Rose Bistin, was exuding an aura that seemed unapproachable.
It was quite different from the breathtaking beauty I felt when I first saw Seiren.
“For that reason, Isiel opposed Seiren becoming the Saint.”
“Lord Isiel really cares for Seiren, doesn’t he?”
“Of course.”
It seems Isiel didn’t like the idea of his precious sister becoming a mere symbol of the temple.
So he probably didn’t provide any help, and that’s why such an incident occurred on the day I first met Seiren.
I quietly looked at the Saint and then turned my gaze to search for Seiren.
Watching the Saint being welcomed by everyone, I couldn’t help but worry about Seiren.
After scanning the central hall of the party venue a few times with my eyes, I could spot Seiren sticking close to Isiel’s side.
“Seiren doesn’t look well.”
“…That child’s situation is complicated in many ways.”
[Oh dear, my heart aches.]
[Let’s go help her.]
[Yeah yeah, she was our Saint candidate after all, let’s treat her well.]
Isiel was born to attract people’s attention, and Seiren was gathering gazes as a reaction to Saint Rose Bistin.
In other words, cold gazes very different from the adoring looks directed at the Saint were now focused on Seiren.
[Hey, quickly go and save Seiren.]
[The child’s face is pale.]
If I didn’t know Seiren well, I might have thought that expressionless face was just beautiful.
But now that I’ve gotten close to her, I understand.
She’s terrified right now.
She was so shrunk up that it was hard to imagine her causing trouble at the temple before.
However, although Isiel seemed to know Seiren was in such a state, he couldn’t actually help her.
All he could do was not leave her side for now.
Seiren’s face started to grow even paler.
“Lord Cassis, I’m going to check on Seiren for a bit.”
“Will you be alright? The gazes and words won’t be easy.”
“Still, I have no choice.”
I can’t leave the baby alone among those people.
It seems people have already started whispering.
I quickly descended the stairs and approached Seiren.
Sure enough, on the way to Seiren, people seemed to be making comparisons between the Saint and Seiren with every word.
“Still, she’s the only princess of the Lemiere Duchy. Isn’t it a bit much that she lost to someone of common birth?”
“Maybe the Saint was born to be a saint, so there’s no comparison.”
Although there’s no particular malice in these words, they must be painful for Seiren.
“Seiren.”
Just as I was about to call “Seiren,” someone beat me to it.
It was Rose Bistin.
Rose, dressed in white saint’s robes, was approaching Seiren with the most beautiful posture of all.
‘Damn. Why is she coming?’
She’s so tactless.
Can’t she see Seiren is struggling?
“Seiren, have you been well?”
Rose spoke with a slight smile, like an angel.
Her voice was quite soft, so I thought the Saint might just be tactless but quite kind.
Well, she’s still a saint, even if just a symbol.
“I was so surprised when you suddenly left the temple. I tidied up your belongings for you.”
“…I’ll send a servant. You don’t need to tidy up.”
“Come on, how could I let someone casually handle a Saint candidate’s belongings?”
Rose added with a bright smile.
“Until the Saint is decided, candidates receive treatment no different from the Saint. I couldn’t leave such precious items that only a Saint can use to a mere servant.”
“……”
Somehow, it feels a bit unsettling.
[…Yeah.]
My brows furrowed involuntarily at Rose’s words that felt unsettling for some reason.
“Still, Seiren. I’m glad you’re the Lemiere princess. We can meet again like this…”
Ah.
It seems Rose really did come all the way here to scratch at our Seiren’s wounds.
It’s true that Seiren is a good child.
But it’s also true that she caused trouble at the temple.
So, worried she might hit the Saint, I quickly grabbed her hand.
‘No matter what, assaulting the Saint would be a bit problematic.’
“Well, I was born a Lemiere. Being a Saint candidate was just a brief moment of wandering.”
Seiren retorted coldly, but she curled her hand into a fist.
I held onto that fist, playing the role of calming her down.
“Seiren, no matter what, fists are not allowed.”
When I whispered softly, Seiren pouted and argued back.
“Then what is allowed?”
“Pulling hair seems okay… but let’s try to fight with words if possible.”
Whether she knew or not that Seiren’s fist was trembling, Rose was relentless.
Isiel firmly grasped the other fist.
“Oh my, that can’t be. You were really serious, not just wandering. That’s why I felt so sorry.”
[Oh dear… It seems our Saint has become quite a difficult person.]
‘Don’t they usually choose someone more docile as a symbolic figure?’
[Well, maybe the high-ups at the temple thought Rose looked more manageable than Seiren.]
As I briefly conversed with the system, I gasped when I saw a streak of a smile on Seiren’s face. This is bad.
She’s going to hit someone.
I immediately kicked Isiel to get his attention and frantically conveyed the situation with my eyes. Quickly grasping the situation, Isiel hurriedly opened his mouth to calm things down, but Rose was quick-witted too.
“Oh, Brother Isiel. I think His Highness Cain is looking for you.”
“What, suddenly? And through you?”
Rose first separated Isiel, the person with the greatest influence in high society, Seiren’s brother, and the heir to the Lemiere Duchy.
Her method was to mention the prince.
“Well, if you have the ability to judge whether my words are false or true, you don’t have to go.”
It clearly seems like a lie, but if it’s true, it would be a big problem.
Because of this, Isiel had no choice but to leave Seiren, gritting his teeth.
He left after earnestly entrusting me with Seiren.
Rose was subtly scratching at Seiren’s personality, but the problem was that Seiren was not an easy person either.
She seemed to be revving up, ready to cause trouble soon.
I grabbed her fist again and asked.
“Seiren, I know you’re angry, but let’s endure it for now.”
“But sis.”
“There are many eyes watching.”
“So I just endure it?”
“I’ll handle it for you.”
When I looked around briefly, truly everyone in this central hall was looking at Seiren and Rose, and me caught between them.
Rose seemed to quite enjoy this attention, while Seiren was suffering from it.
In this situation, I know how to take the attention off Seiren to give her some breathing room, and to steal Rose’s attention to make her feel bad.
“Do you trust your sister?”
I didn’t plan to bring out the ice cream this quickly…
But what can I do?
The only way to take the attention off those two is to drop the news about ice cream in this party venue.
With some recognition already and curiosity about ice cream at its peak, a small spark will blaze into a fire.
