Chapter 8 Part 4
Mattio seemed to be adding something behind me, but I pretended not to hear and headed straight for the carriage.
Today’s omens were certainly not good.
I wasn’t sure what would happen when I met the Cardinal later, but… it would be best to be careful in every way. Thanks to this, I was fully alert now.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, my lady.”
As soon as my command fell, the cheerful sound of hoofbeats could be heard shortly after.
Since I needed to hide my identity today, I couldn’t use a carriage marked with the family crest.
So I planned to meet Hyle in the central square and walk together to the temple.
I had originally intended to hire a private carriage to the temple… but according to Hyle, ordinary commoners weren’t wealthy enough to afford hired carriages.
Since we had to be commoners today, I agreed to walk as Hyle suggested.
The dress made of cheap fabric rustled with every movement I made.
While not particularly uncomfortable, it was quite irritating. I’d change clothes as soon as this task was done.
The carriage soon arrived at the meeting place.
After getting off, I found the area bustling with many people despite the early hour.
As before, I wasn’t particularly fond of crowded places.
Especially today, in my plain and ordinary attire, finding a similarly plainly dressed Hyle would be even more unwelcome.
Perhaps I should have arrived earlier? At this rate, we’d spend all our time just trying to find each other.
The noisy voices struck my eardrums chaotically.
The pitch of each voice was so different that it gave me a headache.
As a result, my consistently upright head naturally lowered toward the ground.
Seeing the solid concrete floor, I finally felt like I could breathe.
The situation was already confusing enough—how could I find Hyle in such a crowded place? Conversely, Hyle wouldn’t be able to find me with my changed style either.
We had agreed to meet under the clock tower, but with so many people…
Should I just head to the temple first? Maybe Hyle had given up on finding me and gone ahead as well.
“Rosiel.”
…How strange, to hear Hyle’s voice amid this noise.
Had my ears gone mad from all the people chattering? I was hearing things.
“Rosiel, look at me.”
Suddenly, someone’s massive shadow fell over me.
When I opened my half-closed eyes, my vision filled with a sturdy chest that perfectly suited the neat navy jacket.
“Rosiel Laté.”
Then I heard the voice again.
The thread of reason that had been drifting away seemed to be grasped once more.
As I slowly raised my eyes, they directly collided with Hyle’s calm green eyes looking down at me.
His eyes shone brilliantly, intensified by the deep black robe he wore.
Did this man just find me in this noisy commotion?
“Hyle…? How did you find me? My clothes are different from usual. My hair isn’t showing…”
“Well, I could just see you.”
When I gave him a puzzled look, the corners of Hyle’s lips curved into an arch.
Additionally, his thin eye corners showed a composed smile.
“At first glance.”
“Ugh…”
Unfortunately, there was no time to feel any affection for Hyle’s words.
The crowd had been so dense, and I’d been jostled by waves of people, which had made me nauseous, but meeting Hyle had completely released my tension.
As my rigid body relaxed, the nausea I’d been suppressing led to dry heaving.
Seeing this, Hyle patted my back a couple of times with somewhat clumsy hands, and then…
“What?!”
…suddenly, he picked me up.
As I was lightly lifted into his arms like a package, even my stomach seemed surprised—my dry heaving stopped abruptly.
“I forgot for a moment that you’re the most delicately raised lady in the Empire. My mistake. I apologize.”
Though his tone was sarcastic, he wasn’t really mocking me.
Hyle’s deeply sunken eyes genuinely showed remorse.
Using his long legs, Hyle quickly moved with broad strides.
Finally escaping from the crowd, my dizzy head gradually stabilized.
If we just followed the well-maintained forest path ahead, we would soon see the entrance to the Grand Temple.
“I’m fine now, so put me down.”
“With that pale face, that’s hardly convincing.”
But why wasn’t this man putting me down? Surely he didn’t intend to enter the temple while carrying me?
“That doesn’t seem like a good idea.”
“What doesn’t?”
“Continuing what you’re doing now… all the way to our destination.”
Despite my clear hint, Hyle lightly shrugged his shoulders with an expression that suggested he didn’t see the problem.
“Well… just a day ago, didn’t you tell me to get used to skinship? If anyone looks uncomfortable, it’s you, Rosiel.”
Ugh, I didn’t expect those words to be thrown back at me like this… He really does hold grudges, doesn’t he?
Faced with his persistent grudge, I let out a hollow laugh and intently followed his gaze, which wasn’t directed at me.
“So, we can do that when we enter the temple. There’s no need to do this already.”
“You know what? They say newlyweds don’t want to separate at any moment. Especially when one is sick.”
But Hyle continued with a look of realization.
…What is this? It feels like watching my arrogant self who suddenly understands the ways of the world after receiving a last-minute crash course the night before an exam.
“I don’t understand what you’re suddenly talking about. Since when have you been interested in the lives of newlyweds? Did you receive a lesson in the meantime?”
Hyle looked down at me slowly with eyes that showed I had hit the mark.
What… did you really study about newlyweds?
“I just read some related books because you nagged so much.”
“…Pfft. Where in the world would you find such books?”
Should I consider this admirable or just foolish? Still, it’s better than doing nothing at all.
“You laugh more easily than I expected. Thanks to that, I’ve just succeeded in the first virtue of being a husband.”
“And what might that be?”
“That’s…”
Perhaps thanks to this unexpected small talk with Hyle, we soon arrived at the Grand Temple.
Without a carriage, I hadn’t expected to arrive so quickly, but now I realized that carriages weren’t necessarily the only guide to a fast path.
“Hyle, wait a moment. Let’s take the left corridor instead of the middle path. Going through that passage is the fastest way to the cathedral.”
“…You know the structure of the Grand Temple strangely well. As if you frequent it.”
In truth, even after Tia no longer stayed at the Grand Temple, I often infiltrated to monitor the Cardinal as regularly as eating meals, so of course I was thoroughly familiar with each passage of the Grand Temple.
As a result, Hyle’s suspicious gaze fell directly on me… but fortunately or unfortunately, there was no time to make excuses at this moment.
The reason was the appearance of an interruption, as if it had been waiting for us.
“Excuse me, faithful ones! If you’ve come to offer morning prayers, you must use the central corridor of the Grand Temple.”
Just as Hyle was turning toward the left corridor following my words, a man in pristine white priest’s robes blocked our path with a friendly face.
While it would have been better to proceed without being caught, now that we had been, we had no choice but to act out our newlywed couple role.
After briefly exchanging glances, Hyle and I began the tear-jerking performance… no, situational act that we had discussed beforehand.
“Priest, we are newlyweds scheduled to receive His Eminence the Cardinal’s blessing today. As you can see, my wife is very ill, and we haven’t even been able to register our marriage, so it’s somewhat urgent.”
“Cough, cough… Priest, could you possibly guide us to where His Eminence is? Cough… preferably as quickly as possible…”
Our efforts paid off—the priest who had been examining us carefully looked around with a serious face, then gently nodded.
“If you follow this path, you’ll reach a corridor. At the end is the cathedral… If you meet other priests on the way, just say ‘We’ve already been checked at the entrance.’ My mother also couldn’t walk due to illness, so I pray you’ll recover soon, faithful one!”
It seemed he had misunderstood that Hyle was carrying me because I was too ill to walk.
