Chapter 11: Chapter 200

Caught off guard, all I managed to do was blink.

⟬The Scale that Judges Souls watches in silence.⟭

⟬The Executive of Creative Economy signals that anything beyond this point is paid content.⟭

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World checks your coins and sighs.⟭

⟬The Advocate of Confidentiality demands that you stop destroying the original story if you value your life.⟭

I'm not sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but the atmosphere quickly changed.

"You don't have to answer that," Tesilid said hurriedly. "I didn't mean to put you on the spot."

"Oh. It's not that, but..." I wanted to soothe his insecurities right away, but I quickly realized that I didn't have an explanation. This was awkward. Very awkward.

W-What do I do? The next thing I realized was that I was wiping my face with my palms, just as Tesilid would.

He didn't patiently wait for a reply, but wore a bitter smile and turned his head to face the front again as if he had his answer. Then he said, grimly, "I know."

Know what? This time, I didn't voice my thoughts aloud. The red and orange hues of the sunset began to paint over Tesilid's now emotionless face as the wind stilled, and the air became thick with tension between us.

That's when he languidly uttered, "Allie."

"Yes."

"Apparently, I'm a prince." His expression remained completely unreadable. "So..." he continued. "The queen is my mother and the third prince is my brother?"

I could tell it was a rhetorical question, silently continuing to watch him process the words.

"Ha..."

The chuckle that escaped his mouth sounded unfamiliar, for I don't think I'd ever heard a laugh that was so full of lifeless exasperation.

He's not the type to laugh like this. My heart throbbed for him.

"Tez..."

I was about to gently touch his shoulder when he suddenly looked at me again. "Still... I'm glad, Allie."

Glad?

"You know what I've gone through and what I will go through again," he explained. "I'm glad you know."

Really? I guess he found the fact that I've observed his life through over one hundred Loops to be a relief this time. Then... I'm glad too.

"Me too," I agreed.

I'm also glad because I could at least empathize with the painful memories you had to endure on your own. I wanted to do whatever I could to console him, so I raised my hand and gently patted his hair. Perhaps he felt my genuine effort, for he willingly accepted my touch. I was continuously moving my hand in hopes that the depressed look on his face would dissipate a little when an unexpected sound grazed my ear.

"Why are you laughing?" I asked incredulously.

"Because it tickles. I can't take it anymore."

So he's just been putting up with my touch this whole time? It was a little bit disappointing to hear for someone who was doing her best to comfort him, but that feeling quickly became lighter when I noticed the gentle way in which his eyes lit up. His lips had curled into a real smile. I wasn't sure why, but I suddenly felt a little ticklish myself. I quickly looked away as I removed my hand, changing the topic at the same time.

"What should we do about your name?"

"My name?"

"I'm wondering whether I should start calling you Reminick."

"Call me Tez like you're already doing."

As expected, he didn't seem like he had any plans of becoming a prince.

"All right. I like this name as well, Tesilid Argente."

His eyes widened innocently, followed by a sweet smile that took over his lips. "At least there's one person who's pleased with me."

"Of course," I replied confidently. Half of my life already revolved around him, so naturally I found him pleasing. Staring into his wide, ocean-colored eyes, I gave him some words of encouragement. "So have confidence."

"All right. I'll try." There was a gentle chuckle mixed in his words as he answered.

Just like that, Tesilid and I continued to tilt our mugs and watched as the sun set below the horizon. Such memories of peaceful moments with Tesilid were very precious. I was feeling serenity in my heart brought on by the relaxing view when our peace was abruptly interrupted.

Ding!

⟬«Quest» Third Calling of the Grand Priest of Voiceism has been completed.⟭

The system alerted me of the successful completion of the third Grand Priest quest.

Wow! This quest involved designating my parish and building a grand temple.

The church construction I asked my grandfather to help me with in Feronsa must have just finished! That meant something very important.

"I can finally make some real money now!" I exclaimed happily.

Tesilid jumped at my sudden announcement.

"Allie...?" he asked.

"Yes, Tez! Never mind!"

I clinked my mug into his, ignoring his confused expression. The taste of honey milk after a one-way cheers was particularly delicious.

Welcome to the Divine Emissary's Temple!

The Dark Tower was an educational institute to train mages, as well as the central administrative office for the Ragneif Republic of Magic. In this world, it was known as the Mage Tower. As per the tower's long-lasting tradition, the Master of the Mage Tower was selected solely on their magical abilities.

That meant Moriphys Marcellion was supposed to become the master upon the current master's death, but Count Ghast Nauzen was selected to be the temporary master while Moriphys was in confinement. Ghast was a Tier 6 mid-level mage, meaning he wasn't skilled enough to act as master of the tower despite the role being temporary. However, he managed to take the position anyway, due solely to the support of a powerful individual who stood behind him.

Step, step, step.

His hasty footsteps, unbecoming of a man of his influence, sounded against the stone staircase as he climbed to the highest floor of the Dark Tower. Under the domed ceiling, which looked like a sky full of countless stars, was a man casually looking through the endless array of books that were stored on the shelves below.

He was a handsome man with long hair as dark as coal. This man went by many names. The demons and the heretics called him the Primordial Chaos. Those who believed in the only God referred to him as the Darkness Conceived by Light. And the seekers who were granted access to the truth of this world called him...

"The Exiled in the World of Return, I came as soon as I heard you had graced us with your presence."

Ghast lowered his body and dropped his head as he welcomed Reed, a stance that was very similar to the one demons adopted when they greeted him. It was a gesture filled with adoration and reverence. Reed in his entirety was the truth of the world, so Ghast could feel the satisfaction of knowing that he was selected to reach the truth whenever they met in person.

Reed continued to page through a book as if he hadn't heard the count, so Ghast waited awkwardly for a moment before he decided to speak again.

"It has been a while. Did you go to a place outside the world of humans?"

"Yes."

Thankful for getting a response, any response, Ghast continued the conversation. "Have you heard what happened at the Vinchester Kingdom? A very interesting story came to light."

There were quite a few who worshiped him in the kingdom as well, so this incident was likely already known to Reed. However, Ghast felt that rumors as entertaining as this one were worth hearing again and again. Wanting to get on Reed's good side, he excitedly explained, "So... Apparently, the master of the holy sword is the royal family's missing second prince, who was kidnapped years ago! Is this not the most dramatic outcome? How very hilarious!"

Not only did Reed not laugh, but the count's attempt to lighten the mood had backfired terribly.

Quickly cowering away, Ghast murmured, "A-Apologies, sir."

"Very well."

Perhaps he was overthinking this, but Ghast felt a chill shoot up his spine because it suddenly seemed as if every part of Reed was glaring at him, down to the shadows beneath the man's feet. The instinctive fear that filled his heart clouded the air with his frantic gasps, so Reed subdued his turbulent shadow with annoyance and allowed the man to breathe again.

Looking at the count, who was wiping the sweat off of his forehead, Reed remarked, "What has Ailette Rodeline been doing these days?"

"Ailette Rodeline? Oh! You're referring to the Divine Emissary."

"That's right."

"I've been told that she has finished construction on a new church in Feronsa. The opening ceremony will take place soon."

"I see."

Reed didn't seem interested beyond this point, so Count Nauzen asked a different question. "What should we do about getting the Chimera Researcher back?"

"Oh... I had forgotten about that piece of trash locked inside Ailette Rodeline's little prison."

"Trash... Right."

Reed lost himself in his thoughts for a moment. The Helkaion Dungeon Burst that he triggered at the border last time had resulted in the discovery of an open mine of Blood Mana Stones. The plan had been to get the two nations to wage war over the mineral resources, but it seemed that Ailette was attempting to stop this conflict through alternative negotiations.

At this rate, it was likely that the Ragneif Republic of Magic would give up the mine in return for receiving the Chimera Researcher. Having already failed to create a rift between the Vinchester Kingdom and the Holy Kingdom of Elfenheim, he could not afford to lose the opportunity for a conflict between the Holy Kingdom and the Republic as well. Reed chuckled to himself.

Ailette Rodeline has ruined many of my plans. Reed didn't know how to be angry with her, so his only option was to allow his madness to spiral.

"Leave."

"Pardon? Oh, right away."

Although Ghast didn't hear a response regarding the Chimera Researcher, he dared not ask again. Left alone in the gigantic domed tower, Reed looked up to the ceiling and lost himself in the countless stars that shimmered overhead.

✠

We had allowed ourselves two days to heal and rest before we headed to my mother and father's home. Although I had to give the council of cardinals a full report on what happened at the kingdom, I knew nothing good would come of taking Tesilid with me to the Vatican.

The place was crawling with individuals who would want to hold a hearing or use his status to launch new schemes. Hence, we decided to go to the duchy first, so that my grandfather could protect Tesilid while I was fulfilling my duties with the religious order.

The moment my grandfather saw Tesilid, tears burst from his eyes as he embraced the younger man, burying him into the vast abyss of his well-built chest. "What a difficult thing to go through, child," he cooed into Tesilid's silver hair. "It must've been quite the shock."

"It's fine—" Tesilid said, though his words came out muffled against my grandfather's pecs.

"No, it's not! I can see your lats drooping with pain. You don't have to pretend that everything is all right."

"Thank you..."

With that, I left Tesilid in safe hands and went to the Vatican alone. The council of cardinals reacted predictably to the master of the holy sword's absence. They grumbled about why he didn't come, they shamed him by saying that he'd gotten careless upon discovering that he was a prince, and attempted to control him by advising that he must dedicate his life to the religious order because everyone was equal in God's eyes despite worldly status. Only when I spoke did everyone finally fall silent.

"It seems that you all want Tesilid to leave the church altogether!"

Since then, I had to waste my time listening to mindless discussions while defending Tesilid throughout the entire meeting. It was an exhausting experience, even for me, to sit through hours of reporting and questions without a single break.

When the meeting finally wrapped up, I left feeling utterly fatigued, only to run into Clovis, the division commander of the Knights of the Temple in the hallway. It seemed that he intended to give a report after being away from the Vatican for a long-term mission.

"It's been a while, Your Eminence."

"Yes, it has, Sir Clovis."

Clovis was the son of Vegalius Argente, Tesilid's godfather, so the two always acted like they were brothers, although they weren't actually related. As such, it was expected that the news of Tesilid's true bloodline would hit him harder than others.

"I heard that Tesilid is... Prince Reminick."