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Though I usually make an effort to speak clearly in front of Axel, this time my intuition pushed me so urgently that I couldn’t help but let a lisp slip through. Fortunately, my urgency must have come across clearly, as Axel quickly approached and lifted me up effortlessly.

“There! Let’s go!”  

“You really do treat people like a horse.”  

Despite his sigh, Axel began walking briskly in the direction I pointed. My intuition led us to the prayer room at the end of the corridor.

* * *

Axel’s pace was incredibly fast. What would have taken me ten hurried steps, Axel covered in just one stride with his long legs. Thanks to that, we arrived in front of the prayer room in no time.

“No, really, you mustn’t go in there, Lady Saint!”  

The priest was practically hopping from foot to foot in distress, but I didn’t hesitate to push the door open.  

‘Well, technically, Axel opened it, but we’re on the same page right now, so it’s the same thing.’

As we barged in, the murmuring voices of the priests who were gathered in a circle praying suddenly fell silent.  

‘What’s that?’

In the center of the priests, I saw a small, trembling figure huddled up in fear.  

“Huh?”  

Axel, still holding me, let out a dry, incredulous laugh.  

“The Duke of Kreutz?”

‘What? That tiny lump is him?’  

I looked up at Axel in surprise, but his gaze wasn’t on the huddled figure at the center. Instead, he was focused on a man standing nearby.

The moment I saw that man, a chill ran down my spine.  

‘I have a really bad feeling about this…’  

My intuition was screaming at me.  

‘That guy, he’s bad news!’

Axel set me down gently on the floor and then calmly approached the bad guy—Duke Kreutz—offering a polite greeting.

The House of Kreutz was a noble family that rivaled the House of Elpinard in prestige. Although their history was shorter, the only family within the empire that could stand on par with the Elpinards was the Kreutz family. They were especially famous for producing numerous exceptional swordsmen. If the Elpinards were considered the brain of the empire, Kreutz was known as the empire’s sword.

However, in the current generation, it was the Elpinard Duke who was renowned as a Sword Master, while the Kreutz Duke had made a name for himself as a scholar. It was a curious mismatch.

‘And on top of that, Duke Kreutz…’  

He was clearly aligned with the former emperor. The previous emperor had hoped that the expedition led by Prince Kirke against the Mad Dragon would fail. I suspected that Duke Kreutz, along with other imperial loyalists, had done everything in their power to sabotage the expedition.

There wasn’t any definitive evidence, but the circumstances suggested it. Whenever we followed the path recommended by the Emperor’s faction, it almost always led us into suspicious traps, dungeons, or brought con artists before us. Thanks to this, we faced numerous life-threatening situations.

‘That bastard…!’

Given how strongly my instincts were shouting this, maybe my suspicions, which have carried over from a previous life, weren’t just mere doubts.

“How did Your Grace end up here…?” 

Axel, who was about to ask Duke Kreutz a question, noticed a shadow crouching on the floor and seemed to realize the situation, his eyebrows twitching.

“So, you’re the one who rented out the temple for your sick son’s blessing ceremony?”

“Indeed.”

Duke Kreutz gave a slight nod. With his black hair and green eyes, Duke Kreutz looked like a lifeless flour doll. His excessively pale skin made him appear even more frail. If Duke Elpinard’s coldness made him appear terrifying, Duke Kreutz’s dry and lethargic demeanor was more eerie than outright frightening.

‘Why are all the dukes in this country like this…?’ 

I started to worry about the future of the empire, especially since my friend Kirke was the Emperor.

“Did Duke Kreutz have a sick son?” 

While I scrutinized Duke Kreutz’s appearance, Axel glanced at the boy among the priests. It seemed the boy was someone unfamiliar even to Axel, who was usually well-informed about the noble society.

Noticing the doubt on Axel’s face, Duke Kreutz spoke in a lethargic tone.

“I recently legitimized a child I fathered outside.”

He spoke somewhat indirectly, but in simple terms, he was saying the child was illegitimate.

‘The boy seems to be about five or six years old.’ 

If the child wasn’t legitimized until now, it meant his mother’s lineage was likely insignificant.

‘It also suggests that there must have been some pressing reason to legitimize such a child despite the weak lineage.’ 

I closely observed the young boy, who was trembling violently. He had black hair, much like Duke Kreutz.

‘He looks extremely distressed…’ 

His black hair and clothes were drenched in sweat.

Perhaps uncomfortable with Axel and me examining his son, Duke Kreutz naturally moved to block our view.

“I’m more curious about you. Wasn’t Sir Axel someone far removed from the temple?”

Duke Kreutz asked, his expression entirely indifferent, though his gaze also briefly flicked over to me, standing beside Axel. It was as if he already knew the answer.

‘He’s just trying to change the subject.’ 

Having already instinctively sensed that Duke Kreutz was a bad person, I clung to Axel’s trousers, watching him warily.

The duke, seemingly amused by how a little kid was glaring at him with such sharpness, erased his lethargic expression and let out a soft chuckle.

“Ah, I see now. Silver hair and light purple eyes. Aren’t you the Saint recognized by the Central Church?”

“Elpinard Princess as well,” Axel quickly added, causing Duke Kreutz to narrow his eyes in surprise.

“Oh? Is that so?”

“There’s nothing to deny or confirm. Her name is already registered under Elpinard,” Axel replied firmly.

“Well, that’s true,” Duke Kreutz said, lowering himself to my eye level.

“Such a cute Saintess, and yet the social circles have been so quiet. Since it seems like fate that we’ve met, would you bestow your blessing upon me as well?” he asked with a faint smile.

Axel’s expression hardened slightly. It was widely known across the continent that the Saintess could not wield divine power. Without divine power, one could not bestow blessings. Duke Kreutz surely knew this, yet he still brought up blessings, likely intending to make us uncomfortable and hasten our departure.

‘Hmph. If your intentions are so obvious, it just makes me want to do the opposite.’

Congratulations, Duke. You’ve triggered my rebellious spirit!

“Yes! I’ll give you a blessing!” I said with a bright smile, stepping forward in front of Duke Kreutz.

Everyone’s eyes were on me, wondering how a Saintess without divine power could offer a blessing. I beckoned Duke Kreutz to come closer, waving my hand as if asking for him to approach.

Duke Kreutz, seeing the innocent face of a child, lowered himself further without any particular caution, bringing his head within reach.

Not missing the opportunity, I swung my hand and slapped Duke Kreutz’s forehead as hard as I could, channeling all the resentment from my previous life into that single strike.

Smack!

“Here’s your blessing, Duke!” I declared loudly.

The loud slap echoed, leaving everyone, including the priests and Axel, staring at the Duke in shock. But the most stunned of all was Duke Kreutz, who had been struck by a Saintess he hadn’t expected to retaliate. His already lethargic face lost all semblance of composure, and a bright red mark, like a maple leaf, was clearly imprinted on his forehead from the sharp sting of a child’s hand.

“What… what is this…?”

Duke Kreutz stammered, reaching up to touch his slapped forehead.

“Evil, be gone!” I shouted and slapped him again.

Smack!

“Bad energy, disappear!” Another slap!

“Duke, receive your blessing!” And another, and another!

Smack! Smack! Smack!

I kept slapping his forehead over and over.