“Crown Prince. It seems that Count Rupert has recently recovered from a curse, so it would be better for him to rest now.”
“Now that you mention it, I completely forgot that he’s a patient. I apologize for my eagerness to share good news.”
The Crown Prince chuckled awkwardly as he patted Rupert’s shoulder.
Rupert, unable to understand the current situation, could only force a smile, raising the corners of his mouth awkwardly.
‘What’s going on? Why is the Saintess acting like this?’
Her natural expression and response could easily confuse anyone who didn’t know the circumstances into believing it was true.
Moreover, the smile she gave while glancing at him as if she knew everything was making him incredibly anxious.
“I will bless His Highness the Crown Prince for a moment.”
“Oh, this wound is already healed with a potion…”
The Saintess placed her hand on the right shoulder, reciting prayers despite the Crown Prince’s refusal.
Her hand glowed bright for a moment, and the Crown Prince’s expression changed to one of surprise.
“What is this…?”
“Even a potion cannot regenerate nerves. With this much, you won’t feel any pain later.”
“Thank you, I didn’t expect such a difference.”
“Not at all. For someone who has brought peace to the world, this is a rather embarrassing reward.”
The Saintess smiled brightly while the Crown Prince blushed at the compliment.
“Count Rupert, it’s time for me to return to the Imperial Palace; we should wrap up this meeting.”
“Your Highness…”
“Once the report is finished, there will certainly be a reward discussion about this matter. Let’s meet again then.”
After finishing his words, the Crown Prince left the mansion with his escort knights.
He patted Aida, who was whining about not getting to play before leaving.
He was an important figure who appeared like a storm and disappeared in an instant.
However, the fact that two equally important figures remained at the Somerset Mansion worried Rupert.
“The Crown Prince and the Count’s second son… This might not be so bad after all?”
(TN: I smell the scent of a fujoshi here.)
Rupert, along with the Saintess and Amelia, went out to meet the departing Crown Prince.
He caught a faint sound of the Saintess murmuring something, but it was hard to catch the specifics.
It seemed to be about the Crown Prince or something regarding the second son.
“Amelia, fortunately, thanks to the Saintess’s intervention, we managed to get through this without any issues. You don’t need to worry too much.”
“…Thank you.”
She used to be so confident when he saw her at the banquet. But because of her mistake this time, she still seemed to be intimidated.
‘It’s understandable; rumors about the noble young lady from the Duke’s family causing everyone who ate her food to collapse…’
Nobles lived and died by their reputation, and for someone in the position of the Duke’s eldest daughter, it was probably a story she wanted to avoid at all costs.
“Still, thank you for visiting me out of concern.”
Rupert looked at the still timid noble young lady as he spoke.
Their relationship had only been sending a book to her for her younger sister, so he wondered if she thought he had made a rude request.
It was truly unexpected that she attended their family’s banquet and even came to visit him upon hearing of his illness.
‘She has always valued family.’
Rupert didn’t dislike her, as she had said before. No, he rather liked it.
In the original work, she was portrayed so rigidly and gracefully, yet the unknown aspects of her felt more real to him than the Crown Prince.
“I’m sorry… I had gotten used to cooking for my family and didn’t know my skills accurately.”
Despite Rupert’s comforting words, Amelia finally shed tears.
Her family, mostly her father or her sister Evelyn, were shocked but somehow managed to eat the food she made.
People around her praised her for her daily improvement, which made this incident hit her even harder.
Moreover, to show such a side to someone she wanted to impress.
She felt she would never be able to face him again. It was embarrassing to acknowledge her terrible cooking skills, but to cause such trouble during an important occasion with the Saintess of the Goddess Church and the Empire’s Crown Prince visiting, she thought about how pathetic she must seem to him.
‘I imagined and misinterpreted everything on my own…’
For a moment, Amelia felt that Rupert might not feel the same way as she did.
In reality, the evidence that they shared feelings was all in her head. She had never exchanged affectionate letters or had sweet conversations with him.
Just the other day, she had been embarrassed imagining a tragic romance while living at the academy alongside him.
With that embarrassment, Amelia couldn’t lift her head.
But
“Please don’t say such things. Though I couldn’t eat the food you made this time, I would love to try it someday.”
Rupert offered a handkerchief to her, providing warm comfort.
Amelia looked up at him in surprise at his unexpected words.
The sunlight still bright in the afternoon gently brushed through his golden hair.
A faint halo appeared behind him, but his face was clearly visible.
In her eyes, it seemed that Rupert genuinely wanted to eat her food, not as a lie, but with a subtle smile on his face.
When she last saw him, he had a cold demeanor.
He looked tired and dark, and his smile felt like a mask.
But now, he appeared so bright.
“Really…?”
“Of course.”
Even with her questioning, he answered without a hint of hesitation.
Amelia, while wiping her tear-filled eyes with the handkerchief, lifted the corners of her mouth, looking at him still smiling.
With the thought that this can’t be just her imagination,
*
“Thank you for your help.”
“Don’t mention it. The situation has flowed amusingly, and I just lent a hand a bit.”
The remaining issue for Rupert, who resolved Amelia Bluewell’s visit, was the Saintess.
The person who arrived first and stayed the longest, someone bizarre whose intentions he still couldn’t decipher.
At first, he thought she would be the most normal among the main characters that came to find him, but Rupert had already raised his guard against her to the max.
He still did not know why the Saintess, who until today had been an unfathomable figure, had helped him.
As expected, once everyone around them had stepped away, the atmosphere of the Saintess facing him changed entirely from before.
Rupert carefully observed her while sipping the coffee on the table.
Though she still wore that innocent expression as if nothing in the world troubled her, he could sense something hidden behind it.
“About a month ago, perhaps? Sir Yustaf and Sir Harun visited the Imperial Palace.”
Despite feeling Rupert’s gaze upon her, the Saintess continued speaking nonchalantly.
“I heard they brought up stories related to Dark Wizards.”
She then informed Rupert about various incidents since the Goddess Church had been conducting its own investigation.
What she said was shocking, but what astonished Rupert more was the information-gathering capability of the Goddess Church to the extent of grasping secret investigations within the Imperial family.
‘Indeed, it’s no wonder they’re the only force competing with the Imperial family.’
Rupert’s wariness towards the Saintess increased even more.
The information she had shared was of such importance that only the highest officials in the Empire could know; for her to speak it so freely made him feel fearful.
Generally, after such a conversation, one would express their true intentions.
But knowing he was in a predicament due to the Crown Prince’s misunderstanding, if she were to tell him such valuable information as a lie…
He had a foreboding feeling that she might push him into a severe and dangerous situation.
“It seems His Highness the Crown Prince believes that the House of Somerset is being threatened by the Dark Wizards due to some misunderstanding.”
The sight of the Saintess smiling as if she found it amusing made her no longer appear holy to Rupert.
“Count Rupert.”
“Yes, please go ahead.”
“I believe this incident is simply a mother helping her child in trouble, but I’m concerned it might also become a burden for you.”
Though spoken with an old-fashioned manner, the direct translation would be, ‘You know I saved you, right?’
“That’s correct. If I were to dare ignore the grace extended by the daughter of Gaia, I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.”
Thus, Rupert politely translated her meaning of ‘I got it, now say what you want’ into a more formal tone.
“Since it would be a shame to keep such a devout believer awake at night, would it be alright if I made a light request?”
“Yes, please say anything.”
Given how much she hesitated, he assumed her request was merely to paint a mural or something similar.
She wouldn’t target their family’s meager resources compared to the Goddess Church, not to mention there wasn’t much to catch anyone’s attention.
The only thing he could offer was his painting skills.
While he planned to politely decline due to how long-a mural or holy painting would take, it seemed he would have no choice but to comply now that it had come to this.
‘This is going to be intense, but escaping from this crisis is worth celebrating.’
Despite the sudden workload frustrating him, he had to consider it a blessing to safely get through an incident that could have led him to charges of royal indignity.
Though painting murals or holy art was challenging, if completed well, it would surely provide many benefits in the future.
“Could you paint a picture for me?”
The Saintess directly asked him for a painting.
“Well, let’s give it a try!” Just as Rupert was about to respond with resignation,
“After much thought, I find that I really prefer a scene where Edward Elric and Roy Mustang hug each other!”
Rupert stopped thinking at the Saintess’s following words.
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