There was truly very little information about a Saintess’ companion.
Few people knew, and few records existed.
The companion of the Saintess was set to gain abilities equal to the Saintess, aside from divine power.
Their wounds would heal quickly, they wouldn’t fall ill, and poisons would have no effect.
In other words, unless their head was cleanly severed, they wouldn’t die.
“I already only look at just you, Lady Saintess.”
Alois finished his words.
Hearing that, I pulled myself out of thought and replied.
“Once you become my companion, you won’t get drunk anymore.”
“That sounds great. When I get drunk, I’m practically a vulnerability.”
He answered without a pause.
As expected, it was just like Alois to say that/
I gently twisted a strand of my freshly washed, loose pink hair with my finger.
“No regrets?”
“Of course not. I only feel joy to walk the same path as Your Holiness.”
There wasn’t even a hint of hesitation in his answer.
As I twisted my now-dry hair with my hand, his eyes settled on it.
“When will the companionship ceremony take place?”
“It’s not that simple. There are places where we can hold the ceremony and places where we can’t.”
I took back the document I gave Alois earlier.
I wanted us to visit the temple in the Kingdom of Eseah, but we couldn’t hold the companionship ceremony there.
The document only contained explanations about the ceremony itself but nothing else.
“The Kingdom of Eseah is a no-go.”
“Can I ask why?”
Whether it was possible or not depended on whether the site had a facility for the purification bath.
“If there’s no facility, the ceremony can’t happen. The Kingdom of Eseah is missing one.”
And to my knowledge, the only place that had such a facility was the Wesleyan Empire.
In the end, it was the empire…
I’d have to return to the empire.
Of course, as the Saintess, I didn’t have a permanent residence, but I had made a promise.
That I would return.
“Then where will the ceremony be held?”
“…The empire.”
“The Wesleyan Empire?”
“Yes. The ceremony has to be held in the empire. I have to go back there.”
Now that I thought about it, it had been quite some time since I left the empire.
Saying I didn’t miss anyone would have been a lie.
Prince Yuina, Chen… they must have grown so much.
As I thought of the only children in the temple, I mentally reviewed my itinerary.
It looked like it would take a little more time to wrap up Alois’s affairs.
“When your work is nearly done…I’ll head to the empire.”
“Mn…”
“And Alois, you can come to the empire once you’re able to leave for about a week.”
That’s when we’ll hold the companionship ceremony.
The temple’s crest would appear over his heart, on the left side of his chest.
I chuckled softly when I thought about the crest. A pure white flower cradled by the wings of a white bird.
“I’ll accept you as my companion.”
At my words, sincere and without the slightest trace of falsehood, Alois nodded.
“I look forward to that day.”
And so did I.
Very much.
* * *
Time flew by and during that time, rumors of Alois continued to spread.
Alois declined all party invitations. Since he refused, I had no reason to go either, so I declined too.
Thanks to that, things had become noisy around us the past few days.
“Um, Your Highness the Prince…there’s a hunting tournament today—.”
A servant uttered nervously.
Hearing that, I turned to Alois and tilted my head.
Since I was watching him bury himself in documents, I asked in his place.
“They say there’s a hunting tournament.”
“Please decline.”
“Mm. Good idea.”
I hated hunting tournaments.
I didn’t like the idea of innocent animals being sacrificed.
With my legs crossed, I idly swung my foot and stopped the servant just before he left.
“Who’s hosting the hunting tournament?”
“Ah, that…it’s Highness the Crown Prince…”
Being addressed directly, the servant froze and turned to me.
Seeing the admiration in his eyes, I had to soften the frown on my face.
“And where’s the hunting ground?”
“Mount Mimungten.”
Alois’ pen paused mid-stroke, stopping what he was doing. He raised his head and stared straight at the servant.
“Isn’t Mount Mimungten a forbidden forest?”
“Yes! You’re right, Your Highness. It’s the one the temple designated it as a protected area before too many animals disappear…”
Alois set down his pen and massaged his temple.
“Elder brother is really a fool.”
To hold a hunt in a forest protected by the temple…was he trying to provoke me?
Veins bulged on the back of my hand.
“By order of the Saintess, this hunt is forbidden. And all weapons that were planned for use during this hunt will be confiscated.”
“Pardon? L-Lady Saintess…”
The servant was flustered, even stammering over his words. He kept clenching and unclenching his fists.
“Since they broke a promise with the temple, they can forget about me playing nice.”
It was time to send a handwritten letter to the crown prince.
And give a warning to the King to place the heir of the kingdom under house arrest.
I turned my head sharply, and couldn’t help but speak curtly. Seeing the servant fidgeting anxiously, I couldn’t help but pull out a pen on the spot.
“Come here and take this. If anyone says anything to you when you deliver my words, just show them this.”
If he simply relayed what I said, the servant would definitely catch the blame.
So I prepared a signed note with a short message.
No one would dare lay a hand on him that carelessly.
The servant took the paper, and only then did he look relieved and retreated out of the room.
Only then were Alois and I alone.
“A hunting tournament in a mountain protected by the temple, of all things. It sounds like provocation towards me, doesn’t it?”
“Who knows… But I doubt the king would just allow such a stupid thing to happen.”
“In that case?”
“I’d wager this is an independent act of the crown prince. Knowing my brother, he probably thought, ‘Since the mountain belongs to the temple, it will serve the Saintess the best’…or something like that.”
Alois picked up his pen again and returned to his documents.
Nobles were really an oddity.
This man always treated what he had with care. Even with the small territory he had, he managed it well.
There had never been a problem in the lands he was managing.
“My brother is basically naïve. He can’t act without father’s orders…and this time, he tried to act alone and only made things worse.”
“Hmm.”
Of course, ruling a country was another matter entirely.
But the nobles had only seen one side of Alois, and assumed he was incompetent.
“More importantly, Lady Emilone.”
“Yes?”
“What did you think of our kingdom’s temple?”
At that, I tilted my head with a mischievous smile.
“I liked it. So much that if I could, I’d be staying in the temple right now.”
“No one would say anything if you did.”
What a good joke. More like people wouldn’t stop talking.
I lifted my hand and poked his cheek.
Despite my disruptions, Alois stayed focused on his work.
“No one would say anything, my foot. Who was the one that came running to the temple saying you missed me after just two days of me staying there?”
Only then did he turn his head. He pulled away from my teasing hand and narrowed his eyes at me.
“Well, that’s because I long for Lady Emilone more than any priest could.”
“Impossible. You didn’t see the way the people at the temple look at me?”
I caught Alois’ face when he finally looked up from the documents and spoke tauntingly.
With his face in my palms, Alois didn’t avoid my gaze as he replied.
“I saw. But none of them can compare to me.”
He pushed in his face as if to say, ‘look at me’. As always, his red eyes glimmered with a faint sheen.
Alois’ voice was full of confidence.
I wanted to laugh but I couldn’t once I saw his eyes.
I tightened my grip and narrowed my eyes.
Alois slowly lifted both of his hands. Only then did I release him.
“What do you think? Do I think I lose to those priests?”
He asked the moment I let him go.
Lose to the priests? He said that while looking at me like that?
“Naturally. They don’t treat me rudely like you.”
Alois gave an awkward laugh and scrunched his brow mischievously. Even with a contorted expression, his face was beautiful.
“And they don’t get this close to me, either.”
He lifted my hand, which had been resting carelessly on the desk. Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he kissed it.
“Happy with yourself?”
When I asked that, he gave a faint smile which looked so pleased that I blinked. What made him so pleased that he was smiling like that?
“Yes, I am. When we’re like this, I feel like I’ve become someone special to you, Saintess.”
I’d never heard that one before.
He raised his head, then ran his red tongue along his lower lip, as if thirsty.
“That’s funny. There hasn’t been a single moment you weren’t special to me.”
“Really?”
He sounded surprised.
But I wasn’t lying.
From the beginning, he had always been special to me.
Just as he thought more of me, I also cherished him more that I expected.
“If you weren’t, I wouldn’t be allowing you to do this to me right now.”
With the hand he had kissed, I brushed my hand over Alois’ face.
There is a lot that I allowed him to do.
His arrogant words, his attitude, his requests, I allowed them all.
Alois gently closed his eyes, as if he didn’t plan to think any deeper about it. I’m sure he knew just how much I favored him.
“You do take care of me a lot.”
“So you know.”
“How could I not? When you treat me like this?”
His gaze was electrifying, and I swallowed.
I felt thirsty.
Now, I felt like I understood somewhat how Alois felt earlier.
TL’s Corner:
*So, I saw Wesleyan Empire and I was like, Oh? New country? Nope.
*It’s the same country that they’ve been calling the ‘Empire’ the whole time (the one Ronella’s from). I completely forgot its name so I’m making a note here in case anyone else did too. ໒(⊙ᴗ⊙)७✎▤
Early Access available on Patreon~
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