Chapter 67

How to Tame My Beastly Husband — Chapter 67. Infiltration (4)

“Who are you?”

The guards looked at her suspiciously. There seemed to be about a dozen of them at a glance, and the moment they spotted her uniform, their hostility dissipated a bit. A middle-aged man who seemed to be in charge spoke.

“You’re a priestess in service of the Goddess Odessa, what brings you here?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I am meant to meet a believer here…isn’t this area used for confessions?”

Annette’s voice through the mask was faint as a canary’s. The slimness of her body was obvious even under the robes of a priestess, so it was clear she was no threat; there was no question that she could easily be subdued by force, if necessary. But they did not let their guard down.

“This area is always forbidden at times like this,” he said, smiling; “I can tell you participated in the ceremony by that mask. But you don’t know anything about it?”

The entire confessional area must have been blocked off during Celestine’s visit, for her safety. Fortunately the mask concealed Annette’s embarrassment, but now she could not retreat.

“Oh,” she said calmly. “I am too early, I see. I was overzealous in my concern for the hearts of believers. I apologize for interfering with your orders.”

She bowed her head, turning to leave, but the man approached her first. He was looking at her mask as if he was about to ask her to remove it, and she thought quickly. In her mind, she said shine once again, to use the power of her bracelet.

“I just realized, it’s the fall festival, and I haven’t yet blessed any of the Goddess’s devoted lambs. Would you like to bow your head?”

The sight of her glowing hand made the guards relent a little; not just anyone had that power, and it was proof that she really was a high-ranking priestess. There was no need to ask her to remove her mask.

“Thank you, but it will have to be another time,” the guard said. “I am on duty now, as you can see. As you are early, please leave and come back later.”

He crossed his arms when he had finished, and was clearly determined not to let her out of his sight until she vanished back down the corridor. But she had no intention of giving up so easily. She had already risked a lot to come this far, and Celestine had been avoiding public activities. This was her only chance to catch her alone.

“Oh, wait a moment. If not a blessing, please at least hear the hymn of the Goddess. It is the autumn festival, after all.”

Gradually, the guards slumped to the floor, their eyes closed. Once she had finished her song, she gently nudged one fallen body with her foot. The guard grunted, but slept on.

Quickly, she stepped over the bodies into the confessional. When she forced a person from a normal state into sleep, the effect only lasted about five minutes. There wasn’t much time.

Celestine must be here.

The third confessional was magnificently decorated down to its golden doorknob, shaped like an eagle and reserved for special guests, most often aristocrats. Annette pulled the door open to find two women sleeping at the long wooden table in the center of the room. She had worried that people inside the room wouldn’t be able to hear her song, but apparently it was not soundproof.

She easily recognized Celestine Keers’s dark brown hair, and she guessed the other person opposite her was the priestess named Louise. Annette dragged both chair and priestess over to a corner, grateful that the priestess was thin. Though she had used her powers, Annette wasn’t sure whether the priestess would wake up if there was a loud noise.

Then she reached out to shake Celestine’s shoulder.

“Hmm…”

Celestine’s eyes fluttered open, her green eyes revealed beneath brown eyelashes. Annette smiled with satisfaction. Finally, they could have a real conversation.