Chapter 17

Returning to the mansion, I found a carriage showing off its presence in front of the main gate.

The carriage of the temple.

The only people who use a pure white carriage are the people of the temple.

Anxiety struck me.

Why is the carriage of the temple here?

“You’re back”

When I got off the carriage and entered the mansion, I heard a person from the temple come to see me as expected.

“The Cardinal has come to see Miss Adelia.”

“… Cardinal Eustaf came to see me?”

“Yes. He’s in the office talking to His Highness. Let’s go.”

I sighed inwardly and made my way to Grand Duke Hamilton’s office.

‘Did you come to interrogate me?’

A symbol appeared on Hestine, so it must be confusing for Eustaf.

In addition, I have no divine power but I created a strange phenomenon.

I can’t even imagine how things are going.

I arrived in front of the study. I briefly knocked on the door twice and said;

“Can I come in?”

“Come in.”

As soon as I opened my mouth, he answered immediately.

Did he even hear the sound of my footsteps coming?

Click!

“You’re here.”

When I opened the door, I saw two men with contrasting atmospheres.

The two men with the opposite atmosphere were in one view, creating a strange feeling.

I swallowed a sigh inside and greeted the cardinal Eustaf.

“Nice to see you. Can I ask why you came to see me?”

Cardinal Eustaf’s face darkened at my question.

The ominous feeling that had been scratching my nerves since earlier was further amplified.

“The disaster has arrived.”

A disaster. It was natural.

Since the original story began in earnest, it was not surprising that a disaster would occur.

Moreover, didn’t the oracle say that disaster would come a long time ago?

Cardinal Eustaf probably knows this better than I do. But for that, Cardinal Eustaf’s expression was not good.

“It’s sad, but it’s not surprising, isn’t it?”

“That’s right. But……”

Cardinal Eustaf muffled his words, as if he couldn’t speak.

“It wasn’t a good place.”

I wrinkled my eyebrow at Cardinal Eustaf, who kept dragging the conversation.

“Where is it….”

“While I was sorting out the matter regarding the candidacy of the saint, I happened to find out that Adelia was from Rohen.”

Rohen. When I heard the name from Eustaf’s mouth, I froze.

Why is Rohen coming out of Cardinal Eustaf’s mouth?

No. Actually, I know the answer to this question. However, I just didn’t want to accept it easily.

“A Legion of demons attacked Rohen.”

“Legion… “

Wouldn’t a legion be more than 100? That’s enough for a small town like Rohen in an instant.

A scene I did not want to imagine occupied my mind.

I muttered, unable to hide my trembling voice.

“Right now… I need to go to Rohen right now.”

Cardinal Eustaf asked in a cold voice.

“Even if you go now, what can you do?”

It was a sharp point.

But I couldn’t stay still just because of that.

‘You have to come back soon!’

Emily, who begged with large drops of water hanging in her eyes, passed through my mind.

At that moment, Grand Duke Hamilton, who had been silent, said something unexpected.

“I think I can help you with that.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

Cardinal Eustaf, who was looking at me with a hardened expression on his face, turned his gaze to the Grand Duke.

The Grand Duke opened his mouth with a calm face.

“If a monster appears, I must subdue it. The soldiers of the Grand duchy will help.”

“Your highness. we can’t recruit troops to Rohen in time… “

“There is a teleport hall from the Principality to the mountains near Rohen. That way we can make time.”

I blinked and looked at the Grand Duke like that.

I can feel his stubbornness, but maybe it’s just my misunderstanding?

Anyway, Rohen is also a land that belongs to the Empire, and the Grand Duke had a duty to take care of it.

That’s why you want to help, right?

I hid my trembling feelings and thanked the Grand Duke.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

“There’s nothing to be thankful for. Instead, there are conditions.”

Conditions? Is there anything that the Grand Duke can expect from me?

“What’s that?”

“Can I stay in your mansion for a while?”

“At my home?”

“Yes. There’s a mine near Rohen that the Grand Duchy bought. I need to tour that place.”

It was not uncommon for a nobleman to stay in a familiar nobleman’s mansion when they go to another place due to his work.

It must be a very deserted mine?

It’s annoying, but it was a profitable offer for me.

I nodded after a short hesitation.

“Okay. If my mansion is safe, I’ll give you the best room.”

A deep smile crept around the Grand Duke’s lips.

“The room you gave me before is enough.”

Including me, the Grand Duke and Cardinal Eustaf stood in front of the carriage to go to the teleport hall.

“I have something to tell you.”

Before getting on the carriage, cardinal Eustaf spoke to me.

From the atmosphere, it seemed to be quite important.

I glanced back at the Grand Duke.

The Grand Duke then shrugged his shoulders and nodded his head.

“You can ride the cardinal’s carriage to Rohen.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Cardinal Eustaf bowed his head slightly and thanked the Grand Duke.

“Then get in.”

Cardinal Eustaf escorted me by opening the door of the carriage himself.

I didn’t refuse his escort and got into the carriage.

Like this.

When everything was ready, Grand Duke Hamilton and Cardinal Eustaf’s carriage began to move towards the Teleport Hall.

‘We can arrive quickly through the teleport hall.’

I looked at the cardinal Eustaf, trying to soothe his nervousness.

“So, what are you going to tell me?”

To my question, the face of the serious cardinal Eustaf hardened with tension.

Cardinal Eustaf’s face, who was still serious at my question, hardened with tension.

“Now that only the two of us are here I have something to tell you…… It’s about symbols.”

The word symbol put a momentary force on my hand.

I could easily guess that what he was talking about was the symbol that suddenly appeared on my chest.

“First of all, let me get to the point. Hestine’s symbol is fake.”

“What? What do you mean …? But isn’t Hestine’s symbol the same as the temple? Mine is …”

I remembered the symbol hidden under my dress.

It felt similar to the one in the temple, but it was a completely different symbol.

Cardinal Eustaf shook his head at my question.

“No, Vishna’s original symbol is different from what the temple uses.”

“What?”

What does this mean?

Does that mean that the temple intentionally hides the symbol of God?

“Are you sure?”

I asked again, sending a wary glance to Cardinal Eustaf.

“Adelia-nim, do you know that the temple is divided into old and new religions?”

I nodded my head slightly.

“In the conflict between the two powers that began a long time ago, the whereabouts of the national seal became important.”

“Is it the national seal of the Holy Land?”

“Yeah. If you have the national seal, you can lead the holy land in the direction you want.”

Indeed. The whereabouts of the national seal deserves to be the center of the power struggle.

“In the meantime, there was an incident in which the national seal of the Holy Land disappeared.

I’ve never heard of this before.

“It was revealed later that the old school, which was wary of the aggressive expansion of the new religion, hid the national seal.”

“In that case, you probably recovered the national seal, right?”

At my question, Cardinal Eustaf shook his head sadly.

“No. The real problem that.”

“… It seems that the national seal has not been recovered.”

“That’s right. After the priest of the old school, who had hidden the national seal, passed away, no one knows the whereabouts of the national seal.”

Did something like this happen in the temple? But what does that have to do with the symbol?

It’s a little complicated, but if the national seal is gone, you can make it again.

“What’s the matter with that?”

“The problem is that the national seal of the Holy Kingdom is a sacred object. The priests somehow tried to create a new national seal in the shape they remembered, but they failed every time.”

I can’t believe you’ve been hiding it so far. It was great in a different sense.

“In the process, the symbol of the temple engraved on the national seal inevitably had to change.”

“Then you are saying that the symbol of the temple used now is not what you originally used.”

Cardinal Eustaf affirmed with his head down.

“As time went by, the only person who remembered the original symbol became the current Holy Father, the Pope.”

Recalling the words of Cardinal Eustaf, I slowly opened my mouth after organizing the situation.

“Then… The symbol on the back of Hestine’s hand…”

“It means it’s fake.”

My eyes are probably shaking violently in confusion right now.

“But even the Cardinal can’t confirm that my symbol is real, right?”

“no. I am able to distinguish the old symbols because I have received a separate message from the Holy Father.”

There was a strong conviction in Cardinal Eustaf’s eyes as he said that.

“You’re already convinced that I’m real.”

“That’s right. Adelia is the real representative of God.”

The carriage was filled with silence.

I was able to open my mouth carefully only after thinking for a while.

“Cardinal Eustaf.”

“Please feel free to speak. Saint.”

“As I’ve said before, I cannot reveal myself yet. That’s…c

“Because it’s God’s will.”

Cardinal Eustaf intercepted and completed what I was trying to say.

I shut my mouth and nodded my head.

“Don’t worry. I have no intention of going against the will of the Saint and Vishna.”

Cardinal Eustaf stared intently at me with a look of piety.

“…I see. That’s a relief.”

“I don’t know when the saint will reveal her existence….”

Maybe it won’t be revealed even after I enter the tomb.

“Please, know this one thing. You are the only one who can truly perform miracles, Saint.”

I sighed inwardly.

I didn’t know how to answer Cardinal Eustaf.

“…Okay. I’ll try.”

I tried to avoid Cardinal Eustaf’s burdensome gaze and put a lie in my mouth.

“Anyway, I’m worried. How long can Rohen last?”

Rohen, who had been pushed back from my head for a while due to the complicated story, came to mind.

Cardinal Eustaf smiled gently at me, who couldn’t let go of my worries.

“Don’t worry too much.”

“What’s that…”

“I haven’t told you earlier, but the temple already dispatched subjugation teams, including paladins. So at least the evacuation would have been done.”

If that was the case, you should’ve told me in advance!

My anger rose from the inside. I suppressed my emotions with my superhuman power.

Apart from being annoyed, it was a very hopeful situation.

“Really, I’m glad.”

“If the forces of the Grand Duke are combined, this disaster will be easily defeated.”

I opened my mouth with a sad smile.

“I hope that happens.”