Chapter 38.1

Chapter 38 – Part 1

I guess I was feeling very sorry for sacrificing him in my dream. In addition, he so easily forgave Lisandro that his gratitude for me remained the same.

“You grew up really well, Frey. You are a child who repays a favor.”

“You have to repay the favor so it would be convenient to catch that person off guard later.”

“…Are you saying that for me to hear?”

He uttered something eerie so casually as he went out.

“No way. Except for noona, of course.”

He even drew an irresistible smile… A bright smile that I couldn’t ask him back.

The temple in the Imperial Capital was so large that it was comparable to the Imperial Palace. The Great Temple was said to be the beginning of all the temples and was built along with the Imperial Palace. It was a fact that everyone knew just how large it was.

The large iron window that surrounded the Great Temple was full of white flowers that stood out as if highlighting the image of the temple. The vast, solid gate guarding the temple was always open to accepting everyone without discrimination.

There would be divine punishment if one touches a saint or priest of a temple, so one who knew that would not make trouble in the temple. No minor accident inside the temple happened after the person who attempted to kidnap the saint was punished.

It was because the saint was closest to God’s protection. Still, the power tripping of the people was excluded.

When I entered the widely opened door, I heard a clear and refreshing hymn like the voice of a god. Walking with the sacred song, there was a path, and trees and flowers were in harmony around me. Next to the most prominent church was a long and tall clock tower.

The sound the bell made every hour made my ears hear clearly.

Behind it was the training ground of the Holy Knights, while the unused buildings were long since turned into vocational training centers, free lunch centers, and nurseries.

There was a large balcony on the top floor of the church, where you could see everything at a glance — the beautiful landscape of the temple, the children running around, and all the welcomed guests visiting the temple.

The balcony was also frequently used for public talks.

I had only stood there once as I only spoke at that place when I became a saint and greeted everyone. It was the same today. A saint couldn’t just leave without a word. Even if the saint was being audacious, the Imperial Family couldn’t interfere.

The reason behind that was because the saint only belonged to the temple.

I put on my holy clothes and headed to the balcony. Next to me was my grandfather, and behind him were the Holy Knights, including Verdo, and the High Priests.

“Will you be all right? Even if the oracle was just here…”

“No, I am fine. I am just nervous to see the believers after a long time.”

Just the thought of scolding them made me very nervous. Hiding my dark thoughts, I smiled back at them softly before continuing my words.

“So, I might make a little mistake…”

“Mistake?”

I lowered my eyes to look pitiful and carefully tried my luck.

“…I think I might show them my feelings a little bit.”

Realizing what feeling I was talking about, my grandfather let out a sigh mixed with laughter as if he couldn’t do anything about it. Watching me for a long time, it wasn’t too difficult for him to notice what I was thinking about.

“That’s only inevitable. The believers will understand.”

‘All right. Grandpa gave his consent.’

I hid my excitement and headed seriously for my speech.

Even though Frey and Lisandro came to take me right away, I thought more than half of them came to see what was about to happen. The next moment, I made eye contact with my grandfather and stepped into the middle of the balcony alone. Thanks to my grandfather’s notice in advance, the people were already huddled together.

I raised my head and straightened my back, then stepped forward.

“Hello, I am Yurenia Rohelio.”

Their buzzing quieted in an instant with my loud voice, all thanks to the amplified artifact. I indirectly expressed how it was hard for me because of what happened. Fortunately, the people understood and only stared at me without saying anything.

“…To be honest, I even thought of giving up my position as the saint because of the rumors.”

The buzzing of the people grew louder and louder as they listened to my words. A saint is a saint, no matter how hateful and selfish they are. To the people, being a saint meant a great deal.

I slowly looked over the faces of the people and opened my mouth again.

“That situation where I was accused of being a witch and was burned at the stake.”

I said that they believed the rumors and shot at the bloated people. There were coughs everywhere. I could see them clearly from above, and I deliberately looked straight at the people who were involved in my rumors.

It wasn’t that difficult to find them as they were the people who avoided my eyes in the first place. The people who followed my gaze glanced at them and then slowly moved away from them.

Laughing inwardly at them, I added, visibly embarrassed.

“So, I am thinking of going to recuperate. It was difficult for me mentally, so I need some time to rest.”

Thanks to my mother, who had already worked to gain public sympathy, the people exclaimed regretfully and became more sympathetic towards me.

“I trust that you will all respect my decision. I’m sure you were worried about me as much as I am having a hard time. Please, don’t say that I can’t do this. Everyone…”

I deliberately cut off my words and drew their attention. When everyone’s eyes were on me, I smiled happily, wearing a business smile.

“Everyone cares about me as a saint, right?”

They didn’t say anything even though it was stinging words. I only criticized the rumor, which was the cause of all this.

So, if you are worried about me, I meant to say that you should stay calm regardless of whether I went to recuperate or not.

“I also don’t feel comfortable leaving here, so I am going to give a small gift to those who believed in me until the end and clarified that I am not a witch.”

I said with a gentle voice and a harmless smile.

“This is a blessing only for those people.”

“Blessing—!”

At those words, everyone exclaimed as they clasped their hands together. It was because there had never been a single person blessed by me.

A man shouted back as if he felt that it was unfair.

“What do you mean by that…! Only those who believed in you? Isn’t that too unfair for those people who have no choice but to believe in the rumors!”

“Right! Even if they believed in it, shouldn’t a saint be equal to everyone?”

“That’s unfair!”

Another man complained.

—

Thank you so much for always supporting the novels I work on, even if you don’t buy me a coffee, I really do appreciate it a lot.