CH 6

Elsez’s expression hardened in shock when she found a familiar face.

He’s killing people, and it wasn’t that special because there was a case where I killed someone during the first possession.

What surprised Elsez more than that was,

‘… Wh-what did I see?’

The murderer was Astaire.

I knew he had a soft heart.

He was hesitant to kill monsters, even to punish those who harmed him.

When he saw a weak person, he couldn’t pass it by, and when he saw injustice, he fought back.

Becoming a hero was not because of wealth or fame.

He was fortunate enough to have more power than others, and he thought it was natural for the strong to protect the weak.

Still, on the inside, he thought of himself as a ‘hypocrite’.

He was suffering from even the most natural selfishness that came out of his instincts from time to time.

‘Maybe I’m wrong?’

Elsez looked at the closed door with unbelievable eyes, and quickly came to my senses and turned around.

I don’t know if the man I just saw was the real Astaire or not, but one thing was certain.

‘Let’s get out first.’

I shouldn’t be here.

But before I could take a few steps, Elsez heard the door open behind.

Soon after, a voice presumed to belong to the paladin was heard.

“Who is there? This is a place where the general public is not allowed to enter.”

Frozen in the unexpected situation, Elsez pondered for a moment.

‘I should pretend’

Of course, if you don’t do it, you may be marked as a suspicious person and difficult to enter the temple again.

At that moment, an improvisation flashed in Elsez’s mind.

Elsez made an embarrassed look and looked back with reflection. As expected, the paladin, which she had missed a while ago, stood there.

“I’m sorry. It’s been a few years since I’ve been here and I got lost.”

When I mentioned that I had been to the temple several years ago, he didn’t seem to have any doubts, the paladin only considering me as a lost devotee.

“Which building are you looking for?”

“I was looking for the library, but it seems to have been moved.”

“Oh, right. Then I will guide you.”

Elsez sighed in relief as she followed the paladin who took the lead.

‘I can just go out and read the book without encountering Astaire like this.’

However, when Elsez arrived in front of the library, she encountered an unexpected difficulty.

“Sorry, but the library is currently under renovation and will not be available for the time being.”

The day I went was not a good time.

The paladin who brought Elsez to the library looked apologetic.

“Sorry. I forgot that they were under renovation a few days ago.”

“It’s okay. I can come back another day, okay?”

Just when Elsez was about to turn around with a regretful heart, a soft voice came from behind her.

“Open it.”

A voice that should not be heard.

Elsez turned around with a surprised expression, and as expected, Astaire, dressed in a cardinal’s robe, was standing there.

The gatekeeper who was guarding the front of the library said with a perplexed expression.

“But, the renovation isn’t finished yet.”

“I know, but there is still some time left before the full-scale construction begins. Libraries are not meant to be neatly displayed, but to provide information to those who need it.”

“That’s… right, but.”

“I also have a book that I urgently need, would you like to search for it?”

At Astaire’s words, the doorkeeper could no longer object and opened the library door.

Astaire said to Elsez with a soft smile.

“Then shall we go in, lady?”

From the old days, Astaire treated everyone with respect and honor, regardless of their rank, and treated them equally.

The honorific title of ‘Lady’, which usually refers to the daughter of the high rank or aristocrat, also stemmed from such a personality.

Others would have their heart pounded in his favor, but Elsez’s heart pounded in a different way.

‘Is that person really Astaire?’

A little while ago, the man who was killing in the temple building had the same face as Astaire in front of me now.

I wanted to leave immediately, but it was difficult to even dare to refuse the cardinal’s favor.

Elsez reluctantly followed Astaire into the library.

‘Still, I should say thank you.’

It was the moment Elsez looked back to say thanks to Astaire.

“Thank you. Thanks to-”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Astaire’s face, who got closer without warning, brushed the side of Elsez’s hair.

At the distance that was close enough to feel his breath, Elsez’s heart began to pound nervously.

As she hesitated whether she should run away now, Astaire’s body quickly fell from a distance.

“It’s done now. There are no dangerous objects.”

“Yes?”

“I checked it out for a while. It’s not that I doubt the lady, but I don’t want the precious books to be damaged.”

“Ah…”

“You smell very strange to a suspicious person. Since my job is my job, I have a good sense of touch in this area.”

Astaire patted the tip of my nose with his long finger and grinned.

It was a refreshing and kind smile that could not be imagined as someone who had just killed someone.

“Then take it slow.”

Astaire walked away into the library.

The widened back man was enough to make many women’s hearts flutter, but now in Elsez’s eyes it didn’t even come into it.

Elsez let out a sigh of relief later.

‘It seems that my life has been shortened by a decade….’

Other heroes are equally dangerous, but in particular, Astaire has a power opposite to the demon, so he reacts more nimbly to the energy of the demon.

So it was better to stay away from him as much as possible.

‘For now, let’s pretend I’m a believer and get out of here after borrowing some books.’

Elsez pulled out a few books from a nearby bookshelf without looking at the titles.

At that moment, I saw Astaire choosing books from the bookshelf across from me.

His dazzling blonde hair was disturbed by the penetrating sunlight, and the cool, clean wall scans the bookshelf.

Following that gaze, his long, slender, but prominent bones moved leisurely.

The sight of him standing in front of a sunny bookcase in a cardinal’s robes was not only beautiful, but also divine.

He is the same as before except for the fact that he is bigger than before, but somehow he has a coolness that is not the same as before.

Elsez looked at the unfamiliar face of Astaire without realizing it, even though she missed him, and his eyes met her as he approached this way.

‘Did I stare at him too openly?’

Elsez secretly avoided his gaze and pretended to be looking at another book.

Soon, Astaire’s voice came from over the bookshelf.

“Did you find all the books?”

“Ah yes!”

Elsez took some of the books she was holding and left the library with Astaire.

“Thank you, cardinal. Thanks to you, I was able to borrow the book I needed.”

“Well… I hope that book will be helpful to the lady.”

The nuance of Astaire speaking while looking at the book was somehow subtle.

Elsez looked down at the book she had pulled out at random, puzzled, but was startled.

“The tyrant’s innocence has been stolen”

It was a title that just seemed suspicious.

‘No, why is there such a book in the temple!’

Elsez struggled to resist the urge to scream and hid the title of the book.

“Ahaha, my younger sister is obsessed with this kind of novel….”

In a time like this, I have to sell a sister name that I don’t even have.

Fortunately, Astaire walked away without further teasing.

“Then I’ll see you again when we meet.”

Elsez smiled and gave an awkward smile towards the speaking Astaire.

‘No, let’s not meet for a while.’

It was heartbreaking to think of Astaire who was grieving over his own death, but it had been three years.

‘Now I must have forgotten all that sadness and my empty seat.’

just do that

Elsez, who had turned around to greet him, suddenly looked back at Astaire as if she had remembered something.

Astaire looked at Elsez with puzzled eyes.

As soon as Elsez saw Astaire who had become a cardinal, she said what she really wanted to say.

“That… The clothes suit you really well. Just like an angel.”

With those words, Astaire, who had been smiling the whole time, had a smile on his face for a moment.

‘What’s the reaction? Do you feel bad?’

The former Astaire was happy with a bright smile when he was praised.

Embarrassed by his different reaction from before, Elsez smiled awkwardly and added more.

“Um, isn’t it natural for a cardinal? haha…”

Then.

Elsez nodded once more, to say goodbye and walked away.

A nostalgic voice echoed in Astaire’s head as he looked at her distant back.

‘Astaire, you look like a real angel when you wear a robe!’

Recalling that voice, Astaire’s expression twisted bitterly.

“… There was someone else who I wanted to say that.”

Just when Astaire was immersed in his memories, the sound of urgent footsteps approached.

Feeling that someone was behind him, he turned around and saw a priest approaching this way.

“Cardinal, you are here.”

The priest held out the note he had brought.

“A statement from the Holy Land.”

The Holy State was a sacred city-state located in the center of the continent, centered on a saint who supported the will of God and the rule.

They maintained a completely neutral position politically, and their only purpose was to protect people from demons.

Astaire was not only an imperial citizen, but also a cardinal appointed by the Holy Land.

Astaire opened the note from the priest.

[The demon has been resurrected.

Each temple needs attention, and asks the heroes to cooperate.]

Astaire’s eyes, reading the note, fell coldly.