CH 23

“Eh?”

“ ……Ah~”

Vincent’s expression as he said “Ah~” was more serious than ever. 

His fingertips were trembling. 

Livia recognized that he was mustering up his courage.

To get closer to her.

‘Okay,’ she decided, recognizing his sincerity.

She opened her mouth wide and said, “Ah~” as she took a bite of the cookie. And then she opened her eyes wide.

Livia’s eyes snapped back down to the plate full of cookies.

“Delicious……!“

The combination of the fragrant buttery flavor and the crunchy walnuts was fantastic.

“I like these cookies, so I wanted to make sure to share them with Tutor Via.” 

Vincent smiled shyly as he devoured the rest of the cookie.

Livia couldn’t help but think, ‘cute!’ inside. She had noticed his intentions.

Vincent had noticed that she wanted a cookie, but when she didn’t speak up, he took the initiative and set the tone.

Reading the underlying kindness, Livia smiled and nodded.

“Shall we take a break then?” 

“Yes!” 

And so began the in-class refreshment break. 

Having completely opened up to her, Vincent began to talk about his day.

What he did today, what he liked, what he didn’t like. 

Livia listened intently. 

She listened, because maybe, just maybe, she’d discover something in it, like why Vincent would end up killing Cardien. 

She was so focused on the conversation, until–

Hiiing-

She heard what sounded like a horse’s whinny through the slightly open window. 

Livia stood up from her seat with a puzzled look on her face and approached the window. This place was far away from the stables, so it was unlikely that she would ever hear a horse whinny. 

And she was stunned by the sight before her. 

Knights in pure white armor and blue cloaks were riding through the gardens of the Duchy of Mercedes on white horses.

Livia recognized them at once. 

‘The Holy Knights!’

She clung to the window sill and gazed in amazement at their rapid approach.

When they reached the front door, they dismounted and stood in single file. A man stepped out from among the knights, who were standing straight and tall.

And she also recognized him immediately.

A handsome man with soft, sky blue hair, clear blue eyes, and a gentle impression.

‘Eden Aquilium……’ 

He was one of the secondary male leads in <Everyone Loves the Saint>.

Befitting a paladin, his very existence seemed to glow. 

‘Quite the opposite of Cardien………..’ 

If Eden Aquilium is light, Cardien is darkness. 

It was Winston who faced Eden. 

He was obviously startled by the sudden arrival of the Holy Knights, but he quickly composed himself and stood calmly in front of them.

‘Winston.’

As Winston and Eden were talking, their heads turned at once. 

Livia looked in the same direction as well and let out a low groan.

‘…..Cardien.’ 

Cardien is the owner of the mansion, so of course he would show up, but it made Livia unnecessarily nervous.

Winston must be nervous, too, because in the original, the relationship between Cardien and Eden was the worst.

Livia was worried that something was about to happen, but after a few words were exchanged, Cardien took Eden inside. 

And after a while. 

Knock, knock. 

Someone knocked on the door.

*** 

It was no ordinary Paladin that came barging into the duchy; this was Eden Aquilium himself, directly under the High Priest and commander of the First Holy Knight Order, known as the Holy Warriors of the Temple.

The fact that they usually only barged in unannounced like this when there was a matter of national security, such as treason or terrorism, made Winston feel even more uneasy. 

By the time Winston had stormed through the manor’s front door, the knights’ horses were already at a standstill.

And now. 

Tak.

Clatter, clatter. 

A man in pure white armor and a blue cloak dismounted and stepped in front of Winston. 

Thud. 

Recognising him at a glance, Winston bowed respectfully. 

“What brings the commander of the First Holy Knights to our doorstep, unannounced?” 

At that, the blue eyes of the man, resembling his cloak, fell on Winston. Then his lips, which had been closed in silence, parted.

“Are you the general manager of this estate?”

Despite the heavy atmosphere, the voice was quite soft and polite. But Winston was not fooled by its gentleness. 

He answered calmly, “I am Winston Gregory, the butler.” 

“I see.” 

His voice trailed off and he looked around. 

Realizing at once who he was looking for, Winston was about to say more before he was interrupted.

“You’re rude.” 

A harsh voice from behind him made Winston turn around in surprise.

“Lord……!”

Beautiful silver hair that glistened in the sunlight, a pair of violet eyes that looked like flowers that had grown up through the barren earth, pale skin and a piercing gaze that drifted away. 

It was as if he was from another world.

Standing in the doorway, he looked down at the Holy Knights and inhaled from his silver pipe.

Crackle.

The sound of dry grass burning in the embers of the pipe spread quickly through the silence.

The Holy Knights shivered at the sight. 

So did Eden. 

‘So that’s the pipe they say he smokes every now and then to quell his madness.’

A silvery pipe that matched the silver-haired decadent man terribly well. Like the moon in the night sky, he had a presence that could never be ignored.

As he removed his lips from the pipe, he glared at the Holy Knight Order encroaching on his duchy, and especially at Eden, with a dull gaze.

“What’s the matter with the goddamned temple?”

“This……!”

The knights who had been lined up jumped to their feet at Cardien’s insult to both the temple and themselves. 

Eden was unfazed, however, and stopped them with a wave of his hand. 

“Duke Cardien Mercedes, it’s been a long time.”

“Hmph, I recognize you.”

A wry smile tugged at the corners of Cardien’s mouth.

The knights’ anger at the way the Duke of Mercedes disregarded Eden fueled their fury once more, but Cardien didn’t bat an eye, sensing nothing but insignificance from them.

Eden glanced uncomfortably at Cardien, whose mere presence seemed to exude a sinister aura.

‘How uncomfortable……’

The Temple and Holy Knights were revered everywhere in the Empire; only the Duke of Mercedes treated them like insects.

Moreover, the Duke of Mercedes is the only family in the Empire that does not worship the Goddess.

Therefore, it was inevitable that they would be rejected. 

‘Normally, I would never have dared to deal with him.’

Today was different.

Unlike the agitated knights, Eden remained calm.

“It won’t be long, and no harm will come to the Duchy of Mercedes, I promise.”

Even the strongest knight division of the temple with absolute investigative powers would naturally balk at the idea of stirring up this particular house.

Eden reassured lords with words like these, and nine times out of ten, they opened the door with relief.

Then there was Cardien Mercedes,

“So? That’s no reason for me to open the door.”

He was the odd one of the 10. 

Eden’s patience with Cardien’s unwillingness to open the door, though expected, was wearing thin.

But he reminded himself that the other in this interaction was the Duke of Mercedes. A giant among giants that even the imperial family couldn’t treat carelessly.

Sighing inwardly, Eden barely managed to suppress his annoyance.

“Duke, this whole exchange is pointless.”

But in the end, contempt flashed in his blue eyes. 

Cardien, reading the emotion, smiled wryly.

“All we need is to take the tutor from here with us.”

That moment when he inevitably revealed their purpose.

“………?”

For the first time, Cardien’s previously blank expression changed.

” A tutor?”

” …..That’s right.”

Eden nodded calmly, though the reason for the change was unknown.

Then Cardien smirked and muttered. 

“Interesting.” 

He stomped down the stairs and stood before Eden.

The darkness of Cardien Mercedes and the light of Eden Aquilium.

It was as if they were watching a confrontation between night and day, so everyone held their breath, including the Mercedes servants and the Holy Knights.

And then. 

“I will be listening.” 

What on earth had made this man move, Eden Aquilium had no idea.

*** 

As the time came, Livia told Vincent to wait, and then cautiously opened the door.

It was Winston’s assistant who knocked on the door.

“I’m in class right now. What can I do for you?”

“A message from the butler to come to the reception room at once.”

“Right now?” 

He nodded at her question.

‘Why me?’

She was taken aback by the unexpected situation…

“Alright.”

There was no point in questioning him, and she might unnecessarily unsettle Vincent, so Livia nodded obediently.

“I’ll be right there.”