Chapter 35

“T-this is…!”

Marcel hurriedly covered his head with his robe.

“No, I mean, if you have these ancient magic items, can’t you use them a little more productively?”

Saying so, I gave him the ring back and flicked my tongue lightly.

“It’s the best, pretending to be a priest.”

Marcel answered while putting on the ring in a hurry. His ancient magic item was a ring, which could give divine power to those who did not originally possess any.

‘When he wears the ring, divine power spreads to his body and turns his hair silver. A complete scam.’

According to the original plot, Marcel, who accidentally acquired an ancient item, chose to pose as a priest instead of returning it to the temple.

“No, but, why the hell? What is so good about being a priest, anyway?”

“Don’t say a thing when you don’t know.”

He looked at me with resentment and replied curtly. He still couldn’t properly speak the language.

“They feed us, put us to sleep, and give us compliments. Besides, if you say good things here, you can eat high-quality food.”

Hearing that, I flicked my tongue, amazed.

In the original story, it was Seymour’s role to discover the fake priest’s identity. He, who does everything for his money, eventually begins to track down three ancient magical items and then uncovers the identity of Marcel.

‘Of course, Seymour asks Marcel for money.’

“I’ll shut myself up.”

I smiled and crossed my arms while staring at Marcel, then added the next word.

“But, there’s a condition.”

Suddenly, his expression hardened noticeably.

“How much are you asking for? I don’t have money. It hasn’t been long since I entered the temple.”

At that moment, I was surprised by his fluent Imperial language.

“Money is not…”

“If you’re going to use this as a weakness to sway me, I’m not going to stand still either.”

“You…”

I was dumbfounded and laughed.

“Why are you pretending that you’re not good at imperial language?”

“I’m just doing it—pretending not to know. So, if I get questioned about my divinity. Just in case.”

“Have you ever studied abroad?”

“Yes, I’ve been there for a while as a child.”

“How long?”

“…Three weeks?”

I scoffed lightly.

“Don’t you normally call that a trip, not studying abroad?”

“That doesn’t mean anything. Such a distinction for us.”

Actually, that didn’t make any sense.

“Anyway, in exchange for my silence…” Continuing, I held out my hand with a big smile.

“Give me your holy thing.”

“No, I can’t do that. Holy relics not for sale.”

“Who’s paying you? I’m just asking for it.”

Marcel opened his mouth, amazed by my answer.

“No. For ordinary people, it’s nothing. Without divine energy. So, why the hell…”

“Then, the holy relics wouldn’t mean anything to you either. You’re fake.”

“Please don’t say that word. Anyway, I do have power, but only if I wear the ring.”

“Then… are you a con-artist?”

Marcel was annoyed, but in the end, he had no choice but to listen to me.

“If I say anything about this, you’re done. Though if you give me a holy relic even if it doesn’t work, you can continue leading a fake life like this.”

“….”

“The right choice is too obvious.”

Without holy relics, the priests’ holy power cannot be adequately maintained. However, because Marcel’s power came from the ring, not from the relic, it didn’t matter if he didn’t have it. In addition, it was very rude to ask a priest to show their relics, so there was no way he would be caught.

I grinned as I accepted the item he handed me willingly.

“One more thing.”

“…What is it?”

“Let’s make a deal.”

“No, with the Lady, I don’t want to.”

“It’ll give you plenty of benefits, so it won’t be a bad deal for you.”

At my words, Marcel’s expression, which had been stiff, suddenly turned mild.

“If it’s the benefits… Of course, you must be talking about money. I don’t accept benefits from the heart. So, how much can you give me?”

He spoke so rapidly, exposing the fact of how fluent he was in the Imperial language. And, after a few more talks, our deal went smoothly.

‘Father, you just wait.’

As I left Marcel, who went to the bathroom, and went back to the dining hall, I managed to resist whistling.

‘I’ll pay for the donation. So, don’t hate me too much.’

Marcel, whose complexion had deteriorated somewhat, returned, and only after the meal was over, we all went to the prayer room. The priests were going to take turns blessing me.

Before that, of course, the head priest very subtly asked Duke Icard for a donation. At first glance, it was almost astronomical.

“I heard that you brought in your daughter-in-law yourself.”

The High Priest spoke softly.

“I hope you show enough sincerity to the temple as much as you cherish her.”

At this point, I had no choice but to mutter to myself, ‘You beggars…’

“So, please show us the love you have for your daughter-in-law.”

‘No, why would he show his love for me before God? If that love is expressed in money, he can just give it to me.’

Regardless, Duke Icard wrote a check without saying much.

“I hope that only happiness will dwell in the Duchy of Icard in the future.”

Upon receiving the check, the High Priest looked at me and smiled, a gracious capitalist smile.

Then, he placed his hand on my head.

It was then.

‘Ah…!’

I bit my lower lip tightly to control my facial expression. However, at that moment, a stinging pain spread through my body.

‘I’m sure they said that blessing had no sense. That’s why it was a perfect way to cheat…’

It wasn’t just the High Priest. Whenever other priests blessed me, it felt as if I had been struck by lightning.

‘There’s something wrong…?’

I thought, wriggling my tingling fingertips secretly.

‘…If the blessing has a bad effect, that’s not a good sign, isn’t it?’

I wasn’t stupid enough to show that I was different from others.

Such incidents relating to the temple had to be handled in secret as much as possible. If something went wrong, they wouldn’t be able to make a profit since it would be labeled as heresy.

“You have a good nature.”

It was Marcel’s turn to bless me. He didn’t back down and brought what happened earlier up again.

“I’m touched, Lady. Such a good heart for following me earlier.”

“It’s nothing… I’m sorry, too.”

“I do hear you if you have anything you wish. This humble servant of God.”

In fact, Marcel was reciting the lines I told him. I then opened my eyes wide and asked.

“Anything?”

“…Pardon?”

“Then…”

I added with a shy smile, “I really want to get better, so can you come and bless me often?”

He stared, surprised at my bright smile for a moment. I knew he was thinking I was despicable.

“You’re around my age, so I hope you’re comfortable.”

One of the priests intervened.

“But, for a priest to go to the Duchy is a bit…”

“Whenever you come, I’ll donate to you, Priest Marcel. I am actually looking for a suitable donor because I won a lot of money during the race.”

At that, everyone shut up immediately.

They already must know that I received a huge dividend in the race since it was the headlines in newspaper articles.

“And, after coming to the temple, I became interested in theology… so please, listen and answer my questions from time to time. You studied abroad, so I’m sure you must know a lot.”

I felt like I had to find out why my body caused such a bad reaction to blessings. In addition, Marcel would be needed for another very important task in my plan. Therefore, it was necessary to keep him close.

“I understand. I’ll go often, as I promised earlier.”

“Will you answer my questions?”

“Answer… I do it. No, I mean, I’ll answer, of course.”

It was such a play.

It was unprecedented for a priest of a specific temple to be called regularly to do blessings. Priests usually don’t leave the temple for a while.

The High Priest also seemed to want to say something. Though he fiddled with the check once, sighed, and shut his mouth as it was. It was clear to him that an immediate check was more important than a young priest.

After that, we hastily left the temple without further delay.