chapter 4
Sincaster.
Our kingdom was the only “Holy Kingdom” on the continent of Elysium.
Every citizen was born with divine power, and among them, the royal family was born with far greater holy power than ordinary people.
Since Sincaster was a theocracy, my older brother Erdan, who possessed immense holy power, was both the Pope and the King.
But unfairly enough, perhaps because I, Charlotte, was the villainess, I had no holy power at all.
That was why I became jealous of Aurora, tried to kill her, and was eventually executed by Cedric.
“Aurora, why do you think I don’t have any holy power?”
“Huh? Well…”
As I suddenly asked while we walked toward the altar, Aurora looked troubled.
I had asked out of genuine curiosity, but she seemed to misunderstand and think I was deeply distressed over the matter.
Her blue eyes trembled slightly before avoiding my gaze.
“Maybe it’s because His Majesty the King possesses so much holy power? They say when one sibling is born with exceptional divine power, another often has almost none.”
“So you’re saying it’s my brother’s fault?”
“Oh my goodness! Don’t say that!!”
Aurora flailed her hands in shock.
“If His Majesty heard you, he’d cry his eyes out! Do you know how much he loves you?”
“I know that too. That’s why he entrusted me with the important position of managing the royal palace’s holy relics.”
Originally, that duty belonged to Erdan, who was both Pope and King.
But to secure my standing in the palace despite my lack of holy power, he had forced the appointment through against the nobles’ objections.
Of course, Aurora, the Saintess, supporting me and insisting I was qualified had also played a huge role.
“Aurora, I’m grateful to you too. I truly mean that.”
“Charlotte…”
Aurora briefly looked touched before taking my hand.
“You don’t need to thank me for that. I live in the sanctuary outside the palace anyway. Managing the sanctuary relics alone is exhausting, so if you handle the palace relics, that’s a huge relief for me.”
“Are you really a saintess?”
“Even saintesses get tired.”
“Well, your personality sure is consistent.”
That was when it happened.
As we passed through the corridor, a chilly sensation suddenly crept across my entire body.
Aurora noticed it first.
Following the direction of her gaze, I saw a man in military uniform.
Since his back was turned, what I noticed first wasn’t his face, but the emblem embroidered on his cloak.
A dense forest against a pitch-black background, flanked by two gray wolves. At the center stood a massive sword planted upright.
It was the crest of Blackwood, the eastern ducal house of Blake.
And there was only one person on the continent permitted to wear that grotesque black emblem on a formal uniform.
I had no choice but to stop walking.
Perhaps sensing our presence, he slowly turned around.
As expected, it was Prince Leonard, the Sixth Imperial Prince of Blake.
“…”
To be honest, he definitely didn’t look like some background extra.
His hair was red like blood, his nose sharp and straight, and his sleek jawline carried a stubborn edge.
And even from the glimpse beneath his cloak, anyone could tell how intensely he had trained in swordsmanship.
Broad, solid chest. Large, powerful build. Long legs stretching beneath thighs that looked ready to burst.
But more than anything, what captured my attention were his red eyes.
Those blood-colored eyes seemed detached, as though he had transcended all worldly matters, yet at the same time they gave off a chilling feeling that could freeze someone to the bone.
Could a gaze be both beautiful and terrifying?
I was caught in that contradictory feeling and could only stare silently.
Then the man who had spotted us approached with crisp footsteps.
“Charlotte, pull yourself together.”
Aurora’s words finally snapped me out of it.
I straightened my stiff posture and proudly lifted my chin.
Soon, he stopped a single step away from us and offered a polite greeting.
“Princess Charlotte, the beautiful princess of Sincaster. Holy Saintess of the Elysium continent. It is truly an honor to meet the two of you like this.”
“…”
“Though I must say, the corridor is a somewhat disappointing place for such an encounter. If I interrupted your private conversation, I hope you will forgive me.”
Honestly speaking, he didn’t look particularly apologetic.
He merely tilted his head slightly and spoke in a stiff tone. Even considering he was an imperial prince, his attitude was rather arrogant.
Unfortunately for me, however, I suffered from a strange incurable illness where I became weak in front of handsome men.
Things like confidently scolding them, grabbing them by the collar, or challenging them to a duel were utterly impossible for me.
But unlike me, Aurora, whose heroine energy had clearly maxed out, remained firm.
“Your Highness, we are curious. Why exactly are you here in the ‘Corridor of Dawn’?”
“…What do you mean?”
“The Corridor of Dawn is the path leading to the royal altar through His Majesty’s office. It is far from the guest palace where honored visitors stay. So why are you here?”
She was right.
The place we were walking through led to the Altar of Sacred Blood.
And that altar housed the sacred relic protecting Sincaster from invaders, making it an extremely important place.
So wasn’t it suspicious for a foreign prince to be wandering around the corridor leading there?
Finally coming to my senses, I stepped beside Aurora and spoke up.
“The Saintess is correct, Your Highness. And if you had arrived at the royal palace, I should have received a report. Yet I heard nothing.”
At my words, he tilted his head slightly.
“My, the news travels slowly. I arrived half a day ago.”
“Half a day ago? I received no notice whatsoever.”
“That would make sense. I was informed the meeting was postponed because you were changing dresses.”
As his perfectly handsome brows lowered slightly, panic overtook me.
“First of all, I apologize for postponing the meeting. But I truly was never informed that you had arrived.”
“Then it must have been a communication error. However, I did present myself before His Majesty.”
His answers remained polite and reasonable, leaving me even more speechless.
Unlike me, however, Aurora refused to back down.
“But arriving half a day ago and being in this corridor are separate matters, aren’t they? I asked why you are here.”
“Because I got lost.”
“For half a day?”
“…Yes.”
Aurora still seemed suspicious of the prince. Crossing her arms, she twisted her lips sharply.
At this rate, they’re going to start fighting.
For the sake of my friend Aurora’s reputation as the Saintess, and to display the generosity befitting a princess, I quietly whispered to her.
“Aurora, let’s just let it slide for now.”
“Charlotte, you…”
Then I smiled brightly at Leonard.
“Your Highness, since it’s your first time here, I suppose getting lost is understandable. Our palace is so beautiful that it’s easy to become distracted while walking through it.”
“It certainly is beautiful.”
“But claiming you were lost for half a day is rather excessive for a joke, isn’t it? No matter how poor your sense of direction is, you’d eventually run into knights or maids if you simply walked outside.”
I laughed shyly and fluttered my fan, ignoring Aurora glaring at me from the side.
“…Indeed.”
But strangely enough, the prince’s expression darkened as he nodded.
As though what he had said was actually true.
“It was certainly intended as a joke.”
“Your Highness?”
“But honestly, I did struggle to find my way in an unfamiliar palace. So could you show me the way out?”
“Ah… Ah! Of course. I’ll assign one of my attendants to guide you.”
I quickly ordered one of my attendants to escort the prince back to the guest palace.
“Then I hope we may meet properly at the banquet next time.”
Soon, the prince walked away from us.
But why did I feel so uneasy?
Normally, handsome men only made me feel refreshed, never uncomfortable like this.
I stood there for a long while, watching the handsome man grow smaller in the distance, until Aurora poked my side.
“Stop staring already.”
The door to the Rose Room, assigned to Blake’s Sixth Imperial Prince in the guest palace where the dignitaries stayed, suddenly burst open.
Who would dare act so rudely? It was Leonard.
William, who had been sitting on the sofa handling a pile of delayed paperwork, turned toward him.
“Have you returned, Your Highness?”
But upon closer inspection, the prince’s expression was not very good.
A faint irritation lingered on his perfectly handsome face.
At this point, to be completely honest…
True to the heavens-blessed disaster of a sense of direction he possessed, Leonard really had gotten lost.