The first person to recognize Prince Canin Rodram of the Northern Empire was the Emperor.
The Emperor, who had been speaking to the Saint, Ashley, forgot everything and rushed toward Canin, breathing heavily.
Seeing the Emperor move so urgently despite his poor health, everyone present quickly realized that the man who had appeared in the training grounds was someone extremely important.
As the Emperor approached Canin, the people stepped aside and bowed.
“…How did you end up here… alone…?”
The Emperor could not finish his sentence when he saw Canin’s condition.
He was truly relieved that the prince was alive, but Canin’s appearance was so terrible that it was hard to believe he was a prince.
“Prepare the best room immediately! And bring warm water and clothes—!”
“Ah.”
As the Emperor gave sharp orders to those around him, Canin opened his mouth.
“It is shameful to greet you like this. I apologize. I am Canin Rodram.”
His words were awkward, but he was clearly apologizing for appearing in such a state. The Emperor quickly understood and replied without hesitation.
“It is enough that we can meet like this! Do you know how worried I was? What happened to you?!”
The Emperor spoke with relief, telling him not to worry.
“I survived because of this woman. Is she your Saint?”
Canin suddenly said this while showing Ariadne in his arms.
At the word “Saint,” murmurs spread through the crowd.
“Ariadne!”
The one who pushed forward was none other than the Count.
Canin was surprised that the name did not match the Saint he remembered, but he did not show it.
“She is my eldest daughter!”
“I see.”
Canin nodded. He had already thought she looked like a noble.
Then he quickly added,
“She must be treated first. I survived because of her.”
“You survived because of Ariadne?”
The Count looked extremely shocked.
Ashley simply stared at Ariadne without saying anything.
“Saint!”
At that moment, a servant who brought Ashley’s medicine called out to her.
Hearing the name, Canin’s gaze naturally turned toward Ashley.
“That woman is not the one. You are the Saint?”
“….”
Ashley did not want to hear the word “Saint” anymore. Without answering, she simply gave a shallow bow and left the place.
The Emperor frowned, and the Count hurried to apologize in her place.
“I’m sorry. Something unfortunate happened, and her condition is still not good.”
Canin frowned slightly.
He could not understand why it was so difficult to get a clear answer whenever he asked who the Saint was.
Ariadne woke up after three days.
A lot had happened during that time.
On the day Ariadne arrived at the palace, Ashley once again avoided meeting the Emperor, using her health as an excuse. She kept delaying it.
Meanwhile, Canin insisted that Ariadne had saved him, but no one truly believed him.
Instead, people assumed that she had been the one saved by him.
This was largely because of the rumor that she was a villain who had driven the Saint to attempt suicide.
People simply could not believe that someone like Ariadne would do anything good.
Canin did not know these details, but he hoped that what appeared in Ariadne was holy power.
So as soon as she woke up, he asked her the same question again.
Since Ashley stayed locked in her room, he had no choice but to ask Ariadne.
“You healed me. You… are you the Saint?”
This time, his determination to get an answer was clear.
Ariadne did not understand why he kept asking her this.
But as her mind cleared and she sat up in bed, she began to understand his intention.
“….”
Monster claws contained poison. Even a trained man would suffer for a week if struck by them.
Yet Ariadne was surprisingly fine.
Perhaps thinking his question was rude, Canin spoke again.
“In the forest… you healed me. And your recovery is very fast.”
He spoke in a hurry, mixing words awkwardly.
Ariadne let out a small laugh and corrected him.
“In Rensha’s language, you can’t just say words like that. Try saying it like this:
‘In the forest, did you not heal me? And your recovery is unusually fast.’”
Canin slowly repeated after her.
“…In the forest, did you not heal me… And your recovery is unusually fast. Are you the Saint?”
Now he spoke properly, even adding his question at the end.
Ariadne understood him immediately.
Her body did feel strangely light.
But she still wasn’t sure if she truly had healing powers, and the ability appeared inconsistently.
And above all, the Saint was officially her younger sister, Ashley.
So she slowly shook her head.
“I… am not the Saint. My younger sister is.”
“….”
Canin looked visibly disappointed.
He had already guessed it from the situation, but since Ashley would not meet him, he had placed his hopes on Ariadne.
He spoke again with a firm expression.
“You may not be the Saint… but…”
He paused briefly, then continued calmly.
“That power was definitely holy power.”
“….”
Ariadne simply shrugged.
She had nothing to say to his certainty.
She decided she needed to test her ability first before confirming anything.
And even if she did have healing power, she had no intention of living as a Saint.
“I don’t know what answer you want, but I am not the Saint.”
Canin looked deeply disappointed, as if he had hoped she would admit it.
But Ariadne had no reason to meet his expectations.
She had already abandoned the image of being the kind eldest daughter.
She smiled and said,
“Could you leave? I want to rest more.”
Canin widened his eyes.
He looked like he might insist further, but unexpectedly, he left quietly.
Ariadne thought his talk about the Saint would end that day.
A few days later.
“…What did you just say?”
Ariadne asked in surprise at the Count’s words.
She had been resting peacefully in her room.
No one in the palace bothered her.
Because of the rumors about what she did to Ashley, everyone avoided her.
Even the servants feared her and stayed away.
So her life had been quite comfortable.
But that peace was shattered when the Count came to visit.
“Today, you will go to the audience hall instead of the Saint.”
“What?”
“The Saint is still unwell. So you go and stand beside His Majesty. Act as her substitute.”
“….”
Ariadne was speechless at the shameless request.
She let out a hollow laugh.
Then suddenly, she stopped thinking and stood up.
“Alright. I’ll go.”
The Count looked surprised.
He had expected an argument, but she agreed too easily.
“Then get ready and come out.”
“Yes. You go ahead. I’ll come on my own.”
“Don’t be late before His Majesty arrives.”
The Count continued nagging until the end.
Ariadne glanced at her wardrobe, then decided not to change her dress.
“There’s no need to dress up.”
She had no intention of impressing the Emperor or pleasing the Count.
With light steps, she headed to the audience hall.
When she entered, everyone looked shocked.
Her appearance was too casual for meeting the Emperor.
Even the Count looked flustered but couldn’t say anything in front of others.
“Hello, Your Majesty. I came today in place of the Saint.”
Ariadne smiled brightly.
The Emperor could not respond.
People in the hall thought she had lost her mind.
She calmly walked to the seat prepared for the Saint.
Coincidentally, Canin Rodram was also present that day.
He greeted the Emperor and the Count politely.
“I heard… you visited the Northern Empire several times.”
He used the sentence structure Ariadne had taught him.
Ariadne felt oddly proud and smiled slightly.
The Count replied happily,
“Yes, the machines of the Northern Empire are very precise and advanced.”
“Oh. What… did you see?”
“Many things. Airships that fly in the sky… but more interesting were the tools used by spies.”
At the word “spies,” Canin’s expression stiffened slightly, but he continued.
“For example?”
“Things that track a person’s location… or devices that record voices…”
“That’s enough small talk.”
The Emperor cut him off.
Now that Ariadne had arrived, he had no patience to listen further.
“So, Prince, what is the reason for your visit?”
Canin glanced at Ariadne and spoke.
“I came… to request the Saint to visit my country.”
Ariadne almost laughed at his awkward speech but held it in.
The Emperor looked at the Count, who spoke carefully.
“The Saint is not in good health. It is unfortunate, especially since you came all this way.”
Canin nodded, as if he had expected that answer.
“Then… send Ariadne Bliers, daughter of the Count.”
“…?”
“…!”
The audience hall erupted in shock.
It sounded as if he was placing Ariadne on the same level as the Saint.
Even Ariadne herself was stunned.
