On this early morning with rain falling, the prayer room for ordinary believers, not priests, was empty.

A dark room. Because it was a place solely for prayers, it felt unnaturally cold, not like a temple.

“I might exacerbate the disease here.”

I grabbed his arm, which he was about to turn around, tightly and looked up at him.

“I need time and space right now.”

Giovanni stared at me.

After a while, he sighed.

“You make me feel powerless.”

“What are you talking about? If it weren’t for the Crown Prince, I would have collapsed long ago.”

If it weren’t for his warmth, I wouldn’t have endured in the mansion.

Perhaps Giovanni, who might not have understood my words, shook his head slightly as if frustrated, then lifted me up.

The thick jaw quickly approached.

“Now, I can go on my own.”
Ignoring my words lightly, he opened the door to the prayer room and entered.

Thud.

The prayer room, poorly maintained due to its infrequent visitors, emitted a faint scent of dust.

He gently laid me down on the spacious sofa. Due to him bowing, our faces were close. His warm breath slowly brushed against me. Unconsciously, I held my breath.

His hand, gripping the sofa’s armrest, felt strangely nervous.

He asked quietly, “Now, what should I do for you?”

“There’s nothing you need to do…”

Was my body shaking?

The coldness that had disappeared returned around my heart.

“Could you give me your hand?”

“My hand?”

“It’s cold.”

With every breath, white breaths filled the dark prayer room. Even speaking released a chilly breeze from his mouth.

I thought he would give me his hand. I thought at most he would hold my hand. So, when his palm touched my cheek, I was surprised.

I blinked.

My head slowly responded to the cold. I didn’t ask him to touch my face. If I could make such an unpleasant request, it would be good.

His firm lips moved excessively slowly.

“It’s warm.”

I focused on the warmth of his hot hand as if burying myself deeply in the sofa.

‘Ah, it’s hazy.’

I no longer cared about the wet clothes. Although the dark prayer room might not be described as a pleasant scenery, overall, I felt calm.

Even the voice of the ‘power’ that used to be noisy was quiet. The heart that had been beating vigorously was silent.

A voice.

The voice of power.

The power that I considered a blessing of the gods was alive.

“Well, don’t be impatient. Spirits can only attach themselves to cursed humans. That was their magic.”

Cursed humans. Why did Leo say that? If spirits can only attach themselves to cursed humans, the priest should be from the empire, not the kingdom.

But that wasn’t the only question.

The power that feels alive. If it’s a spirit like Leo…

‘What about the existence of the gods?’

My head felt like it was going to split. However, I couldn’t stop thinking about the feeling of grabbing an important clue.

Was the power of water not a blessing of the gods but that of spirits?

What exactly is a spirit?

The image that comes to mind is Leo. Leo in the form of a blue wolf.

My mysterious friend who I could only see.

Even wilted flowers and withering trees would freshen up when Leo breathed.

‘If ancient humans worshiped spirits as gods.’

One thought led to one conclusion.

The cursed human refers to the people of the kingdom, more precisely, the priests.

That means…

‘The nation that performed resurrection is not the empire.’

“Don’t fall asleep.”

I opened my eyes wide.

‘Was I dozing off?’

I blinked rapidly. Giovanni covered my cheek with his palm.

“It’s probably better to go to the doctor now.”

I slightly shook my head.

“Even if I see a doctor, it won’t change anything.”
“This doesn’t help either.”

“It helps. Because the prince is warm.”

“…….”

“It seems like the prince is also receiving the love of the gods.”

The gods of the sun and fire. Since he received the protection of the gods, isn’t that why it’s so warm?

I wanted to hold his other hand as well, but I restrained myself.

“Maybe I should convert to the same faith.”

If someone from the kingdom heard, it would have been a reportable offense.

Giovanni chuckled.

“Seeing you make jokes, you seem to be really getting better.”

Haha, the laughter that was casually spilled became more blurred as it went on.

Sigh. Instead of laughter, a cold chill emanated.

Giovanni’s face, touching my neck with his other hand, stiffened.

“It’s cold.”

“Is it?”

There was no strength in my voice.

“Yes. Cold like a corpse.”

Oh, really? I thought my body was adapting, but in reality, was it just becoming numb?

Suddenly, a gloomy feeling rushed in.

‘I’m dying like this?’

And for Arist, too?

‘This is the worst.’

Suddenly, my cheek warmed up. When I opened my eyes halfway, Giovanni was gently stroking my face.

“What on earth happened? Why is your body so cold, and your hair……”

He grabbed my hair with his other hand.

“Why did it turn out like this?”

My brown hair had turned blue.