Concealing one’s true feelings, he selfishly sought his own advantage and ignored those less fortunate rather than embracing them with compassion.

As the heir of the leaning scholar family, the burden he carried must have been quite heavy.

I understand his situation itself, regardless of my emotions.

‘Come to think of it, as a priest, Aris was a necessary presence for him. To solidify the position of the Marquis family.’

In the past, I genuinely believed that he loved and cherished Aris, but looking at it now, there were strange aspects. However, considering Hubert’s ambition, it makes sense.

‘If something goes wrong with Aris, he’ll be in trouble too.’

I concluded my thoughts while observing the smoothly progressing festival.

Today is the day of the festival. As Princess Lallatu had given prior notice, the royal family hurriedly prepared for the festival, and each family that received the message also advanced their ritual schedules. I was no exception.

Due to the hurried preparations compared to previous years, my mind had been chaotic for a few days, but for now, everything seemed to be going smoothly.

The ceremony was in full swing on the altar.

After the trainee priests, adorned in blue from head to toe, finished their dedicatory dance, applause erupted when they finished the dance, shaking their wide robes.

The subsequent ceremony proceeded as follows.

Starting with a dedicatory dance to Marta by the trainee priests, followed by a collective prayer led by experienced priests.

Afterward, when a purified priest raised a prayer to the sky, it was said that a blessing rain would fall.

Generally, the festival follows this order.

I stood on one side of the sponsor’s area and watched to see if the ceremony was proceeding without any issues.

Historically, Rior Sada was abundant in water.

The time of my birth was said to be the pinnacle of prosperity, where the nobles’ warehouses overflowed with food.

In such an era, the festival was more of an event to showcase the dignity and sanctity of the royal family than a religious ceremony.

While fundamentally a religious ceremony, it was considered unusual for the atmosphere to be this solemn.

This was due to the royal family’s order to appease the restless public due to a drought.

‘The ceremony is proceeding well.’

I observed the king seated in the upper position. His face, which had been solemn when first seated, seemed to have loosened quite a bit. He seemed pleased with the festival progressing smoothly.

‘Fortunately.’

Now, Aris just needs to do well.

‘Hmm, there’s something uneasy about it.’

“Here you are.”

“……!”

I almost screamed at the voice that reached me.

Swiftly turning my head, my eyes widened.

A man dressed in a black robe like the temple monks was staring at the altar with clenched fists.

Even though he covered his face, I could immediately recognize who it was.

‘His build is a dead giveaway.’

“……What’s with that outfit?”

“You said it would be burdensome to be together unless it’s an official date. So before, at that suspicious cafe…”

“Oh, I understand, I understand.”
Before any strange words could come out, I raised my hand to stop him.

Giovanni smirked, “Why?”

“You seem to fit well as I expected.”

“……?”

“It has a nice fragrance.”

Only then did I recall the perfume I had casually sprayed in the morning.

It was the perfume Giovanni had given me that day. Well, it was more like a reward.

‘But I did like it.’

“I should visit again next time.”

His words made a certain place in my head or heart slightly itchy.

He didn’t even say he would give me perfume again.

I turned the conversation casually, “Right now, Prince, you look really suspicious.”

The jaw revealed outside the robe twitched.

“Why?”

“Am I asking because I know?”

“It was difficult to get the clothes that priests wear.”

“…….”

His puzzled voice momentarily left me speechless.

“Of course, it’s the kind of clothes priests often wear, but…”

‘So, is he disguised as a priest?’

His head tilted slightly towards me, as if listening carefully. It seemed like he was tilting his ear.

“Prince, it’s good for you to think about your own body.”

Waiting for an answer, I couldn’t help but mutter softly.

Even though they were wearing the same clothes, the priests and Giovanni never looked the same. In fact, they didn’t even look similar.

“Prince, um, your body itself guarantees your status.”

“My body?”

His unusually low voice seemed to scratch my ears, making me speechless.

“……Prince, your body is bigger than others.”

“Is that so?”

“…….,”

He fiddled with the black fabric. The eyes hidden by the robe seemed to be directed at me for some reason.

I awkwardly averted my gaze.

“Are all people from the desert as big as you?”

“That’s unlikely. Starving people can’t grow much.”

“True.”

“If you want to eat and live, you have to move diligently.”

It was a bit surprising to hear such words from Giovanni, who seemed to have lived as a prince.

He didn’t look down on the people but talked about their lives from the same perspective.