As Caland and the four dukes entered the reception room, the King burst into a loud voice before the door was even closed.

“How dare you view the King so lightly as to block the delegation that departed with my permission! What if the Empire pressures Glisia using that incident as an excuse!”

Though they have pride as God’s representatives, they are ultimately a small country.

The royal family has protected Glisia with the thin walls of faith. They were safe only because there was no justification, but the King knows it would be difficult to withstand if the Empire seriously intervenes.

Duke Haiman held back his furrowing brow.

The King is good at wielding things to his liking, but is slow to make decisions at important times.

“Have you heard the report from the temple? The flower of Princess Ormia, which was being kept in the temple for purification, has disappeared.”

“It was at that exact moment when the princess made the flower disappear before departing. This is a phenomenon we absolutely cannot overlook.”

Duke Balman added to Duke Haiman’s words. However, the King did not take it seriously.

“So what! I decided and announced that the princess would be sent to the Empire! I did! Yet the dukes go and catch her on their own, what becomes of my face! What do you think of the King to move so arbitrarily!”

At any other time, they would have catered to the King’s mood, but the situation was urgent.

Ormia was leaving Glisia.

Haiman, growing impatient, opened his mouth.

“Princess Ormia may have a blessing.”

“Nonsense!”

The King snorted.

It was something the King had hoped for too, but hadn’t he only repeated disappointments through several verifications?

“The princess has been hiding it.”

“Didn’t you see? She made the flower disappear. We’ve never seen such a thing before, and there have been no reports of such an ability.”

“As time passed, she must have learned to control her power a little. What’s the big deal! Even so, it’s a denial of God! There is no blessing!”

“Your Majesty is right. Princess Ormia doesn’t have a ‘blessing’, but she does have a power that causes pain, doesn’t she? It must be part of that.”

“Duke Windsor, that’s what I’m worried about, as you say. As time passed, she learned to control her power, and no one knew. Then couldn’t the princess hide other truths as well?”

“What on earth are you worried about? If she could use a blessing, why would she hide it? If she just revealed it, she would be free from the stigma of being God’s denial!”

The King raised his voice, agreeing with Duke Windsor’s words.

How much had everyone hoped for it.

That it would manifest belatedly, that everything had been God’s prank.

The King swallowed, remembering the despair he felt every time he checked Ormia’s blessing.

Caland, who had been just listening, opened his mouth.

“That could be why.”

“Caland, explain.”

“What do you mean? If there’s a blessing, why would the princess hide it?”

Caland looked at Duke Haiman and Duke Bersi. They too seemed to guess, remaining unshaken.

“Ormia doesn’t want the wealth or honor Glisia gives.”

“Do you think the princess who has enjoyed those things could do that?”

The clamorous voices of those objecting did not reach the King. Caland’s upright gaze was directed at the King.

“Because we’ve excluded Ormia all this time.”

Caland’s eyes were reproaching the King.

“What exclusion! We raised her, clothed her, let her enjoy everything as a princess, even let her marry and divorce as she pleased!”

“You didn’t treat her as family. You never embraced her warmly even once.”

“She’s royalty! Royalty who must maintain decorum and dignity!”

Duke Windsor, who had been supporting the King’s side until now, did not open his mouth this time.

The King did not admit his mistake.

“We didn’t confine her and let her live as a princess, what more does she want that she hides and takes revenge? What nonsense! There’s no way the princess has a blessing.”

“We will investigate. This happened suddenly. There’s no harm in looking into it.”

“…Fine, investigate then. It’ll be a waste of time, but. A blessing for Princess Ormia, impossible.”

The King softened at Duke Bersi’s words. As he left the reception room, the King looked back at the dukes.

When he received the report of what happened in front of the city gates, the King got goosebumps.

The dukes are loyal dogs.

Faithful subordinates who succumb to their master’s sweet rewards. Yet those loyal dogs disobeyed their master’s will and acted on their own.

That was betrayal, growling and baring their teeth at the King. It was treason.

A signal that the balance of power maintained until now could be broken.

The King too could maintain his throne because he had loyal dogs.

It means he cannot abandon the loyal dogs even if they bite him.

“Your Majesty?”

The King left the reception room. His spine was chilled, but there was no other way.

That was the conclusion on the surface.

If a knight changes horses without rest, they can reach the Empire in 3 days.

With Princess Ormia, they wouldn’t be able to go that fast, but there was no time.

“Leave the temple’s investigation to Duke Windsor. The princess’s flowers kept by each family for research have also disappeared, so look into it yourselves. Let’s meet again in a week.”

It was a declaration to act on their own. Whoever gets their hands on it first is the winner.

Duke Windsor did not take Duke Haiman’s words seriously.

“Let’s do that. In a week, we’ll gather opinions on what phenomena there were.”

“We will comply. Then, excuse us.”

As Duke Bersi turned to leave first, Caland asked in a voice that sounded like talking to himself.

“If Ormia really has a blessing… what do you plan to do?”

“The princess is Glisian.”

Duke Haiman exchanged glances with Duke Bersi. Though brief, those cold and cruel men understood each other’s intentions.

The footsteps of the two dukes leaving the reception room quickened.

“I’m going to the family. I’ll get a report from Edward.”

Duke Bersi hurriedly passed through the corridor and arrived at the entrance where the carriage was waiting. The captain of the Bersi ducal family’s knights was waiting beside the carriage.

“On the way to the Empire, the princess dies after encountering bandits. We’ll hold the Empire responsible for failing to protect her.”

He had grasped the situation by following to the city gates and receiving reports. The eyes of the loyal knight captain shone.

“We, the Bersi ducal family, will have Princess Ormia.”

“Yes.”

* * *

As he entered the mansion, Duke Bersi asked the head butler.

“Where’s Edward?”

“He’s in the research lab.”

Though he was old enough to marry and live independently, Edward, Duke Bersi’s youngest brother, was devoted to research.

Duke Bersi actively supported that research.

Princess Ormia, a royal without blessing, was born. The dukes felt a sense of crisis.

Until a blessed manifestor appeared among commoners, there were many undisclosed power struggles among the dukes.

If there was a shortage of royals in the next generation, who would receive the royal blessing?

It was a matter of survival for the dukes.

The tension eased with the emergence of Leticia, a commoner manifestor, but each family researched alternatives.

The research lab set up on the north side of the Bersi ducal mansion was spacious, with the space between the first and second floors opened up. The space was created so that the storage of materials and resources could be seen at a glance.

Research staff composed of family members were bustling around Edward.

Duke Bersi stopped in his tracks, surprised at the sight before him.

His youngest brother Edward, who had endured pain after failing to please Prince Alian and falling out of favor.

He rarely used his ability and didn’t receive blessings well, always frowning and facing people with an expressionless face.

For him, ability was pain, so he refrained as much as possible, but now that Edward was moving water droplets with a peaceful expression.

It was ability.

“It’s been 3 hours now. How do you feel?”

“No pain. No fatigue either.”

“Still! You said the pain that had accumulated before disappeared too. Do you feel it building up again?”

“Not at all.”

“Then let’s stop using the ability and observe the progress.”

Duke Bersi was surprised again at the words that he had used his ability for 3 hours.

“Edward.”

“Brother!”

“What’s going on? I heard you felt a blessing from Princess Ormia’s flower petals, was there an effect?”

“Come this way.”

Edward led Duke Bersi with an excited expression. It had been a very long time since he’d seen such a bright expression, as he hadn’t smiled since falling out with Prince Alian.

Entering the important data storage room, Edward excitedly chattered about what had happened then.

“I happened to be in this room looking for data. Princess Ormia’s flower was in this case here.”

The glass case Edward pointed to was about half the size of a bed tray, but it was empty.

Duke Bersi remembered that it had been half-filled with white flower petals.

“I had my back turned looking for data when something felt strange. When I turned around, the flower was disappearing. I was surprised and reflexively reached in to grab it, and then… Ah.”

Recalling the feeling at that time, Edward let out an exclamation and closed his eyes. He trembled.

His flushed cheeks turned even redder.

It was exactly the expression of an ability user receiving a blessing.

“That was definitely a blessing.”

Edward’s voice trembled with excitement and emotion.

“As the flower disappeared in my hand, even the pain that had been eating away at me vanished. My body felt lighter too. It felt different from the blessing I received from Prince Alian. To think such a blessing exists…”

Edward looked at Duke Bersi with tears in his eyes.

“There’s still no pain. None at all. Even though I used my ability for three hours.”

“Princess Ormia hid her blessing?”

“Or the blessing could have dwelled in the princess’s flower petals. After all, no one, not even the temple, had figured out what role the flowers played until now.”

Duke Bersi looked at Edward.

Edward, who had shown displeasure towards royalty due to his poor relationship with Prince Alian, disliked Princess Ormia even more.

He blamed her for his condition, saying it was because she had no blessing.

But now he was defending Princess Ormia.

“This is a miracle. To think a blessing dwelled in the flower. We can now store and use blessings. Do you understand? It means we can be free, no longer bound to the capital, free from Beltoa.”

Duke Bersi got goosebumps. A shiver ran through him.

How regrettable it had been all this time.

Even with power, it was only half complete, requiring the presence of royalty. It was the shackle that bound them to the land of Glisia.

“Are you certain the princess possesses a blessing?”

“I felt it. With my own body. It may be even stronger than Prince Alian’s, perhaps even the King’s.”

Edward, who had felt it with his body, asserted.

“Princess Ormia has a blessing. And it’s stronger than any royal up until now!”