This is the Great Temple of the Empire.

To keep the promise of visiting the temple made during a recent private audience with the Emperor, I headed to the memorial hall after going through strict procedures at the entrance.

It was quiet now, as crowds had gathered during the memorial service held a few days ago.

Following the memorial rituals, I made eye contact with each portrait of the fallen soldiers from the subjugation campaign and laid down flowers. Among them was a relatively young boy.

I did not feel a tearful sentiment of heartbreak or devastation.

After all, they were soldiers whose faces I did not even know.

I just wanted to show that thanks to them, I too was safely standing on the ground with both feet. So I closed my eyes for a long time and began to pray.

‘May you rest in peace.’

Afterwards, I greeted the ordinary priest standing at the entrance and walked down the corridor of the Great Temple.

How much time had passed? After passing through a long path decorated with angel statues, a small open greenhouse appeared.

The greenhouse, brightly lit by sunlight, was exceptionally beautiful.

In the center was a statue of god made of ivory and gold, with clear flowing water and an artificial fountain particularly catching the eye.

A sacred scene with white doves perched on the statue and yellow butterflies flying about. The air mixed with the fresh scent of grass and water seemed to wash away all impurities.

‘This place hasn’t changed.’

It was then.

“Lady Etricia!”

I saw someone running towards me, their pure white priest robes fluttering.

My eyes widened for a moment.

‘Roba?’

Roba, an assistant to the High Priest belonging to the Great Temple.

Despite being middle-aged, he looked like he was in his early 20s, as if maintaining firm skin under God’s protection.

He was also an acquaintance who served as a guide when I had to visit the Great Temple as a child due to unavoidable circumstances, when he was a mid-level priest.

Roba ran up excitedly and grabbed my hand.

“I saw someone who looked similar at the memorial hall through the temple window, and it really was you, Lady Etricia. It’s been so long.”

Ah, I should have disappeared quickly. I hid my true feelings and smiled calmly.

“Indeed. How long has it been?”

“It’s the first time since your wedding 4 years ago.”

You’re saying things that don’t need to be said. I just smiled faintly and cut off the flow of conversation.

Roba noticed my discomfort and let go of my hand, stepping back. He glanced at the path I had come from. It was the corridor connected to the outdoor prayer hall.

“Are you coming from attending the memorial service for the knights of the subjugation campaign held this week?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Then Roba frowned slightly and chided me.

“Do you only visit when there are events? You know, don’t you? That except for the High Priest, all priests are prohibited from communicating privately with outsiders, and are forbidden from going out except to their parishes. Even though we want to contact you, we can’t.”

“You know too. That I had unavoidable circumstances.”

At that, Roba lowered his eyebrows and smiled bitterly.

“I saw it in the newspaper. Ah… Lady Etricia in that pure white dress that day was so beautiful…”

You’re saying unnecessary things again. It seems God took away your tact in exchange for firm skin.

Just then, ordinary priests passing through the corridor glanced at me while moving flowers to be used for the memorial service. It was curiosity rather than wariness towards an unfamiliar figure. Questions about the person whom Roba, second in authority only to the High Priest, ran out barefoot to welcome.

I instinctively turned my head to the opposite side to hide my face, then shuddered at my own action. It was also a habit developed from trying not to show my face to people while frequenting the temple as a child.

The reason was due to an unproclaimed divine revelation.

It was related to another power of the Holy Maiden, ‘purification’.

‘Purification’ was the ability to imprison and annihilate otherworldly beings in magic stones. The power of divine servants bestowed by God. With it, the Holy Maidens conducted reformation experiments by imprisoning magical beasts with holy resistance. They imprisoned magical beasts and showered them with pure love, as if making flowers bloom.

However, it was not easy to reform evil magical beasts from ancient times, and the risky experiments only increased purification stones while wasting time.

In the present world, only the products of those efforts were preserved in the Holy Maiden Exhibition Hall.

Yes, up to here is the history known to all citizens of the Empire. The problem starts from here on.

On the day I was born, a divine revelation came down saying that divine power would be bestowed upon the dawn bearing red light.

At the time, the imperial palace and temple secretly cooperated on this major issue to find a red-haired girl. Every year, they called in red-haired children to secretly experiment whether they could detect magical beasts in purification stones.

I was one of them too. Of course, they didn’t get any results, but the high-ranking priests were particularly obsessed with me. The reason was that I came from a family that owned the Lebron mine and had red hair on top of that. So I was subjected to mandatory experiments until the time my holy power manifested, and was finally able to escape. But to meet Roba here again, how unlucky.

Roba glared at the ordinary priests for a moment. The ordinary priests hurriedly averted their eyes and left to do their work.

“There are many eyes because of the memorial service. Let’s move to another place.”

Roba smiled neatly and led me inside. As it was tiring to receive more attention, I slowly followed him.

“Did you have any difficulties coming here?”

“There didn’t seem to be any control because of the memorial service?”

Roba turned to me slightly and smiled. His next words were tinged with deep longing.

“If the sleeping High Priest knew that Lady Etricia had visited, he would open his eyes wide.”

That can’t be. I sneered and lowered my eyes.

The High Priest has been asleep for decades now. Decades ago, he faced a high-level magical beast that invaded a local parish alone, and fell into a deep sleep after exhausting his holy power. It was unknown when he would wake up.

How long had we walked? The place Roba brought me to was his office.

After guiding me to the reception room, Roba personally brewed tea and placed it in front of me. We talked about recent events for a while as we sipped our tea.

Then at some point, Roba put down his teacup with a faint smile. His lowered eyes fidgeted with the teacup handle. I felt a strange sense of discomfort from his hesitation.

“Since you’re here today, how about trying the test once more?”

Haven’t you given up yet? Hah, a heavy sigh escaped at the situation I had worried about before coming to the temple.

‘This is why I didn’t want to come.’

I frowned and recalled my childhood.

Roba, who was in charge of my examination, was particularly obsessed with me.

Roba sincerely believed that I was the child of dawn. He held my young hands tightly and prayed for me to save the world.

That only I could save the High Priest.

And that I could restore the lost church authority.

It must be because of the title of being the only daughter of the family owning the Lebron mine.

After all, when holy power manifests, that person’s life and property are subordinated to the holy temple. Then Lebron would also be under the temple.

‘What kind of world-saving did they expect from a baby who couldn’t even eat on her own?’

I held my throbbing forehead at his persistence that hadn’t given up even after so much time had passed.

“Are you still concerned about this? I’m past the age for holy power to manifest.”

“Lady Etricia, please don’t say that…”

Right, it’s my fault for coming here knowing this would happen. He seemed determined not to let me go unless I listened. Finally, half-exhausted by his tenacity, I nodded.

Then Roba smiled brightly and went out for a while before coming back in.

When he returned, he was pulling in some kind of box on a trolley.

He opened the velvet box on top, revealing a magic stone with no color or light. Unlike the transparent Lebron, it emitted a dark and murky light.

Roba knelt down on one knee reverently. He looked up at me with eyes burning with passion.

“This is a purification stone with a low-level magical beast imprisoned inside.”

“…I’ve been curious about this since long ago, but how do you know something is imprisoned? Especially without purification, you shouldn’t be able to detect it.”

“When multiple priests surround the purification stone and offer prayers, it flinches, unable to withstand the pure energy.”

Hmm, I let out a sigh and nodded once. Eventually, Roba rested his arm on his knee and held out the purification stone.

The situation that felt only noble and sublime made me nervous all of a sudden. After all, I knew there would be nothing.

I swallowed dryly and placed my hand on the purification stone. The purification stone that fit snugly in my hand was chillingly cold to the bone.

I quickly removed my hand, pretending to be nonchalant, and wrapped it with my other hand.

“See? Nothing happened.”

As I chided him, I could see Roba lowering his gaze and looking dejected.

I bowed politely to Roba, saying I should be going now, and quickly slipped out.

‘I really shouldn’t come to the temple.’

Unless it’s for a repentance prayer.

I shook my head and pulled my robe down low.

After attending the memorial service at the Great Temple and then having a private audience with Roba, my energy was completely drained and I felt tattered like a rag.

I really didn’t want to visit the holy temple again. If rumors spread that I had attended, Roba would appear again. I understood his devotion, but it often felt like an obsession and was just tiring.

‘Ah, I’m exhausted.’

I needed Lilien, my place of rest. Hah, I quickened my steps with a deep sigh.

An hour had passed while waiting in front of Lilien’s academy.

It was past the time when staff had left one by one and classes had ended, but she was nowhere to be seen.

‘That’s strange, I saw her going out, and I confirmed she finishes at this time today.’

Well, can’t be helped. I reluctantly told the coachman to turn the carriage around.

As the carriage headed towards the mansion, I absentmindedly gazed at the rapidly changing scenery when I was startled by the sight of an outdoor table at a cafe.

‘What kind of scene is this?’

An unimaginable combination – it was Lilien and Berita.