Susan and Franz were also captivated by Boritz’s beauty.
He belatedly noticed their gaze and once again lowered his head deeply.
“Excuse my excitement. In front of you honored people…”
Boritz mumbled and tried to flip the hood back.
I grabbed his wrist.
“If you have something to say, put your face out and speak clearly.”
“I-I can’t.”
“You just haven’t tried it. Take it slow. I’ll help you.”
“Miss Elizabeth?”
“Yes. Elizabeth Ampster will help Mr. Boritz.”
“Why… Why are you trying to help me so much?”
Boritz’s frightened expression changed.
Even that appearance was charming, like a single beautiful violet.
“Because I’m a hero.”
“T-That… doesn’t make sense.”
“The desire to feed the hungry. I think a person with such a heart is a true hero.”
“…”
“So, let’s do it together. As comrades who trust and protect each other.”
I extended my hand.
Hesitating, Boritz took my hand.
His hand, despite his bright appearance, was thick and rough like tree bark.
Nikolai didn’t like priests.
It was because they seemed like swindlers who extorted money in the name of the gods.
In the Heartland Empire, people worshiped various gods.
Farmers worshiped the god of agriculture, fishermen worshiped the god of the sea.
The goddess of healing, Moracinea, was popular among all.
Priests in white clothes sprinkled a few drops of water on the elderly and sick and took their offerings.
Arkanso Archbishop considered himself one of those priests.
Until he met a man with two eyes covered with a white silk band.
“May the grace of Moracinea fill Your Highness’s breath.”
The priest with a staff knelt.
Nikolai, sitting on the throne, furrowed his brow.
“How did you come alone?”
“Instead of human eyes, I have gained the eyes of the soul.”
“I dislike airy talk. Speak plainly.”
“I lost my eyesight, but I perceive things with other senses. Since there’s no problem with movement, please don’t worry.”
The man had a gentle and calm voice.
Silver hair down to his waist.
An immaculate white priest’s robe without a speck of dust.
Perhaps because of the string covering his eyes.
From his sturdy body, an inexplicable sense of holiness and mystery emanated.
‘He was said to be the youngest archbishop ever appointed, the only one who received divine revelations. Why did he train his body? For what reason?’
Although he concealed it with his priest’s robe, Arkanso had a well-maintained physique due to consistent training.
His flawless and upright posture was something that even first-rate swordsmen couldn’t easily achieve.
“I heard that you are studying underworld flowers. It has been several years since the underworld flowers were annihilated. What is the reason?”
“I apologize, but the underworld flowers are a plague that cannot be eradicated.”
“Why do you think so?”
“Because there are too many evildoers who wish for the rampage of the underworld. It is merely a means to suppress the plague.”
A chilly smile hung on the priest’s lips.
Although lifeless, the determination to suppress the air was intense.
Nikolai felt curious about the priest who didn’t seem like a typical priest.
“Have you received a divine trust?”
“Yes.”
“Tell me.”
“I humbly request Your Highness to understand that I cannot convey the words of the gods to a non-believer.”
“Sun Emperor offered a hundred-day prayer to the goddess Moracinea.”
“It was merely a means to suppress the plague, not an act of worshiping the gods. Your Highness is the same.”
“You are also my people. The temple is also my land.”
“My master is only the god. The servants of the god do not hold their lives dear.”
“Is it a resolve even for death?”
“I apologize.”
Arkanso’s expression showed no remorse.
Nikolai raised the corner of his mouth.
“Why did you intrude? It’s fine to stay confined to the temple and do protests.”
“I have something to convey to someone with the qualifications.”
“Not to the Emperor, but to someone else you want to convey the divine trust?”
“I only follow my master’s orders.”
“That’s also a divine trust.”
“Thank you for understanding, Your Majesty.”
Arkanso raised both hands in a gesture of respect.
At the end of each sentence, searching for the divine was awkward.
“Who holds that qualification?”
“The one with the goddess’s divine water.”
“Divine water?”
“Divine water acts with the authority on behalf of the goddess. Only those chosen by the goddess Moracinea can possess divine water.”
‘The imperial treasure vault doesn’t have Moracinea’s divine water. But seeing that he came, does someone in the imperial palace have divine water?’
Suddenly, a scene came to mind.
Douglas presenting the family’s treasure, asking Elizabeth to leave the palace.
Elizabeth demanding an old and worn-out monocle made of copper.
He had known long ago that she wasn’t an ordinary servant.
‘Was the monocle the divine water? Is that how Pinch discovered Elizabeth’s poison?’
Nikolai had also tried wearing the monocle.
But nothing happened.
Does it mean it’s an ability that only specific people can use?
What does it mean that Elizabeth possessed it?
The smile of the woman, whom he tried hard to forget, squeezed Nikolai’s heart.
“Please allow me to meet Lady Elizabeth. It is an important divine trust that must be conveyed.”
Got Boritz.
I was sure even without a contract.
「I will follow Lady Elizabeth’s will unconditionally. I look forward to working with you.」
Boritz was more shy than the new bride on the first night.
If I provide him with the original information, Boritz would develop a drought-resistant crop that would go down in the history of the continent.
Of course, mass cultivation of the drought-resistant crop and spreading the cultivation method would be my and Emster’s responsibility.
Money, fame, and even a handsome man rolled in like a vine.
‘Let’s buy land first. It would be good to create a charitable organization. With Boritz, my life will also blossom widely!’
Everything seemed to be going well.
But my life never went smoothly.
“Don’t move! Move, and you die!”
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
