“Do you really not regret it? You can still turn back now.”

As Clea received Admund’s concerned gaze, she looked out the window.

A building that stood out distinctively from its surroundings came into view, proudly displaying its grandeur under the brightly shining sunlight.

Even though they had almost reached their destination, the temple, Admund was still trying to persuade her.

Not entirely disliking his concern, Clea raised the corners of her mouth.

“My decision remains unchanged, Admund.”

“But it’s a whole week.”

Admund feared the week-long period.

No one knows what might happen during that week.

Admund was still worried whether the withered Clea could endure the week well.

“It may seem like a whole week to you, but to me, it’s just a short time.”

The weight of time felt by the two was different.

Naturally, Admund was the one feeling regretful.

When she leaves, he would naturally be the one left behind.

Admund’s gaze remained fixed on Clea.

Clea approached Admund sitting across from her and kissed his forehead, hoping to dispel his anxiety.

Feeling slightly better, Admund spoke in a low voice.

“I’m not a child.”

“I know you’re not a child. So you won’t be anxious, right?”

Clea’s laughter made Admund’s heart even more complicated.

Watching Admund’s anguished expression, Clea quietly wrapped her arms around his face.

Normally, he would have raised his head to examine her appearance, but he didn’t do so this time.

Knowing his feelings all too well, Clea quietly kissed him.

Only after their lips parted did Admund meet Clea’s gaze.

To him, who looked anxious, she whispered quietly.

“I want to break the curse and grow old by your side.”

“I’m afraid something might go wrong with you during that week.”

Clea quietly observed him.

It was very surprising to see a man destined to become emperor and possess everything one day being so anxious because of her.

“I won’t die. I’m still alive now.”

She placed her hand on top of Admund’s, wanting to share her body heat.

Although her hands were as cold as ice, making it feel more like taking than sharing, Admund didn’t push her hand away.

“I’ve contacted the temple in advance. They’re probably waiting for us to arrive.”

Looking out the window, true to Admund’s words, several people were already out waiting for visitors.

Clea opened the door after confirming that they had completely arrived and the carriage was no longer moving.

“Is there anything else I need to hear?”

Admund looked at Clea standing by the door.

She didn’t look frightened at all.

As far as he could remember, she had never shown any signs of fear or terror.

It was puzzling. Clearly, she was the one facing death, yet he, who was healthier than her, was feeling this anxious.

“No, that’s all I have to say.”

Although there was a bit more he wanted to say, Admund shook his head.

Grasping the hand she extended, he too rose from his seat.

Thinking he had shown enough weakness to her, he stood beside Clea.

Clea looked at Admund and said,

“Good. I wasn’t planning to listen to anything more anyway.”

The two who alighted from the carriage side by side had finally reached their destination.

“Welcome. We’ve been waiting for you. I am Hayden, the parish priest in charge of this capital’s temple.”

At their arrival, there was a fairly young parish priest.

‘Hayden, is it.’

Clea mentally recollected where she had heard this familiar name.

And she quickly realized where she had heard it.

‘Aria, who was cursed in the original story, surely met Hayden too.’

Clea realized that this was the place Aria had visited to find out how to break the curse.

* * *

Hayden Borison.

A capable figure who, despite his youth, was in charge of the capital’s temple.

While Admund and Lloyd had sharp impressions, Hayden had a gentle impression as if revealing his inherent goodness to the bone.

His hair was brown, and his eyes showed no signs of aggression.

After introducing the temple, he confirmed the purpose of Clea’s visit today.

“I already know the purpose of your visit to our temple. You said you came for penance, correct?”

“Yes. I’ve committed quite a few sins in the past.”

Quite a few sins indeed. Knowing this, a hollow smile appeared on Clea’s lips.

She felt somewhat wronged. If she had really committed sins and come here, she would have accepted it willingly.

But since all of that was done by Clea before she was possessed, she herself hadn’t done anything.

“Can you tell us yourself what those sins are?”

“Hmm.”

She mentally retraced her memories.

Although it was before she was possessed, it remained vivid in her memory.

To Hayden’s question about what sins she had committed, she answered without hesitation.

“I dirtied, damaged, or stole the belongings of a child I disliked. Hoping that child would get hurt, I pushed her down stairs or tripped her.”

Hearing this, Hayden maintained his smile, but he was a bit perplexed.

‘She speaks as if it’s someone else’s story.’

Even though they were removed from the secular world and studied theology, they weren’t unaware of the things happening in reality.

They too had eyes and ears, and sometimes got caught up in political situations, so they always focused on obtaining information faster than others.

In this case too, while the temple pretended to be completely uninterested, they actually moved faster than anyone to focus on uncovering the truth.

It would have been troublesome for the temple in many ways if she, who was to become the future empress, turned out to be the villain of rumors.

Therefore, from the moment Clea stepped out of the carriage, everyone was watching her as if monitoring her.

“Do you now regret all those actions?”

“Yes, I do regret them.”

However, Clea didn’t care about the intentions behind their questions.

‘I regret my past behavior of acting just like them.’

From the beginning, she only had regrets about the things that had happened in the past.

If she had not reacted at all, she would never have been connected to them.

She no longer wanted this sordid relationship to continue. Clea wanted to end it with this opportunity.

“But strangely, it doesn’t seem like you’ve done that many wrongs, young lady.”

“That’s a pleasant thing to hear, even if it’s a joke.”

“It’s not a joke.”

Clea thought it was just a pleasant lip service.

In the empire’s history, the temple was once a powerful force that could threaten the imperial family.

But now it had weakened to the point where it was difficult to maintain without financial support from the imperial family.

She thought he was saying some nice words, conscious of Admund’s presence beside her.

But that didn’t seem to be all. Hayden spoke to Clea in a serious voice.

“On the contrary. Someone terrible is doing evil things to you, young lady.”

Clea stopped walking and looked at Hayden.

‘Wasn’t he unable to recognize Aria’s curse with the naked eye?’

In the original story, he seemed completely unaware of any curse until Aria mentioned it herself.

But now, as if he had become a different person from the original, he was examining her curse with sharp eyes.

Admund, who also knew about Clea’s curse, was perplexed by his words.

“I rather think you’re pitiful, young lady. To be involved with such bad people that you’re covered in this filth.”

“Do you know who that person is, Parish Priest?”

She was curious, even though she had a rough idea.

Whether the person she knew was really the one.

To Clea’s question, which had already reached the level of certainty, Hayden briefly examined Admund’s expression behind him.

He too was looking at Hayden with a very curious expression.

Hayden shifted his gaze back to Clea.

“Well, I’m not sure. Rather, I’m more curious about why you’re interested in what might be my nonsense.”

“Since you didn’t give me an answer, I have no reason to tell you either.”

“Then this conversation ends here.”

While Admund was feeling regretful, Clea wasn’t that disappointed.

Because there wasn’t a single person in this world who knew about her curse well, except for Aria Hersher.

She wasn’t confident that he would know better than herself, who knew the original story, no matter how well he claimed to know. So Clea didn’t insist on forcibly listening.

Observing Clea’s reaction closely, Hayden talked about penance.

“You will have a week of penance. That time might be harsh, can you endure it?”

“I came prepared for that much.”

At Clea’s relaxed answer, Hayden inwardly smiled and asked.

“Then, how about we proceed with this penance in a somewhat unique way? Would you like to hear about it?”

“Parish Priest, this seems to be a part we haven’t discussed.”

Was it because of the word ‘unique’?

Or was it because of the sudden unexpected situation?

Admund frowned and asked what that meant.

But Hayden pushed past Admund and spoke to Clea.

Clea showed interest after hearing Hayden’s words.

“If we proceed as usual, there might be rumors that His Highness the Crown Prince secretly helped. So I’d like to suggest conducting a public penance this time.”

“Public penance… you say?”

Hayden’s eyes, which had maintained a smile until now, turned cold.

“Yes, public penance.”