Chapter 2

Now then, let’s go back to before I threatened the kidnapped prince.

“Do not try to understand God!”

That was something the annoying Archbishop said all the time. One of the few opinions of his that I actually agreed with.

A long time ago, I once made a wish to a god. More accurately, it was a desperate desire directed at no one in particular.

In my next life, I want to live with normal hands. For a long, long time.

Why did I make such a wish?

That story can wait for later.

Anyway, my wish came true.

Just in a strangely twisted way.

When I opened my eyes, I had become the Saintess of another world.

My hands were perfectly fine. All ten fingers worked properly.

But—

What is this garbage life loop?

The Prince sitting in front of me would never know.

That his journey to the monastery had already happened six times.

Lothar didn’t brush away the hand holding his chin. Instead, he studied my face for a long while before asking with a serious expression,

“Did you injure your head?”

I hadn’t expected him to be frightened, but the genuine concern in his eyes left me speechless for a moment.

Even now, he still speaks politely.

“I’m not injured. And I’m not crazy.”

I lightly shook his chin as I answered.

“And I’m not planning to force myself on some man who says no and make him my husband.”

“……”

At my blunt choice of words, Lothar’s expression turned even stranger. He looked at me as though trying to determine whether I was a demon wearing the skin of a Saintess.

Maybe that was true.

Bride kidnapping.

A forced marriage carried out through physical coercion or threats without the other party’s consent.

No truly holy soul, someone meant to protect the weak, would ever choose such a method.

Still, these days bride kidnapping has become nothing more than an outdated custom used as a political tool within the empire.

And I had no intention of being left behind by the times.

“Maximilian.”

I whispered the name like bait.

The moment the name was mentioned, Lothar’s eyes sharpened instantly.

“Don’t you want to kill that bastard?”

Looking down at his face gone cold with unmistakable killing intent, I remembered another man who resembled him and yet did not.

“Elise. Bark properly.”

Maximilian.

The empire’s first prince and future mad emperor.

The man responsible for throwing my life into ruin five separate times.

***

Saintess Elise.

The moment I gained this body, I also inherited memories from before the age of twenty.

And I realized something.

Just smile when told to. That’s your job.

This life was not going to be easy.

An orphan commoner with no education. A symbolic figure with no real ability.

That was the current Saintess.

Even before I possessed this body, she had already been used as a tool by the Archbishop.

So at first, I tried to escape the old man’s grasp.

If possible, I wanted to get rid of the troublesome title of “Saintess” entirely.

But there was a problem.

“You’re pretty. You’d be even prettier when crying.”

“…Excuse me?”

I had caught Maximilian’s attention.

Not long after he became emperor, his first act of tyranny was the imprisonment of the saintess.

Of course, now wasn’t the time to dwell on the past.

Looking down at Lothar’s stiffened face, I continued speaking.

“I’m offering a deal. A pretty good one.”

“…A deal?”

Lothar’s brows narrowed deeply.

“Who exactly is making this deal? You, Saintess, or the Archbishop?”

Look at this bastard.

The moment he asked that, I understood exactly what kind of existence the “Saintess” was in his mind.

He still thought of me as nothing more than the Archbishop’s errand girl.

Honestly, he wasn’t wrong. That was how I’d lived all this time.

Still, hearing it directly pissed me off.

“Hey.”

I leaned even closer toward him.

Close enough for him to feel my warm breath.

“You were supposed to die the moment you entered Lumen Monastery. That was the deal between the Archbishop and Maximilian.”

“……”

“In exchange for killing you, the archbishop was promised the western gold mine region. Officially, it would be donated to the temple, but really, it would just fatten the archbishop’s pockets.”

The poor believers could dig up dirt and eat it, for all he cared.

Sometimes I thought that was genuinely the archbishop’s philosophy.

“You know it too, don’t you? Do you really think Maximilian would be satisfied with simply locking away his rebellious half-brother in a monastery? That son of a devil?”

Of course, it would have been difficult for Lothar to imagine his head being cut off on the very day he entered the monastery.

“…So?”

Eventually, Lothar asked in a low voice.

“What are you hoping to gain through a kidnapping marriage?”

Good question.

It was time for the conclusion.

Looking straight into his eyes, I answered,

“I’m going to kill Maximilian. And for that, I need you.”

“…You believe I’m still useful enough for that?”

Useful.

It was the way someone spoke after becoming far too skilled at objectively evaluating himself.

I nodded.

I didn’t say, If this life fails, I’ll simply stop saving you in the next one.

Instead—

“You don’t lose anything either, do you? It’s not like you can think of a better option anyway.”

“……”

After that painfully accurate point, silence fell inside the carriage.

Now, think.

A hollow prince with no power or honor left.

I was the last rope hanging before him.

And there wasn’t much time to think.

The destination of the moving carriage had already been decided.

Everything had to be finished before we reached the temple that would officially recognize the kidnapping marriage.

I looked directly into Lothar’s eyes and asked,

“Do you know the condition required for a kidnapping marriage to be established?”

“…Yes. I know.”

His voice cracked slightly as he replied.

The condition was this:

The man and woman had to share intimacy, then receive official certification from the temple.

Inside the quiet carriage, I didn’t avoid Lothar’s gaze as he stared at my face for a long while.

Eventually, he raised one arm and asked,

“Do we have to do it here?”

The hand that wasn’t raised wrapped around my waist.

Without realizing it, I flinched.

It had been a long time since I entrusted my body to another person’s touch.

And hands this large and firm were a first for me.

For some reason, my heartbeat started growing faster.

Without showing it, I shot back,

“Then where should we do it? In the grass? On the sand? Inside a temple?”

Did royalty really care that much about location?

But Lothar narrowed his eyes as though he’d heard something absurd.

“I don’t mind. I’m asking whether it’s truly alright for you to experience your first time like this, Saintess.”

“…Ah.”

Only then did I understand what he meant.

Maybe it was because he used to be a knight.

Even while his life was hanging by a thread, he was still considering my position as a woman.

More admirable than expected.

Also kind of stupid.

Pressing my finger gently against his cheek, I replied,

“I don’t care. It’s just chastity.”

I meant it.

After reaching a sixth life, the number of things that truly held value for me had become very small.

“And I never planned to actually sleep together in the first place.”

“…What?”

This time, Lothar’s brows drew together in confusion.

“Then what are you planning to do?”

“We’ll only pretend.”

Because I was confident we wouldn’t get caught.

I thought about the back of my dress that would soon be stained with dark red blood.

Virginity.

Even doctors in modern society couldn’t prove something like that through a hymen.

No magical counter floated over people’s heads showing how many times they’d had sex.

How exactly were the priests supposed to confirm my virginity?

At best, they would only check for traces of blood below.

No one would know exactly what happened between me and Lothar.

“We just need to leave enough marks for the priests to believe it.”

As I explained, I lifted the hem of my dress and pointed to the inside of my thigh.

“Here. And here. Bite and suck hard enough to leave marks.”

Lothar’s gaze lowered.

His eyes lingered stubbornly on the barely hidden area near my groin and the skin resting atop his thigh.

For some reason, my mouth suddenly filled with saliva.

I silently swallowed and tried to continue my explanation.

“After that, under my chest—”

“Then when will the real union happen?”

My words abruptly stopped.

“…Huh?”

“If today is not the day we truly become one.”

Along with his low voice, the hand not holding my waist slowly moved up my knee.

“When do you plan to make me yours?”

Squeeze.

His calloused fingers gripped the inside of my thigh tightly.

Without realizing it, I bit my lip.

“Mmph.”

I almost let out a moan.

Almost.