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Chapter 21
I lifted the hem of my dress slightly.
“May the blessing of the Lord be with you. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bishop Sharnel.”
Unless it was royalty, I was not to speak with honorifics.
I greeted her just as I had been taught.
“As a servant who serves Heaven’s will, it is an honor to meet the consort. I look forward to your guidance from here on, Consort.”
The unfamiliar title made me give an awkward smile.
I had heard that religious figures addressed the Duchess of Igaluk that way, but it would take some time for me to get used to it.
Sharnel shifted her gaze to the Duke beside me.
“It is fortunate that before I go to the Lord’s side, I was able to see the divine beast’s consort appear. A great burden has been lifted from me.”
…Her personality was exactly as I had imagined while reading the original novel.
The scene where she urged my favorite character to take a consort, and to reconcile with the crown prince, flashed quickly in my mind.
The Duke, however, seemed to let her words go in one ear and out the other.
“His Radiance the Sun is presently in the audience chamber on other business.”
“That doesn’t matter. I came early because I have a favor to ask of Bishop Sharnel.”
“You mean of me?”
“Yes. I’d like you to examine my wife with holy power.”
I turned to the Duke with a sense of déjà vu.
…Don’t tell me, again?
Sharnel glanced over both me and the Duke, then spoke.
“It is possible. But may I ask why you wish for me to invoke the Lord’s power?”
“My wife has lost her memory. I want to make sure nothing else is at work in the process—whether there might be a problem that can be seen with holy power.”
“I see. Very well, Divine Beast.”
Sharnel nodded twice and stepped closer to me.
“Consort, please extend your hand to me.”
I pulled my gaze away from the Duke and offered my hand to Sharnel.
She clasped it and closed her eyes.
In the next moment, a warmth like the gentle sunlight slipping through the window at dawn wrapped around me.
“How is she?”
“There is nothing wrong at all.”
“Do you sense any curse?”
“No.”
At that moment, a servant entered and informed us that His Majesty the Emperor had arrived in the audience chamber.
“Then I shall take my leave. Divine Beast, Consort.”
Once Sharnel departed, stillness filled the waiting room.
‘Last time it was a magician, and this time it’s a bishop.’
The reason for bringing me before them was obvious.
‘The Duke still suspects me.’
My shoulders slumped.
I had thought we’d gotten closer—but clearly, that wasn’t the case.
Feeling foolish, I drew in a long breath, deep into my lungs.
‘…I was too naive.’
Because he had acknowledged me, I had puffed myself up with false hope, only to be disappointed all alone.
I gave the Duke a fleeting glance before sharply turning away.
Right now, I didn’t want to look at him.
Lucas stared at Helen, who pouted and refused to meet his gaze.
Curses and brainwashing magic always left traces on the caster.
Even if he had given another excuse for asking them to examine her, if the bishop or the magician had felt any “traces,” they would certainly have told him.
They were not people to ignore vile sorcery.
But neither of them had said anything. That meant his assumption had been wrong from the start.
‘…Ha.’
Impossible.
Then what was it? This pounding heart whenever he saw her, the strange impulses that came and went, the way she filled his mind at all hours—
If it wasn’t a curse, if it wasn’t brainwashing, then what about her was shaking him so violently?
Confusion swallowed him whole.
Lucas did not take his eyes off Helen, as though simply staring at her might give him the answer.
Then a servant entered the waiting room.
“His Majesty bids you to enter the audience chamber.”
The audience chamber of the great empire of Kailuma was the epitome of magnificence.
The walls were carved with patterns of the sun, each groove studded with jewels.
Red diamonds, rubies, red beryl, padparadscha sapphires, corals—scarlet gems glittered alongside the many golden stones Bell had once shown me.
The chandeliers hanging from the ceiling shone like suns.
But it did not feel wasteful. Instead, the splendor only heightened the majesty of the man and woman seated at the throne upon the crimson carpet.
I gave my respects to the imperial couple just as I had been taught.
“Both of you, come forth. You may raise your heads.”
In Silent Night, two descriptions of the Emperor never failed to appear:
Sharp as a blade.
And a flawless ruler with no openings.
‘Am I doing everything properly? Without leaving a single gap to be exploited?’
Nerves made my heart race.
“Duke! Do you know how eagerly I awaited today?”
“I do not.”
“Pah. Cold as ever!”
The Emperor slapped the armrest with his hand and clicked his tongue.
“Since you have a wife now, you should have introduced her to me first of all! Knowing how curious I was about who would become your bride, how could you let me be the third to see her?”
“I already answered: I do not.”
“Let’s just move past that.”
The Emperor pouted as though throwing a tantrum.
The Empress beside him wore a clouded expression.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Duke looking at the Emperor as though he were nothing but a nuisance.
“You’re as dull and humorless as ever.”
The Emperor clicked his tongue again before turning his gaze on me.
His blue eyes gleamed with interest—and for a split second, I saw the infamous “bright-eyed lunatic” memes from the internet superimposed over him.
‘…Wait, wasn’t he supposed to be sharp as a blade and flawless?’
…This guy?
Honestly, he looked more like some middle-aged uncle from the neighborhood.
“So you are Helen Igaluk?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“I heard you lost your memory. Then how did you remember your name?”
“A precious someone gave me a new one.”
“Ho? I see.”
The Emperor stroked his chin, lips curling upward.
“To think that the divine beast’s consort should be named ‘Helen.’ Whoever came up with it must be amusing indeed.”
His clear eyes glimmered with madness.
“The Duke of Igaluk and I are friends, bound together since the time of our ancestors. So do not be too stiff around me.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you for your kind consideration.”
He laughed heartily.
“Well then… may I ask the Duchess a few questions?”
I stiffened instinctively.
The lighthearted air vanished, replaced by sudden, suffocating weight.
And the change—all of it came from the Emperor.
‘Sharp as a blade. A flawless Emperor.’
Now I understood the description from Silent Night.
I swallowed against the dryness in my throat and straightened my shoulders.
“Of course, Your Majesty.”
Here, I stood as the Duchess of Igaluk.
I could not bring shame to the house that my beloved character would one day lead.
“When the Duchess looks at him…”
The Emperor paused dramatically before asking in a low voice:
“…is the Duke impotent? Or not?”
…What?
I nearly blurted the word aloud but clamped my mouth shut.
“Your Majesty!”
The Empress gasped, her face draining of color.
But the Emperor only chuckled slyly.
“Yet, my Empress, are you not curious as well? Whether this man, solid as a wall, is truly impotent as the rumors say.”
“Please, Your Majesty, maintain your dignity! Every time you are with the Duke, you behave this way.”
She scolded him, hands clenched into fists.
“There’s nothing more entertaining in this dull life than a friend’s secret.”
“I beg you, Your Majesty!”
I watched the two of them, then stole a glance at the Duke.
His face was as impassive as ever—clearly, this was nothing new to him.
“The Duke is not impotent.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
…Probably.
“Ha ha ha! At last, my curiosity is satisfied.”
The Emperor slapped his thigh and burst into raucous laughter.
The Empress, beside him, rubbed her temples and sighed, as though plagued by an unruly grown child.
‘…Your Majesty the Empress, you have my deepest sympathies.’
I felt a sudden pang of compassion for her.
“Well then, let us proceed to the ritual that opens the first day of the Founding Festival.”
The Emperor rose from the throne, looking immensely pleased.
‘I’m about to experience what my favorite character once did.’
The opening ritual of the Founding Festival was performed only by the Emperor and Empress, the Duke and Duchess of Igaluk, and the High Bishop.
Before the grand national festivities began, the descendants of gods and divine beasts would pay respects to the deities.
In Silent Night, the crown prince—the male lead—was not qualified to participate. But the Duke, my favorite, had taken part.
‘This is what hitting the jackpot feels like.’
Mom, I think I reincarnated into the perfect role.
I followed after them, my heart pounding with excitement.
The path was as winding as a labyrinth, for none unworthy were permitted to tread it.
At the end, we passed through a space warped by magic—and there, before us, a softly glowing white tree captured my eyes.
It rose as though to pierce the heavens, so massive that even ten people joining hands could not encircle its trunk.
‘That must be the World Tree, one of the Empire’s divine relics.’
Before leaving the mortal realm, the gods and the divine beasts had bestowed final gifts upon their descendants.
The god had left behind the World Tree he once walked upon, and the divine beast had left the Goblet.
“In times of turmoil, in times of suffering, in times of utter despair—before the World Tree, overturn the blood-red Goblet. Then once more shall miracles descend upon this land.”
So went the words they left behind.
The two relics were now protected by the imperial family and the Duke’s household respectively. People called them simply, the “divine relics.”
“Since the Duchess has lost her memory, she must not know much about the myths.”
That comment wounded my pride as a die-hard fan.
