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Chapter : 28
A few hours before Diel arrived in Bontech territory:
“A woman is preparing to leave.”
“Suddenly?”
“Yes. We expected her to leave the palace sometime this week, but it’s rather sudden.”
The priest, who had rushed back, reported to Arno.
“Where is she going? The Rekaten Duke’s residence?”
“According to those we planted to watch her, even the Duchess of Kal doesn’t seem to know the exact details.”
“How unpredictable.”
Arno frowned upon hearing the news.
He hadn’t had a chance to see her properly in the royal palace, which was why he’d been waiting for her to leave.
But she was moving so abruptly.
“If she didn’t even tell the Duchess, she’ll probably travel in a regular carriage.”
Arno stood up.
If he wanted to follow her, he had to move as fast as possible.
“Let me know as soon as you find out exactly where she’s going. Place some disguised attendants nearby as carriage drivers.”
“Yes, understood.”
The news that reached Arno afterward was rather absurd.
He had expected her to go to the Rekaten Duke’s residence and just hole up there…
“Bontech? Why there of all places?”
The woman had suddenly headed toward Bontech, near the border.
Just thinking about that area made Arno’s stomach churn.
“Please, spare me!”
“Arno, does it hurt? There’s no helping it. You must endure suffering to manifest your sacred power.”
“Ha, but—!”
“The only way for you to leave this place is to become a priest. You must endure it to serve His Majesty as a loyal priest.”
The face of the abbot and memories from the past suddenly flashed before him.
Everything felt as if it were sinking in the mud.
“Are the reagents ready?”
“Yes.”
The priest following Arno handed him a small vial.
“A sleeping potion? Or a paralytic?”
“It’s a hallucinogenic potion. This is the only one we could prepare in a hurry… but it should achieve the effect you want.”
Arno nodded as he took the vial.
He only needed to trick the woman for a brief moment.
“However, hallucinogens are greatly affected by the current state of the body. I’m concerned since you’re heading to Bontech.”
The priest spoke cautiously.
“That’s where His Majesty’s monastery was, isn’t it?”
Arno understood the implication.
Few had good memories of the monastery.
“I’ll handle that. You prepare the scrolls.”
Arno answered more decisively.
The attending priest had suggested sending a protective knight, but Arno refused even that.
“Drawing attention won’t help. No one can find out—not her, nor anyone else.”
“Yes, priest.”
A few days ago, the emperor had secretly summoned Arno and given him instructions:
“Investigate Diel.”
It was the first time the emperor had given such an order to Arno.
Arno didn’t know the current condition of the crown prince.
But the emperor’s unusual involvement suggested there was some hope.
“His Majesty must think there’s another reason besides the Aliyan fruit.”
Perhaps Diel had healing powers.
“Either way, I need to find out.”
After anticipating the woman’s route, Arno immediately drank the potion.
Perhaps due to heightened sensitivity lately, it tasted particularly bitter and harsh today.
The thick liquid slid down his throat, pressing against his lungs instantly.
“…Something’s off.”
He staggered as his consciousness gradually blurred.
Fluffy, cloud-like shapes scattered before his eyes.
“Why here, of all places?”
Being in Bontech made Arno uneasy.
His days there were the memories he most wanted to forget.
“Arno, it’s okay. Everything’s okay.”
“Sister! Don’t leave me alone. Sister! Please!”
Breathing became increasingly difficult for Arno.
He’d used this potion before, but today the pain was excessive.
“Something’s wrong.”
Leaning against the wall, he felt his strength draining.
That was the moment he realized something had gone wrong.
“Priest! Arno’s okay… how did this—!”
After that, his memories flickered and broke apart.
“Princess, please.”
He remembered reaching out to her, begging for his life.
That memory was the last.
When he opened his eyes again, Arno was lying alone.
His throat felt burning, and his head ached.
“This feeling… could it be…”
Had he fallen into chaos again? Severe nightmares triggered the chaos state.
When in chaos, he transformed into a monstrous being.
Arno hastily rose, expecting his hands to be bound.
“Huh?”
Yet his hands were free.
It was a habit he’d carried since the monastery.
Even after becoming a priest in the capital, he hadn’t been able to break it.
“What happened?”
He blinked in confusion, noticing the room looked unfamiliar.
And there, on the bed, lay what appeared to be a woman’s coat…
“A woman?”
All the priests around him were men.
Why was there a woman’s coat here?
“No way!”
The memory struck him.
Arno’s face went pale, his already fair skin turning even whiter.
“This is impossible!”
Diel Ekaterina!
Since leaving the Bontech monastery, she had never seen him like this.
And now she had—especially the woman he had been following!
“That potion was definitely tampered with. Someone must have altered it.”
The question of the potion was secondary.
As consciousness returned, he began assessing the situation.
“I must silence Diel Ekaterina. No, first, I must return to the capital without leaving a trace.”
His mind spun, but Arno was desperate.
The terrified woman was surely going to report him!
“Ah? You’re awake?”
At that moment, a rough knock sounded. A woman suddenly peeked through the door.
“What?”
Arno reflexively wrapped himself in the blanket.
How many buttons had been undone? His shirt was completely open.
“Are you feeling better? Your sister was really worried.”
The stranger brought warm food and water.
It seemed they were at an inn.
“That woman…”
“Oh, that cousin? I don’t know much about her, but she said she’ll be back soon. Please wait a little.”
She’s coming back? Even after seeing him like that?
She wasn’t going to report to the nearby monastery that the priest was possessed?
“Didn’t even tell the innkeeper?”
The innkeeper certainly seemed unaware of what had happened.
“Let go of me!”
“It’s okay, Arno.”
Memories slowly began to return.
Had he really removed his clothes himself? What had he shown?
“Is this the only room?”
“She said you’d share it. You’re family, so what does it matter? Hoho.”
“Family?”
Suddenly, a primal discomfort surged.
Even if he was a pure priest, he was a grown man.
“I can confidently say there’s nothing lacking in me.”
Why would she introduce him as her younger brother?
And not only that, allow him to stay in the same room?
“Hot? Why is your face so red? Fever again?”
The innkeeper peered at Arno’s face.
Under his messy light-blue hair, his ears were flushed bright red.
“But what a pretty man. Ah, not the time for that.”
The innkeeper muttered as she left the room.
“I need to see if we have a fever reducer.”
Arno pressed his left chest.
Then he glared at the towel the woman had placed on his forehead.
Perhaps because of the potion, his heart beat erratically.
“Oh? Miss, you returned just in time. Your cousin woke up.”
“Really? That’s a relief. Thank you for taking care of him.”
Arno leaped up like he’d been burned.
“I’ll go in.”
From outside the door, he could hear Diel’s voice.
