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Chapter 21
Considering that the person Seiri was speaking to was the Emperor, her tone was quite outrageous.
It was completely different from how women usually reacted, but Raiden didn’t dislike how Seiri once again exceeded his expectations.
“Have you already forgotten that no matter what decision you make, I have no intention of letting you go?”
“What, you want to fight me over it?”
“That’s tempting, but I’m not so shameless as to point a sword at a patient. So for now, I’ll try being polite.”
“What are you—”
At that moment, Raiden stepped back, sweeping his velvet cloak behind him. Then, dropping to one knee, he took Seiri’s right hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it.
“Become my Great Saintess of Lucerne.”
When their eyes met—his blue gaze looking up at her—Seiri momentarily didn’t know what to say.
If he had been like Ferdinando, completely devoid of emotion, or like Horu, sly and shameless… or even like the demons, reckless and aggressive—it would’ve been easier to deal with him.
But this kind of approach made her thoughts race faster than her body could react.
Honestly, it was something she’d be too ashamed to admit anywhere, but it was true—while saving Kanan, she had ended up owing this human Emperor her life. Maybe that was why her resolve felt like it was softening.
“It’s not like I came here because I wanted to… but I was planning to do it from the start. Becoming that Great Saintess.”
Pulling her hand away, Seiri turned her gaze aside.
If she wanted to regain her power, she’d have to keep doing good deeds for a while anyway. And if she became the Great Saintess, there would be plenty of opportunities to sustain her life. There was absolutely no downside.
Besides, after nearly ruining her taste eating something like a “shoe sandwich” outside, the food here was actually good. There were attendants to serve her, and she could see Kanan every day. There was no reason not to accept.
So it definitely wasn’t because the Emperor asked her—she was doing it because she needed to survive, and because it was beneficial.
“Good. Since those words came from the Great Saintess herself, you won’t take them back. Of course… I wouldn’t let you anyway.”
Raiden smiled confidently.
Every time she saw it, Seiri felt it—this man’s arrogance surpassed even that of gods and demons.
Was it because he was born Emperor? Or was it the confidence that came from his strength? Seiri found herself thinking that someday, if given the chance, she’d like to cross swords with him seriously.
As that thought crossed her mind, something else that had been bothering her resurfaced—Raiden using a kind of magic no human should be able to wield.
“I have something to ask you too.”
“Anything.”
“That time-freeze magic. How did you do it?”
“I learned magic as a child… and discovered it on my own.”
“On your own? Ha. That’s ridiculous.”
Seiri scoffed in disbelief.
“That’s not something you can just learn so easily. That’s Ferdinando’s—”
“It was that simple.”
Cutting her off as if he didn’t want to discuss it further, Raiden’s response only deepened the suspicion in Seiri’s eyes.
This wasn’t just any magic—it was time-freeze magic. Countless gods and demons couldn’t master it even after a lifetime, and he was saying it was simple?
“Are you pretending to be human? What are you hiding?”
Seiri leaned in close, her face right in front of his. If she moved just a little closer, their chests would touch.
Her fierce red eyes stared directly into his contrasting blue ones. Just as she caught sight of her reflection in them, Raiden spoke.
“Do you want to know more about me?”
“That’s why I’m asking.”
At that moment, something flickered in his gaze—and suddenly, Seiri was pulled toward him.
“Then I think we need to become a little closer than we are now.”
“What are you—”
Before she could finish, Raiden leaned in and lightly bit her neck.
“Like this.”
“W-What are you doing?!”
Clearly flustered, Seiri pushed lightly against his chest. Raiden stepped back without resistance, wearing an expression as if it had been nothing more than a trivial joke—which only made it more absurd.
‘This bastard… did he do that just to change the subject? Could it be… is Ferdinando pretending to be human, acting clueless on purpose? No way…’
As she glared at him suspiciously—
“His Majesty is definitely human.”
Reno suddenly cut in from nowhere. Neither Raiden nor Seiri had noticed when he entered the room.
“Ahem, my apologies. I couldn’t figure out when to speak…”
With his cheeks flushed bright red, Reno cleared his throat a few times before continuing.
“I can personally guarantee His Majesty is human. We’ve bathed together since childhood, so I know every inch of his body. Everything that should be there is there—and nothing that shouldn’t be is.”
“Reno… do you really think that’s something you needed to say right now?”
“Well, there are some… exceptional aspects, but still, he’s definitely human—”
As Seiri watched the two exchange nonsense, she thought to herself:
Yes… the Emperor is definitely different from Ferdinando. The only similarities are the exterior—and the time-freeze magic.
Honestly, it still felt suspicious in many ways… but there was no way to confirm anything anyway. So she decided to let it go as coincidence.
More importantly, she had confronted Ferdinando directly in the divine realm just a few days ago. It wasn’t like he could split himself into pieces and exist in multiple realms at once like some kind of planarian.
That kind of thing wasn’t even possible to begin with.
“By the way, Saintess, are you feeling better now? You get hurt so often… I feel like it’s all because I’m lacking. I’m truly sorry.”
“You—just make sure you bring me things I can do for good deeds from now on.”
“C-Crab? Did you just call me crab? I’d prefer it if you used my name…”
“Seiri!”
At that moment, a face as soft and warm as freshly baked bread popped between Raiden and Reno—and Seiri’s expression brightened instantly.
“Kanan! Ngh—”
She wanted to rush over and hug him immediately, but the pain in her waist stopped her.
As she tried to get off the bed only to sit back down, someone placed Kanan onto her lap, and the child naturally nestled into her arms.
“Please lie down, Saintess. You need rest right now.”
A woman with a gentle voice bowed her head politely.
She looked to be in her mid-thirties, with blonde hair braided and tied back neatly. But she was thin to the point her cheeks were hollow, with dark circles under her eyes and dull skin.
Seiri thought she looked familiar—and then remembered. This was the woman who had nearly been attacked by the Mutant in Kanan’s room.
“My name is Bella Wish. I don’t know how to thank you for saving both my life and His Highness…”
“You don’t need to.”
“Ah—but…! Oh, right! I baked some cookies. I hope you like them.”
Bella handed over neatly wrapped cookies.
Seiri wasn’t particularly fond of sweets, but since she was hungry, she took them anyway. The sweet smell was tempting.
Just as she was about to take a bite, she hesitated—remembering the trauma of the “shoe sandwich.”
When she paused, Reno encouraged her.
“Lady Bella’s cookies are famous throughout the palace. Please, try them.”
Taking a bite, she found them pleasantly sweet and slightly salty—delicious.
“Mm. Are you Kanan’s mother?”
Seiri asked, patting the child’s back in her arms.
“M-Mother…?”
The term caught Bella off guard—it sounded more like something used for livestock.
Still, as a well-bred noble, she composed herself and answered calmly.
“Yes… I am. Though I’m a rather inadequate one.”
“He seems to resemble this guy more than you. Do daughters take after their fathers in the human world too?”
At Seiri’s blunt misunderstanding—and her disrespectful way of referring to the Emperor—Bella’s eyes widened in shock. Reno frantically waved his hands.
“Saintess, His Majesty is not Prince Kanan’s father—”
“I’ll explain. Seiri, Kanan is the Crown Prince of the Empire, and while I treat him as my own, he is not my child.”
“What do you mean?”
“I had an older brother who inherited the throne from the previous Emperor. Four years ago, during the war, he abandoned both the throne and the war and ran away. Kanan is his son.”
So that resemblance wasn’t to the Emperor—but to his brother.
“So that man abandoned his wife and child?”
Raiden nodded.
“To be precise, he fled when Bella was about to give birth.”
“And where is he now?”
“I don’t care to know. Even if he wanted to return, shame alone would stop him. And even if he did… there’s no guarantee he’d survive. There are many—including myself—who would want him dead.”
Though Raiden spoke calmly, the twitch in his brow betrayed his irritation.
As Seiri listened, anger boiled up inside her as well.
‘What a piece of trash. Even worse than Horu. Running away to save himself, abandoning his wife and child? People like that should be hung upside down and slowly burned until they come to their senses.’
Imagining that, Seiri’s eyes burned with fury.
