TVOWW 56

Chapter 56

Breathe

I didn’t miss the moment when Stella’s expression faltered.

“Saintess?”

I widened my eyes innocently, as though I didn’t know a thing. Even my gaze carried concern for her.

“Are you feeling unwell? You suddenly dropped your utensils…”

“Oh, right.”

Stella quickly composed her startled expression.

“When did I drop them? I must have lost my grip without realizing it—your picture-perfect appearance together distracted me.”

She hastily picked up the fallen utensils and forced a smile.

“My apologies. I’ve interrupted your pleasant time together.”

Dropping utensils during a meal was considered ill-mannered. But in this case, her excuse was convenient enough to let it slide.

I knew you’d play it that way.

I smiled kindly at Stella.

“Then, Saintess, may I ask you for one small favor?”

“From me?”

“Yes. It’s a request that only you can fulfill.”

Her brows furrowed, as if troubled.

“I do have my position… I can’t simply grant favors at will.”

“If it’s too much for you, it’s fine to refuse.”

A benevolent saintess would never easily turn down a plea.

And Stella is the picture-perfect saintess…

She glanced toward the priest beside her, then gave a small nod.

“If it will help the lady, please ask. What is it you want?”

I smiled sweetly and returned her gift.

“Instead of this relic, please bless the future of the two of us.”

Stella blinked slowly.

“…Pardon?”

“I know you’re concerned for me, but this relic is far too precious. Surely there are others who need it more than I do.”

I placed my hand, the one wearing the ring, naturally atop the table and looked at Johann.

“That’s why, more than the relic, I’d like you to bless us in this meaningful moment. Receiving your blessing would make me happier than anything.”

Stella could not answer right away.

Her lips stiffened as if time had stopped, and she looked toward Johann. He, meanwhile, gently took my ringed hand and asked,

“Does it matter if we don’t have that blessing?”

“But at weddings, everyone receives a priest’s blessing.”

I laughed shyly, like a new bride.

“If the saintess congratulates us, it’ll feel like having the wedding we never held.”

“A wedding… I see.”

Johann nodded, as if lost in thought.

Stella hesitated, unable to take back the gift she had already offered so readily.

But she won’t have a choice.

Just as her excuse for dropping the utensils had been appropriate, so too was my reasoning. Later, it would be hard for her to claim otherwise—that her goodwill had been rejected.

“…But I prepared this gift for the lady…”

“Of course, it would be nice to have it, but right now, receiving your blessing means more to me. After all, it’s fate that you are here at this very moment.”

A saintess, by nature, was accustomed to offering blessings.

And since it doesn’t require divine power, she can’t excuse herself from it either.

I looked at Stella with a worried expression.

“Was it too much of me to ask? I’m sorry.”

If she stayed silent, it would look like she simply didn’t want to give us her blessing.

And if I misunderstood that, what kind of strange things might I say?

Nervous, Stella fidgeted with the relic’s box.

The sun was slanting low in the west.

The Duke and Duchess of Libertan were moved from their cell to the execution ground.

By law, treason was punished by public execution before the empire’s citizens. But their execution was carried out in secret.

The official reason was to prevent unrest among the people.

But the Emperor already knew the truth.

The real reason was that Duke Blanchet had arranged their secret execution to erase their existence as nobles.

Terror filled the Libertan couple’s eyes as they were bound to the stake.

“No, we can’t die like this! Call Estelle! Tell her—tell her we’re—”

The executioner sneered at their struggles.

“Don’t worry. Once the flames rise, all such thoughts will vanish.”

“We’re not supposed to die like this…”

“They all say the same. Right before death.”

As he bent to set fire at their feet, he muttered,

“Soon, you’ll be begging me to kill you quickly.”

Though by Duke Blanchet’s order, the flames will snuff out just before life ends…

Until then, their bodies would know the agony of being burned alive.

“Don’t fret.”

The executioner grinned as he brought the torch to the wood at their feet.

“Stop this!”

From afar, the Emperor’s messenger came running.

“Cease the execution at once!”

Stella’s lips quivered pale and bloodless. The priest placed a hand on her shoulder to shield her.

“Saintess, are you not yet recovered?”

She lowered her long lashes, forcing a faint smile.

“Was it… that obvious?”

“Of course it was, Saintess.”

“I tried my best to hide it…”

Her crescent-shaped eyes carried a fragile sorrow.

“There was no need to push yourself. You’ve always been frail. Even at rest, you’ve wasted your holy power because of—”

The priest cut himself off, startled.

Johann’s red eyes were fixed on him, silent but heavy with menace.

Swallowing hard, the priest stammered,

“A-anyway, I simply meant the Saintess needs rest.”

Johann, legs crossed with elegance, tilted his head slightly.

“Why stop? Keep talking.”

“N-no, I only spoke out of concern as her assistant…”

Johann smirked, lips curling with arrogance.

“Then keep babbling, if you dare.”

The priest’s face turned ashen.

So Johann knows about Priest Berto’s matter too…

The way he reacted—it was clear he knew well.

And still, Stella dared to act this way?

It surprised me more than anything. At that moment, Stella stepped in, shielding the priest.

“I’d like to bless the couple, as the lady requested.”

She folded her hands in prayer.

“May happiness follow you both.”

As Stella lowered her lashes, Johann turned to look at me.

His burning red eyes captured me.

They swept over my lips as if desiring them, making heat rise within me.

I broke into a nervous sweat. Johann chuckled softly and gripped the back of my neck.

His handsome face leaned closer.

“Just endure it a little.”

Everything flowed naturally, in the blink of an eye.

His firm thumb brushed the edge of my jaw, tilting my face.

The last thing I saw was his faint smile—

Then his lips crushed down on mine.

Th-this…

Something soft slipped between my parted lips.

A sensation I had never imagined. Johann’s breath seared my skin.

His tongue swept through me, stirring parts I hadn’t even been aware of. A strange feeling spread through my whole body.

Even my toes curled with tension. Startled, I clutched his shoulders.

Johann chuckled low, claiming me more deeply, teasing me between rapid hunger and agonizing slowness until I was aching.

He gripped the back of my head, devouring my breath. My hands slipped weakly off his shoulders as the world blurred.

“Jo… Johann…”

Maybe he thought I was pushing him away, because he only held me tighter.

The stimulation was dizzying, overwhelming. His lips moved with such skill they dominated every sense I had.

He stole all my breath, then blew teasingly back into me. His presence engulfed me completely.

Sparks danced to my very fingertips. My head went blank.

I forgot what I had even tried to say.

Arms looped around his shoulders, I gazed dazedly at him, undone by the sensations he gave.

I lost track of time. When he finally pulled away, he smoothed my disheveled hair and brushed my lips with his thumb.

“You need to breathe.”

Only then did I realize I had stopped breathing.

As I clumsily sucked in air, Johann hugged me, chuckling lazily as though amused.

My heart still raced wildly.

Was Johann truly unaffected?

Am I the only one… like this?

Hiding my face against his chest, I whispered so Stella couldn’t hear.

“…Why did you suddenly kiss me?”

“You said you wanted more. This much is only right.”

He murmured sweetly.

“Otherwise, how would it feel like a real wedding?”

His deep voice sank into my dazed mind. My heart plummeted, and my fingers trembled against his broad back.

“You’re right. It really does feel like a wedding.”

I looked up at him.

He seemed utterly unfazed by the kiss. While my cheeks burned and breath came unsteady, he was calm.

Something inside me twisted.

But Johann, they say the more false a thing is, the more desperately people cling to making it real.

For us to feel so real…

Is it only because this is false?

Forcing a shy smile, I turned to glance at Stella—

But she was already staggering toward the exit, not giving me a chance to read her face.

All I saw was her golden hair whipping behind her.

Bang!

The banquet hall doors slammed shut with the draft.

“S-Saintess—!”

The remaining priest turned red-faced, staring at us in shock.

The saintess hurried back to the temple.

“We told others you left because of ill health.”

“Did you overuse your holy power again?”

The priests fretted, seeing how pale Stella looked.

Resting her head against one priest’s shoulder, she closed her eyes pitifully.

“I’m fine. I was just startled by an unexpected situation.”

They nodded.

“It was too much for you to witness. Duke Blanchet should have known better, with you present—”

“Well, wedding vows are sealed with a kiss in front of priests…”

“Even so! To do that in front of our pure, innocent saintess!”

They tried to comfort her.

“They probably didn’t know how to behave, since they never had a wedding. Please forgive them.”

At that, Stella blinked innocently.

“They… never had a wedding?”

“Yes. They are legally wed, but no ceremony was held.”

“…Even with the temple’s sanction? Why wouldn’t they?”

The priest smiled gently at her childlike curiosity.

“I can’t say for sure. But I’ve heard they didn’t intend to seek the temple’s approval at the time.”

“My goodness.”

“That’s why it’s hard to know the duke’s true heart. Whether he proposed out of sincerity… or malice.”

“…”

“Duke Blanchet is that ruthless of a man.”

“…”

“Since she’s from a fallen house, if he wishes, he could annul even the temple’s recognition.”

For a moment, the priest thought Stella’s blue eyes flashed chillingly.

It must have been my imagination.

The saintess raised in the temple was pure as a child, despite her lofty power. Surely it was her innocence that had earned her such divine grace.

“I pity Duke Blanchet.”

She lowered her head sadly.

“He must treat women wrongly only because he has never known true love.”

“That may be so.”

“May God’s blessing follow him…”

By then, her carriage reached the temple.

Priests rushed to greet her at the entrance, fussing as they helped her down.

“Saintess, were you treated poorly at the Blanchet estate?”

“They say the duchess is so wicked…”

“Even Priest Berto was severely punished because of her tricks!”

Stella smiled faintly, though her face was pale.

“I’m fine. Just… a little shaken.”

“What did she say to you, when you tried to heal her with holy power? What happened?”

“It’s fine. It was no one’s fault.”

She smiled as she entered her room, though her mind churned.

She could still see that detestable smile, claiming what was hers.

Impossible.

Just before reaching her chambers, her lips trembled faintly.

“Saintess.”

The priest escorting her asked,

“Shall I call someone else? Are you sure you’re alright alone?”

“I’ll be fine. I just need to rest a little.”

In the middle of the room stood a large mirror.

Reflected within was the dignified, beautiful Estella.

Since it has come to this, I’ll have to reclaim my place.

Stella slowly lowered her lashes.

The servants’ respect, the knights, even her husband’s love—she had lent them all out for a while.

“Poor, pitiful thing.”

She whispered a prayer softly.

To mistake a borrowed seat for your own… how tragic.

For she alone was the one truly worthy.

Her holy face calm again, Stella smiled.

All trace of her earlier turmoil was gone, leaving only the gentle, graceful saintess.

After straightening her attire, she left the room. There were instructions she needed to give.

“Saintess, forgive the intrusion.”

A priest hurried to her with news.

“Duke Blanchet has sent a letter of protest. He demands that, under no circumstances, are you to visit his estate again.”

“…”

“He warns that if you attempt to enter unbidden—even as a saintess—blood will be shed. And both you and the temple will bear responsibility.”

The letter trembled faintly in Stella’s grasp.