Chapter 410

Chapter Thirty-Three You Can’t Deceive Me

The afternoon sun was blazing in the capital, and the surface of the green stones on the small roads was scorching hot. The straight alleys were devoid of wind, and there were only a few passersby. The air felt as if it had solidified from the heat.

It’s too hot…

I held a parasol with black butterfly patterns and walked slowly down the street. My head was covered by a wide-brimmed hat, and my hair was tied up and tucked inside. Only the back of my neck, as white as congealed snow, was exposed, hiding under the shadow of the umbrella. Even so, I couldn’t help but pull at the neckline of my light gauze princess dress occasionally to let some air in, feeling slightly more comfortable.

When there were fewer people around, I secretly summoned frost, letting a faint mist swirl around my feet and me. Within the short time it wouldn’t cause the road to freeze, I would cool myself down, then quickly gather my strength. Soon after, I would feel the heat again, and I would find an inconspicuous moment to use my power again. This cycle repeated several times until I started feeling a bit congested.

“Ah… Ah-choo!”

I sneezed lightly, rubbed my nose, and furrowed my brows.

I really want to go back to Sintler Castle to see the snow…

Today was the first day of my day off.

After Sarah and the others left in the morning, I tidied up the house a bit and went to the market to buy ingredients for three days. On the way back, I couldn’t stop thinking about the events in the Valen Empire, about my parents, whether the war had started, and then thought of Victoria, and then the Silgayan coast, whether the infidels had been repelled, and whether any senators had come… I kept thinking about these things, and the more I thought, the more restless I became. Since I had nothing to do in the afternoon, I decided to find Angel and ask him about the latest developments.

Not long after I came out, I started regretting it.

Am I a fool? Why couldn’t I wait until it was cooler in the evening? Why did I have to pick the hottest time…

I thought that once I got out of Londer Street, I could easily find a rented horned horse carriage. Generally, after turning a corner, you’d see parked vehicles not far away. But today was different. I had to endure the scorching sun, walking along the street and looking for one. It was so hot that I felt like sticking out my tongue. After walking quite a distance and turning several corners, I finally saw an empty horned horse carriage parked by the roadside.

Thank goodness…

“Oh~ Esteemed lady, can I serve you?”

“I want to go to the church.”

“Of course, miss, please get in.”

The oily-tongued uncle lifted the curtain and gestured for me to enter.

I promptly put away my umbrella, pressed down the brim of my hat, and stepped onto the carriage. Sitting on the less-than-comfortable seat, I pulled the curtain down, blocking out the scorching sun. The interior of the carriage darkened, but before I could even catch my breath, I realized it was actually hotter inside.

My bottom was burning…

I twitched my lips and put my hat back on, fully opening both curtains. As the carriage jolted and started moving, slowly picking up speed, the narrow space finally had some ventilation, and the unbearable heat began to dissipate.

Although it was hot wind, it was still better than no wind at all… I finally stopped sweating, but now I had to hold down my skirt and hat.

I endured this until I reached the church.

Unable to wait any longer, I jumped out of the carriage and stretched slightly. After paying the uncle, I hurried up the stone steps and entered the church through the main door, holding the closed umbrella in my hand—finally, it was much cooler inside.

“Huh—”

I sighed deeply and walked to the familiar vestibule. Just then, I saw a few monks passing by, so I rushed over to stop one of them: “Excuse me, where is His Holiness, the Pope?”

“Pope? Miss, who are you…”

I tilted my head up and saw the monk looking at me with confusion. He tilted his head, thought for a moment, then took off his hat, revealing his face and blinking his eyes.

“…Ah!”

The young monk first looked stunned, then opened his eyes wide, his face flushing red, and he started stuttering: “You… You are Miss Hildegard… That is, are you here to see His Holiness? Uh… Sorry, I don’t know where His Holiness is, but! I can take you to the back hall, the accompanying monks of His Holiness are all there… Miss Hildegard, you can ask them…”

“Thank you, I know where the back hall is. No need to trouble yourself!”

I gave the young monk a sweet smile and turned to leave. A moment later, I noticed the monk’s slightly raised hand, as if he was showing a hint of disappointment.

I couldn’t help but find it amusing.

Such a simple boy…

Speaking of which… Can clergy members fall in love and marry? If they can’t, isn’t that a bit pitiful…

No, the Holy Church doesn’t seem to have such restrictions for ordinary monks and nuns… Not even for cardinals. Look at Saint George; he has grandchildren… As far as I know, the only one who can’t marry is Margaret, the Holy Maiden…

But she doesn’t seem to care about that…

Hmph…

Neither do I.

…What am I even thinking?

Shaking my head, I dispelled the jumbled thoughts in my mind and quickened my pace, passing through the mostly empty nave, walking past the garden at the rear. I encountered two nuns who recognized me and hastily performed the church greeting. I nodded in response with a smile, continuing on until I reached the tall greenish-white wall. Two monks stood guard at the tightly closed iron gate. One of them seemed familiar… Ah, he had shown me the way before.

After some conversation, I discovered…

I had come in vain.

“I’m very sorry, Miss Hildegard. You arrived at an inconvenient time. His Holiness just left. He might return in the evening. If you have urgent matters, I can send a message for you—”

I frowned: “Never mind.”

What are you doing…

On such a hot day, running over here foolishly…

“I’ll tell him when he returns that I’ve been here,” I said.

That’s all. If Angel hears about this, she might go to Mansion No. 3 to find me… If not, I can come back tomorrow night. Anyway, I don’t want to make another trip today.

I’m a bit annoyed.

“Alright… If you wish to wait for him, I can arrange a rest room for you,” the monk said.

“No, thank you.”

Waiting would be a waste of time. It’s better to go back to the mansion and read a book… The book on dragons I borrowed from the library hasn’t been read much yet.

As I was about to turn around and leave, I suddenly remembered Elly… After that incident, the little girl seemed to have disappeared. I haven’t seen her again… Although nothing bad happened, I still feel a bit worried. Since I’m already here, I might as well go see Elly before leaving.

“Where are those children?”

“The children of Cataroma? They should all be having their afternoon nap right now… Oh, there are two side chambers in the nave. The left one is where the children live. Miss Silvija, if you want to take a look, I can show you the way.”

“There’s no need to trouble yourself. I’ll go by myself.”

After waving goodbye to the monk, I returned to the nave, found the corridor on the first floor to the left, and went through it to reach the side chamber. From time to time, I could hear the sound of children running and laughing, indicating that not everyone was sleeping quietly. Perhaps they had all woken up.

The place was quite spacious, with a layout somewhat resembling a royal hall. One large space connected to many doors. The interior decoration was not as luxurious as the main hall, but it was still very beautiful and exquisite.

One corner of the side chamber was arranged like a small training ground, with dummy targets and arrows. The children were mostly playing and laughing there. I glanced roughly and didn’t see Elly, but there was a nun present. I went over to ask her and she led me to one of the rooms inside, gently knocking on the door.

“Little Elly, someone is looking for you.”

“Coming~”

A familiar voice came from inside the room.

Not long after, the door creaked open, and Elly poked her head out. Seeing it was me, she paused slightly, then smiled: “Sister.”

Elly was still dressed in the loose nun’s robe, walking out of the room timidly, standing in front of me, brushing her hair aside, her voice very soft: “Why did you come?”

She looked a bit thinner.

Perhaps because she had just woken up, Elly’s complexion wasn’t good, and her hair was messy. A few stray hairs stood up on her head, making her look rather dispirited, but she was still smiling happily.

“I… Look at me, I’m all messed up, hehe.”

“How have you been recently?” I asked.

“Mmm…”

“Why haven’t you come to the mansion?”

“Sister… Sorry, I’ve been really busy lately.”

The nun smiled and gestured for us to chat, then turned and left. Elly invited me into the room to talk, but seeing that several other girls were also living there and some seemed not fully awake, I shook my head, afraid of disturbing them. So, I walked with Elly in the side chamber, listening to her talk about what had happened.

“… At that time, the front hall of the cathedral caught fire. Several stained glass windows were completely burned, and the altar almost got destroyed too. It was a mess… Few people were burned, but many were trampled… Later, the Holy Maiden used divine miracles to extinguish the fire. I saw you fly away. Outside, there were all sorts of bad people, chaos everywhere in the church, and I was scared, so I hid somewhere… Then, I saw more bad people enter the church, and Her Majesty woke up and fought them… The Holy Maiden said that those bad people killed the Bishop…”

Hmm?

The Bishop… Isn’t that the old man I took care of? Margaret said so, right?

I was a bit distracted and couldn’t help but glance at the little girl beside me, seeing her trying to smile but looking a bit sad.

“Afterwards… The bad people died, and the turmoil outside ended. I heard that many people died… Sister, you became a hero again… I wanted to find you, but the Holy Maiden said you were too tired and needed rest, asking me not to disturb you… I listened to her, and later helped repair the front hall with others. The Holy Maiden said to finish quickly, and after finishing, we would hold a funeral ceremony. I helped with the funeral ceremony… Even the Pope came. Those days were really busy and tiring…”

“Elly, you worked hard.”

I patted her head.

The little girl looked up at me: “Sister, did you get injured? I didn’t see you participate in the funeral ceremony or any of the subsequent ceremonies…”

“Yeah, but it’s fine, I’m better now.”

I didn’t even know these ceremonies had taken place… I must have been sleeping at that time.

“Oh…”

Elly nodded gloomily.

Two figures stepped out of the side chamber and sat down on a long chair in the corridor. On the left was a little princess in a small dress, and on the right was a younger nun in robes. Underfoot was smooth marble, and above was an intricate ceiling painting. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the corridor wall, shining on their calves.

After a while, Elly’s low voice, accompanied by distant commotion, softly echoed.

“The Bishop is gone… He treated us very well, really well… But he suddenly… Sister…”

The little girl paused, her expression seeming to hesitate and also appear sorrowful. After a few seconds, she tugged at the hem of my skirt, lowering her head: “Sister, I remember that time, we were planning to find the Bishop, and then we met you… You came from that direction, didn’t you… Did you see him…?”

Her clear voice was intermittent, her tone gradually choking up.

“Was he still alive… Sister, you can’t lie to me… At that time… I heard strange sounds…”