Chapter 2: The Light and Darkness of the Underground Church

Long ago, in a place composed of steep cliffs, a coastline bombarded year round with raging waves, and arid, barren lands, there lived people. Those people lived very poor lives, and were barely able to keep themselves fed from day to day.

The townspeople were down on their luck and struggled to survive. In spite of that, they revered God and offered forth meager tidings of wine and bread scraped together from what wheat they had.

A clergyman by the name of Kamil stopped by the town in the midst of his pilgrimage.

As Kamil reeled in heartache for the plight of the poor townspeople, a revelation from God descended upon him from the heavens.

—Go forth and excavate that which is in the soil of the church.

Kamil and his ten disciples dug up the churchyard, unearthing rock salt as white as the driven snow beneath the soil. Dubbed “white gold,” it was distributed far and wide, making the lives of the townspeople flourish as a result.

The people revered Kamil and his disciples as saints and enshrined them in the church.

“And the Holy Land’s underground cathedral was built in the rock salt mining tunnels, correct?” Rosemarie summarized to confirm with Claudio, who sat beside her. Claudio squinted at the glimmers of sunlight coming through the cracks between the curtains of the carriage window. The light bounced off his silver pelt into a fine sheen. Edeltraud sat in the seat opposite her, leaning sluggishly against the window.

Rosemarie’s carriage passed through the areas in town bustling with people who had come to observe the Sacred Relic Worship and descended a gentle slope leading to the cape.

“That’s right. Normally, rock salt can’t be mined near the sea. It would never survive the humidity. The soil here is a special mixture of bedrock and rock salt, which is the main reason they can. Considering that the site was where this ‘miracle salt’ was excavated from, it was probably the perfect spot to build a church.”

“With the ‘Sacred Relic’ being what was dug up along with it, yes? They say it can turn seawater into fresh water...”

“Yes, apparently so. Although, the Sacred Relic Worship has been going on for the past ten-odd years, and has been kept under wraps by the word of God until then.” Tension lines formed across Claudio’s snout, and he seemed to be holding back a desire to voice skepticism. Rosemarie knitted her brows lightly.

“Are you trying to say it’s some sort of fabricated tale?”

“I’m not necessarily saying the whole thing is true, but I assume that there’s a huge portion of exaggeration and fiction in the mix. These types of stories are generally designed to bring in followers. Believing it or not is up to the individual. Rest easy, though. I’m not denying your faith, either.” Claudio said that with a voice that sounded tender, but Claudio himself probably never believed the story from the get-go. And, if she had to assume, probably not in God, either.

(Archbishop Kastner abhorred him, so it might be only natural that he would lose faith...)

If clergymen had told him since he was a child that a deformed head was the mark of heresy, it was no surprise he’d end up that way.

(The only ones he trusts are me, his aides, and... He has staked some faith in me... right?)

She wasn’t exactly confident enough to think that, however.

Rosemarie looked over at Edeltraud, who was so silent that she suspected them of being asleep, and tightened her grip on the bucket in her lap.

—Rosemarie, stay by my side. No, please stay by my side.

Those words that popped into her mind cleared the doubts that reared their ugly heads.

(Back then, I was the one who wanted to believe those words the most.)

If Claudio needed her by his side, she would be there—that desire was just as alive as ever.

The carriage ascended a gentle slope and came to an easy stop. It seemed they’d reached the cathedral. Edeltraud opened the door first and descended from the carriage.

Anxiety caused Rosemarie’s body to freeze up. She had made up her mind, but it wasn’t going to be realized until she completely wiped her fear away.

As she held the Kaola pendant that lay under her dress and took a deep breath to recompose herself, Claudio chuckled to himself.

“No need to wear your bucket?”

“...Well, I would like to if I were allowed to.” A bit of the tension dropped from her shoulders at Claudio’s teasing. Appreciative of that, she stepped off the carriage and proceeded to the entrance of the church—which looked as simple up close as it did from far away. The guard knights and accompanying magistrate—everyone else aside from Claudio’s entourage of three and Heidi—held their positions.

There was quite the idyllic atmosphere, emphasized by the goats grazing in the churchyard. It was a sight that was common to her mother country of Volland, which helped soothe her soul and regain her composure even more.

At the arciform entrance, several clergymen—priests and bishops alike—all silently greeted them while lined up in front of the door.

(I knew it, beast heads on every single one...)

However, she wasn’t sure whether this was because the clergymen weren’t feeling inviting, or if they were simply afraid of Claudio.

She almost put her head down from the fear, but fought hard to keep her head up and choke out a smile.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince of Baltzar, Claudio... and Your Highness, the Crown Princess Rosemarie. I would like to cordially thank you for traveling all this way to pay this visit.” A clergyman was the first to greet them cheerfully, but cheerful in tone alone as his head was that of a long-haired brown dog.

“I am humbled that the cardinal himself would come to greet us. You enjoyed a stay in our country the recently, yes?”

“Indeed, I especially enjoyed being present for the Imperial Bout and having the honor of watching you gallantly in action, Prince Claudio.”

The pair were shown into the church as they exchanged harmless banter. Once they were inside, the cardinal stopped suddenly in his tracks. Their gaze landed on Rosemarie’s back, then moved to Edeltraud, who stood in silence, the hood of their cloak still pulled over their head.

“Excuse me. You, in the indigo cloak. Might you be a sorcerer, by any chance?”

“I am. So what?”

“I am dreadfully sorry, but sorcerers are forbidden entry into the church. Every nation complies with this, so I would greatly appreciate it if you forgave us. I shall have you escorted to lodgings in the city.”

Edeltraud turned themselves around. Given that gloomy indigo cowl they were wearing, they did objectively look suspicious. After all, they didn’t have any skin exposed aside from the area around their mouth. And, since Rosemarie didn’t dare ask, she still didn’t know their gender.

“What is the reasoning behind that?”

“It is an order that has been in place since the time when Saint Kamil still drew breath on this earth. So I beg your understanding, please.” The cardinal closed out his complete lack of explanation with a bow.

Claudio threw a sharp look down at the cardinal, followed by another back Edeltraud’s way. Then he opened his mouth and said, “As far as sorcerers go, I’ll have you know that I am also one.”

“Hahaha, I have faith that you will abstain from the use of magic within church walls, sir.”

A chill ran up Rosemarie’s spine as she caught on to the psychological warfare unfolding behind this innocuous conversation.

(So, let me get this straight—sorcerers are barred from entry not because their mana would affect the church, but simply because they are heretics, right?)

It was mincing words, but that was pretty much it. Sorcerers were ostracized even in Rosemarie’s native, devout country of Volland. Even when she was still in Volland, sorcerers’ overall sense of mystery was unsettling to her—a feeling that was no longer with her now.

“Edeltraud, you heard the man. Nothing dangerous will be happening in the church. The knights will be sufficient in keeping guard. I’d appreciate it if you kept on standby at the inn.”

The clergy members collectively froze at the mention of Edeltraud’s name. It seemed the name of the Archmagus of the Magic Nation of Baltzar preceded them all the way to the Holy Land.

“—Okay. Going to standby at inn until business done.” Edeltraud gave an honest nod.

Still worried about not having the archmagus at their side, they left him where he stood and proceeded into the church. Upon entering, silence descended upon them. The interior design was plain, contrary to expectations. In the middle of the empty hall with the arched ceiling, there was a dark brown spiral staircase. But rather than going up, as one might expect, it spiraled down underground. That was most likely the entrance to the rumored underground cathedral. The only decoration to speak of was the vibrant tapestry adorning the stark white stucco wall, which featured a deformed beast with the upper half of a horse and the lower half of a fish.

The cardinal said, “If you’d be so kind as to wait right here for a second,” before going over to the clergymen, who all stood next to each other in something of a rush.

Anxiety loosened its grip on Rosemarie ever so slightly and allowed her to breathe a little more easily. She stared intently at the tapestry. Each individual hair, each individual scale, was stitched intricately into the material.

“It’s the sacred beast, Hippocampus. You’ve seen paintings of it before, haven’t you?”

“I have. It’s also called The Guardian of the Sea. It’s quite odd to see it adorning the walls of the house of God...”

“Well, this is a seaside town. They even have legends saying that the Hippocampus produces salt.”

One would have thought that a church in the Holy Land would ban revering anything other than God. Perhaps, considering the locale’s tie to the sea, it was treated as more of a likely story. Rosemarie tilted her head and pondered, suddenly realizing how gloomy Fritz looked. Claudio, who was just next to her, probably noticed it, too. He squinted suspiciously.

“What’s wrong? Why are you looking so perplexed?”

“Well, I was just thinking about how different it is from the church I know. It may have been a few years since I’ve been here, but it was never this quiet during the Sacred Relic Worship. They keep getting people on the pilgrimage, so the church is always open. Not a soul being around outside of the members of the clergy is downright odd,” the normally aloof Fritz declared in a serious tone. He cast a suspicious eye toward the cardinals and clergymen, who were conversing amongst themselves some distance away.

“It’s because they have a deformed visitor in their midst, isn’t it? Probably something they don’t want to subject the regular worshipers to.”

“That’s not great, but I sure do hope that’s the case we’re dealing with here.” Fritz didn’t seem satisfied with that answer, but with the cardinal coming back after some discussion with his peers, he immediately took a step back and took his spot at the rear.

“Terribly sorry for the wait. The caretaker in charge of attending to you and your party will be here any—”

“Here I am, Your Eminence. I was just making a final check of the room I shall be escorting you all to.” A nonchalant voice was heard coming from the staircase leading downstairs, and out stepped a lone young man.

He was of slim build, with long white hair tied into a braid hanging down his back. He gave off a certain impression. To put it lightly, he seemed fragile; to put it harshly, he looked like he might well become the first person ever to develop tuberculosis from a common cold. His neat features weren’t exactly chiseled, but gave off a tranquil aura, nonetheless. He also had a sharp, seemingly resentful look in his eyes, but his face remained human. That fact relieved Rosemarie, but instantly brought up suspicion.

(Normally, someone scowling that hard should have a beast head to me, but...)

She pondered to herself as the white-haired man came right up beside them, without so much as the sound of a footstep catching their attention.

“I am pleased to meet you. My name is Ilse Lancel. I serve here as a bishop. Please, if there are any issues that come up during your stay, feel free to ask me.” The man recited the rather routine greeting without pause—and that was when it happened.

His sharp gaze remained as-is, but his mouth stretched considerably to either side and morphed into a wide, dusky yellow-orange beak. His snow white hair transformed before Rosemarie’s eyes into soft-looking gray feathers devoid of any luster. The frail young man with a menacing look in his eyes, who introduced himself as Ilse, has metamorphosed into a bird with a rather attractive plumage poking out from the back of his head. She felt like she had seen this type of bird in a book, but she couldn’t recall the name right away.

It put her mind a little more at ease rather than scaring her. Considering she even saw Claudio as a Silver Lion, she didn’t want her vision to go any more screwy than it already was.

“From here on, I, Ilse, shall be escorting you. Please, this way,” the gray bird-headed young man said in a curt-sounding, business-like tone as he turned away from them.

Claudio descended the spiral staircase after Ilse, and Rosemarie followed. As she did, she cast her eyes back toward the hall. There, she caught sight of the cardinal and the other clergymen, their heads once again human. The looks of relief on all their faces irritated Rosemarie, and drew a tiny sigh out of her.

***

“This is the chapel dedicated to Saint Kamil. It is the largest chapel in the church,” Ilse, their gray bird-headed caretaker, informed them in his typical indifferent tone—a tone that betrayed just how many millions of times he’d given this same explanation.

Climbing down the entirety of the spiral staircase was akin to falling down to the bottom of a well. Once at the bottom, they navigated through the complex, anthill-like passageways and took a staircase leading even farther down. Suddenly, they found themselves walking into a wide-open area.

The ceiling in the room was so high that there was enough room for a second floor, unlike the low-hanging ceilings of the passageways they had walked through up until now. The multitude of lit candles placed in the several chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling served to cast a whimsical light over the chapel. A countless number of white wooden frames intertwined for structural integrity made the church seem more like an ancient temple—it was wrought with mysticism. Judging from the simplistic building on the surface above, one would never imagine this sublime area existed beneath it.

“Are the sculptures on the wall made of salt?” While Rosemarie stood speechless and overwhelmed, Claudio spoke up, his surprise slightly coming through in his tone.

Carved on walls to the left and right was the tale of how Saint Kamil discovered the rock salt after receiving word from God. And, upon further inspection, the reason it sparkled under the candlelight was because it was, indeed, rock salt.

Ilse heard the question. His face had already returned to human form, but that menacing stare and stoic look on his face remained. He didn’t seem scary right now, but he was an enigma of a bishop, nonetheless; it was hard to get a bead on what he might be thinking about.

“Yes, sir. Everything in this chapel is constructed out of rock salt. The sculptures on the wall, the altar, the statues of Saint Kamil, and even the chandeliers above us.”

Upon hearing “chandeliers above us,” Rosemarie immediately looked up. She was taken aback, as the chandeliers appeared to be undeniably made out of crystal.

“Heidi, my elder sister said it was absolutely stupendous, didn’t she?” Rosemarie asked the maid, who stood discreetly behind her.

“Indeed she did, Princess. I never would have thought that I, too, would be able to feast my eyes on this. Does it not make you want to give it a lick to test if it actually is salt? Just a teensy weensy bit?”

At Heidi’s answer, Rosemarie’s lips curled into a smile. She had been so worried and afraid about going outside, but now that she was actually out and about, she was able to see things she had never seen before like this.

“Find something interesting? Bishop Lancel said that he would show us to our rooms.” After listening to Ilse’s introduction of the chapel, Claudio fell back to Rosemarie.

“Um, before he does, would you mind if I were to offer a prayer at the saint’s altar?”

“That’s fine. I don’t mind.” Claudio happily nodded in confirmation, so Rosemarie walked over to the altar with Heidi in tow. She folded her hands, prayed silently, and lifted her head. Once she did, she spotted a statue of a Hippocampus kneeling at the feet of the statue of the saint set behind the altar.

(It’s here, too...? Wait... Huh?)

She felt a sudden buzzing in her ears. Then, an ear-piercing sound echoed through her head. However, scanning her area didn’t give her an idea of where the sound was coming from. She turned around to Heidi with her hands over her ears, but her face didn’t show anything out of the ordinary.

“Um, do you hear something? It’s almost like an animal’s cry...”

“No, I don’t hear anything.” Claudio, who was waiting with arms folded some distance away so as not to disturb her prayer, shook his head. Neither Alto nor Fritz, standing at attention near the entrance, showed any signs of suspicion. However, Ilse opened his mouth with confidence as if it were a matter of fact.

“That is the sound of the wind. As you can see, this church utilizes tunnels and the complex terrain, so there are also vents open almost everywhere. We are on the third level from the surface. We cannot descend to the tenth level, the deepest level, because of the recent staircase collapse, but it’s said to be connected to the ocean, meaning that air is bound to pass through.”

“Sound of the wind...?” She focused her ears, but she didn’t hear a thing anymore. As concerning as it was, Ilse might had been right. She settled herself with that thought as she walked to the guest rooms per Ilse’s escort.

They passed through a narrow passageway on their way to the fourth floor, which housed the guest rooms. All along that passageway were several sculptures, serving as a treat for the eyes.

“As I said before, the church has quite a complicated layout, so it is easy to end up lost. When you exit the room, please pull the bell cord on the wall and call for me.” Ilse then told them he would return once it was time for dinner, and made his exit. Once he left the room, Rosemarie let out an exhausted sigh.

The guest room was about as wide as the lounge in Rosemarie’s quarters in Baltzar, and it didn’t even seem as though they were underground. The bedroom was apparently the adjacent room. Inside, there was no sign of a bed, but there was furniture like a couch, a single-seat sofa, and a table. The walls, like the passageways and chapel, were lined with engravings—these being of dainty flowers. And on the wall in the middle of the room, as expected, was another tapestry of a Hippocampus.

“Are you tired? Rest yourself here for a bit. I’m going to go discuss plans with the people I left above. Fritz, you must know the way if you’ve been here in the past, right? Lead the way. Alto, you stay on guard duty.” Claudio dished out orders and then tried to exit the room without a moment’s repose, but Rosemarie scrambled to her feet.

“Um, I will come along with you. I swear I will not get in your way. I believe that you’ll find it harder to tire if I am with you... Also, I feel uneasy being left behind.” Claudio wouldn’t admit to being tired even if he was, so the idea of him leaving her behind and passing out somewhere without her around filled her with worry.

She stared straight into Claudio’s beastly eyes. For reasons known only to himself, he winced and turned his face away.

“No, please stay here. Fritz said that the inside of the church seemed odd earlier. It may be a pointless concern, but if anything should happen to you, it’ll steal my mana. If you don’t want to inconvenience me, then stay right here. Understood?” Claudio declared in a rushed tone, turning around at a smart pace and exiting the room in the blink of an eye.

“Wait, Your Highness! Um, Your Royal Wifeness? Pay that last comment no mind and just sit tight until we get back, okay? Okay.” Fritz said with a wry smile before chasing after Claudio. Alto then followed suit, saluting apologetically and informing her that he would be taking his post outside the door before excusing himself from the room.

The three made such hasty retreats that Rosemarie lost her chance to get a word in edgewise. She slumped her shoulders.

“Heidi, did I happen to overstep my boundaries with my remarks?”

“No, not at all, milady. Prince Claudio has his own take on things. It’s also a matter of you not explaining yourself quite enough, princess. You know what I mean. It’s his usual bad habit.” Heidi declared with a sweet grin as Rosemarie looked at her, perplexed, but she thought back on it. His bad habit—in order to keep firm to his opinion, he would speak in a sharp and biting manner. Changing her mind and getting back her composure, she sighed deeply.

***

Claudio exited the guest room and walked down the white passageway engraved with scenes of God with the plants and animals of the world. But after getting a decent way along, he stopped in his tracks. He leaned himself and his head against the wall and covered his face with his hand.

“God, give me a break...”

“That little stunt is bound to give her the wrong impression. I mean, come on, you know you shouldn’t be running away.”

As soon as he heard that sarcastic quip from Fritz, who had caught up to him, he sighed deeply. “I’m not running because I want to run.”

“Is it because you feel the urge to get involved with her and that’d be a problem? Even if you did, I don’t think it would be.”

Claudio threw a glare Fritz’s way. Why was he trying to make it all sound so simple?

“It would be for Rosemarie. She would lose her chance to go back to Volland even after returning my mana.” As long as he kept himself away, divorce wouldn’t be a messy process. Right now, at this point, he didn’t want to deprive her of hope.

“You were never serious about letting her go back home and you know it. I’d say Her Royal Wifeness is wrapped up with one hell of a difficult and picky man, wouldn’t you agree?”

Fritz offered a suggestive smile. Claudio smiled back sarcastically in response, proceeding to walk on; but, knowing he was leading the way, Fritz made his way in front of Claudio to do just that.

***

“My name is Adelina. I have been assigned by His Reverence Ilse Lancel as your personal chambermaid. I have brought you some lustral holy water.” Briskly introducing herself to Rosemarie was a young girl about a year or two younger than her, with a full head of chestnut-colored hair tied into two braided pigtails. Her big, brown, and somewhat almond-shaped eyes were shaking with tension. Rosemarie felt a chill, afraid that the girl might just drop the goblet sitting atop the tray in her hands.

Rosemarie had been unpacking with Heidi ever since Claudio left to attend to matters, and it was about when they were finishing up the last of the luggage that the young girl dropped by the room.

“I appreciate your efforts, Lady Adelina.”

“Please, Adelina alone will be fine, milady. I am a simple chambermaid, so neither titles nor formalities will be necessary.” The girl flashed Rosemarie a sprightly smile, compelling Rosemarie to return the smile. Her general impression seemed apt at cheering Rosemarie up, turning any frowns upside down. She also slightly resembled her younger sister in Volland in some respects.

“In that case, um, Adelina? What is this ‘lustral holy water’ exactly?”

“It is water purified with the Sacred Relic. Everyone who stays in the church is treated to it. Please, partake to cleanse your body.”

The word ‘Sacred Relic’ sparked Rosemarie’s memory. That relic was supposed to be able to turn seawater into fresh water, so maybe this was the real-life product.

“Okay, I will, then. I’ll have some later. Thank you for bringing it over.”

“Think nothing of it; you needn’t thank me. Oh, but, um...” Adelina placed the tray on the table and suddenly started to stammer. Her eyes then darted around the room as if searching for something. Within a few seconds, her face was covered in short orange hair. A small pair of rounded ears and circular eyes later, her face had finished morphing into that of a weasel. Upon seeing Adelina like this, Rosemarie found herself a tad nervous, but she quickly figured out what the girl was searching for.

“If you’re looking for Prince Claudio, he’s already stepped out, so you don’t need to be so afraid.”

“Oh! Oh dear, ahaha, my apologies.” Adelina let out a sigh in relief, but her face remained as a weasel. While she was very aware that fear wasn’t something that was so easily wiped clean, it still brought her down, nonetheless.

“Well, I can’t blame you for being afraid. Was there something you needed to tell Prince Claudio?”

“No, nothing. I was simply directed by His Reverence Ilse to greet and introduce myself since I will be in and out doing cleaning and such. Oh, more importantly, I see that you have already taken care of your luggage, but do you happen to need help with anything else?” Adelina scrambled to smooth things over, asking the question with her back straight just like a real weasel. Seeing this, Rosemarie decided not to pry anymore and turned back to Heidi.

“We’re fine here, right?”

“Yes, I would say so. We’re just about finished up here anyway.”

Upon hearing Heidi’s reply, Adelina gave a tiny nod. “In that case, I will excuse myself. I will be back again if needed.”

Perhaps thanks to the relief of having the formalities squared away, her face quickly reverted back from weasel to human form. Adelina clasped her hands in front of her and performed a crisp bow, and that was when Rosemarie noticed her braid coming undone.

“Wait. Your hair is coming loose. —Okay, that should do it. Your hair is so beautiful.” She reached out and rebraided her hair, causing Adelina to freeze up with eyes wide open.

“I’m sorry to have startled you. You remind me so much of my younger sister, I couldn’t help but...”

“I-I’m sorry to inconvenience you like that. Thank you very much.” Adelina hastily bowed this time around, opened the door, and was about to step out of the room; but she shook her head like she was trying to break something up and turned back around to face Rosemarie—her face had morphed back into a weasel. Rosemarie braced herself for whatever the girl had to say to her.

“Um... Did you happen to feel a sense of discomfort once you entered this church?”

“Discomfort? Well, Father Fritz—that is to say, the clergyman we brought with us from Baltzar—he mentioned something about things being oddly quiet here considering the occasion, but...” Perhaps this meant that Fritz’s guess was right? It was a question that left her with a bad feeling, which drove her to clutch her Kaola pendant.

“Yes, well, you see... That is because they are currently limiting who is allowed entry into the church,” Adelina informed them in a constrained voice. Rosemarie, bewildered, stared at Heidi and vice-versa.

“This might be quite unsettling to hear... But the truth is, I’ve heard that, yesterday, there was a mouse carcass left on the alter of the chapel devoted to our great saint.”

Rosemarie was taken aback in shock. That was the very same chapel of Saint Kamil she saw not even a few minutes ago. There was no trace of any of that back then, nor had Ilse made a single mention of it.

“While there is a cat that catches rodents around, the way this particular mouse died was special in that...” Perhaps hesitant to finish her sentence, Adelina bit her lip for a second. Seeing her so hesitant stirred up uneasiness, signaling that she didn’t want to hear anymore—that she wanted to just avoid the subject—and she unconsciously rubbed at goosebumps on her arm.

“They say both of its eyes were missing—gouged out...”

“...?!” Rosemarie quickly clasped her mouth. While her heart ached for the creature, shivers still went down her spine. That was definitely no cat’s handiwork.

“Lady Adelina, that might be a tad too graphic for the princess...” Heidi spoke up in a slightly disparaging tone, placing her hands softly upon Rosemarie’s shoulders to keep her steady.

Adelina gasped and bowed her head in apology. “Please forgive me for bringing this subject up. However, since they still haven’t found the culprit, I do think it would be best to limit any walking around by yourself to a minimum,” she pressed, probably out of the kindness of her heart. She herself was likely afraid, too. The weasel head proved that.

“...I appreciate the warning. Don’t forget to take care of yourself as well.” Rosemarie felt her face flinch as she tried to fight back the nausea lodged in her throat, but she managed to straighten it out into a smile.

Adelina actually did take her leave this time. Upon which, Rosemarie turned her back on the door in silence.

“Princess? Are you all right?”

Rosemarie ignored Heidi’s anxious question and dashed to the bedroom on unsteady footing. She then placed her trusty bucket, lying near her pillow, over her head and doubled over where she stood.

(A mouse’s eyes gouged out of its skull is far too frightening...! What is going on here? These are Holy Land, right? Right?) She shivered horribly as she squeezed at the edges of the bucket.

Not even in Baltzar, where psychological warfare was a part of everyday affairs, had an incident this unsettling and sadistic ever occurred. The fact that it happened in the Holy Land made it feel all the more abnormal and terrifying.

After cowering in fear for who-knows-how-long, a certain fact sprung into Rosemarie’s mind, snapping her back to her senses.

(Oh, should I let Prince Claudio know about this? After all, Father Fritz was also concerned about it... And waiting for something else to happen would be too late. Yes, I have to go and tell them.)

This was no time to quake in her boots. Her best course of action here was to inform them as quickly as possible.

Once she came to that realization, her shivering calmed down as if it had never happened. She really didn’t fear anything so long as she was doing something for Claudio’s sake. Taking a huge breath to encourage herself, she quickly rose to her feet—

Which was when...

“—!!”

“Yow...?!” The sudden shock to the back of her head forced Rosemarie back to a crouch.

(Ouch... I feel like I’ve had this happen once before...)

Despite her eyes tearing up and fighting back the pain, she turned herself around and softly pushed up her bucket to see—her husband. She didn’t know when he got back, but he was there, squatting and clutching at his jaw with his hands.

“Prince Claudio!” She abandoned her bucket and turned pale in the face as she awkwardly ran over to Claudio, but Claudio stuck out one hand while holding to his jaw with the other. He still had his Silver Lion face, but tears were clearly forming in his eyes, meaning that he was in some considerable pain.

“Are you telling me to stay back? I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize that you were in the room... Um, my guess is it hurts... a lot... right?” Her body was drawing a cold sweat, but her heart held concern for his well-being, so she inched her way over to him. As soon as she did, Claudio finished pressing on his jaw and spoke up.

“...That’s it. Seriously. Put the damn bucket into the storage trunk. Right this instant. That thing is a deadly weapon.”

“Yes, sir...” She hurried to pick up her abandoned bucket and packed it into the storage trunk, still open from being unpacked earlier. Claudio took a seat on the bed while nursing his jaw—perhaps the force of the impact having passed in the meantime.

“Did it leave a bruise? I am so, so sorry...”

“I’m fine. And, no. No bruises. I can’t believe you would pick that opportunity to spring up. I swear, when it comes to you, I never know what is on the horizon,” he said with a long sigh, a sound which made Rosemarie do nothing but reflect on her misdeed. Claudio broke that up by telling her to sit down, however, and she did, taking a seat on the bed—albeit in an awkward, timid manner.

“Heidi told me. She said that a chambermaid told you some disturbing news.”

“...Yes. That is why I figured that I should inform you as quickly as possible, but, well...” Not only was she not able to go inform him, but she almost ended up causing him injury. She’d expended a little bit of effort, and look at what had happened. It was pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.

“Quit panicking. I had heard about that a little earlier through one of Fritz’s acquaintances. I’m glad you made an attempt to fill me in. But I hope this at least helped you see why you shouldn’t rush into action.”

“Yes, I’ll be more careful of my surroundings,” she replied, nodding in shame. Claudio seemed to give her a dry smile in return, showing a bit of his sharp fangs. He then reached out and stroked the back of her head.

“You’re not hurt, are you?”

“I was in pain when we collided, but not anymore... Why? Did I get a bump on my head?”

“No, no bumps. You’re hardheaded in more ways than one,” he quipped. Rosemarie bristled.

“Well, Prince Claudio, I’d say your jaw is mighty sturdy, considering my hard head slammed into it without cracking it.” As a means of payback, Rosemarie stroked the underside of Claudio’s jaw, as though she were tickling a cat’s chin. The texture was softer and fluffier than his mane, and it was actually starting to calm her down.

“...! Wait. Don’t tickle me. Stop. I’m not a cat.” He grabbed her hand to force her to stop, but the action also threw her off balance, making her fall against Claudio’s chest. As she hurriedly attempted to separate herself from him, her close-up view of the Silver Lion head made her heart jump. His facial expressions should have been harder to make out in comparison to his human face. Even so, she could see that he was smiling fiercely.

“You have a lot of nerve, treating me like some pet. Actually... that reminds me. I never had a chance to try this under these conditions.”

Before she could ask what he meant, Claudio trailed the back of his finger softly over Rosemarie’s lips. Shivers went down her spine as a result. This sensation confused her. It wasn’t fear, but it made her body tense up all the same.

“Do I frighten you, Rosemarie?”

The verbiage was somewhat different, but it was a question that she heard a few times before. She had no idea what his mindset behind asking the question was, but she always gave the same answer.

“—You do not,” she stated clearly, staring straight into Claudio’s pair of blue eyes. That was when she realized that Claudio’s eyes were similar in shade to the ocean she was so unfamiliar with. Those deep and still eyes slowly drew near her.

(Is he going to... kiss me...?)

His fingers were intertwined with hers and his arm was wrapped around her back, but she noticed that they were gripping so loosely that she could quickly shake them both off and make an escape. That loose hold almost seemed to be saying, “If you don’t like this, run away.” It put a strain on her heart.

(He might be trying to test me.)

She got dizzy with anxiety and collapsed when Edeltraud forced the two of them into a kiss. Maybe he was testing her to see if she really wasn’t frightened of him, but the mere suspicion that Claudio couldn’t trust her made her heart ache.

While kissing to return his mana was embarrassing, she in no way disliked it. She enjoyed chatting and holding hands to stabilize his condition and she looked up to Claudio’s positive disposition very much. There were times where being next to him would send her heart into an uncontrollable frenzy, but it still brought her joy. It wasn’t because she needed to be with him out of obligation for stealing his mana. It was simply because being with him was something that she—

(Loved... Do I... love Prince Claudio?)

That feeling plopped itself into the center of her chest.

Just as she said on the hill overlooking the Holy Land, she didn’t care whether his face was human or beast. He was a hard worker, a bit mean at times, and he possessed many things that she herself did not—and she loved Claudio for all those reasons.

That was why she wanted him to believe her, even if she couldn’t confess that aloud.

She returned the grip Claudio had on her hand and slowly closed her eyes. The fact that she didn’t pass out at the inquiry when they kissed remained a mystery to this date.

Claudio froze in place for a split second, but he softly squeezed the arm that he had wrapped around her back. His whiskers, which were much more solid than his mane, poked her cheeks.

(Huh? But, hold on. Where exactly are a lion’s lips?)

Nervous as she was, her thoughts started heading in an odd direction—but those thoughts were interrupted by something plopping onto her shoulder. That same something crawled all over her back and the nape of her neck.

“Oh, God! W-What is it?!” Partially pushing Claudio away, she reached behind herself to check her back. However, once she did, the mystery creature traveled along her arm and jumped at the Kaola pendant hanging over her chest.

“Huh? The squirrel?! How did it get here...? Oh, no. Prince Claudio! You mustn’t crush it in your hands!”

The flying squirrel launched into a fury of protesting squeaks as Claudio grabbed it by its tiny head and pulled it off Rosemarie. His hand looked liable to squeeze down at any moment, so Rosemarie rushed to cling to his arm in an attempt to restrain him.

“—Ow! Why, you little...!”

The squirrel took the opportunity to bite Claudio’s hand and make its escape. Then, it fled right out the still-open bedroom door.

“Eeek! What is going on?!” Heidi shrieked while the others panicked.

“Huh?! What is this? Wait, Master Edel, if you use magic here, then—Alto, close the door now!” Ka-shunk, went the sound of falling metal, along with the sound of something heavy dropping coming from the lounge area.

The overall silence that occupied the area was shattered in grand fashion. Rosemarie, accompanied by Claudio, timidly peeked into the adjacent room that was now astir. Her face stiffened at the chaotic scene that was laid before her.

“H-Heidi, are you okay?”

The couch and sofa were toppled over, and the tapestry had dropped to the floor as if blown over by a sudden gust of gale-force wind. The vase of late-blooming lilies that once sat atop the elegant chest of drawers was smashed, the flowers scattered all over the place. To top it off, the goblet of holy water Adelina had brought earlier had been knocked over, leaving a wet spot on the carpet. The situation’s only saving grace was that the goblet itself remained intact, if only because it was made of metal.

Heidi clung to the wall, practically terrified, her face stiff and tense. Rosemarie ran up next to her, looking her in the eyes.

“I am all right. Just a little startled, that’s all. Oh, princess, that vase has shattered, so please watch your step,” Heidi said, smiling and relieved as she glanced over to the corner of the room. Fritz and Alto stood nearby, focused on the same corner. At their feet was someone squatting on their knees.

“Did you catch it?” Claudio asked as the two turned around with rather troubled grins.

The individual in front of the two rose to their feet and turned around as well. In their hands sat the squirrel thrashing around within a familiar glass orb—one which Rosemarie recalled being trapped in some time before.

However, that fact aside, Rosemarie found herself puzzled at the individual holding the orb containing the squirrel.

It was a young boy around the same age as her—around sixteen or seventeen. His short white hair was scraggly and his drowsy-looking blue eyes seemed likely to close at any moment. Perhaps because his face bore no distinguishable expression, he resembled a doll more than he did a living human. He was clad in gaudy priest’s garb decorated in gold trimmings, so he was probably a clergyman.

Just when she wondered who this mystery boy could have been, she heard his emotionless voice.

“Caught it. But it’s angry.”

That terse speech pattern coupled with that languid, monotone voice—That all-too familiar pair made Rosemarie stare in disbelief.

“Could you possibly be... Mage Edel?!” asked Rosemarie, astonished, as all eyes fell upon her.

The white-haired youth looked back, cocking their head in confusion. “I am. Volland Princess, why are you asking now? Late to the party.”

“Wait, are you saying you’ve never seen Master Edel’s face before?” Claudio asked, surprised. Rosemarie nodded fiercely in reply.

“Not even once. I was convinced he was much older than me... Huh? Mage Edel, just how old are you?”

She was told that the guard before Edeltraud retired when Claudio’s father took the throne as current king of Baltzar. That was about fifteen years ago. Which would mean that Edeltraud was pushing thirty, at the youngest. But judging from their appearance, that was simply impossible.

“You know sorcerer’s appearance and age are different, right?”

“Sorcerers age more slowly because of their mana. Given that, Master Edel is even older than Fritz.”

Her naive doubts were instantly extinguished through Edeltraud’s and Claudio’s combined efforts, but she looked at the boy closely, even though she knew it was rude of her to be doubtful.

She had always assumed that they kept their face half-covered by the indigo hood of their cloak to hide some sort of scar, or something to that effect. But that wasn’t the case at all. What was the reason for them to hide it, then?

“Um, is there some sort of rule that states that the guard of the Forbidden Forest must hide their face?”

“No rule. But, you become guard, you age even more leniently. Look even younger than a normal sorcerer, so get disrespected; it’s annoying. That’s why everyone usually wears one.” Edeltraud sighed, evidently bothered. If that was all true, they likely didn’t even want to wear the hood.

“I see... But why are you here, Mage Edel? Sorcerers weren’t allowed in, I thought...”

“Archmagus Edeltraud is on standby at inn. Claudio’s personal aide, Clergyman Edel, should have no problems,” Edeltraud declared unapologetically with an unflinching expression.

Back when the cardinal told them that sorcerers weren’t allowed into the church, Rosemarie recalled the exchange between Claudio and Edeltraud where he put odd emphasis on the word “standby,” which made it all click.

“If they aren’t banning entry because of mana, then I don’t see any need to comply with them, do you?”

She found herself shocked at Claudio’s tone, which she could easily imagine accompanied with an audacious smile. But knowing a disturbing incident was afoot and not knowing what was looming around the corner, she felt this just might work out. His comment aside, having Edeltraud there was all the more assuring.

“Well, leaving matters with Master Edel as they are... Our flying squirrel friend here is the same one who came flying at us on the hill where we took that break, isn’t it?”

“I believe that it is. That squirrel also had a silver flower emblem on its forehead... It must have smuggled its way into our luggage. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to give it that cookie, after all...”

She fixed her eyes on the silver flower emblem on the thrashing squirrel’s forehead. Considering she thought it was a strange pattern for a flying squirrel to have, she remembered it well. No way were there two with this same mark.

Rosemarie went over to look into the orb. As she did so, her Kaola pendant clanked against the glass. Just as it did, the squirrel mellowed out, snapping back into its senses. Its large eyes widened and it seemed to be staring at the pendant.

(It’s reacting to the Kaola...?)

As a test, she swung the pendant and the squirrel once again swayed its body left and right. Did it really want this seed that badly?

“Alto, sorry, but could you let that thing loose outside?”

“Right away, sir,” was Alto’s succinct reply to Claudio’s request. As he tried to take the glass orb from Edeltraud, it cracked and popped open like a bubble bursting.

By the time they could process what was going on, it was too late. The squirrel had run up the length of Edeltraud’s arm and taken a leap off their head.

“It went that way, Father Fritz!” Alto frantically shouted. In response, Fritz picked up the tapestry on the floor, spread it out wide, and stood at the ready. However, the squirrel nimbly avoided it and slipped into one of the drawers of the toppled chest of drawers.

“Aah, damn, it went inside...” Before Claudio could drag it out by force, Rosemarie stepped in from the side.

“Prince Claudio, allow me.”

She stooped in front of the chest of drawers, took off her Kaola pendant, and flashed it in front of the drawer where the squirrel was hiding. Since it showed a peculiar interest in it a second ago, it wasn’t too far-fetched to believe that it might come out.

The squirrel warily produced a couple of tiny squeaks, but eventually deemed it safe to come out and jumped at Rosemarie. However, her relief was short-lived as something rolled out along with it. Claudio, standing beside her, picked it up.

“A jewel? Did someone lose this?”

It was a dark red jewel as vibrant as the sky at twilight. Within it were several finely-shaved pieces of gold. As she stared at it, Rosemarie found herself getting dizzy from the deep, rich color, and closed her eyes. That was when it happened—that was when her ears heard the sound of wind blowing.

(—!! The same sound I heard in the saint’s chapel?)

It was definitely the same ear-splitting sound from before. Did that mean that you could hear it all the way down here, too?

She opened her eyes in a panic, only to discover that the sound had disappeared without a trace. Claudio didn’t seem to notice anything. He was squinting at the jewel, not questioning a thing.

“Quite unusual. I’ve never seen a jewel of this color with gold shavings in it.”

“Gold shavings?” Fritz, who was in the middle of reaffixing the tapestry to the wall, suddenly turned around in suspicion.

“Wait a second. Did you just say ‘a jewel with gold shavings?’” Fritz rushed over for no discernible reason. Claudio then passed the jewel over to him, baffled.

“What?! But, this is... For Heaven’s sake, what in blue blazes is this doing here? This doesn’t spell good news,” Fritz said, frowning and going pale in the face.

“Because this is—probably the Sacred Relic.”

“What did you just say? Are you certain?” Claudio questioned, the knot forming on his forehead evident despite his beastly face. Rosemarie also stared at the jewel and found herself speechless.

“Hmm, well, it has been a few years since I’ve seen the genuine article myself, so I don’t have that much confidence. I’d call it a definite ‘maybe.’ I can’t imagine there being another jewel as rare and unusual as this one, after all.”

“Show me, Fritz Belc.”

After Fritz had scrutinized the jewel, he gave a pathetic smile and handed it over to Edeltraud upon their request.

“If that were the Sacred Relic, then what would it be doing here of all places...?” Rosemarie asked, voicing the most obvious concern, but was met with silence as no one in the room knew what they should say. The only thing they did know was that, if they didn’t play their cards right, they would undoubtedly be suspected of theft. Not to mention, this also had implications that someone was trying to set all of them up.

“I’ll hold onto it for the time being, Master Edel. Fritz, try casually asking your acquaintance whether any disturbances are about.” Claudio sighed deeply, holding a hand out toward Edeltraud.

With a solemn expression, Fritz agreed and quickly left the room. Edeltraud handed over the jewel to Claudio, clearly perplexed despite their lack of expression.

“Claudio, I can feel mana from that.”

“Mana? Then, does that mean this isn’t the Sacred Relic?”

“Don’t know. Don’t know what makes Sacred Relic what it is, so can’t say either way.”

Upon listening to Edeltraud’s words, Claudio folded his arms in contemplation for a bit before finally lifting his head.

“—I suppose we’ll do a little wait-and-seeing. We may not know if this is the Sacred Relic or some sort of forgery, but so long as we don’t have any clues as to who perpetrated this and why, we’re better off not doing anything ill-advised.”

Edeltraud and Alto both nodded; Rosemarie did, too, albeit a bit more emphatically. She then took a breath and finally looked down at the flying squirrel still clinging to her. It was so docile it made all that thrashing it did earlier seem like it never happened. She softly stroked its back. It squinted and smiled, enraptured.

“Ah, right. We have to put that thing outside.” Claudio put a hand out for the squirrel, but it puffed itself up threateningly. Rosemarie’s eyebrows dropped helplessly.

“I will go release it outside. Prince Claudio, it would be best if you didn’t mess with it...”

“Volland Princess, that is being attracted by Kaola. Even if you release it, it’ll come right back.”

Rosemarie’s eyes opened upon hearing Edeltraud’s news. Given the fact that she fished it out of the chest of drawers among other things, that seemed to be the case after all.

“Had you, by any chance, already noticed that back on the hill?” She recalled that Edeltraud seemed awfully interested in the squirrel when they released it back into the forest.

“More or less, felt it was odd. It’s not harmful, but best not pry it away. It’s okay. You have Kaola, it stays good.”

What was that supposed to mean? She had the feeling there was something more to his statement. But she couldn’t bring herself to think that the little squirrel dozing off on her was that dangerous, so she reserved her comments.

“That leaves us with no choice. We’ll just have to leave it with the Kaola in the forest when we bring it back. We only came here to meet the old guard under the guise of visiting for the Sacred Relic Worship, but between our resident rodent problem and Sacred Relics falling into our laps, it looks like we’re going to be finding ourselves in quite the cumbersome ordeal.”

Looking up at Claudio as he tensed his brow, Rosemarie sighed slightly, thinking that she’d probably piled another issue on top of the already towering stack of problems.