Irene Decided to Die - Chapter 83
“Saintess!”
Lani, who joined belatedly, ran to Irene with tears streaming down her face.
“How much you must have suffered all this time!”
She quickly began to examine Irene.
“You were already thin, but now you seem even thinner. And I heard someone behaved rudely towards you? Truly, it’s unforgivable.”
While talking non-stop, Lani laid out the freshly prepared meal in front of Irene.
‘Rude person.’
Would they have been so rude if she hadn’t had that ominous symbol?
Thinking about it brought to mind a village deep in the mountains.
‘Those people must have suffered the same pain as me.’
Thinking about it made her heart waver. Originally, she didn’t care how the world changed as long as she got her revenge.
But now that something was weighing on her mind, she kept hesitating.
“Is something bothering you?”
Lani asked, but Irene shook her head. Then, she began her belated dinner.
“They say the eldest son of the count’s family was already half-abandoned by his family. He’ll probably end up in prison. They also caught the swindler who was carrying the hidden badge. They’ll end up in prison too, right?”
Lani chattered to Irene, but she left out the details of which prison they would be sent to. She didn’t want to evoke unnecessary sympathy.
‘Somehow, you seem to have softened a bit.’
Irene, who had disappeared and returned, seemed a bit different from before.
When they first met, she had a deathly aura, and afterward, she seemed to reject everything like a thorny bush.
It wasn’t an incomprehensible attitude. What Irene had gone through was so horrific and dreadful.
‘What on earth happened?’
Who could have changed Irene’s attitude? Lani couldn’t know.
* * *
The story of the saintess bearing the ominous symbol quickly spread to the east, along with the tale of the noble who was punished for failing to recognize her.
Behind all these rumors was Garan.
“We need to ensure that no one can touch her again. And it would be good to be in the saintess’s favor.”
Even if the saintess’s reputation worsened, it was still advantageous. Human nature tends to seek a place to lean on when things get tough.
For now, she was leaning on Burt, but it wouldn’t be bad if it were him instead.
That’s what Garan thought.
Of course, Burt was not an easy man, but Garan was confident. How much had he already crushed and acquired?
‘Eventually, she will be in my grasp.’
Having the saintess in his grasp—what could be more appealing than that? Garan’s lips curled up.
“By the way.”
Recently, the movements of the temple have been strange. Many of the holy knights had left with the saintess, so the remaining ones should be filling their places. But it was unusually quiet.
Not that no one came out, but only a few did. They were sending out only the bare minimum necessary personnel.
‘Roxon is not the kind of person to do that.’
Arrogant and full of prejudice he might be, but he was devout in serving the goddess. It was hard to imagine him neglecting his duties.
‘Burt must have heard this news too.’
Kings were no fools. Since their futures depended on the movements of the temple, they had placed their own people within it.
So, what Garan knew, others likely knew as well.
‘Sage and Shah-Naz might know more details.’
They were still staying in the center, so they might have more information.
Thus, Garan thought of contacting them at least once.
“Finally!”
Shah-Naz shouted with a tight fist.
After the saintess appointment ceremony, Ramiel, who had been avoiding them, now allowed them to enter. While Shah-Naz was joyfully bouncing around, Sage was lost in thought with a faint smile.
Recently, Ramiel had been going in and out of the temple daily. People said she blamed herself for not being appointed as the saintess and was going to confess her sins.
‘Did Ramiel have anything to confess?’
She was always an angelic and kind girl. That girl going to confess every day?
Okay, that much could be understood. But the problem was what followed.
‘Since Ramiel started going to confess, the movements of the temple have been strange.’
Roxon didn’t show his face, and only a few lower-ranking priests came out, while the rest were nowhere to be seen. Moreover, the kings’ access to the temple was also blocked.
For now, they were still receiving messages from the spies they had planted inside, but even those could be cut off at any time.
‘There must be something going on.’
Today, Sage came to meet Ramiel to find out.
“Welcome.”