The Pious Priest's Sinful Collection - Chapter 5
One of the girls, lying beside the others in the shared dormitory, whispered into the dim silence.
“Hey, Thalia. What did Bishop Isabella say earlier?”
Thalia, who had also been staring at the ceiling wide awake, perked up immediately.
“She said she’d officiate my wedding with Hansen.”
“Really? You’re going to make your vows with him?”
“Mm-hm! I’m going to tell him tomorrow when we meet!”
“Wow… I’m jealous. A wedding blessed by Bishop Isabella herself. She’s basically family to us.”
“Have you heard anything from that guy, Leah? The one you talked about before?”
“I haven’t seen him around the temple lately. I’m worried… maybe he wasn’t serious about marrying me after all.”
The downcast remark made the others stir from their beds. For girls like them, who had no homes to return to after leaving the temple, the idea of rejection, or being left alone in this world again, struck too close to home. They were quick to share in their sister’s sorrow.
Daphne joined in, too, offering gentle words of comfort: that it wasn’t her fault, that surely Father would guide her to someone better. But melancholy was contagious, and the weight of it settled over the group like damp linen — soft, but suffocating all the same.
‘At this rate, they’ll be gloomy all the way till dawn. Maybe I should just give it to them now? I meant to save it for our farewell, but…’
Wanting to change the heavy mood, Daphne clapped her hands together and spoke in a bright voice.
“Hey, girls. I’ve got something for you.”
“What is it?”
She walked over to her personal storage box and opened it. Inside were several thread bracelets, carefully made from bits of colored thread she had collected during sewing chores. It had taken her weeks to make them in secret — little gifts for each of her peers.
‘…Huh? Why are there only seven?’
Daphne had made eight in total — one for each of them, including herself. A flicker of confusion crossed her face when she realized hers was missing. But seven pairs of eyes were already watching her with anticipation, so she smiled as if nothing were amiss.
“These are friendship bracelets. My gift to you all.”
“Wow…!”
The girls gasped, marveling at the colorful braided threads. “When did you even make these?” they asked, their earlier gloom completely forgotten. Their delighted voices, full of awe and gratitude, made Daphne’s heart swell with quiet pride.
As the girls began showing off their bracelets to each other, comparing patterns and colors, Thalia turned to Daphne.
“Huh? But Daphne, where’s yours?”
“I made them for you. That’s enough for me.”
“No way! You’ve got to have one too!”
Thalia insisted that if Daphne didn’t have hers, she’d make one for her herself. Daphne chuckled and nodded.
“Alright, then. I’ll be counting on you.”
‘Maybe I dropped it while cleaning? I’ll look for it tomorrow.’
And just like that, the air had shifted — lighter, warmer, filled with soft laughter and woven threads.
* * *
To make a long story short, Daphne never did find the thread bracelet she had set aside for herself.
As soon as dawn broke, she took advantage of the others heading out back to wash blankets for the incoming novice clerics and searched high and low. But there was no sign of the bracelet. Not a single thread.
‘A bracelet doesn’t have legs, so where could it have gone?’
She’d lost things before — small items, usually nothing important. But this was the first time something useful had vanished without a trace.
‘Maybe a ghost wandered through.’
With a sigh of resignation, Daphne gave up and turned back.
She gathered up her share of blankets and stepped out into the backyard, where the others were already groaning under the weight of a massive tub. She added soap she had prepared beforehand to the water in the tub, which had been moved to the center of the yard. Around that time, Thalia and the others began hiking up their sleeves and hems.
As they dropped the blankets into the tub and began stomping on them by foot, the cold water hit their skin like a slap, and goosebumps broke out across their legs. Shivering, Thalia grumbled.
“Ugh, it’s freezing! Would it kill them to let us use hot water at least for laundry days?”
“We’re lucky it’s spring. If it were winter, we couldn’t even wash these properly.”
Even while complaining, they kept at it, working their feet through the water with diligence. The blankets, unwashed all winter, needed to be scrubbed clean so the new children arriving at the cloister would have something warm and soft to sleep in.
Over and over, they stomped out the grime and hauled the heavy blankets into fresh rinse tubs filled with clean water.
By the time they were several rounds in, Marianne was soaked with sweat and panting.
“When I finally leave here, I’m going straight to the biggest boutique in the city — getting myself a custom dress in the latest fashion… And nobody’s going to stop me! Goodbye forever, crusty old robes!”
Her dramatic declaration sent the other equally drenched girls into fits of laughter.
“Latest fashion, huh? That sounds nice! As for me, I’m going to the shining Lake Locadelli,. I’ll be strolling around with a chic parasol and a picnic basket!”
“You mean the one with the eternal snow-capped mountains? I’ve heard Lake Locadelli’s surrounding area is one of the most popular honeymoon spots. Count Ignatius and his wife went there for their wedding trip.”
“Ah, the Count and his wife who came for the blessing ceremony? Lucky them, they looked so pleased with their choice.”
“Yeah, but soon enough, that groom’s going to lose all his hair.”
“You! Compared to the Ignatius family fortune, baldness isn’t much of a problem!”
They all burst into laughter, finishing up the last rinse of water. Now, all that was left was to wring out the blankets, pair them up, and hang them to dry. Daphne wiped the sweat from her brow and helped Thalia wring out a blanket. Marianne, her face flushed from the effort, spoke up.
“Daphne, don’t you want anything for yourself? I heard from Bishop Isabella that you’re the only one who hasn’t applied for a marriage permit.”
At Marianne’s comment, everyone stopped wringing the blankets, looking at Daphne with surprise.
