Why is he acting like that?

No idea.

It was the afternoon the day before yesterday. Duke Kais Escra and Count Alton, who had stepped out for a brief walk, spotted the Duke of Sorpel pacing restlessly near the entrance.

And a little later.

“Father.”

“You’re back now?”

“Yes. I’m home.”

“Nothing happened today?”

Only then did it click why the Duke of Sorpel had been doing that. He’d been waiting to greet Camilla when she returned from the Academy.

Duke Kais watched in silence as the Duke of Sorpel welcomed Camilla warmly.

And Camilla smiling back at him.

“It feels like a chilly breeze starts to blow once the sun goes down now.”

“That’s when you need to take even better care of your health. Don’t eat only cold things during the day just because it’s hot.”

“Yes.”

Camilla’s smile, as she let out a light laugh at the affectionate nagging, looked almost dazzling.

So she can smile like that.

It was the first time he’d realized it. She’d always worn a smile that felt somehow parched, like it never quite reached her.

Duke Kais couldn’t easily tear his eyes away from the two of them as they spoke so gently.

And the next day, he told Count Alton he would be returning.

You’ve confirmed enough.

That Camilla was no longer an unwanted burden in this house.

That she was being accepted as family.

“Still, you feel regret, don’t you?”

“There’s nothing to regret.”

“The original purpose wasn’t that, sure, but it’d still be nice if we could escort her with us. Instead we’re giving up and going back on our own.”

“Giving up? Who is?”

“Huh?”

Duke Kais looked at Count Alton like he’d just said something absurd.

“I’m leaving because work piled up, but I’ll send someone else.”

“Someone else?”

“They may have already left.”

“What are you talking about?”

At Count Alton’s question, thick with curiosity, Duke Kais acted as if he didn’t want to say any more and started walking again.

“Who is it? Is it someone I know?”

Count Alton hurried after him and fired off another question, but no answer came from Duke Kais’s mouth.

*****

“So this time, we decided to increase the volume a bit more......”

“.......”

“Lady Camilla?”

“Yeah, yeah?”

“Is something wrong?”

Chris quietly set down the report he’d been reading and looked at her, puzzled. Unlike her usual self, she couldn’t focus on the meeting and seemed a little spaced out.

She had arrived at the Ghost Trading House a short while ago, and ever since, she’d been sitting there with documents in hand, lost in unrelated thoughts.

“It’s just......”

In the end, a short sigh slipped out of Camilla.

“It’s been on my mind.”

“Something happened.”

“It’s personal. Sorry for distracting you.”

Another sigh leaked out of her.

At least he could’ve let me see him off properly.

Duke Kais, that is. She never really saw him leave. She hadn’t thought he’d actually disappear that fast.

Still, she’d decided she had to see him off, so she’d rushed after him, only to find she couldn’t locate him anywhere in the Ducal House of Sorpel’s estate.

So that really had been the last goodbye.

He probably left by magic.

It seemed like he’d moved in one jump to wherever the inter-realm transfer magic circle was.

Only then did she belatedly remember that Count Alton was a high-ranking mage.

“I’m ridiculous.”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s just......”

Even she thought it was contradictory. She’d always found it annoying and unpleasant when he followed her around.

Had she, deep down, not actually hated him trailing after her, calling her “daughter” over and over?

It doesn’t feel like this is the end, though.

Still, she hadn’t expected him to suddenly vanish like that, so the emptiness lingered.

“The guest coming today is a priest?”

Camilla forced herself to shake off thoughts of Duke Kais and refocus on work. Understanding who she was meeting today came first.

“Yes. I’ve heard they’re the most likely candidate to become the next High Priest.”

“And someone like that wants me for what reason?”

“Some of the orphanages you sponsor under the Ducal House of Sorpel’s name were originally managed by the temple.”

“I’m sponsoring them under the Sorpel name. Shouldn’t they go to my father, not me?”

“Everyone knows now that you’re the one actually providing the support, Lady Camilla. They wanted to meet you in person.”

“Hm.”

If he was someone likely to become High Priest, she decided she’d meet him at least once. But honestly, she wasn’t thrilled.

From the time she’d once tried everything, joining every religion she could find in the hope of fixing her ability to see ghosts, Camilla didn’t particularly like religious types.

The disappointment had been... pretty big.

Religious groups are basically businesses, too.

People who sold merchandise around the god they served.

No more, no less.

Of course, not every place would be like that, but every one she’d gone to had been. They’d all insisted the greatest proof of faith was money.

Is religion here any different?

Knock knock.

“Lady Camilla, your guest has arrived.”

“Sounds like they’re here.”

After hearing that /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ an employee had guided the guest to the reception room, Camilla headed over with Chris.

CLICK.

When she opened the door and stepped inside, a man rose from his seat with a faint smile. He looked to be in his early thirties.

She’d expected someone older, given he was a High Priest candidate.

He’s younger than I thought.

To become High Priest at that age. Was his holy power exceptional?

“May the blessing of Lord God Midrad always be with you. I am Daniel, a humble servant who serves Lord God.”

“Welcome.”

A lean build and eyes that looked genuinely kind. He had the exact face you pictured when you heard the word “priest.”

“I’m Camilla.”

After brief greetings, Camilla guided him to his seat. The moment they sat, tea and sweets were brought out quickly, as if prepared in advance.

“Why did you want to see me?”

Camilla asked immediately.

He didn’t seem like he’d come all this way just to say thank you.

So there had to be another reason.

But the answer that followed differed slightly from what she’d expected.

“I wanted to meet you in person, like this. That is all.”

“You... wanted to see me?”

“Everyone in the order has taken a great interest in you, Lady Camilla.”

Daniel’s smile deepened.

“Aren’t you under the protection of God?”

“Ah......”

He meant her precognition.

Come to think of it, she’d heard the temple had tried to contact the Sorpel family incessantly for a while, asking to meet Camilla.

Asking if I’m receiving divine revelations.

Of course, every one of those attempts had been completely blocked at the Duke of Sorpel’s level.

It had been quiet for so long that she’d forgotten.

“I truly wanted to see you at least once. And since I wished to offer my thanks as well, I came to visit you like this. If I have been rude, please forgive me.”

“Not at all.”

Camilla smiled brightly. As brightly as she could.

Even in an empire where imperial authority stood far above religious authority, there was nothing to gain from making an enemy of the temple or the Holy See.

The power of public opinion they control is stronger than you’d think.

The moment the order labels something “evil,” everything becomes a headache.

For example, the video printing device her trading house had recently started treating like an exclusive product. What if the temple branded it as an evil tool that captures and imprisons souls?

From that day on, sales would become a battle.

If things went wrong, she could even be dragged off and tried by heresy inquisitors.

“Not long from now, there will be a very large event at the Central Temple. Are you aware of it?”

“A large event?”

Camilla could easily guess which event he meant.

“Do you mean the Harvest Prayer Festival?”

“That’s correct.”

It was held at the tail end of summer. A festival that welcomed the beginning of autumn and prayed for blessings to gain abundant crops.

Festivals would erupt across the empire. It was probably one of the largest celebrations in the entire realm.

And the temple led it. The temple’s primary missionary work, serving Lord God, was relief for the poor.

So wanting abundance was all part of their territory too.

“I came in person to request that you attend the Harvest Rite that announces the beginning of this event.”

“You want me there?”

The Harvest Prayer Festival was, of course, held at the temple that day. But she’d heard the rite was reserved for people with very close ties to the temple.

“If someone blessed by God attends, everyone will rejoice.”

Blessed by God, blessed by God.

It was honestly embarrassing to hear.

Would they still call it a blessing if they knew this ability was nothing more than a pair of eyes that could see ghosts?

Camilla clicked her tongue inwardly.

“If I have the time.”

“I hope you will attend. I will count the days until then. And this is......”

Daniel reached into his clothes and took something out.

“A small token of our sincerity.”

It was a wooden box, finely carved with the temple’s emblem. When she opened it, a necklace lay neatly inside.

“I’ve never seen a mineral like this.”

“It is a holy relic.”

“A holy relic?”

“A very precious stone formed by holy power. It is said that merely possessing it grants eternal rest.”

“...Eternal rest?”

“Is something the matter?”

“No.”

Camilla hurriedly smiled and shook her head, realizing too late that she’d let a displeased expression slip.

Ever since meeting the Emperor of Fable, just hearing the word “eternal” made rejection rise on its own.

A complete trauma response.

“Then I will see you that day.”

As if his business was finished, Daniel stood up at once.

Still wearing that endlessly pleasant smile, he bowed lightly and left the reception room.

“So that’s the famous holy relic.”

“You know it?”

Once Daniel was gone, Chris, who’d been standing quietly to the side, immediately showed interest in the necklace on the table.

“It’s been popular lately. Is this your first time seeing one?”

“Yeah. It just looks like a pretty stone.”

Was something like this really in fashion? But if Chris said so, it must be true.

Ever since the Ghost Trading House started dealing in jewelry, he gathered and managed information about trends across the continent more thoroughly than anyone.

“It’s strange.”

Do people really like something like this?

“It’s not like the shape or the workmanship is particularly elaborate.”

It was hardly any different from a natural stone you might find lying on the ground.

“They say that simply carrying it prevents illness.”

“What?”

“I heard it’s effective against all diseases.”