Chapter 103: Chapter 103

Of course, the point of her message was to protect, not harm the emperor.

Eckart laughed casually because he knew it all.

“Thank you. I will never forget your help. May God bless and protect you.”

“I wish Roshan’s blessings and protection will always stay with you.”

Helena politely raised her hands and slightly bent her knees. Eckart raised her up and looked far ahead. He was looking for someone.

Marianne, who Eckart was casting a glance at, was with the priests following the cardinal.

Hilde, who was pouting as if she was crying, quickly pulled her dress.

“Priest Hilde.”

Marianne sat down at Hilde’s eye level.

“Will you come again? Later, even later…”

Hilde was conscious of others as if she was like a punished dog. The tip of her nose was also slightly red.

“I’m sorry I made you cry. But don’t hate Hilde. I didn’t do it on purpose. I just wanted to become friends with you, so I wanted to tell you a funny story…”

“It’s okay. I know. I know how much Priest Hilde likes me.”

Marianne warmly wrapped Hilde’s shoulders as she was sullen at the moment. Strangely enough, she just kept missing this young priest, perhaps partly because she did not have such a younger sister like her or partly because she and Hilde were intertwined with Goddess Anthea.

“I like Hilde so much. How can I hate this cute and wonderful priest?”

“… Really?”

Hilde was still a child even though she knew how to read constellations and make predictions about people’s fortunes. Her mood quickly became brighter when Marianne said that.

“Of course. I found your story very interesting. So, I will come back later to meet you by all means. Or you can come to the capital to see me.”

“Will you meet me when I go to the capital?”

“Absolutely. I’m going to invite the cardinal, Siel, Hess and you. Oh, do you like milk pudding or chocolate cookies?”

Hilde hesitated for a moment; her eyes were sparking in excitement.

“Well…I have never tasted it before, so I don’t know the taste. Is it delicious?”

Marianne was a bit embarrassed by Hilde’s answer. Children usually grew up eating sweets. So, she thought even if Hilde had grown up in the temple, she perhaps tasted dessert once or twice.

But it seemed that the rules of the temple were stricter than she thought.

After pondering a bit, Marianne quickly added to her words.

Surprisingly, it was not difficult to turn her disappointment into hope.

“Of course, it’s very delicious. Next time when I see you, um… If I have a wedding ceremony with the emperor, I will invite you. So, you’ll be served a lot of sweet puddings and sweets. Be patient and wait for me. Can you wait?”

“Yeah! of course! Hilde grew big, so I can wait with maturity!”

Hilde nodded with a big smile. Marianne hugged her with a bright smile.

“Priest Siel, Priest Hess. Thanks for your help! When I invite Hilde, I’ll invite you two, too. See you again, okay?”

In no time, she stood up and called the two priests standing behind Hilde.

Siel and Hess briefly greeted her.

“I’m flattered by your compliment,” said Siel.

There was no reply from Hess.

Marianne grabbed Hess’ hand, as she couldn’t see her eyes. Only then did Hess raise her face.

Her blurred eyes were reddish.

“Don’t cry, Priest.”

Hess frowned with wet wet eyes and laughed.

“Lady Marianne, please be safe and be happy…”

“Sure. Until we meet again, take care, okay? ” Hess nodded, while still weeping.

Marianne hugged the two tightly in turns. Their pale white robes that symbolized the temple and her colorful dress made an awkward harmony.

“Lady.”

Meanwhile, Cordelli, waiting nearby, approached and supported Marianne.

When she checked Cordelli’s eye signal, she realized that Eckart was waiting for her, looking at her.

“Let me leave now. May Roshan’s blessings stay with you all!”

Marianne turned with a sad look. Her dark green dress resembling her eyes faded away.

Three priests standing side by side crossed themselves toward her back.

Although she left, the three prayed for her blessings with a low voice.

“May the nine gods protect and bless you forever …”

* * *

“Hilde. You must feel very sad as she is leaving.”

Helena gently stroked Hilde’s head next to her. The two stood at the end of a steep cliff in the back garden of the temple. They saw the emperor’s party going down the hill in an orderly manner.

“I miss Lady Marianne already. Can I see her again?”

“Sure. You will be able to see her in time.”

Even after hearing the cardinal’s positive reply, Hilde often looked at the mountain road covered by trees.

Then she suddenly turned to look at Helena.

“By the way, why did you tell me I should not tell the owners of other stars about the existence of their patron stars?”

Her golden eyes, who was asking the cardinal bluntly, shone brilliantly in the morning sun.

Helena was withdrawing her gaze at the emperor’s procession in the distance. There was a gentle smile on her face when the cardinal looked down at Hilde. At first glance, it looked like a bitter smile.

“Hilde. There are some things that we had better hide from the world.”

“Why? It’s usually bad to hide the truth, isn’t it?”

“Right. But sometimes it can be a curse if we reveal it. The human heart is so fragile and hard that they can do evil things and wage a war. ”

It was a little difficult for the 12-year-old Hilde to understand, but she shook his head, frowning.

“God will eventually reveal it if we have to know…” she said with an elegant voice. The Renato emblem on her forehead was glowing gold like a stigma just stamped onto it.

“Let’s wait a little longer.”

Helena looked down the mountain again while appeasing her.

<On the day a sleeping star opens its eye, all the orbits of the sacred stars will be changed.>

In the end, the new foreknowledge she received last night hovered in Hilde’s mind until the emperor’s party finally left her sight. It was a double-edged prophecy of something ominous and auspicious.

* * *

The emperor’s party who left Roshan took a smooth journey back to the capital.

The support units dispatched from the capital were of a great caliber, composed of seasoned knights and doctors among the medical forces as requested by Beatrice. The transportation unit that carried them was also special. The carriages were renovated like beds with several flat sofas, and the medicine boxes were filled with high-quality medicines carefully selected by the imperial medical service.

As a result, not only top figures such as the emperor and his fiancée, but also even servants and maids received the best treatment. In some ways, it was a more comfortable journey than the one traveling to Roshan.

Marianne yielded her wagon to Kloud. Instead, she shared the emperor’s carriage throughout the journey. On the surface, it was the result of Eckart’s insistence that he would ride the wagon with her under any circumstances. In fact, however, Marianne wanted more.

The gift box that the cardinal gave the emperor left included refined opium. During the journey, it was up to Marianne to control the dosage of opium based on the medications prescribed by the royal doctors.

Eckart always frowned when he took medicine. But he never doubted or rejected the medicine that Marianne provided. It was a great privilege for her given the existing practices that the chief medical doctorvice, who accompanied them in his capacity as the emperor’s chief physician, had to submit a full prescription.

They stopped by the local official residence they had visited on the way to the temple and did a maintenance checkup of the wagons before departing again. On the fourth day of their journey, everyone led a peaceful life as if they had forgotten the despair and pain from a few days ago. Even the ominous rumors and speculations that loomed early in the accident turned into a sacred epic story and created awe among the local people.

And just before the end of May, the emperor’s party finally entered the imperial palace in Milan. It was their dramatic return after ten days.

At the southern main gate of the Lucio Imperial Palace, where the sun set, the royal flags embroidered with Brenda and the laurel were lined up everywhere. The blue, reddish and slightly violet sunset shone in front of the palace.

“Now it’ll be getting dark quite soon…Why haven’t they yet arrived?”

Colin, one of those waiting out there, asked with a nervous look.

“They will arrive in due time.”

Standing next to him, Jed answered with a grim expression.

“According to the note that the messenger bird brought, they were supposed to arrive this afternoon. The afternoon passed long ago, and it’s evening …”

“As you know, things don’t always work out as planned. Colin, I know you are often late for the daily briefing, so you race down with documents from the palace to the main office library, don’t you? Sometimes you spread the official files in the air while offering greetings to the emperor.”