Even in the midst of it all, the High Priest's brief sermon continued.
It wasn’t anything profound—just the usual rhetoric about understanding, empathy, rcy, and love often preached by the Temple.
In the anti, Theo spoke calmly.
“So, I suggest this is a good ti to clean up the n trailing after you.”
...Huh?
“You should break off that engagent with the bottom-rank guy who grovels like a lapdog but barks with his mouth, and also have a huge fallout with that sneaky second-rank guy who’s constantly eyeing his chance.”
“......”
It seed that the favor Theo received from Grandpa and Julian wasn’t just to protect .
“But... is it really okay for to be here? The other TAs are all seated over there.”
“It’s fine. Senior Yuta gave his permission.”
Yuta, who had been absent from class claiming illness, was present in the auditorium looking [N O V E L I G H T] perfectly well-grood.
“Was he faking it...? He doesn’t look too sick to teach.”
I mumbled, and Theo shook his head.
“No. He was genuinely very ill. Just yesterday he couldn’t even get out of bed—it's a miracle he’s standing like that now. Maybe he pulled himself together because the High Priest ca...”
While Theo and I tilted our heads in confusion, the unremarkable sermon ca to an end.
“Now then.”
The High Priest smiled gently.
“I shall bestow a blessing upon the students.”
A blessing?
A blessing—for us? Personally?
Nothing like this had ever happened at the Academy before.
Everyone began bouncing on their feet with excitent.
“Oh my god, a blessing!”
“From the High Priest himself? Wow...”
To receive a blessing directly from soone we rarely even got to see?
Junior priests began guiding us to form a line in front of the High Priest.
They even checked off each na one by one to confirm everyone was present.
‘Ugh. They're being so thorough it’s making more nervous...’
I felt like a cow being dragged to slaughter as I was forced to stand in line with the others.
‘Why am I so scared...’
I’d hidden the Divine Beast mark well. Still, my legs trembled faintly under my skirt.
The first in line was Zahid.
His challenging purple eyes stared straight at the High Priest.
“Zahid Dyfenril...”
The High Priest even smiled at Zahid.
“I heard you overca great hardship. May the blessing of the gods always be with you.”
He placed his large hand over Zahid’s head.
While Zahid closed his eyes briefly, the High Priest’s gaze shifted to Fire, who stood beside him.
A chill flashed across his expression for an instant.
I swallowed dryly and bit my lower lip.
‘Of course... They must have really wanted to drag Fire into the Temple.’
And just like that, the blessing was over.
The mont the High Priest withdrew his hand, a junior priest announced,
“Next.”
Zahid turned away—and our eyes t.
He frowned slightly at . But since he didn’t shake his head, it probably didn’t an “Run right now.”
If I pulled out now, when they were even checking nas one by one, I’d probably only draw more suspicion...
Letting out a shallow sigh, I locked eyes with Yuta among the TAs.
He smiled faintly.
Though his face was thinner than usual, the calm and pure air he always carried was still there.
I couldn’t take my eyes off him for so reason. Then, as if telling not to worry, he gave a small nod.
Suddenly, his words from our one-on-one eting echoed in my ears.
“Concerns like yours, Miss Rosie, are the kind adults are supposed to solve for you. So don’t worry about anything—sleep well. Everything will be fine.”
Right.
I have Theo behind .
And even though they’re not beside now, Julian and Grandpa are still here for .
I walked forward confidently, waiting for my turn.
The blessing ceremony was brief, and the line moved quickly.
And then—I stood before the High Priest.
“Rosie Noart.”
The High Priest’s gentle voice was almost sweet.
“I heard you’re from the apprentice ranks.”
He slowly smiled.
“Congratulations on finding a family. May the blessing of the gods always be with you.”
At the sa ti, his hand ca down over my head.
Ah.
What spread from the top of my head was unmistakably divine power.
Ordinary people wouldn’t notice it, but since I had divine power of my own, I could sense it clearly.
The energy seeped through , cleansing every corner of my body—but it was also searching.
My faint divine power was swept up completely by the overwhelming force.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Powerless, I clenched my eyes shut.
After examining even the very ends of the tiny amount of divine energy sealed inside ...
The High Priest lifted his hand and retracted his power.
‘...Is it over? Did I pass?’
I opened my eyes and t his red ones.
They held no emotion.
But as soone who had grown up in the Temple, I instinctively recognized that look.
‘That gaze...’
It was the sa contemptuous glare I’d seen a thousand tis before—like watching a worm squirm beneath his feet.
I’d received it endlessly from high- and mid-ranking priests.
I twitched my lips in silent frustration and muttered to myself inside.
‘So this guy who preaches all about virtue and compassion gets to look down on people like that? Huh?’
Of course, I didn’t say any of it aloud. Honestly, I just wanted to get out of there.
“Next.”
So the junior priest’s dull voice was a welco sound.
I scurried down the steps.
For so reason, I had a strong feeling that everything would be fine.
‘Just like Zahid said—maybe it really is easy to hide being the Divine Beast’s master. After all, they’re only detecting divine power.’
Smothering the grin tugging at my lips, I slipped into the crowd.
And despite all the tension, nothing happened as the rest of the students—over forty of them—received their blessings.
The High Priest calmly brushed his hair back with a smile and spoke.
“I’m sure many of you are wondering why I’ve co here today.”
I rolled my eyes, standing close beside Theo.
“Yuta Orgon, who has long served the Academy, will soon return to the Temple.”
A wave of murmurs swept the auditorium.
Theo furrowed his brows deeply as if hearing this for the first ti.
The High Priest continued in a gentle voice.
“To express our regret for reclaiming such a valuable talent, we’ve prepared this small ceremony.”
Yuta simply nodded with a pleasant smile.
“There was no choice. Yuta Orgon must now begin preparing to beco the next head of the Orgon Duchy.”
Ah.
It was the sa pattern as before my regression.
I stared at Yuta with anxious eyes.
Next to , classmates began whispering.
“See? I told you TA Yuta was soone important in the Temple.”
“To have the High Priest himself co and plan a ceremony...”
“They kind of look alike, don’t they? Look—sa blond hair, even.”
I let the chatter wash over , deep in thought.
The High Priest coming here—that was a deviation from my previous past.
But Yuta quitting the Academy and returning to the Orgon Duchy... that was the sa outco.
Yuta still hadn’t been chosen by the Grass Divine Beast.
‘Even if he goes and tries to force it, he won’t be able to accept the Divine Beast’s full power. He’ll die anyway.’
Whether Yuta knew that or not, he looked completely at peace.
Back then, when Zahid had told all this in passing, I didn’t think much of it—just assud he was another Temple man.
I’d even thought it was a good thing he wasn’t chosen by the Divine Beast...
“Are you alright? Didn’t sleep well last night? Sothing on your mind?”
Recalling his kind voice made my chest feel tight.
Even if he was from the Temple—
I found myself staring blankly at his gaunt face before finally tearing my gaze away.
* * *
After the High Priest left.
Yuta rushed off to the restroom.
“Bleaargh!”
He vomited a mixture of bile and blood. Only after retching several tis did he collapse to the floor.
“You were right, Yuta.”
The High Priest had said that on his way back to the Temple.
“It seems that child did not co to the Academy.”
Even through the gut-twisting pain, those words gave him a sense of accomplishnt.
During their one-on-one eting, he had slipped a tiny amount of sleeping agent into Rosie’s cake. As she began dozing off, he had quietly extracted most of her divine power.
Rosie’s divine energy might seem negligible, but in truth, it was heavily sealed. And the seals were so strong, most wouldn’t even recognize them.
But the High Priest would. Which ant he’d surely detect the seals and might forcibly unlock them.
So Yuta had no choice but to take the divine energy and seal it within himself beforehand.
‘She’s gained a lot of power since she was a baby. Very different now.’
Of course, this kind of extraction wasn’t permanent.
The power he’d stolen would naturally return to Rosie over ti. But until then, the overload caused serious damage to his body.
He’d been bedridden for days.
Even today, he felt terrible. But he endured it through sheer willpower so the High Priest wouldn’t notice.
“Well then, Yuta, there’s no longer any reason for you to remain here.”
Yuta let out a long, trembling sigh.
Graduation was coming.
Rosie would soon return to the Noart Count Family.
Back—into the arms of her safe, true family.
Reviews
All reviews (0)