Episode 131
Cielun was displeased with the situation.
His tightly pressed lips and furrowed brows clearly indicated his displeasure.
He might have looked handsome, even in this awkward position, but being carried like a princess wasn’t ideal.
“…I can walk.”
“But you almost fainted earlier. You’re not a newborn fawn, you know.”
Ricardo chuckled.
It was, of course, Ricardo who was carrying Cielun in a princess carry. Elonia, despite her strength, couldn’t carry a grown man, especially one who was practically draped over her.
‘And he’s so tall that even Ethan would struggle to carry him.’
Cielun, enjoying the unexpected privilege of being carried by the princess’s knight, finally reached his room.
Ricardo gently placed him on the bed and tucked him in, exaggerating his actions for dramatic effect.
“See? It was much easier listening to Her Highness, wasn’t it? You’re so lucky, Young Master.”
“…”
He would have been more convincing if he had kept his mouth shut.
Cielun, despite his efforts, couldn’t maintain his composure. His face was a mask of displeasure.
Elonia, caught between amusement and concern, took a deep breath and said,
“Then I’ll be going. Take care, Young Master Luneus.”
Just as she turned to leave, Cielun’s hand reached out and grabbed her sleeve.
“…!”
Elonia froze.
Cielun, his voice low and serious, said,
“Your Highness, please spare me a moment of your time.”
Ethan and Ricardo, at Elonia’s command, were standing guard outside the room.
They stood in silence, their arms crossed or hands in their pockets, their faces carefully neutral. Ethan, breaking the awkward silence, said,
“He really does resemble him.”
“Resemble? He looks exactly like him.”
Eye and hair color had a significant impact on one’s appearance. And Lucius had also changed considerably during his seven-year absence, his face hidden behind a mask and an eye patch. It wasn’t entirely unreasonable for them to mistake Cielun for him.
Ricardo, leaning against the wall, murmured,
“I heard he returned to Heilan. How did he change his identity?”
“You did the same.”
Ethan glared at him, and Ricardo, scratching his head sheepishly, replied,
“Ah, right.”
But buying a barony was different from becoming the adopted son of a Duke.
They didn’t distrust Cielun, or rather, Lucius. But they were puzzled by his sudden reappearance after three years.
He could have contacted them, even if he was unwell.
Ethan, seeing Ricardo’s frustrated expression, said sternly,
“He’s not hostile towards Her Highness. He probably dismissed us so he could explain the situation to her. So stop fidgeting.”
“Ah.”
Ricardo, embarrassed, fell silent.
‘They say all you gain with age is worry. It’s true.’
Elonia wouldn’t be harmed by a sickly young man like Cielun.
He was amused by his past self, so full of reckless abandon, so eager to challenge even the Emperor.
Just then, Ethan, spotting someone, greeted them,
“High Priest, welcome.”
Ricardo straightened up, his casual demeanor vanishing.
The young man, addressed as High Priest, smiled brightly.
“It’s been a while, Lady Ethan, Sir Ricardo.”
“Her Highness said you wouldn’t be able to make it today.”
“I couldn’t refuse her request, especially after she helped my sister at the academy.”
“But you have a demanding position.”
“If a friend is ill, it’s my duty to visit them, especially if their condition is critical.”
The High Priest’s cheerful and friendly demeanor hadn’t changed.
He was no longer the boy they had known at the academy, but his orange eyes still shone with youthful enthusiasm.
Meanwhile, inside the room,
Elonia, sitting in front of the bed, her arms crossed, asked,
“What is it?”
Cielun, leaning against the headboard, replied,
“I assume you’ve heard from the Duchess… about the potion.”
“…”
Elonia was slightly disappointed. It was an important matter, of course, but she had expected him to say something more personal, something more… meaningful.
Like, “I’m back.”
She hid her disappointment and asked,
“Are you trying to confess that you’re the culprit?”
“Of course not.”
Cielun chuckled, shaking his head. Elonia glared at him, but he remained silent.
She didn’t think he would tell her what she wanted to hear, so she stood up, about to leave, when,
“Your Highness, I know you have many questions for me.”
“…!”
“Ask me anything.”
Cielun closed his eyes, then opened them slowly, and his pale blue-green eyes, for a moment, looked like the eyes she remembered.
“…Can I… remove your eye patch?”
Cielun nodded.
Elonia, her hands trembling, carefully untied the strings.
The eye patch fell away, revealing a red eye.
The red eye she had been searching for.
“Ah…”
Time seemed to stop.
She wanted to hide the frantic beating of her heart, the lump forming in her throat.
“You’re alive.”
Her voice cracked, her vision blurring with tears.
She had been afraid, afraid that he might be an imposter.
He could have stolen the ring, disguised himself, just like she and Ricardo often did. But seeing his face, his uncovered eye, she knew.
He was Lucius.
“What’s with the strange name?”
“…I thought it would be easier for you to recognize me. Is it that strange?”
Lucius’s awkward question reminded Elonia of a verse from the Calamity God scriptures.
Fear not the pale moonlight, for it is always on your side.
Cielun meant pale moon, and Lucius meant light. He had truly tried to leave her a clue.
“Mother?”
Elonia, her voice thick with emotion, asked,
“What happened to Mother?”
Just because Lucius was alive didn’t mean Philemon was.
Lucius, instead of answering, asked a different question.
“Your Highness, do you remember the ring I gave you at the debutante ball?”
Elonia, unable to hide her impatience, nodded and showed him the two rings she wore around her neck.
Lucius, pointing at the one he had given her, smiled sadly.
“Philemon exhausted her power protecting me and is now resting within that ring.”
“What?”
Elonia blinked repeatedly, staring at the ring.
But it looked the same as before.
Lucius explained,
“Fortunately, the ring contained my apostle’s power. She’s absorbing it to recover, but it’s not enough yet, so it’s natural that you don’t sense anything.”
“…Wait a minute.”
Something wasn’t right.
He had spoken so naturally that she hadn’t noticed it before, but,
“Why did you call her Philemon, not Alexia…?”
She hadn’t told anyone about Philemon being Alexia. Even Lucius had called her Alexia during the Academic Festival.
“I learned the truth on our way to Heilan. Perhaps it’s because we were in the Calamity God’s domain, but I saw her true form. And she asked me not to call her Alexia.”
“…”
Philemon seemed to trust Lucius more than she trusted Elonia. Perhaps it was because they were both apostles.
Elonia felt a pang of jealousy. Philemon was her mother, and yet, she had confided in Lucius, not her.
Lucius, sensing her emotions, said cautiously,
“I had no choice. She couldn’t hide her true form in Heilan. And I didn’t want you to hate me. Please forgive me.”
She understood. Philemon had been so afraid of Elonia’s disapproval that she had even written about it in her diary.
Elonia shook her head.
“It’s fine. It’s not your place to apologize. I’ll talk to Mother myself later.”
Lucius, encouraged by her forgiving tone, continued,
“The power within my ring is almost completely gone. You’ve placed it next to the other ring, which still has some power left, but we need to take further measures.”
“What do we need to do?”
Elonia leaned closer, her ears perked up.
Philemon had sacrificed herself, twice, to save her. Elonia would do anything for her.
But Lucius’s request was surprisingly simple.
“You have a box Philemon left you. A box imbued with apostle’s power. Place the ring inside.”
“…Is that all?”
“Yes. It will help her recover faster.”
Elonia, though slightly disappointed, was relieved. Lucius, his face filled with guilt, smiled and then told her everything.
That he had been too weak to even regain consciousness after being adopted by Duchess Luneus, that he had discovered the truth about the potion after recovering, but Duchess Luneus, trying to hide the incident, had cut off all communication with the outside world, that he had tried to send a signal through the ring, but Philemon, residing within the ring, had prevented him from doing so.
And finally, that he had lost Heilan’s trust and couldn’t uncover their motives or the culprit behind the potion.
“We finally got rid of the prayer altars, and now this…”
“I apologize.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“But still…”
Lucius looked at her cautiously. She hadn’t scolded him for the most important part yet.
Elonia took his hand.
She had held his hand during the debutante ball, but it felt different now, knowing the truth. She finally felt like she could let go of the cold, lifeless hand that had haunted her memories for seven years.
She glared at him, her voice sharp,
“Don’t disappear like that again. Do you know how worried I was when I heard you were murdered?”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
Lucius nodded obediently.
Elonia, sighing in relief, then scanned his appearance, her eyes narrowing.
There was still something that bothered her.
“What’s with your hair and eye color?”
“…I was… overworked before escaping.”
“Overworked? Did they torture you?”
Lucius averted his gaze, and Elonia, clenching her fists, pressed on,
“Did they do that to your left eye as well?”
“I apologize. But my vision is fine.”
“That’s not the point! Your eye color changed completely!”
“Ah, this is… Philemon shared her power with me to heal my injuries. It’ll return to normal when she recovers, so don’t worry.”
…She couldn’t even imagine what had happened in Heilan.
Lucius, seeing her horrified expression, cautiously asked,
“Aren’t you going to ask about the holy relic?”
“…Did you find it?”
“No. But I discovered that it’s not in Heilan. And I also uncovered Tristan’s identity.”
“You know who Tristan is?”
Elonia’s eyes widened. Lucius, his voice barely a whisper, revealed Tristan’s true identity.
“…!”
Elonia gasped, staring at him.
“Is that why you lost your power?”
It had been strange. Even if Lucius could hide his apostle’s power, he shouldn’t have been able to do it in his current state.
Lucius, his head bowed, replied,
“…He’s not a god yet, so his power hasn’t been transferred to Tristan.”
Elonia gritted her teeth.
Those with Holy Power rarely got sick. She had wondered why Lucius was so frail.
Just as she was about to summon him back,
“Your Highness, the High Priest has arrived.”
Ethan reported from outside.
Elonia was relieved. He had impeccable timing, as always.
Lucius, puzzled, asked,
“The High Priest…?”
Elonia grinned and replied,
“Come in.”
“Excuse me.”
The door opened, and a pair of feet, clad in white shoes, entered the room. Lucius, about to put his eye patch back on, froze.
A young man with wheat-colored hair and orange eyes, dressed in the white robes of a Madicte priest.
“Greetings, Your Highness. And it’s a pleasure to meet you, Young Master Luneus. I am Valerian, the first servant of Madicte.”
Valerian, making the sign of Madicte, greeted them. His smile, despite his words, seemed genuinely pleased.
Lucius, his jaw dropping, stared at Elonia.
“Your Highness, this isn’t necess—”
He couldn’t finish his sentence. A sharp pain shot through his chest, and he collapsed.
Elonia, clicking her tongue, said,
“You’re on the verge of death, and you’re still being stubborn.”
Lucius, groaning in pain, couldn’t reply. Valerian, startled, rushed to his side and scolded Elonia,
“Your Highness, you can’t hit a patient, even if you’re planning to heal them! He’s dying!”
“I didn’t hit him. I just poked him.”
Elonia’s shameless reply left Valerian speechless.
She looked down at Lucius, her voice filled with exasperation.
“I knew you weren’t getting proper treatment, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”
“…”
Lucius couldn’t answer. Elonia sighed.
“A trustworthy High Priest is a valuable asset, so get treated while you can. That’s what connections are for.”
Lucius, hearing the concern in her voice, finally looked up at her.
She was the only one who cared about him, despite his reckless behavior.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
He bowed his head, and Elonia ruffled his hair roughly.
A strange warmth spread through Lucius’s chest.
He felt like he had finally come home, even though this wasn’t his homeland. He had been in Ravanta for three years, and yet,
He realized,
He had missed Elonia. He had missed the days when she called him Lucius.