9.
I opened my eyes a long time ago. Unable to move, my whole body screaming in pain, I couldn’t even bring myself to turn sideways.
So all the while, I was staring at the poor wooden ceiling.
I wasn’t glaring, but it must have looked that way because of how my eyebrows were raised quite fiercely. When I was lost in thought, the mountain on my left eyebrow would go up as if it would pierce the sky. It was a habit.
‘Is there no one?’
I opened my eyes and listened for hours already, but I couldn’t hear even a footstep. It was a moment when I was grateful and thrilled to be alive. I was anxious to imagine the worst outcome ever.
I was conflicted for a while. I was wondering if I should try yelling ‘Is anyone there?’ or not. It was because there was too little information to call someone.
‘I have no idea where I am.’
Fortunately, my memory before fainting was clear. Even the day after I passed out from being drunk, my memory was fine.
I vividly remembered crying with a runny nose in front of a man I had never seen before, and fainting from exhaustion from crying in his arms. This time, the extraordinary memory felt a little cursed.
“It’s crazy… Aisa McFoy, you’re crazy.”
I wanted to hit my past self, who had lost her mind and sobbed.
“After…”
Anyway, the problem was that after passing out, I had no idea what had happened.
Just because she was in the arms of Norma Diazi right before she lost consciousness, there was no guarantee that he would be there until the end. Norma is, well, first of all, a knight, but he doesn’t need to show his loyalty to me.
I don’t know him. In <Ophelia and the Night>, he was only seen through the eyes of the male lead, Nicholas. In particular, it was hard to guess what kind of person Norma would be after waking up from a long sleep.
If Norma had left me there to be abducted by the others, it would have been complicated.
Whatever I say with my mouth, I have a lot of enemies because I am a merchant among merchants who join hands with pirates if necessary. Since I was an unmarried woman with overflowing assets, she would not be bad even as a target for kidnapping.
Although my face was not well known, it would be easy for those who dared to target the family head of Mcfoy to find out the internal and external characteristics. Purple eyes and black hair were also uncommon in the Empire.
The purple eyes themselves symbolized Mcfoy. Mcfoy’s color was also purple.
It wasn’t the worst if she was kidnapped by hostile officials or those who were looking for money.
Worst of all, I’m still in the hands of the Nyx.
Even that proud Ophelia in the past couldn’t completely kill him. Of course, Ophelia was young at that time and moved on instinct, so she probably couldn’t show her full power, but getting rid of Nyx was not an easy task anyway. Nyx’s new god didn’t take it lightly.
If Nyx wasn’t dead. Rather, what if it was Nyx who murdered Norma and brought me here?
“…”
It’s not real.
Suddenly, there was another wave of sadness. I can’t believe I have to worry so hard about just one thing.
As the memory of <Ophelia and the Night> came to mind, I felt like my mood was running wild all the time, maybe because the dry emotions came to life together.
“Why is life so difficult…”
The door opened unexpectedly when I let out a sigh against the ceiling. I closed my mouth sharply and turned my head toward the door.
Ki-yi-.
The rusty door made a louder noise at the careful touch.
I held my breath. My fist tightened itself. I looked at the slowly opening door with bloodshot eyes. Thump thump, my heart ran fast.
‘Ah-”
At the end of the sound, a face stained with bewilderment was revealed. The person seemed embarrassed by the loud noise made by the door.
My eyes met. The embarrassed face even turned a little red. When I faced the other person who was at a loss of what to do, I felt relieved. It was unfair to be nervous.
“… you were awake. I’m sorry for coming in so carelessly. Somehow, I keep feeling sorry for you.”
That.
Norma Diazi seems to be a great old man.
***
‘It’s already been 8 years since the change, but wearing the old Paladin uniform is too conspicuous.’
Norma, who usually was wearing the Holy Knight’s uniform, was in typical plain clothes. Should I say that it’s the work clothes of farmers who grow wheat…?
The baggy shirt looked bad on the outside, and the dark trousers were stretched to the knees. Boots, worn only when working in a stable, were the highlight of the outfit.
Nevertheless, it looks beautiful, thanks to its beauty and outstanding body.
Well, my clothes weren’t that different. The whole dress I was wearing looked like a nightgown. Compared to the days when the family was reconstructed, when they were rolling around in the desert, this kind of outfit was a luxury.
‘I guess it’s true that God only focused on making Diazi.’
I kept my guard up and searched hard for Norma.
‘I think he’s a lot prettier than Ophelia.’
It seems that she has been searching for his face hard, but he looks better when he encounters it in bright light, so what is the difference?
“The wounds on your wrists and ankles were severe, so I treated them first. Is there any more pain?”
As soon as I came in, Norma opened his mouth after eagerly examining me with his eyes. His tone and demeanor showed caution.
‘No wonder. My hands and ankles are fine.’
“… My whole body is throbbing, how can this not be done with holy power.”
I answered slowly with a face of shame.
“Oh, you have muscle pain. I’ll treat it. May I have your permission?”
Norma said, smiling like the sunlight, although he must have understood from my eyes that I thought him strange. Like a man who’s willing to treat. He’s a healer or what…?
It was supposed to be a very urgent situation, but it was a little funny that when I left Tantaros, I hugged people without asking, and now I got permission for each one.
‘I’m not his benefactor. Rather, isn’t that person my benefactor?’
With that thought in mind, I calmly followed Norma’s request to lie down comfortably and close my eyes. The feeling of the warm light covering the whole body was very pleasant. It felt like my mind was relieved as I felt the fatigue go away.
But I didn’t let my guard down.
‘By the way, why don’t you ask me anything? You must have a lot of questions.’
Norma’s focus was on getting me to act as if nothing had happened, and I couldn’t bring myself to ask him.
Somehow he had a hard time dealing with it. I was a person who shouldn’t be treated carelessly.
I measured the timing with patience, but it was hard to open my mouth. Norma was only absorbed in treatment as if he had become a priest who treated a stupid believer.
I thought you weren’t talking about Nyx because you didn’t want me to have another seizure. It was understandable because what Norma saw as soon as he opened his eyes was my face sobbing at Nyx.
So, in response to his needless consideration, I decided to ask something simple.
“… But what about my, no, my clothes?”
“Ah… the change of clothes was helped by the hostess of this house.”
Norma blushed again a little. Oh, no… Unfortunately, it wasn’t a simple question for Norma.
“…”
“The dress was wet, and I couldn’t leave it there.”
How can you show off being a Paladin like this? Of course, that doesn’t mean that all Paladins are naive about it. However, in their rules, there was a requirement to stay away from sexual desire and impulses.
Well, this discipline also applies to believers, so the reason Norma often burns red is probably because of her inflexible ‘Diazi’.
Still, wasn’t he a candidate for the next commander of the Holy Knights? It’s because I can’t hide my face like this…
It was a bit funny to see Norma flustered, but I pretended not to notice.
“It doesn’t matter anyway.”
“… Ah”
It was because my part, who made a mistake in the slip of the tongue, was also funny.
“Forgive me. Since I only have a lot of work in the territory, I have nothing to do but give orders, so I make many mistakes.”
I raised my eyebrows and said. It may have seemed arrogant, but it was instinct.
Except for the time of the founding, I didn’t have anything to do with people with a higher status than me in this empire. Because of this, respect was awkward if you weren’t conscious of it.
Norma then looked straight at me. But he didn’t dare to open his mouth.
‘Aha. It’s rude to ask questions to a lady you’ve never seen before, right? That’s like Diazi.’
I didn’t think Norma would ask anything first, even if I died. I continued my words deftly.
“I must be suspicious. I apologize for the late greetings. I’m Aisa McFoy, from the Mcfoy family.”
I raised my left index finger and said, showing McFoy’s patterned ring.
“Suspicious, I don’t think so…. You are the head of McFoy. Please forgive the rudeness of the hasty title.”
“We were rude to each other, so let’s leave it behind. You must be Sir Norma Diazi, right?”
“Does the head of household know me?”
All kinds of emotions flashed in Norma’s eyes for a moment, but I didn’t notice.
“You are the most famous holy knight in the empire, aren’t you? No wonder Lord Diazi doesn’t know me.”
I brushed aside his question in an odd way.
“Yes. It’s the first time I’ve met the Lord. Is that correct?”
“As far as I know, it is, but it was a long time ago that I became the head of the household. My predecessor passed away in the arms of God already 10 years ago.”
I stared at Norma’s face and continued.
“It’s been decades since the Lord went missing.”
Norma was calm, not showing any emotion.
‘Oh my. Is it because he’s a knight?’
Norma’s embarrassment was limited to that kind of thing.
“Aren’t you surprised?”
“I was expecting to be asleep for quite a long time.”
“Then that crazy bastard, no. Did you know that Nyx had sealed you away? He was a high-ranking priest.”
Norma flinched a little at “The Crazy Bastard,” but it only lasted a moment. I also tried to ignore the abusive language that popped out like a habit.
“I guess I was sealed.”
“Yes, the high priest, Nyx, sealed you asleep and hid you in the fortress.”
I didn’t go into detail. It was Nyx’s charade to commemorate his first crime that sealed Norma in Tantaros.
“The person I saw in the fortress did not use holy power. That power…”
Norma seems to have naturally recalled a “friend who cursed him” while referring to the power. Nyx’s power and his friend’s curse are the same, so Norma wouldn’t be able to say he doesn’t know it.
“Then, isn’t it Nyx whom we encountered at the fort?”
Nyx right. Nyx sealed you away and kept you away for years, then one day he appeared in Mcfoy and gave the whole Mcfoy to wake Alpo. As you might have guessed, that power belongs to God Alpo. Since he betrayed the god he worshiped, the Power of Mehera that Nyx possessed must have disappeared at that time.
The power of the continent’s people is the power of Mehera, the god of the land.
Alpo is an evil god sealed away by Mehera thousands of years ago. It was the myth of this continent that it was Alpo who first informed humans of the 7 deadly sins, and that is why Mehera, who loved humans, sealed Alpo.
God Alpo and the curses he passed on were sealed deep inside the Great Hall. High Priest Nyx touched the forbidden book where they were sealed, tasted the curse, and finally awakened Alfo by offering the entire Mcfoy family.
A girl from the Mcfoy family sealed Nyx back then, and Nyx was only recently released. She only picked out the obvious facts and spoke as if it were someone else’s business, but Norma rarely raised his eyebrows.
For some reason, his face was filled with sadness, and I felt uncomfortable.
Hope you enjoy ♥️
