Chapter 8
Lady Garden
The days passed so peacefully that I wished every day could be like this. Then, finally, the day of the Proof of Blessing arrived.
Tristrian, who had locked himself in the imperial palace for several days before appearing, looked shockingly pale and haggard. Despite standing beside me throughout the entire event, he didn’t pick a fight with me even once.
It was a common pattern. After drinking the Holy Water of Purification sent by the Benedictine Order before and after religious ceremonies, Tristrian would often shut himself in the imperial palace—and afterward, he would always become as docile as he was now.
It was fascinating.
I almost wanted to make him drink holy water every day.
Once Tristrian finished his confession using the script that the officials had prepared for him, the event concluded, and we moved to the banquet hall.
This was a gathering where the clergy expressed their gratitude to the nobles.
The Proof of Blessing was nominally conducted to thank the goddess Benedicta for keeping the empire peaceful for another year. But in reality, it was little more than an event where the imperial family and nobility presented donations to the temple.
As the orchestra played in the background, noblewomen chattered like sparrows.
“Oh, look, Mürse has arrived.”
“Yes, I didn’t see him during the ceremony, so I thought he wouldn’t come today.”
“Oh my, madam. Were you waiting for Mürse, by any chance?”
“Are you saying that you weren’t waiting for him? I heard you met him at the temple just last weekend.”
“T-That was just for confession….”
“Oh, I see. Then why is your face turning so red?”
So it was true—confessing to Mürse had become quite the trend among noblewomen.
I had never paid much attention to him before, but now that I knew of his existence, it felt like I was hearing about him everywhere.
Sipping my champagne in silence, I listened in on the conversations around me. Then, Lady Prodi, a widow who was utterly smitten with Mürse, approached me, coyly covering her face with a fan.
“Your Majesty the Empress, have you by any chance received confession from Mürse?”
Hmm…
Should I say I have?
Recalling the conversation I had with Mürse in the garden last week, I gave a vague smile. Thankfully, a countess standing nearby interjected on my behalf.
“Oh, Lady Prodi, surely you know that Mürse does not take confessions outside of the temple? Besides, Her Majesty has not visited the temple in years.”
“Oh, now that you mention it, you’re right.”
Lady Prodi let out a lighthearted laugh and stepped back. Just then, a group of clergymen, having finished greeting Tristrian, approached.
A sudden stiffness gripped my neck, and tension coiled in my gut.
The memory of my confession to Mürse in the garden flashed through my mind.
What if he realized today that I was the empress?
Mürse was a priest. And judging by what the noblewomen said, he did not seem like the type to carelessly reveal secrets from confessions.
Even so, I couldn’t help but feel anxious.
Before long, the group of clergymen, Mürse among them, stood before me. Unlike the other priests, who wore black robes and had their eyes covered, an elderly man in a white robe stepped forward and greeted me. He was Havalon, the Archbishop of Benedicta.
“As the humble servant—cough—humble servant of Benedicta, I greet Your Majesty the Empress. Have you been well?”
I briefly glanced at Mürse before responding in a deliberately quiet voice.
“…It has been a while, Archbishop.”
“Thanks to Your Majesty’s generosity, we were able to conduct the Proof of Blessing in the imperial palace without issue this year as well. We are deeply grateful.”
“I only did what was necessary. More importantly, how is your health?”
“Cough! Your Majesty’s kindness humbles me. It is just a mild cold, so please do not worry.”
“I hope you recover soon.”
“I will do my best to be fully recovered by next week, when the Proof of Blessing is officially concluded—cough!—so that I may properly return Your Majesty’s kindness.”
“Oh dear. There is no need to push yourself. Please take care.”
As I spoke, I subtly glanced at Mürse. However, he simply stood at the back of the clergy group, poised and composed, as if he hadn’t heard a word of our conversation.
Had he truly not recognized me?
Well, a considerable amount of time had passed, and our conversation had been brief. It wasn’t unreasonable for him to have forgotten.
As I exchanged pleasantries with the gathered noblewomen, the topic naturally shifted toward Mürse.
“The distinguished gentleman over there is Mürse, correct? This is my first time seeing him in person, but even with his face covered, he stands out so much that I recognized him instantly.”
“Oh my, I just noticed! He’s wearing a necklace. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him wear an ornament before.”
The widow, Lady Prodi, who had recently taken to frequenting the temple in her devotion to Mürse, suddenly spoke up.
As the other noblewomen murmured in agreement, I, too, naturally let my gaze drift toward Mürse’s chest.
Just as Lady Prodi had said, a necklace hung over Mürse’s priestly robes.
At the end of a simple chain dangled a neatly carved, gleaming wooden star—symbolizing Benedicta’s blessing.
When Mürse inclined his head slightly, the necklace swayed gently.
“There is someone I wished to give this to, but I have no way of finding them. So I had no choice but to wear it today.”
“Oh my! I never imagined Mürse would personally gift something to someone. Who might they be? We will help you find them.”
“Actually, I do not know who they are. All I know is that she is a lady who was strolling through the imperial garden.”
…My God.
A lady? Surely, he didn’t mean me?
I suddenly recalled how Mürse had mistaken me for a noble lady during our encounter in the garden. My heart pounded.
No, this was ridiculous.
Why would Mürse give me a necklace?
Shaking off the absurd thought, I refocused on the noblewomen’s chatter.
“Oh my, Mürse, did you just say lady?”
“I’m envious. What circumstances led you to gift her this necklace?”
The noblewomen giggled while casting side glances at Lady Prodi.
The Benedictine Order did not forbid priests from marrying. It was simply that priests chose celibacy of their own accord. Because of this, there were always people like Lady Prodi, who passionately pursued them.
Hearing that Mürse intended to give a necklace to someone, Lady Prodi’s face turned as red as if she had just lost her husband to another woman.
Unfazed, Mürse continued in his usual composed voice.
“It was someone I briefly encountered in the imperial garden last week while preparing for the Proof of Blessing. She shared her difficult feelings with me, yet before I could offer any comfort, she vanished. I wished to give her a small token of my heart.”
“…Who could it be? I regret that it is not me.”
The women tittered and glanced at the young, unmarried noble ladies, but I remained frozen.
A lady who briefly met Mürse in the imperial garden last week.
Who revealed her inner turmoil and disappeared.
It was me.
A cold sweat broke out on my palms.
I clasped my hands together tightly.
Please—
Let no one have seen me with Mürse in the garden.
Let him never realize who I am.
The next day, after a long and tedious meeting, I headed to the main palace’s garden.
Breathing in the fresh air, I felt lighter, as if a weight had been lifted from my chest.
As I was about to lose myself in the summer’s warmth, a voice called out from behind me.
“Are you Lady Garden?”
Lady… Garden?
The name was so absurd that I turned around in disbelief.
Mürse was walking toward me.
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