Chapter 24
“Huh?”
Marie flinched at the icy tone.
While she had been speaking with Lord Lorenzo of Mazdari, a striking young man with black hair had suddenly appeared by her side.
“Oh dear. Can’t you see I’m having a private conversation with this young lady? Please, show some decorum, Prince Karl of Oxburgh.”
“I only intervened because it’s unpleasant to watch an innocent country girl being toyed with by a sly Mazdari noble.
Ah, I’m Karl Gustav of House Oxburgh.
And you must be Marie of Astraea?”
“Yes, it’s… it’s an honor to meet you.”
“There’s no need for formalities between classmates. Just call me Karl.
But I do have a piece of advice for you.
Judging by your naive demeanor, you’re likely not used to people like him. You should be cautious around Lorenzo.
Mazdari men are infamous for seducing women with sweet words and then ruthlessly abandoning them the moment they lose interest.
If the Trinity Church hadn’t mandated monogamy, there wouldn’t even be such a thing as marriage in Mazdari.
That’s how the saying goes.”
“Oh dear… Are you seriously spouting such biased slander right now?”
Lorenzo of Mazdari shook his head in disbelief.
“And just to defend the honor of Mazdari men — that saying doesn’t refer to Mazdari at all. It’s about Milan.
As you know, Mazdari—”
“—was once raided and pillaged by heathens, right?”
“……”
Lorenzo’s expression froze.
He was still smiling, but the warmth vanished from his face, leaving behind an unsettling chill.
Even if Lorenzo had been hiding his claws and blades behind his courteous smile, Karl’s words had clearly struck a nerve — deeply wounding his pride.
Was he going to retaliate?
But that was exactly what Karl wanted — to provoke Lorenzo and expose his true nature.
If Lorenzo reacted now, all his restraint so far would have been for nothing.
So instead, Lorenzo smoothed out his expression and returned Karl’s gaze with a polite smile.
“You’re not going to get angry?”
“Well, you see, a Mazdari man is a businessman.
We don’t risk our lives for things like honor — which bring no profit — like you Northerners do.
Still, I’m not trying to make friends for business reasons.
But are you saying that, just because I’m from Mazdari, I shouldn’t even try to build friendships with a fellow classmate?”
“Building friendships isn’t the issue.
But we both know that’s not your true intention, is it?
That’s why I’m warning you — Saintess.
Whether they’re from Milan or Mazdari, southern men aren’t to be trusted. You’d do well to stay cautious.”
“What are you even—”
“When my homeland or people are insulted for no reason, I get angry — right in front of the person.
I don’t pretend to laugh it off and then hold a grudge later.
Doesn’t that make me the more honest one?”
“Wait… are you saying you deliberately provoked him?”
Marie realized from Karl’s words that he had intentionally tried to get a reaction from Lorenzo.
“Do you think I’m stupid, Saintess?
Of course I did it on purpose.”
“What?”
“Why else would I spread rumors about southern men unless I was trying to stir something up?”
Karl looked directly at Lorenzo as he spoke.
“He probably thinks he’s cleverly hiding a blade behind that smiling face, but honestly, the way he keeps grinning like an idiot only makes it obvious that he’s hiding a damn huge sword.”
“Then you should apologize.”
“…What?”
“You just admitted that you intentionally insulted both Prince Lorenzo and the people of his homeland.
Isn’t it only right that you apologize?”
“I-I only meant to show that he’s not being genuine…”
“And you don’t have any secrets of your own? I’m sure you’re hiding your own skills, too.”
“What?!”
Karl looked startled.
No one had ever confronted him so boldly before.
“Even if someone is hiding something, that doesn’t give you the right to be rude to them, does it?
He doesn’t owe you any honesty.
But all of us do owe each other basic respect.
Especially if we’re all followers of the Trinity Doctrine.”
Marie, raised under the teachings of the Church since childhood, spoke earnestly, forgetting even the difference in their status as she lectured Prince Karl of Oxburgh.
She couldn’t stay silent. Not this time.
“…Huh. You’re right. I was rude. Whatever you’re hiding, it doesn’t give me the right to be disrespectful.”
Surprisingly, Prince Karl accepted the words of Marie — a girl of common birth — and offered Lorenzo a sincere apology.
Karl had been trained as a warrior from a young age, and he had sensed a quiet threat from Lorenzo — a man who hid his power and intent behind a smiling facade.
That’s why he’d tried to force Lorenzo to reveal himself through provocation.
But upon reflection, he realized how wrong that was.
He hadn’t recognized it until Marie pointed it out.
“I understand. I accept your apology. Thank you, Karl. And you as well, Lady Marie.”
“Huh? Oh… no, I… I just…”
Marie looked flustered at Lorenzo’s gratitude.
When she thought about it, she — a mere commoner — had just scolded two of the highest-ranking nobles in the Empire.
Had things gone differently, she might’ve lost her head.
Yet these noblemen had listened to her.
“Impressive… Marie of Astraea.”
From a short distance away, Crown Prince Rudolf had been observing everything.
Despite suffering from mana burnout, he had forced himself to study during his free time, flipping through his textbook.
Baroness Büllem had assigned them reading as homework — reading the entire textbook.
Studying while sick was an absurd theory.
When you’re truly ill, you should rest. The mind and body aren’t separate entities.
Especially with mana burnout, which came with nerve pain — not just a dull ache but a persistent, irritating, buzzing kind of pain that couldn’t be ignored.
But even through that discomfort, Rudolf had followed Lorenzo and Marie into the courtyard, concerned.
And as a result, he had witnessed Marie reprimanding Karl and reconciling the two nobles.
“She has tremendous mana… and such a bold personality, despite being a commoner… What a remarkable person. Hm?”
He suddenly felt someone’s gaze on him and turned, startled.
It was Isolde, standing next to him with an expression of frustration.
“As expected, Brother, you really have no prejudice against commoners, do you? To be so impressed by a countryside girl’s ‘purity.’”
“What? Why not? Honestly, isn’t it impressive?
Even I get intimidated by Karl sometimes. For a commoner to stand up to him like that — that takes guts.”
As Rudolf spoke sincerely in admiration, Isolde’s aristocratic composure cracked.
“…That’s only because she’s an ignorant fool who doesn’t know how the world works!”
Isolde had wanted to promote Marie of Astraea as the new saintess in place of Idnia — but now, seeing Rudolf praise another girl so openly, her mood soured.
Maybe that’s why she ended up yelling—
“Well, well. Look who it is.”
Karl, Lorenzo, and Marie had noticed Crown Prince Rudolf and Isolde.
With Isolde shouting, it was impossible not to be noticed.
