TVWRL Chapter 38

TVWRL Chapter 38

The day of the divine power test, which would determine my fate regardless of my will, had finally arrived.

I wore a deep navy blue dress and let my long hair fall elegantly, pinning it up with the pendant that Paulian had made for me.

To appear simple and composed, I didn’t wear any other accessories. I thought it would be troublesome if they asked me to take everything off after putting too much on.

Once I finished getting ready and stepped outside, I was surprised to find Ilias waiting for me. It was an unexpected meeting, and I was flustered.

“Your Highness!”

Ilias smiled like a painting and extended his hand. He then subtly gestured; in the distance, I could see a few paparazzi trying to capture our image.

Lily and Jake had mentioned assigning some professionals to us, and it seemed like those were them.

They said they wanted to capture natural moments and had people accompany us on every date.

“How did you come here?”

“I came to be Adeline’s shield.”

I shyly smiled at his words.

Click! Click!

I could hear the sounds of cameras clicking away.

I accepted Ilias’s escort and got into the carriage.

We were the most affectionate lovers in front of others, but as soon as we got into the carriage, we both turned our heads to the opposite sides without a word.

This was the first time we were alone together in a confined space since becoming contract partners, and the atmosphere was a bit strange. We had been able to pretend to be a couple in front of others, but now that we were alone, it felt even more awkward.
The distance between the prince and a citizen of the empire was palpable.

The atmosphere was so uncomfortable and awkward that it felt suffocating, so I thought I should at least ask a question.

“Your Highness, why did you come here without making any plans?”

“Isn’t it the biggest reason that Adeline wants me? To protect you from the temple. I can’t just sit back and watch on a day like today. If we’ve made a contract, I should at least do this.”

“Thank you.”

I felt as though I had unexpectedly gained a reliable ally.

However, once the conversation ended, a suffocating silence ensued once again.

Am I the only one feeling uncomfortable?

Just as I was having these thoughts, Ilias’s voice broke through the awkward atmosphere.

“May I ask what kind of collaboration you have with the Magic Tower?”

“It’s nothing grand. It’s a kind of scheme to divert attention away from the test.”

Since I couldn’t speak honestly about it, I answered as vaguely as possible.

“It seems you have a strong friendship with Paulian Lint.”

“He’s a good friend.”

“A good friend…?”

Ilias repeated my answer and gazed at me intently. When his shining golden eyes turned toward me, my heart started racing strangely. Yet, his bright golden eyes appeared oddly sad.

“You’ve prepared perfectly.”

“Yes. As you know, it’s a matter of my life, after all.”

I felt proud of myself for being doubly prepared.

At that moment, the carriage stopped. It felt like we had arrived at a battlefield rather than a temple.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. No matter how much I prepared, the trembling remained. When I opened my eyes, I was met with his shining golden gaze.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

Knock, knock.

As Ilias signaled, the carriage door opened.

Stepping out of the carriage, I saw Ilias’s knights, including Zion. Perhaps because we had entered the territory of the church, they remained on high alert.

In front of the temple, a few maidservants stood waiting. They seemed flustered and didn’t know how to react upon seeing Ilias step down from the carriage.

It was clear that from the moment we arrived, they had sent out maidservants instead of priests to belittle me.

Their actions conveyed the message: We look down on you. We disregard you.

It was so childish that I felt embarrassed on their behalf.

‘How could they behave this way when the Pope, cardinals, and high priest are involved?’

One maidservant timidly approached us and said, “I will guide you. Please follow me.”

Even though he was powerless, he was still a prince, and this behavior clearly showed the arrogance of the temple.

If a prince had arrived, the maidservants should have gone in to summon the high priest and lead the way.

Ilias spoke in a growl, his expression displeased. “Bring the high priest.”

The maidservants exchanged hesitant glances among themselves before responding. Even though they were maidservants of the temple, refusing a prince’s command could mean death right there…

“Yes, we will fetch him.”

We waited for quite a while in that spot. It seemed as if they were deliberately making us wait.

Feeling sorry for Ilias, who was enduring this rudeness because of me, I glanced at him. But he remained impassively gazing into the distance.

His eyes held an emptiness that lacked any emotion, yet I could sense so many feelings within him that my heart ached.

Having read the original story, I knew how much humiliation he had faced and how much more was yet to come.

It pained me to think that someone who simply wanted to create a good country had to endure such suffering.

‘What could he possibly gain after enduring this humiliation?’

From an individual perspective, Ilias had no happiness to gain. For someone who had sacrificed his own happiness, I desperately wanted to see him ascend to the throne. I wanted to live in a world where Ilias was the emperor.

In the distance, I saw the high priest walking slowly toward us.

“Your Highness, it is an honor for you to visit the temple. What brings you here?”

“I’ve come as Adeline’s protector. I’ll be accompanying her for the test today.”

The High Priest looked at me with a troubled expression. As a member of the royal family, Ilias had the right to participate in the divine power test, so there was no problem.

“How long do you plan to keep us standing here?”

Only then did the high priest seem to snap out of his thoughts and lead us to his office.

It was clear that he had finished his preparations long ago, but he must have deliberately made us wait. It seemed like they were trying to make us uncomfortable.

A kind of intimidation, perhaps.

During the long time we waited in the office, the high priest didn’t even offer us a cup of tea. The church was openly disrespecting us.

‘How could they treat a prince, a member of the royal family, like this?’

I shuddered to think how it would have been if I had faced them alone.

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

“The preparations are complete.”

I, Ilias, and the high priest boarded a carriage accompanied by a priest who had come to guide us to the temple.

The divine power test temple was situated on a mountaintop not far from the central temple.

The temple, built grandly with marble at the top of the mountain, was so splendid that it was impossible to gauge the wealth of the church.

As we stepped down from the carriage, two senior priests came out to greet us. After bowing, they spoke in a calm tone.

“Please enter.”

I looked at Ilias with a slightly tense expression, and he smiled gently, taking my hand in his.

To be honest, I was surprised by the sudden physical contact, but I noticed the priests flinching at the sight of us holding hands, so I forced a happy expression, as if we were in love.

It was undoubtedly an act, but strangely, his warmth made me feel reassured, as if it was telling me that everything was fine.

It was a peculiar sensation.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the large, empty corridor until we finally reached the imposing arched doors.

As we approached, the two priests standing in front of us held the doors open from either side.

Upon entering, I saw a relief of the goddess Aria in the center of the wall. The goddess was surrounded by various jewels, elegantly adorning her figure.

In the center stood a marble altar. It seemed likely that this would be the place where I would lie down.

Surrounding the altar were the Pope and nine cardinals standing in a row.

Seeing that the Pope was present made me even more anxious; this truly felt like a significant occasion.

At that moment, one of the cardinals spoke sharply.

“This is a sacred space that cannot be entered by just anyone.”

Ilias replied with an indifferent expression.

“I would like to ask who among those here qualifies as just anyone. Is it you?”

“The prince has come with me as my protector. I believe that if one wishes to, a guardian or member of the royal family can attend the test. This is stated in Chapter 39, Article 8 of the Codex of the Church, so you might want to look it up.”

The cardinals looked at me in shock. The cardinal who had confronted us turned red with embarrassment.

The truth was, this clause had been virtually ignored because everyone wanted to test their sacred power, a power everyone desired.

However, having read all the books, including the Church’s Codex, during my research, I was fully aware of this.

‘Who would have thought I’d actually get to use what I read back then? Knowing your enemy and knowing yourself means you can fight a hundred battles without danger of defeat.’

Feeling the tension in the atmosphere, the Pope stepped in to mediate.

I had seen the Pope before, but it was the first time I was this close. He had wispy white hair and deep wrinkles on his face.

There was a distinct lack of vitality about him.

It seems it’s true that the Pope will soon be replaced.

“Ho ho ho. We have gathered today to learn about the divine powers, not to raise our voices in anger. Let’s all settle down. Adeline Senner, please come this way. The high priest will escort Prince Ilias to the observation seats.”

As the high priest approached, Ilias, undeterred, looked at me with kindness.

“I’ll be watching over you. So don’t worry, Lin.”

“Yeah. As.”

After exchanging glances, we walked to our respective places.

Ilias went to the observation seats, while I headed to the altar.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

In the prayer room on this level, where the altar was clearly visible, Christian was seated.

He had come to the temple early to wait for Adeline’s sacred power test.

Among the ten Cardinals, Christian was the one with the greatest divine power. He was also the one who could most accurately determine the results of the test.

Since this phenomenon had never been seen before, the Pope had asked Christian to perform the test himself, but he had flatly refused.

Christian could not reveal himself to Adeline, not yet.

He intended to confess everything when Adeline returned to the Church and could no longer run away.

To build a connection with Adeline and eliminate her aversion to the Church, Christian had even pretended to be a new priest, putting in a great deal of effort.

Though it was against his nature, he wanted to have her by his side in the way she desired.

Just when he thought the day they could be together was drawing near, rumors of her dating surfaced.

At the sight of those rumors, he could hardly contain his anger and jealousy. He wanted to rush over, kill the mere figure of Prince Ilias, and take Adeline to the temple.

So, he kept his feelings tightly hidden, not wanting to show them to anyone.

Adeline was someone he wanted to be with forever.

According to the ethical code of the Myaria Church, the Pope and the cardinals were not allowed to marry. Therefore, Christian had even devised a plan to change the ethical code when he ascended to the papacy.