I Will Not Fall For the Villain’s Flirtations - Chapter 93

“Sister seems a bit crazy.”

“Why would I be crazy?”

“I mean you’re amazing. Monsters and the black lake, it’s no joke.”

I awkwardly smiled and gave a hollow thanks to McBennan, who was speaking in a way only younger people would understand. He then nudged me with his elbow, grinning.

“When I told my uncle that I met you at the royal palace before, he thought there was something between us and said he wouldn’t oppose it. I was trying to earn points for you, but it seems you’ve already earned a lot with this incident.”

“That’s a relief.”

Not only did we deal with the monsters as planned, but we also purified the black lake, so that much was expected. Though I didn’t think it would be enough for him to allow a connection with his nephew.

My abilities must have been beyond imagination. Cardinal Hameron, who witnessed the purification of the black lake up close, was dazed all day.

“So, what are we?”

“People who coincidentally met twice.”

When I coldly retorted to McBennan’s sly flirting, he pouted his lips.

“You’re really heartless.”

The young man, grumbling loudly enough for me to hear, tore the bread served as an appetizer and put it in his mouth. I chuckled and sipped a small amount of wine.

The temple of Yetvan was in a festive mood for the first time in a while. It was only natural after solving a series of major incidents.

We talked about various things, and I even received compliments about how having a reliable future Great Saint meant we could withstand any disaster. I spent the rest of the evening matching the mood of the priests who approached me with satisfied expressions.

After finishing the meal, I used the excuse of being tired to leave immediately. It wasn’t entirely a lie, but it wasn’t the real reason either.

“Please take me to the Cambriter Forest.”

Instead of returning to my lodging, I took a carriage to the hunting ground I had visited in the morning. I sat down in front of the pond that had been the black lake until the morning and stared blankly ahead. Due to the darkness, I had to keep a light spell active to see my surroundings.

While I was idly watching the pond for a while, I suddenly heard the sound of someone stepping on grass and a familiar voice echoed.

“What are you doing in such a secluded place? Aren’t you scared?”

A sly voice, as if waiting for this moment, made me chuckle lightly. He never failed to meet my expectations.

The truth was, meeting this man was part of the reason. I was secretly sure that he would be watching me from somewhere.

“With a mage who follows me around to the point of boredom, not really.”

“Is that mage any good?”

“He’s good, but he’s also the most dangerous.”

“Oh, really? Maybe because he’s too handsome?”

“……”

I glared at him in disbelief at the absurd joke. But facing his features, which looked even more enchanting under the light spell, I couldn’t help but surrender.

Yes, you are indeed very handsome.

“To be honest, that might be part of the reason.”

“……”

Keene seemed somewhat taken aback, as if he didn’t expect me to agree. He stared at me blankly for a moment, blinking, then quickly gathered himself and asked playfully.

“Isn’t it a good thing to have a handsome and capable mage following you around? How could someone like that be dangerous?”

“……”

“Or maybe…”

He half-lowered his eyes and smiled softly.

“Are you wavering?”

“……”

When I did not respond for a long time, the smile slowly faded from his lips. His face turned more serious, and his deep eyes fully took me in. Eventually, a low voice called my name.

“Du.”

“It’s you, isn’t it?”

However, I cut off the question before it could lead to another blow. When he stared at me, asking what I meant, I pointed to the pond with a glance and spoke.

“The monsters. Aren’t you the one who summoned them?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you do it?”

A question not expecting an answer. Asking what I already knew.

“To help me?”

“I didn’t expect you to handle it so cleverly, Du.”

Although he didn’t directly confirm it, it didn’t matter. The answer was already determined.

“Since you solved it so brilliantly, Mr Hameron must be completely taken with you, Du.”

“He didn’t say much.”

“He’s the type to talk less the more he likes someone. That’s why he used to be so chatty around me.”

“……”

It wasn’t hard to guess what kind of reputation he had at the temple when he was younger. But he probably wasn’t hated much until he completely turned his back on the temple.

Because he’s that kind of person. Even after all the things I went through and the harsh times I had, in the end, I can face you like this without any trouble.

“Why did you help me?”

“Because you want to become the Great Saint, Du.”

“What help would it be to you if I become the Great Saint?”

Keene chuckled, resting his chin on his elbow placed on his knee.

“Well, it wouldn’t be much help. Especially with Pedi being the next Guardian.”

“……”

“Even so, if you ask why I helped you.”

As if he had guessed my thoughts, he continued.

“Because I like you.”

“……”

“I can’t find any other reason right now.”

His violet eyes, filled with a serious air, calmly looked at me. Having erased his playful smile, he seemed to be waiting for my answer, as if he had shown all his cards.

After maintaining silence for a while, I looked at the rippling waves of the pond swaying in the wind. When did this ordinary pond turn into a black lake?

“Did you mean it when you said you’d leave the Magic Tower?”

I felt his gaze touch me from the side. Before I heard his answer to my quiet question, I asked again as if to confirm.

“For my sake, would you really leave the Magic Tower?”

Suddenly, I had this thought.

If I could become the Great Saint and change the course of the original story, could I also alter the fate of the original antagonist? If I could write a story where others, not Primis Starring and Peidos Carmel, are the protagonists.

“I’ll hear your answer after I become the Great Saint.”

“……”

This was the maximum courage and bravado I could muster. Perhaps it was the wine from the banquet giving me this boldness.

But even I didn’t know what I hoped to find at the end of this precarious tightrope walk.

* * *

With the teleportation circle of the Yetvan Temple broken, to return to the Grand Temple, we had to take a carriage to Plua and use the circle there. The priests of Yetvan, faced with this inconvenient situation, showed embarrassed faces.

“Ha ha, it’s still not fixed, how troublesome…”

I had a pretty good idea why the normally functioning circle had started malfunctioning since yesterday.

It must have been Keene. He must have done something to prevent summoning forces that could easily solve the monster issue. The timing was too perfect to be a mere coincidence.

But just as we were loading a few clothes and belongings onto the carriage, a loud scream suddenly erupted.

“Let go! Let go of me!”

Startled, I turned around to see a young girl and a woman, presumably her mother, struggling with the temple knights. At the sight of the escalating struggle, I quickly moved toward them.

“What’s going on here?”

Seeing me in my priestly robes, the mother and daughter clung to me desperately, pleading.

“Priest, please listen to us. These people are trying to throw us out without hearing us.”

“Priest, don’t listen to them. They come here every day causing trouble.”

“Causing trouble? You’re the ones who accused us of lying.”

The woman shouted in a high-pitched voice, looking extremely aggrieved. Wanting to hear their story first, I asked for their situation. Unexpectedly, their story was quite familiar to me.

“My daughter is a Stella. But last year, she suddenly lost her holy power and was removed from temple service.”

“She suddenly lost her holy power?”

My eyes widened at the situation similar to Hemosi’s. My intuition told me that this case might not be a mere measurement error either.

“Yes. Here’s the certificate we received. The temple claims they mismeasured and that she was never Stella, but my daughter has learned simple healing magic from gypsies. She even got fined for it. How could it be an error? Right?”

Stella learning magic outside the temple or officially sanctioned academies is strictly forbidden. It’s considered a potential misuse.

Given her history of being fined, it was hard to believe it was a mismeasurement, as she needed a certain level of holy power to perform healing magic.

“These people’s argument isn’t without merit, but we measured her three more times. The results were always the same. This girl is definitely not a Stella.”

One of the temple knights argued, looking equally aggrieved. Having experienced Hemosi’s case, I understood both sides.

Deep in thought, I asked the mother and daughter, just in case.