“Your saintess. The knights who are to escort you have arrived.”
After continuously looking bored throughout the whole makeover, Evanessa’s expression finally showed some changes.
Tonight was the point from which the writer had begun the main storyline.
Also, outside the door stood the safest male lead in the entire game who Evanessa had been waiting for.
As the one in charge of escorting the Saintess to the banquet, Daniel was waiting for her in a palace garden. . It was a garden with a small fountain inscribed with the moon, Lunium’s emblem. The May roses, centered in the fountain, were in full bloom.
Without realizing, Daniel reached out and touched the engraving of the moon.
‘Saintess Evanessa Halyn’
He used to visit the temple every day with his mother, a faithful believer of Lunium. Among those visits, he could count on his hand the number of times he had seen the saintess. Even then, they were all from a distance.
Daniel tilted his head and muttered, “she seems to be very different compared to the person I heard about.”
“Who is?”
The voice that was suddenly heard from behind him caused the sculpture-watching Daniel’s face to harden. He hadn’t sensed any presence. As the youngest sword master of the Empire and the top of the knights, he should have noticed the signs.
Daniel’s eyes widened as he slowly turned around. He snapped open his lips and asked in a confused tone.
“….Are you the Saintess?”
“Yes. Have you been waiting long?”
“The veil….?”
The pale face revealed under the bright moonlight laughed cynically.
“I took it off. It was frustrating.”
Anyway, she thought there was no need to obey the rules of an unfair temple on the grounds that she was hoping to escape the church.
‘Although that viper-like old man won’t just sit still.’
She would be safe for at least a month in the Imperial Palace. In that time, she needed to somehow make an excuse not to return to the temple.
‘And it’s a waste.’
Evanessa didn’t want to cover up the hard work of the maids who had gotten so excited whilst dressing her up without the veil.
“Then, shall we go?”
Daniel’s eyes shook. Evanessa, who was trying to take the lead, suddenly stopped and turned to Daniel with a serious expression.
“But, where are we supposed to go?”
***
The venue of the Saintess’s welcome ceremony was the Grand Hall located in the Imperial Palace, which was also only opened for the founding day or a birth in the Imperial Family. It was a hall with a grandeur worthy of its name as the best party hall in the Imperial Palace.
In the hall, which was decorated with various flowers and jewels, nobles gathered and chatted. Just below the platform where the Emperor stood, an orchestra performed classical music.
“The young lady from the house of Duke Sagrina has just come back after studying abroad, right?”
Standing in the center of the noble ladies, the person who first spoke up was the wife of a Marquis.
Only
“The Saintess’s welcome party and the timing of her return are exquisitely overlapping.”
“Rumors are circulating that the crown prince’s partner for today is the young Sagrina lady.”
“If it’s the Sagrina family, as a family that has contributed so much to the nation, it would only be appropriate. A much better pairing than that common-born Saintess, no??”
Noble ladies in gorgeous dresses glanced at the entrance of the banquet hall with scorn. However, the ‘true’ protagonist they are waiting for has not yet appeared. The young noblemen who were standing off to the side were also looking at the entrance with interested expressions and frequent glances.
“Did you hear the rumor? They say her face under the veil is grotesque.”
“My father said it was a side effect of treating ‘it’.”
“So, isn’t this farce over? In fact, this isn’t a welcome party for the Saintess, but rather an engagement announcement of Lady Sagrina and Crown Prince.”
At that time, the loud voice of the Chamberlain announced the entrance of the imperial married couple. The classical music was cut off. All the nobles scattered around the hall began politely gathering around the red carpet in the center and prepared to show their courtesy.