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Chapter 58
The next day, Elisha came to the temple alone without Olivia. Some knights accompanied her, but no one carrying a weapon could enter the temple, so they had to wait in front of the temple. Only Anne entered the temple with her.
Elisha didn’t wander around the temple and headed straight for her destination without looking around.
The road from the west chapel to the central chapel. This was the road that Aiden took while going to do the prayers at the central chapel.
‘I looked into all the schedules to make it look like an accident.’
Aiden still doubted her sincerity in wanting to help. Elisha was going to try until her heart seemed sincere to him. When she was thinking about how to make it look natural to be there, she saw a flowerpot placed nearby.
The flowerpot was drooping and withered, perhaps because it had not been watered on time.
“It’s a pity…”
Elisha rolled up her dress and squatted in front of the flowerpot. She felt pity for the unknown little flower that bloomed and withered alone.
‘If I give it water right now, won’t it come back to life?’
Elisha raised the withered flower with her hands and called Anne, who was beside her.
“Anne, could you get me some water from the spring near the entrance?”
“Yes, madam.”
Anne immediately disappeared. Elisha, who was watching her, turned her gaze back to the flowerpot, but something strange happened.
“Uh?”
The soil in the pot, which had dried up a while ago, was wet as if it had just absorbed water.
‘It was moist soil from the beginning, did I see it wrong?’
At the time when Elisha was puzzled, she felt a presence nearby. As she turned her head, she saw Aiden approaching her way. Elisha jumped up and smiled at Aiden.
“Hello, Your Holiness.”
“Good afternoon, madam. What did you come here for today?”
Thinking about what happened yesterday, he might not be happy to see her, but Aiden smiled as sweetly as when they first met. Elisha also responded with a smile.
“I have come to pray today.”
“Aha, that’s right.”
Elisa expected Aiden to ask questions like “What prayer did you come to pray for?” However, as he did yesterday, he failed Elisha’s expectations today as well.
“I pray that God will hear madam’s prayer.”
‘Then, I’ll go perform my service. Bye.’ Aiden cut the conversation with a gentle but firm smile, as usual, and passed next to Elisha.
She couldn’t catch him and looked at him with a blank expression.
‘…With that kind face, he can be quite savage.’
Elisha pouted her lips as she looked away from his back, but she was not discouraged.
‘But, Holy Father, I am a person who doesn’t know about giving up.’
If it doesn’t work even after taking 10 shots, it’s okay to shoot eleven times, huh?
Elisha raised her chin and snorted as she looked towards the central chapel where Aiden entered. Then she headed towards the spring where Anne went.
The flower soaked in water from the flowerpot fluttered in the spring breeze as if greeting Elisha.
A few days later, two wagons with the insignia of the Duke of Rubellin stopped in front of the temple. The carriage door opened and Elisha, Anne, and three more maidens of the Duke’s mansion got out.
The maids, including Anne, each carried a paper bag in their arms and followed Elisha into the entrance to the temple. Elisha headed to the east chapel today.
The eastern chapel was where children living in the temple prayed during the day and priests prayed at night. When Elisha arrived at the eastern chapel, the children had finished praying and were leaving the chapel. Elisha approached and stood in front of them.
The children’s eyes, puzzled by the sudden appearance of an outsider, turned to Elisha.
“Guys, would you like to come here and get one of these?”
Elisha pulled out a small envelope from the paper bags the maids were holding. Then she took chocolate out of it and showed it to the children.
Originally, it was forbidden for outsiders to give gifts to children, but permission was obtained in advance from the priest in charge of the children’s education. The children, who were looking at Elisha with wary eyes, widened their eyes at the appearance of chocolate.
Seeing these children, Elisha smiled and handed the chocolates to them.
“I brought it because I wanted to share it with you guys.”
“Why are you giving it to us?
“Um, that’s… Originally, I really liked chocolate, but now my belly hates it, so I can’t eat it. So I think it would be nice if you could eat it instead.”
Elisha said, putting her hand on her stomach, which was still not very visible. Fortunately, the presence of a baby in the womb and sweet treats broke the guard of the children.
However, the older children hardly lifted their guard around Elisha. Rather, they stopped the younger children from approaching her.
‘These children are well educated. They won’t be recklessly scammed or deceived.’
At that time, when Elisha was relieved by the children’s alertness but was still in a difficult situation, she felt someone approaching from the side.
“Duchess of Rubellin?”
Looking back, there was a high-ranking priest who was always by Aiden’s side with Aiden, too not far behind. The priest walked over to Elisha.
“Oh, it must be difficult but you always take precious steps. Besides, you are doing a great favor to the children today.”
“It’s not that great.”
“The intention from the heart is a great thing. Thank you, madam.”
The priest expressed his gratitude to Elisha and called the children together. Rubellin’s maids, in turn, handed out envelopes of snacks to the children in line. The children who received the snack smiled as if loving it.
Elisha, who was looking at the faces of the children, suddenly realized Aiden’s existence and approached him. Before Aiden could even say hello to her, she asked him abruptly.
“Do you not like snacks such as chocolate or sweets?”
“I don’t enjoy eating, but…”
“Then you’re saying you’re going to eat it?”
Without a moment for Aiden to reply, she held out the snack bag.
“Would you like some chocolate?”
At Elisha’s question that was paired with a smile, Aiden could not say no and unexpectedly took the envelope. After giving him a snack, Elisha went back to the children. He glanced at the snack that she had given him. He suddenly remembered what Olivia had said a few days ago while visiting the temple.
“No one can defend this temple on their own.”
“…”
“If you really want to help the temple, I think you need to make some decisions.”
And Elisha’s words.
“Use me, Rubellin’s name.”
Elisha, handing out snack bags to the children, looked genuinely happy. The children gathered around her were also smiling. Aiden stared at her quietly while touching Julia’s necklace around his neck.
The news of her pregnancy, which Elisha revealed at the hunting festival, spread throughout the city in a matter of days.
Christian tried to shut the mouths of the nobles who were present but to no avail. The word leaked no matter how hard he tried, and eventually, everyone in the capital got to know the news.
Of course, that included the Imperial Family.
Even more, the Imperial Family was concerned about the absence of an heir between the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, who had been married for four years. The Emperor was displeased with the news of Elisha’s pregnancy.
Of course, Christian was still young, but since the Duke of Rubellin, who was of a similar age, had first seen a successor, word would come out around the nobles.
Upon hearing the news of Elisha, the Emperor and Empress summoned the Crown Prince and his wife.
“Did you call me, Your Majesty?”
Christian and Rose stood in front of them, observing the eyes of their imperial father and mother, and feeling more uncomfortable than usual.
The Emperor, with a stiff expression on his face, never looked at his son or daughter-in-law. Instead, he just tapped on the armrest of his chair.
Tap, Tap, Tap…
The sound only stimulated Christian and Rose’s anxiety.
The emperor, who had been silent for a long time with only a grim expression on his face, finally stopped his finger.
“The two of you, are you sharing a room?”
“Once a month… at least, we do…”
“Only once?”
In response to Rose’s reply, the Emperor hardened his expression and looked at the Empress next to him. All affairs within the Imperial Family were the responsibility of the Empress.
He silently scolded her for letting things go up to that point.
The Empress, feeling troubled, raised her voice even more and rebuked her son and his wife.
“So, when will we see the heir? You’ve been married for over 4 years already! Someone made a child as soon as they came back from the war.”
At the Empress’s rebuke, Rose bit her lips and lowered her head.
Although the Emperor and the Empress were blaming both Christian and her on the surface, she knew that they were only blaming her inwardly.
It was embarrassing. It was Christian, not her, who refused to join her at night and went outside.
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However, Rose couldn’t point the arrow of resentment towards the Empress or Christian, so that arrow naturally flew in another direction.
‘Elisha, if it wasn’t for that girl.’
Even when she was young, Elisha bothered her, and even when she grew up, she became more annoying. Like a thorn in her side that kept stabbing in deeper.
Then the Emperor opened his mouth as if recalling something.
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