Chapter 8.1 – Virgin Test
Sean wore a strange expression, but since he was standing behind Valia, she didn’t see it. His master wasn’t one to sincerely take to such sentiments to heart matter how good he judged it to be.
The Great Holy Priest stared wordlessly at Valia for a moment. A moment later, he replied with a sigh. “I understand. Then let’s just pretend this blessing never existed.”
Valia felt both sorry and grateful at the same time. Whether it was on purpose or not, it was the Great Holy Priest who wanted to give a blessing to her.
“However,” he continued, “even though the body of the Great Holy Priest may be lacking, it is considered irreverent not to accept the blessing given by God. So I would like to impart on you another blessing.”
“What kind of blessing?” Valia asked curiously.
“It is a blessing for your happiness.”
A priest could not offer an entirely different blessing than what he already offered. It was a kind of limitation. Valia nodded. The Great Holy Priest stood up from his seat, and his warm hand touched her forehead.
“Congratulations on your marriage. May you be happy.”
***
“She lost her father early,” Shuden murmured.
“Yes, Your Excellency. She has no other relatives either,” his subordinate added.
“That’s understandable.”
Shuden flipped through the documents. Since he was going to marry Valia, he decided to get acquainted with her. Normally one would get to know another potential love prospect by going on dates, exchanging love letters and the like, but for Shuden, ‘getting to know someone’ was done by background checks and collection of relevant information.
There wasn’t any information in particular that he needed to find out about Valia. She really was an ordinary fallen aristocrat. However, there was one curious detail that stood out to him—the person who raised her.
“She was raised by a mercenary?” Shuden noted.
“Yes,” the subordinate replied. “He is a commoner with no surname who became a mercenary. It is reported that he saved the life of the Lady’s father, and they became bonded.”
“Where is the mercenary now?”
“He’s a mercenary with a life in the kingdom.”
“Are there any signs of contact made with the temple or the Imperial Household?” Shuden asked.
“None. However, I believe if I investigate in more detail, I will be able to find out accurately.”
“Assign someone to it. If anything happens to her safety, report it right away,” Shuden instructed.
“Understood, Your Excellency.”
The subordinate bowed his head and carefully left the room. Now alone, Shuden flipped through the remaining documents. An aristocratic lady raised by a mercenary. It was a memorable detail, like a red dot stamped on colorless paper.
‘It’s an unusual upbringing in many ways.’
Most nobles would find it shocking for a young lady to be raised by a mercenary, but Shuden was not most nobles. Rather, he had a positive view about the mercenary who would have influenced her. At the very least, she wouldn’t be weak.
Shuden had never been fond of the miserable and pitiable beauty. They tended to vent their loneliness to him. Since he wasn’t the gentle type, he couldn’t fulfill their expectations. Well, he never thought their problems were worth crying and bawling over anyway.
Shuden was sick of it. Your own loneliness was ultimately your own. The moment you forced others to deal with it, the relationship between the two parties would break down quickly, even if you didn’t intend to have a deep relationship. The look in Valia’s silver-grey eyes played a part in Shuden’s decision to marry her.
‘She’s not too bad.’
After considering all the factors, she seemed a decent bride. He was perusing through the documents a few times more when there was a knock on the door. It opened, and a butler stepped through.
“Your Excellency, Marquis Logan has sent someone.”
“Tell them I’ll be there,” Shuden replied briefly, then stored away the documents in a drawer.
***
Shuden arrived at a high-class bar located in the capital city. The newly-opened bar catered to nobles and was owned by Marquis Logan. The Marquis was a successful businessman in foreign trade, and he and Shuden were business partners. Marquis Logan would usually send someone to Shuden. They would often see each other due to business, so there was no need to light a candle or send formal requests during visits.
Shortly after Shuden entered the bar, he quickly found himself at the center of attention. The nobles who recognized him hurriedly pretended to be familiar with him.
“Is that you, Your Excellency?”
“Have you been well all this while?”
Shuden greeted the owner, Marquis Logan, and accepted a glass of vintage wine in one hand. He found that conversation that took place here was dull, and despite the clear disinterest in his demeanor, many nobles tried hard to put in a good word with him. Shuden accepted it in moderation and looked around.
The bar was aimed at young nobles, and the decadent interior was far different from the usual dance ball. The walls were of polished dark marble, and the selection of spirits was of high quality wines. The most unique aspect of the place were the card tables, where a light card game could be enjoyed by the nobles who were bored. People here were less bound by formalities, and there were many nobles who naturally drank themselves stiff.