Chapter 08
The preparation for the prayer meeting went smoothly. It was only natural since the biggest obstacle to the preparation of the prayer meeting was only the Saintess. Since the person who should have stepped forward to check and take care of the event did not come out of her room with all the work out of her hands, the priests seemed to have been very burned out.
“And so God says, during your most difficult times… Are you alright, Saintess?”
The priest, who was reading the prayer in front of me, looked at my face and asked me carefully. I knew why she did that.
‘If it was Yvelina, she would have left, saying that she’s bored.’
In Yvelina’s memory, there was a prayer meeting last year. The number of prayers that the Saintess must read at the two-day event is enormous. Last year, while reviewing the prayer, Yvelina said she was tired on the way and went back to her room. Then she refused to return, saying she would no longer do it. It was only natural that the priests went wild.
‘But last year was already over, so I’d just passed over the memory somehow but….’
This year, Yvelina did not even start reviewing the prayers. Therefore, the priests seemed to be worried that the Saintess would change her mood again and say they would not do it anymore like last year.
“If you’re tired, shall we take a break and proceed later?”
The priest, who was looking at my face, asked me again with a teary face. I nodded slightly at the priest’s question. Then the priest quickly rang the bell and called out the laymen to wait on her. Then he ordered refreshments to be prepared.
“Please make yourself at home until the refreshments are ready. I’ll be right back.”
Was he afraid that the Saintess would find fault with anything while he was here? The priest, who was reviewing the prayers, said that and hurriedly went out.
Thinking it was okay, I leaned against the sofa behind me and closed my eyes.
‘I can’t deny that I’m tired.’
Preparations are going smoothly. It was like saying that it was going on at a crazy pace. My daily routine is tightly organized in chronological order. None of them were unimportant. Among them, checking this prayer was the most important thing.
‘I was so dumbfounded when they said that I have to memorize all these prayers at first.’
When I first saw the thickness of the paper stacked on the desk, I bluntly looked at the priests and the papers alternately with a blank face. It was by no means the amount that a person could memorize within two weeks. No, what two weeks? There are less than 10 days left to actually prepare.
The priests also bowed their heads, asking me to do as much as possible with a small voice, even if they knew it was near impossible. However, while reviewing the prayers, there was something new I learned.
‘Yvelina memorized more than I thought.’
When I first heard that I had to memorize all of them, I wondered if I could hold out pretending to be Yvelina. But when I began to read the prayer that the priest had brought, I felt amazed. Prayers that were supposed to be unfamiliar were read smoothly.
It didn’t end with just reading the text. Yvelina’s body apparently remembered most of those prayers. So the preparation was done quickly.
‘When on earth did you memorize all of these?’
I remembered Yvelina’s old memory. Yvelina’s body in my memory was very small. And the priests around her seemed strangely large. I think it was a memory when she was very young. In that memory, Yvelina sat at her desk all day writing prayers.
‘Did you memorize everything starting from an early age that’s why your body still remembers?’
It was written in the book that Yvelina entered the temple at quite a young age and held a succession ceremony. Perhaps at that time, she steadily fulfilled her duties as a Saintess and took lessons. Anyway, when I was thinking that I was fortunate, I heard a loud noise over the door.
“I must see the Saintess!”
It was a familiar voice. And it was also a very unpleasant voice. Soon the priests called me with a rush of knocking on the door.
“Saintess, Priest Carus is asking for an audience.”
I wondered if I should send him back as it is. But I soon shook my head. It occurred to me that if I did not meet that Priest Carus now, it would cause a bigger problem later.
“Tell him to come in.”
“Yes, Saintess. Priest… Agh!”
The moment the voice of the layman from outside was cut off, the door opened violently. Soon afterward, Priest Carus came into the room with a thud. The other priests tried to come in after him.
“I ask everyone to go out.”
“But Saintess….”
“Immediately.”
The other priests did not know what to do in response to the firm order, but after some deliberation, they withdrew saying to call for them if I needed anything. When the priests disappeared, Carus immediately screamed.
“How could you do this to me?!”
His face frowned at his shout.
‘Rude.’
I had that thought unknowingly. Carus is a senior priest. Although he may have a high position in the Great Temple, he was never in a position to dare shout at the Saintess. As expected, this man should be thrown out as soon as possible.
“What are you talking about?”
As I was wondering how I could throw this Priest Carus away, his face distorted.
“Are you really asking because you don’t know? Didn’t you assign another person seated in the empty high priest’s position at this prayer meeting?!”
It was as he said. I appointed a high-ranking priest other than Carus to the position of the high priest who is currently unable to work in the temple due to his old age. I didn’t just pick anyone. I searched Yvelina’s memory and found a high priest who had constantly advised her. And even though Yvelina openly ignored him and kicked him out to the corner of the Great Temple, it was a priest that never gave up and instead sent letters to Yvelina every day.
The other priests around me were surprised when I appointed him as the substitute for the high priest. Their ‘this can’t be possible’ expressions showed that I had done my job properly. Everybody would have made that face because it was an appointment that Yvelina would never have done. Perhaps if Yvelina’s soul was still in her body, she would surely have appointed Carus as the substitute high priest.
‘The book clearly said that the appointment of the priest, who was incapable of holding the prayer meeting, ended up as the worst prayer meeting ever.’
That was not the only thing I did while preparing for the prayer meeting. I also changed all the people Yvelina had chosen before. Just in case, I met them before making the final change, but I could see that they were all ineligible without having to search Yvelina’s memories. Because when I went to see them, they were all drunk in their rooms in the temple.
‘How the hell did Yvelina choose, that she appointed only the worst kind of people?’
It’s as if she was deliberately determined to ruin the prayer meeting.
“Are you listening to me?!”
No, I wasn’t listening.
But I couldn’t say that, so I just nodded. Carus raised his voice even more at my attitude.
“You can’t do this to me! You know better than anyone how hard I’ve worked for the things you’ve asked me secretly!”
With such a loud voice, the requests seemed to be no longer secret requests.
“High Priest Carus. I recall that I told you last time to not bring them in anymore.”
“But.…”
“But instead you ignored my words and brought someone from the outside as you please. And that person… have done a great disrespect to me.”
I didn’t want to say that that man tried to force me and attacked me because I was disgusted. As if noticing that my voice is getting stronger, Carus pursed his lips.
“You… I remember all the efforts you’ve made for me.”
Bringing the men and pushing them into Yvelina’s bed is an effort. If I could, I would like to imprison Carus in the dungeon right away, but I couldn’t. After all, it is true that Yvelina had spent many promiscuous nights with unfamiliar men in the past in collaboration with Carus. It’s not something that can be erased by trying from now on.
‘In that case, I should handle it as quietly as possible.’
Of course, I was intending to deal with Carus. But as quietly as I could, I was even willing to pay a great price to keep his mouth shut, at least until Iris appeared.
I ordered Carus, who couldn’t hold his anger and was continuously screaming.
“Priest Carus, pick up any piece of paper on the table.”
“What useless….”
“Don’t make me say it twice. I don’t have the patience for you anymore.”
Even if I didn’t try very hard, a cold voice naturally came out. As if he had noticed the change, he simply followed my instructions. Seeing him pick up the paper, I ordered.
“Read the first line.”
“What useless… God looked down at this land, and soon the suffering of men that was overflowing everywhere….”
As he read that far, I got up and grabbed the paper in his hand. Then I turned it on its back.
“Now tell me what’s after that.”
“What are you talking about? How will I know if I don’t look?”
“Priest Carus. Written on that piece of paper is the prayer that will be used in the ceremony of the prayer meeting. It should be memorized not only by me as the Saintess but also by the high priest who will assist me. However….”
I looked at the desk. Dozens of prayers were there.
“Do you have any prayers here that you have already memorized from start to finish?”
“······.”
Carus couldn’t answer. There was nothing that he had memorized. He bowed his head. I could see his shoulders trembling as if he had no intention of hiding his anger.
“I will not turn a blind eye for all the help that you’ve given me. So, as soon as possible, as to not disappoint you….”
“No need.”
Suddenly, papers scattered in my sight. Carus threw the paper on the desk on the floor. And his eyes, glaring at me, were red with a burst of blood. He gritted his teeth with eerie eyes.
“You’ll definitely regret that you didn’t choose me, Saintess.”
Carus said so and immediately went out. The priests standing in front of the door were surprised by the sudden burst of the door, but he stomped away without even looking back.
I looked at his back quietly and bent down. I thought it would be better to clean up the paper that fell on the floor before the other priests came in and made a fuss.
‘I’m wrong to think of cleaning it up quietly.’
I tried to give Carus adequate fortune and send him away, but he seemed to have much greater ambition than I thought.
As I was cleaning the papers, a piece of paper with no prayers on it came into my eyes.
“This….”
It was a document on the security issue of the prayer meeting. It said that Latban was excluded from the personal security of the Saintess; and that he was to take over the entire administration of the prayer meeting.
‘Although I knew this would happen….’
Of course, I knew that Latban would not be a part of the Saintess’ security personnel. After all, isn’t it rather strange for him to stand by Yvelina as if nothing had happened? I insulted him and there was an awkward situation in the back garden last time. He took the man who crashed into the tree without asking, which means he knows how and for what purpose the man entered the temple.
Still, I felt somehow dejected.
No matter how hard you try from now on, the future won’t change.
When suddenly, I heard a whisper saying those words.