What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 12

#012 Little Guest (2)

“I am… hearing confessions. I’m a priest.”

His intense gaze made me feel like I had to answer honestly.

It’s not like I’m scared of a kid.

“Doing things you weren’t asked to do.”

The boy retorted sharply. I was taken aback by his unfamiliar attitude and reacted slowly.

What kind of manners are these, speaking informally to an adult you’ve just met?

No, that’s not the issue right now.

‘If you need anything or if there’s an emergency, pull the cord on the left.’

I remembered Elizabeth’s words and reached for the left side.

“If you’re not feeling well, I’ll call a royal physician. Just wait a mo-…”

-Thwack!

-Slice!

Goosebumps ran from the top of my head to my toes.

Instinctively, I moved my body away and slowly turned my head to see a sharp dagger that had narrowly missed my cheek.

The sharp dagger had cut the end of the cord on the left and was embedded in the wall of the confessional.

The severed tassel lay on the floor. My face quickly turned towards the boy.

The wooden window was pierced by the knife.

“Hah…”

“No funny business.”

He probably wanted to say not to play tricks.

But the boy’s sentence was cut short and scattered.

Thud, something fell.

“Just a moment, I’ll be right there. I won’t call anyone else.”

Even in my confusion, I picked up the tassel from the floor and stuffed it into my round sleeve.

Opening the door of the confessional, I saw a knight pushing open the main gate of the temple in the distance and greeting me.

“Your Highness, we are about to bring in the next confessor.”

“Just a moment. I wanted to see what this compartment looks like.”

I just threw out some random words.

Understanding that I wanted to rest, the knight bowed again, closed the door, and left.

That would buy me at least 10 minutes.

“I’m coming in. I won’t do anything.”

After muttering quietly outside the confessional, I quickly opened the door to the next compartment.

The little boy lying on the floor immediately caught my eye.

I knelt down and carefully checked on the child’s condition.

Before that, I didn’t forget to close the door.

“Little one, you’re sweating cold.”

“Keuk…”

I knew it wasn’t smart to worry about an unidentified boy who I didn’t know where he came from or how he got in.

I almost died a few days ago at the hands of young punks, so I couldn’t let my guard down just because the opponent was a child.

But still.

“Don’t you have a fever?”

Since he couldn’t harm me while the sanctuary was open.

“Don’t touch me.”

The boy retorted sharply, swatting my arm away.

The little one’s orange eyes were burning brightly. He must be about seven years old.

The boy was much younger than Ganael or the other attendants.

Wrapped in a black robe as big as a blanket, he trembled and pushed me away like a small animal.

“How did you get in here? How are you going to leave? I’ll help you.”

“Hyung?” [Korean term for older brother, used by males]

This brat, he just mocked me, didn’t he? I was annoyed even as I felt worried.

“Okay, I’ll help you, mister. You’ll get worse if you stay here.”

The floor is hard and cold, I added.

I raised both arms next to my head so the boy could see my movements, and slowly reached out.

The child didn’t move this time, but stared straight at me.

“…You know nothing.”

“I’ve been found out. Will you keep it a secret from the others?”

I gave a wry smile and placed my hand on the child’s forehead. It was as hot as a furnace.

“I should have brought some over-the-counter medicine.”

Confession is a job where you meet a lot of people, but I didn’t think there would be patients among them.

I wondered if I should ask Benjamin for something simple like a fever reducer or digestive medicine.

“Keep what you saw today to yourself.”

“What?”

A young but firm voice cut through my thoughts. The boy grabbed my wrist with a thud.

I felt like the ground was sinking beneath my feet.

“Uh…?”

My vision spun. The world swirled and my vision blurred.

I saw my circle, which had been lit like indirect lighting, slowly fading.

“What are you doing…?”

No answer came.

The boy’s jet-black hair and orange eyes blurred into black and red.

As the sanctuary completely disappeared, my consciousness also faded away.

*

People say they feel déjà vu when they experience something they’ve experienced before.

“Hello, Your Highness. This is the second time we’ve met like this.”

Then what should I say when I experience the same thing for the third time?

Sejá vu? [A play on words, combining ‘see’ and ‘déjà vu’]

“But you woke up in just one day this time. Your divine power seems to have grown in the meantime.”

Cardinal Aurelie Boutier smiled gently, looking impressed.

I stared blankly at her, then quickly came to my senses and got up.

Familiar furniture and ornate wallpaper filled my view. My room, my bedroom.

“…I greet Your Eminence, the most noble Cardinal.”

“Yes, welcome.”

“Did I collapse at the temple?”

“It is my fault. I am sorry, Your Highness.”

A familiar voice came from the other side.

To the left of the bed, I saw Elizabeth with a dark face and Ganael, who was pale.

“No, it’s not Elizabeth’s fault. Ganael, I’m fine.”

I tried to smile.

Please, let this be the last time I experience lying down in one place and waking up in another.

And all three times, it wasn’t even what I wanted.

“You lost consciousness due to ether depletion. It seems you were really listening to confessions diligently.”

“Ether depletion?”

I turned my head to the right of the bed again. The Cardinal began to explain gently.

“If the rate at which ether flows out of your body is faster than the rate at which it is naturally generated, you will experience a shock due to depletion.”

“…”

“Think of it as the opposite of the ether runaway you experienced last time. That’s when the ether generation rate becomes excessively fast, causing shock to the body.”

After finishing her words, she slowly lifted her teacup and brought it to her lips.

My head, which had just woken up, was spinning to sort out the situation.

“Is ether depletion usually so sudden?”

Her elegant brow furrowed slightly at my question.

She also seemed somewhat troubled.

“Until right before I collapsed, my ether flow was fine. There were no abnormal symptoms at all, but out of nowhere…”

I trailed off. Jet-black hair and orange eyes.

The face of a boy with distinct features flashed through my mind like a slideshow.

“When you found me, was there anyone around?”

“No, no one was there because no confessors had been brought in yet.”

Elizabeth’s answer made me close my mouth involuntarily.

The last words I heard stuck to my ear and wouldn’t fall off.

‘Keep what you saw today to yourself.’

Why did he give such a warning? Was he a runaway? Did he commit a crime?

He was too young for that.

Even if that were the case, it was strange for someone who committed a crime and ran away to hide in the imperial palace’s temple.

Usually, wouldn’t they try to get as far away from the imperial palace as possible?

“Your Highness, should I call a royal physician?”

Ganael gently grabbed my arm.

He seemed worried because I had suddenly become quiet.

“No, Her Eminence took good care of me, so I’m fine. I was just thinking about something else.”

I answered as brightly as possible.

Looking into Ganael’s young honey-colored eyes, I was reminded of the resolute gaze of the little boy who had grabbed my wrist.

Suddenly, a hypothesis flashed in my mind.

“Your Eminence, is it possible to extract ether from another person’s body?”

“…”

“As you know, I haven’t been educated in this area. I’ve been studying books diligently these days, but…”

“It’s possible.”

She answered my question in a low voice.

“Priests and paladins can exchange ether through physical contact. You can also exchange by opening a circle, but touching the skin is the most efficient.”

“…I see.”

I just nodded slightly as if it were a light curiosity.

But inside, things started to turn as complicated as clockwork.

It was that child. I knew it instinctively.

The sudden dizziness that overwhelmed me, and the dizzying sensation of my body falling underground.

It was all because that impudent little thief grabbed my wrist and stole my ether.

Why? Did he need ether? I recalled the child’s extremely unstable condition.

Could it be that the fever and cold sweats were symptoms of ether depletion?

Then maybe that child also….

“It’s an old custom that was practiced during the war era… These days, it rarely happens. There’s no reason to need a large amount of ether.”

It was Elizabeth who interrupted my train of thought. The face of the woman who turned around was strange.

Her chaotic, swaying gray eyes seemed to flash with anger.

I nodded for now.

“Then, is there anyone in the imperial palace besides me and Her Eminence the Cardinal…?”

-Knock knock

“Come in.”

Cardinal Boutier responded quickly to the knock.

My question, ‘Are there any other priests in the imperial palace besides me and the Cardinal,’ was cut off.

“Your Highness, you’re awake.”

Benjamin, who opened the door and came in, was noticeably relieved when he saw me.

I smiled and made eye contact.

“His Highness Prince Cedric has gifted you with precious tea leaves.”

On the silver tray that Benjamin held with both hands, there was a gorgeously crafted wooden box.

“What’s with the tea leaves?”

When I asked, he came closer and slowly opened the box.

Inside, there were dried leaves piled up, and the pungent aroma that spread subtly wasn’t bad.

“It’s sage tea, which is good for your health. He said he couldn’t come to visit you, so he sent it instead.”

“Really? That’s very kind of him.”

I replied without any soul. What’s up with that guy?

Elizabeth seemed to be muttering something next to me, but I couldn’t hear her properly.

The Cardinal was tired and sighed deeply.

*

In the end, I came back to the temple again.

“Are you really going to be okay, Your Highness?”

“I’ve rested well for a day, so I’m fine. Don’t worry too much.”

“Your Highness, here’s the sign.”

I soothed Benjamin and received the item that Ganael had prepared in advance.

It was a wooden sign with ‘Confessions available’ on the front and ‘Priest is absent’ on the back, which I had commissioned yesterday while rolling around in bed.

The imperial palace carpenters must have received such an order for the first time.

“Then I’ll go in. I won’t overdo it.”

At my words, Benjamin finally relaxed his expression a little.

After I collapsed in the temple yesterday due to ether depletion, Cardinal Boutier canceled all of my scheduled confession sessions.

She took the position that doing three hours of confession a day was not good for my ether flow as well as maintaining order in the imperial palace.

I couldn’t argue with her opinion after regaining consciousness, so I accepted it.

Those who had received a number and were waiting that day were far from being disappointed, and they were so worried that I might be in trouble that they loitered in front of the Juliette Palace until the next day.

So I declared that I would come and receive confessions whenever I was comfortable, without setting a time.

Instead, I decided to prepare a sign so that anyone who came to the temple could recognize it.

Since it was a great excuse not to go to the ball, I couldn’t give up the confession itself.

“We’ll be in the priest’s office.”

Benjamin took Ganael and retreated.

Behind the temple, there was a space where priests prepared for or rested during confessions, and it seemed they would wait for me there.

I looked at the backs of the two people, and when they had completely disappeared, I hung the sign on the doorknob of the confessional.

‘Priest is absent’

No confessors would come in this way.

I pursed my lips and put my body inside the confessional.

I intended to wait for that damn brat all day.

It can’t be helped if he doesn’t come, but his attitude back then….

He didn’t seem like someone who visited this place for the first time. It was clear that there was a secret passage he used to come and go.

If I spread out the circle [magical barrier], I won’t get hurt, and if I avoid contact, I won’t faint.

I don’t know what kind of kid he is, but I couldn’t just stand by and watch a guy who only comes up to Eunseo’s waist wandering around the imperial palace while being sick.