What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 31

#031 The Last and Only (3)

A magician?

“Is anyone in there?”

A woman’s voice, unfamiliar, came from outside.

It was hard to tell exactly from just her voice, but she sounded quite old.

I calmly inhaled and deployed the sanctuary again.

The massive golden circle spread out in an instant, reaching far beyond the confessional.

Thanks to the intensified light, Sadie’s young face was even clearer.

“Yes, I’m here. I’m not hearing confessions right now, so what brings you here?”

I replied.

The Imperial Palace was not a place where just anyone could come and go; one had to have proper identification and business. The temple in the Imperial Palace, in particular, was guarded at the main gate by elite knights.

There was no need to be too wary of someone whose identity had been confirmed twice. But…

“I came to make a confession. Ah, there was an ‘Out of Service’ sign. I didn’t see it. Please forgive me.”

I couldn’t tell if she really hadn’t seen it or if she was belatedly making excuses.

The woman’s tone was seemingly earnest, yet somehow light.

She seemed to have released the doorknob after confirming someone was inside, but instead of taking my hand off the door, I turned to look at Sadie.

The little one’s eyes were still sharp.

“It’s alright. The sign is small, so it’s easy to miss. But by any chance, did you use magic in the temple?”

“Oh.”

As I sharpened my tone slightly at the end of my sentence, the woman on the other side of the door muttered, ‘What was I thinking?’

According to Chapter 2 of the , it was clearly stated that using magic inside the temple was disrespectful to the High God.

This was quite an old custom, and it seemed that few magicians followed it these days, but that was the principle, anyway.

“I apologize for that as well. However, it wasn’t intentional. It’s rare for me to go anywhere without using magic. Please forgive me, Prince Yeser.”

So she knew it was me inside. I sighed softly.

“I forgive you. But please be careful in the future.”

“Yes, thank you. Then I’ll sit here and wait.”

“Wait?”

“Since it seems you’re on a break, I’ll wait until you come out and then make my confession.”

So her purpose in visiting really was confession.

-Tap, tap.

For the first time, I heard her footsteps.

She must have approached with magic earlier, which was why there was no sign of her.

The sound of clothes rustling suggested that the woman had taken a seat somewhere in the pew.

I let go of the doorknob and moved towards Sadie.

The boy’s eyes were full of dissatisfaction.

“Sadie, let’s call it a day today.”

I whispered.

“You can’t let that person see you. Come to my room next time you need help.”

“Let’s proceed as is.”

“What?”

“It’s not necessary to hold the sacrament in the confessional.”

The little rascal was spouting nonsense.

He meant that we could leave the woman sitting outside and receive the confession while hiding inside the confessional.

“You mustn’t listen to other people’s confessions carelessly. It’s supposed to be a secret.”

I whispered, trying to dissuade him.

Come to think of it, when I listened to Countess Sarnese’s confession at the spring ball, that prince was standing right next to me.

I suddenly felt like I knew who Sadie took after.

“Sarah Bellial doesn’t deserve such consideration.”

The boy whispered sharply at my words. I was momentarily stunned. Who did he say she was?

“Actually, it’s not really a confession. I just needed a place to vent.”

At that moment, the woman’s voice echoed through the temple.

I swallowed hard and cautiously opened the door of the confessional to peek outside.

A strange, white-haired old woman was sitting in the second row of the pew, staring into space.

Judging by her elegantly styled short hair and luxurious green dress, she was no ordinary person.

Like the priests of the Holy Nation, most of the magicians in the Empire were said to be nobles or royalty.

Moreover, if she was the real ‘Sarah Bellial’…

“My grandson is sick. And I wonder if it’s my fault.”

The woman continued. I hesitated, wondering if I should respond.

She seemed to have started a monologue, so it might be better to stay quiet.

Sadie, who had noticed that it wasn’t a confession, looked at me with a confident expression.

Alright. Listen, listen.

“I named my grandson. Even though he’s a son, I gave him a boy’s name as his middle name.”

I tilted my head. That was certainly not a common thing to do.

What this meant was that, whether they were from the Empire or the Holy Nation, there was a custom of giving middle names a special significance.

When a boy was born, his middle name would be a girl’s name, and when a girl was born, her middle name would be a boy’s name. This was a kind of rule.

This was a tradition that originated from the ancestors of the continent trying to confuse the High God, who was said to be mischievous and fickle, so that he would not take their children back to heaven.

Since this world used foreign names, the distinction between genders was clearer than in Korea.

“Why did I do that…? It was just my whim. The meaning was good, and the name suited my grandson well. I also had some doubts about the superstition that the High God would take the child away. If you say it was foolish of me to do such a thing at my age, I have nothing to say.”

She let out a hollow laugh. I opened the door slightly and sat back down.

“My daughter and son-in-law were also happy with the name. They certainly were, until my grandson collapsed one day and became unconscious.”

The woman’s voice was as dry as a desert.

“It’s a common story. A child gets sick, the parents try to cure the child, but nothing works. Eventually, the blame comes to me.”

The last sentence was mixed with a sigh and was hard to hear.

I had recently encountered a similar story.

The faces of Christel, the protagonist of ‘Duke Taegye,’ and her mother, Isabel de Sarnese, quietly floated up and then disappeared.

“Why did you give him such a middle name? The High God is trying to take the child away because of your mother’s arrogance. I know that half of it isn’t sincere, but when I hear that the other half is definitely sincere… I wondered if this was the High God’s curse that I had only heard about. My grandson is sick, and my family is falling apart because of it.”

From behind, Sadie let out a long breath.

I checked on the child’s condition and listened to her story.

“That’s all. That’s what happened, and that’s why I wanted to tell someone. The rest is up to my daughter, my son-in-law, and me. Whether it’s an incurable disease or a curse, whatever.”

The sound of fabric rustling and shoes tapping could be heard.

When I carefully looked out, the woman was getting up from her seat, preparing to leave.

“Then I’ll be on my way. Thank you for listening to an old woman’s grumbling, Your Highness.”

“Countess Bellial.”

At my call, she stopped abruptly.

A hint of surprise was in her emerald eyes as she turned around.

I looked at her through the crack in the door.

“You know me.”

“It would be harder not to know you.”

I gave a wry smile and cleared my throat.

Sarah Bellial, editor-in-chief of [a popular magazine in the Empire].

A celebrity in the Imperial media world, known as a ‘Holy Nation expert.’

The person who wrote a special article about me last month.

“First of all… I’m very sorry for what happened to your grandson.”

At my words, she nodded slightly.

Even without seeing her up close, I could tell that the old woman’s face was numb with sadness and self-reproach.

“This might sound presumptuous, but I hope you don’t think it’s a curse.”

I spoke carefully.

Even though it was a fictional religion believed by people in a novel, I didn’t want to take lightly the beliefs or views of those who lived their lives diligently every day.

“I recently met someone else who was struggling because of the idea of the ‘High God’s curse.’ I told that person the same thing, that I didn’t believe it was a curse. I’m not just saying that to comfort you. I sincerely believe it.”

“…”

Sadie and I made eye contact. I gave the child a small smile.

“I think the word ‘curse’ has that much power. Once you think it’s a curse, once you listen to such a story, you start to wonder if this is really the High God’s will, and you slowly feel powerless. Even if it’s not true.”

“…”

The boy’s orange eyes stared intently at me.

“Of course, your grandson is actually sick. That’s not a lie, and it’s a fact that won’t be erased in the future. But… if you accept it as a curse, it might be easier to give up. You might feel that it’s the High God’s will, and there’s nothing a person can do.”

I slowly reached out my hand to the little one’s forehead. The skin, which had lost its slight fever, was soft.

A sigh of relief escaped me.

“I hope that you and your family will not give up and continue to fight. Keep trying everything you can.”

I was careful not to stumble over my words.

I knew what a tragedy it was to have a seriously ill person in the family, how the people around them could be frustrated, and how they could gradually recover.

“And I know it’s strange for me to say this… but I think that if someone is going to be blamed, it should be the High God. People who do good deeds with good intentions, people who live their lives earnestly, shouldn’t blame each other.”

It was quiet outside the confessional. It was an overbearing intrusion no matter who heard it.

But her heart was so heavy and dark that she had come all the way here to confide in a prince she didn’t even know.

I couldn’t easily ignore that.

“…Thank you.”

Countess Bellial said to me in a small but clear voice.

Soon, she turned completely around and started walking.

Through the slightly opened door, the old woman’s long shadow could be seen leaving through the main gate.

I slowly looked away.

“…”

“Sadie, you’re fully charged.”

Before I knew it, golden ether particles were floating around the little one’s body as well.

However, the child didn’t even blink at my gesture.

“Why, do you have something to say?”

The gaze staring at me was so clear that it was almost piercing.

I wondered if something else hurt, so I tried to close the open door,

-Thud!

A loud noise came from the side where Sadie was sitting. I was startled and turned my head.

“Huh…”

From the ceiling of the confessor’s seat, the afternoon sunlight streamed in, illuminating me.

The child was already gone.

It was above. Not the floor or the back wall of the confessional, but the ceiling hatch was the little one’s secret passage.

*

And then Monday again.

“You met Countess Sarah Bellial?”

Cardinal Boutier, whom I met after five days, somehow looked a little tired.

I nodded at her question and took a sip of Anischa tea [a fragrant herbal tea].

Christel, who was sitting next to me, was gulping down cold coffee like water.

I hope the group tutoring ends soon…

“She stopped by the temple for a moment.”

“Well, Frederick and Countess Bellial had a meeting on Saturday.”

She smiled faintly.

“The April 15th issue of was almost released as a supplement.”

“A supplement?”

“Yes. On the 15th, Francois announced that he would offer ‘Hyegeom of Mars’ [a powerful artifact] as the prize for the ‘Great Monster Subjugation,’ so that news was left out of the latest issue. It was too late to include the article. So Countess Bellial wanted to add the content as a supplement, and Frederick and I were trying to persuade her not to, which was exhausting.”

My expectations were roughly correct.

The Cardinal seemed to have been working hard for several days to prevent the news about Hyegeom of Mars from spreading more widely.

“Controlling the media isn’t our style, but it was unavoidable because it was related to a divine object.”

I nodded and chewed the spiced bread thoroughly.

In fact, even if media control was the Emperor and Cardinal’s hobby, there was nothing I could do about it.

“But we’re not going to pretend it didn’t happen.”

“You mean…”

“Hyegeom will still be the prize for the Great Monster Subjugation.”

Christel and I widened our eyes.

“And this year, Cedric will participate instead of Frederick and me.”