Chapter 14
He wanted to sever the necks of the priests who had rubbed their filth against her body.
He wanted to tear apart and destroy the hands and bodies that had dared to violate her.
But the moment he thought that—
―Ku-woong!
The brand of the High Priest, which had bound his heart since childhood, prevented him from voicing any command.
He couldn’t tell them to let her go now, he couldn’t protect her from them. He felt like pounding the ground in frustration.
So, the only way he could protect her at all was to send her up to his own bath.
To minimize her contact with other priests.
‘It seems you are unfamiliar with the order of tasks.’
Only after saying such insincere words did the brand on his heart barely permit it.
Moreover, he wanted to give her clothes to cover herself, but would that go against the High Priest’s will?
Just making up all sorts of excuses to give her one of his own robes was enough to make his heart feel tight and strained.
Even though he thought he had barely protected her, even giving her a single meal was not easy.
Pretending to pick at his meal in his office, the moment he saw her, he wanted to give her food immediately, but—
―Ku-woong!
Once again, with a pain as if his heart were being wrung, his mouth went numb.
In the end, the only thing left was to give her a meal while subjecting her to undeserved humiliation, and then leave.
“Damn it…”
A voice so small no one could hear it echoed inside his mouth.
When he had planned to bring down this empire and die alone, the curse on his heart didn’t matter.
But now, there was someone to protect.
The High Priest’s brand, which didn’t even allow death, desired only her suffering.
He couldn’t leave her like that. Especially not among priests who harbored nothing but sinister feelings towards her.
So he had to change the plan.
First, remove the brand on his heart.
That’s what he decided.
He was the one who had fought against his brainwashing magic for over a decade, pretending to be consumed by it.
He had gradually learned ways to do what he wanted without incurring the heart’s pain.
In the process, he couldn’t have failed to identify the source of the curse.
He had even found a method to break it.
Using the magic mirror in the High Priest’s secret chamber.
But the problem was that he still hadn’t found a way to enter the secret chamber.
If I don’t know, then I’ll just destroy everything without knowing, he had thought, but not anymore.
He had to find the mirror, the entrance to that room.
But that task didn’t seem like it would be as easy as he wished.
“Your Holiness, it is High Priest Lekia.”
Where had she gone?
Swallowing the words he desperately wanted to say but couldn’t voice due to the brand’s power, the High Priest Lekia visited his office.
The owner of the problematic brand, the one who had turned this temple into hell.
“Come in.”
But if he refused him now, even putting himself aside, he wouldn’t be able to undo her brand either.
By now, in his secret chamber, there would likely be not only the magic mirror connected to him, but also one connected to her—to Delonas.
―Click.
The office door opened, and the unwelcome visage appeared.
This High Priest, with his stylish silver hair swept back and a gentle smile, was known outside as a good-natured, handsome middle-aged priest.
But to Ian, he was nothing but the incarnation of a devil.
“I heard you bestowed divine power upon the Rodain family’s well again today,” he recited, as a greeting, listing Ian’s achievements.
As always, Ian squeezed out a smile.
“Just doing what must be done.”
Having done it for over a decade, that smile was very natural.
Discussion
0 CommentsNo comments yet.