Chapter 60
However, the Grand Duke of Lukwell—one of the wealthiest and most powerful men on the continent—was Impellias’s greatest patron, and an indispensable ally for Ragnar.
Both the Grand Duke and Daphne, the flawlessly admired noble lady, were necessary for Ragnar’s path.
Above all, Ragnar had never once broken his vow of chastity made upon becoming a holy knight—to dedicate his body solely to the god.
Now that she had just come of age, Theogrim was the more fitting match for her.
“You must be at the age where you’ve matured now, Grand Duchess.”
“Yes. That’s why I no longer blindly chase after you.”
Daphne’s eyes narrowed gently.
No longer a child, Daphne was the one who, to stay by Ragnar’s side as he stubbornly pushed her away, had even gone so far as to become engaged to his successor.
“To become a partner worthy of you, I have a successor who endures harsh prayers even today.”
Ragnar slowly opened his mouth.
Still firm like a wall, yet not overly distant—the moderate space he maintained only made him feel colder.
“If my successor were to see this, he would be saddened.”
“…Would that really be for my sake?”
“It is the path for all children of the god—so, of course, it is for your sake as well, Daphne.”
Ragnar faintly lifted his lips.
“But even if my heart belongs to you, Theogrim won’t be saddened. Because both you and your Del Rose only care about the glory of Impellias. Just look now. All we did at the banquet was exchange glances. Then he vanished, leaving my escort to you.”
“……”
“Since I got engaged to Theogrim because I love you, wouldn’t he be pleased?”
“…You’ve grown quite the thorns in your words since I last saw you, Lady.”
“That’s what it means to grow up. Let’s stop and talk about something pleasant, Ragnar.”
Daphne lightly turned her body as she withdrew her hand from his chest.
In accordance with the laws of Impellias, her dress, adorned with minimal decoration, instead emphasized the elegance and luxury of the fabric all the more.
Like a butterfly, Daphne softly perched on the terrace railing, and her gaze once again turned toward the territory of Rosenburg.
It was a city silenced under Ragnar’s hand, a place where pleasure had been castrated.
“When I said your domain is splendid, I wasn’t being sarcastic. It truly resembles you.”
“……”
“I want to hear about your great moment.”
“You must’ve grown up hearing that story until you were sick of it.”
“It’s different when hearing it from you directly.”
Before it bore the name of Ragnar’s castle—Rosenburg—this place was where fairies had been massacred.
The blood of the fairies seeped into the earth and tainted the land.
After the Great Famine, when the people first held a seasonal festival with the crops they harvested, they died vomiting blood from eating the fruit and grain.
It was this great holy knight, Ragnar, chosen by the god, who rebuilt the land cursed and diseased by the fairies and restored it with divine power.
“I actually saw a fairy.”
Daphne lowered her voice as if whispering a secret. Ragnar’s brow twitched.
In the Church of Impellias, fairies were unconditionally to be eradicated.
Fairy trade was also strictly forbidden.
However, Impellias had not yet become the state religion, and regarding fairies traded beyond their territory, he could not interfere.
“That’s a dangerous story.”
“I’m only telling the truth. Have you ever seen a fairy?”
“Only on the rack.”
The fairies that fell into the hands of Impellias were trapped in enchanted glass chambers and cruelly executed without trial.
It was a method to protect the pure knights and priests of Impellias from the wickedness of fairies.
“Have you heard the story? That fairies can choose their own master?”
“Grand Duchess. Speaking of fairies outside the sanctum is forbidden.”
“But I’m curious. As a daughter of the holy Impellias, I need accurate information about those who threaten our god.
Why is it forbidden to speak of fairies?”
“……”
“Isn’t it perhaps because they might seem too alluring?”
Daphne laughed like a bird.
That remark had struck too precisely, and so Ragnar said nothing, lips closed in silence.
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