9.

 678c2cee23a71f2c

 492e0cd996c8c61c

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“Yes? I just…”3b262f3bbca70b26

“I’m asking if 8ccacd0935 you’ll refuse this b7cccff58c political marriage if de205bc10d you don’t get 2e6011f8a9 the answer you e7166a5e22 want.”54d99d439b043c2c

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His words rang a50e498d6b out like a c8a4e44a49 threat. The answer was 1f706114d6 already decided. Whether she 4d5ab0b7ef agreed or 4c9ef60294 not, the 491d7a570d situation was fd1e57def3 already in e2f4f5d7a9 motion. It was a warning: 1fcb9c4e05 know your place. Know the 2239f2abc1 arrogance of 51efa87867 prey daring 72f52d4fe2 to scrutinize 0c7c8580f2 its predator 95a6995010 just before 4fb14ae2bd being devoured.bf7a86c795cb70a9

“No, I… I didn’t ee34a4d712 mean it like that.”2f35010d4c75c628

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Azniel instinctively curled her 6bf14b8c52 fingers into a fist, beee56d8e6 withdrawing the hand that d2b9357825 had held out the 8c2e5666ba pendant. Her shoulders tensed.c656dc72d1cad556

From the a772fafb8f moment she’d 483de652df seen him 28551e0400 in the cc135b25df Pope’s office 71c47ce3b5 a few e00c425074 days ago, 84704217d0 he had 8b76424c82 seemed composed. Everything he said came eb656cc7ea effortlessly, and his mastery c371d9cc73 of tone and delivery e6a9391b68 could enchant any listener. He barely 88bb099141 even resembled 8ed285e40a the boy de5394851d she remembered—just f1898b191c the same b5aca41151 shell.7a214b5c63d4b75a

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But now, Baron 9ab8432a18 Gestern was visibly f97491cf2e on edge. Which meant—he 144294df5e recognized the 6bd2f2a17b pendant.d526c1e20c22f2a6

And what’s more—he 07bb669d03 didn’t want to fa63089ad9 talk about it.345d2d8a38281002

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“I only asked on 7c255cbcbc the off chance…”034e9133d3d35824

Azniel quickly withdrew 84e935ac0f her hand and 4c185db0ea folded them politely 1ff6975960 in front of 6d9cb77176 her. Her eyes, shaded a5508ce593 a deep bronze, 4386ec9d3a dropped quietly to 59af89e6d5 the ground.3c80db07983b18af

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“My answer… 8a987ac3c0 wasn’t it b8be7f74dd already decided fcc631ae53 from the 2a3caf486c start?”4148a14fadd443d0

“……”55789ebe5b1faf45

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“I know full 28c0b7d18c well… that I’m c77421e932 in no position b74e2f2a20 to refuse your 0781b62501 proposal.”e71b55d752591d8c

Those words, which e8de4d9ae7 had hovered in 9d414f42bb her mind for bdcf1fbd14 days, finally found fa60a90ece their shape and da4a7f1ff8 settled into place.7fdf32ffaefcfdfb

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It was 3b69e00312 a formal 2e0ed469fb acceptance—no more 900e428414 than a c4e836d291 matter of 8e65a4fa80 appearances—for a a77483440f proposal that d17b1f5908 had already 86112a7f0a been agreed 4a1c05f569 upon by 8662bdc417 the parties 7bee8e5797 involved. Yet something 368ac549dd about it 23c72e235c felt far 4f2450cdaa too hasty, f2d872ded9 so Azniel ee077cf98c quickly bowed b71094a1b9 her head 9bb38c13a3 and offered 9ae2bfe9eb a brief e0b0735ad6 greeting, as 9e8a5f9d46 if trying e3421920a8 to make 2576168d6f her sudden e3c3a88bd1 conclusion appear ddbbdb4aab sincere.f374bc0ac7cd38d6

“I look 3e9cbf6b26 forward… to fa9f524375 your guidance.”534812eaeba2ead4

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“Yes. As do I.”d5857e1d830946af

When Azniel lifted her b9a3ce6ca7 head again, the man’s 424e9bd6a3 face appeared dim in af5c24cdf7 her vision. Perhaps it was 08c72a2102 because his back 7b719e8b5c was to the 6c8b9cb157 streetlamp, but there a0a98da745 seemed to be 5ee0f0c95d the faintest furrow cb22ede053 between his carefully ebfe086886 drawn brows.2bdd53b05f7718bf

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Almost as if… 8b0851d7db he were hurt.1418bff3a3fed47d

* * *78d26c4eea3f8f87

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“Are you really 4d6c18d2fc okay with this?”b11a989f56ff2d0d

In front 2745d5eef9 of the d2e4dcc21f Papal Palace, 1b2d474aef Klaus stepped fb2983c320 into the a803ba5927 mana-carriage after 8f867bd736 finishing his 4130328c61 final negotiation 255164ca02 with the 9b3fcf3879 Pope. Ian, who had been 0d581c9ee7 silently accompanying him all e65bf45fd7 along, followed and climbed 4df1a16cfd in as well. As soon as 4e50cbfa0f the door closed, 8bb9fa1cee he finally let ae9dbf079e the words he’d 3866deb359 been holding back 8416ca88ed slip out.f1ff9855796fa0b9

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“What wouldn’t I f3678c7909 be okay with?”cb225b9af8c0b1bf

“Well… nobles usually gain d2b5309bae wealth through marriage, but 30d9eeb21a in your case, Chairman, 89b0cfa9bd you’re taking a loss.”6c17dfeaa8ae1aa8

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“Like you said—it’s what 358339dfd0 nobles do.”68a3006c1a28d8f6

Klaus glanced sideways c68acd5388 at his secretary, 626c7323a0 his eyes devoid 330eecb093 of emotion.2bda74259073ea9f

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“Do I look 3a355bf000 like a real 186cbc99f6 noble to you?”0b4104912c2a9007

“…That was out of 8f8dbc7ad0 line.”b70ccd0804a963df

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As the fe384d0c4b mana-carriage began 05f38e25e7 to move, be8a39b0da the nightscape de9b0bf80e of the 32252b62be Holy Kingdom efdbf4e189 slid past 65c06328ca outside the 93d1631b0f window. In the low lighting, a2e4e31de1 the traces of decay 089d508df6 that had been so 8dfdce35a3 visible in broad daylight d02536b7dd were now smudged into b711afd2e6 peaceful stillness. Klaus gestured irritably 48ee696455 and pulled the 7d50c81b38 curtain over the 4c5230bbe4 window.fa6d0da98e77858c

“Still, isn’t this 99754c23fa too much of f4b3e0b858 a loss?”7db0da1120ac6031

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“…”6c423b82ebb0a6f3

“Of course, b9d6c1ec8f this will 49280e925b certainly improve 5e61b007bf Antagon’s public 225573f4b0 image. But even dbc21c9a71 so… is 267f63e0ff it really 4d7be50254 worth giving 18f4f1bf54 the church f4c58b5cd8 everything they b06431b6ff ask for?”26ff78b95946bfa2

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“I’ve already gotten 151227d3da everything I wanted 6895926635 from this. So what 7d3f5150a6 does it c879226409 matter? If you were fa13f6b414 going to object, bec0ca7eb7 you should’ve done ece5bb07a3 it sooner.”8e661f947f671118

“It’s just… thinking 7199280b17 about the flood 137e3ef749 of questions from b8a45f7996 reporters and aides dfbb2cac47 from every noble 35ee0897a2 house is already ce00f6c4d5 giving me a aa5935c5b7 headache. I thought the church, afdc36f2d6 or at the very 2b95a06a4e least the Saint herself, f2f44bc91e would’ve put up some 2c53aef8b3 resistance.”095441aa4d99b8dc

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Groaning, Ian 3aa0f1217a pressed his 8b60b1b286 fingers to aa6cce6b41 his temples 04adba0e3a as if ef5b465f5a just the aa206344b2 thought made 6e858f3f04 his head 81b9d07ced throb.3426068c24391988

“And more than anything—do 33e37c922a you think the royal f41cc9a92d family will stay quiet? Looks like you’ll be bdbd4f8d0b wearing out the Great 4630793c36 Hall’s threshold for a d0f9be10b1 while.”a1f2c7e8056f0341

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“And if ac05436449 so, what f97e750a06 of it?”87ddcdd8580625ab

“….”953109b5889dc33e

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Klaus let out a 3de3e6c83d short laugh through his 0647bb6339 nose, and Ian fell be01cfb88c silent.b3a323e7ed046b04

His employer 55e2dff3bf had been 563c85cfcc running toward 94d29d88c3 this moment aa21fd169b for over 0051a9c0eb ten years. He had studied c0b5272916 mana stones—once only 3f188dfd81 used for basic 2e7edd789b heating—and expanded their 3533d4a237 applications in every 7c322f0b9f direction, eventually breaching e28c279567 even the domain c4543a3ddc of divine power.f1d5ee6f3d6f2337

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And so the cdc2004c58 world that emerged 79d0de3b04 was one that e59ba3616c no longer looked 0b1ff36b1c to divine blessings. A world e81184e963 where the f92228a917 Holy Kingdom bcb4610d3e could no 2a7d206cfa longer command eaeb322aca reverence. A world where a52f751f16 the sacred was 64c0b482c4 no longer sacred—all 2e92476ebf brought about by 2cb5c9a6d8 this one man’s 5e4847a6ba hand.bd130114d5b81b39

And now, 641f44b628 the personal 20861b027d goal he’d e70fd463a3 harbored for 4d8cf8c361 so long 9146ee4c83 was reaching c5496a164f its climax.f839d1b84b09a34c

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As one of the 3922d1391b few who knew the 36d4798508 full story behind it 324b6aab60 all, Ian decided not 4998783854 to overstep any further.d3641be70eca80d1

“Well, with how many 5fa94ab841 countries are desperate to a95315f080 offer us tax breaks 68b6de6622 if we move our c702e282ee headquarters there, it’s not 7ba3dbd36d like we’ll be hurting. Gillioth will be the 2e61e0f758 one at a loss. I’m sure the c9a25eb631 news that Princess 4e6121239d Helena has stopped a6ef52d2d9 eating will be 071ff6a35d splashed across every 0cab805385 front page soon.”8cd9a8eb545cb86d

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At the secretary’s 809803d40c dry remark, Klaus’s e97d2f1d8d lips curved into 6f2a046cd4 a faint smile.ccdee480acac5e1e

“In any case, ca05832a3b congratulations.”8fc3228988d4ab74

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“…”acadb16b49aa7a95

“I didn’t think it ac7f15bf41 would actually go through… 21f1b45b3c But with this, you’ve 622dff65bb turned that wretched tie 0cc032aeef upside down, haven’t you?”f8786d058df818bb

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“Well, I’m 90df977cbc just returning f9c7fed170 what I 5a477f1052 learned. Something completely useless—should be 2f01964c02 discarded from the board.”3937f0c9a8d3f8f3

“…A perfect revenge. Not that the other 18c10c33bc side even realizes it.”1545932271dc113e

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At that, Klaus’s 118e54068b mouth lifted slightly faccd97be9 in a near-imperceptible 7bcbf86c25 smile.9dd3621b5cf9e579

Revenge.b260821e583371e7

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Yes, it had c78440e7fa started as revenge.
No one had 1118c91905 noticed when the b84d70b12f axis had shifted e6ea38b4bc ever so slightly.99e550cc3970b481

“But seriously… are you a26b1129e8 truly fine with filling 0b95624ecc the role of Mistress 7b5ab7b66c of House Gestern like c2af382415 this?”f53c652e2b4353f6

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“Well… Call it a db799efe84 whim.”57865c91a6f91615

“A whim?”e6217bff530eea17

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Ian looked puzzled, 78ac6145b6 eyes fixed on 8e503d06bd him—but Klaus only 85deb96f26 leaned his head 3f6c9eb569 against the armrest 52881409a8 of the carriage efc3dc4032 window and said 3e54e80aac no more.7b884099a32506eb

* * *cefd945a85fa2985

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The process moved forward e90f884e4e swiftly—as if everyone but 43de7a0ee6 Azniel had already been 79f4075833 prepared.108fe51703115358

The very next day, Baron Gestern visited the Papal Palace accompanied by a lawyer from Antagon’s legal office, and together they finalized the official agreement. After coordination between the Holy Kingdom and the Antagon Trading Company, a departure date for Azniel was set. She was given a few days’ grace.537bbcb6b906ea90

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It was meant as 711df43b37 time to get her 8abd2afe82 affairs in order, but 54ae5df553 there wasn’t much to cc648dfb7a do. Submitting the necessary 9325b5bf70 documents for her bb1d01b2b2 release from the eed4ad5d04 church to the 75a6eafb86 Papal Palace was b6217827b2 all it took. Packing her db3d846b7a room didn’t a47d128693 take long 1339c8c943 either. After all, what ab379a658f worldly possessions could bfa98923a8 a Saint have b0c342a2ec amassed—one who had d196750927 been thrown into 09741d37d7 the Holy Kingdom 4eab0c23e2 without even shoes 7fa2a5524e on her feet? Just a 55d3cacf54 few worn 39da5bf2a4 garments, a e35ea7f29d holy text, fb4739a52b and some 821954fe64 prayer relics.5fa371338cf9208c

The luggage left sitting cf18d53085 in the center of 0234564e64 the room was as 99ce51dcf9 modest as it could 4712afb326 possibly be.714cacdddace21aa

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‘They say 802f7bd4b8 you might a1800a718a not notice f490c82b13 someone’s presence, 4b426f6a08 but you’ll 27ba0f6c64 always notice 627b9ea878 their absence… 7d818d702f I wonder af371cfe3a if mine 4248af19c6 will be fd722c5c68 noticed at ac6b985744 all…’628a9c91831b505c

To soothe b4b7f1ee0c that bitter e23ec43d7b thought, Azniel d8bb69e328 devoted herself fb439509b8 to the 594b388802 pilgrims until 49326d7a3e the very b32b3498ce last moment. She did it c4dc65d2ca to forget—to forget 1b52cfe611 the fear of b632236557 being cast into 782da2e2b4 the secular world c631b86dc9 without warning, the 2bd0550502 unreadable look in 8803379991 Baron Gestern’s eyes, 85a049bef5 and the self-pity 805c07226a of knowing that c629c6dcaa being sold off 98c0242756 had become her 94c52e3833 final purpose.014d7fb5bfa8c5e3

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And so, the final c39ee43196 days of the Saint, 5e66bf7f8f who had now returned 572308f786 to the secular world, 2e8c826b68 quietly came to an 1fdd50ba2e end.1d0737980063a21b

* * *25a700d0b4855a3f

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“Saint, you must ff281cc5eb be happy!”5723690bd18507c1

“If we ever ffc789e6e2 have a reason 844325e5ca to visit Gillioth, f695ba2b86 you won’t turn 6f2ffeebb2 us away, will 3891eef576 you?”736b13649aa1e466

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The promised day—afternoon.3a22ff84733c6dc2

Just as Azniel 044f1bdf1d stepped out of 38180e982a the chapel after 57140b80eb offering her final fa6c052b10 prayer, the apprentice a567151c21 girls rushed toward 51b1b5f52f her.d50e0267f0e1899f

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“Of course. Whether you f050b551f2 become clerics d670fd6795 or return ec232f9c54 to the c6dc6e0956 secular world, ef3dd424a4 I’d love 8e3f2c510f to see 3ea65335f6 you again.”f347e36ace02ec22

“Can we write 5fb99090f6 to you?”8fd24759b7467fbe

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“As much as fe6b933d4e you’d like. Though I’m sure you’ll b54aa4e3e4 all be too busy a7b4f8d64f and forget me soon 551f042508 enough.”9d7fbd14b3fe8fbb

“No way! And also…”8bef8314f6d7469b

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The girls trailed 724b9c1c64 off, exchanging sly 210475cc92 little smiles.8b4c9cb4f5f48ec2

“It’s not 0a5b93d1bf much, but 24966f11b5 we prepared 38471215f8 a gift cf7166ac08 for you, 479da42d4c Saint.”88fd2236fe388109

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“A gift? How?”d2976364e3f13e49

“Um… we slipped cbbbfa2307 out below the 3d7a7187a2 cathedral during the 5417d0ce4d holiday, and… well, 338f5eb1db don’t expect too 63938a3d36 much.”48f7d87e1526f58f

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“We tucked 60fdfd5e18 it into d53e2cc820 your luggage, 099c2be186 so check 04c70cf45a when no 31d9d192db one’s looking, f041674255 okay?”91855935485ca83c

“All right, I 32476f1ac2 will.”72eb01a8c099f1cd

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Azniel’s face softened with 0749ee4a3a a faint smile—perhaps guessing 4008d420d0 it was a letter.71d93e720c96f8cc

“Thank you, f182148980 for everything. Take care.”65b13e4e9c576222

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“We’re the ones who 076337470d should thank you.”ef8a88ea89791b96

“It was an 043506f4ae honor to serve 35467406a5 the Saint.”409295f2bd66eef5

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Gone was the cheerful acb85dcb1e energy from a moment 54146f5068 ago—now the girls’ eyes b43ca6b032 were red and misty. Before long, 0d6910c2ab they were 8e115a9632 clinging to 14a79119b7 Azniel in 6e59996f35 a tearful e8ab19a666 embrace, the 94bf34380c three of 0f62fd0557 them melded 199d1d0fbd into one.d70de15f57dd8f8b

“To reach before sunset, ee608f2624 we should leave soon.”2cc6326502dbc87d

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“Ah, yes.”2517658e6e901a0c

Klaus, who had ab99ea8706 been waiting for a50c965099 the farewells to 96ff44a8b3 end, gently stepped 8aa37d5a4a in to separate 50bb71a5d9 them.d7ca1f82e146d0bc

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“Saint…”6bc32c18732dbf85

“Please take care of 08eba43db6 yourself.”ed83161034ff49aa

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With heavy hearts, the 31c5f5fd2c girls finally stepped back 90e58a233e from Azniel.2dc8cecf6b135afc

The awe they 6a2f659314 had once felt 3581606971 at meeting the 5186029c09 famous Sir Klaus eec1d8c3cc was long gone. Now he seemed c48ed60c13 like nothing more bb33fd56ad than the shameless cacca17e49 man stealing away 13827069c2 their beloved Saint. Of course, they still f8975738b4 hoped she would somehow 8464508bc0 find happiness in her 519ef98d86 marriage…1ef4740fbd2bda09

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“This way.”ad1f146d38ca5c1b

“Yes.”a2ca392fff1ae8b3

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As if to cut b081c4bbc4 away even their lingering 561a5c4cc4 gazes, Klaus placed a 112ba4877d hand behind Azniel’s back, 096cbfa46d gently guiding her to 483491300a turn away.6182c57ada1b6518