𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟗𝟒
Finally, I entered the room and was able to talk with Helena alone.
“You anticipated that the Empress would hold you responsible?”
Helena nodded at my question.
“It just so happened that I revealed my ability on the day the First Prince passed away.”
“Then, did you deliberately purify the First Prince to provoke the Empress?”
Helena replied bitterly.
“I can’t say that’s not true. But when I saw him, I felt a strong urge to purify him, as strong as when I first saw Lurik-jeonha. It felt like something I had to do.”
“Well done.”
I said with relief.
“Thanks to you, the First Prince found peace and was able to say goodbye to his children before he passed away. I don’t know how or how much the Empress will act, but that will definitely help Lurik-orabeoni.”
“That’s right, Jeonha.”
Helena agreed.
“We’ve also gathered some support so that the Empress can act more easily. We’ll hear from them soon.”
Wow, our female lead is the best.
‘I can’t believe how reliable she is!’
I hugged Helena with joy, but it was difficult to give her a proper hug because of my protruding belly.
Helena burst out laughing.
Then she added in a slightly brighter voice.
“Actually, I was thinking of returning to Kaisarea, but Lurik-jeonha suggested that I go to Edessa and stay by your side, Jeonha. After hearing that, it seemed like a better idea, so I shamelessly decided to impose on you.”
“Impose, Helena?”
I held Helena’s rough hands preciously.
“Thank you for coming. And for protecting Orabeoni in the Imperial Palace all this time. I owe you a debt I can never repay.”
Helena smiled gently.
“If Jeonha hadn’t called me to the Imperial Palace, I would have committed the sacrilege of peacefully continuing my pilgrimage, ignoring the future I saw. Since Jeonha recognized me, it’s me who should be repaying the debt.”
It was embarrassing to hear as the original author.
‘Everyone is suffering in the world I created.’
And yet, here I am, a powerless extra-level supporting character, just playing around and eating.
Then Helena asked, her green eyes sparkling.
“When can I meet the baby-nim?”
“It should be a little over two months now.”
Honestly, I’m a little scared, but with Ren here, it will be okay, right?
Didn’t he firmly promise?
“There will be no pain whatsoever.”
Now I trust Ren much more than I did then, and thanks to him, I wasn’t afraid of the day I would meet my baby.
So, stroking my belly over my dress, I said.
“I want to meet the baby soon.”
🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
“By the way, I heard you were the first to recognize the Saint?”
Ernst came to find me again only after Helena had left and asked.
“Huh? Uh, uh, it just happened that……”
There was no reason to hide it from him, so I told him that she had noticed my pregnancy. Ernst’s golden eyes widened.
“Wow, she figured it out just by holding your hand? And she’s not even a doctor?”
“Yeah, I was surprised too.”
Ernst asked in a cautious voice.
“So, did you call her to prevent the accident that would have happened in the Imperial Palace?”
“Huh?”
How brilliant was the brain of my beautiful friend who looked like a porcelain doll?
He was wondering why I had called the Saint to the Imperial Palace after I had become aware of her existence.
I deliberately tried to answer calmly.
“Prevent what? I didn’t know such an accident would happen. But it’s true that Orabeoni had the magic sword, so I called her just in case. We were lucky, huh.”
Fortunately, Ernst seemed satisfied with that.
He looked at me with renewed eyes and said.
“I think your belly has gotten bigger. Hasn’t it?”
“I guess so. I feel the baby kicking quite often.”
When I answered proudly, Ernst asked.
“Can I feel it move too if it does?”
“Of course.”
Then he smiled brightly, his eyes crinkling into crescent moons.
“Want to see the baby’s room? It’s almost ready.”
I followed Ernst to the baby’s room.
The room looked quite different from when I left.
The room, which had only a bed in it, was now full of wardrobes, drawers, toys, and decorations.
The moon and star mobile made by the Magic Tower was already hanging from the ceiling, spinning round and round.
In one corner of the room was the organ that Ren had promised to make for me someday.
“Wow.”
The organ automatically played several pieces of music when you pressed the buttons.
I looked around curiously and asked.
“When did Ren make this when he was busy with the Imperial Palace affairs?”
Ernst chuckled.
“You think he did it? Some wizard from the Magic Tower must have been sacrificed.”
He pointed to the mobile and asked.
“You’re going to start a business with those decorations, right?”
“That’s right, Erni.”
I answered proudly and looked around the baby’s room, which was full of things.
‘Now all this room needs is the baby and the baby’s father.’
It was only a little over two months until the final task was completed.
🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
Upon hearing the news of my return to Edessa, the artisans in charge of the baby room’s interior rushed to see me.
Among them, the artisan Mesh, who had agreed to partner with me on the rocking chair business, greeted me with tears in his eyes.
“I, I thought you wouldn’t come back……”
In short, he thought I had taken the down payment and run off.
“I just went to the Babenberg Ice Festival, you know?”
I said, dumbfounded, and he quickly nodded.
“Y-yes, I know. But if you didn’t come back, Madam, the business we had prepared for wouldn’t be able to proceed……”
“Goodness……”
I clicked my tongue and said,
“Didn’t I give you a copy of the contract signed by the Tower Master himself? Since the prototype is already out, you could have contacted the Magic Tower directly if I really didn’t come back.”
“Eek!”
Mesh made a strange noise and gasped.
“B-but the Tower Master-nim is so scary……”
I burst out laughing.
“I can’t possibly tell you that he’s a gentle man. But he won’t suddenly turn you into a frog for no reason.”
The artisan’s eyes widened, and he gulped.
“I-if I have sins, would you turn me into a frog?”
“……Do you have any sins?”
Then Mesh began to confess all the sins he had committed.
Things like hiding emergency funds on the workshop floor without his wife knowing, or sneaking a bite of the fruit she had saved for the children and pretending it had disappeared.
“Then make sure the Tower Master doesn’t find out about it.”
I said jokingly, and Mesh hurriedly nodded.
“Yes! I will definitely do that!”
Helena seemed troubled by the fact that I was seemingly tricking a naive commoner, but there was an amused smile on her face.
“So, how many products have you made that can be sent to the Magic Tower for processing?”
“As you instructed, I’ve made ten for now!”
It had only been about a month since I had told Mesh to start working.
I smiled brightly and replied,
“Good, then I’ll help you send them to the Magic Tower, so bring them all to the hotel lobby.”
“Understood, Madam!”
🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹
Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace.
Several days had passed since Hart’s funeral, but the Empress was still dressed in black.
Early in the morning, she went to the audience chamber with a haggard face, as if she hadn’t slept a wink, and said.
“Please find the Saint. Or at least hold the monastery accountable. Didn’t I tell you?”
The Emperor clicked his tongue and looked back at the Empress.
“Don’t you know how far it is from Kaisarea to here? You should be grateful that the Saint arrived in time to ease Hart’s last moments!”
The Empress glared at him with bloodshot eyes.
“Is that your true intention, Your Majesty? Or are you indifferent to the suffering of your dead son just so you don’t upset your remaining son?”
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