Chapter 109. A Saint who was Adopted by the Grand Duke

Updated: Apr 13

After Khalid left, Esther entered the mansion and headed towards her room.

As she climbed up the stairs, Esther encountered Dennis leaving the library on the second floor.

She was able to recognize him immediately after witnessing the bifocals situated near his eyes, and the stack of books piled in his arms.

“Ah, Esther, great timing. I was actually heading to your room.”

Dennis gestured for Esther’s help, pleased by her appearance.

“Here, take the book at the very top.”

Esther went on her tippy toes and picked up the book at the end of the stack as Dennis instructed.

“Huh? Did we have this at home?”

The title of the book was dictated in ancient language. Esther's eyes widened in surprise at the letters.

Such scripts were unusual and rare to come across, as they were generally sent to the Temple upon discovery.

“Yeah. It seemed like an old book since it was placed in the very corner of the library. I didn’t recognize the content, but I thought you could help.”

He couldn’t comprehend any of the reading since the writing was filled with ancient characters, but he thought Esther would have the ability to do so.

“We don't have to send it to the temple, do we?”

“Of course.”

According to the principle, once ancient characters were found, it was required to send them to the Temple immediately.

However, libraries in countless houses were not accessible to the Temple, so they decided to hide the book for now.

Esther thanked Dennis and accepted the old and rusty book.

***

At the same time, Noah was spending a simple tea time in the room with Reina and the Empress.

Reina would stop by the Imperial Palace every day to see his face.

“You've been like that since you were young… You have such an adult taste. I can't believe you like coffee that I’ve never even tasted.”

Reina shook her head as she observed the black liquid in Noah's glass.

“It's good.”

Noah raised his glass and smiled softly, as if to tease Reina. Coffee was his preferred drink.

“Why do you look so tired? Are you worried about the crown prince's meeting?”

Noah’s lively appearance when he first arrived at the Imperial palace was slowly withering day after day.

“No. That's going to work out fine.”

“Then?”

When Reina crossed her arms and motioned for him to continue, a brief sigh left Noah’s mouth as he carefully brought up the reason for his melancholy.

“Do you remember the last time we were in the garden and I headed in to reply to a letter?”

“Of course I do.”

She clearly remembered. After all, this was the first time her dear brother was so excited over a girl.

When it came to dating counseling, Reina's most favorite topic, her ears perked and her eyes lit up.

“I still haven’t received a reply.”

“What? Really?”

Reina slammed her teacup hard on the table in shock.

“Mhm. I also sent a flower, but I think I was too hasty.”

It had already been a while since Esther should have received the reply. He was worried that she wouldn’t respond.

Reina smiled when she realized that the reason for Noah's dark complexion the past few days was due to that one letter.

“What kind of girl is it that our Noah weeps for like this?”

Reina hadn't asked for details until now, but she was desperate to find out who the person is, looking at their special relationship.

“Why… I heard Sister has met her before.”

“Really??”

Although there were many noble ladies whom the Imperial Princess Reina encountered, there were only a handful of those who could indulge in conversation with both her and Noah.

Reina skillfully narrowed the list in her head before screaming in excitement.

“Hyuk! The Grand Duke’s young lady? The girl… Esther?”

As Reina made a fuss about Esther, Noah only scratched his chin, his silence affirming her doubts.

“She said she’d send you my message, but it was for real. You’ve already been intimate since then.”

Raina’s face heated up in exhilaration. She stomped her feet to the ground, ready to carry out her job.

“What do you think about her?”

Noah suddenly became nervous as he asked her what she thought of Esther. His mouth dried up.

“Um… I liked her a lot. She’s not carefree, but serious and mature for her age. She's very thoughtful and different from other young ladies in countless ways, right?”

Reina experienced various different personalities growing up as a Princess, therefore harshly evaluating those around her.

If Reina only met Esther once and said this, she seemed to really favor her.

“I knew it.”

“If I knew you two had such a deep relationship, I would have gotten closer to her. Invite her to the imperial palace. My mother would be very delighted to hear that it’s Esther.”

The embarrassment came belatedly. Noah raised his empty cup and pretended to take a sip from it.

“But why isn't she replying?”

“Um… Could it be that the letter got lost on its way? The pigeon may have had an accident.”

“Eh, no way.”

“If you're worried, send the letter one more time.”

“Should I?”

Noah seriously pondered the suggestion.

At that time, someone knocked on the door.

When allowed entry, the door unlatched and the Emperor’s secretary appeared.

Noah felt nervous as he observed the secretary’s urgent expression.

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“What happened?”

“Your Highness the Prince, his Majesty is in a hurry to find you. A delegation has finally come from the Temple.”

Reina’s disapproving attitude towards the sudden intruder turned into one of surprise at his words.

“I guess it has been decided.”

“It seems so.”

The temple had withheld Noah's acceptance of the title of Crown Prince for weeks now, having yet to authorize the decision.

However, seeing that a Temple delegation personally came to the Imperial Palace, he would hear their answer today.

“Don't worry. The results will be good.”

“Thank you, sister.”

“Let's discuss Esther’s invitation when you return.”

“Yeah.”

Noah changed his clothes, received Reina’s sincere greeting, and calmly headed towards the conference room where everyone was waiting.

***

In the conference room, the Temple’s delegation, Damon and the Emperor had arrived together and were waiting for Noah.

“Everyone has gathered.”

When Noah entered the boardroom, the doors closed firmly.

“Welcome. Come here and sit down.”

The Emperor offered Noah a seat right beside him. That seat was opposite Damon’s.

Noah greeted Damon with his eyes as he sat down, but Damon agitatedly flipped his head and pretended not to see him.

“Now that you are all here, I will tell you the decision of our Temple.”

The Temple’s representatives consisted of High Priest Kyle, as well as other high priests.

Kyle confirmed that everyone involved in today’s matter had gathered and proceeded to announce the Temple's final verdict.

“Since the last meeting, we have confirmed Prince Noah's physical condition several times.”

To determine that Noah was truly cured, they examined him meticulously, not once, but four times.

Noah responded to their demands without any sort of agitation. In the end, the Temple could no longer make excuses.

“Miraculously, the Prince was healed from the disease ‘God’s curse’.”

Noah shrugged, his expression casual. Damon grinded his teeth, unable to contain his anger.

“Then there are no objections to the outcome of the meeting.”

The pleased Emperor's profound voice filled the conference room.

“…Yes, our Temple has decided to recognize Prince Noah as the Crown Prince, judging that there would be no reason to hold another voting session.”

The Emperor frowned, unexpecting their swift admittance.

‘What are you up to?’

And, as predicted, the Temple did not back down as it was, but added a clause revealing their hidden intentions.

“Instead.”

Kyle took a step closer to the Emperor and leaned deeply.

“Prince Noah appeared suddenly, when he was not among the list of candidates. Moreover, although healed, his body is still weak, so we do not know when he will become ill again.”

“Get to the point.”

“Therefore, we would like to appoint Prince Damon as our representative in case of any unforeseen circumstances.”

“What does it mean?”

“A representative. Prince Noah will become the Crown Prince, but in case of unannounced death or illness, his position will be passed down to Prince Damon.”

The Emperor couldn’t help but laugh at the blunt words.

“Do you think that makes sense?”

“Of course. We've also taken a step back, so I hope your Majesty understands us well.”

The Temple presented a firm will. They wouldn’t back down unless their condition was approved.

Damon sent Noah an arrogant smirk, savoring the situation.

“Damon… Must you do this?”

“Your Majesty does not treat his children fairly. I also have to live.”

The wrinkles between the Emperor's brows deepened. It was strange how the Temple acted, despite Noah’s healthy state.

“I'm fine.”

Following Noah's opinion, the Crown Prince conference concluded, and everyone was dismissed.

No one completely achieved or lost their purposes, so it was more of a draw, but Noah successfully became Crown Prince.

While the Temple's delegation and Damon left the conference room, Noah and the Emperor remained.

“The Temple's tricks are becoming worse.”

The Emperor pressed down on his throbbing forehead. Even he thought that such a pompous attitude didn’t make sense.

“I can't keep watching everything like this. I must come up with a countermeasure…”

“How about reducing the number of Temples? In all honesty, there are too many buildings on each estate. They aren’t functioning properly.”

Noah made a bold proposal to the troubled Emperor. He thought it was time.

The Emperor grinned unconsciously as he saw that Noah was already grown enough to discuss such serious events.

“It's not that I haven't thought about it, but if that happens, the Temple would completely convert in the future.”

“I think it would be better to go wrong than to keep being dragged around like this. It is true that the power of the Temple has grown too much.”

This was the result of pampering the Temple too much. They reached this point by gathering everything that was beneficial.

The Emperor tapped the table while calmly pondering, then cut off the steady beat as if he had made up his mind.

“…Good.”

He thought it was time to make a decision for the Empire, even if such a thing resulted in a whirlwind of blood. He nodded heavily.

“Call for a meeting.”

In the past, he would not have made such a choice, but the Temple had clearly crossed the line first.

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