"Khan!"
The dog that had its mouth open toward Amelia's ankle suddenly stopped moving. It was because its master had called its name. Khan, who had stepped back from Amelia, who had lost consciousness, meekly wagged his tail.
“...”
Khan, the leader of the three, was a dog who only listened to his master. When Khan stopped, the other dogs naturally stopped all their actions and turned their gaze to Aaron. Aaron patted the heads of the dogs one by one and then opened the locked door and went in.
“I don’t want to go this far either.”
Aaron leaned down and whispered, gently caressing Amelia's fainted face.
“But why would you put yourself in such danger?”
Amelia, unconscious and lying on the dirty floor, looked like a flower blooming amid chaos. Aaron quietly watched her pitiful appearance and then carefully picked her up in his arms.
Two arms dangled in the air like a corpse. Aaron stared at them as he climbed the stairs, then chuckled.
Indeed, Amelia's life was not much different from that of a corpse.
"Huh!"
Amelia sat up abruptly. She thought she heard a dog barking somewhere.
“Priestess?”
Amelia threw back the blanket and examined her body, wondering whether Louis, who was guarding her side, was surprised or not. She wondered if the dog she had encountered before fainting had bitten her ankle or shoulder. She couldn't even breathe during that time.
“Why are you like that?”
Louis asked with wide eyes. Amelia, who had been feeling around here and there on her body with her hands, finally let out her choked breath after realizing that she was fine except for the scratches on her ankles.
“You must have been really unwell. You passed out on the street.”
Louis spoke, clicking her tongue.
“I fainted on the street?”
“Yes. That’s why the High Priest came back carrying you.”
Louis stood up after touching Amelia's forehead with her palm. There was a knock on the door outside.
“On the road?”
Amelia laughed at Aaron's excuse. She had passed out on the floor. But it wasn't the street. It was the floor of the kennel that Aaron had pushed her into, knowing that Amelia was terribly afraid of dogs.
“High Priest.”
“Have you opened your eyes, my lady?”
A gentle, hypocritical voice spoke. Amelia glared contemptuously at the man's form through the thin, white canopy.
“Yes, you’re up. You don’t seem to be in any major pain.”
“What did the doctor say before leaving?”
“I thought you were just exhausted. I gave you some medicine to replenish your energy.”
Louis, who didn't know the circumstances, calmly explained to Aaron.
“But we still don’t know, so let’s watch more closely.”
Louis nodded enthusiastically at Aaron's command. It was a clear warning to come and check that she was awake and leave a message.
“Yes, don’t worry too much.”
That the same thing can happen again and again, and others will never know what it is.
Her hands were shaking. Amelia clutched the blanket tightly with both hands. Tears fell onto the quilt, which was rustling and crumpling. She didn't want to live this miserable life.
“You live.”
But the sad thing is, she doesn't want to die, like the future that will surely come someday. Just like her mother's last words telling her to live were engraved in her mind. The will to live has always tormented Amelia.
“...But I still want to live.”
But that was the only thing that kept her going through this miserable life. Otherwise, she would never have known the purpose of life. Like Aaron said, she thought that being used like this and dying would be the only use in life.
Amelia bit her lower lip, trying to hold back her tears, but it didn't do much good.
Really, is life all about living like this and then dying like trash when the time comes?
Amelia curled up on the blanket, her face buried in it. Her body was starting to heat up, and her breathing was starting to get faster.
One night, Amelia opened her eyes. She was stressed, and her sensitive body started to hurt, so she just slept for a few days. When she got enough sleep, she just felt dizzy and couldn't sleep.
She closed her eyes again. If she was going to live and die like this anyway, she would rather die sprawled out on the bed or just die. That was her thought.
“Amelia.”
At that moment, Amelia heard a voice calling her name from somewhere. Her eyes widened. That sound was exactly like what people often call a revelation from God.
Ivan.
"Ah."
Amelia sighed briefly. She had forgotten about him.
“What day is today...”
Amelia raised her upper body, threw off the blanket, and hurriedly climbed down the bed. Then she scanned the calendar on the wall with her finger. Thanks to Louis's diligent marking, checking the calendar wasn't that difficult.
"Friday."
Every Friday was the day she promised to meet Ivan. She was supposed to meet him at midnight, so he would be waiting for her, but she just lay there listlessly.
Realizing this, Amelia hastily threw on her indoor dress over her pajamas.. She was always attended to by others, so she was a bit flustered, but she didn’t have much trouble changing on her own. It was because the Priestess was supposed to be frugal, so her clothes weren’t flashy or uncomfortable to change into.
“Are you going out?”
The guards guarding the bedroom door asked.
“I’ll go to the prayer room for a moment.”
They had no other regrets. Amelia told them where she was going.
“I just want to go and come back comfortably, so there’s no need to follow me.”
They just nodded silently. They didn’t think it was necessary to follow her to the prayer room attached to the annex, since Louis had just given orders not to restrict her movement within the building. There were also guards outside the prayer room.
Thanks to this, Amelia was able to reach the prayer room near the north gate connected to the annex on her own. Last time, when she was looking for Ivan in the garden, she had used the outside door, but in fact, it was better for Amelia to use the door connected to the inside to move without being noticed.
“Ivan?”
But there was no sign of life in the empty prayer room. Could it be that he had not yet arrived? Amelia opened the door leading from her quarters to the prayer room and called Ivan's name.
“Ivan...!”
Or maybe he's lost interest now?
As Amelia stood in the prayer room, feeling like a child who had lost her parents, a man appeared from an unpredictable location.
“...”
It was Ivan. Ivan, who was wearing his hood over his head as usual, spotted Amelia and smiled. He then easily pushed his hood over his head as if there was no need to hide his identity.
“Amelia.”
And as if he knew what Amelia expected of him, he strangely called her name. Her heart sank. Amelia looked straight into the man’s eyes, which were shining brightly under the moonlight.
“I thought you weren’t coming.”
Amelia opened her mouth with a trembling voice. Ivan seemed to sense her trembling as well, tilting one eyebrow.
“I was a little late because I had something to bring.”
Ivan answered calmly, sitting on the central platform. He showed no hesitation or discomfort even though he knew that Amelia was a Priestess.
“Come here.”
Ivan. A commoner without even a family name. But he was definitely a being of this world. He helped Amelia take root in this land as a real being.
"Yes."
Amelia answered meekly and stepped into the center of the prayer room. If Louis had seen her, she would have protested, saying it would have been better if she had listened to her like this.
“I’m going to take care of this.”
Ivan rummaged through his robe and took out a bottle. It was usually used to hold water.
“I remembered you saying last time that you were curious about what the alcohol tasted like.”
Amelia's eyes widened. She was surprised at his audacity to smuggle alcohol in, even though he said it was okay. While Amelia was admiring him, Ivan opened the bottle and handed it to Amelia.
“Try it.”
“...Is it okay?”
“You are the representative of God. Then your will is the will of God. Do you care about the opinions of priests and such?”
And he put the bottle in Amelia's hands. Amelia's eyes were fixed on the amber liquid inside the bottle.
“Why are you so kind to me?”
“Isn’t it the same for everyone else?”
Ivan answered Amelia's question indifferently. He didn't seem particularly surprised.
“It’s different. Other people only treat me like a Priestess.”
Ivan made a thoughtful sound, “Hmm,” at Amelia’s answer.
“I wish you hadn't done that.”
Amelia lifted her head as she spoke. She met Ivan’s gaze. Her forest-blue eyes curved affectionately.
“Yes, Amelia.”
Thump. Ivan lightly tapped the bottle's spout. The liquid inside the bottle rippled and shook. Amelia's heart also shook helplessly.
“If you want.”
At that moment, Amelia had the foolish conviction that she would definitely fall in love with the man who had given her new life.
Because there is someone who calls her name and sees her as she is, she feels it is a shame to just give up on this life.
The dog that had its mouth open toward Amelia's ankle suddenly stopped moving. It was because its master had called its name. Khan, who had stepped back from Amelia, who had lost consciousness, meekly wagged his tail.
“...”
Khan, the leader of the three, was a dog who only listened to his master. When Khan stopped, the other dogs naturally stopped all their actions and turned their gaze to Aaron. Aaron patted the heads of the dogs one by one and then opened the locked door and went in.
“I don’t want to go this far either.”
Aaron leaned down and whispered, gently caressing Amelia's fainted face.
“But why would you put yourself in such danger?”
Amelia, unconscious and lying on the dirty floor, looked like a flower blooming amid chaos. Aaron quietly watched her pitiful appearance and then carefully picked her up in his arms.
Two arms dangled in the air like a corpse. Aaron stared at them as he climbed the stairs, then chuckled.
Indeed, Amelia's life was not much different from that of a corpse.
***
"Huh!"
Amelia sat up abruptly. She thought she heard a dog barking somewhere.
“Priestess?”
Amelia threw back the blanket and examined her body, wondering whether Louis, who was guarding her side, was surprised or not. She wondered if the dog she had encountered before fainting had bitten her ankle or shoulder. She couldn't even breathe during that time.
“Why are you like that?”
Louis asked with wide eyes. Amelia, who had been feeling around here and there on her body with her hands, finally let out her choked breath after realizing that she was fine except for the scratches on her ankles.
“You must have been really unwell. You passed out on the street.”
Louis spoke, clicking her tongue.
“I fainted on the street?”
“Yes. That’s why the High Priest came back carrying you.”
Louis stood up after touching Amelia's forehead with her palm. There was a knock on the door outside.
“On the road?”
Amelia laughed at Aaron's excuse. She had passed out on the floor. But it wasn't the street. It was the floor of the kennel that Aaron had pushed her into, knowing that Amelia was terribly afraid of dogs.
“High Priest.”
“Have you opened your eyes, my lady?”
A gentle, hypocritical voice spoke. Amelia glared contemptuously at the man's form through the thin, white canopy.
“Yes, you’re up. You don’t seem to be in any major pain.”
“What did the doctor say before leaving?”
“I thought you were just exhausted. I gave you some medicine to replenish your energy.”
Louis, who didn't know the circumstances, calmly explained to Aaron.
“But we still don’t know, so let’s watch more closely.”
Louis nodded enthusiastically at Aaron's command. It was a clear warning to come and check that she was awake and leave a message.
“Yes, don’t worry too much.”
That the same thing can happen again and again, and others will never know what it is.
Her hands were shaking. Amelia clutched the blanket tightly with both hands. Tears fell onto the quilt, which was rustling and crumpling. She didn't want to live this miserable life.
“You live.”
But the sad thing is, she doesn't want to die, like the future that will surely come someday. Just like her mother's last words telling her to live were engraved in her mind. The will to live has always tormented Amelia.
“...But I still want to live.”
But that was the only thing that kept her going through this miserable life. Otherwise, she would never have known the purpose of life. Like Aaron said, she thought that being used like this and dying would be the only use in life.
Amelia bit her lower lip, trying to hold back her tears, but it didn't do much good.
Really, is life all about living like this and then dying like trash when the time comes?
Amelia curled up on the blanket, her face buried in it. Her body was starting to heat up, and her breathing was starting to get faster.
***
One night, Amelia opened her eyes. She was stressed, and her sensitive body started to hurt, so she just slept for a few days. When she got enough sleep, she just felt dizzy and couldn't sleep.
She closed her eyes again. If she was going to live and die like this anyway, she would rather die sprawled out on the bed or just die. That was her thought.
“Amelia.”
At that moment, Amelia heard a voice calling her name from somewhere. Her eyes widened. That sound was exactly like what people often call a revelation from God.
Ivan.
"Ah."
Amelia sighed briefly. She had forgotten about him.
“What day is today...”
Amelia raised her upper body, threw off the blanket, and hurriedly climbed down the bed. Then she scanned the calendar on the wall with her finger. Thanks to Louis's diligent marking, checking the calendar wasn't that difficult.
"Friday."
Every Friday was the day she promised to meet Ivan. She was supposed to meet him at midnight, so he would be waiting for her, but she just lay there listlessly.
Realizing this, Amelia hastily threw on her indoor dress over her pajamas.. She was always attended to by others, so she was a bit flustered, but she didn’t have much trouble changing on her own. It was because the Priestess was supposed to be frugal, so her clothes weren’t flashy or uncomfortable to change into.
“Are you going out?”
The guards guarding the bedroom door asked.
“I’ll go to the prayer room for a moment.”
They had no other regrets. Amelia told them where she was going.
“I just want to go and come back comfortably, so there’s no need to follow me.”
They just nodded silently. They didn’t think it was necessary to follow her to the prayer room attached to the annex, since Louis had just given orders not to restrict her movement within the building. There were also guards outside the prayer room.
Thanks to this, Amelia was able to reach the prayer room near the north gate connected to the annex on her own. Last time, when she was looking for Ivan in the garden, she had used the outside door, but in fact, it was better for Amelia to use the door connected to the inside to move without being noticed.
“Ivan?”
But there was no sign of life in the empty prayer room. Could it be that he had not yet arrived? Amelia opened the door leading from her quarters to the prayer room and called Ivan's name.
“Ivan...!”
Or maybe he's lost interest now?
As Amelia stood in the prayer room, feeling like a child who had lost her parents, a man appeared from an unpredictable location.
“...”
It was Ivan. Ivan, who was wearing his hood over his head as usual, spotted Amelia and smiled. He then easily pushed his hood over his head as if there was no need to hide his identity.
“Amelia.”
And as if he knew what Amelia expected of him, he strangely called her name. Her heart sank. Amelia looked straight into the man’s eyes, which were shining brightly under the moonlight.
“I thought you weren’t coming.”
Amelia opened her mouth with a trembling voice. Ivan seemed to sense her trembling as well, tilting one eyebrow.
“I was a little late because I had something to bring.”
Ivan answered calmly, sitting on the central platform. He showed no hesitation or discomfort even though he knew that Amelia was a Priestess.
“Come here.”
Ivan. A commoner without even a family name. But he was definitely a being of this world. He helped Amelia take root in this land as a real being.
"Yes."
Amelia answered meekly and stepped into the center of the prayer room. If Louis had seen her, she would have protested, saying it would have been better if she had listened to her like this.
“I’m going to take care of this.”
Ivan rummaged through his robe and took out a bottle. It was usually used to hold water.
“I remembered you saying last time that you were curious about what the alcohol tasted like.”
Amelia's eyes widened. She was surprised at his audacity to smuggle alcohol in, even though he said it was okay. While Amelia was admiring him, Ivan opened the bottle and handed it to Amelia.
“Try it.”
“...Is it okay?”
“You are the representative of God. Then your will is the will of God. Do you care about the opinions of priests and such?”
And he put the bottle in Amelia's hands. Amelia's eyes were fixed on the amber liquid inside the bottle.
“Why are you so kind to me?”
“Isn’t it the same for everyone else?”
Ivan answered Amelia's question indifferently. He didn't seem particularly surprised.
“It’s different. Other people only treat me like a Priestess.”
Ivan made a thoughtful sound, “Hmm,” at Amelia’s answer.
“I wish you hadn't done that.”
Amelia lifted her head as she spoke. She met Ivan’s gaze. Her forest-blue eyes curved affectionately.
“Yes, Amelia.”
Thump. Ivan lightly tapped the bottle's spout. The liquid inside the bottle rippled and shook. Amelia's heart also shook helplessly.
“If you want.”
At that moment, Amelia had the foolish conviction that she would definitely fall in love with the man who had given her new life.
Because there is someone who calls her name and sees her as she is, she feels it is a shame to just give up on this life.
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