TVHR - Chapter 86

The first thing Roselyn saw when she opened her eyes after suffering from a fever was a man.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess Bellion."

“...It’s really my first time seeing you.”

Roselyn answered with a somewhat reluctant expression as she looked at the man she was meeting for the first time in both her past and present lives.

"I came to visit after hearing that you were not feeling well."

"That is something to be grateful for, but..."

Roselyn narrowed her eyes and slowly scanned the white-haired man in front of her.

He was a somewhat shabby-looking man wearing a pure white priest's robe.

His pure white priestly robes hung down like those of a researcher who had been confined to a laboratory for a long time, and his hair was sticking out like someone who had just woken up.

He had dark circles under his eyes and felt tired all over his body.

With the addition of pure white hair and light gray irises, the person appeared pure white.

Aside from the pitch-black pupils, it was hard to find any black.

The man, with his long hair twisted into a ponytail and hanging down over his priestly robes, looked like a man in his thirties terribly worn out by work, even at a glance.

The light blue gemstone necklace hanging around his neck particularly stood out.

He was a man with a neat yet boring appearance, to the extent that if it weren't for the piercings on his lips and ears, she would have thought he was a very boring person.

"I look a bit of a mess, but please bear with me."

He opened his mouth, laughing weakly with a tired smile.

"The Duchy of Bellion suddenly contacted me at dawn and threatened to cut off all support if the young lady died, so..."

"Ah..."

So this person was a sad member of society, too.

Roselyn thought for a moment.

"Do you happen to know me?"

"Isn't that the new High Priest?"

"You're right."

"Haha," the man let out a light laugh, scratched the back of his head, and curled the corners of his mouth.

"My name is Irbon, the High Priest. Well, I'm a novice, having only been in the position for five years, though."

Roselyn paused.

High Priest Irbon.

Although today is the first time she's seen his face, she had heard a lot about the rumors.

"Yes..."

Roselyn answered indifferently with a nonchalant expression at the other person's weak voice.

"Is it a trend these days to act coy?"

She doesn't understand why everyone she meets hides their true nature.

'The High Priest isn't usually like this.'

At Roselyn's words, the High Priest tilted his head and asked, "Huh?" He looked puzzled, then somehow hung his head low with a gloomy expression.

"You are too cold, Princess. I was summoned by the Duke's knights at dawn, forcibly woken up, and carried all the way here."

"You made quite a bit of money in return."

"...Well, that’s true."

The High Priest smiled awkwardly at Rose Ron's cold words.

In fact, this High Priest was the craziest person Roselyn knew.

It seems he is keeping quiet about it now because it hasn't been revealed openly yet, but he was actually an addict.

What kind of addict are you?

Gambling addiction.

Alcoholism.

Nicotine addiction.

Money addiction.

Anyway, it meant that he would do everything bad.

The High Priest is usually chosen from among those who are most loved by the gods and possess the most outstanding Healing Abyss, but unfortunately, this time the High Priest was this man.

He was obsessed with gambling, alcohol, and cigarettes.

This was the very man who believed that money was more important than women or honor.

And the High Priest... gambled with the money meant to run the temple.

It was clear that the reason he rushed here in such a hurry was that he was hoping for some crumbs to fall his way.

"How much more did you lose that you came rushing here at dawn?"

"...Well, I’ve heard rumors that you leave quite a mysterious trail, but there really is nothing you don’t know."

He scratched his messy hair and spoke in a subtle way.

As Roselyn stared silently, looking at the hopeless human, the High Priest, Irbon, cautiously opened his mouth in his shabby state.

"I lost quite a bit. I blew up half of the money that came in for the temple's operating expenses this time..."

I guess so.

To put it bluntly, this man was someone who would do anything for money. He didn't discriminate whether it was a crime or a good deed.

Conversely, if you have money, he becomes a very loyal man.

He was a hedonist of a different kind than Garen, who valued his livelihood more than his own life.

He was someone who would not hesitate to use his abilities as long as he was paid enough, and he would also uphold loyalty as long as his financial stability was solid.

In other words, he was a man who could be used however you wanted.

“Do you need money?”

"I guess?"

"How much?"

"Hmm, a little, quite a lot?"

Roselyn rubbed her chin.

The reason this man was able to become the High Priest despite being such a worthless, despicable piece of trash.

First of all, it was due to a healing ability so powerful that it could not even be compared to others.

However, it is not that there were no candidates comparable to this High Priest, even if not to the same extent.

In fact, it is impossible that the former High Priest or the Priests failed to recognize the current High Priest's shortcomings.

Nevertheless, the reason he became High Priest without any opposition.

It was... because of another abyss this man possessed.

There are Abysses that bloom naturally and Abysses that can be obtained later through certain conditions.

The reason he was able to rise to the position of High Priest unrivaled was that two Abysses existed within him.

One is an acquired Abyss.

Another one is the Abyss that he bloomed.

He had a massive defensive Abyss.

That is the reason why he walks around with a large sum of money in such shabby clothes without a single scratch on his body.

And the High Priest played a significant role in the Empire remaining relatively intact during the war with Kaluta.

'Come to think of it, quite a big horse race used to be held around this time of year.'

The first prize was substantial, but no one won.

"Did something come up that requires a lot of money? Like gambling on high-stakes horse races?"

"...Our Princess knows a great deal."

The High Priest also seemed slightly annoyed and cautiously opened his mouth.

"Shall I help you make a lot of money?"

"... What?"

"I'll lend you money, too. If you win at the horse race, you just have to pay back the amount you borrowed, and if not, you don't have to pay it back."

Roselyn had used this method to make a lot of money, but it didn't seem like a bad idea to leave this man in debt.

"Hmm, you want to make a deal with me? What is it you want?"

"She's different," he asked, pulling up his glasses.

"One is cooperating with my father's experiment; he is developing a new product, so please keep your mouth shut and cooperate with that."

“What about one?”

"Yes, and another one is..."

Roselyn smiled.

"You become my subordinate."

"...Hmph. Are you telling me to become your subordinate right now?"

"Right, I need a reliable bodyguard and right-hand man, and you're a master of disguise."

At Roselyn's arrogant words, the High Priest's eyes grew even sharper.

"You're being too casual and crossing the line on our first meeting?"

Roselyn got out of bed, opened the closet, rummaged through it, and started to take something out and thud it onto the floor. It was a glittering gold bar.

By the time the number of gold bars that had started piling up one by one exceeded thirty, the High Priest froze with his mouth agape.

"Ah, this is tough. Take all the gold bars inside."

Roselyn nodded indifferently.

"...Hehehe."

He pressed down on the corners of his mouth that were twitching, then slyly approached, surveyed the gold bars on the floor and inside the closet, and smiled broadly.

"Ahem, what can I invest this in to become a millionaire?"

"At the race a week from now, bet everything on number 7... no. On a beige-haired horse named Bisan."

"...Bisan? Isn't that what they mean by retirement? I heard they're going to have one last appearance and then get discarded because their performance hasn't been good at all..."

The High Priest frowned and retorted.

Roselyn nodded as she recalled something quite similar to the information she knew.

In the empire, a major horse race was held legally only once a year.

You could consider it one of the state-hosted festivals that everyone from nobles to citizens of the empire could easily participate in.

So, during this period, information about the entry horses tended to circulate secretly.

"Yeah, invest everything there."

"Wait, it's not even diversified? At this rate, just diversifying would be enough..."

"Get out."

As it was a legitimate festival in which the entire empire could participate, the stakes were substantial.

Because there were rare cases of people who turned their lives around after betting on a good horse, whenever this time came, those who had undergone the coming-of-age ceremony would make sure to participate, even if with just a small amount of money.

"No, what if you lose everything at this rate...?"

"My dad and grandfather have a lot of money."

The High Priest looked bewildered at Roselyn's childish remark about being born with a silver spoon.

"You have nothing to lose, right? You don't have to pay it back if you don't win, and if you want to, you can just bet separately."

"...Well. That’s true, but... I understand for now."

Since Roselyn's words weren't entirely wrong, he took the gold bars with a sour expression and left the mansion.

And after some time.

"Master! How can your subordinate help you?"

The High Priest came to visit Roselyn, looking cheerful with a plump, healthy complexion instead of dark circles.

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