The Saintess Became the Northern Grand Duke’s Daughter

Liriette hugged her with a face almost crying.

“Thanks, Noelle.”

Noelle smiled happily.

As if she had been given an indescribable gift.

Liriette asked Simon to bring various desserts.

Noelle shook her head, saying she couldn’t eat sugary cakes like a faithful priest.

However, she couldn’t refuse Liriette’s request to get a piece of cake and take a bite.

Finally Noelle opened her mouth. After a moment, she opened her eyes wide and covered her mouth with both hands.

Seeing her expression, Liriette spoke triumphantly.

“How is it, it’s really delicious, right?”

Noelle nodded, her cheeks blushing like apples.

After that, the two shared a lot of conversation while sharing a cake in half. It was Liriette who spoke most of the time.

She chattered about what had happened in the castle over the past few months.

“The Duke brings me a lot of delicious meat and cakes every day, so I eat a lot. Then I grew taller and stronger.”

Actually, Liriette’s cheeks were plump, but her petite height wasn’t much different from a few months ago. But Noelle nodded her head, saying she really did.

“This is also given to me by the Duke.”

Liriette showed off her fluffy sheep doll to Noelle.

“Holding this doll makes me very warm.”

Feeling the warmth of the doll, Noelle made a face, as if that was really strange.

She moved her hand.

[I heard that the duke is a very scary person, but I guess not.]

“Yep, that’s all nonsense. The Duke is really kind.”

Noelle didn’t ask if the Duke was really Liriette’s real father. He knew that nothing good was going to happen to Liriette when she asked such a thing.

Noelle just listened to Liriette’s story with a happy face.

Yet their time together didn’t last long.

[I’ll be going, Lily.]

Her face stiffened as she muttered at Noelle’s words.

“Already?”

[I have to go back before the sun goes down.]

“…”

Liriette wanted to ask her to live here with her once again.

However, since Noelle decided her course of action, the request only made her difficult.

So instead of asking Noelle for a mournful request, Liriette untied her white scarf around her neck.

Liriette put the scarf around Noelle’s slender neck and said.

“See you again.”

Of course, it won’t be easy.

No matter what the High Priest does in the future, the relationship between the High Priest and the Duke will be irreversibly torn.

Moreover, the temple in the capital where Noelle was located was quite far from the castle where Liriette was located.

However, her light blue eyes shone clearly.

Like a knight who swears by her life.

Noelle wanted to say yes, yet she couldn’t.

For she wanted Liriette to forget about the High Priest, temple, also Noelle, and be happy.

So instead of answering, Noelle hugged Liriette’s small body tightly.

[May the love and blessings of the goddess be with you. Take care, Lily.]

Her whispered greeting in a voice that didn’t come out properly made Lily burst into tears. Liriette said, her face dripping with tears.

“Noelle too.”

After a while, she left the castle. Liriette went outside the castle gate and looked at Noelle’s back.

Until her figure disappeared into the pure white snow.

***

The High Priest burst into anger toward Noelle, who returned alone.

“You should have brought Liriette with you somehow! Cry and beg, or threaten that something will go wrong if she stays by the Duke’s side, or if that doesn’t work, drag her out!”

[I apologize.]

Looking at Noelle, who knelt down and bowed her head, the High Priest gritted his teeth.

In fact, he didn’t expect much from her.

Even though Liriette followed Noelle, he thought that at least she had a small affection for someone who was nice to her.

‘It was exactly what I thought. The Duke puts an expensive dress on her and talks nonsense about his daughter, so he’s going to go over it and ignore Noelle no matter what.’

The High Priest muttered with disillusioned eyes.

“That ungrateful girl.”

Just because he wasn’t expecting it didn’t make him any less angry. The inside of the High Priest was bubbling.

He wanted to call and hit the priest closest to him right away. Until the anger in him disappeared.

Yet I couldn’t.

Because of the soldiers who came with Noelle.

A man like a huge black bear stood in front of the soldiers. It was Villaim, the knight who guided the High Priest to the north.

The High Priest opened his mouth without hiding his anger.

“Why did you come all the way here? Are you trying to kick me out of the north?”

Villaim replied with a blunt face.

“It can’t be. Although we’re in conflict over the issue of Miss Liriette, apart from that, the High Priest is a valuable guest who has come a long way.”

Wondering what the hell he was talking about, the High Priestess furrowed his eyebrows.

Villaim continued.

“There are many dangerous beasts and monsters in the north. No matter how much the High Priest receives the protection of the goddess, and no matter how brave the priests you bring are, it’s not easy to escape from that danger. We will protect you while you stay in the north.”

Although it was quite plausible, the High Priest spat out abusive language.

‘Bullshit. They think I don’t know that they’re trying to pressure me in the name of protection?’

It was the moment the High Priest was about to say that he didn’t need him, and that he should go away.

Crash!

The window was shattered, and a winged monster stormed in.

The appearance of the monster was truly terrifying.

Five wings of different sizes were decaying, and dozens of eyes were attached to the black face.

“Kyahak!”

The monster opened its beak and charged at the High Priest. He screamed fiercely the moment he saw hundreds of teeth stacked in layers in its beak.

“Argh!”

The High Priest hit his butt on the spot. Villaim stood in front of him.

Stab!

Villaim thrust his sword into the monster’s beak.

“Kyaaaaak!”

Blood gushed out of the monster’s beak with a high-pitched scream that seemed to rip through the eardrum. The High Priest who was under the monster was soaked in black blood.

The blood smelled of rotting corpses.

“Wlergh!”

The High Priest couldn’t stand the disgust and knelt down, began to vomit. Noelle and the priests covered the him with pale faces.

After that, a hellish sight followed.

***

Villaim said, thrusting his sword into the wriggling monster’s head.

“Is everyone okay?”

There were no casualties thanks to the overwhelming strength of the soldiers led by Villam.

However, the High Priest surrounded by the priests sat on the floor and was trembling. The place where his gaze was directed was the strewn monster corpse.

The moment he saw the dozens of eyes of the monster that he couldn’t bear to detect, he vomited again.

“Uuugh.”

It was the first time the high priest had seen the monster.

The monster was more horrific, gross, and disgusting than when he had heard them through stories.

Villaim approached such High Priest He said, looking down at the High Priest drenched in black blood.

“Now you will believe me. The north is a dangerous place.”

“…”

“Why don’t you go back before the noble you suffer terrible things from monsters?”

At that moment, the High Priest realized.

‘He brought the monster!’

Surprisingly, the High Priest was right.

To be precise, Villaim brought the monster’s favorite incense in his arms.

To follow him.

The result was a success.

‘Shit!’

The High Priest didn’t want to kneel to such a low-level threat.

‘But if I don’t leave now, they’ll bring those hideous monsters with them.’

Besides, the north wasn’t a place for people to live at all. It was too cold, and the food was poor.

If he continued to endure here, all that would remain would be a sick body.

He had no choice.

The High Priest glared at Villam with ferocious eyes and said.

“Hmph, I was thinking of going back to the capital without having to make such a heinous threat.”

“Is that so?”

“But I hope you don’t misunderstand that I’m running away. Tell His Grace the Duke. The reason I go to the capital is to somehow find a way to bring my Liriette!”

Wouldn’t it be better to just kill this pig here?

Villaim thought.

However, since the Duke hadn’t given such an order, he meekly nodded his head.

“I understand. As I said before, the northern road is very dangerous, so I will protect you until you return to the capital.”

The High Priest screamed loudly.

“Enough. How can I trust you!”

In addition, unlike when he departed from the capital, his physical condition was in a mess. He couldn’t stand the journey on the road that lasted all month.

‘I have no choice but to ask His Imperial Majesty the Emperor to let me use the gate.’

Of course, the despicable and clever Emperor would take advantage of this gap and demand a huge price from the High Priest.

But he can’t help it.

For he wanted to get out of this terrible place as soon as possible.

Villaim also didn’t want to take on such a burdensome task, thus he happily nodded.

“We wanted to treat the High Priest with all our heart, yet we can’t help it because you stubbornly refused. Please return to the capital safely.”