Subliminal Wayfarer

“Ah, now that I think about it, when I was little, sparrows used to fly over and sit on my head quite often.”

“Sparrows?”

“Yes, when I was young, my hair was very curly. The sparrows kept sitting on my head, and it made me very upset. It was as if the birds thought my hair was a nest.”

Grace’s hair now had just the right amount of beautiful curls.

Its dark color shimmered like elegant pearls in the sunlight.

But when she was young, her hair was quite frizzy.

Norman used to tease her, saying her fluffy hair looked like animal fur.

How much she had hated that as a child.

“Well, Lucas also had very curly hair when he was young, and it did look a bit like a bird’s nest. But I thought it was adorable.”

“My mother said the same thing, but she laughed so much whenever a bird landed on my head.”

Selena imagined little Grace with small birds nesting on her head.

‘Goodness, the thought alone is adorable!’

Though she hadn’t seen Grace as a child, the image in her mind was enough.

It couldn’t help but be cute. Especially a little girl with birds perched on her head.

If Selena had been there, she would have laughed even more than Grace’s mother.

‘Oh, what a shame.’

She would have certainly captured that moment in a photo.

Selena looked at Grace with a face full of regret.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“…If I said I wanted to see that now, would you hate me, Grace?”

“What?”

That look…?

‘Could she possibly mean seeing birds on my head again?’

Grace quickly shook her head, surprised.

“Oh, no. Absolutely not.”

Selena, seeing Grace shake her head with such determination, pouted playfully.

“You never know. If such an opportunity arises, please show me. Just thinking about missing out on such a cute sight makes my heart ache.”

“But even if you say that…”

“Hmm? Grace. Please. We don’t know if it will happen or not.”

Was she being serious?

Seeing Selena’s genuinely regretful expression, Grace hesitated and then slowly nodded.

“Th-Then… just once.”

“Thank you, Grace.”

“And please don’t tell His Excellency. I feel like he’d pester me about it too…”

“Of course. Shh— It will be our little secret.”

Selena winked and smiled knowingly.

Grace, who had been rolling her eyes in embarrassment, smiled back at Selena.

‘She’s truly lovely.’

Grace’s purity in taking Selena’s playful teasing seriously was endearing.

‘No wonder Lucas is so taken with her.’

A soft, new feeling was growing in the part of Selena’s heart that had been empty since Felix’s passing.

As they shared a moment of playful conversation, the ladies waiting for their carriages gradually left the lobby.

Countess Gestash and the butler bid farewell to the guests.

Since they had already exchanged farewells, the departing ladies simply exchanged brief glances and disappeared.

“Oh, there’s another carriage coming. Is that House Blacke’s carriage?”

Countess Gestash said as she noticed a carriage approaching from afar.

Laura, who was waiting outside, shook her head.

“That’s not the carriage we came in.”

“What? It’s not?”

Countess Gestash, who had assumed it was House Blacke’s, looked confused.

The butler standing nearby provided an answer.

“A friend of the Elder Madam’s is coming for a visit today. She mentioned she would arrive in the afternoon after lunch, so I believe that must be her carriage.”

“Oh! That’s right. My mother-in-law’s guest was scheduled to arrive around this time.”

They had moved the tea time up a bit because of this, but she had forgotten.

Realizing it wasn’t their carriage, Selena and Grace, who had come out to the lobby, stepped back.

In the meantime, the old carriage came to a stop in front of the lobby.

Countess Gestash, maintaining her composure as if she had been waiting for them, greeted the guest.

“Welcome, I am Marianne Gestash. Thank you for coming such a long way.”

“Oh, thank you. I am Kashanu. I came at the invitation of Anna Gestash.”

A small, elderly lady with white hair, bowed with her slightly hunched back as she greeted Countess Gestash.

Her face was wrinkled with a warm smile, and though her eyes were barely visible due to her smile, her clear voice and demeanor revealed her vitality.

“Thank you for coming—Mother has been expecting you. David, could you please escort her to my mother?”

The butler, waiting behind, bowed and complied with her command.

The elderly lady slowly followed the butler.

Selena and Grace, watching from the entrance of the lobby, bowed slightly to the approaching elderly lady.

At that moment, the elderly lady glanced at Grace and then fixed her gaze on her.

“Oho.”

Her wrinkled lips parted slightly in surprise, forming a gentle curve.

The faint sound of admiration was so soft that only Grace could hear it.

The elderly lady stopped in front of Grace and Selena instead of passing by.

With a warm smile, she spoke to Grace.

“My dear, you’ve grown so much.”

Grace asked, flustered.

“Do you know me?”

“I met you a long time ago.”

The elderly lady’s words were friendly, as if she were pleased to see Grace, but Grace felt apologetic.

“I’m sorry, I don’t remember.”

“That’s only natural. We met when you were too young to remember.”

She chuckled and patted Grace’s right arm gently.

“Fate is unavoidable. If we meet again soon, let’s talk more then. Right now, I must hurry to see my old friend.”

The elderly lady left, laughing heartily, following the butler.

 

* * *

 

“Here is the receipt for the 200,000 Crans provided by Marquis O’Ellin. Take it, and I hope we never see you at the temple again.”

Rowen Ganache, the head of the temple’s paladins, handed over a bundle of receipts with an icy expression.

Norman glared at Rowen with a fierce, twisted face.

The man standing opposite him, with a face as cold as ice, held out the papers steadily.

Clenching his teeth.

‘This is all that bastard’s fault.’

He hadn’t intended to steal all the holy water. He just needed to take a sip.

The pain was so severe, but the temple’s treatment was only once a day.

No matter how much he lobbied, the temple remained unmoved, citing it as their policy.

How could they charge such a large sum for treatment and not alleviate even the pain?

Angry, Norman sought ways to relieve the pain himself.

And then, the door to the holy water storage room had just happened to be open.

It was the fault of the temple priest for not managing the door properly.

To go further, it was the temple’s fault for taking a large sum of money and failing to alleviate the pain.

In any case, the cause lay with the temple, so he was not at fault.

The elixir that could cure all diseases, restore energy, and even enhance vitality was right before his eyes.

Anyone would covet such a treasure if it were right in front of them.

Moreover, wasn’t he a patient suffering from pain?

He didn’t intend to steal it all, just a sip. Just one sip…

 

“What are you doing there!”

 

Unfortunately, he was caught by that bastard.

Knowing he would face severe punishment if caught, Norman ran away immediately.

While escaping, he damaged several guardian stones protecting the holy water.

But he was caught before he could even take ten steps.

 

“Such blasphemy!”

 

Norman was literally dragged by that bastard.

He was dragged like a dog for about ten minutes all the way to the High Priest.

No matter how he thought about it, it was unfair.

Because of the guardian stones, he couldn’t even taste the holy water. If he had at least tasted it, it wouldn’t have been so frustrating.

As a result, Norman was left with nothing but shame and liability for damages without having done anything seriously wrong.

His treatment sessions at the temple also ended.

From that day on, he was merely a hostage and a criminal.

“I say it again, I am innocent. What exactly did I do wrong to deserve such treatment!”

“…You are quite shameless for someone caught in the act.”

“How can you call it being caught in the act when I have done nothing? Nothing at all! What you’re doing is defamation against me!”

“I cannot argue with you any longer. I hope you leave and never get injured again. The temple will not treat you, no matter how much donation you offer, if you are struck with a deadly disease.”

Blasphemy was a very serious crime.

Rowen, with an icy glare, turned his back as if to make a point.

The temple knights who had menacingly escorted Norman out followed him back into the temple with perfect coordination.

Thud, thud, thud!

BANG!

The temple door closed firmly in front of Norman’s eyes.

Norman could barely contain his pride. He ground his teeth and clenched his fists.

“Young Master… Shall I escort you back to the mansion?”

The attendant who had come to fetch Norman asked cautiously.

Norman took a moment to catch his breath and lifted his chin.

Fortunately, his ribs had healed, and the pain had mostly subsided.

As long as he didn’t overexert himself, he could live as usual. There was no benefit in getting excited here.

“Yes, let’s go back to the mansion.”

His father had to know how his esteemed son from the renowned O’Ellin Marquisate had been treated.

Therefore, it was rational to unleash his anger in front of his father.

 

* * *

 

Just as Norman climbed into the carriage—

At some point, a crowd had started gathering near the temple, and a group of knights and soldiers bearing an unfamiliar family crest approached.

‘What’s this?’

Dozens of soldiers in silver armor marched in perfect formation toward the temple.

The front of the temple quickly turned into a marketplace, filled with children and citizens following them.

As Norman’s carriage turned to avoid the crowd, he noticed a luxurious carriage guarded by knights in silver armor.

‘…Two wolves?’