After the incident where Viscount Plafatin colluded with the heretical "Sacred Body Cultivation Society," those involved received vastly different fates.
The viscount’s old friends, neighboring lords, and even his direct superior—the Grand Duke—all faced punishment. The HolySee branded them as "suspected heretic collaborators."
His territory was now temporarily managed by the local church.
Aether Monroe was deemed negligent by the Pope for a critical oversight during his duties. He was forced into a semi-exile mission: hunting down the "Sacred Body Cultivation Society" heretics to atone.
Shel, meanwhile, became the Pope’s personally appointed royal guard. He could freely enter the Radiant Cathedral and meet the Pope anytime.
In the past, such a prestigious role was reserved for veteran Holy Knights with distinguished service or younger sons of powerful nobles—a clear favor from the HolySee.
Shel, under thirty, was elevated directly by the Pope’s own words. This favor was nothing short of a meteoric rise.
Hilna also became a student personally tutored by His Holiness.
But the biggest issue remained Catherine.
After Monroe’s departure, her existence became public knowledge.
She instantly became the talk of the entire City of Glory—and even neighboring nations.
The Sword Saint had a daughter! And she was already in her twenties!
Many people’s attitudes shifted dramatically.
Take Hilna, for example.
Recalling her actions back then always left Shel torn between laughter and exasperation.
"After I returned home, I told her how I met Catherine. I apologized sincerely for keeping it secret, explaining it was the Pope and Monroe’s privacy—I had no choice. But she was still furious."
"Once she learned of Catherine, Hilna started overthinking. She revisited my past interactions with Monroe and concluded he never truly wanted her as a student. She believed Monroe was just grooming me as a reliable husband for his ‘simple-minded’ daughter—a caretaker for his legacy."
"Especially after discovering the fairy-tale picture books I stayed up nights creating were commissioned by the Pope for Catherine, her anger flared."
"From then on, whenever the Pope summoned me to care for Catherine, she’d find excuses to tag along. If I came home late, she’d instantly bristle, bombarding me with questions. Some mornings, I’d wake to find her dozing by my bedside, having stayed up just to watch me… I felt her possessiveness was excessive, but I couldn’t scold her."
"Because the moment I complained or told her to back off, she’d look hurt. Her eyes would well with tears as she asked if she’d done something wrong—or if I disliked her… What could I do?"
"Of course, that wasn’t all… Monroe’s departure and Catherine’s public reveal caused an uproar within the HolySee."
People were stunned that Aether Monroe, a pillar of the HolySee, had to leave the City of Glory. His mission—to hunt elusive heretic mages alone, refusing aid—felt like banishment.
They were even more shocked that the stern Sword Saint had such a beautiful yet odd, simple-minded daughter.
Though the Pope strictly forbade spreading rumors about Catherine and restricted her movements to the Radiant Cathedral, gossip still leaked.
Curious busybodies dug through dusty archives. They pieced together the story from thirty or forty years ago: a woman who idolized Aether Monroe, became his student, rose to Holy Knight, and fell in love with him.
From the few surviving portraits, she was undeniably lovely.
A handful of elders recalled her—a cheerful, optimistic swordswoman utterly devoted to Monroe.
She had silky golden hair, emerald-green eyes, and a slender frame. As Holy Knights could marry, she had many suitors—even nobles of high standing.
But her reply to them was always, "I already have someone I love."
Back then, people dismissed it as a polite refusal. No one expected it to be true.
Many also wondered how Monroe—a man of rigid discipline—could ever fall in love.
It felt like a shattered image.
The mighty, upright, selfless warrior they knew seemed to morph into a lecherous old man secretly toying with his female student.
Especially now, with Monroe exiled to hunt heretics alone, wild rumors about him multiplied.
Even with the Pope’s ban, whispers still slithered through private conversations.
At the center of this storm, Catherine naturally drew intense attention.
But shielded by the Pope’s protection and her own innocence, she remained oblivious to the world’s curiosity and malice.
She only felt a little puzzled. Why had her father—who used to visit often—disappeared again?
This time, he’d been gone for so long.
Still, she wasn’t too sad. She no longer lived in that windowless little room. Now, she could wander daily through this grand house filled with doors, windows, carvings, stained glass, and soaring domes.
Though her weak legs made her stumble often, the cathedral was vast. She could rest anywhere.
Every hall held exquisite murals. The dappled light filtering through stained glass was breathtaking. Portraits in storage rooms, ancient relics on display, and the staggering religious paintings on the ceilings… each was more beautiful than anything in her picture books.
When weariness crept in after long hours of play, she’d return to the Pope’s office. There, she’d lean against the kind old woman—Pope Saint An IV—and rest.
Catherine still saw Lord Shel regularly (though that pretty blue-haired girl trailing him always glared fiercely at her and blocked her hugs—she never understood why). She’d ask him to read picture books aloud or hold his hand, inviting him to stroll the cathedral and share the beautiful ornaments she found.
Catherine firmly believed he was a god from another world—a deity who controlled the fates of countless fairy-tale characters. She was deeply grateful he’d rewritten tragic endings just for her, so she treated him with extra reverence.
This made Shel uneasy.
With Hilna’s presence and his own awkward, sensitive position, he couldn’t accept Catherine’s innocent, affectionate gestures.
Back then, he hadn’t yet grasped the Pope’s deeper intentions.
His Holiness had already begun grooming him.
In a tavern in Lofanania, Shel paused as he slowly recounted the past.
By now, every character whose fate was forever intertwined with his had appeared in this story.
Catherine Monroe.
Hilna von Ipoli.
Lofna von Ipoli.
Aether Monroe.
Pope Saint An IV.
A wave of nostalgia washed over Shel.
He couldn’t believe how vividly he still remembered every moment of meeting them—their faces, expressions, and auras—as if seared into his deepest memories.
He rubbed his forehead.
"Lord Shel, does your head hurt? You’ve been rubbing your forehead."
"It does ache…" he murmured, wincing. "I don’t want to continue the story just yet, Nameless. Do you know why I teleported us to Lofanania?"
Nameless guessed hesitantly, "Uh… because Lady Lofna was chasing us so hard? So you hid in her kingdom—the most dangerous place being the safest?"
"Not entirely. Among my old friends, I feel I owe Lofna the most. As her teacher, I wasn’t there during her growth and transformation. When she truly found herself and built her legacy, I never truly appreciated what she’d created. Deep down, I also wanted to see this city again. But most importantly, I need to uncover why she sought me out."
"Oh…"
"So…" Shel stood up, patting Nameless’s shoulder. "Rest today. Tomorrow, we’ll change clothes and I’ll show you around the city."
"I’ll also tell you what Lofna endured to become an empress."
