Kellive’s golden eyes turned toward the terrace.
Following his gaze, Morgana saw priests bustling about outside the building.
They seemed busy preparing for the celebratory banquet scheduled for the evening.
Kellive watched them and murmured quietly, “That’s probably why the lady fled to the Caledon Forest. It’s a place where the Count can’t send armed knights.”
“Then… does that mean I can’t go in either?”
Tristan froze, clearly unaware of this fact.
Instead of answering, Kellive simply smiled. It was clear enough without words—it was a yes.
Seeing Tristan’s face twist in despair, Morgana felt like he was about to burst into tears.
Just as tears welled up in his eyes and he was on the verge of sobbing,
Morgana quickly called over a priest who was waiting nearby to assist.
“Excuse me! Just a moment! Priest Asen!”
“Yes, Lady Morgana. What can I do for you?”
A junior priest hurried over at her loud call.
Morgana smiled brightly, trying to sound as cheerful and unburdensome as possible.
“By any chance, a lady seems to have gotten lost in the Caledon Forest. Is there any way to find her?”
“I don’t have the authority, but I’ll relay the message to the High Priest!”
As Asen turned to leave, Morgana called back again.
“One more thing! Can you tell me how to become a priestess?”
Before Morgana could finish her question, Kellive, Tristan, and even Excalibur chimed in simultaneously.
“You want to become a priestess?”
“You’re trying to become a priestess?”
—A priestess?!
‘There’s no need to all look so serious at once.’
The lady of the Count’s household had reportedly acted as if cursed after speaking with a priest, then declared she would become a priestess.
Morgana had asked wondering if there was some connection between the two events.
It had been difficult to find any common ground among those who had been cursed.
Seeing Asen hesitate and step back at the men’s exclamations, Morgana smiled warmly.
“Think of their comments as just interjections! Please continue!”
Feeling awkward, she glanced around before continuing.
“Ah, usually it takes about 20 years of study. You have to memorize the scriptures, you see.”
‘Were all priests scholars of the gods…?’
The astonishing number of 20 years made Morgana’s gaze fixate on Asen’s face for a moment.
Tristan’s expression also turned to one of shock.
“Ah, so my lady was prepared to pray for 20 years to become a priestess…”
Asen quickly waved her hands.
“Not anymore! In the past, there were no scriptures, so we had to memorize what the assigned priests recited. But now, scriptures are distributed to everyone, so the time has been greatly reduced.”
She smiled brightly and held up two fingers.
“If you have a good memory, two years should be enough!”
‘Two years is still a long time.’
Only a few among those who gained divine power as a testament of faith became priests, so she could somewhat understand how difficult the path was.
‘I heard they couldn’t write down the divine language… It’s much stricter than I thought.’
It was easy to imagine how much opposition there must have been when the priests, who had studied for 20 years, suddenly decided to create a temple to shorten that time.
Merlin, who had built the temple under such circumstances, was truly a remarkable person.
Asen proudly looked at the priests visible from the terrace and said, “Thanks to that, the number of priests has increased a lot. In the past, if someone had a bad memory, they’d give up and run away halfway through.”
As if remembering something, she let out a small sigh.
“Even though the number of priests has increased, there aren’t many who can speak the ancient language, so the High Priest has had a hard time.”
At the mention of the ancient language, Percival’s mother came to mind.
Though she disliked the temple too much to ever become a priestess, it was clear that such talent was rare.
Morgana, out of simple curiosity, subtly asked, “Is it really that rare to find someone who can speak the ancient language?”
“I’ve heard that, aside from Saint Nimue, only about three people have ever mastered the ancient language. If someone shows talent, the High Priest sometimes provides individual training.”
The temple was already built.
Any future divine oracles could be interpreted by the saint.
‘Is there really a need to train people further?’
Morgana smiled politely and moved past her doubts.
“Thank you. Then, please just relay to the High Priest that we’d like the lady to be found in the Caledon Forest.”
“Of course!”
As Asen bowed and walked away, Tristan fidgeted restlessly, unable to keep his hands still.
It was understandable to worry, given that a noble lady had ventured alone into the vast forest without any preparation.
Morgana pressed her lips together and stared at him seriously.
‘It would be great if we could at least scout the path from Avalon’s mountains to the Caledon Forest.’
Raon’s mercenaries were from Britain and couldn’t enter Avalon.
And she didn’t know anyone in Avalon either.
‘Let’s just pretend the Duke of Fay doesn’t exist.’
If she could bring the lady out and treat her, she might learn more about the priest the lady had met just before her nightmares began.
Kellive, who had been quietly observing her, seemed to read her mind and kindly offered,
“For now, the royal family will send knights to the entrance of the Caledon Forest. As long as we don’t cross into the neutral zone, it’s still Avalon’s territory.”
“Th-thank you!”
Tristan’s face brightened as he bowed gratefully, his voice filled with hope.
“I’m so glad Lady Morgana is here to help! Once the lady returns, I think we can persuade the Count.”
Every time he spoke, Morgana’s conscience pricked her, as she was planning to hand over the sword and leave.
Not long after, Asen returned from delivering the message to the High Priest.
“The High Priest said he’ll send holy knights into the forest. He asked us to wait a little longer.”
Excalibur clicked its tongue, clearly displeased.
—Tsk, the temple’s not much help. How are they going to find anyone like that?
Indeed, Merlin’s response felt lukewarm.
‘Even if they’re busy preparing for the banquet, isn’t this reaction a bit too passive?’
Of course, she knew the forest was vast and difficult to search. But the temple’s attitude was starting to feel off.
Leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed, Morgana stared at Tristan and asked Kellive,
“Kellive, you said the high priests know the geography of the Caledon Forest, right?”
“That’s what I’ve heard. Why?”
“Then does that include the holy knights among the high priests?”
“If they’re at the level of a knight commander, yes.”
Morgana scanned the terrace, looking for where the holy knights were gathered.
In the garden below, it seemed Merlin had given some orders, as a few holy knights were moving about in a disorganized manner.
A burly man with brown hair stood out at the forefront.
Morgana muttered as she watched him, “We’ll have to make them move more proactively.”
If they’re being lax, we’ll just have to stir things up ourselves.
💫
Even as the sunset, the temple was brightly lit.
As Morgana prepared for the banquet in her room, a familiar voice came through a knock at the door.
“My lady, it’s Olivia.”
“Olivia…?”
At the familiar name, her head snapped toward the door.
The door opened, and there stood the face of the maid she hadn’t seen since fleeing the Duke of Fay’s estate.
Her eyes, a mix of anticipation and nervousness, lit up with joy the moment they landed on Morgana.
“My lady! It’s been so long!”
She rushed over with a delighted expression. Surprised by the unexpected reunion, Morgana blinked in astonishment.
“Olivia, how are you here?”
“The Duke brought me here to serve you since you’re at the temple!”
That meant the Duke of Fay was also attending the temple banquet.
‘He must be here to poke around for something.’
The servants were the ones she regretted leaving the most when she fled Avalon. Their resilience in enduring the Duke’s capricious nature still lingered in her mind.
And since she had run away without a word, she felt a lingering guilt.
“Did you get in trouble after I ran away?”
“Oh, he went berserk. Turned the whole estate upside down. We thought he’d lost his mind.”
From the way she shuddered, it seemed the Duke had thrown a massive fit.
But Olivia’s expression showed more determination than fear.
Glancing around, Morgana noticed the large suitcase behind her.
‘Isn’t that a bit big for just coming to serve for a while…?’
As Morgana eyed it suspiciously, Olivia quickly pulled out a stack of documents from the bag and handed them over.
At the top was Olivia’s name, followed neatly by her skills and experience.
It looked like a resume. The pages that followed were the same.
It seemed almost all the servants who had served Morgana’s tea were on the list.
Even the head chef was included, so it was safe to say most of the Duke’s servants were there.
Just as a question was about to escape Morgana’s lips,
Olivia clenched her fists and declared loudly, “My lady, please take us in!”
Comments (0)