* * *

Rosie shoved Athena into her bag and hid behind a large stalactite.

Zahid stood alongside Fire and looked ahead.

‘Twenty-four… no, twenty-five. All of them are skilled.’

It was Aietar who had objected to Yuta going to the Kingdom of Itaa.

He had been concerned about the awakening of the Divine Beast. That meant he had surely planted subordinates nearby.

‘When Rosie became Fire’s master earlier, that light was quite bright.’

Zahid tightened his grip on his sword.

‘They must have sensed something was off and came because they were already stationed nearby.’

Given Fire’s presence, Zahid figured he could probably win against about twenty-five of them.

But there was a variable. If even a single high-ranking priest was among them, things could get complicated. They would be able to continuously pour divine power into healing.

If Zahid got hurt, Rosie might not be able to stand it and come out to use her divine power.

If that happened, they might kill her first.

With such a severe numerical disadvantage, there was no guarantee he could protect her during battle.

In other words, winning wasn’t the issue—the situation itself was unfavorable.

Especially since they were in a narrow cave, setting a fire with Fire and fleeing wasn’t an option.

‘…Hopefully, they’re just stragglers from the Itaa Kingdom’s civil war…’

It was a hopeless expectation. And the people who soon revealed themselves shattered ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) Zahid’s hope.

More than twenty individuals in holy knight uniforms stood before him, along with three priests.

Among them, the man at the front, dressed in the ornate attire of a Holy Knight Commander, locked eyes with Zahid.

The moment he saw Zahid and Fire, he immediately took up a battle stance.

‘His skill’s comparable to that guy, Payton.’

And with three priests too—it was exactly the worst-case scenario Zahid had imagined.

Their eyes sharpened simultaneously, both sides instantly recognizing the other as the enemy.

‘If I take out the priests in the back in one blow before we begin…’

The moment Zahid encountered them, he rapidly calculated the best course of action. Fire bared his teeth with a growl.

Just as they were about to initiate an all-out battle, having instinctively marked each other as enemies—

“Ah, stop.”

Rosie suddenly stepped out from behind the stalactite, walking out slowly.

It was such a composed appearance that even Zahid, who had been silently facing off with the knight commander, seemed to relax slightly.

Rosie calmly patted Fire’s cheek and spoke.

“They’re on our side. It’s fine.”

Confusion flickered across the faces of more than twenty holy knights all at once.

Zahid also found himself a bit stunned. They clearly didn’t look like allies.

Rosie lifted her chin and addressed the Holy Knight Commander.

“I know this is absurd, but let me explain the situation first.”

Zahid decided to stay quiet for now.

He’d seen enough times how Rosie talked her way out of things—she was worth trusting to handle it.

“I’m Cecil Doroa. You’ve heard the name, haven’t you?”

It seemed Rosie had decided to lie.

The Holy Knight Commander’s face turned to shock at her words.

“Cecil… Doroa?”

Zahid, too, was caught off guard. He hadn’t expected that name here.

Cecil Doroa was the woman who had shown up at the Noart estate claiming to be pregnant with Julian’s child.

Zahid had witnessed the family physician at the time assert, “With divine power at this level, she must be a high-ranking priest.”

He later learned Cecil Doroa was one of the elite high-ranking priests who wielded power from deep within the Great Temple, always remaining hidden.

But she had reportedly died in a carriage accident on her way to face the Imperial trial…

“Everyone thinks I died, but I was disguised to the outside world and have been carrying out the High Priest’s orders with a changed appearance. What is your name, knight?”

“Sogno Alten.”

Sogno replied with a wary tone as he looked at Rosie.

“I must ask for your understanding, Lady Cecil. We never received word about you, so this is quite confusing.”

In other words, he didn’t believe her.

Zahid thought to himself that he wouldn’t believe it either.

“I understand. There’s only one way a priest proves their identity.”

Rosie said it with natural poise and an air of arrogance.

“Check my divine power.”

Sogno signaled with his eyes to one of the priests behind him. The youngest-looking priest quickly ran forward.

Rosie loosened the ring on her finger slightly and placed her hand on the priest’s head.

In almost no time at all, the young priest fell flat on his face.

“I pay my respects to Lady Cecil!”

It appeared Rosie had overwhelmed him with divine power.

Rosie’s divine power wasn’t quite on Aietar’s level, but it was said to be stronger than Yuta’s. That was enough to pass as a high-ranking priest.

“I don’t know the exact diagnosis, but your lungs weren’t in good shape. I’ve healed that too.”

Rosie spoke gently to the young priest.

“Thank you, Lady Cecil! It’s truly an honor! I was told that curing my lung disease would take a miracle, but this was so quick…”

The young priest mumbled emotionally, overwhelmed by how much easier it had become to breathe.

Sogno calmly gestured to the next priest.

Rosie then demonstrated her divine power to the other two priests as well.

Only after all three priests dropped to their knees did Sogno finally kneel on one knee too.

“We pay our respects to Lady Cecil.”

They had no idea about Rosie’s existence as an heir, and they were stationed far from the Empire.

From their standpoint, Rosie’s overwhelming divine power made her impossible to doubt. The Temple was a rigid hierarchy dictated by divine power, after all.

Zahid frowned slightly as he watched.

‘But what is she planning to do after this…’

These people were likely the ones who had been guarding the “Sanctuary of Memory” for a long time.

Which explained why they wouldn’t recognize Rosie, who had spent nine years at the Magic Tower.

But Zahid was with a Divine Beast—there was no way his identity could stay hidden for long…

“Do you see him?”

Rosie flicked her chin toward Zahid.

“That man is Zahid Dyfenril. Master of the Divine Beast.”

With that, Rosie blatantly revealed his identity.

Zahid figured at this point it was best to continue keeping his mouth shut.

“You were ordered to stop intruders here, weren’t you?”

Rosie addressed Sogno calmly.

“The High Priest is a thorough man. He knew you wouldn’t be able to stop Zahid Dyfenril.”

Seeing that they hadn’t blocked her and Zahid from entering, she deduced that their guard had grown lax.

It was probably because nothing had happened here for so long.

At her gentle criticism, Sogno lowered his head in silence.

“That’s why I was stationed here in case something happened. Because, by the grace of our father, I received a new power…”

At the mention of “new power,” Sogno flinched. That referred to experiments using divine power.

Only a handful of people knew that certain priests in the Great Temple had begun converting divine power into something other than healing.

“…I gained the ability to brainwash the master of a Divine Beast.”

“Ah…”

“And that’s why Zahid Dyfenril is currently under my brainwashing. Earlier, I had him come forward because I wasn’t sure if you were his subordinates.”

Sogno’s face showed visible confusion about whether or not to believe this situation.

He couldn’t dismiss the words of someone with such powerful divine energy.

But even so, he couldn’t just ignore Zahid Dyfenril, who was a declared enemy within the Temple…

“It seems hard to believe. I understand. Zahid Dyfenril is a dangerous individual.”

Rosie spoke with arrogance as she looked at Sogno, who still hadn’t lowered his weapon.

“Then let me show you.”

She turned to Zahid and said,

“Repeat after me, Zahid.”

Her voice was unbearably haughty.

“I am your dog.”

There was no room for refusal.

Zahid had to struggle to keep himself from bursting out laughing.

This was a woman who would protect him in the most ridiculous way imaginable.

When they were younger, he used to be completely stunned by her absurdity.

But now, he loved every unexpected thing she brought into his life.

He knew that no matter how many times he lived or searched the world, he’d never find another woman like her.

Of course, he had met a man like this before. Yuta Orgon, for example…

Zahid looked down at Rosie, whose height barely reached his shoulder, and spoke slowly.

“…I am your dog.”

At the same time, more than twenty people gasped softly.

They couldn’t believe the young man who had just exuded such an overwhelming presence was now saying something like that.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep