Chapter 9: Self-Conquest
Walking at the border between the noble district and the commoner district, Shelley was still silently contemplating:
“But what he said isn’t entirely wrong. At least, I hadn’t considered what Nadia thinks.”
“Let’s just keep things as they are for now. At least with Nadia in the shadows, I basically won’t encounter too much danger!”
“Assuming… she doesn’t stab me…”
“…”
Pausing his steps, Shelley smiled awkwardly and quickened his pace.
“Really! Old man! Couldn’t you just admit you were wrong? Would I mock you?”
“Am I the kind of person who deceives his master and destroys his ancestors?”
[Yes!]
[You are!]
“Shut up!”
…
Salier’s expression changed drastically as soon as he left the temple. He staggered back to the Lunt Chalice, rushed into his room, knelt on the ground in pain, and gasped for breath.
“Hiss… ha… cough, cough, cough!”
“Almost got caught by that kid…”
“However…”
Struggling to get up from the ground, Salier’s expression became confused.
“The temple didn’t react… was it because there was no hostility?”
“Or is it… Legendary?”
Salier’s breathing slowly recovered. Stroking the black bundle in the corner of the room, his expression was uncertain.
“Such a complex aura…”
“The bloody color of slaughter intertwined with the holy light of mercy…”
“…”
“…The ruler of a race?”
“Sigh!”
Heaving a heavy sigh, Salier collapsed onto the bed. The wooden bed let out a painful scream, nearly falling apart.
“But it seems there’s no malice towards Shelley…”
“…”
“Tsk…”
As if remembering something, Salier turned over and closed his eyes.
“Good luck to you! My apprentice!”
“Don’t go down the path of…”
…
“Paladin… loyal soul… Shelley…”
“Why would you do this?”
“I’m not ready yet…”
Everything was happening too fast!
Looking with complex emotions at Shelley, who was walking slowly ahead, seemingly pondering a problem, Nadia sighed softly.
The way Nadia looked at Shelley now lit up with a different kind of light.
Why does your soul look so dazzling?
Demonic blood really doesn’t deserve your soul…
“No, his act of fighting against fate makes his soul even nobler!”
A figure struggling in a muddy swamp appeared even more heroic.
It had a unique charm!
…
“That person… why?”
Elena looked at the man beside her in shock, not knowing what to do…
When he first walked over, Elena, having finished her prayers, was about to get up. She thought he was just another believer coming to pray like her and didn’t pay much attention.
Elena habitually observed Shelley and then marveled at his appearance.
“He looks well-bred, and that armor… a Paladin of noble birth?”
“I just wonder if he’s the kind of scum who uses this identity to seduce married women!”
Thinking of this, she wasn’t in a hurry to get up and kept her head lowered in contemplation. After all, the atmosphere of the temple was particularly suitable for thinking.
Although Elena had faded from the public eye to concentrate on training in the temple, it didn’t mean she was a dull warrior ignorant of worldly affairs!
Relying on her identity as a princess, she had access to even more information!
From spies of other countries to rumors in the market alleys, she knew a thing or two about everything.
Among them was the news that a noble’s illegitimate son calling himself a Paladin had appeared in the noble social circles in recent years, moving among the ladies relying on this identity.
“Scum!”
“And what ‘Canary of Lunt’? Hmph!”
Why wasn’t this nice title given to me!?
Pouting disdainfully, Elena stroked her long red hair, secretly angry.
No, I don’t want to be a canary! I want to be the Goshawk of Fente!
Feeling a bit unhappy, Elena was about to get up when she realized the Paladin beside her had raised his head, looking directly into the eyes of the divine statue.
“What!? This is disrespectful!”
If not for praying under the gaze of the deity, then his behavior was blasphemy against the deity!
She was about to scold him when she heard Shelley speak solemnly, so she awkwardly shut her mouth and listened silently.
“Cough, cough… He really is asking for the deity’s gaze…”
However, as things developed, the more she listened, the more wrong it felt, and the more shocked she became!
“He! Why does he like me so much?”
“I’ve disappeared from the social circle for a long time! Why would he know me?”
Elena didn’t consider that Shelley was deliberately performing in front of her because today’s visit was just a whim, and she was confident in the secrecy of her whereabouts!
As for the noble lady, the future queen mentioned by Shelley, he must be talking about her!
After all, this country only had two princesses… and she directly ignored her three-year-old sister.
No matter how crazy, this Paladin wouldn’t harbor evil intentions towards her sister who had just learned to speak…
“That older Paladin was right! Even if he admires me so much, I can’t accept his loyalty so easily!”
“But… hehe!”
Elena looked at Shelley’s profile with a cheerful mood and nodded with satisfaction:
“Not bad, looks good, and has good taste!”
“Unlike those idiots from the Bell family! Daring to mock me!”
The old idiot, the fat wastrel—two pieces of trash!
“That Bowen even dared to say I’m violent! If someone hadn’t stopped me, I would have cut his head off right then and there!”
“How am I violent!?”
Coming back to her senses, Elena looked at where Shelley had disappeared and realized she forgot to ask for his name.
“Forget it. The circle in Lunt is only so big; I’ll find him soon enough!”
“…Moreover, why is there a familiar feeling?”
“Have I seen him somewhere before?”
“Hmm… Ah!”
The story about Shelley in Elena’s mind became more substantial:
An ordinary noble who once saw the princess, bitterly admiring the noble princess but feeling inferior about his own status, thus abandoned everything to become a Paladin.
Even after becoming a Paladin, he didn’t change his mind and maintained his loyalty to the princess.
After not seeing her for so many years, he was still so devoted!
Even praying to the deity to discern his heart!
What a devoted man!
“It’s been five years since I disappeared from the social circle…”
“I really didn’t expect that I had such great charm back then?”
In an extremely happy mood, Elena walked out of the temple, looking up at the sun in the sky with a relaxed expression.
She stretched vigorously, revealing her beautiful and hot curves.
Taking off her hood and shaking her long, wavy fiery red hair, Elena sighed to herself with emotion:
“Oh my, I really am a sinful woman!”
“I might fall into the Nine Hells! Hee hee!”
“Speaking of which, can I freely decide my own marriage now?”
