Episode 55
Hailon’s answer was simple.
“Strolling to see the flowers.”
Had he read a child-rearing book somewhere?
His actions were no different from a machine with programmed commands.
After meals, a walk—like that.
‘A walk… I do like it.’
Fresh grass, trees, flowers—anything green always lifted Chesha’s spirits.
But not Hailon.
He rarely showed interest or emotion in anything to begin with.
Knowing he didn’t particularly like flowers made it suspicious.
Growing even more uneasy, Chesha tried resisting.
“I don’t like that stuff.”
“You were buying flowers at the stall earlier.”
“……”
Chesha shut her mouth.
Maybe because he was an inquisitor—he interrogated as naturally as breathing.
Seeing her lips sealed tight, Hailon slightly furrowed his brow.
Realizing his mistake, he spoke slowly.
“There’s no need to fear me. I’m your escort knight, am I not?”
That’s only temporary…
Once the escort duty ended, he’d revert to inquisitor.
Why he kept bringing up “escort knight” to coax a child was beyond her.
‘Talking as if he’ll protect me forever.’
Chesha snorted inwardly.
Her mind knew it was nonsense,
yet the moment she heard that low voice, the wariness piled in her heart softened just a little.
The place Hailon took Chesha was inside the temple,
a courtyard between buildings where outsiders could not enter.
Given its location in the imperial capital, the temple was immensely wealthy.
Thus the courtyard was splendidly adorned.
The temple gardens focused on a sacred atmosphere, distinct from the lavish imperial palace gardens.
Surveying the garden, Chesha gained an insight.
‘So that’s why Kierne used to trespass in other people’s gardens.’
She, too, sometimes felt the urge to sneak in.
Chesha happily inhaled the floral fragrance with a deep breath.
Hailon lifted the puppy from her arms and set him on the ground.
Letting him run around was his own form of kindness and consideration,
but to Hata, the fake puppy, it only ruffled his temper.
Hata growled and barked in mimicry.
But Hailon had already turned his gaze elsewhere.
Having failed at an effective threat, Hata sulked.
Yet soon he followed with tiny steps, eyes flashing in fierce vigilance.
He seemed to think that made him look intimidating.
Chesha smiled at the adorable Hata as a breeze blew.
The rustling of leaves filled the quiet garden with soft sounds.
“……”
Hailon brushed back his long hair fluttering in the wind.
The strands tangled like silver threads between his fingers.
He was a sacred beauty, like a lily.
Yet the man who best suited the temple’s pure scenery wore a face utterly unmoved by everything around him.
As always.
Hailon was perpetually impassive.
Perhaps she had tormented him so much because she wanted to disturb that still, tranquil blue lake…
The flower she had etched into his body came to mind.
That was probably the most intense reaction he had ever shown in his life.
‘I did force it on someone who said no.’
She had pinned his writhing body with thorn bushes and slowly carved the floral pattern into his flesh.
So he could fully feel the pain of the mark being inscribed.
A twinge of belated regret surfaced.
Still, thanks to the humiliation of bearing the witch’s mark that day, Hailon had survived.
He had lived, fueled by rage.
‘Didn’t it turn out well?’
Convincing herself alone, Hailon sensed her gaze and slowly looked at Chesha.
Her reflection filled his clear, light-drenched blue eyes.
Suddenly, he murmured low.
“You look so alike…”
His gaze traced her face.
A self-mocking mutter scattered.
“It’s almost comical to deny it.”
Chesha silently reached out and brushed a white petal from his hair.
Then footsteps echoed from the cloister of the courtyard.
“Sir Hailon!”
A thin man wearing a monocle.
It was Daren, Hailon’s adjutant, someone Chesha had known for a long time.
She studied his monocle closely.
A faint scar was visible beneath the lens.
‘Still hasn’t removed it.’
A minor scar like that could easily be healed with divine power.
Especially for someone of Daren’s rank.
Yet the man stubbornly kept the scar.
Unable to display physical flaws as a holy knight, he simply wore the monocle to cover it.
Approaching Hailon, Daren reported immediately.
“The young master of Basilian seems to know nothing.”
At the mention of Belzeon, Chesha looked up in surprise.
Wondering if they had interrogated him in the meantime.
Daren quickly waved his hand and explained to Chesha.
“It’s nothing else—we merely asked if he knew anything about the child’s birth parents.”
The peculiar title “little miss” gave her a brief headache.
Daren added with a gentle smile,
“We want to help.”
“Help with what…?”
“We surmise that the child’s mother is being pursued by someone.”
He shrugged, saying she probably hid the baby in an orphanage because she lacked the means to care for her too.
“We know a bit about the child’s birth mother, and she would never abandon her daughter and flee. She clings to her people terribly. Just look at how she dotes on that familiar…”
He spoke with such conviction it was almost embarrassing.
She didn’t know why both he and Hailon trusted her so much.
“She will definitely come looking for the child.”
Daren pushed up his monocle and smiled softly.
“Our goal is to help the birth mother so that can happen.”
Chesha swallowed a hollow laugh.
This was the problem when people were too clever.
The exceptional skill that uncovered heresies through investigating incidents shone once again.
With just a few small clues, he had swiftly pieced together the situation.
‘The problem is that situation never existed to begin with…’
Where had it gone wrong?
They both seemed firmly convinced, so clearing the misunderstanding wouldn’t be easy.
‘I don’t know anymore.’
She couldn’t return to being the witch for a while anyway.
Hata’s medicine wasn’t finished, and if baby Chesha suddenly vanished, Kierne might grow suspicious.
She decided to let it be for now; later, when she returned as Lichesia, she could smack them a few times with flowers and thorn bushes, let the Chains of Condemnation bind her a bit, and the misunderstanding would resolve itself.
“By the way, it would be good if we could at least find the father.”
Daren studied Chesha’s face with interest.
“I’m dying of curiosity. What kind of man could make the witch…”
Chattering thoughtlessly, Daren suddenly stopped.
He closed his mouth with a hiss, flashed an awkward smile, and glanced at Hailon.
Then he slowly backed away.
“Ah, well… now that I think of it, I have unfinished business with young master Belzeon. I’ll go finish that.”
Daren vanished with remarkable speed.
What had he seen to flee so desperately?
Watching his retreating back, Chesha glanced at Hailon.
And unwittingly swallowed hard.
At a glance, his expression was as impassive as ever.
But…
“We’re searching in every direction, so if anything about your real father comes to mind, tell me.”
His pale blue eyes were already those of an executioner.
A chilling voice slipped between thin lips.
“Anything at all.”
Chesha nodded vigorously on reflex.
The nonexistent father of Chesha would do well to stay hidden forever.
Still, thanks to Hailon, she had entered the temple.
She hoped to live quietly for a while.
But Kierne was never an easy opponent.
A few days later, late at night.
Count Basilian visited the temple.
