Following the guide of the temple priest, I arrived at Lova’s office. He gestured for me to sit, but I refused and urgently explained the situation.
By the time I finished, Lova wore a troubled expression.
“Lady Etricia.”
“I’m listening. Speak.”
The few seconds he took to open his mouth again felt like an eternity.
“Regrettably, this is beyond my authority.”
“Be precise. There’s a clear difference between what you can’t do and what you won’t do.”
Lova subtly turned his head away, avoiding my gaze.
“I’m sorry.”
Judging from his reaction, it was clearly the latter.
I was too shocked to speak, frozen in place. It felt like my last shred of hope had been thrown into the mud.
Desperate, I grabbed Lova’s hand.
“Is it because of the procedures? Even if the imperial approval is granted, the temple will still need to go through the council. That would take at least two days, and by then, it’ll be too late.”
Dusk had already begun to set. There was no way to tell how much longer he would survive.
Lova sighed and patted the back of my hand gently.
“I understand how desperately you want to save him, Lady Etricia. But if I use divine power to eliminate the monster’s blood, it could also destroy the affected areas. While it won’t endanger his life…”
He trailed off, looking up at me hesitantly.
“…Are you saying he might lose the use of his arm?”
Lova averted his gaze and gave a small nod.
“Ah…”
Despair washed over me, and my grip on his hand weakened. My vision blurred as I looked down. In that moment, something about Lova’s shadowed expression struck me as odd.
Memories of Lova’s past flickered through my mind. He had dedicated his life to restoring the temple. He had always been cold toward the other candidates for the Child of Dawn, yet kind to me—because he was certain I was the one. And unlike any other priest, he was highly skilled in negotiations, even eagerly working with the Magic Tower. That had always made me uneasy.
I straightened my expression and stepped closer to Lova.
“Lova, do you have another method?”
Instead of answering, a faint, knowing smile crossed his lips. Hope glimmered in my desolate heart.
“Tell me how. Lova, I told you—I’ll do anything.”
“Anything, you say… Lady Etricia, do you remember what you said when you came to me? That you’d create a divine power if you had to.”
Create it? I didn’t understand his meaning. The only thing I knew for certain was my resolve. If I could save Edmund, I was willing to fall into whatever trap Lova had set.
As I nodded resolutely, Lova clasped his hands behind his back and began pacing leisurely.
“Only the power of the Child of Dawn can save him.”
“…The power?”
I frowned slightly, not understanding.
“But I can’t purify the monster’s blood. The only things I can do are sense the energy in magic stones or trap and destroy monsters within them…”
I stopped mid-sentence, realization striking me. Lova met my widened eyes and smirked.
“Then it should be possible for the blood of a monster, which is part of its being, to be affected as well.”
A breath of exhilaration escaped me. I clapped my hands over my mouth, then hesitated.
“But…”
The issue was my power—or rather, whether I truly was the Child of Dawn.
Lova came to a halt in front of the table.
“I don’t believe you’re the Child of Dawn just because of your connection to Lebron, like the other priests do. I saw the same holy light in you as the High Priest.”
Lost in thought, he rubbed his chin with one hand and tapped the table with the other.
“So I kept wondering—why hasn’t your power manifested? And finally, I found the answer.”
Lova turned to me, lifting one corner of his lips. Then, elegantly, he extended a hand toward my chest.
“It’s because, deep down, you reject it. Your subconscious is resisting it.”
His confident tone sent a chill through my heart.
It felt as though his outstretched hand had pierced into the most fragile part of my soul.
Suddenly, I remembered the purification stone I had found in the Buell estate.
The strange energy I had encountered there, far from the temple and its priests—the sense of unease.
It was as if Lova had read my thoughts from that moment.
“And the reason you’ve always hesitated is because of your aversion to power that demands life force. Am I wrong?”
I had no excuse. He was right. I hadn’t rejected the idea of being the Child of Dawn just because it would tie my life to the temple. It wasn’t just because the temple would seize the Lebron mines.
Using the power meant sacrificing someone’s life force. That was why it had only been used for experiments on taming monsters.
But now, what did any of that matter? If I could save Edmund by depleting my own life force, I didn’t care.
Never before had I wanted to be the Child of Dawn as much as I did in that moment.
“Lova, then how can I awaken my power?”
At last, he smiled as if hearing the question he had been waiting for.
“With divine power.”
“Divine power?”
“The previous saints possessed immense faith and divine power. But unlike them, Lady Etricia…”
Lova trailed off and slowly stepped closer, taking both of my hands. His face had hardened, his expression now chilling.
“Perhaps divine power can overcome your subconscious resistance. But this is only my theory.”
His grip tightened. His once-innocent black eyes sharpened with clarity.
“Will you try?”
I squeezed his hands even tighter. There was no hesitation—not even for a moment.
“Please, Lova.”
A soft, pale light spread from his hands. My eyes shut instinctively.
The intangible energy felt unfamiliar yet sacred. It was warm, elegant. It seeped through my fingertips, dissolving all the doubt, fear, and turmoil that had built up inside me.
When I finally opened my eyes, a soft white glow radiated from my body.
I felt dazed, as though I had just woken from a deep sleep. My stomach churned; my senses dulled.
Lova, his eyes glistening with unshed tears, gazed at me with deep emotion.
“Lady Etricia. This…”
As if he had been waiting for this moment, he placed a purification stone in my hands. His grip was almost desperate.
The sinister energy pulsating from the stone snapped me back to my senses. Startled, I dropped it. After a pause, Lova smiled brightly, his eyes gleaming with joy.
Through the summer night air, I arrived at the duke’s residence and headed straight for Edmund’s room…
The room was dim and gloomy. I stood there clutching the mana stone I had received from Lova, desperately looking around at them.
“Please leave. I’m going to treat Edmund now.”
Lilien looked at me in confusion, then glanced at the twins and Marie standing by the door. When they gave her equally puzzled looks, she slowly rose and walked over.
In that brief moment, I saw that her eyes were red and swollen. They must have been stinging, as she blinked a few times.
“Lady Etricia, what are you talking about?”
“I received a mana stone blessed with divine energy from the temple. With it, I can detoxify him.”
“R-Really?”
Lilien’s face immediately brightened. She smiled like a blossoming flower and pulled me into a hug.
“Lady Etricia, so that’s why you went to the temple. Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Her shoulders trembled slightly. I gently comforted her and signaled to Marie with my eyes.
Marie helped Lilien out of the room, and Tail and Rail exchanged a look before leaving as well. I could feel Tail’s sharp gaze on me, slightly suspicious. Having lived his life on the battlefield, he could probably sense an insincere lie with animal-like instincts.
I gave a bitter smile.
This was the conclusion Lova and I had reached after much discussion. To reduce confusion, we decided to keep everything secret for now, known only to me, Lova, and Edmund—the one who would wield the divine power.
Clack. Finally, I heard the sound of the door closing behind me, and I approached the bed, the mana stone still in hand.
With each step I took toward him, the distance felt immeasurable—like I was walking in place.
Edmund sat against the headboard, his shoulder heavily bandaged.
He was so still, like a corpse, that my heart sank in fright. His pale skin and slightly bluish lips looked too much like death.
Then he let out a faint groan, his eyelids trembling weakly. He looked like he was still tormented by pain even in his dreams.
The pain was the only sign that he was still alive.
‘How much must it hurt…’
My eyes stung, but I forced them wide open before any tears could fall. It wasn’t the time to cry yet.
I sat on the edge of the bed and began unwrapping the bandage around his wound. Each layer revealed more blood, and I gritted my teeth.
I brought the mana stone close to the viciously torn wound. It was an immaculate, pure stone used in temple rituals.
You can do it. You can do this, Etricia.
Haa… I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.
Thud. My heart dropped like it had fallen from a height.
The mana stone began drawing out the dark energy that had spread deep within his body. I opened my eyes slightly to see.
Thick, bubbling demonic blood rose from his wound and seeped into the mana stone.
“Ugh…”
At the same time, nausea surged, and I clamped a hand over my mouth.
Finally, when even the last drop had been completely absorbed, I collapsed, unable to hold myself upright.
Haa… Haa… I panted, my forehead resting on Edmund’s chest.
And then—it happened.
Edmund’s trembling eyelids slowly lifted, heavy and deliberate.
