Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 37

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 37
I glanced around in confusion, my heart racing. There was no one else here.
All I could see were the dancing shadows of flickering candlelight, the murky garden beyond the pillars, and the warm night breeze that had suddenly turned eerie and cold. A chill crept down my spine despite the spring season—it made no sense to feel so cold.
“…I must have misheard.”
I muttered to myself nervously and resumed walking. What was that? Why did it feel so frightening all of a sudden?
My footsteps quickened with urgency. I hurried out of the Square and soon found myself in the long Corridor where Diego Schmart and I had first walked together.
[-.]
But I had barely taken a few steps when that ringing sound returned to my ears—a sharp, piercing tone. This time, however, it didn’t end as mere tinnitus. A crystalline voice reverberated through my mind with such force it felt like a physical blow.
[Hey.]
“…!”
What, what, what, what?!
I stopped mid-stride and jumped back, my entire body erupting in goosebumps.
Someone was speaking directly into my mind!
[You. Come here.]
The voice—neither distinctly male nor female—now spoke with unmistakable clarity, each syllable crisp and deliberate.
[Come here. Quickly.]
Speaking… speaking…!
“I must be losing my mind…”
I was definitely going mad. Every hair on my body stood on end as I pressed myself flat against the wall.
The air remained warm and pristine, as it always was in the Temple, yet an inexplicable coldness had settled over everything. My hands and feet turned to ice in an instant.
I forced myself to laugh aloud.
“Ha ha ha, hehe… I must have imagined it.”
But even my own voice echoing through the Corridor sounded grotesque and unnatural. What is this? I trembled as I slowly opened my mouth again.
“Um… mother waits in the island’s shade…”
[Hey.]
My voice began to crack with emotion.
“…calling, calling… if I go…”
I didn’t even realize the song choice was wrong. I pressed myself against the wall and shuffled forward hesitantly.
Where had Diego Schmart told me to go? The Civilian Prayer Room, that’s right. From what I remembered, it wasn’t far from this Corridor.
“The child alone…”
[Won’t you come?]
“Ahhhhh!”
My body jolted as if sparks had fallen on my feet. Without another thought, I bolted down the Corridor.
Father! Diego! Marienne! Tezebia! I called out every name I knew before finally reaching the Prayer Room entrance—the fork in the path I had passed earlier that day.
The left path draped in crimson thread and the right path draped in golden thread. Crimson for the Priest Prayer Room, gold for the Civilian Prayer Room. The information I had hastily absorbed came flooding back.
Without hesitation, I rushed down the path draped in golden thread.
[Oh, how obedient.]
“Ugh.”
The voice resonating through my mind seemed to laugh softly. I grimaced and sprinted down the golden-threaded path. Whether it was the Temple’s atmosphere or pure desperation, I felt a surge of fierce courage rising within me.
I ran boldly down the golden Corridor lined with wolf and cross sculptures, never imagining that this very act of running would soon become a foolish mistake I’d come to regret.
“Huff… gasp…”
At the end of the Corridor I had bolted down without looking back stood an enormous door. It was a golden door with a wolf howling toward the heavens carved in relief upon it. The wolf’s eyes were fashioned from deep violet gemstones.
I breathed heavily and, without hesitation, reached out to touch the door. It opened the moment my hand made contact—a smooth, soundless movement, as if welcoming me.
Of course, I sensed nothing amiss. This was, after all, supposed to be where priests led the faithful in prayer. I quickly stepped through the threshold.
Prayer time or not, I needed to find Diego Schmart immediately and tell him. How dare something profane intrude upon this sacred Temple—
“Oh…”
My thoughts never reached their conclusion. The sight beyond the door was nothing like the solemn prayer chamber I had imagined. The vast space lay completely empty.
I looked around in confusion. What? Had the prayers already finished?
“Hello…?”
Hello… hello…
My voice struck the high ceiling and echoed back like a phantom. I flinched and took a step backward.
The prayer room was immense. With its towering ceiling, it appeared far more spacious than it truly was. Like everywhere else in the Temple, candlelight flickered warmly along the walls.
And there was the solid marble floor, the Altar that dominated one entire wall draped in violet silk, and upon it a sculptured figure of a wolf. No matter how hard I looked, there was no sign of Diego Schmart—no sign of anyone at all.
“…Damn.”
It didn’t take long to understand what had happened. I cursed softly and turned around. I had entered the wrong room!
But realization came too late. As I spun to leave this space, my eyes caught the enormous golden door sliding shut silently before me.
“Wh—?”
And at that same moment, a voice resonated through my mind.
[Where are you going?]
Goosebumps erupted across my back. I couldn’t even think to grab the door handle—my mouth simply fell open. My gaze darted frantically around the space.
That ‘someone’ continued to speak ceaselessly inside my head.
[My, how adorable you are, playing coy like this. Come here, little one who lacks permission.]
The droning voice now carried an edge of irritation. I spun my eyes wildly and reached toward the door. I had to open it and get out—now!
But once again, I was too slow. The moment my hand closed around the handle, I heard something dull turn with a sharp click from beyond the door.
“…!”
There was no doubt—the sound of the door locking. The instant I realized I was trapped, all color drained from my face. No, no, no. Why is this happening to me?!
[Do all human children these days cower like you? Mine was nothing but impudent.]
I threw my full weight against the door, but it wouldn’t budge. A thousand thoughts raced through my mind. Could that terrifying woman have followed me all the way to the Temple? No, from the way she’s speaking, it doesn’t sound like Soleia Elad…!
And strangely, the air felt vibrant and alive—just like when I was pressed close to Auredhian Belgot. The prayer room was filled with a clear, refreshing atmosphere. There was nothing threatening about it.
The voice now began to coax me gently.
[I won’t hurt you, so come closer, dear. I’m simply curious about something.]
This was unmistakably not sound reaching my ears. It was being transmitted directly into my mind.
I clung to the door handle like it was my last lifeline, my lips trembling as I spoke.
“Who… who are you?”
Talking to an empty space made me feel foolish even to myself. I shook my head frantically.
“If you’re a ghost, then leave… If you’re a person, then speak—”
[A ghost? You certainly don’t mince words.]
The ‘voice’ clicked its tongue in disapproval.
[If you won’t come to me, then I’ll come to you. Walking on your own two feet would be far less frightening than having me come directly.]
What? Was that a threat? Even as tension seized me, I forced out a defiant snort.
“Huff… huff! When did I ever say I was s-scared? Hmph!”
[….]
“I’ll go. I just need to go in….”
I absolutely wasn’t cowering. Not at all!
I released the tension from my grip on the door frame, which I’d been holding as if I might tear it clean off. Reason was gradually returning to me.
The clear, harmless aura permeating the entire Prayer Room was something familiar to me. The moment I recognized how it resembled Auredhian Belgot’s scent in some indefinable way, my heart—which had been tap-dancing wildly—began to settle. I took a deep breath and turned back around.
The Prayer Room remained empty. All that existed were the violet Altar and the wolf statue atop it.
The wolf’s violet eyes seemed to gleam momentarily like those of a real beast. I flinched briefly, but soon began walking slowly forward. The moment I recalled that crimson-eyed man with those exact eyes, relief washed over me like a lie made manifest.
Right. I’d forgotten for a moment, but this was the Temple. A place of absolute safety where nothing could breach its sanctum to harm me. Along with that reassurance, my tiger spirit surged forth. Don’t be afraid!
[Tsk. It’s hard to get a proper look at your face.]
The ‘voice’ clicked its tongue. I approached the Altar slowly and ventured to speak with caution.
“Um, but… who are you?”
[What good would knowing that do you?]
“Pardon?”
I stopped dead in my tracks, utterly baffled.
The wolf’s violet eyes glimmered as if truly alive. I stared at the wolf statue with a wary gaze.
“I don’t know who you are, but this is a crime. Confining someone without consent. Refusing to reveal your identity. That’s not right…”
Speaking to a statue. Even I recognized it was madness.
[I thought you were fearful, but it seems that’s not entirely the case.]
The ‘voice’ kept spouting nonsensical remarks.
[I’ve never seen a child whose body and soul operate separately like yours. Where do you come from?]
Yet that last statement was no nonsense. I went rigid. Body and soul operating separately? That was exactly my situation!
Seun-seo, possessing Yerenika’s body. The body is Yerenika, but the mind is Seun-seo.
No matter how blurred the boundary between Seun-seo and Yerenika had become, the truth remained that my soul’s roots did not lie in this place.
I glared at the wolf and spoke.
“What exactly is your identity?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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