That’s Not What Kissing Means! - Chapter 83

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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That’s not what kissing means!

Episode 83

Evelyn quietly waited for Theo.

At the same time, she silently read his face.

The shadow from the previous day had disappeared, and his expression was much more at ease.

The moment she saw Theo’s darkness yesterday, her heart seemed to sink.

Because his sadness had pierced her chest sharply.

As the pitch-black night gradually brightened, Evelyn thought of him.

Theo always had a sense of heavy composure about him. Like someone who had never experienced pain.

But that was the result of Theo desperately enduring and overcoming everything.

Evelyn was also vaguely aware of it.

The family portrait hanging in the manor, the vase filled with fresh flowers every morning, the occasional lonely expression that showed…

She was the one who had pretended not to know him.

Because she was afraid of getting close to Theo, scared of herself who might not be able to escape the more she got to know him.

But now…

She wanted to comfort Theo’s pain.

She couldn’t heal the wounds carved deep in his heart or erase the painful memories.

Evelyn simply wanted to be by Theo’s side.

She could only earnestly hope that he wouldn’t suffer alone anymore, that he could confide his pain to her…

She could only wish desperately.

At some point, Theo had settled deeply in her heart.

After a moment, Theo spoke.

“Yesterday was such a strange day.”

“How so?”

“I was indifferent to my parents’ death the whole time, then belatedly got shaken by emotions.”

He laughed quietly, saying it was peculiar.

“I thought about why that happened… I think I used to prepare my heart in advance when I had to face the past.”

There had been plenty of opportunities to face the past, like organizing his mother’s belongings and restoring his father’s magic sword.

But Theo had controlled his own emotions beforehand.

Only after surrounding himself with solid armor that wouldn’t let any sadness leak out could he approach traces of his family.

However, the knot the Envoy had given him was unexpected.

When he faced the past without any preparation, raw emotions burst out.

“The homework was quite difficult.”

“Really? It seemed like you handled it well.”

“I almost got trapped in excessive sentimentality and couldn’t escape.”

It was Evelyn who pulled him out of that gloomy swamp.

A sparkling future had taken Theo’s hand.

Evelyn tapped his arm with her fingers.

“So, did you comfort Young Theo well?”

“He’s crying and asking me to tell you thank you. Isn’t that cute?”

She smiled at his cheeky response.

Before they knew it, the priests were coming out of the lodging. It was breakfast time.

“Another day of the same routine begins.”

Evelyn spoke as if bored.

“Indeed.”

Theo’s warm gaze turned to her.

It was filled with affection that had deepened more than before.

* * *

After breakfast ended, Theo headed to the lodging.

By now, Evelyn would have arrived at her room too.

Imagining her munching on cake there, a smile naturally bloomed on his face.

He had merely tried to give a small joy to their monotonous life, but Evelyn placed great meaning on desserts.

Like she was dealing with a precious elixir.

Just before Theo, who had arrived at his room, turned the door handle, he discovered something.

There was a letter in the mailbox beside the door. Moreover, he could feel faint magical power as well.

The envelope had neither a family seal nor the recipient’s surname written on it.

It was consideration for Theo’s position within the temple.

Instead, as if worried someone else might touch it, a special device was used.

The paper envelope made from ground magic stones was a magical tool that could only be opened by someone with magical power.

It was certainly made for Theo, the only Sword Mage in the temple.

Seeing the excessively meticulous traces, Theo immediately recognized the sender.

Entering his room, he sat at the table and infused magic into the letter to open the envelope. The handwriting in the letter was indeed Julian’s.

Julian, who knew his superior’s tendencies well, got straight to the point without even common pleasantries.

[There is a child who barely survived the orphanage fire in the Western Harriden Estate.]

Julian was secretly investigating the affected area according to Theo’s orders.

He probably also took charge of taking in and treating the child.

Theo read the next part.

[Just before the accident happened, the child seems to have been hiding in a warehouse to play hide-and-seek.

Then he overheard two adult men plotting the fire, and while running to inform the orphanage director, he fainted. When he opened his eyes, he was in the flames.]

It seemed the culprits who noticed the child had knocked him unconscious.

After that, the culprits threw the unconscious child into the flames.

Theo’s eyes widened as he checked the letter again.

[According to the child’s testimony, the word ‘Priest’ came from one of the men’s mouths. His mind isn’t completely sound yet, so he can’t recall the exact name.]

Was the fire incident connected to a priest?

There was a possibility the child had misheard.

But if it was true…

Theo quickly organized his thoughts.

Despite being a major accident, the arsonist still hadn’t been revealed.

As if under someone’s protection, they left no traces and the investigation couldn’t even narrow down.

Someone with enough power to avoid getting caught for their evil deeds, someone no one would suspect as a culprit even if they moved around freely…

Priests existed everywhere on the continent.

They traveled throughout the country for reasons of pilgrimage or service.

Moreover, their good and pious appearance made them impossible to even suspect.

But to cause such a big fire and still divert everyone’s attention required tremendous power and wealth.

Such people never move by themselves.

There was only one person with enough power to command priests.

‘The Envoy.’

Theo’s eyes gleamed sharply as he found the answer.

Why would the Envoy commit such an act?

If he hadn’t achieved his purpose, there was no guarantee that accidents wouldn’t happen in the future.

‘Could the Emperor be involved too?’

Theo had been suspecting a conspiracy between the two for some time now.

However, without solid evidence, he couldn’t act rashly.

Moreover, this was the Envoy’s domain. His countless eyes would be watching Evelyn and himself.

If the fire wasn’t an accident… there must be a reason why those particular areas were chosen.

He needed to figure that out first.

Theo rose from his seat. It was time to meet Evelyn.

As he left his room, Evelyn was waving at him from the lodging across the way.

Her bright smile filled him with an involuntary sense of enchantment.

Theo found himself drawn toward her without realizing it.

He walked boldly through the garden between the lodgings.

Evelyn panicked at the sight of him striding toward her.

Worried he might cross over to the women’s lodging, she frantically stopped him.

“Stop!”

Then she scurried over to Theo.

The sight was so adorable that he simply couldn’t take his eyes off her.

Evelyn, having barely managed to stop Theo, glared up at him.

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”

“Well, I must have been bewitched by something.”

“Maybe there are ghosts in the temple?”

“Could be. I’m trembling with fear.”

Theo rubbed his arms as if cold, then pressed close to Evelyn’s side.

“I need body heat.”

He had no intention of moving away from her side.

In the end, they had to head to the library while pressed together.

“I think we need to take a walk in the forest for a moment.”

At Theo’s words, Evelyn’s face grew serious.

Whenever they had serious matters to discuss, they would seek out the secluded forest.

“Is something wrong?”

At her question, Theo nodded slightly.

Only after walking deep into the Emerald Forest did Theo speak.

“A letter came from Julian.”

He told her the entire contents of the letter.

“The High Priest is… the culprit…”

Evelyn, overwhelmed by shock, unconsciously opened her mouth.

Theo kindly closed her mouth for her and continued speaking.

“There’s no guarantee that fires won’t happen again. We need to figure out the Envoy’s true intentions.”

“…Then we should start by investigating the two places where fires occurred.”

Evelyn was nodding when she suddenly stumbled.

If Theo hadn’t quickly caught her, she would have fallen face-first into the grass.

“Thank you, Theo. I guess the shock made my legs weak…”

“That’s understandable. I could hardly believe it myself.”

Saying they should head to the library now, Theo led her along.

He didn’t forget to support her arm in case she might fall again.

Evelyn wore a dazed expression the entire time, her mind seemingly in turmoil.

Was she that shocked?

“Evelyn, are you alright?”

Theo worried about her.

That’s when it happened.

Evelyn suddenly stopped walking.

A clear light seeped into her eyes that had been searching through empty air.

“Now I understand.”

“Did you figure something out?”

“Yes.”

Evelyn’s voice rang out clearly.

“I’ve been too focused on theology all this time. I should have interpreted it literally…”

She blamed herself for her foolishness.

By digging too deep, she had chosen a roundabout path in search of answers.

“In the second prophecy, the crimson mist isn’t about factions or bloodshed.”

Her face, filled with conviction, looked up at Theo.

“The crimson mist refers to smoke rising from flames. The evil in the prophecy…”

It might be the Envoy.

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