The Abandoned Prince’s Ghost Bride - Chapter 44

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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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The Forsaken Prince’s Spirit Bride — Episode 44

“Ah, a child! A child!”
A familiar voice rang out from somewhere. Lucian and Dio pressed against each other and spun around.
Habier stood there battered and trembling, as though he’d discovered a savior.
“Wait—I saw you at the Temple…….”
Lucian recognized Habier, and Habier realized he’d seen these two children at the Temple that morning.
“Ha, haha…… I never thought such a coincidence could happen.”
Habier let out a hollow laugh, but his eyes soon gleamed as he seized Lucian’s shoulders firmly.
“Little one! Where exactly is this place! Please, tell me how to escape this Mansion!”
“Y-yes?”
“At this rate, I’ll be killed by that monster! Or rather…… Could you be like that monster too……!”
Habier recalled that Kaizar had been around Lucian’s age and fell silent, stepping away from them both.
Watching him mutter about wanting to live, Lucian and Dio felt a chill run through them.
“I told you to stay put.”
“Kaizar!”
At the familiar voice, Lucian broke into a smile. Kaizar’s cool gaze met them, then faltered slightly.
He soon noticed his hands were drenched in blood and cleaned them away with magic.
“Children should be sleeping. Why are you awake now?”
“Dio woke me. He heard screaming in the Mansion.”
Kaizar surveyed his surroundings and took in the situation. So much for keeping it hidden.
Dragging things out to extract information from the Bishop was a fatal mistake.
He should have come up earlier and disposed of this corpse first.
‘There’s nothing for it.’
Sleep.
Kaizar invoked the Dragon Language toward Dio. The boy collapsed into slumber on the spot.
“Why did you put Dio to sleep……?”
“This sight isn’t something a child should see. I’ve put him to sleep for now.”
Kaizar laid the fallen Dio on the sofa.
“……Kaizar, what about these people here? Why are they all dead?”
Kaizar closed his eyes tightly, realizing the moment had come.
But there was something else to handle first.
Kaizar hid Lucian behind himself, then looked down at Habier.
Habier stared blankly at Kaizar and murmured.
“You’re…… not human, are you? What became of the Bishop?”
“…….”
“I see. So in the end…….”
Though Kaizar said nothing, Habier grasped the meaning. A hollow laugh escaped his lips.
“Ha, haha…… How did things come to this…….”
Habier wept for a moment, then lifted his tear-stained face.
“……Will you kill me?”
“Better than leaving behind loose ends.”
“Loose ends…… There are none to speak of. What could a mere novice priest do? Besides, perhaps I would have died by the Bishop’s hand anyway.”
The Bishop had shown him too much of what lay behind the Temple’s facade. Unless he became completely devoted to the Temple, he was nothing but a liability—and likely would have been marked for elimination once this was finished.
He’d devoted his entire life to the Temple, served it, sworn to live only for the Divine—but what had all his effort been for?
Watching Habier’s eyes grow hollow, Kaizar narrowed his gaze.
He stepped forward. Habier steeled himself and closed his eyes, ready to die.
But he felt no pain. When he opened his eyes, a mark had been inscribed on the back of his hand—though it faded in an instant.
“I’m giving you a chance.”
“A chance, you say…….”
“Whatever your Temple is scheming, I suspect you know something. And it seems you hold secrets about this Mansion as well.”
If he simply killed all the priests here, the Temple would grow suspicious.
It was wiser to plant a spy in the Temple than to risk their scrutiny and having them send people to investigate.
“You saw it yourself tonight, didn’t you? The strange power that the Temple possesses.”
Habier recalled the ominous power the Bishop wielded.
“Return to the Temple as planned. Tell them the Sacrifice was offered successfully. And reveal to me everything the Temple is hiding.”
“I am a priest. How can a priest abandon the Temple and serve one whose very name I do not know…….”
“Can you even be called a priest when you know nothing of the Temple?”
Habier flinched. Kaizar examined him from head to toe, then seized the Necklace around his neck.
“The Mobius Strip—it carries the Temple’s doctrine, symbolizing Infinity. Tell me: whom does your Temple worship?”
“The Divine is simply the Divine. It is always with us, everywhere and always, watching over us with benevolence…….”
“In other words, the god you serve exists only in words.”
His voice caught.
Such heresy was beyond measure, yet Kaizar’s words struck like a blow to his mind.
The god the Temple served was simply the Divine.
No specific symbol, no image or scripture passed down defining its form—only that the Divine gave its first revelation to the First Emperor, spreading knowledge of the Divine throughout the Empire.

The Divine is Infinite.
Man is not infinite.
If one serves the Divine with a faithful heart, it will be moved and grant infinite power.

This infinite power means, quite literally, power without limit.
It may take the form of knowledge, strength, authority, or life itself.
The meaning shifts with whoever contemplates it, yet its essence remains constant.
The reason faith in the Divine spread so widely is that there existed a person upon whom the Divine bestowed such infinite power.
The First Emperor.
Everyone knows the First Emperor possessed power great enough to unify the Empire.
Thus, many came to the Temple seeking infinite power for themselves, and to worship a Divine that possessed such might.
The doctrine—instilled from birth, cradled in the heart—was all he had ever known.
Yet the realization that it might all be illusion shattered the faith he’d built across a lifetime.
Habier’s confusion mattered little to Kaizar.
“I ask once more. Will you die here, or return to the Temple and fulfill my command?”
Habier’s eyes flashed with determination.
“……I will follow you.”
He had witnessed with his own eyes the Bishop’s sinister power, and learned that something was occurring within the Temple beyond his knowledge.
What was a life already forfeit? At least he might discover what transpires in the Temple.
Kaizar explained the conditions to Habier and described the Geis Mark he had inscribed on the priest’s hand.
The mark was designed to activate automatically and claim Habier’s life should he betray Kaizar.
“So long as you don’t betray me, nothing will happen.”
After hearing the same threat twice within an hour, Habier let out a bitter laugh.
“How will we make contact?”
“You work at the Great Temple, yes?”
“I do.”
“I’ll visit you unannounced. Until then, gather what information you can.”
“Understood.”
“If you return alone with the Bishop dead, they’ll suspect you. Think of a convincing story.”
“……The condemned man we brought was a serial murderer. He ran amok and killed the Bishop and everyone nearby.”
Kaizar noted the Bishop’s strange power but felt no need to concern himself further—Habier would manage the deception well enough.
“Then go now.”
Despite the order, Habier found his feet reluctant to move.
“……May I ask one favor?”
“A favor?”
“I wish to pray for my four fallen comrades.”
“There are three.”
“……The fourth was offered as a Sacrifice by the Bishop.”
Kaizar nodded and murmured his understanding.
“These people were brought here unwilling, just as I was. We didn’t wish to drag you into this.”
“Let him do it, brother.”
Even Lucian, who had watched silently until now, spoke up. Kaizar groaned in reluctant surrender and lifted the three corpses skyward.
“It’s better to reduce them to ash than to carry bodies about, wouldn’t you say?”
“They’re orphans anyway. There’s no one waiting for them.”
With his assent, Kaizar cremated them.

Habier prayed with genuine devotion as they slowly turned to ash.
Then Habier made his way back through the Tunnel from which he’d come.
Kaizar restored the destroyed parlor with magic. The scent of blood that had lingered soon faded entirely.
“Brother, now explain everything.”
Lucian, who had waited with patience, demanded the truth.
Kaizar explained to him all that had transpired.

* * *

Whoosh—
When Lia opened her eyes, dawn was breaking beyond the window.
[When on earth…….]
Only moments ago the sky had been dark, yet morning had crept upon her.
She’d lost consciousness again.
Lia looked down at her hands. The unstable energy of recent days had completely dissipated, leaving her feeling full of strength.
Or rather, it was as though her spirit had grown more solid.
There would surely be no repeat of what had happened these past days. That much was certain.
[Why do I feel so uneasy?]
Fear, anger, sorrow—emotions that were not her own seemed to seep through.
“Lia.”
At the sound of her name, she turned.
Not only Kaizar, but Lucian was present as well.
“Lia, are you alright?”
Lucian approached and embraced her. She spread Mana throughout her body before he could pass through her.
[Lucian, so what happened was…….]
“I told him everything.”
Kaizar’s interjection caught Lia off guard. Lucian held her tighter.
“I know you didn’t tell me because you were worried I’d panic. But next time, tell me. I was so excited about inviting Dio that I had no idea something like this was happening.”
[……I’m sorry.]
“Are you better now?”
[Yes. I should be fine for the next ten years.]
“After ten years, I’ll take care of you. I won’t forget what happened today, I promise.”
Lucian had seemed so childish before, yet now he felt suddenly mature.
Had her disappearance shaken him that deeply? Or was it guilt that she’d hidden the truth from him?
Whatever the reason, she was startled by his sudden growth, yet also felt a tender regret—and sorry toward him.
“There’s much I need to tell you.”
Kaizar laid bare to Lia everything that had transpired through the night.
With each word, the gravity of the situation became clearer.
[Wait, it wasn’t the Crown—it was the Temple?]
“The Crown is likely involved too. I’ve planted a spy, so we’ll learn soon enough. For now, things will be quiet. You can rest easy.”
[Kaizar, are you alright?]
“Me? Why?”
[You went into the Basement. The Apparition you saw there—it didn’t appear again, did it?]
It did appear. But this time, it only helped me.

-Now I can appear only once more. Please, when we meet again, become stronger—strong enough to protect those you cherish.

‘……It’s irritating, but the creature’s right. I need to grow stronger.’
He had no idea what sort of Apparition had emerged, but the power that being wielded when it inhabited his body was genuine.
Among the Holy Dragons, few possessed such overwhelming strength.
Kaizar brushed off the matter with vague reassurances to ease their minds.
[A great storm has passed.]
Lucian and Kaizar nodded. They didn’t speak aloud, but both felt it keenly—this incident had shattered the tranquility they’d known.
“Um, where am I…….”
Then Dio stirred on the sofa, rubbing his eyes as he woke.
He looked around in drowsy confusion before spotting them.
“What are you all doing there? Why am I sleeping here?”
“Kaizar, Dio doesn’t remember yesterday?”
Lucian asked Kaizar.
“I erased his memories. He’d seen corpses.”
[Play along.]
Lucian nodded and approached Dio with his usual bright smile.
“You have sleepwalking episodes.”
“What?! That’s…… that can’t be right!”
“Well, how else would you have gotten here? We were all looking for you and found you here, so.”
“I…… have sleepwalking……?”
It wasn’t ideal to deceive Dio, but there was no other explanation.
[Should we have breakfast?]
“Sounds good!”
Lucian thrust both hands up in enthusiasm, Kaizar followed with a faint smile, and Dio was pulled along in bewildered silence toward the kitchen.
A great tempest had passed, yet in its wake lay profound stillness.
They decided to savor the quiet now and prepare for whatever unknowable future awaited them.

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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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