The Lady Only Deals With the Real Ones - Chapter 189

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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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Crescens raised his hand and pointed to one place.

“Right over there.”

What he pointed to was none other than the tree on the hill.

Storing the World Tree’s sap in a tree made to imitate the World Tree might be natural, but.

‘I don’t see any light.’

If there was sap here, I would have known without Crescens having to tell me.

I can see the light of sacred objects with my eyes.

But near the tree, I could only see misty, pale sacred power, not the intense and vivid light I saw when I looked at the Ruby Tablet fragment.

Tilting my head in confusion, I asked.

“Could I perhaps see it from a bit closer?”

“I’m sorry, but that would be difficult, Sister.”

Crescens spoke as if troubled.

“Only I can go to that place. It’s a sacred duty permitted only to me.”

“From what you’re saying, it’s not a rule but that you’re the only one who ‘can’ go there, Cardinal?”

“That’s right. The successive Cardinals who handled this task each created barriers. Only I can pass through them.”

Having already revealed the story about the sacred flame, he wouldn’t bother hiding the location of the sap.

After thinking, I asked Crescens.

“Then could you go check on it once right now?”

“Huh? Right now? And not for you to see, Sister, but for me to go check alone?”

“Yes. To see if it’s safely there.”

“Well, it’s not difficult, but…”

Crescens stared at me for a moment as if gauging my intentions, then nodded.

“Alright, if it’s what you wish, Sister, there must be some meaning to it.”

Crescens headed toward the path.

A faint light remained in the direction he walked, illuminating the lilac flower garden.

As I watched his figure intently, I turned my head at Tesagh’s voice.

“The power of life and creation, death and destruction.”

Tesagh repeated those words and rubbed his face wearily.

“I don’t understand.”

“What part?”

“The very fact that a god would hand over something so dangerous, something that could destroy this land, to humans. What was he thinking?”

If Crescens had heard this, he would have been shocked at talking about a god like some neighborhood acquaintance.

But I agreed with Tesagh’s words.

Did the World Tree trust its creations too much, or as Crescens said, should we not try to understand a god’s actions from the start?

“There’s something I don’t understand either.”

Tesagh looked at me as if asking what.

What I was curious about wasn’t the god’s thoughts.

“Why did Eivor let us recover the Ruby Tablet fragments he went through the trouble of stealing?”

“Let you?”

“Yes, that’s the only way I can think of it. There haven’t been any attempts to steal them back yet.”

Looking at how things were going, it felt less like letting us keep them and more like he was returning them.

“And if gaining power was his goal, I’m also curious why he only stole three fragments.”

“Perhaps he intended to keep us from focusing on his real goal.”

“I thought so at first too, but…”

Did Eivor from my past life collect all four sacred objects?

Is there a way to find that out?

‘If only I could see the contents of the wanted poster again… Ah!’

Something suddenly occurred to me.

Tesagh stared at me as my eyes sparkled, having stopped mid-sentence.

“Did you think of something?”

“Yes! I think Emma can help us!”

Then Tesagh looked puzzled.

“…The love affair specialist mage? With what exactly? Are you going to ask about the magic stone she has?”

“Well…”

“I’ve checked.”

Just as I was about to continue, Crescens returned.

“There’s nothing for you to worry about, Sister. The sap is safely in its place.”

As I tried to look at the tree again, Crescens gestured.

“Shall we leave now? It’s about time for the other priests to wake up, and it would be difficult to explain if someone saw you two here.”

Looking at my watch, it was already dawn.

The door locked again behind us as we were practically pushed out.

Crescens didn’t seem to be lying, but as I pondered, I asked him.

“Um, I’ve been curious about this for a while. You said the Ruby Tablet contains sacred inscriptions, so what’s written on it?”

What I saw carved on the tablet was closer to pictures than language.

Even that was weathered by time and not easy to make out.

Crescens readily answered.

“Ah. You can think of it as inscriptions explaining the path to the Temple of the World Tree.”

“The path to the Temple?”

“Yes, simply put, it’s like a guidebook leading to the World Tree. Though no one has actually been to that location.”

“Were they afraid they’d arrive to find nothing but empty ruins?”

“It was because we couldn’t fully decipher it. The most important part was missing. This is why it’s hard to talk with people who lack faith… Ah, of course, you’re an exception, Sister.”

Crescens smiled with crescent eyes and cleared his throat.

“…Still, I was pretty cooperative, wasn’t I?”

“Yes. Several of my questions have been answered.”

“Not all of them though? Haha. …Well, then may I ask you just one thing, Sister?”

I nodded to the hesitating Crescens.

“Go ahead.”

Would he ask how I found out about his conversation with Eivor?

I thought so, but the question that came was unexpected.

“…Don’t you hate me?”

Crescens’s eyes trembled as he asked.

“I’ve been deceiving you with two identities all this time, and I hid the fact that you have sacred power. …Haven’t you thought that I was trying to use you?”

“I have. It would be strange not to think that.”

“…Then you must hate me after all.”

Even if he had been abandoned by god, Crescens probably wouldn’t make such an expression.

Watching him look down, trying to smile but unable to even do that, just biting his lips, I spoke.

“But I only ‘thought’ that.”

“…Huh?”

“I don’t think that way now. Because I saw it with my own eyes. If you really intended to exploit me…”

To Crescens who was staring at me blankly, I added.

“When I said I wanted to retire, you wouldn’t have worried about me first.”

If Crescens had really been scheming to secretly exploit me.

“Who’s bothering the Manager again?”

Those words wouldn’t have come out first.

He would have tried to hold me back with persuasion or used more forceful methods.

Ironically, the first ‘reason why the Temple couldn’t use me’ that I thought of was Crescens himself.

Though I couldn’t say it because it wouldn’t help convince Tesagh and Chloe at all.

“Thank you for keeping my sacred power secret from the Temple all this time, Cardinal.”

Because he doesn’t want to be hated by me.

How he would ask whenever he had the chance if we could be friends, how he gave me special treatment by calling only me ‘our Sister.’

Even how he avoided me because he felt bad about not being able to help at Delphia Manor—everything proves this about him.

“Well, he also became Grandfather’s friend while he was at it.”

“…I don’t want to be Michele’s friend, I want to be our Sister’s friend…”

“I only said I don’t dislike you, not that I want to be friends. And if I’m on par with the Cardinal, how much would the priests hound me like catching mice?”

“Sharp as a blade…”

“Well, still.”

I smiled at Crescens.

“I think I could be friends with ‘Crescens’ rather than ‘Cardinal.'”

His usual nonsense chatter stopped abruptly.

It seemed that was Crescens’s defense mechanism.

The corners of Crescens’s eyes looking at me turned faintly red, then he hung his head low.

“Then. …Can I call you Manager?”

“You can call me by my name.”

“No, I want to call you Manager. That’s special. Manager, you’re a special person to me.”

“…All our shop customers call me Manager, and you think that’s special?”

“Others don’t matter. It’s special to me. I call many people Sister, but there’s only one person I call Manager.”

He looked exactly like a puppy being cautious after causing trouble, so I burst into laughter.

“Fine, then call me Manager. I’ll call you Crescens too, is that okay?”

“Yes!”

It seemed that calling me Sister after his identity was revealed was his way of trying to maintain distance.

Crescens wiped his eyes and smiled brightly. It was such an innocent smile.

“What are your other questions, Manager? If it’s something I can help with, I’ll help.”

“Don’t talk like you’re having some explosive sale. You’re not just saying things because you got caught up in the moment, are you?”

“No, I have enough power to keep the words that come from my own mouth.”

“Hmm. Then teach me how to hide divine power.”

“…Huh?”

“When you came to the shop the second time, you let yourself get caught by the binding magical tool. You can hide divine power, right? Teach me how to do that, I need to use it when I go see Grandfather.”

“Oh, that’s… a method only I can use…”

“Why?”

“Well, you know. I’m someone who receives the World Tree’s love, right?”

“You said you have enough power to keep your word. Then do some research for me, a method that even the World Tree’s favored child can use. I’ll be going now.”

I smiled brightly and extended my hand to Crescens.

It was for a handshake.

Crescens stared at that hand, then.

“Manager.”

Instead of shaking hands, he leaned toward me.

Crescens whispered quietly.

“The ruby tablet that was stored in the Temple. …It was secretly moved back to the Imperial Palace.”

“What?”

It was what I had hoped for.

Since there was a possibility that Eivor’s collaborator existed in the Temple, it would be better to move it somewhere else.

But the Imperial Palace, where security had already been breached once, what if…

‘Is this Crodil’s doing? No, the relationship between Crodil and Eivor wouldn’t be the same as before.’

As I was thinking, I looked up at the words that followed.

“So. …Be careful of Sister Katarina.”

Crescens stepped back and smiled as if he had never been serious.

“Well then, take care, Manager.”

I turned away from that picture-perfect smile and walked with Tesagh, then looked back.

Crescens had already disappeared.

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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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