The Saint’s Manual for Redemption - Chapter 82

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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 82
I understood well enough why the Grand Duke looked so pleased, as though he’d landed a decisive blow—so for the sake of his mental health, I decided to let him have this small victory.
Besides, I’d been planning to return to the castle anyway, so it wasn’t a bad arrangement. If anything, it was fortunate—I no longer needed to feign illness, and I was dreadful at it.
Even when I tried, people rarely believed me. The excuse was always the same: couldn’t I simply heal myself with Self-Healing?
Self-Healing did work on me, of course—I’d demonstrated it enough times through reckless combat tactics that my Holy Power functioned on me just fine. So the idea that my own power didn’t affect me never gained any traction.
Thus we returned to the castle exactly as I’d intended.
“Your Highness does not yet appear accustomed to the cold of the Northern Region, so I trust you will find adequate rest in your chambers today. Should you require anything, please inform the chamberlain, and she shall bring it to you.”
The Grand Duke confined me to my room under the pretense of allowing me to recover—though his tone remained impeccably courteous. The message was clear: do not wander beyond these walls.
He’d isolated me from my attendant priests as well, granting only Arden permission to enter my chambers. Clearly, his intention was to keep me completely cut off.
I lifted a spoonful of the warm soup provided and studied it through narrowed eyes.
The soup was quite good. Its warmth spread through my body in pleasant waves.
But the ingredients posed a problem.
In the soup lay things that should never exist in the barren North—cream from cattle raised in gentle lands, softly roasted root vegetables from the Southern Region, fragrant herbs grown in warm, fertile soil, and fresh vegetables wholly unlike the preserved staples commonly used here.
Did they receive provisions from elsewhere?
If so, the Duchy of Kroen likely depended far more on external supply lines than appearances suggested. Or perhaps the Grand Duke personally arranged for imported provisions. Either way, this castle was no completely isolated Northern fortress.
Having considered this much, I set down the spoon. I had no intention of remaining confined to this chamber.
To manage that, I would need Kaliana’s cooperation first.
“Summon Archbishop Kaliana. If the watchers here try to prevent it, tell them that my condition is grave and I’m delegating temporary authority to the Archbishop as a precaution. Any attempt to stop this shall be regarded as an abuse of authority against the Church.”
And that would lead to excommunication. As long as the Caritas Church remained the state religion, the Grand Duke wouldn’t risk such a threat.
I gave the order to Arden, and not long after, Kaliana entered my chamber with careful steps. The moment she saw my face, concern flooded her expression.
“Your Highness, are you truly well? I heard you felt ill during the territory inspection…….”
“I’m fine. I was just pretending because of the cold.”
Kaliana’s expression cleared with relief. Yet that relief held only genuine warmth, and something about that stirred an odd feeling in me.
She had helped me before—sharing details of the competition and in effect defying the Archbishop’s wishes. That girl had a history of such choices.
And there was another calculation: Arden and Kaliana could be left alone together without concern. Arden would not speak of my plans to her.
Though she had her tactless moments, at least that decision hadn’t been driven purely by calculation or hunger for power. So I chose to trust her once more.
Kaliana had no information for Arden to extract, and he in turn was no man to carelessly spill unnecessary words in her presence.
With a gesture, I drew her closer and whispered.
“Archbishop, I need your help.”
“My help?”
“I’ll need to borrow your Priest’s Robe for a while.”
“My Priest’s Robe?”
“Yes.”
Kaliana immediately turned to fetch it, but I caught her arm and whispered the rest of my plan.
“And you’ll need to wear my clothes and pretend to be me here for a time.”
Kaliana’s face went blank for a moment, then her mouth opened slightly as understanding dawned.
This girl had her fears, but her curiosity was equally strong—an awkward quality for the Archbishop to have assigned as a watcher. Though now it worked in my favor.
I still wasn’t certain whether the Archbishop had truly posted her as my monitor or whether she served some other purpose.
“So Your Highness will…….”
“Pretend to be you and explore the castle for a while.”
“Then I’m to remain here and lie in bed looking ill?”
“You catch on quickly.”
“I may have my slow moments, but I’m not foolish.”
Kaliana smiled with quiet pride. I wondered why she thought herself slow when she didn’t seem that way at all. Or was it simply modesty?
With her cooperation, we exchanged clothes. Kaliana settled near the bed in my indoor dress with a shawl draped over it, while I dressed in her Priest’s Robe. Our builds weren’t identical, but with a winter cloak and scarf hiding the differences, it would pass close inspection.
I studied Kaliana’s form, then drew on my Holy Power, letting it flow subtly into her hair. Golden light shimmered across her silver locks.
Moments later, the mirror showed a woman with hair similar to Kaliana’s color—but rendered in gold. It looked natural, as though these golden strands had always been mine, not a strange dye job.
Kaliana gasped softly in wonder.
“Wow…… Your Highness, it looks exactly like my hair color.”
“It needs to be convincing enough not to draw attention.”
I wound the scarf tightly around the lower half of my face. This was a disguise only the North could afford—no one would think it strange to hide half one’s face under the pretense of the cold.
But one problem remained.
“Hmm, what about my eye color?”
My mint-colored eyes were difficult to hide. I could keep my gaze lowered and manage to conceal them somewhat, but up close, someone might see through it. Using Holy Power only turned my eyes golden, which wouldn’t help.
Should I wrap the scarf up to my eyes? Or change Kaliana’s image to being someone who squints naturally? Walk around with my eyes closed claiming divine trial? If only Kaliana had naturally squinty eyes to begin with.
Then Arden spoke quietly.
“I have a Magical Tool that can temporarily alter eye color to any shade you desire.”
He produced a Ring from his breast and offered it to me. I stared at it. Why was he carrying something like this?
My suspicion of Arden deepened. Why would a Holy Knight Order escort carry a Magical Tool for changing eye color? This was far from standard protective equipment.
But this wasn’t the moment to ask questions. Without a word, I accepted the Ring.
The moment I slipped on the ring, my vision blurred for an instant before clearing.
I looked in the mirror and saw my eyes had changed to Kaliana’s pale green.
Golden hair and pale green eyes. A strange thought crossed my mind—if my hair color hadn’t been changed to silver by Caritas’s choice, Kaliana and I might have shared quite similar coloring. A useless sentiment.
I quickly shed the thought and turned toward the door, whereupon Arden reflexively moved to follow. I raised a hand to stop him.
“Arden.”
He halted. I stepped closer and whispered softly into his ear.
“If you come with me, the Grand Duke will surely grow suspicious. You need to stay here and guard ‘me.'”
Arden’s gaze shifted to the bulbous mound of blankets on the bed.
Kaliana was already lying in my bed, her blanket pulled up to the crown of her head so that not a single strand of hair showed. The only problem was that she looked rather like a corpse, but as long as she stayed in the room, there shouldn’t be any real trouble.
Arden fell silent for a moment, then gave a small nod.
“Do not overextend yourself.”
“Don’t worry, Arden. I’ve never overextended myself once.”
I smiled faintly and opened the door. Having successfully left Arden behind, I made my way toward the castle’s first floor wearing Kaliana’s face.
The corridor was quiet, and the servants bowed respectfully as I passed. Thanks to the golden hair, the Priest’s Robe, and the Scarf covering my face, no one questioned me.
I walked without slowing my pace, mapping the castle’s layout in my mind. If the castle had been built above where Raum slept, the most likely location wasn’t the basement but somewhere near the central area of the first floor. After all, it hadn’t been floating in mid-air back then either.
I descended the stairs while praying silently.
I could only hope the idiots who built this castle hadn’t been foolish enough to place something like a banquet hall directly above the Seal.

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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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