As expected, my sister took the documents of the collateral branch families.
To be precise, it seemed she had conceived a new idea upon seeing those documents. The method was to recruit a family on the verge of being expelled from the collateral line and create some pretext, however flimsy, to return to Roam.
With Father pushing the marriage alliance with the imperial family right under her nose, the only way to avoid it was to first enter into a marriage elsewhere.
Choosing a family that had, even a speck, once shared Roam's bloodline was better than a completely unrelated one. That way, even if my sister were immediately expelled, she could somehow gain a foothold in Roam using the pretext of the man's speck of shared blood.
It was a choice my sister would never have imagined under normal circumstances.
'But right now, she has to do something.'
Well, now Sister Phrygian will bring the marriage contract herself, so all I have to do is wait.
I roughly skimmed the rest and sorted them appropriately. It's not like I truly want to become a minor duke anyway, so why work hard?
The real problem was something else.
*Tap tap!*
Right on cue, a sound came from the closed window. Delighted, I opened it, and Zigore fluttered in, shaking his feathers. It was the reply I had waited for over a full day.
"The reply?"
[Here it is!]
No, why did they attach such a large note to this tiny sparrow's body?
Anyway, perhaps because he's large himself, he has absolutely no consideration for smaller beings.
Clicking my tongue, I unfolded the reply sent by Samuel.
'I will visit.'
……Hmm?
“……Zigore. Sorry, but you'll have to make one more trip.”
I wrote that he needn't come, but if it seemed the Temple was going to make some strange announcement, to please stop it, and tied it back onto Zigore's leg.
Exactly three hours after Zigore flew out the window.
"Se-second young lady. A guest……."
Samuel, who had visited the Roam residence with a suspicious-looking cloak concealing his entire body and a helmet pulled low.
* * *
"A guard?"
"Yes. A guard who accompanied me on my travels."
"If he's your guard, isn't he already behind you?"
At Father's words, Pallides tensed his shoulders and gave a forced cough.
Glancing at Pallides, I swallowed a sigh that threatened to rise and forced a faint smile.
"As you know, Father, Sister Phrygian has been holding quite a grudge against me lately. The servants still follow her more, so I merely wish to call one more of my own people to gain some peace of mind. I will send him away as soon as I feel reassured."
The only saving grace was that Sister Phrygian had thoroughly stirred up the rumors about me circulating among the servants lately.
Because that served as a prime example proving my anxiety, Father, though with a displeased expression, reluctantly nodded.
I had worried about what to do if he insisted on seeing his face and made him remove the helmet, but fortunately, that didn't happen.
He had probably guessed it would be similar with Samuel, having already tried and failed to remove Pallides's helmet.
Truly, this could only be called good luck.
Calmly returning to my room, I only let out a long sigh after firmly closing the door.
"It has been a long time."
"What in the world are you……! Ugh."
I barely suppressed my rising voice and slumped onto the sofa. Seeing me holding my forehead and heaving deep sighs, Samuel gave a short, awkward cough.
"I visited thinking it would be quicker to speak in person, but I did not know your situation was so dire as to require a guard."
Biting back the urge to retort that it got worse because *you* came, I gritted my teeth and spoke.
“……Just tell me what is so important that you had to see my face in person."
If it's nothing, I'll kick you out right now.
Grinding my teeth inwardly, I was also worried that if he came all this way himself, the situation might be serious.
However, Samuel's first words were the complete opposite of my concerns.
"The atmosphere at the Temple is better than ever."
"Better?"
"Yes. As we have unearthed new historical materials, everyone is devoutly deciphering the words spoken by the goddess."
"And these new historical materials are……."
"Books discovered in the basement of Febrin Monastery."
At that moment, the image of the basement, thick with white dust, came to mind. The very place where the unidentified warp gate that sent me to the imperial palace had been installed.
But if they are materials from that place…
"Then… they must include content about the two gods?"
Considering why that place was a closed monastery, there would naturally have been materials within the Temple concerning birth and death.
They might even contain information about divine authority, divine puppets, or proxies.
Recalling the headless stone statue in that monastery, I had to consider the possibility, if luck was bad, of materials reminiscent of a Dullahan.
"Yes, correct. The achievements of the proxy will also be re-evaluated."
Staring blankly at Samuel's rigid statement, a sudden thought crossed my mind.
If I hit the back of that helmet, would Samuel's head hurt, or would my hand hurt?
"Sir, in my opinion, the very premise of there being two gods is already flawed."
"Pardon?"
"Do you know how content that shakes the foundation of a long-established logic of dominance is usually received?"
"The Temple does not study doctrine to dominate anyon……"
"You heretic."
At my blunt words, Samuel seemed shocked into silence.
I could vividly imagine the expression he must be making inside that helmet without even seeing it.
"Sir. You are… so firm in your beliefs it's convenient, but that's precisely what I dislike."
As I muttered while holding my forehead, Samuel, still reeling from the shock, struggled to speak.
"I will… return to the Temple and……"
"Return and what? Testify that the contents of those materials are all true?"
"I have already informed the High Priest that I received a divine revelation. He will surely listen."
"Sir, this time, it seems wise to listen to me. It seems I am more familiar with politics than you are, at least."
As I dismissed his opinion without room for reconsideration, Samuel's shoulders slumped.
If only that man dealt with the Temple with half the cunning he shows me, he could live much more comfortably. It seems the Temple does an excellent job training its clergy.
"Five days. No, four? Or was it three?"
"……What are you referring to?"
"The time we have left."
It wasn't an oracle or anything. This was the conclusion likely to be drawn based on the historical materials Samuel had presented.
That the Dullahans were creatures that appeared to cast a curse upon this land. The possibility of the Temple officially announcing such nonsense had grown far too great.
If so, hadn't the possibility of the Empress collapsing also increased?
'Damn you, Lilia…'
If she truly regained foresight, curses come naturally, but thanks to that foresight, I learned of this fact a few days in advance, so… I don't know whether to be grateful or annoyed.
Holding my head over this unexpected problem, I took a deep breath.
First… Let me contact Heinri again. And Xenon too.
* * *
Lilia's daily routine lately was simple.
Reading books in her room, embroidering handkerchiefs, or, if not that, looking after Sayri, who had been feeling particularly lonely these days.
There was once an atmosphere that she might be expelled from the household at any moment, but since Anelli arrived, people's attention had shifted slightly away from Lilia.
In the past, she would have been resentful at having the attention that used to focus on her taken away, but this time, she was only glad for Anelli's presence.
She also hoped, as much as possible, that Anelli would clash more with Phrygian. The more the two collided, the more Lilia could breathe.
Leaning back languidly, Lilia recalled the conversation she had with Phrygian yesterday.
「I heard long ago that you were clinging to Anelli.」
「I won't deny it. But, Sister, if you knew how greatly I was humiliated by our younger sister at the imperial palace banquet, you would have no choice but to understand my actions.」
Lilia put on an expression brimming with sorrow.
「Elder Sister, you know how much our younger sister dislikes me. I…… I merely wished to do something, hoping that our younger sister's desire for revenge would cease.」
「……Is that the truth?」
「Yes. But it had little effect. Our younger sister was burning with vengeance, heedless of anything else.」
Lilia had been hearing from a few servants, whose sympathy she had recently cultivated, that the two fought fiercely whenever they met.
From the servants' perspective, it was likely information given with the intention of warning Lilia to avoid getting caught in unnecessary trouble. Although Lilia was using that information in a different way.
「Do you remember the prophecy I made about our younger sister?」
「Yes.」
「That prophecy is true.」
Lilia saw Phrygian's eyes tremble at that moment. Knowing how attached Phrygian was to the Roam family, Lilia could easily tell her words had shaken her heart once again.
「I am so worried.」
「Such a thing will not happen.」
「I hope so.」
Sincerely.
Their conversation wasn't long, but Lilia obtained everything she desired.
Lilia could easily guess that Phrygian would cling even more desperately to Anelli's ankles.
And Anelli, preoccupied with the information she had provided, would be unable to focus on Phrygian.
While they were busy clashing like that, she intended to focus on the new prophecy she had received.
'I really am the protagonist!'
Her heart swelled with excitement at the thought of the new prophecy.
Despite her brief worry that she might be nothing, it was now meaningless, as Lilia had recently regained the ability to see the future again.
However, unlike before, when it remained vividly in her mind and she could recall it anytime she wished, now she saw it in the form of dreams.
The time for dreaming was limited, and the speed at which she could read books within the dream was also fixed.
But the most troublesome part was that after waking from the dream, her memory of it faded almost completely as time passed.
'It's inconvenient, but there's no choice. I just have to record it immediately after waking up.'
After confirming once more that no one was in her room, she quietly opened a drawer. It was the 'record book' she had diligently begun writing a few days ago.
Gently stroking the cover of the record book, she gave a faint smile. With this alone, she could easily reverse the turned hearts of the Duke of Roam and the Duchess of Roam.
So, whether it was Anelli or Phrygian, if just one of them lent her their strength, she would regain her position within Roam.
After that… she would use this future knowledge to remove both of them.
She could even place Sayri, who followed her well, as the successor to Roam.
So absorbed in imagining the smooth road ahead, Lilia completely missed the sound of a bee's wings buzzing near her.