However, Blizan’s next words made him realize that the man was simply relieved by the single statement that Raha no longer loved him.
“Since you said you no longer love me, you won’t bother me like before. That’s enough for me.”
At Blizan’s words, Raha wondered if it was right for him to believe this so easily, while Grey argued that he couldn’t just keep Raha as the Crown Prince’s exclusive healer.
“Why not? You have Young Master Edrion, so you can receive treatment from him from now on.”
“That’s not for you to decide.”
“Teore is his long-time friend and Gerard is also close with him, so those two will naturally receive treatment from Young Master Edrion. Since you and Hayden hate Raha, you should take this opportunity to receive it from Edrion.”
“I will continue to receive treatment from the High Priest just as I have until now.”
Grey immediately arched his eyebrows and countered Blizan’s words.
Blizan looked at Grey and spoke calmly.
“Then you can come to the Crown Prince’s Palace to receive treatment.”
“The High Priest should be in the Great Temple. Does it make sense for him to move his residence to the Imperial Palace?”
“Why shouldn’t it be possible? I intend to go today and personally petition His Majesty.”
“I really can’t understand. Are you serious?”
“Did you think I was lying?”
Blizan looked at Raha, stating that he was, of course, serious.
“Once His Majesty’s permission is granted, I will come to pick you up immediately. So from now on, prepare to—”
“I—I’m not going?!” Raha shouted, cutting Blizan off.
He didn’t know how things had turned out this way, but this was something that hadn’t happened in the original story and something he had never even considered himself, so he couldn’t help but be flustered.
Moreover, if he wanted to succeed in his stable escape plan by keeping his distance from the ‘male leads’ of the original story, he felt he shouldn’t be close to the Crown Prince or anyone else.
So he blurted out his refusal, and that refusal seemed to be quite a shock to Blizan.
Seeing how his face had stiffened visibly.
“Are you rejecting my offer?”
“Ah, I…”
“You’re serious, Raha.”
“Pardon?”
“You’ve truly lost your feelings for me.”
With a complex and subtle expression that looked both happy and sad, Blizan continued.
“Therefore, I must take you to the Imperial Palace even more.”
“Pardon?”
‘What kind of nonsense is this again…?’ Raha’s face twisted in disbelief.
“Since you’re asking for time to think, I’ll give it to you, but you must finish your choice by next Monday when you meet me.”
Blizan, who had threatened to take Raha to the Imperial Palace, said he would give him time despite Raha’s refusal and insistence on not leaving the Great Temple.
He even said something ridiculous like, “If you’re worried about losing your position as High Priest to Edrion, there’s no need to worry.”
Raha pressed his throbbing temples at the suddenly complicated situation.
It seemed that because he wasn’t acting like the Raha in the original story, the plot was constantly diverging.
In particular, the actions of the Crown Prince and the Southern Duke—whose treatment methods he had changed to maintain distance—were becoming vastly different from the original.
“Why don’t you come and stay at the Duke’s estate instead?”
He hadn’t expected even Grey to say such a thing.
Wasn’t he the one who shuddered as if even a touch was loathsome?
The situation where Grey said to come to the Duke’s estate rather than the Imperial Palace was something Raha could hardly understand.
‘Is this really okay…?’
He was trying to change his relationship with them to avoid a gruesome ending, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of unease that things were getting tangled in a strange way.
Especially his plan—to successfully maintain distance and then demand money in a professional tone—was already falling apart.
Living at the Duke’s estate on top of the Imperial Palace?
He still couldn’t believe those words came from the mouths of the two people who used to hate him so much.
Raha thought the original story had become twisted because his attitude toward the male leads had changed, and he reaffirmed his resolve to leave this place as soon as possible.
He worried that if he dragged his feet any longer, the tangled relationships might bring his gruesome ending even closer than in the original story.
But Raha’s worry was premature.
Marquis Gerard, who was supposed to come to the Great Temple for Thursday’s treatment, did not show up.
“The Crown Prince said that?”
Raha frowned in disbelief at Pago’s words.
“I’m telling you. He issued an official notice to all the elemental nobles saying that the High Priest cannot provide treatment for the time being and they should receive it from the new High Priest.”
‘What on earth is this…’
“And he told the Head Priest that he would bring you to the Imperial Palace as soon as possible. The Head Priest said they should discuss it after the appointment ceremony for the prospective High Priest, Edrion, so it hasn’t proceeded yet, but…”
“So I’m free today?”
When Raha interrupted Pago and asked, he nodded and replied.
“The Crown Prince ordered that you be given absolute rest and not allowed to leave your room. So, even meals are to be brought to the room…”
Raha’s mouth fell open at Pago’s words.
‘Isn’t this basically the same as being confined to my room?’
He didn’t know what had gotten into Blizan.
Where did the problem start that caused Blizan’s attitude—which used to be horrific—to change?
‘I guess I messed with the original story too much.’
All he had done was declare a distance-keeping strategy to two of the male leads who hated him, but since he originally planned to save money and escape the world of the novel, it didn’t really matter.
As long as he didn’t end up in prison or confined somewhere.
‘Even though it feels close to confinement now, I can leave if I want to.’
Raha decided that since things had turned out this way, he might as well eat a lot of delicious food and carefully examine the maps of the Empire and the world that he hadn’t finished seeing.
Since one never knows, he might end up living in another country outside the Empire.
“Pago, are there any old books about foreign countries in the Great Temple?”
“Foreign countries? Yes, of course, there are many kinds.”
“Do you know where the most livable place is?”
“The most livable place? Why, it’s the Arteia Empire, of course.”
To Raha’s question, Pago answered as if it were obvious that their empire was the best place to live.
At that, Raha shook his head a couple of times.
“Ah, then perhaps Berteron?”
“Berteron?”
“Yes, it’s a small kingdom across the northern sea. Isn’t it known as the only place free from monster attacks?”
“Ah, I see.”
Since the original story didn’t mention anything about foreign countries, he had never heard of a place called Berteron.
“Then bring me some old books about Berteron.”
“Yes… but why old books about foreign countries…”
“The Crown Prince told me not to leave my room. I need something to look at since I’m bored.”
Pago looked as if he clearly wanted to ask why that “something” had to be old books from a foreign country, but he didn’t say anything more and went out to fetch the books.
Raha leaned back comfortably against the sofa, looking out the window during the unexpected vacation caused by Blizan.
