* * *

As a result, I was given a week of probation.

This was an outcome I had expected.

However, there was an unexpected twist: each day, an overwhelming number of love letters and gifts arrived for me.

Stopping Lily’s rampage that day had become a hot topic among the noble families, and it seemed that many people had started to claim Jeanne as “Saintess of Maya.”

‘Saintess of Maya? What a joke. How could a man be Saintess of Maya?’

Knowing the truth, I couldn’t help but scoff at the rumors. I even conducted several experiments, wondering if the pocket watch would activate under certain conditions, but it remained unresponsive since that day.

“Lady, you worked hard in today’s lessons. Here is today’s copying assignment.”

The new tutor hired by the duke spoke solemnly. Just looking at the sheer amount made me smile faintly.

Copying all that would probably break my wrist. I sighed and nodded.

“Alright, you may leave now.”

The tutor bowed politely and left the room. I clenched the ink pen tightly and slammed it onto the desk.

Damn it, I knew this would be troublesome, but this is just too much.

Of course, the lessons themselves weren’t difficult.

When it came to the history and politics of the Kaiser Empire, I knew more than the tutor, being a setting fanatic myself.

“The fact that you could memorize such a thick book in a day, Lady, shows how exceptionally bright you are!”

The tutor, who constantly praised me, began bringing increasingly difficult questions about political history as the days went by.

“Is this what it feels like to be a grad student dragged to graduate school…?”

While I was gripping my wrist in frustration, Twitty burst in noisily and shouted.

“Lady! More gifts and letters have arrived today…”

“Burn them all.”

I answered bluntly. Twitty looked like I was about to cry at my indifferent response.

“Huh? But there are lots of pretty clothes and jewelry…”

“Then you take them. I’m not interested.”

“Really? Can I really have them?!”

“…But bring me the letters. Just in case.”

Twitty nodded eagerly.

She was a simpler girl than I thought.

When treated kindly, I would form attachments on her own.

‘Of course, I was a bit materialistic, but as long as it wasn’t to the extent that it caused trouble for me, I should compensate her accordingly. That way, I can use her as well.’

Twitty, unaware of my ulterior motives, seemed genuinely pleased.

She lowered her body and asked with a flushed face.

“Oh! Lady, some rare rosemary tea leaves arrived recently. Should I bring them along with the letters?”

The bait is already working. I casually turned the page of my book and responded nonchalantly.

“Is that so? Then let’s invite Lily for tea later…”

I trailed off mid-sentence.

The effort I had made to forget that time was suddenly in vain.

A moment of silence, almost like a prayer, followed.

‘No matter how many times I go through this, I still don’t know how I’m supposed to react in situations like this.’

I had always been somewhat emotionally insensitive.

At my father’s funeral, when relatives I had never seen before were weeping, I silently stood my ground without shedding a tear.

It was a habit I had developed from learning archery.

Since emotional upheaval could lead to a poor score in the sport, I had trained myself to remain calm and composed in everyday life as well.

Because of this, I never felt overly joyous when good things happened, nor did I feel deeply sad when bad things occurred.

I was always busy maintaining a state of indifference.

‘Should I cry, or should I be angry? But it’s not like crying or getting angry will bring Lily back.’

Even though several days had passed since Lily’s death, I was still in a state of confusion. I had yet to come to terms with her death.

And it seemed Twitty felt the same way.

Whenever Lily’s name came up, we both fell silent as if on cue.

“Oh my, Lady. Look at that.”

Twitty, who had been quiet for a while, pointed to the window. A flock of sparrows had gathered at the windowsill.

They tapped at the glass with their beaks as if they were asking for something. I strode over and forcefully opened the window.

Twitty commented, half exasperated.

“These are the sparrows Lily used to take care of. Seriously, leaving without a word like that… what are these birds supposed to do now?”

“…”

“Please wait a moment. I’ll chase them away right away.”

Noticing the situation, Twitty hurriedly grabbed a broom. She probably thought I was about to lose my temper again.

I stared at the sparrows for a moment before extending my hand.

A young sparrow, familiar with me, rubbed its cheek against mine.

“No, there’s no need for that.”

I remembered how Lily, who was always alone like me, would talk to me.

Knowing her warm heart, I realized that Lily wouldn’t want to see me crying or getting angry.

Therefore, rather than crying or getting angry, I wanted to honor her memory by continuing the kindness I had left behind in this world.

I turned around and gave Twitty a bittersweet smile.

“Twitty, could you prepare some tea and bring a little bread as well?”

Who knows how much time passed, but Twitty soon brought rosemary tea and some freshly baked warm bread.

Sitting by the window, I took a bite of the bread.

The rich buttery scent seemed to lift my spirits a little. I tore off a piece of the bread and shared it with the hungry sparrows.

“Little birds, you’re only getting this food thanks to Lily, so make sure you live your lives with gratitude towards her.”

The sparrows, unable to understand my words, flew onto my shoulder as if urging me to hurry and give them more food.

One sparrow, nibbling on the piece of bread in my hand, shivered with delight. It must have tasted really good.

After giving all the remaining bread to the sparrows, I picked up the letters Twitty had brought.

“I’ve fallen deeply in love with Lady Jeanne… How could you be in love when we’ve never even met? What a bunch of crazy idiots.”

I crumpled the letter and tossed it behind me.

They were all marriage proposals.

I sighed and rubbed my aching forehead.

‘Given the commotion, the temple should have contacted me by now.’

What I was waiting for wasn’t these pointless marriage proposals but a message from the temple.

After all, to avoid being engaged to Carlisle, Jeanne had to become a saint.

With rumors spreading among the noble families that Jeanne was Saintess of Maya, I had expected the temple to contact me, but since there was no word from them, I was growing increasingly anxious.

‘Wait, this one feels different from the others.’

As I was flipping through the letters, my hand stopped.

A purple wolf crest.

This was the insignia of the Howard family, one of the prestigious families in the empire.

Efilia, symbolizing the wealth of the empire, Abeloss, symbolizing the empire’s military power, and Howard, symbolizing the empire’s magic.

These three families were considered the most prestigious in the empire.

“Why would the Howard family…?”

I unfolded the letter with a puzzled expression.

The sender was Michael, the head of the Howard family. And Michael was none other than Jerome’s father—the man Jeanne should never meet.

‘Jerome should be in the asylum right now, so this can’t be a marriage proposal…’

I read the letter with a growing sense of unease. As I continued reading, my heart started to race.

In the end, I stood up abruptly, overcome with frustration.

“Damn it, what is this old man even saying?”

I kicked the teddy bear that some nameless young man had gifted me. Twitty, who rushed in after hearing the commotion, hiccuped in shock.

Her expression said it all: ‘So much for the recent calm; it’s starting again.’

I shouted in a voice full of irritation.

“Twitty!”

“Y-Yes!”

“Where is the duke right now?”

“Duke Michael of the Howard family just arrived to see him… they’re in a meeting.”

That cunning bastard.

Whether in the original story or here, he’s always been one to discuss matters after making decisions.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. A maid entered and bowed politely as I fumed.

“Lady, the duke has asked me to bring you to him.”

“…Ha.”

The letter could be roughly summarized as follows:

[Lady Jeanne♥ My son Jerome has been ill lately. Despite bringing several Archbishop, his mental illness hasn’t improved. Could you, Lady Jeanne, the ‘Saintess of Maya,’ kindly take a look at him?]

‘Am I crazy? Why would I go there and meet Jerome, knowing what could happen?’

Jerome’s ability was ‘mind control.’ It was a dangerous power that could make someone take their own life without him even lifting a finger.

In the original story, Jeanne was also controlled by Jerome and completely lost herself to him.

“Then let’s go, my lady.”

The head maid urged from the side. It seemed impossible to avoid this meeting since Duke Michael himself had come to visit.

Feeling uneasy, Jeanne eventually took a step forward.

“My lady, the Duke is here.”

Before the head maid finished speaking, the door opened, and both Duke Carlotte and Duke Michael turned to look at me.

As our eyes met, Duke Michael stood up abruptly.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Duke Michael. I’m Jeanne von Efilia.”

“Oh, so you’re Lady Jeanne! As beautiful as they say.”

Michael strode over to me and grabbed my hand firmly, shaking it.

I gave an awkward smile and shot a glance at Duke Carlotte as if to say, “Even if I’m just your adopted daughter, is this okay?”

Jerome, it’s Jerome.

The same Jerome who caused every saint and priestess who met with him to commit suicide!

‘It doesn’t matter. He’s someone who would do anything for the sake of his family.’

Just as the Duke said, preserving the family was equivalent to preserving one’s life.

To be recognized as a member of the family, Jeanne, like Duke Carlotte and Cedrick who worked tirelessly to maintain the family, had to fulfill her duties as a noble lady.

Duke Carlotte, sipping tea, gave a slight nod, indicating I should sit.

I let go of Michael’s hand and took a seat.

“So, you must have read the letter I sent. My son’s condition has worsened over time. If you can cure Jerome’s madness, I’ll write you a recommendation to the temple under the authority of the Tower Master.”

“……”

“I’m not asking for much. Just use your exceptional divine power to stop Jerome’s madness. Didn’t you already halt the heretic transformation at the celebration of the holy birth?”

It seems you’re asking for quite a lot, though. I let his words pass over me, staring blankly ahead.

Although it was true that I had stopped Lily’s heretic transformation, I wasn’t confident I could stop Jerome’s madness as well.

After all, I still didn’t know how Jeanne had managed to stop Lily’s transformation in the first place.

As I pondered how to refuse, the Duke spoke first.

“Sorry, but that offer is hard to accept.”

“What?”

“I’ve already received another proposal.”

Huh? What’s he talking about now?

I quickly turned to look at Duke Carlotte. With a pleased expression, he continued.

“The Count of Laildrou contacted us recently.”

“The Count of Laildrou? Isn’t that the family that’s gaining a lot of attention lately with their harbor business?”

“Yes, the eldest son of that family seems interested in proceeding with an engagement with Jeanne.”

The Count of Laildrou. It was a family that had amassed wealth comparable to the Efilia family. On top of that, it was also the family of Carlisle’s biological mother, so forming a connection would bring great benefits.

‘There was a reason why business families arranged marriages for their children.’

Two choices flashed in my mind.

1. Meet Jerome → Get brainwashed → Get tangled in a messy situation → Get discovered as a man → Become a slave.

2. Have a meeting with the eldest son of the business family → Quick marriage → Wedding night → Get discovered as a man → Execution.

This was no different from choosing between falling to my death or being stabbed to death.

Unlike the enthusiastic Duke Carlotte, I grew more and more haggard by the second.

I couldn’t reject both options.

I had to choose one. Clenching my fists on my knees, I asked in a trembling voice,

“Duke, could you possibly refuse that engagement?”

“……Is the match not to your liking? The Count of Laildrou is also a very prestigious family.”

“Yes, I’m not inclined towards engagement just yet. Instead…”

I let out a deep sigh. Being a slave is better than dying.

And if push comes to shove, Jerome…

“I’ll meet this person named Jerome.”

After all, I can handle him just like Jeanne did in the original story.

* * *