7 transmigration tips from the saint chapter 41

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After Erdian and Seo Woohyun left in the carriage, Prince Habios remained with the rest of the group.

Absentmindedly rubbing his freshly healed wound, he murmured to Gisel.

“Those two seem to be part of your group.”

“Yes.”

With a curt and cold reply, Giselle was the first to leave.

Although they had once been master and student, their relationship had been severed when Giselle returned to the clergy.

Habios had only heard bits and pieces about Giselle, so he hadn’t expected a warm reunion or the exchanging of pleasantries. Instead, he sat alone by the fire, lost in thought.

‘Something’s off about Giselle’s behavior.’

Giselle held the high-ranking position of chief priest, one of the few esteemed roles within the church.

Supported by the Duke of Isen’s powerful backing and under the protection of High Priest Sihero, rumors frequently swirled that Giselle was a strong candidate to become the next head of the High Priest.

‘Why would such a high priest be so cautious around just two regular priests? Something doesn’t add up.’

Habios’ gaze darkened.

If he had lived his life carelessly, he would have long since been caught in the schemes of his brothers and relatives and ended up dead. He trusted his instincts.

Now that the threat of assassination was behind him and his wounds were healed, Habios’ mind worked sharper than ever.

The odd combination of the chief priest, two mysterious priests, and a knight capable of easily handling skilled assassins was undeniably strange.

Even the knight standing nearby, warily tidying up the area, raised questions.

Though wearing humble clothes, his movements and demeanor exuded the air of a highly trained knight.

This was no ordinary guard. He had seen the knight dispatch the assassins with ease.

“…Earlier, I didn’t have the chance to properly thank you. I deeply appreciate you saving my life. As a member of the Imperial family, I will show the Church my utmost gratitude, but may I also ask for the name of the person who saved me?”

Habios politely addressed the knight, who had his hood pulled low.

“There’s no need to dwell on it. I merely did what anyone should do when seeing someone in danger. Your support of the Church is more than enough repayment.”

The knight was polite but firm, clearly not interested in giving his name. Habios smiled brightly and nodded.

‘This must be the leader of the Temple Knights.’

When Habios had attended the founding anniversary prayer at the palace, he had the chance to hear the voice of the leader up close.

His excellent memory never forgot a voice.

Realization dawned: Raullet Vipel, the leader of the Temple Knights, renowned for earning the highest swordsmanship honors without any family backing, was accompanying the next head of the High Priest candidate.

The idea that such important priests and knights would defer to two ordinary priests seemed highly suspicious.

‘Sihero didn’t look like that. And the remaining High Priests are too old to move around much…’

As he mulled over the details, Habios recalled the recent stories about the appearance of the Saint, heralded by an oracle in the Holy City.

The last news was that the Saint was slowly recovering after awakening during a massive prayer gathering.

Given that the Church had recently issued strict orders on how to address the Saint, it seemed likely that public activities were about to resume.

If the Saint’s health had recovered, it wouldn’t be strange for him to be traveling around now.

‘But it’s too soon to jump to conclusions.’

The place he had designated for a rendezvous with his subordinates, in case they got separated, was conveniently close to the Great Forest.

Though his body was healed, there was no guarantee he would survive another encounter with assassins alone.

He decided to stay with the group until they reached the meeting point.

‘If that priest really is the Saint, it wouldn’t hurt to build a connection with him.’

The Saint of the Erdian Church was someone even the Emperor had to show respect to.

His ruthless mother, who cared only for maintaining his power while allowing his children and relatives to send assassins and poison each other, still had to show deference to the Saint.

People who had seen the Saint described him as a man with brown hair and pale skin.

Among the priests Giselle seemed wary of, only one matched that description—the priest with the stern but handsome face, Ciel.

From the moment Habios was granted temporary inclusion in the group, he began to observe Priest Ciel closely.

Today, too, his gaze followed the priest as he sat on a tree stump, quietly chatting with someone.

His smooth, unblemished hands suggested he had never done any hard labor.

His eyes, slightly narrowed, gave him a peculiar, aloof look, and his small lips moved as he softly whispered.

Habios couldn’t help but be drawn to him.

‘He’s trying hard to help, but his lack of skill is obvious. For someone who should have undergone volunteer training, he’s oddly clumsy.’

The more he observed Ciel, the more convinced Habios became that Ciel was the Saint in disguise.

Yet there was another priest always by Ciel’s side that bothered him.

‘If I assume Priest Ciel is the Saint, then Priest El’s behavior is very suspicious.’

Even Giselle, a noble by birth and master of facial expressions, couldn’t fully hide his discomfort.

But with Priest El, there was no trace of such awkwardness.

He frequently rested his hand on the Saint’s shoulder, whispered in his ear, and even casually touched his hands.

If they hadn’t been wearing priestly robes, their actions would seem like those of lovers.

‘Could it be an intentional disguise to make Ciel seem like just another priest? Does Priest El not know the Saint’s true identity?’

It wasn’t the only thing that seemed strange.

Though they said the child traveling with them was only temporary, and the man who had been a thief turned porter seemed out of place too.

Habios glanced at the man scurrying around, offering his services.

“Tell me if there’s anything you need done. I’ll work hard on whatever it is.”

The man, who was supposed to be handed over to the guards at their next destination, was acting as a porter for some unknown reason.

When Habios questioned this odd arrangement, Giselle had only told him not to dig too deep.

‘Just what’s going on here…’

Using his childhood connection to Giselle as an excuse, Habios stuck close to him.

He needed definitive proof that Priest Ciel was the Saint.

‘People don’t change easily.’

As the younger son of the Duke of Isen, Giselle had been an authority-driven man.

Even if he had devoted himself to the Erdian Temple and become a clergyman, he wouldn’t have completely changed his innate tendencies.

Soon, Habios noticed the subtle strangeness in Gisel’s behavior.

It was something so slight that only someone with Habios’ experience in the imperial palace would catch.

‘He’s not acting naturally. It’s only when he’s interacting with Priest Ciel that he seems unnatural, as if he’s following a script.’

Habios grew increasingly certain that the Saint was living under the guise of Priest Ciel.

He occasionally felt the same awkwardness when observing Priest El, but since Priest Ciel was always nearby, it was understandable.

Acting naturally around someone as important as the Saint would be difficult.

‘Priest El is a smokescreen, meant to distract others from the Saint’s true identity.’

Who would ever suspect an ordinary priest to be so familiar with the Saint?

If it weren’t for Habios’ past connection with Giselle, even he might have fallen for the clever disguise.

The seemingly endless expanse of the Great Forest would come to an end tomorrow.

Time was running out to forge even a small connection with the Saint.

‘I need to establish some kind of bond with the Saint.’

It couldn’t be called fate just because they shared meals or stayed in the same space.

Habios, hiding his anxious heart, stared at Ciel, the priest.

The Saint was a beauty with fair skin and dark brown hair.

His sharp eyes gave the impression of a sharp personality, but it didn’t take long to realize that wasn’t the case at all.

“The more I watch, the more I can’t help but be drawn to him.”

At first, Habios was only mildly intrigued by the contrast between Ciel’s appearance and his behavior.

After all, who is the Saint?

A figure said to stand above even the emperor.

Yet, Ciel was far too easygoing to fit such a title.

The difference fascinated Habios.

The more he watched, the more captivated he became by Ciel’s doll-like beauty, as if crafted by a master artisan.

The way he smiled gently at their companions was so charming.

“If only Ciel would smile at me like that…”

Habios reminded himself again that the man traveling with them in disguise was the Saint.

But the fondness growing in his heart made Ciel’s presence feel even more significant.

“To think, someone with such a high status, and yet so unpretentious, with such a face…”

At eighteen, Habios de Erhart was experiencing his first love.

“Um… Ciel, please feel free to just call me Habios from now on. I feel a little embarrassed always being addressed as ‘Prince,’ especially since you’ve been helping me out.”

Taking the chance during their meal, Habios asked Ciel to address him by his name.

Ciel, munching on a baked potato, nodded, agreeing to do so if necessary.

Then, as they reached dessert…

“Prince—ah, no, Habios, would you like some?”

Ciel awkwardly offered a slice of fruit he had clumsily cut.

Receiving the slightly crushed apple, Habios gulped.

“He called me by my name.”

Even to an uninvited guest accompanied by assassins, Ciel was this kind.

How would he treat a lover?

Caught up in his unrequited fantasies, Habios’s face softened.

After finishing the apple, he clasped his hands together and thought to himself.

“Would Ciel like someone younger? Or maybe he doesn’t even like men… Ah, I can’t exactly ask Eridian about this either.”