A Saint Who Was Adopted by the Grand Duke
chapter-156

★★★

This time, they were able to exit the temple without interference.

In front of the temple gates, the carriage that Deheen had prepared in advance was waiting.

Before returning to Tersia, Deheen exchanged a few words with Noah.

“Does the wound hurt?”

“No. It healed perfectly.”

“I’m glad. Thank you for today. I will never forget the grace of helping my daughter.”

Contrary to his words of gratitude, Deheen’s gaze at Noah was cold like he was looking at a thief.

For some reason, Noah felt Deheen was swearing with his eyes. He cleared his throat.

“No. It’s something I should do. Goodbye.”

Noah chuckled a little, coming to the conclusion it was probably because he hugged Esther.

“Goodbye. We’ll make a move first.”

Deheen nodded and turned to the carriage.

Esther, who was about to get into the carriage with the escort of the twin brothers, glanced back at Noah.

‘What should I do?’

This entire walk… she did not say a word to Noah. It was because of the strict vigilance of her father and brothers.

“Dad, Noah…”

“His Highness must return now.”

Of course, Noah, who had planned to follow them, flinched at Deheen’s words and stopped his steps.

“You have been away from the Imperial Palace for too long. This time, you have to see to it.”

Albert overheard the conversation and widened his eyes.

‘Don’t tell me… I didn’t hear that one of the imperial family would be accompanying her?’

Besides, if it was ‘Noah’, it was definitely the name of the crown prince.

Realizing he had even attacked the crown prince, Albert was shocked and was on the verge of suffocating.

“I’ll send someone to the Imperial Palace first. I’m worried about Esther, so I’ll accompany her just to the territory.”

“You don’t have to. Esther has us now.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I will protect Esther.”

Judy, whom Noah had became a little close to during his last visit to the grand duchy, winked and waved, telling him not to worry.

‘I can’t help it…’

Noah let out a small sigh.

Right now, it was a family boundary line that he could never penetrate.

Esther was very worried about Noah, but she kept quiet because she thought her family would dislike him even more if she sided with him.

“All right. Have a safe trip. Esther, see you soon.”

Noah, whose expression darkened at the thought of parting with Esther, smiled and waved.

“Thank you.”

Esther spoke loudly so that Noah could hear it, waved her hand, and got into the carriage.

Deciding to see him off till the end, Noah watched as Deheen walked to the carriage.

But halfway through, Deheen’s steady strides suddenly stopped. Turning around, he walked back towards Noah.

Surprised, Noah swallowed dry saliva, feeling Deheen’s anger from every step taken.

‘Is he going to argue about something earlier?’

Noah steeled his mind, preparing to be scolded.

“Perhaps… Two weeks later, if time permits.”

But unlike what Noah had thought, Deheen brought up a completely different thing.

“There will be Esther’s birthday party. It’s going to be held at the shelter, so it might be a bit shabby to invite Your Highness, but would you like to attend?”

“A birthday party?”

Noah’s eyes widened as he looked up at Deheen, who was much taller than he was.

His mind was jumbled for a moment, but then he figured out the meaning and smiled brightly.

“Are you inviting me?”

“…Well, yes. Because you helped my daughter a lot today.”

Not too long ago, Deheen, who was constantly on guard, couldn’t have personally invited Noah to Esther’s birthday party.

Noah was genuinely happy that Deheen’s heart had opened a little.

“I am very happy that the Grand Duke personally invited me. of course. I will definitely attend.”

“I’ll see you then.”

Deheen’s figure, which turned, was still cold. But somehow, Noah felt he was less scary than before.

★★★

The carriage carrying Esther, Judy, Dennis and Deheen set off smoothly toward Tersia.

Esther stared at Noah through the window until he was completely gone, then turned her head.

“Esther, I haven’t seen you in such a long time, your face feels like it’s been cut in half. Was it hard?”

“I know. My sister has grown thin.”

Judy and Dennis sat across from Esther and scrutinized her, fussing greatly.

“Did you eat well? Did you sleep well? Didn’t you miss your brother?”

Pushing out his chest, Judy asked with bright eyes.

“I would have missed you more than you did. Right?”

When Dennis started asking questions he usually avoided, Esther rolled her eyes to the side.

It was because an implicit pressure was also from Deheen next to her.

“Of course I wanted to see you all. Dad and Brothers too. A lot, a lot.”

Esther wondered if it should be like this since she hadn’t seen them for only a week, but she was happy that they had come this far for her, so she matched their rhythm.

“Hmm, I guess Esther missed me the most.”

The corners of Deheen’s mouth visibly twitched. Because Esther addressed him first.

“I was very surprised when Dad suddenly appeared earlier. Brother Judy and Brother Dennis too, when they ran over. What happened?”

Just now, she couldn’t express it properly because she was distracted, but she didn’t know how happy she was to see them coming to her rescue.

“Because while you were away, Judy kept saying he missed you.”

When the twins’ very puzzled eyes turned to Deheen, he tilted his head in a nonchalant manner.

“Father, I did, but it was definitely you who said we should go… eup!”

It was definitely Deheen who suggested that they set off immediately for the temple.

Trying to tell the truth, Judy claimed that it was unfair, but Deheen covered his mouth.

“Anyway, aren’t you happy? I’m so glad I came to pick you up.”

“Yes. It’s great to see all of you sooner.”

Esther replied with a cheerful laugh, and the hearts of Deheen, Judy, and Dennis melted away.

“I want to hear what happened.”

There was a lot of time until they reached Tersia.

Esther talked about everything from the time she left Tersia to the moment before.

Deheen, Judy, and Dennis listened intently as Esther spoke without interruptions.

“As expected, this is our Esther. You’ve been doing great.”

Dennis patted Esther’s head when she finished, saying that he was proud of her.

“Yes. Whether it’s Rabienne or whatever, I feel like I pressed the bridge of his nose, so now I can feel my insides. Still, the temple has no shame.”

Judy muttered with a huff. The whole time he was listening, he felt like he would die from annoyance.

“Father, please cover Esther’s ears for a second.”

“You mean, like this?”

“Yes.”

When Deheen covered Esther’s ears with his hands, Judy cursed the temple, pouring out all sorts of harsh words.

“Judy you… Ah, all right.”

Deheen would normally have stopped Judy. But he was also angry they tried to capture Esther by force, so he let it go this time.

After talking for a while, Esther, tired, yawned.

“Esther, are you sleepy?”

“A little bit. Can I close my eyes for a second?”

Esther’s eyes were already half-closed, probably from being on edge all day.

“Of course. Lean on me.”

Deheen tapped himself on the shoulder and guided Esther’s head.

As Esther was about to lean on it, Deheen’s wide thighs somehow caught her attention. She asked, agonizingly.

“Dad, can I lie on your lap?”

In an instant, Deheen’s eyes widened and his expression hardened.

“Y-Yes, sure, of course…”

“Esther! Here, my lap…”

While Deheen was startled, Judy appealed, pointing at his lap.

But Deheen wasn’t going to miss out on this happiness. He was a little surprised, but he never intended to concede to Judy.

“Judy’s thighs are still too small for Esther to lie on.”

Having been declared as lacking in stability compared to Deheen, Judy pouted in displeasure.

Eventually Esther lay her head on Deheen’s lap. It was as comfortable as she thought, so she smiled naturally.

“Thank you, Dad.”

Deheen was just thrilled that Esther felt close and comfortable enough to fall asleep on his lap.

He concentrated all his attention on his thighs, supporting Esther’s head well so that it would not shake.

“Father, you can change with me later.”

“How about 30 minutes equally?”

While Judy, along with Dennis who was reading a book, aimed for Esther’s head, Esther breathed in and out and fell into a deep sleep.

One more thing.

Esther didn’t know it completely, but there was a small commotion. It was because Shur came out while she was sleeping.

“S-S, snake!!”

“Noisy. It’s Shur. Don’t wake Esther up.”

Still afraid of snakes, Judy clung to the carriage wall, and it was up to Dennis to calm him down.

★★★

The news that Rabienne had failed the qualification test quickly reached Duke Brions.

This was because the several spies planted inside the temple sent the news via carrier pigeons.

“That child showed up at the test site? Ha, how is this…”

Duke Brions could not hide his shock when he learned that Esther interfered with Rabienne’s test.

“Did she know that she is a saint?”

Additionally… He staggered when he found out that Rabienne had been stripped of her title on the spot.

“Everything went wrong.”

It was the worst of all the situations Duke Brions had imagined beforehand.

At least, there was still a glimmer of hope with Albert’s guild.

But… even the subordinate who was the last to deliver information brought him bad news.

“…Sorry. Since the grand duke took care of the situation himself, there was no way for me to help them.”

“The kidnapping failed and Albert was taken to Tersia?”

With so much going on at once, Duke Brions hands trembled with shock.

“The good news is that Albert never spoke about us. They are the sort who would rather die if caught, so you can trust them.”

“Indeed… What is Rabienne doing?”

“The lady is locked in a room. She must want to see Your Grace, so shouldn’t you go?”

When he heard that his daughter had been imprisoned after being deprived of her saint position, Duke Brions slammed his fist against the table.

“The temple bastards. They’re doing this without consulting me. Are they going to leave me aside now?”

“Anyway, the public test seems to have had a big impact. The difference in divine power is very clear.”

“…If I go and meet the temple bastards, is there any chance that Rabienne will be reinstated as a saint?”

“Judging by the atmosphere, it will be difficult. Wouldn’t it be best to get her out so she won’t be punished severely?”

Upon hearing the analysis of the subordinate, Duke Brions’ expression turned cold.

Until a while ago, he was worried about what to do with Rabienne, but now, his path was clear.

“For our family to continue, we must have a saint in this generation.”

“But the lady has already lost her chance.”

“Enough of Rabienne.”

The subordinate raised his head in surprise at the harsh voice.

“And there is still a way.”

Duke Brions’ knew very well that there was only one way to make his wish come true.

He didn’t want to do it if possible, but since things went wrong, he had no choice.

“First, let’s go to the Imperial Palace.”

“Not, not the temple? Aren’t you going to the lady?”

“To the imperial palace.”

Duke Brions’ voice was firm.

Ame: The least you could do is to be a less shitty father, but I guess even that is too much for you >_>