*The temple is where the villainess goes

It was only after two days did, we receive a letter from the temple that stated that they were very much welcomed to have me over till the day of the divinity’s birth.

“The festival of Hannakeiuo,” Daveen explained as he bit into the pork ribs, “It is celebrated in Feiro, the land where the first stone of the divinity was laid. There shall be a ritual for the divine being, followed by the royalties’ speeches and then the festival starts.”

“How long does it last for?”

“Two days.”

“Isn’t that too less?”

He raised his eyes. “If we drain the capital’s taxes into celebrating for a week long, this country would be drowning in debt, my lady,” he tossed the bone into the cup before reaching for another rib, “However, soon after this festival is completed, we’ll be holding another one. The foundation day of Nazacket. The day when we liberated the demons and won the land.”

“More like kicked the demons out of their home lands and conquered their place as your own,” I mumbled under my breath as I searched for another simple dress to pack.

Suddenly I felt a chill down my spine.

“This land never belonged to the demons,” I turned around to see Daveen’s cold eyes pierce into my own. How scary! “This land never belonged to anyone. The demon’s homeland lies in the darkest parts of the dimension, so there is no need to make us the villains and have the readers sympathize with the demons.”

“I humbly apologize for my lack of knowledge,” I clapped my hands in an apologizing way, “I am curious, though. Who existed in those lands before the demons?”

“None.”

“For real?”

“There are, however, theories that since the mana was abundant, there was a slight chance that the lands were inhabited by mystical creatures who had the power of the divine being in them. When the demons took hold of the lands, their corruption drained the creatures’ power which eventually led to their disappearance—”

“Done!”

I heaved a long sigh as I fell onto the bed from exhaustion, staring at the trunk I had packed with Rozalia’s simplest clothes. Yes, her simplest clothes.

The moment I had opened her closet, the sexiest lingerie made of the finest silk and laces embedded with jewels were upfront. I had screamed from surprise and almost had Daveen choke on a fish bone.

“My lady likes these types of garments,” he answered my quizzical look, with no change in expression, as if he were used to such displays.

But I wasn’t (despite being a woman)!

The only time I had ever seen such clothing was when one of my friends had gotten into a relationship and bragged about the lingerie her boyfriend got her. It was red and sexy, and partially see-through. However, they broke up the very next day because he didn’t find her alluring in the outfit. He was an asshole, we figured.

Searching for decent clothes that can be worn on a journey and at the church in Rozalia’s closet was like finding a ray of hope in my reincarnated life. Apologies, but let me joke about my wretched life.

“Why is there nothing to decent to wear!?” I cried out.

“Don’t you like such clothes, my lady?”

I shot a glare at him before disappearing into the closet. “Such clothes are nice to wear when you are with your lover. But when you go to a holy place, it is crucial to pay your respects as a decent human being and hence, wear decent clothes.”

“My lady never cared for such things.” Of course, she didn’t.

It was only after half a day or so did I find three dresses and that’s it. I packed them along with some simpler lingerie (which were not so simple, but think of the least sexy amongst the sexiest) and I was done packing. I decided to make a quick stop at the village near the temple to buy presentable clothes.

“When am I supposed to go?” I asked Daveen. He had wiped clean of all the plates, including my share of food, and was sitting upright in a dignified manner that one wouldn’t be able to tell that this man was a foodie.

“An hour before.”

“Excuse me?!”

We raced down the corridors and stairs, startling the servants who were carrying large baskets of laundry and the maids who were frightened to their death by our sudden appearances before them. Daveen jogged behind me with the luggage tossed over his shoulder and me? I was running for my life.

“My lady,” Daveen spoke with no panting breath interrupting, “Your legs are showing.”

“Oh.”

If I recall, there was a novel that stated that women were not allowed to wear pants and had to wear skirts that swept the floors and didn’t stick to the hips. Showcasing the shape of a women’s leg was considered something intimate and alluring, and was to be shown only to the lady’s partner. It is a scandal to show others.

And I was currently going through a scandal.

I noticed how the servants were all blushing as they looked away from Rozalia’s smooth, fair legs.

“Fuck it.”

I skid down the railings bar, earning gasps from the maids and a whistle from Daveen. I spotted the carriage outside the door with the father standing by the door with a scowl on his face.

I slowly smoothed my dress and my knight wiped my sweaty brows with his handkerchief before we presented ourself to the marquess.

“You are late.”

“I was too immersed in my prayers to see the time,” I clasped my hand before my chest, acting as the newly changed Rozalia who was devoted to the divine being.

“Be gone now.” He walked away.

I bowed to his back before heading over to the carriage. Daveen had already thrown in the luggage into the trunk before sitting…inside?

“Hey, what are you doing?” I asked.

“Sitting.”

“In my carriage?”

“My lady, being humble and modest is the way to the divine being’s heart.”

“I meant, why are you inside the carriage?”

“Because riding a horse for three days is painful.”

“Ugh!” I shook my head, calmed my breath, and reframed my thoughts, “I mean, why are you coming with me?”

He gave me the look of grimace. “My lady, are you seriously asking me that?”

“Yes.”

“I am your knight.”

“Oh?”

“And I am to come with you no matter where you go.”

Oh! “Then would you have accompanied me to the asylum too?!”

“No,” he held out his hand, shaking his head, “I had a choice. This too, I have a choice.”

“Awe! Is it because you are scared to be alone in this mansion without me?” I teased before entering the carriage.

“No,” he rolled his eyes in disgust, “It’s just to make sure you don’t end up looking stupid and ruin the grandiose name of Rozalia in the presence of the temple priests. And, because the village near the temple serves one of the best barbecued meats.” He drooled at the thought.

“Sure, baby boy.”

“…”

“…”

“…don’t call me that.”

“Understood. Apologies.”

The driver heaved a long sigh when we settled down, before setting course to the temple. I peeked out the window and saw none were there to bid us farewell. Well, who would ever say goodbye to the wicked villainess.

I turned front and slowly shut my eyes before my eardrums blasted from a shrill scream.

“Stop the carriage!”

The carriage came to a sudden halt, almost throwing me over to the other side. Does this carriage driver even have a license to drive this ancient thing?!

The door burst open and popped in the face of my lovely exiled maid. Was she here to exact revenge on me?

“What is it?” I asked coldly, rolling my eyes at the sudden interference.

“I wish to come with my lady.” What? “I wish to go to the temple with you, my lady.”

“No, you shall not. Go find another way to get to the temple.” I grabbed hold of the door to shut it, but the persistent maid didn’t budge as she forced her way inside. “Excuse me?!”

A sword was pulled out as it rested next to the maid’s neck. “If the lady says no, then you are to abide her words.” Daveen said, pressing the blade’s side to her neck.

The maid was shivering under our cold gazes when she suddenly fell to her knees. In doing so, our legs were squished with her small body on the floor of the carriage.

Damn woman! This place is cramped enough!

“I am sorry, my lady,” she cried out, grabbing onto my foot.

“Yah! Let go—”

“I will swear to serve you and only you, my lady. My life, my heart, my soul and my next reincarnated life, everything of mine belongs to you, my lady. So let me accompany in your every step.”

Why was she so persistent in staying by my side? Oh wait, could it be…?

I looked over at Daveen who was stifling a laugh. Did this dumb thing think this was funny? He saw my glaring eyes and looked away.

I let out a sigh and yanked my foot from her grip, “Did the marquess send for you?”

“Yes.”

That was a fast confession.

“I mean…,” she caught my feet again and said, “after my lady brought out my crimes to the open, I was fired from the mansion. But the marquess called for me this morning and asked that I spy for you, to report your every move to him.”

I knew it.

The marquess was smart enough to know that an all too stubborn Rozalia, who was ready to jump to her death or end her life, would never go to the temple. This change in her behaviour raised his suspicion and hence, sent this maid to accompany me to the temple.

However, this maid here spilled everything that she was to hide.

“So, what now? Are you asking my permission to spy on me?”

“No, my lady!” she shook her head, “I wish to serve you only, my lady. When I heard you were going over to the temple, I really wished to join you, my lady. Even if the marquess hadn’t asked for me to spy on you, I still would’ve joined you, my lady.”

“Why?”

“Because my lady enraptured my heart.”

What?

I heard a snort from my left. I’ll kill him.

“My lady was the one who told the knights to spare my life and let me go to earn forgiveness from the divine being. Hence, why I now devote this life you’ve saved to my lady.”

Oh. I did that just to go with the idea of making everyone believe that I was changed and no longer wished for people to die. To think that this somehow had led this maid to follow me to the temple.

I looked over at Daveen whose face was twitching.

“Fine then,” I yanked my foot back, “Don’t touch my foot again.”

“Of course, my lady!” she bowed.

…

“Why are you still sitting on the floor?” I asked.

“Because the seats are not for the lowly maids.”

We have divine beings and temples that state everyone is equal and yet here we have a maid sitting on the floor because the seats are for the upper class.

“Just sit on the seats. No one is going to punish you for defiling the rules.”

Her eyes turned as big as saucers as she thanked and praised my greatness a million times before she sat on the seats.

“Wow! They are so soft!” she exclaimed with joy as she played with the seat cover.

I grinned at her childishness. Adorable…wait…

“How old are you?”

“I’ll be turning fourteen this coming winter.”

A child?

“Your family?”

“Hmm…they are at the orphanage. None of us have parents. I was lucky to get a job here in the mansion, but now…” she sadly smiled at her callused hands that were supposed to be holding pages of books or covered in the dirt of the lands where she would be playing children of her age. “My greed has led me to lose the only thing that my family was relying on.”

There was a solemness in the air, as we all stared out the windows.

It made sense now why she stole those jewels. The marchioness never came to the mansion and hence none really cared for her belongings. An orphanage meant a lot more children than just two or three. As for the payment she would receive from the mansion, it wasn’t enough to care for those children.

“Did the marquess offer you money to spy on me?” I broke the silence.

She looked up and then back at her hands and nodded. “Twenty gold coins for each report.”

“Are you going to tell him?”

“No, my lady!” she shook her head. “I would never betray you!”

“But I want you to tell him.”

She looked puzzled.

I could feel Daveen’s glare of absurdity aimed at my face. “If you don’t tell him anything, wouldn’t he threaten to end your family’s life?” she flinched. “So, tell him. But tell him only what I tell you.”

She nodded without questioning.

“Good girl,” I patted her head, noticing the big smile on her face. I leaned back onto the seat to close my eyes.

“You mustn’t trust her that easily,” Daveen whispered as he eyed the maid fondling the seat covers, “People are easy to betray one another in the name of greed.”

“You can rest easy,” I opened my eyes to see my beautiful knight’s face distort from doubt, “Trust me. I know what I am doing.”

I pressed a finger to the middle of his eyebrows to ease the furrow. “If you keep furrowing your eyebrows like that, none of the ladies at the temple are going to like you.”

He grabbed my finger and removed it from his face, his fingers twisting the silver ring. “I assure you, my lady. I will have more love letters than you by the end of two weeks, even if I were to act my usual self.”

I grinned. “It’s a bet then.”