I could sense a thick layer of concern and frustration in his gentle voice, which made me feel a bit strange.
Um, I better get this over with and leave.
Immediately switching up my tone as if nothing had happened, I smiled and said, "I'm glad we're all on the same page because I plan to go somewhere with Tesilid. We came to tell you that you won't be able to contact us while we're away."
"I see," Vegalius said, his lack of concern evident. "Understood."
"Then Tesilid and I shall be on our way so that you can resume your meeting."
"All right. Thank you for coming by, Your Eminence."
As we closed the door to the council room, the light bleeding into the hallway dimmed. Going back the same way we'd come, I felt a cautious gaze find the side of my face.
"Allie...."
Realizing Tesilid was still worried about my performance for the Cardinals, I decided to clarify the misunderstanding. "I was acting just now. I can't believe you fell for it too."
"Oh..."
Tesilid looked embarrassed when I giggled, so I decided to tease him a little bit more. "Nice to have the roles reversed for once."
"'Roles reversed?'"
"What you're feeling right now... That's how I feel when I look at you, so don't you forget it."
"How would you know the extent of my emotions?"
"What?"
"Never mind." Tesilid simply smiled at my question and changed the topic. "Things here are stranger than I expected. They didn't even ask where we were going."
"Oh, you're right."
"It doesn't make any sense. I swear there's something else going on."
Tesilid kept pushing the matter, and I couldn't help but brush it off.
"It's not a big deal. Don't worry about it."
He turned to look at me, eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Do you know something more, Allie?"
"Well, yes. I do," I admitted.
"Then why didn't you tell me what it was before we cameâ"
Tesilid abruptly cut himself off and froze in the middle of the hallway. His gaze had latched onto a fixed point in the distance over my shoulder. I turned my head toward whatever he was staring at with such a shocked, unguarded expression, and felt my own breath still in my lungs.
Oh, no. A sense of defeat came over me. From where we were standing in the hallway on the first floor, which had an open external wall that faced into the garden, we had the perfect view of a mysterious priestess who was being accompanied by Clovis and Rex. She looked elegant and graceful as she strolled along beside the two men, her long, glistening black hair fluttering in the wind while her uniquely green and gold eyes took in the flowers of the garden.
I'd never met her before, but I instantly knew who she was. It was Muriel Phylise, the saintess of the original story who was going to do a remarkable job of taking over my role. She had finally entered the scene.
«So it's her,» Agnes muttered. It felt like all the stories of the other saintess that I had told Agnes were summed up in those three words.
â¬The Advocate of Confidentiality watches the main lead intently.â
I was also cautious of Tesilid's reaction. In the original story, the main lead met Muriel for the first time after Loop Forty. After that, the two continued to have affection for each other before they finally ended up together in Loop Eighty-Six, but the three Loops that followed always resulted in her betrayal.
In the first instance, the main lead found out that the woman he loves faced an early death due to the curse of a demon, so he willingly sacrificed his life for hers. That is how his life ended in Loop Eighty-Six. In Loop Eighty-Seven, he was overprotective of her so that she wouldn't become cursed, which successfully stopped her from facing a premature death. Unfortunately, during that Loop, she was instead implicated as a villain as a result of a political conflict within the Vatican, which led to Tesilid once again sacrificing himself after taking the blame.
It was in his next life, Loop Eighty-Eight, that Tesilid finally found out that the saintess had been betraying him all along. Essentially, the saintess had set him up by framing him as a heretic. Right before he was burned alive, she even said, "This world needs you to die. I'm sorry, and thank you for your sacrifice, Sir Tesilid."
It was an enraging comment but also a useful one, for the main lead would've saved her many more times over had she not given him a reason to push her awayâthat is how much the main lead of Infinite Returns to Save the World loved Muriel.
But... What about the Tesilid who's with me right now? I had done my best as a transmigrator to destroy the original story, yet was Tesilid still bound to fall in love with Muriel?
Is their bond that strong? Is it fate...? Various questions ran through my mind as I watched Tesilid Argente. It was as if time had stoppedâhis eyes fixed on Muriel and hadn't moved since he spotted her. His eyes, larger than usual, had forgotten how to blink, and the way his attention was entirely stolen by Muriel seemed to answer any questions I had about his feelings. A bit disappointed, all I could do was grumble.
You must be happy, Lord Confidentiality. The original story doesn't seem to beâ
"Why... Did she..."
"What?"
Tesilid's voice was shaking to the point that I couldn't clearly make out what he was saying, but my question seemed to have snapped him out of his trance. He looked back at me, his eyes full of some unknown turmoil, but I didn't have time to ask him what was wrong.
"Your Eminence?"
Muriel had discovered us and was making her way over, although Clovis and Rex standing behind her looked distraught by the turn of events. It seemed that the two of us being acquainted wasn't entirely comfortable for them.
Soon, Muriel was standing in front of Tesilid and me as she greeted, "Nice to meet you, Your Eminence. My name is Muriel Phylise."
"I see. Nice to meet you, Your Eminence," I greeted her back, demonstrating my recognition that she was a saintess as well, to which Muriel's turned her eyes into happy crescents.
"I knew you'd recognize me right away."
"Of course, just as you have recognized me," I replied as my eyes scanned her. I took in her elegant stance, which gave her an air of grace that paired well with her beautiful features. Her green and gold eyes were particularly marvelous. It felt as if I was watching Divine Advent being performed from within them.
"That makes it sound like we're sisters."
Even her chuckle was pure and cleanâshe was the textbook definition of the perfect saintess.
She better be perfect. The truth was that the person standing before us was actually a clever fabrication. Muriel was the alter ego of a very important person who was currently hidden away in a holy place, trapped in a deep slumber. Naturally, the person who created this replica would make their creation as perfect as humanly possible. That was probably why she was so stunning. Like... Seriously, drop-dead gorgeous.
â¬The Voice that Shapes the World notes that she has been made more beautiful than she was in the original story.â
I was disappointed to hear that. Why would they enhance the looks of a villainess who was pretending to be a heroine? Wasn't that a bit unfair? I felt a little nervous as I glanced at Tesilid and noticed how utterly stiff he was, now that he'd seen her up close. Really, it wasn't like him at all. Taking in his stiff shoulders and closed-off expression, I wanted to ask him what he was thinking.
Is he mesmerized already? Is that what it is?
â¬The Scale that Judges Souls throws away all of his work with a sigh of deep bitterness.â
That was when Muriel moved her gaze over to Tesilid, as if totally unaware of his odd demeanor.
"You're the master of the holy sword, aren't you? Sir... Tesilid Argente, was it?"
"That's correct, Your Eminence."
"This may sound like a strange question, but is this the first time we're meeting?"
"What do you mean?" Tesilid asked, his voice tight with discomfort.
"For some reason, I feel a sense of longing when I look at you. Would it be all right if I call you Tesilid from now on?" Muriel didn't hold back as she began flirting with him right away.
«Wow.»
Agnes' short statement summarized the absurdity of the situation nicely. However, I wasn't startled by how things were unfolding because this was exactly how she had acted when they had first met in Loop Forty of the original story.
â¬The Advocate of Confidentiality is touched that they're finally seeing a piece of the original story.â
According to the original plot, Tesilid was now meant to politely approve her request to call him by his first name. I was waiting for the scene to proceed as I remembered when Tesilid suddenly went off script.
"A sense of longing..." he said, slowly sounding out the words. "I must say, I feel the same way."
It took all my self-control not to audibly gasp.
What? You're going to flirt with her too? My mind was screaming at the man beside me internally as I worked to temper the expression on my face. Hey, Tesilid! Is this the kind of guy you are?!
â¬The Scale that Judges Souls can't hide their disappointment in the main lead.â
â¬The Eye Overseeing All Chaos grins and remarks that they knew this would happen.â
Even more shocking was when I turned to face Tesilid and found that he was giving Muriel a serene smile. I was practically choking on the sense of betrayal when he spoke again, interrupting my uncharitable thoughts.
"Saintess."
"Yes, Tesilid."
"It's 'Sir Tesilid.'"
"Pardon?"
"I hope you dig deep and discover why you feel that sense of longing. I will only allow you to call me by my name once you do so."
For some reason, Tesilid's tone had suddenly become short and cold, and he turned her down without any room for compromise.
â¬The Scale that Judges Souls changes their attitude completely and comments that they always had faith in him.â
"Oh, all right..." Seemingly shocked by the rejection, Muriel awkwardly nodded as Tesilid turned away from her to look at me.
"Allie, let's go."
"Okay."
I almost felt possessed by the gentle smile on his handsome face as I reached into my inventory.
"Ahem. Please excuse us as we have somewhere to be."
We had completed everything we needed to do at the Vatican, for the new saintess's appearance most likely answered all of Tesilid's questions. It was finally time to leave for Wevrille Island. I broke the teleportation stone, and we were whisked away.