I Became the Only Savior of the Obsessive Maniacs

One of the big issues was finally resolved, but Cassius was still in a bad mood.

'It's annoying.'

Not only the priests, who were planning  to blame everything on Sonia, but also the Grand Duke of Lundmere, were dissatisfied.

'I just wanted him out of the castle as soon as possible and never to return.'

Cassius opened his mouth.

"I'm going to see the Grand Duke myself. I will have a brief meeting with him."

He sprang up since he was an intermediate priest who welcomed the grand duke with Sonia.

"His Holiness is under no obligation to do so. Through the mediation of Priest Sonia, the Archduke also surrendered the sword."

The person was taken aback and asked in disbelief about Sonia's talents as a novice priest.

"Is that correct?"

"Yes, he relinquished his firearm at will."

"Last time, he didn't return his weapon until the end, which ended up causing a commotion. It's really hard to believe!" exclaimed the intermediate priest proudly, as if it were his own feat.

"In addition, Priest Sonia possesses healing power! With her divine healing abilities, she entirely healed Duke Lundmere's wounds," he continued.

His story made quite a stir in the conference room. Healing was a power that had not been witnessed during the reigns of numerous monarchs.

The intermediate priest then added.

"The Grand Duke, who had been taken in by Priest Sonia's story, even grinned. It will undoubtedly make him happy at the end of the meeting."

"So don't be concerned about the Archduke and please proceed with the meeting."

This is obvious, yet Cassius ignored the words of the intermediary priest.

No, on the contrary, it concerned me so much that I was nearing the end of my patience.

With a grin, he clenched his hands and said.

"Summon the Paladins immediately." He is a man who will go to any extent to tarnish the kingdom. Coming on the day of the meeting is clearly hostile."

The Great Conference was suspended for the first time since the country's founding.

***

Instead, the temple's flower garden was full of white flowers in full bloom, and the fragrance was rich, so it was clear that the smell of pheromones emanating from me would also stop.

'I like it.'

It was nice enough to stand for a long and observe the scenery if the person who came with you wasn't terrified.

There was a pavilion with a table where you could drink.

Schwarz was seated in a large chair, half-lying down, and I served the tea and baked goods that the priests had prepared.

"I've prepared lavender tea."

The teacup was filled with tea. The bitter aroma of tea leaves was strong, as was the perfume of lavender.

I requested fragrant lavender tea from the priests who prepared the meal.

This should have been sufficient to mask Omega's pheromones.

The Grand Duke's hand, which was holding the teacup, came to a halt in the air.

'Do you need sugar or something?'

“Is there anything else you need?”

“Drink.”

All of a sudden?

Drinking the guest's tea is against aristocratic manners. She stood there cautiously, clutching the teacup he had suddenly received.

"You said you'd protect me. 

"That's correct."

"Shouldn't you check to see if there's poison in it or not?" 

“I didn't put anything poisonous in it.”

"How am I supposed to believe that?"

I was taken aback. I knew he was suspicious, but not to this level.

I met eyes with Schwarz. He was staring at me with his long black hair elegantly spread out, sitting crookedly.

A golden aura, like that of a beast, flared.

He would be cruel to me again if I did not do what he ordered. I didn't enjoy the feeling of being scared.

I took a sip of the tea while tightly closing my eyes.

'I'm really not a fan of lavender tea.'

The sour taste that followed the powerful lavender aroma made me wrinkle my nose. I gulped down the tea in my mouth, my throat moving.

"Look, I'm perfectly fine, aren't I?"

"Take another sip."

My lips trembled with irritation as I felt upset. 'Ugh, I should have refused from the start.'

What could a powerless priest possibly do? The Count's young woman was little more than a piece of tissue paper in front of the Duke.

My lips pressed against the teacup. His gaze seemed especially persistent.

The intense stare made me nervous, causing my movements to slow down.  I removed my lips from the cup and waited for the tea to cool before taking another sip.

Schwarz's stare shifted from my lips to the back of my neck.

'Why is he gazing at me like that?'

The persistent gaze fixed on my neck was unsettling. He might still be considering breaking my neck.

After I gulped down the tea, he opened his mouth.

“If you're done drinking, sit down.”

There was only one long chair in the pavilion of the garden.

It was a suggestion to sit next to each other, rather than to sit on the edge of the table.

“How can I sit next to the Duke? Please rest comfortably, I'm fine.”

“Sit. I need to make sure the poison isn't spreading.”

Schwarz's voice sank a bit.

I sat a little further away from Schwarz since I didn't want to complicate things.

He moved his body and grabbed some snacks.

‘He said he didn't want to drink the tea because he thought it might be poisoned. What about the snacks, okay?’

I thought, but he took the teacup from my grasp and replaced it with a biscuit studded with nuts.

“We need to check the snacks too.”

I was baffled for a minute by his attitude, but I was hungry after using my divine power.

I took a bite, drawn in by the enticing and delicious aroma of the cookie. My eyes grew big because it was so tasty.

I neatly finished the cookie Schwarz gave me.

“You eat well. How is it?”

Due to the consumed divine power, I was still hungry. One cookie was far from enough.

I glanced at the basket full of cookies.

"... I'm not sure if only one was poisoned. I believe I'll have to have a few to be sure."

“Eat them.”

I got permission from Schwartz and nibbled into a cookie.

The luxurious aroma of butter spreads abundantly as soon as I put it in my mouth.

I decided to gorge myself on the fancy cookie that I couldn't have on regular days.

I hadn't eaten a proper snack in a long time.

Because sugar and chocolate are considered luxury goods, priests do not include them in their snacks. Baked foods created from grains are healthy for the body, but they are rough and bland.

'The best cookies for visitors!'

The nutty flavor of toasted walnuts or almonds that occasionally came through was also terrific.

I was so focused on my food that I forgot I was sitting next to Schwartz.

"You have small lips. It's cute how they wiggle when you eat."

“... Yes?”

He was standing right behind me before I realized it, and I was so shocked that I dropped the cookie. He picked up the cookie that had fallen into the dish and returned it back in my hand. I stiffened up. 

With a lazy expression on his face, he lifted his hand and slowly caressed my cheek. A tiny piece of cookie was stuck to his fingertip, which he licked with his mouth.

“Is starving the priests part of the temple's doctrine?”

Only then did I realize I was craving the cookie, and feeling embarrassed, I meekly piaced it down.

My ears got red.

“Um... no.”

He smirked at me and took my teacup to his mouth. He drank from the area where my lips had touched.

He took a sip of the lavender tea and stared at the teacup puzzledly.

"It's sweet."

With that, Schwartz drained the cold tea without leaving any behind.

He rose up and put on his coat after finishing his tea.

"I should get going now."

"Are you already on your way out? Didn't you come to the temple to deal with something?"

"The Emperor asked me too come once. There's nothing particular I need to do."

The imperial court did not want the relationship with the temple to deteriorate further, so they dispatched Schwarz to repair it following his prior incident. However, it appears that the opposite result was achieved.

"Besides, the Emperor would be enraged if I fought with the holy knights."

He mumbled as he looked towards the temple's main hall.

"The next time I visit, I'll bring you a lot of cookies."

‘He's coming again?’

To be honest, I wished he wouldn't come.

It's true that I devoured the cookies in front of him, so I couldn't refute him.

“I'll come again.”

With those words, Schwarz disappeared towards the main hall of the temple.

I felt a wave of relief wash over me as I confirmed that he was gone.

‘I... I survived.’

I had evaded being taken to Schwarz's assassination group's headquarters, like Lancelot,

Although the thought of his coming was unsettling, it appeared that I had moved on for the time being.

Just as I let out a sigh, there was a bustle from the arena's direction, and the Holy Knights rushed in.

'This is not the time to slack off!'

I instantly rose from my seat. What could have caused such a large influx of Holy Knights?

Upon closer inspection, I saw that the person leading them was Cassius.

I instantly bent my waist as he came with a smooth stride.

"I meet His Highness Cassius, the Holy Kingdom's king." I greeted. 

As he approached, he talked in a concerned tone.

“Are you alright? Have you been injured anywhere?”

Although it was only a story from a book, I had met a man who had tried to kill me.

His ferocious intensity frightened me.

My heart was hammering from surprise, but unlike Cassius' concern, there was nothing out of the ordinary, therefore it was okay.

“I'm okay. Nothing happened.”

“Did Duke Lundmire do anything rude?”

“No, he just had a drink and left.”

 “He was with you just a moment ago.”

For a brief time, my skin tingled, and I detected a familiar odor among the overwhelming perfume of flowers.

When I first came across Cassius, I noticed the wonderful scent of water.

Is he using divine power?

My breathing became a bit harder under the strain of Cassius' power.