章 32: CHAPTER 31 – Vestian Holdstaffen.

"My lord, should we not await Alex Drakathor's arrival to greet you?"

A guy with cantaloupe-colored hair and tangerine eyes uttered those words with a confused look in his eyes.

He seemed to be around the age of 30 or something like that, but his facial features were still sharp and there was an air of freshness around him; it was as if the air around him was getting purified every second.

He was Thomas Edward, a cardinal of the Holy Church—a person who was just two seats below the pope. He was stationed in the main church of the Drakathor Empire, under the pope in training, or candidate pope, Vestian Holdstaffen.

He was a cardinal, a person with certain authority and power in the church. Initially, he was supposed to keep an eye on Vestian, one of the candidate popes, but just like every other cardinal, he decided to work under a candidate pope that he thought would win the pope position.

Fortunately for him, the only one he thought worthy of that position was Vestian.

"They would not be coming to meet us so soon."

Not even a second later, he received a reply from the boy walking in front of him, looking no older than 17 or 18 years old. The boy tilted his head gracefully, shaking his head with a light smile.

His emerald eyes filled with a gentle light, and his flowing golden hair just added to his charm, making him look graceful and pure at the same time. His body was thin, with a height of around 179 centimeters—which was not exactly a praiseworthy quality, but it suited well with his lithe looks.

"Huh? Why do you say so, my lord?"

Thomas, however, didn't understand why Vestian said that. Thomas was not much of a schemer-type guy. He was the type of guy who would try his best to help anyone in need. And that is precisely why he wanted to stay under Vestian command.

Vestian was just like that, after all. Vestian had never let anyone in need pass by him without helping them in the past year that Thomas had been observing him.

Vestian was so devoted to his work that he dropped out of the university, staying at the church day and night, praying to their goddess, asking for her to give him enough power to help more people.

"You know that we came here uninvited, right? Not everyone likes that..."

Vestian, on the other hand, just sighed, his smile turning sad, as he was really not happy with how people would want to ignore him when he came bearing goodwill, but it wasn't just him who felt bad about it—the was displeased more than him. But before Thomas could say something...

"... and I can understand where they come from. So, all I want to do now is meet the survivor of that tragic incident, which is in a way the fault of our negligence, and give them the best treatment I can."

Vestian added, his expression turning downcast as Thomas could already see tears forming in his eyes as his hands moved together, clenching hard.

"My lord..."

Thomas, looking at this, could only grit his teeth at how hopeless their situation was. He wished he had done a more thorough check on the high-ranked members, starting from priests, to ensure that there were no wizards or witches among them.

But it was no use thinking about it now.

He just pumped his fist, his eyes bright with determination and resolution as he exclaimed, "I-I shall do my utmost to heal the survivor, my lord!"

Vestain, listening to his words, just smiled, nodding his head in relief, "I know you will. You're the only one who will, and that's why I trust you above all others."

His words changed Thomas's mood; the guy just smiled like a child being complemented by his father, but then his face turned serious as he declared, "I will not let you down, my lord."

"Hm," listening to his words, Vestian just nodded, staring straight ahead as they neared the medical ward, the part of the mansion they were looking for.

Vestian had already talked with one of the maids passing by, who initially seemed depressed, but after talking to Vestian, was left abashed. She was the one who gave him the location of the medical ward.

[Medical Ward]

Looking at the name of the room, or more like a hall written above the room, Vestian and Thomas stepped into the room, unaware of the two pairs of eyes staring at them, observing every move made by them from the moment they stepped into the room.

It was, of course, Alex and Alenia.

"Did you meet him like I asked you to?"

Alex, standing right next to Alenia as she rested her hand on his shoulder, keeping him covered in the shadowy veil, questioned her without taking his eyes off Vestian, who looked exactly like the novel had mentioned.

"Yes, Your Highness. I ensured no other maid approached them and met with them personally, without revealing my identity."

Alenia, still as subservient as ever, replied, her eyes, just like Alex fixed on the new entrants of the room, more focused on Thomas since she knew who he was and how strong he was.

"And?"

Alex, however, turned toward Alenia as he raised his brow, wanting for her to continue her report, which she did, nodding her head.

"He did exactly what you said he would, Your Highness."

Her words were the only confirmation Alex needed to know that the plan he had made wouldn't fail, and even if it did fail, he wouldn't be the one losing in the long run.

[I told you that he wouldn't be much different from the novel...]

In Alex's head, Sophie's voice echoed, sounding a bit down as she had yet to recover from the thing that had happened this morning. And if Alex had to guess, only a good cuddle would treat her problem and make her realize what she must be doing instead of sulking like this.

'Yes, yes; I know. But it doesn't hurt to check once, does it?'

He mentally raised his hands, not wanting to argue, but he still kept his point, making Sophie, inside the system space, let out a 'hm' after a while, making Alex shake his head in defeat.

Now he was regretting the fact that he used the forceful approach to make her learn something. Maybe he should've just explained it to her.

But oh well, there was no going back now, so all he could do was not repeat the same thing again.

They were not in the old world, and Sophie had just been able to talk to him again after 16 years of staying silent. She, at least, deserved some more love than this, and he was going to give her as much as she wanted from now on, but for now, he had to deal with the problem in front of him.