Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Why Mother Was Raised in the Temple
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She had always lived a life where her efforts never bore fruit. Her background as an "orphan" and "orphanage graduate" had always held her back.
Yet with her streaming career, her hard work was finally rewarded in kind. Watching her subscriber count and ad revenue climb, she believed her real life was just about to begin.
But then a hand burst from her computer monitor and seized her, thrusting her suddenly into the role of the game's protagonist.
‘In about a year and two months, the original story will begin.’
Rachel's body trembled. Everything hinged on whether Evelyn lived or died.
No, in her case, Evelyn's death meant regression.
"This does make it seem like Rachel truly is Lady Evelyn's daughter."
Enoch said as he propped himself up. Evelyn nodded from where she lay.
"Of course. Who else's daughter would she be?"
Rachel let out a shallow sigh at Evelyn's attitude—hating it when people said their constitutions were similar, yet loving this kind of thing.
There was no way she, who wasn't even her real daughter, resembled her.
"But I've been wondering... why was a noblewoman like Mother raised in a temple?"
Most people raised in temples were orphans.
Otherwise, it was due to illness or being practically abandoned by their family.
It was such a delicate question that Rachel could only ask now, in this situation.
Evelyn, however, didn't seem to mind at all. If anything, Enoch looked uncomfortable.
"Why was I raised in a temple? It was nothing special—just because my family is a hero family."
Rachel sat up at Evelyn's answer.
"Why does that matter?"
"Rachel, you know how this country was founded, right?"
Rachel nodded.
Kudas was the nation founded by the seven heroes who slew the Demon King.
Manus, who plunged his sword into the Demon King's heart, became king, while Heros, Fidelis, Wirga, Remedie, Ice, and Nerus received marquisates as founding meritorious retainers.
"Heros the Hero was the founder of my family. To honor the heroes, their names became the family surnames."
"So what does that have to do with Mother being raised in a temple?"
"You really are impatient! Hear the whole story."
"May I tell the story of Saintess Fidelis?"
"Go ahead."
With Evelyn's permission, Enoch opened his mouth.
"Founding King Manus wished to grant the highest titles to his comrades who helped defeat the Demon King, but among them, Saintess Fidelis, priestess of Lux God, refused the title and extracted two promises from King Manus instead."
One was permission to build a temple taller than the royal palace, and the second was a vow that as long as Kudas existed, the Lux Church would never be persecuted.
Rachel tilted her head, puzzled after hearing the explanation.
"Does that promise have any binding force? It was made by the founding king, so his descendants might not honor it."
The current king of Kudas was essentially persecuting the temple already. He hadn't resorted to force yet, but if war with the Hass Kingdom broke out, it was only a matter of time.
Yet Enoch answered crisply.
"Of course it does."
This was a world where gods truly existed. Just as Lux God's blessing had protected them while slaying the Demon King, the gods' power persisted afterward.
"The gods agreed to grant the heroes' wishes."
"What were those wishes?"
"So much time has passed that not all details have been passed down."
"But we know some of the effects."
Evelyn joined their conversation.
"For one, no one in the Heros family awakens special abilities."
She shook her sword as she replied.
"The temple should have decayed over such a long time, yet it hasn't in nearly a thousand years. Probably thanks to Fidelis's wish."
"Yes. Records say the first saintess wished for Lux's name to never be forgotten on this land."
"So what exactly is the binding force?"
"According to temple records, if the royal family breaks the promise, the blessing upon them is revoked."
Rachel nodded again.
"Does losing the blessing cause problems?"
"The royal family's condition is clear: 'No one but Manus's bloodline may sit on Kudas's throne or wear the crown.'"
Manus hadn't wanted anyone outside his descendants to rule the nation he founded.
‘The hero who slew the Demon King sure is petty.’
Rachel recalled a history book she'd read before.
[The queen committed adultery, impregnating with another man's child and raising it as crown prince. The moment that crown prince donned the crown and sat on the throne as grown man, lightning struck him dead.]
There was such a record. And it supposedly happened inside the royal castle.
It was absurd, yet widely known and believed by many.
"I read something like that before. Is it true?"
Evelyn burst into laughter as Rachel explained and asked.
"That's false. The king at the time wrote it to justify his own legitimacy. Nothing that terrifying actually happened."
"Correct. Lux is compassionate and wouldn't punish humans so harshly for that."
"Then what's the real story?"
"When the palace was built, divine power was infused, creating functions that only the founding king's bloodline can activate."
"More precisely, only those blessed by the god. Without the blessing, those functions can't be triggered."
"So there is binding force."
"Yes. The palace has various functions unknown to ordinary people. One blocks access by the Demon King and black sorcerers..."
Rachel's mouth fell open at Enoch's continuing words.
The current king was suspected of colluding with a black sorcerer. It was safe to assume the blessing was long gone.
‘Even with binding force, it's obvious they'll attack the temple.’
"Rachel?"
"This king won't care about the blessing and will persecute the temple. He might even try to wipe it out entirely this time."
She had only wanted to know why Evelyn was raised in the temple, yet she'd stumbled upon another truth.
Rachel lay back down on the dry haystack.
"Looking at the current king, he does act like the thing on his shoulders is just decoration."
Evelyn said without hiding her hostility. The king who had executed her family for treason. She was seriously considering regicide deep down.
‘The king runs wild because proper succession wasn't done.’
Normally, royal education happened within the family, and if not, the pope informed them when crowning the king. But the current king never had that chance.
"Without the blessing, they probably can't even open the royal vault."
Thanks to Enoch's mutter, Rachel gained new knowledge.
"Aren't you worried, Enoch? Honestly, the temple's response seems too complacent."
Even as the king ignored the temple, the Lux Church hadn't reacted strongly.
"The church will be safe. What worries me is how many will suffer from this king's tyranny."
His worried expression was that of a true saint. As Rachel looked down at his lowered eyes, she noticed his long silver hair.
He was growing more and more like his original self.
When they first met, he had a boyish innocence, but now he was fully an adult.
She'd thought him familiar all along, yet now her heart suddenly raced.
‘Hmm, his looks seem even more radiant today.’
The haystack background behind him faded from view.
"And the temple has a duty to protect and manage the hero bloodlines so they don't die out, so no need to worry much. That's the answer to your question."
Evelyn tossed it out casually. Rachel turned her head and blinked her blue eyes.
"Mother, don't just hit me with it and run. I don't get it."
"It's not hard at all."
Some palace functions were optimized against demons and black sorcerers.
To activate them, people blessed by the god were needed—and that matched the seven heroes' descendants.
The blessing wouldn't vanish unless they committed grave sins or allied with demons of their own accord.
Thus, the Lux Church raised the youngest or bastards from those families in the temple to ensure the bloodlines endured.
"Even so, the Wirga and Ice families died out. You know about Remedie without me saying."
The Remedie family had long produced queens, maintaining their marquisate, but as the maternal family of the crown prince and second prince, they were purged when third prince Damien became king.
"And Nerus..."
"Was one of the main families in this rebellion."
This left most hero bloodlines effectively severed.
Rachel got chills. This rebellion felt contrived to eradicate the heroes' descendants.
"Are there children from the Nerus and Remedie families in the temple?"
"Yes. Bastards from branch families, though."
‘Could it be?’
Rachel wondered if the temple's active support for orphans was to quickly secure bastards from hero noble families.
"Then if the temple is attacked, it'll be a disaster."
"Yes. The temple has defenses, but they're specialized against demons. Plus, they lack knights."
The temple's holy knights were few but elite. If overwhelmed by numbers, the sprawling temple grounds would suffer heavy losses.
"But no matter how foolish the king is, he won't cut off his own flesh."
‘No, I think he would.’
"Night's late. We move in a hurry tomorrow, so let's sleep."
Evelyn cut the talk short. Rachel wasn't sleepy after sleeping all day but closed her eyes for tomorrow.
"If the master returns, she might be startled to see me, so I'll stay awake."
"Not sleepy?"
"Slept during the day."
"Chasing after me like that... it's like you knew this would happen."
Enoch made a bitter face instead of answering. Evelyn recalled her daughter's ability and fell silent.
As far as she knew, what Rachel saw were ominous futures. The fact that these two children had followed meant her own safety was at risk.
"I really acted like a wild colt with no reins."
Evelyn reflected. As the adult, she should have stayed calm, but her failure worried her daughter and Enoch.
Only now did she think of her husband and Deyner left at the mansion.
"Let's settle this quickly and go home."
"Yes. We must return safely."
Yet in the 18th round, Evelyn and Rachel hadn't returned safely to the mansion.
***
The three rode a carriage to conserve energy. It slowed them down, but it allowed Evelyn to compose her emotions.
"Aren't masters usually good at controlling their feelings?"
"This is much improved."
As Rachel voiced her doubt in the carriage, Evelyn replied defensively.
‘If this is much improved, what was she like before?’
"Lady Evelyn's exploits are famous among holy knights. The saying 'you can't cut the moon's reflection on water' led her to divert the river..."
"Enoch, I'm embarrassed, so please stop talking."
"Yes, understood."
Evelyn shut Enoch's eager mouth.
At "diverted the river," Rachel couldn't imagine how Paris Emporus and his black sorcerer gang had killed Evelyn.
But upon arriving at the capital and stopping at a restaurant, she learned the reason.