Chapter 133
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 133
I had been smiling constantly to make a good impression ever since arriving at Duke Hosaquin’s estate, so her surprise felt a little late.
Sensing Canna had calmed down, I gently eased her away from my chest. I pulled out a handkerchief and wiped away her tears. But how on earth did she end up here with Gabriel? He had hidden the fact that she was coming and hadn't mentioned it at all, so it was unlikely he had invited her first.
“Canna, how did you get here? What about Hena?”
“Hena is still at the mansion. I just missed you so much, Lady Evangeline! I asked Lord Pudding to bring me, but he said a stranger couldn’t just suddenly appear at a duke’s estate and that there needed to be an official record of my entry. So, I asked Sir Gabriel to bring me along, and we came together!”
In other words, she had stubbornly forced her way here simply because she missed me. But since I missed Canna too, I didn’t scold her. Still, if she just wanted to see my face, did she really need to make such a grand entrance? Couldn’t she have just used teleportation to drop by briefly in the middle of the night?
“I bet I missed you way more than Sir Gabriel did, Lady Evangeline.”
Well, as long as Canna was happy, that was all that mattered. Seeing Gabriel after so long and basking in Canna's affection warmed my heart. A smile naturally played on my lips.
* * *
Raphaella cast a cold, sidelong glance at Canna, who was clinging to her master and acting cute.
“Did you hide the fact that Miss Canna was coming because you didn’t want to witness this sight?” he asked.
“…”
“Actually, it’s quite dramatic. If you planned this as a surprise gift, you did an excellent job.”
At Raphaella’s sarcasm, Gabriel let out a sigh. “I simply didn’t have the chance to mention it.”
“Yes, yes. Of course.”
Gabriel furrowed his brow, displeased at being painted as some schemer plotting to monopolize Evangeline’s affection.
“Raphaella.”
“Ah, I’m joking, of course.”
Raphaella had only teased Gabriel to get a rise out of him, and Gabriel knew well enough that his vice-commander harbored no personal ill will.
It had only been a month since Evangeline and Canna last saw each other, yet they were having a dramatic reunion, as if they were long-lost family members meeting again after half a century. Of course, it was mostly Canna showering her with affection, but the significant part was that Evangeline was actually accepting it.
Canna had ambushed the Order of Pararos Knights along their route just to see Lady Rohanson, blocking their path and begging to accompany them on their visit. Her overwhelming emotion now was understandable.
But Raphaella hadn’t expected Evangeline to welcome her maid so genuinely. The expression on Evangeline’s face was not her usual smile—the one crafted so flawlessly that it felt eerily perfect to onlookers.
It wasn't a wide, noticeable laugh, but merely a slight upward curve of her lips. Yet, Gabriel couldn’t take his eyes off her.
Evangeline’s smile possessed immense power. Even Raphaella had been momentarily shaken. The sunlight, unable to settle directly on her, seemed to shatter into brilliant fragments, illuminating her surroundings like a spotlight.
As her red eyes curved gently into crescents, even the ominous aura that usually clung to her vanished for a moment. Though no breeze could possibly blow inside the glass greenhouse, it felt as if a warm wind had just swept through.
For once, Evangeline Rohanson looked like a living, breathing human being.
Even Duke Hosaquin’s butler, who must have received the strictest etiquette training, muttered aloud, “The young lady is smiling.” Meanwhile, the clueless Uriel simply admired the scene, marveling, “The bond between master and servant is truly deep.”
And Michel was genuinely jealous of Canna.
“…I’m jealous.”
Raphaella glared at Michel, doubting his own ears. That idiot was taking it a step further, his lingering attachment practically dripping from him. Watching Michel stare at Canna with eyes burning green with envy gave Raphaella a headache. He sighed, wondering if they were a holy order of the Temple or Evangeline Rohanson’s private mercenary band. There was a reason the Pararos Knights were treated like turncoats.
Wait, did the Commander actually get jealous too? Just to monopolize Lady Rohanson's attention, even for a moment…?
Raphaella eyed Gabriel suspiciously. Through his highly biased lens, the way Gabriel looked at Evangeline unfortunately didn't seem all that different from how Michel was looking at her.
How did the Commander end up like this…
The paladin who lived by rules and principles would act completely out of character whenever Evangeline Rohanson was involved, behaving in ways no one could have predicted. Raphaella should have realized it from the moment Gabriel, a man who had always obeyed the Temple without question, chose to cover up matters regarding Evangeline instead of reporting them to his superiors.
Originally, Gabriel had not trusted Evangeline. The master of the summoning circle, the one whom demons followed, a being who looked down on humans—Evangeline was a heretic declared by the Temple, a demon. He had certainly watched Lady Rohanson with deep wariness at first, keeping her in his sight only to monitor her, fearing this demon in human skin might commit some unimaginable atrocity.
But at some point, Gabriel had gradually warmed to her. Even Raphaella could sense his attitude softening ever since Evangeline saved the orphans. Still, he had never expected Gabriel to suddenly step forward as her partner for the debutante ball under the pretext of protecting her and securing her aid.
Then, starting from the day the order was issued to capture Princess Tenebrae—the depraved traitor who had assassinated the Crown Prince—Gabriel had completely surrendered his heart to Evangeline.
Having set out to search for the Princess with great reluctance, Gabriel had returned looking incredibly relieved. When Raphaella first heard that his commander had presented the Princess's corpse to the Emperor, he had momentarily thought Gabriel had lost his mind—a thought bordering on insubordination.
Gabriel was not a man to treat death lightly. No matter how wicked the person, he was not someone who would rejoice over a princess's demise.
Only after being briefed on what had transpired that night did Raphaella begin to understand Gabriel's feelings, if only slightly. Evangeline had saved the Princess at Gabriel's request. Gabriel acted as though he himself, rather than the Princess, had been the one who was saved.
Raphaella found it astonishing that Gabriel, who clearly bore the traces of having wept, looked so unburdened. Evangeline had so easily mended the trauma that even Raphaella, despite their long years together, had never dared to pry into.
Since then, Gabriel’s reckless opposition to Bishop Marik was undoubtedly his way of repaying his debt to Evangeline. He was, after all, a man who never shied away from dirty work if it meant repaying a favor, just as he had done for Bishop Zabaniya.
The only difference—if it could even be called small—was that while his loyalty to Bishop Zabaniya was merely formal, his attitude toward Evangeline was utterly blind. It was no wonder rumors were spreading that Gabriel had been bewitched by the witch. Because of this, more than five knights had already transferred their affiliation from the Order of Pararos.
Of course, Raphaella knew Gabriel wasn't helping Lady Rohanson solely out of personal feelings. Evangeline was the best card they had to stop Bishop Marik. To stop someone who committed crimes and carried out massacres under the guise of faith, they needed to pit him against an entity of the exact opposite nature. That was Lady Rohanson, the very sacrifice meant to play the role of arch-nemesis in Bishop Marik's scenario.
It was truly ironic. Bishop Marik, the so-called darling of the Sun Goddess, was massacring heretics under the pretext of restoring the Temple's prestige, while Evangeline Rohanson, the supposed heretic, stood at the opposite end, seeking to stop the slaughter.
A slightly terrifying entity for whom his commander harbored a one-sided love was far better than a zealot who slaughtered innocent people. Of course, this was a judgment Raphaella could only make because, despite being part of the Temple, he didn't hold the Sun Goddess in particularly high regard.
Raphaella watched the maid, who was chattering away endlessly as if she had a mountain of things to say, and spoke quietly.
“Miss Canna really adores Lady Rohanson.”
He had asked this to imply, Are you jealous?
“Yes. At the very least, she will never betray Lady Evangeline.”
Gabriel's response was completely off-topic. Raphaella muttered to himself, I'll let it slide just this once. Then, with a straight face, he acted as if he had intended to talk about the traitor planted in the Rohanson mansion all along. Adapting to a superior's topic of conversation was, after all, one of the essential survival skills of a vice-commander.
There was an unidentified traitor inside the Rohanson mansion. Someone close enough to Evangeline to steal her handwriting and daring enough to evade the gaze of the demons she commanded.
But at least it wasn't Canna. Having briefly experienced the world only she could see, Gabriel understood better than anyone just how deeply and fiercely Canna adored Evangeline.
“So that's why you brought her along without any suspicion.”
Gabriel nodded.
At his commander’s certainty, Raphaella thought of the other two maids. If they could be sure it wasn't Canna, did that mean the other two were potential suspects? That was something they would have to investigate further. For now, since Evangeline was not at the Rohanson mansion, they could put their minds at ease.
Raphaella called out to Gabriel, who still couldn't take his eyes off Evangeline.
“Commander, we must be going.”
“…Right. We cannot stay long.”
With Bishop Marik’s spies planted everywhere, they had to be careful. There was no need to linger and give them any reason to suspect that something unusual was happening at Duke Hosaquin’s estate. As Gabriel prepared to leave, Evangeline approached.
“Are you returning to the Temple?”
“Yes. That is our plan.”
Gabriel confirmed, then furrowed his brow and bowed his head.
“I am truly sorry that I could not be of more help to you, Lady Evangeline.”