What else should I talk about today, Lucy?

  How about the time that the Council of Cardinals decided on the saintess’ pilgrimage? Or should I talk about the time when Aria requested the trial pilgrimage for other saintess candidates?

  Hmmm, I thought you already knew about them, since you were there at those times.

  How about the time your brother accompanied me during the coming-of-age ceremony of the daughter of Duke Larose last year? Hmm, about this time, your teacher specifically requested Aria to supervise it. Yet, your mother refused to do it. So, I had to do it instead. Well, Paul told me that Aria has been refusing to meet her for ages. It really puzzled us all this time.

  Eh, no, no, I should not talk about it. After all, you requested me to talk about Aria only. So, that event was far from the topic, right?

  Well, I had to point out something. You should have followed me at that time so that you could have seen your brother’s troubled face. That girl was really aggressive. She was much more aggressive than the first princess. Even your teacher was troubled by her conduct. Yet, he did not say anything. It was Mr. Roy who came to his rescue. Do tell me if you want to know about it, Lucy.

  So, what should I cover? How about the time Aria formed that knight order? Ah, no, you were also there. Moreover, you are currently their leader, too. So, you should have known better than me. Those fools, ah, I mean your subordinates, I knew they wanted to flatter Aria when she asked them, “What is the price for your service?”; however, they should not have said it like that. I really wanted to question them about what was on their mind when they said, “What we want is the honor of serving the next saintess.” Their words really pushed Aria. She felt down for several days after that. After all, Aria really has low self-esteem. Ah, you know, Lucy. The moment Aria closed her heart, she would not open it again.

  I think I should talk about the time your teacher went berserk when Aria expressed her wish to appoint Lily as the next saintess. How about it? Ah, well, I think Andres already told you. Because of his strong opposition, Aria had to go to meet him directly. Well, because of that, he and Paul had to engage in a brawl at some point. After all, Paul always followed Aria’s order, and your teacher thought that Paul had ‘betrayed their oath.’

  I really wonder what ‘their oath’ was. I hoped it was not their ‘love’ oath. Fufufu, I don’t think Paul swings that way, and your teacher was a married man. I really wanted to know about their oath. I did ask Paul. Yet, he did not tell me. and I do not have the courage to ask your teacher. So, Lucy, could you ask your teacher for me? I really wanted to know what kind of oath your grandpa made with Duke Larose.

  What about the time that Aria and your grandpa went to subjugate the forbidden zones in the Central region? What do you think, Lucy? Ah, no, I was not there with them. So, I may not be able to give a detailed account of that event.

  Well, if something else, you should be the one who tells me about that part. After all, you were the one who accompanied them. So, please tell your grandma about Aria’s activities during that time so that I can prepare myself for what is to come. ‘Our’ pilgrimage will begin soon. I don’t want to embarrass myself in front of my daughter.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  So, what should we talk about this time? Until that point, you were already aware of the world. So you might be able to catch up with most of the things already. So, I really do not know which event you missed, Lucy.

  Hmmmmm, do you know Lucy? Your brother silently protested it for a whole year, when Aria decided to go on ‘her little pilgrimage’ without him.

  Every day, whenever I stayed in my study room or my chamber, he would stand outside the door guarding me as if he were a statue. I have to say it again. He acted as if he were a statue. He did not move from his pose. He did not talk to anyone. Well, he only replied in short when necessary.

  That was not enough. Whenever I went out, he walked behind me. Everyone began to say that he has become my shadow. It was to the point that I was reluctant to venture out. I would only go out if it was absolutely necessary.

  And the most important of all was that he failed to secure my favorite cake. Paul told me that he had already taught him about it. Yet, he still could not do it. Sometimes, he would forget to prepare it for me. Sometimes, although he could get it for me, the taste was not the same. It was not like the cake Paul prepared for me. I was in agony for a whole year because of him.

  Do you know, Lucy? Not only those in the main church, but also the whole of the capital began to notice. That was where people in the capital began to call him ‘the saint's guard.’ It did not come from their awe or reverence. It was a form of mockery or sarcasm.

  It was around that time that some fools began to have some ‘thoughts.’ I did not know who started it, but some began to whisper that he and Aria had a fallout. And their evidence was that Aria chose to go on ‘her pilgrimage’ without him. It was something that I could not easily refuse.

  Ah, you know, Lucy? Some even said that the reason Aria went on ‘her pilgrimage’ was because she did not want to see him. I really, really want to say that was not the truth. Yet, I could not tell them the truth. After all, it was for our preparation for the advance of the calamity. We could not tell them, right?

  Yet, your brother just silently took it. He did not refuse them. He did not correct them. He just stood there and accepted it in silence. That was why I said he was a statue. He acted as if he no longer had emotion. It was to the point that it scared me. His silence really put me on edge. I could not sleep well during that time. I was afraid that he would snap at some point. So, I had to constantly check on him.

  I think you already know about it, Lucy. If during Aria's time, the volunteer activities were full of ‘manpower.’ Yet, during my time, we never ran out of ‘womenpower.’ Even an eight-year-old kid came.

  More than them coming to help us, they came just to hinder us. I had to split my attention to help your brother. They were aggressive with him. A ‘war’ almost broke out around him. Yet, he just stood still and silently received it. He acted as if it were not his problem. That brother of yours.

  At some point, I almost banned him from following me. However, I remembered Aria’s instruction from that time. We have to keep him close to me at all times. That was why I had to endure those hellish days.

  Well, he also fulfilled his duty as my knight at critical times. He prevented the Holy Knight from meeting me several times. Your brother also kept me safe from his harassment. That was why I could forgive his conduct to some degree.

  However, I was really puzzled too. What made Aria make that decision? Why did Aria choose to go on her pilgrimage without him? When she announced it for the first time, I tried to ask her about it. Yet, Aria refused to tell me. Why did Aria not choose him instead of Paul to follow her?

  So, Lucy, if you happen to know about it, please tell your grandma, too. I really want to know about it.