Time Healer Ceres

The possibility sent a chill down his entire body. After all, wasn’t Veilks the one who had ordered him to praise the Saintess at the Imperial Council without even giving a reason?

The fake Saintess, Heyna, had changed her appearance after escaping from prison. She also possessed that bizarre power to heal and kill.

Now that he thought about it, everything made sense if Veilks was behind this. Veilks always showed him those strange abilities, after all.

If that punk really is behind all this...!

He finally understood why Ceres had brought this up now and dragged him into it.

Because Veilks is my grandson.

Heyna was connected to Veilks. Wasn’t it possible she also mentioned Marquis Merial because of that? Cold sweat trickled down his face. He wanted nothing more than to find Veilks and demand answers.

“......”

Gulp.

Ceres’s gaze felt heavier than ever. Just how much did she know? What did Heyna tell her before she died?

“Ceres.”

A gentle voice called her name. Ceres turned her head, only to pause when she met the eyes of Crown Prince Aseraian, who was smiling at her.

...What’s with him? Since when were we close?

Ceres gave him a bewildered look. They weren’t close enough for him to call her so familiarly by her first name. They hardly knew each other.

“No matter what anyone says, you deserve the most credit for this. If there’s anything you want, just name it. My father has already given his approval.”

Emperor Devrica, who had been listening beside him, nodded repeatedly. His gaze toward Ceres was even warmer than before, almost like he couldn’t be more pleased with her.

“Nothing.”

Ceres looked between the two of them before shaking her head. She only got involved with the fake Saintess because the matter concerned her directly.

Heyna had taken on Grace’s appearance, and she had approached Kainel to find out about the black egg. Ceres acted because she had to, not to help anyone or earn a reward.

I’ve already repaid my debt.

If she still owed a considerable debt, she might have asked for a hefty sum, but there was no reason to now.

There’s nothing to be gained from taking too much from the Imperial family.

In her experience, accepting anything from the Imperial family never ended well. Even when it was offered as a reward, there was always something to be wary of.

Ceres clicked her tongue inwardly. She knew better than to let her guard down.

“I only did what I had to. You don’t need to worry about it.”

The Crown Prince’s eyes widened briefly at Ceres’s firm refusal, but a faint smile soon returned to his lips.

“That’s a shame. I really wanted to do something for you.”

“.......”

Seriously, what’s with him?

Ceres was growing increasingly uncomfortable with how familiarly he kept speaking to her. Something about him had already struck her as strange. Ever since the meeting began, whenever she turned around after feeling someone’s gaze on her, she found him watching her.

What is he up to?

It was as if warning bells were going off in her head. She had never gotten along particularly well with people of the Imperial bloodline. Something about them had just never sat right with her.

Remembering that, Ceres shook her head.

No, wait. There’s one.

There was one Imperial she actually got along with pretty well.

Maybe Cheion’s just an oddball.

Ah, she would much rather see her sweet, gentle Cheion. Maybe she should stop by the Magic Tower after the meeting. It had been a while.

For now, Ceres simply ignored the gaze she could still feel from across the room.

***

“So, she’s dead?”

“Yes. She was executed. Lord Veilks didn’t even try to save her. It seems he had no attachment to her anymore.”

Prince Alex listened as Jutel filled him in on the recent events.

He already knew that Yuness, the fake Saintess who had caused a stir, was someone Veilks had created and controlled from the beginning. Thanks to her, they were able to ease up on their efforts to create the Black Forest.

She had been draining people’s life force in Alex’s place and passing it on to Veilks. Apparently, even the life force obtained through that bracelet was enough to help the flower bloom.

But now, the bracelet was gone because of this incident. Veilks must have been furious.

“It was you, wasn’t it?”

“Me?”

Prince Alex clicked his tongue as he watched Jutel tilt his head innocently, pretending not to understand what he meant.

“I saw that book too.”

“...The book?”

“In the faculty office.”

“Ah...”

“I wondered why you had made something like that.”

Alex sighed.

“So it was meant for Ceres.”

“......”

Jutel gave him no answer, neither confirming nor denying it. Alex couldn’t hide his confusion.

“Why did you do it?”

Veilks had put a great deal of effort into this plan. He had intended to use the Saintess to gain control of the temple while gathering the life force he needed. Apparently, he even planned to use her to manipulate Grand Duke Persia.

Yet, the entire plan fell apart because of Ceres. More precisely, because of a single book she had seen.

“You made that book.”

The bracelet Heyna had used was something no one in the world knew about. There was no way information about an item like that could be found in some old book.

However, Jutel went out of his way to make the book and pass that information on to Ceres. That was why the plan crashed.

“What are you going to do if Veilks finds out?”

Alex couldn’t understand why Jutel, who always followed Veilks’s orders, would do something like this.

Wasn’t Jutel afraid of Veilks? The only reason he had been following Alex around all this time was because Veilks had ordered him to. He was supposed to be watching Alex.

But he went against Veilks’s orders?

Jutel was silent for a moment before a faint smile spread across his face. His answer only left Prince Alex even more baffled.

“I was bored.”

“...What?”

Alex stared at him in disbelief. Jutel’s smile deepened, clearly amused with his reaction.

“You seem to be feeling better now.”

“...I started getting my medicine again.”

Is he changing the subject? Alex watched Jutel sidestep the question with a mildly irritated look before sighing.

After the S-Class Black Forest came to nothing, Veilks stopped sending Alex his medicine as punishment. Recently, though, he had started supplying it again. The tea and medicine Ceres had given him were helping quite a bit, too.

“That’s good.”

Seeing how much more at ease Prince Alex looked, Jutel smiled briefly before his expression returned to normal.

“Then I’ll be off to work.”

He bowed politely. When he raised his head again, he looked completely different.

“See you at the Academy, Mr. Alex.”

Even his manner of speaking had changed. With a wave, he walked away, no longer as Jutel but as Teacher Daniel.

***

“It’s a gift.”

“......”

In all her life, Ceres never once took a step back from anyone, not even when faced with countless enemies. Yet today, she found herself doing exactly that.

What’s wrong with this guy?

Crown Prince Aseraian stood before her with a faint smile, holding a bouquet of red roses that seemed to contain at least a hundred flowers. Without even realizing it, Ceres took another step backward.

“I had them prepared because I thought they’d suit you.”

“...I don’t like roses.”

One of those flowers alone would cover an ordinary family’s living expenses for a week. What am I even supposed to do with all of these?

“Oh, that’s a shame. Then what do you like? Next time, I’ll bring you something you do like.”

...Next time? He’s coming back?

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