Rou carefully grasped Brukisel’s shoulders. Once he held onto his shoulders, it became much easier to stand still on the water. Using Brukisel half like an anchor, Rou examined him.
“Brukisel. Are you okay?”
As those deep honey-colored eyes approached right up close, Brukisel seemed to finally come to his senses and sharply shoved Rou away. If it had been anywhere else, he would have crashed into something and been seriously hurt, but Rou, who was floating on the water, merely drifted away bobbing and bobbing like someone enjoying backstroke on a lake.
Brukisel couldn’t believe he had allowed that lowly creature to touch his body twice. It felt as if he’d been possessed by something. Thinking that Rou must have pulled some kind of trick, he glared intensely.
Rou didn’t even notice Brukisel glaring at him coldly, as he was busy earnestly cutting through the water, coming from far away.
“The High Priest of this declining religion. Your fate is truly pitiful.”
“Are you worried about me right now?”
Brukisel sarcastically sneered at Rou, who was earnestly approaching him, out of habit, then frowned when he realized once again that sarcasm didn’t work on this person.
“…Take care of this temple sincerely. This temple at the northern edge that no one will visit.”
“Ah! I will.”
Rou answered obediently with an innocent face that he would do so. Brukisel hoped that the doors of this temple would remain firmly shut, that no one would visit, and that it would fade forever from memory.
The two stared at each other for a long while. Brukisel with a fierce gaze that could make a child cry, and Rou with a soft, sweet smile as if comforting a crying child. Unlike Brukisel’s complicated feelings, Rou was simply happy to be able to look at him for so long.
His jet-black hair, darker than usual because it was wet, and his red eyes that sparkled—whether from the light reflecting off the water’s surface—formed a splendid contrast with each other. Though the Goddess might dislike this, Rou thought he was incredibly beautiful.
Even Rou’s golden eyes, far from losing their light, still sparkled brightly despite the irritated gaze. Brukisel became deflated on his own. He walked out of the Goddess’s temple without looking back.
Thinking he would never willingly return to this place again, for all eternity.
Rou waved his hand at Brukisel, but he never looked back to the very end. Feeling a little disappointed, Rou quietly watched the direction where Brukisel had disappeared. He knew that he denied the Goddess, but he had thought he would react differently when shown such clear evidence.
He had actually hoped that, if not being moved to admiration with newfound faith welling up, Brukisel might at least regret having doubted the Goddess.
‘Still, he called me High Priest. Perhaps there’s been at least some change?’
Rou tried to recall what kind of expression Brukisel had worn. Among the other humans who seemed hazy, Brukisel was particularly vivid, so it wasn’t difficult to recall his expression.
‘Right. Earlier, definitely…’
When Het had burst through the door, and just now when his body was half-submerged in water. Brukisel had worn the exact same expression. Rou pondered deeply, trying to find some common thread in that. And soon came to a conclusion.
‘Ah! Is he really afraid of water?’
When he touched his body with wet hands. At first Brukisel stiffened rigidly, then the second time he sharply shoved him away. He was definitely afraid!
‘I see. That’s why he turned around so coldly and left earlier too. It wasn’t because he dislikes me, but because he’s afraid of water…’
Rou found Brukisel quite pitiful. Having been chased by something since childhood, there were still many things that frightened him even as an adult. Rou thought himself fortunate to have come to this land to grant his wish. He wanted to be helpful to him.
Meanwhile, Jes briefly contemplated whether the holy water rippling as if there had been a flood truly deserved to be called dew. But the meaning of the warm, splashing water was clear. Every time he heard the sound of the water splashing, Jes felt anew just how much the Goddess cherished and loved the new High Priest.
An amount of dew he had never seen even after offering prayers his entire life had poured out in a single moment. Perhaps because there was no basis for comparison. When faced with a transcendent existence, rather than feeling a sense of deprivation or emptiness, Jes was simply grateful and moved that he had met such a person in his life.
He scooped up a handful of lukewarm water, then watched the streams flowing down between his fingers. Soon, someone who looked as sweet as a sugar sculpture walked over elegantly, their hair fluttering.
Rou found the hair clinging all over his body to be quite cumbersome. He had thought it bothersome even when not wet, but walking with both his clothes and hair soaked, he was confused about whether what he was wading through was water currents or his hair.
Rou walked slowly to avoid stepping on his own hair that was moving around in the water, thinking—as he had the chance—that he needed to do something about this bothersome hair, a thought that would hurt the Goddess and her followers’ feelings if they heard it.
“Representative.”
Completely unaware of such thoughts from Rou, Jes was seized by the dilemma of whether he dared stand on his own two feet before this person whom the Goddess held dear. Though he felt he should kneel, if he tried to bow with his creaking joints in this place where water was splashing, he felt he might meet the Goddess sooner than expected.
“I’d like a place where I can dry off.”
His hair, thoroughly soaked with water, was heavy and burdensome. At Rou’s appearance, which seemed somehow tired, Jes immediately forgot his thoughts from just moments ago and, turning pale, hurriedly guided him to a dry space.
“Well… It’s humble, but please stay here just until proper quarters can be prepared.”
Walking along the corridor, hesitating several times at forks in the path, Jes pointed to a room where warmth could be felt and spoke as if apologetic.
Rou couldn’t easily understand why Jes disparaged this room as humble. And for good reason—the room was performing its function quite sufficiently. He couldn’t feel the biting wind, and on one wall, a large fireplace big enough for Rou to enter was emanating warmth.
“Mm.”
Wondering if this too was part of the human manner of speech he needed to get used to, Rou didn’t particularly ask further and settled down in front of the fireplace. Drying himself was more urgent than resolving his questions anyway.
Water droplets continued to fall from his damp hair, thoroughly wetting Rou’s nape and creating dark red marks on the red carpet as well. As Rou struggled in his hair like a butterfly caught in a spider’s web, Jes hurriedly called someone who had been behind him.
“I-I’ll help you!”
Yan approached Rou like someone who had been waiting for a chance to prove their existence and rescued him from the hair net. Rou showed recognition, and just that alone made Yan’s face look moved, as if it were a tremendous honor.
“So you already knew this child. We’re short on attendants at the temple right now so I brought them, but… As soon as the room is ready, I’ll definitely bring someone who can properly serve the Representative—no, the High Priest!”
Jes said this with a somehow determined face. As the Emperor had said, this temple was a place forgotten from people’s memories. No one came to offer prayers all the way to this northernmost temple where the Goddess’s power was weakest. As a result, operations became difficult and it was in a state close to neglect, and naturally it wasn’t being maintained.
This room was only somewhat tidied because he occasionally stayed here when he had business in the imperial capital; the other rooms were more dismal. There were few places with intact windows, and there were many places where clumps of dust rolled around.
Since an attendant was immediately needed, he had brought in this child who had been trembling and waiting outside the temple, but in Jes’s view, Yan was nothing but inadequate. Once the birth of the new High Priest was proclaimed, nobles would send their precious sons and daughters, yet here was a servant who had only watered the garden. It was unsatisfactory.
“Hm? Is there really a need for that? Yan is a child with deep faith. They’ll surely do well within the temple.”
Upon hearing those words, Yan moved their hands even more diligently. With Yan’s help, changing into soft clothes made his body feel pleasantly dry and he felt good. As Rou sat languidly in a chair that looked plush, Jes hovered around as if wanting Rou to retract those words.
“But there must surely be a child who can attend better than that child.”
“They seem to be doing well from what I can see.”
“No! Surely…”
“The High Priest is satisfied. Isn’t it impious to argue against that?”
Yan, who had been quietly listening, objected from behind Rou. Jes jumped. The fair and benevolent High Priest said it was fine, so that ignorant servant thought it really was fine and chimed in. No matter how much the High Priest was a being that transcended status and age, having descended to the human world, he deserved to be treated accordingly.
“How dare you, where do you think you are to interfere!”
“Jes. Why are you suddenly shouting? And right into my ear at that.”
Rou turned to look at Jes while rubbing his stinging ear. The shouting of a heated human was by no means beautiful.
At Rou’s words, Jes did close his mouth, but instead watched Yan’s attendance with even more fire in his eyes. He looked ready to find fault and drive them out. Yan felt this and moved their hands even more diligently. They didn’t want to miss this precious opportunity to serve beside the High Priest whom the Goddess had sent.
With a towel, they wiped away the water dripping from the lemon-colored hair and combed through the hair meticulously, spreading it out prettily to help it dry faster.
‘Everyone’s getting tired because of this long hair.’
Thinking that Jes and Yan’s attention was entirely focused on his hair, Rou grabbed a handful of his moderately dried hair. Like grasping fallen leaves that pile up abundantly along the roadside in autumn. At that careless touch, both Jes and Yan’s gazes began to shake wildly.
“Do you have any scissors or sharp objects?”
Jes gasped loudly in shock. Such an eerie and dangerous object for that beautiful hair! That hair, which perfectly resembled the color of fresh lemons growing under the southern sun, should only be touched by fragrant oils or rosewater and nothing else.
“High Priest…”
Only after hearing Yan hemming and hawing did Jes come to his senses. His mind went blank. No matter that he was the High Priest, damaging that beautiful hair was not right. That would be sinful.
When a master walks an improper path, even a subordinate should offer counsel, but he couldn’t expect such a thing from Yan, who had only watered poisonous plants. He thought he should hurry before Yan could say more, but Yan was a beat faster.
‘No…!’
Jes cried out desperately inside.
