TILPO 02

Chapter 02

Come to think of it, Gabriel was holding out his hand with his palm facing upward.

Apparently, she had remembered the custom of kissing the palm incorrectly.

Noah politely took Gabriel’s hand in both of hers and kissed his palm as she stammered,

“I receive the touch of your grace.”

That was probably roughly how the greeting went, right? It wasn’t wrong, was it?

The moment Noah’s lips touched his palm, Gabriel’s hand flinched.

At the same moment, Noah’s hands began trembling as well.

It seemed she had made another mistake with etiquette.

If only she had looked through an etiquette book beforehand! No, even if she had at least reviewed the book she had received at the training center!

“Ahem!”

Gabriel deliberately cleared his throat.

Noah’s face automatically crumpled in embarrassment.

When she cautiously raised her head, Gabriel was blushing and avoiding her gaze.

“I wasn’t asking you to pay your respects, Priestess. I was simply trying to escort you.”

“Oh.”

Several Holy Knights coughed.

They were probably trying to hold back their laughter.

Noah’s face turned even redder, as if that were somehow possible.

She already wanted to go home.

Led by Gabriel, Noah was escorted to her accommodation while barely aware of what was happening.

A low-ranking country priestess like her was being escorted all the way to her lodging by a cardinal.

‘Hahaha. Is this a dream or reality…?’

“Noah. Ah, my apologies. May I call you by your name?”

“Yes, of course, Your Eminence!”

“You may call me by my name as well.”

Ah, I don’t think that’s going to be easy.

Instead of answering, Noah covered it up with an awkward smile.

“What kind of ability do you possess, Noah?”

Gabriel’s voice was elegant as well.

Trying not to show her nervousness, Noah answered in a quiet voice.

“It’s nothing particularly impressive. I can simply ease the heart of someone who’s extremely angry, for example… A little. Just a very little.”

Noah continued hesitantly.

She was afraid that this great man might be displeased by hearing about her insignificant ability.

“Or I can help someone fall asleep more easily… Things like that.”

Yet perhaps great people really did have kind hearts as well, because the great man responded warmly without showing any disappointment.

“That’s impressive enough.”

“Is-is that so?”

“Yes. Unlike other people, you’ve manifested several abilities, Noah.”

Noah didn’t know what to do with Gabriel’s praise.

Honestly, a Controller’s ability was very modest compared to other forms of divine power.

So whenever someone manifested a Controller ability, most people assumed they would only manage to graduate from the Divine Power Training Center at an average level.

But Noah had no idea how hard she had worked to make the most of her small amount of divine power.

Thanks to that effort, she had been able to use her ability in several different ways.

That was the part Noah was most proud of.

Of course, compared to someone who had been extraordinarily gifted from birth, her talent was so insignificant that it was barely noticeable. And standing before Gabriel, the strongest Controller, it was almost embarrassing to even compare herself to him.

But receiving recognition from someone so remarkable made her feel a little proud.

Noah was deeply grateful that Gabriel, who had risen all the way to the position of cardinal, wasn’t arrogant and was willing to pay attention to someone as insignificant as her.

“Thank you, Your Eminence. My ability may be nothing special, but I’ll do my best here as well.”

It took a great deal of courage for Noah to say that.

Gabriel continued speaking with a warm smile.

“There are very few Controllers in the entire world.”

“…Yes.”

“An ability that is that rare must have many hidden secrets. I have conducted extensive research into this particular matter and spent a great deal of time examining old records.”

“…”

“That was when I discovered something. Controllers aren’t as mediocre as people believe. They possess a far more remarkable ability.”

Gabriel stopped walking for a moment.

Noah found herself looking at him.

“After conducting an in-depth study of the hidden power of Controllers, I became convinced that we could bring the Urbas Subjugation to a successful conclusion. That is why we invited so many Controller priests.”

“I-I see!”

Captivated by Gabriel’s words, Noah nodded without even realizing it.

“This is an opportunity to bring immeasurable glory to our god, Elohim. I trust that you will also give it your very best, Noah.”

“I’ll work hard.”

She might as well have been making a loyalty oath right there.

Anyone who saw Gabriel Schulliman’s smile in that moment would have reacted exactly the same way.

“I have particularly high expectations for you, Noah.”

“Pardon?”

“You’ve manifested various talents, and…”

Gabriel closed his mouth midway, choosing not to elaborate. Then he resumed leading Noah forward.

“You’re aware that talented individuals from various fields have been selected for this subjugation, correct?”

“Yes.”

When Gabriel smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners, Noah unconsciously smiled back.

“You also know that the Kingdom of Entria is sending a princess who is a mage to join this subjugation, correct?”

“Yes.”

Noah had heard about that as well.

Quite a few mages were participating in this subjugation, and Princess Kiria, a highly skilled mage from the Kingdom of Entria, was among them.

Princess Kiria was a beautiful woman with golden hair as lovely as if it had been melted from gold and striking deep green eyes. Rumor had it that she possessed such a fatal charm that anyone who saw her even once would inevitably fall in love.

“To be honest, Princess Kiria is somewhat troublesome from our perspective. Some of the people are even treating her like a divine being. That is why a talent like you, Noah, is truly important.”

Noah understood less than half of what Gabriel was saying.

Part of it was because she was nervous, and part of it was because Gabriel had a habit of speaking in such an indirect manner.

All she could vaguely think was,

‘Is he complimenting me right now?’

“You also received an excellent evaluation at the Divine Power Training Center, so we’ve been paying close attention to you.”

“Ah, I-I see…”

He was greatly overestimating her insignificant ability like this.

Noah’s head naturally lowered.

“But after seeing you today, I realize that your ability isn’t the only thing that is impressive. You possess such grace as well. I believe you are someone who suits the refined image of our Church.”

“…Thank you.”

Noah answered softly, her face turning red.

The excessive praise made her want to scratch the wall a little. It felt nice, but at the same time, it was so ticklishly embarrassing.

“This is your room, Noah.”

Before she knew it, they had arrived at her accommodation after exchanging all sorts of unnecessarily embarrassing conversations.

Gabriel handed Noah the key to her room and said,

“If you need anything, pull the bell rope beside the bedroom. Your assigned attendant priest will bring you whatever you need. I’ll see you tomorrow after lunch, along with the others.”

“Yes.”

“Then rest well.”

Gabriel gave her a slight bow before walking away.

Noah politely returned his greeting and watched his back for a brief moment.

There was something strangely dignified and impressive about him.

‘As expected, not just anyone can become a cardinal.’

Noah nodded and entered her room.

The room was neat and beautiful beyond comparison to the one she had stayed in at the Soal Academy.

‘Wow, the furniture against that pure white background is so beautiful. It’s so luxurious… How can the color of the wood be this pretty? It’s nothing like the academy.’

There was even a separate bathroom.

Noah had once heard that the Imperial Palace used magic stones to provide warm water.

And now she was actually seeing a magnificent water system that produced warm water.

Noah was deeply moved.

As expected, the Church buildings affiliated with the Imperial Palace were on a completely different level.

After unpacking her belongings for a while and clearing her dazed mind, Noah began thinking carefully about what Gabriel had said.

Since such an important person had volunteered to escort her, she hadn’t been able to think deeply about it earlier.

But ‘someone who suits the refined image of the Church’…

Didn’t that sound as though she was expected to participate in the Urbas Subjugation for the sake of the Church’s image?

“Hahaha. I’m thinking way too much.”

Noah shook her head, forcing the unnecessary thoughts away.

She told herself that Gabriel was simply someone who was good at complimenting people and making them feel good about themselves, and that was why he had spoken like that.

After finishing the accommodation arrangements for the final Controller to arrive, Noah Kaplan, Gabriel headed toward his own quarters.

In truth, Gabriel had felt a strange sense of déjà vu when he saw Noah’s pink hair.

No.

To be more precise, Noah was the priest Gabriel had been waiting for.

Ever since he had seen her name in the documents.

‘Yes. I’ve been waiting.’

She would be quite useful during this subjugation.

‘Especially in front of Princess Kiria…’

As he continued thinking, a pale green dress caught his eye.

“Hello, Your Eminence.”

“Yes, hello.”

The woman who greeted him was Lady Anat Dubinchik.

She was one of the women Gabriel had often encountered since his days as a priest, and her cousin was the Crown Princess.

“What brings Lady Dubinchik here?”

“I have something important to discuss with you.”

“Was there no attendant priest who could relay your message?”

“It’s urgent and important, so I came to see you myself.”

Anat looked at Gabriel earnestly.

Gabriel was somewhat irritated by the fact that Anat had come all the way to the vicinity of his quarters and waited for him, but he forced himself to smile and tried to lead her toward the reception room.

“Your Eminence, could you come with me to the room I’m currently staying in?”

“Is something troubling you?”

“Well… You’ll understand once you come with me.”

Gabriel let out a brief sigh inwardly before complying with Anat’s request.

“It might be a little cramped for even the Holy Knight to come inside…”

Anat looked troubled as she stood in front of the door.

“Then I’ll wait outside.”

The Holy Knight accompanying her stepped back from the doorway.

Gabriel stepped into the room, thinking that, although there was little chance of it, even if Anat tried to assassinate him, he would probably be able to overpower her with sheer strength.

“Where is the inconvenience in the room…?”

Gabriel looked around the room before trailing off.

A believer who came to the Church to pray and reserved a room to stay in would normally have an attendant priest assigned to them.

Although Gabriel had suddenly been given his current position because of the Urbas Demon Dragon subjugation, he was a cardinal nonetheless.

If someone had summoned him personally, it had to be something truly important.

“First, please sit down and have some tea.”

Gabriel looked around the room a little more before sitting in the chair Anat offered him.

A vague memory of situations he had frequently experienced during his days as a priest came to mind, and he found himself thinking,

‘Surely not…’