Chapter 1343: Chapter 1343
Jenkins kept his voice as steady as he could, but the young woman behind him remained silent.
When he turned to look, he didn't see an expression of surprise on her face. At some point, Hathaway had sat back down and was now pressing a hand to her forehead.
“I'm sorry, what did you just say?”
She spoke in a strained, breathy voice.
“I am the Saint of the Church.”
He repeated himself, then sat down opposite her and sliced off a small piece of steak for his impatient cat.
The red-haired young woman looked up, staring at Jenkins as if she had just seen a dragon.
“I thought... you’d be more surprised.”
“Yes, I should be surprised.” Follow current novels on novel-fire.ɴet
She covered her face and rubbed it gently, careful not to smudge her makeup.
“You’re the Saint? Of the Sage’s Church?”
Hathaway asked once more.
“Yes... Is there any other possibility?”
Hathaway slowly shook her head. She glanced from Jenkins to his cat and back again, and once she was certain he wasn't joking, an incredibly complex expression settled on her face.
“Alright, so you’re the Saint of the Church... This is all rather sudden. I need a moment to process it... What kind of reaction were you expecting? Sheer panic? Overjoyed surprise?”
“No, as long as you’re not angry with me for keeping it a secret for so long... You know, the Church has confidentiality clauses...”
Jenkins said hesitantly.
“I'm not going to get angry over something so trivial. The biggest impact this has on me is realizing I’ve slept with the Saint of the Church... I wonder if that counts as blasphemy for a heretic.”
Jenkins recalled the Church’s doctrines and answered the question quite seriously, which finally brought a smile to the red-haired lady’s face. She looked at him intently.
“You’re sure you’re the Saint of the Church.”
She clasped her hands together.
“Of course, I’m sure. It happened last autumn. I offered the divinity of an evil god to the Sage and received the Sage's acknowledgment.”
“So, that was around the time you met me.”
To be precise, it was around the time he’d met everyone in this world, but there was no need to correct her.
“Does Briny know? Oh, of course she wouldn’t. Do those ladies in Ruen know?”
Hathaway asked again.
Jenkins nodded again. He noticed a flicker of displeasure on Hathaway’s face, but it was only a flicker.
“Let me get a good look at you, Jenkins.”
She stood up again, pulling her chair over to sit beside him. Hathaway had beautiful eyes, and when she stared at him like that, Jenkins felt a pang of guilt for reasons he couldn't quite name.
“So, what are you going to do?”
Jenkins didn’t understand what she meant and guessed hesitantly,
“Am I supposed to kiss you now?”
“No, that’s not what I meant. What I mean is, since you are the Saint of the Sage’s Church and you’re publicly supporting that pretty princess of yours to take the crown as Jenkins Williams, what’s your plan? What’s your goal? What does the Sage’s Church want?”
Hathaway explained, taking his hand. Jenkins had been about to give his cat more food, but now that he was occupied, the cat seemed a little disgruntled.
“I feel like you’re focusing on the wrong thing. Shouldn’t you be asking more about me being the Saint? ...Alright, alright, I’ll answer. I just want to see Dolores wear the crown, that’s all. As for the Church, they don’t have any special agenda either. They just want to ensure the northern dioceses remain stable during the turbulent times ahead. You know how chaotic the continent is right now. The war has already started, and it looks like it will last for a long time.”
“I see... The Hamparvo Kingdom, the Fidektri Kingdom...”
Hathaway muttered something Jenkins couldn't quite catch, her mind clearly drifting to other matters, before she dropped the topic of politics. Instead, she returned to the matter of him being the Saint, asking him for more details with endless curiosity.
Perhaps she had once suspected a closer connection between Candle Mr and Jenkins, but now, knowing he was the Saint, all her previous suspicions vanished into thin air. After all, the Saint of an Orthodox Church could never, for any reason, be a heretic.
Hathaway looked very happy, though it was hard to tell if it was because Jenkins had been honest with her about his identity, or because her future husband held such a prestigious title.
“You left in such a hurry yesterday...”
They both recalled the wild afternoon, and a blush crept onto their faces. Hathaway continued,
“There was something I forgot to ask you. I remember you admitted to knowing those Believers of Lies, and that you were even on good terms with them. In yesterday’s game, the one who turned the tide, Candle Mr, was one of them. Do you know him too?”
Jenkins took a deep breath. He had known she would ask this question and had already prepared his answer.
“Yes, I know him, but not very well. Even among the Believers of Lies, he’s a very strange fellow. Can you picture the type? Someone who doesn’t like to talk, is reclusive, and often mutters to themself or talks to cats? Well, yes, that’s Candle Mr for you.”
he said with a straight face, then asked,
“Why? Is there a problem with him?”
“Yes, a very big problem... As I told you about the game yesterday, it was clear that Candle Mr knows Briny. He’s incredibly familiar with her situation—so familiar that he even knew about the accessory we gave her. Jenkins, tell me, is Candle Mr a man or a woman?”
he answered without a second thought.
“She’s very close with Miss Fabry, so I rarely get to see her. She’s an odd woman.”
Jenkins nodded hastily, weaving another lie.
“If she’s a woman, then it all makes sense. That explains why the unicorn appeared again yesterday. Candle Mr’s real identity is most likely one of Briny’s maids, or perhaps a friend she met at her club. It’s all possible... No, I can’t go looking for her right now. She did save everyone, after all. I can’t be ungrateful. But to let someone like that stay so close to Briny... it’s just too dangerous...”