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‘Duke Elpinard!’  

Bael immediately recognized the man. Knowing how reserved the Duke was, Bael assumed the crying baby must have been bothering him. Hastily, Bael apologized.

“I apologize. I’ll calm her down right away.”

The Duke remained silent, simply casting a disapproving glance at Bael and the baby without offering any reply. 

“Waaah!”  

Unaware of the chilly atmosphere, the baby only cried louder. Bael hurriedly patted her back, but it was to no avail. 

Then, to Bael’s surprise, the Duke stepped forward, approaching him with steady, deliberate steps. Bael braced himself, expecting to be reprimanded. 

“Excuse me,” the Duke said unexpectedly, extending his hands toward the baby with a courteous gesture. 

Startled, Bael’s eyes widened as the Duke, with practiced ease, took the baby from his arms and held her in a secure position. 

“Uuuh… uuung…”  

The baby, who had been wailing non-stop in Bael’s arms, suddenly quieted down as soon as she was nestled in the Duke’s embrace.

Bael watched in disbelief as the baby, who had been inconsolable just moments ago, now lay peacefully in the Duke’s arms. The Duke then calmly instructed Bael.

“When holding a baby, you must support her neck properly, Your Eminence.”

“Ah, I see,” Bael replied, somewhat in awe as he observed the baby.

“Gaaah!”  

The baby, who had been crying loudly before, now smiled brightly, as if entirely content. It was clear that she felt comfortable in the Duke’s embrace.

“I never would have guessed that Your Grace was so adept at handling children,” Bael remarked, impressed.

“I’ve raised two sons,” the Duke responded modestly. “My wife believed in personally raising our children rather than leaving everything to the nursemaids.”

“Ah,” Bael murmured, making the sign of the cross and clasping his hands together with a touch of sympathy. It was widely known that the Duke had lost his wife to illness a few years ago and had remained celibate since.

“May the Duchess rest peacefully under the blessing of God.”

“Yes, she was a kind soul,” the Duke replied softly, his gaze lingering on the smiling baby in his arms.

“She resembles a lilac flower,” he added after a moment of silence.

“Pardon?” Bael asked, not quite understanding.

“Her eye color,” the Duke clarified.

“Ah, yes, she was born with an unusual eye color,” Bael agreed.

“It’s strange… last night, I dreamed of my wife. She said she would gift me a lilac flower…” The Duke trailed off, as if realizing he had said more than he intended. He then quietly returned the baby to Bael’s arms.

Bael carefully took the baby back, this time ensuring to support her neck as the Duke had advised. The baby, feeling secure, soon fell asleep in Bael’s arms.

“So, Your Grace, what brings you to Kydsha?” Bael asked, curious.

“The Holy Father summoned me urgently. He said there was something he wished to request of me,” the Duke replied.

“The Pope…” Bael’s eyes widened. Whatever task the Pope might ask of a Duke of the Empire must be of great significance…

‘Could it be that they intend to involve the baby?’  

* * *  

“The contents of the prophecy were sealed until the Saint turned five years old. The Council of Elders never fully recognized her,” Bael explained, folding his arms and sighing deeply.  

Axel, with a contemplative expression, spoke, “So, they planned to observe her until she turned five. If she turned out to be a false Saint, they would dismiss the prophecy as false as well.”  

“Yes. They argued that they couldn’t risk alarming the world over a prophecy that might be false…” Bael said, casting a gentle smile in my direction.  

“But it turns out that our Reshia is indeed the true Saint. Which means the prophecy I received was genuine as well.”  

“Amazing…” I muttered without realizing it.  

In my previous life, I had died searching for the battleground, plagued by the suspicion that I might not have fully defeated the Mad Dragon. After reincarnation, I was designated as the Saint destined to stop the dragon’s return. Is this what they call a fate ordained by the gods?  

But there wasn’t time to merely be amazed.  

‘The Mad Dragon’s resurrection!’  

The prophecy also indicated when the dragon would be resurrected.  

“We need to calculate the exact date of the ‘Day of Water when the moon is swallowed by darkness,’” Axel said, glancing at Bael.  

“The Central Church has already made the calculations,” Bael responded, pulling out a small piece of paper from his robes and placing it on the table.  

“Since the day the prophecy was received, we’ve recorded every potential ‘Day of Water when the moon is swallowed by darkness.’ These are the predicted dates for the next 30 years.”  

In truth, lunar eclipses weren’t that rare. A total eclipse where part of the moon is obscured could be observed every few years. However, when combined with the condition of occurring on the ‘Day of Water,’ the list of candidates was significantly reduced.  

Axel and I began examining the dates listed on the note. The past dates had already been crossed out in red.  

“The nearest ‘Day of Water when the moon is swallowed by darkness’ is in 10 years from now,” Bael pointed out.  

“Hmm… 10 years gives us some time to prepare!” I exclaimed.  

“Indeed, fortunately,” Bael agreed, pointing to a specific date on the note, as if to emphasize the importance of confirming it.  

However, my attention was drawn not to the date Bael indicated, but to one of the earlier dates that had been crossed out in red. I suddenly looked up at Axel. He seemed to be thinking the same thing, as our eyes met with a shared understanding.

“Axel, this date…” I began, prompting Axel to nod slightly.

“It’s the day we visited the temple together. That day, Duke Kreutz was performing a strange ritual with his son.”

It was the day we discovered Eugene Kreutz in agony during a suspicious purification ritual. And that very day was listed among the dates on the note.

“Could it be…” Axel murmured, furrowing his brow in thought. “Is Duke Kreutz somehow connected to the resurrection of the Mad Dragon?”

* * *

With this new possibility in mind, Axel and Bael became immediately more focused and determined.

⟨We need to investigate Duke Kreutz further.⟩

Axel decided to focus his efforts on investigating Duke Kreutz.  

⟨I must inform the Pope of this matter. We need to find out if there’s a connection between the Mad Dragon and the purification ritual.⟩  

Bael took it upon himself to delve into the details of the purification ritual.

‘I also want to investigate the suspicious flute that Eugene gave me…’ I thought. But this was more within Servian’s area of expertise.  

‘Unfortunately, he’s currently in the Red Desert.’  

The Red Desert was an inhospitable place where not even carrier pigeons could be sent, let alone regular mail. However, its extreme conditions made it a rich source of unique resources that couldn’t be found anywhere else. Servian’s hobby was collecting such rare and unusual items.  

‘That’s how he came across the Reincarnation Subscription documents too.’  

Although neither Axel, Bael, nor I could find anything special about the flute, Servian, with his extensive knowledge, might come up with a different appraisal.

Of course, I also had a role to play. Due to being in a similar age group, I was assigned the task of closely monitoring Eugene Kreutz. Since we both studied together at the Ivory Tower, it wouldn’t seem strange for me to be around him frequently. It was a fitting division of roles.

‘But first…!’  

I flopped onto my bed and opened the ‘Quest List’ to check the apology compensation from Heaven. I recalled the message that had appeared when the compensation arrived.

◈ Compensation Details ◈  

10 Post-Quest Acceptance Vouchers  

※ The granted vouchers can be found in the ‘Quest List.’

‘Post-Quest Acceptance Vouchers…’  

Just from the name, I couldn’t quite grasp what kind of compensation this was. I opened the ‘Quest List,’ and, as usual, various quests were listed. There didn’t seem to be any significant changes. I was about to close the list, thinking that the compensation hadn’t been properly credited when—

‘Huh?’  

Something caught my eye. A peculiar marker appeared on a quest that I had not yet accepted. The ‘Claim Reward’ option was activated. I quickly checked the details of the quest.