Matthew did not like confession.
He had no intention of quibbling with the rules set by the Order.
If confession was God’s will, then of course it had to be carried out accordingly.
What he disliked were the false believers who sought forgiveness simply by confessing their sins to God.
Every time he listened to them speak, he felt disgusted.
That was why, when Ramsey suggested using the confessional as a command room, he had readily agreed.
How could he not be pleased to speak of God’s will in a sacred place, without those revolting false believers?
Today as well, with joy in his heart, he gazed at the tool of God before him.
Beyond the closely set bars, Theodora looked deeply uneasy.
‘Tch. Instead of rejoicing in following God’s will, she shows that kind of attitude.’
Resolving to recommend reeducation to the Order once this matter was over, Matthew slowly opened his mouth.
“It is good to see you, Hero. I hear you have been diligently carrying out your mission.”
“Thank… you. But I’m sorry, may I ask just one question?”
“A question.”
Matthew raised his eyebrows slightly and hardened his expression.
“I suppose that depends on what kind of question it is. Is it a question that goes against God’s will, like before?”
“N-no. It isn’t. It’s just that I don’t see Priest Ramsey anywhere.”
“I see. That does require an explanation.”
So she hasn’t broken down again, at least.
Feeling relieved, Matthew relaxed his stiff expression.
“Priest Ramsey has gone out on a separate external mission under the orders of Sir Joshua, commander of the knight order. He will not be able to return, at least not before the midterm exams are over.”
“Then, could it be…?”
“Yes. I will be overseeing this mission. It is a truly glorious duty.”
As Matthew finished speaking, a sincere smile rose to his face.
To think that he would be entrusted with carrying out a mission bestowed by God.
An intense rapture flowed through his body.
Theodora’s face turned terrified at the sight, but Matthew paid it no mind and spoke with a smile.
“Now then, it has already been two weeks since we began proceeding according to Brother Ramsey’s plan. By now, that should be more than enough time to obtain a decent amount of information. Would you tell me what you have discovered about that unbeliever Ashen?”
At Matthew’s question, Theodora hesitated and could not open her mouth.
Silence passed for a while.
And the longer the silence stretched, the more cracks slowly appeared in Matthew’s smile.
“No answer, I see. Would you hurry up and tell me? Unlike Brother Ramsey, I am not very patient. I am asking just in case.”
Now glaring at Theodora with an expression that had completely sunk into coldness, Matthew brought his hand toward the bars.
The moment his hand drew near, Theodora’s body went as rigid as stone.
It was an unmistakable sign of fear, but such things did not matter right now.
“You’re not saying you found out nothing, are you?”
“…I’m sorry.”
At the answer Theodora finally gave, Matthew said nothing for a moment.
If he opened his mouth now, curses were likely to come out.
If he did not want to defile this sacred place, he had to desperately keep his mouth shut.
But he could not hide the trembling of his hand, and it shook as though an earthquake had struck.
After a short while, Matthew, having desperately calmed himself, raised his hand toward Theodora.
At the same time, pure white holy flame bloomed from his hand.
Seeing it, Theodora’s breathing grew so ragged it was painful to hear.
Then the small door in the middle of the bars opened.
And the flames that burned sinners flowed toward Theodora’s body.
“Ggh.”
As she had been trained by the Order, there was no scream.
Even as her entire body turned red and blisters formed on the wounded areas, swelling and bursting, Theodora kept her mouth tightly shut.
But Matthew could see it.
Tears were flowing from her eyes.
How dare a mere tool.
A filthy object that had spent pleasant time with those revolting heretics, at that.
She was shedding tears like a human.
The holy flame blooming from Matthew’s hand burned even more violently.
He stopped only when Theodora was about to lose consciousness.
“The punishment is over. This time only, I will heal you myself.”
As the holy flame vanished, a pure white light settled in its place, and Theodora’s body slowly began to recover.
With lips distorted by burns, Theodora murmured something.
It probably meant thank you.
‘At least this part of her education was done properly.’
Matthew nodded and looked down at Theodora, who was curled up beyond the bars.
“Be grateful to Brother Ramsey. Out of respect for him, I am giving you another chance. But keep this in mind: the moment you exceed the deadline Brother Ramsey set, I too will have no choice but to seek other means.”
Matthew deliberately tapped the command authority with his finger, then left Theodora behind and exited the confessional.
‘In about five minutes, she’ll start moving on her own.’
After calculating when she would move, Matthew headed for his room.
**
“Haaah. Haaah.”
The confessional after Matthew had left.
Theodora gasped for breath as she treated the wounds that still remained.
Every time she moved, her burned body screamed, but there was no one here to help her.
There was no one anywhere who would care for a broken doll.
“Hahaha.”
When her thoughts reached that point, a hollow laugh slipped from Theodora’s mouth.
That was right. A doll. That was what she was.
And yet, while spending time with Ashen and the others, she had presumptuously mistaken herself for a person.
Even after her treatment was finished, Theodora remained curled up in place, and only left when the next person arrived.
‘What should I do now?’
Simply getting along with them normally had already reached its limit.
Even if she spent more time with them, she would likely never learn Ashen’s secret.
Of course, there was also the method of simply reporting to the Order the scene of Ashen fighting the Toddman in the dungeon, but her heart did not want that.
‘What are they telling me to do?’
Carrying the helplessness that weighed down her entire body, Theodora simply moved as her body had been engraved to do.
At last, she arrived at the academy library—and at the very seat where she had studied with Ashen’s group.
‘Why did I come here?’
Without doing anything, Theodora looked down at the desk and questioned herself.
An ordinary desk, nothing special.
There was nothing here that could comfort her.
Even so, she had wanted to come here.
She felt that in this place, where those enjoyable times had first begun, something might change.
Like that, five minutes, ten minutes, thirty minutes passed.
As she stood still like a doll, familiar voices came from behind her.
“Oh, Theodora?”
“You were here?”
Perhaps they had come to study again today; Lena and Cecilia looked at Theodora with thick books in their hands.
“Ashen’s looking for you, but you got here first. You really do understand each other without a word.”
Lena patted Theodora’s shoulder encouragingly, then sat down in her seat.
“You really are diligent, as expected. Amazing.”
Cecilia bowed her head to Theodora, then opened her book.
“Oh, right. I brought snacks today, so let’s eat together.”
“They are fattening foods, but if we move that much in tomorrow’s sparring, it will be fine.”
As they took out the snacks they had bought from the store, the two of them gestured for Theodora to sit down quickly.
The same sight as always.
A scene she had wanted so badly to see.
But a scene she might someday never be able to see again for the rest of her life.
Because it was so dazzling, tears flowed from Theodora’s eyes.
“Why are you crying? Does something hurt?”
“D-did you hate the idea of gaining weight that much? Then you don’t have to eat them.”
Flustered by Theodora’s sudden sobbing, Lena and Cecilia approached her.
Theodora could not say a word to them.
If she opened her mouth now, she felt she would pour out words that would trigger the prohibition.
She did not want to lose her memories of them.
How long did she cry like that?
She heard the library door open.
When she turned her head and looked that way, Ashen came into view.
At first, he looked pleased to see her, but then, shocked by the sight of her crying, he came closer.
“What happened, Miss Theodora? Did something bad happen?”
Theodora desperately shook her head and barely managed to speak.
“No, I’m all right. It’s just that my emotions aren’t settling down today.”
She looked at Ashen’s face as he worried about her.
His expression was completely different, but she felt as if it overlapped with the sight of him telling her about his dream of becoming a knight.
If she were to lure him into a trap and shatter his dream—
Would she be able to forgive herself?
Unable to find an answer, Theodora sank into her seat.
Right now, more than studying, she wanted to be alone with someone and speak openly from the heart.
“Miss Theodora.”
“…Yes.”
“If something is troubling you, please tell me honestly.”
Ashen’s gray eyes looked straight into Theodora’s violet ones.
They were the same eyes as always, but that very fact made them seem even more trustworthy to Theodora.
‘If I talk to Mr. Ashen alone, maybe I’ll be able to open up my heart.’
Little by little, so as not to provoke the prohibition.
And warmly enough to untangle the knot in her heart.
As her thoughts reached that point, Theodora reflexively gripped Ashen’s hand tightly.
Ashen’s flustered gaze returned to her.
Undeterred, she slowly opened her mouth.
“Miss Theodora?”
“Mr. Ashen.”
“Yes?”
“Would you go on a date with me?”
It was a sudden proposal, even in her own opinion.
It would not have been strange if he refused immediately, but Ashen pondered it sincerely, then slowly nodded.
“All right. When shall we meet?”
“Tomorrow, please. There is something I want to tell you, Mr. Ashen.”
After saying that, Theodora staggered away.
She did not know.
That Ashen and the others were whispering to one another with grave expressions.