Fortunately, the “impromptu gathering” Claire mentioned was scheduled for 8:30 p.m.
Even so, I still dutifully reported to my little aunt first.
I took a leisurely bath, visited Cecilia’s house with Evin, toured her place, played a few rounds of cards, shooed away Evin who wanted to crawl into my bed, gave Cecilia a crash course on national security laws, and finally returned home.
After browsing the forums and seeing that, as expected, the Abyss first-clear of Black Prison Forest had taken over every hot topic, with a flood of comments under the Irresponsible Strategy Team’s post—most asking whether it was really us or begging for the next guide update—I finally logged back in around eight.
“Good evening, Your Highness.”
Hill, who had been waiting by the bed, set down her book the moment she heard movement.
“Yaaawn… good evening.”
I crawled out of bed. Hill promptly helped me change out of my pajamas and tidied my slightly messy hair.
“By the way, Hill, did you find anything?”
While changing, I remembered what she was supposed to report after dinner. She had noticed something off and decided to investigate further while I was offline.
Hill hesitated for a moment.
“Your Highness, Claire’s invitation tonight is highly suspicious. I looked into her recent movements and discovered she visited the Church of Light in Faerns City and stayed there for quite some time.”
“You think she’s doubting my identity?”
I could roughly guess what Hill meant.
“It’s probably just a routine visit. No need to worry. This is internal Church business, and since she’s technically independent from the main Church now, she can’t dig up anything. Besides, the real Sophirina and her grandfather aren’t even in Faerns.”
“I still believe Your Highness should be more cautious.”
“Relax, I have full confidence in my acting skills.”
I grinned, spun around, and hugged her arm.
“Even if something does happen, Hill can just carry me and run, right? The dungeon’s already done with anyway.”
“Your Highness.”
No one can resist a cute loli throwing herself into your arms and acting spoiled.
Yet somehow Hill had built up immunity. Normally she’d show a helpless expression by now, but tonight she remained terrifyingly rational.
“You’re just thinking there might be good food at the party, aren’t you?”
…She saw right through me.
Even so, she eventually succumbed to my pestering and accompanied me to the agreed venue—the central cathedral.
What I didn’t expect was Claire personally waiting at the entrance, looking as though she had been there for a while.
“We are deeply honored that Your Highness could attend.”
“When Big Sis Claire invites me so earnestly, how could Sophirina possibly refuse~?”
Upon seeing me, Claire seemed to visibly relax. She led Hill and me through the front prayer hall, past a side door, and into the cloister connecting to the central courtyard.
Perhaps to ease the awkwardness along the way, she unusually took the initiative to start a conversation.
“After that, I thought about it for a long time. Your Highness’s words benefited me greatly.”
“Eh? What?”
“The question I asked Your Highness earlier about a certain novel,” Claire softly explained.
Only then did I remember—she meant the dinner conversation.
Claire continued, “I never imagined Your Highness’s understanding of the Holy Light would be so profound. Compared to you, I am like a vulgar mortal blindly wallowing in mud. Only after receiving Your Highness’s teachings did the clouds before my eyes finally part.”
It sounded like one of those machine-translated Bible psalms praising God—stiff, overflowing with second-hand embarrassment adjectives.
Even though Claire’s tone was utterly sincere, it still made me want to dig a hole and hide.
“E-eh… i-it’s… not that amazing…”
“There’s no need to be modest. Your Highness’s theory of ‘following one’s heart’ has lifted the confusion of many. That is all thanks to you.”
Though I couldn’t see Claire’s face from behind, the rare earnestness in her voice was unmistakable.
“For me especially, it was the same.”
No, no, no—rather, how many book club members do you people even have?!
The heroine of that adventure novel really is a loli, isn’t she?!
Just as I was fumbling for a reply, Hill timely came to my rescue.
“Lady Claire, Her Highness already understands your feelings. Please don’t make things difficult for her.”
“…Understood.”
Claire fell silent and said no more.
Along the cloister and courtyard, knights and clerics were setting up tables and chairs for the gathering or chatting idly. Everyone greeted us warmly when we passed.
But the moment we stepped into the main venue—the central courtyard—something felt deeply wrong.
The area was brightly lit from above and all sides. The tables were laden with mouth-watering roast meat and fruit.
Yet the solemn, almost grave expressions on everyone around us were the complete opposite of a relaxed, lively party atmosphere.
BOOM.
The heavy doors behind us shut with a resounding thud.
The eerie feeling intensified, and a thick sense of unease rose in my chest.
Hill narrowed her eyes slightly, stepping protectively in front of me.
She scanned the knights slowly closing in and the clerics standing ready for combat in the distance. Her voice was ice-cold.
“Lady Claire, what is the meaning of this? This does not look like a gathering.”
Claire raised a hand to halt the encirclement, then turned around with an indifferent expression.
“My apologies. We bear no hostility. We simply wish for Her Highness Sophirina to answer one small question.”
“Or rather… are you truly Her Highness Sophirina?”
Wait, wait—no way, did I actually get exposed…?
I froze, staring at Claire’s deadly serious face, unsure whether she was bluffing or not.
“Um… what is Big Sis Claire saying? Sophirina doesn’t quite understand…”
“I made a trip to the Church of Light in Faerns City.”
Claire stated calmly, “Although I couldn’t find any records of Her Highness Sophirina, what I did discover is that among the registered deaconesses, there is no one named Hill.
How do you explain that, Miss Hill?”
Crap. I was so focused on covering my own tracks that I completely overlooked Hill’s!
My heart skipped a beat.
Hill, however, didn’t even flinch—as if she had prepared for this exact moment.
“I serve directly under Archbishop White Lion. To prevent ill-intentioned individuals from harming Her Highness, the Archbishop deliberately kept my name off the public registry.
With only this much evidence, isn’t Lady Claire’s suspicion a bit… groundless?”
She even paused dramatically on “ill-intentioned individuals,” as if pointedly mocking someone. It sounded completely convincing.
“Is that so? Your excuse is quite thorough, Miss Hill. But how will you deny this?”
Claire shook her head and beckoned someone over—Him, the priest from Kai’s squad.
“Him, explain.”
Him nodded, casting a complicated glance at me before speaking.
“Two days ago, while laundering Her Highness’s changed clothes, I accidentally detected an unusual trace. It was extremely faint, but I am certain—it was demonic aura.”
“Him possesses the strongest aura-detection talent in the entire monastery. I also verified it personally with a Church relic. He is not mistaken.”
Claire added, lending one hundred percent credibility to his claim.
Why would demonic aura be on the clothes I wore? That pretty much means…
While every paladin and cleric present waited for a reasonable explanation, a slightly trembling voice suddenly broke the silence.
“W-wait… you can detect something that faint? Just what kind of perverted things did you do to my clothes…?!”
Silence.
The whispers around us instantly vanished. The previously noisy hall fell completely silent.
Every single person—Claire included, even Hill—instinctively turned to stare at Him.