NOVEL NEXT 200. Complicated Position
Ravenna smirked, her lips curling into the sharp smile of a raven toying with its prey. "In due time. But first… why don't you tell me how far along the preparations for the Festival of Lust have come?"
High Priest James exhaled heavily through his nose, shoulders sagging as if he had already accepted her games. She was deliberately delaying the answer he craved, dangling it like bait, and he could do nothing but play along. Still, there was a flicker of frustration in his eyes, quickly buried beneath the mask of duty.
"Yes, it's progressing well," he admitted. "With winter reaching its peak by next week, we can hold the festival at any time. The citizens are already eager for it, anticipation is swelling with each passing day."
He hesitated, his voice softening slightly as if to give credit where it was due. "Lady Aurora has been… most helpful with the arrangements."
Before Ravenna could respond, a knock tapped briskly against the heavy doors of her office. Alice's voice floated through, efficient and composed as ever: "Your Highness, everyone has arrived."
"Let them in," Ravenna replied, her tone smooth, commanding, the kind that made obedience instinctive.
The doors swung open, and one by one, the core of Kim Dukedom's leadership entered.
Alice strode in first, her sharp eyes hidden behind polished spectacles, ledgers and fresh reports neatly stacked in her arms. Behind her came Hughes, dressed simply in a dark tunic, though his presence still carried the weight of the battlefield. He bore the after-action reports from their recent clash, his knuckles white against the parchment.
Next came Sarah, the steady hand of administration. Her posture was upright, her expression serious, and in her grip were the meticulously prepared documents concerning the daily workings of the dukedom: budgets, supplies, infrastructure, all the veins and arteries that kept Ravenna's dominion alive.
John followed, noticeably out of his usual knight's armor. Instead, he carried a sturdy box filled with organized records, patrols, training logs, and recent recruitment drafts. The absence of his armor did not diminish the aura of discipline he carried.
Then Aurora entered, sweeping in like a storm dressed in silk. Her attire mirrored Ravenna's signature daring style: skin revealed with calculated glamour, each step radiating confidence. Her knight-captain, David, shadowed her, plainly dressed but alert, the posture of a man always ready for steel. Behind him came her advisors: Ben, the pragmatic strategist, and Emma, whose keen intuition balanced his composed nature with blunt practicality.
And finally, the last figure stepped into the chamber. Shorter than the rest, chestnut-brown hair falling softly around her hesitant expression, Marie lingered near the threshold as though the air itself pressed heavily on her shoulders. Her presence drew every eye, and her nervous fidget only heightened the tension.
"Here" Ravenna's voice cut through the silence, warm but carrying the edge of command. She motioned to Alice, who, in the perfect efficiency of a head maid, immediately placed a chair beside Ravenna's desk.
"Sit next to me, Marie."
"Y-Yes, Master," Marie murmured, cheeks faintly flushed. She hurried forward, and flopped down into the chair beside Ravenna in her usual energetic demeanor .
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One by one, the others seated themselves along the sofas arranged before the desk, forming a semi-circle of expectation. Each leader carried not only documents but also the unspoken awareness that what was about to be discussed would shape the future of the dukedom.
Ravenna leaned back in her chair, her deep dark eyes sweeping the room with deliberate slowness, pausing on each of them in turn. The smirk returned to her lips, sharper, hungrier, promising both revelation and challenge.
"So," she said at last, her voice silken. "Let us begin."
"Then let's discuss the most pressing issue on everyone's mind, shall we?" High Priest James interjected at once, seizing the moment before Ravenna could guide the conversation elsewhere. His eyes glimmered with eagerness as his lips curved into a smile. "Your Highness, if you would… Please tell them."
Ravenna leaned back in her chair, her posture a picture of languid confidence. She smiled, that familiar expression of nonchalant arrogance playing across her features as though she were discussing the weather rather than shattering the balance of power in the entire Empire. "The Divine Light that blanketed the island during the battle… yes, as you've all suspected, it was the Saintess."
Her words landed like a hammer striking stone.
The room fell utterly silent. Those who had not known beforehand froze, their expressions a mixture of awe, fear, and dawning realization. The rumors had been impossible to ignore since for the last few days whispers spread through every street and hall of Kim City. Yet, until now, they had been only that: speculation, gossip, a story to be dismissed. But to hear Ravenna confirm it so plainly, so calmly, forced the weight of truth upon them.
Their dukedom was no longer simply a rising power. It was now the epicenter of a divine storm.
Alice broke the silence first, her sharp gaze sliding toward High Priest James. "So if so.. I take it, then, that the Herptian Church is fully committed to backing Her Highness now?"
James straightened in his seat, his voice measured but unable to mask his pride. "Yes. Once the Central Headquarters received my report of the Divine Light, they granted me the authority to represent the faith in its entirety. The Holy Cathedral itself has dispatched magic ships to the Eastern Continent, bearing envoys of the highest rank: Archdeacons among them."
John, arms crossed, leaned forward slightly, his brows knitting. "Then… does that mean the Herptian Church intends to take the Saintess back to the Western Continent?" His words were blunt, the question carrying the unease of every knight and officer who understood the danger. Having the Saintess was like holding a jewel in a nest of ants, every religion in the world would swarm for a chance to claim her.
"In their dreams." Ravenna's voice cut through the tension like a blade, her smirk returning. "I've already struck a deal with High Priest James. The Saintess remains here, in Kim Dukedom. Whatever training or duties the Church wishes her to undergo will be performed here, under my jurisdiction, and nowhere else."
Silence gripped the room again. Some eyes widened in disbelief, others narrowed in thought. To tether the Saintess to their soil was both an unparalleled advantage and an incomprehensible risk.
Aurora was the first to break the quiet. Her eyes, sharp as knives, studied Ravenna with open suspicion."Not unusual for you to want everything under your control, Ravy. But this…" She leaned forward, folding one leg gracefully over the other. "This is strange. Risking your island becoming a battlefield for the sake of possession? There's only one explanation."
Her lips curved into a knowing smile, her voice cutting through the room like velvet over steel. "The Saintess is someone you care about… isn't she? Is it Alice?"
A flicker of silence passed before Alice could even respond.
Aurora's smile widened, her gaze flicking toward the younger girl who sat stiffly beside Ravenna. "Or is it… Marie?"
The effect was immediate. Marie's shoulders jolted as if struck, her chestnut-brown hair swaying as she flinched. The subtle, instinctive reaction betrayed her before a word could even be spoken, and in that instant the entire council knew. Aurora's sharp deduction had cut straight to the truth.
Ravenna's chuckle broke the tension, low and amused. She reached out, her hand landing on Marie's head with a teasing pat. "You really do need to work on your composure, Marie," she said, her smirk softening only slightly.
The room rippled with shock, disbelief, and the unspoken weight of what had just been laid bare: the Saintess of this era, the figure around whom nations would rise and fall, was seated timidly at Ravenna's side.