“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you.”
Arriving at the church, I opened the carriage door. There to greet me was High Priest Nax, whom I hadn’t seen in quite some time. He extended a hand to escort me, so I reached out to take it.
“Thank you.” For some reason, the first prince—father’s errand boy and the head supervisor—took the priest’s hand instead and stepped down from the carriage.
“My lady, this is...”
“Yes, a rose to escort us.”
It was my fellow obsessor who lectured on what yaoi was and enjoyed rose-themed discussions with me. Well, Miss Linda loved roses, so she was a true believer. I understood how her yaoi sensor reacted!
I wished I could show this scene to Dia, who had just started learning letters and was now sleeping on my head! Of course, given the location, I had cast a magic spell to conceal the sleeping Dia.
“A black and silver prince and a flaxen priest! I can’t take it!”
“I know! Let’s fully savor the selection!”
Ah, thank goodness Miss Linda wasn’t one of those fans who shunned fellow shippers! Now I had a friend here too!
“My lady.” As we sneakily wallowed in our fandom huddle, the black and silver prince extended his hand as naturally as a prince should. Ah, he really was a prince.
But I sensed something when the flaxen priest looked at me with an indescribable expression.
“Oh dear, don’t mind me.” I flashed a ladylike smile and stepped down on my own. Of course, it was to dodge the priest’s jealousy.
“Oh, aloof beauties are wonderful too...”
Was something wrong? Miss Linda, her face flushed, had muttered something so softly I couldn’t make it out. Her eyebrows drooped into a frown, her eyes were glistening... Could it be that she desired to be escorted by the black and silver prince?
“F-Fine! I’ll get down myself! It’s good for my legs!” Miss Linda glanced toward the prince, froze for an instant, then hurriedly stepped down.
Well, yes, legs and hips were important. And since she was dressed lightly, there was no worry of tripping over something in the carriage. One shouldn’t miss a single chance to use your legs and hips! Though we were still young, this was crucial for the elderly!
“My lady, the documents for the priest, if you would. We’ve come to process the cancellation of the marriage registration, as stipulated by the church. We request the priest handle this promptly.”
“Certainly,” said Priest Nax. “But why is His Royal Highness the First Prince accompanying Lady Robur?”
It was only natural he looked puzzled. I didn’t really need the first prince’s escort either. But I’d been told that if he, as head supervisor, went along, today’s class would count as attended. For the sake of the Triple-S Special, I absolutely didn’t want to be marked absent. That said, these two weren’t merely escorts.
“They’re my picnic companions, of course! I even made lunch. Dishes featuring rabbit, bear, and wolf meat—my pride and joy. Would you like some, Priest Nax?” Today’s main event was a picnic! Since it was a big church, there should be trees and flowers, and if Dia could run around and get inspired by nature, it would be even better!
“No, as the senior priest, I’ll be handling matters today,” Nax replied, glaring at the picnic gear the prince was pulling out from the carriage’s cargo compartment. “More importantly, please refrain from eating or drinking inside the church. And a picnic with lunch boxes? What exactly are you here for?”
“It’s a divorce picnic, you know.” It was a name that instantly revealed today’s purpose—combining a picnic with divorce proceedings!
“My lady, that name makes it sound like we’re the ones getting divorced,” said Regulus.
“How exactly are you involved in this? Besides, your whole perspective is off—isn’t the main theme leaning mostly toward a picnic?”
“Mom, when did you start dating the prince?! The Unexpected Marriage series is out of the question! Dia’s gonna smack him!”
Oh dear, was the sleepy angel feeling unsettled by my conversation with the priest? And had she somehow seen the stage script I’d written and hidden? It was one one I’d written recently, inspired by the soap operas I’d seen in my last life—full of messy love and hate, the kind that might appeal to certain ladies via my publisher!
“No, Dia. My parents are the ones getting divorced. Rest assured, there haven’t been any additions or deletions to my household register in this lifetime. Besides, if you hit Miss Linda during your smacking, it could be dangerous. Let’s hold off for now.”
“Oh! Right! I have to protect my fan friend!”
“Yes, that’s right.” Good girl. I gently stroked Dia, secretly infusing her with my magic so no one else could tell.
Within this child, affection was slowly blossoming, and the power of the sacred beast I’d hastily prepared for her was growing stronger. I couldn’t help but smile as I thought about how the power inherited from Lia was firmly taking root in Dia.
“Mmmph, mom’s magic... So warm...” Oh dear, Dia had fallen asleep again, and she was snoring slightly.
Lately, I’d often seen Dia pouring her magic into an egg-shaped magic stone, like a multifaceted gem, that she’d acquired from the volcano. Granting magic to someone or something required skill, and she seemed quite tired out by the process. Sometimes I demonstrated by infusing magic into it myself. Maybe that was why? The magic stone had started swelling, and I was secretly worried it might explode.
Lifting my face again, I couldn’t help tilting my head when I saw that all three of them were staring at me blankly. What was wrong? Could it be that even inside the church, the still image curse had activated after so long?