Chapter 12
“What do you want back?”
“My power. You never said anything about this.”
Litia narrowed her eyes sharply.
“If I told you everything, you might run away. I needed at least one card up my sleeve.”
“What did you just say?”
“Anyway, I won, didn’t I?”
Seeing how relaxed he looked, as if he had nothing to lose, Litia bit her lip.
“If you knew how much trouble I’ve been in, you wouldn’t be saying that. Give my power back. Now. The mark that appeared on my shoulder—you made it, didn’t you? Remove this too. Right now.”
Litia turned slightly and indicated her shoulder.
It was in a place she could only see by looking in a mirror, so she pressed near it with her hand.
“Hmm.”
Caliph deliberately dragged out his response, ominously.
“Hurry up.”
Litia pressed him impatiently.
“I don’t want to.”
At his firm refusal, Litia’s mouth fell open. Did he really just say no?
Her eyes sharpened again.
“I’m not joking. Caliph, this might be a game to you, but it’s not to me. If I can’t use my power even tomorrow—”
“The reason you can’t use your power isn’t because of me.”
“What?”
“It’s because you didn’t accept me.”
“…Because I didn’t accept you?”
“The more you try to erase my trace, the more your power will disappear. Tell me—when you were able to use your power again, what were you thinking about?”
At that, Litia snapped her mouth shut.
She remembered how desperately she had been searching for him. Was that really the reason? Before that, her power hadn’t worked because she wanted to erase his trace? What kind of logic was that?
Litia lowered her gaze to the floor, lost in thought. Only when Caliph gently lifted her chin did she look up.
“No…”
The word slipped out of her without thinking.
“And getting rid of it is impossible.”
“…Impossible?”
“I could do it, but you might die. Do you really want that?”
At his extreme statement, Litia faltered and stared at him, unable to speak.
“What is this, exactly? Why would I die?”
“I told you—it can’t be undone.”
“You did. But you never said I wouldn’t be able to use my holy power. You didn’t tell me.”
Litia spoke, clearly remembering that day.
Caliph made a slightly troubled expression.
“This isn’t working.”
“Stop joking around!”
Litia’s voice shook.
She felt like her heart was being worn down to nothing, while he treated her as if this were nothing more than a joke or a passing curiosity.
“Fine. I can’t give everything back, but—”
Caliph took Litia’s hand.
She didn’t pull away, staying still to placate him.
Afraid he might smile playfully again and do nothing.
All Litia wanted was for him to give it back quickly.
Caliph’s lips touched the back of her hand.
He pressed a kiss there while looking straight at her. Litia couldn’t bear his heated gaze and turned her eyes away.
After holding the kiss for a moment, he slowly lifted his lips.
“Hng…”
There was no need to ask.
Litia drew in a short, trembling breath.
As if a tightly blocked passage had opened, a refreshing sensation spread through her body without her forcing out her holy power.
This time, there was none of the sharp, unpleasant tingling that had always lingered underneath.
It was stronger than anything she had felt before, even before she had learned to use her power after coming here. Tears welled up in her eyes on instinct.
Was it really this easy to undo?
Was she truly free now? He had said he couldn’t give everything back, but what she felt now was far stronger than her original power. At this level, she probably wouldn’t need to look for him again…
Blinking, Litia spoke.
“…Is it done? Is that everything? Am I back to normal?”
“Hm.”
“What does that mean?”
“Cheating prevention.”
“…Cheating prevention?”
What was that supposed to mean?
“If I released everything, you’d run off without looking back. You just thought something like that, didn’t you?”
Litia flinched.
She had only been wondering whether she’d need to look for him again or not. He was sharp.
She gave up. The moment she started looking for him, she had already accepted that she’d lost the one-week bet.
“…You said you’d take responsibility for your words. Fine. You win.”
Litia puffed out her lips.
Caliph looked down at her with renewed interest and spoke.
“Really?”
“As long as you don’t keep putting me in trouble. If you do, there’s no reason for me to listen to you.”
“Hm, fine. I’ll restrain myself as much as I can. What else should I do for you?”
The moment she admitted it, Caliph acted as if he would grant anything. Litia, who had expected him to tease her more, felt puzzled.
Was this really something to be that happy about? Hadn’t he just said he’d do whatever he wanted? Just a moment ago, he’d been practically threatening her.
What about her did he like so much?
They had spent the same amount of time together.
It should have been something she could brush off—I spent one night with an incredibly handsome man. Caliph was probably the same. He was far more relaxed than she was.
No matter how she looked at it, it was strange.
It had been their first meeting, and even though it led to a night together, it wasn’t enough time to build intimacy. It was just one night.
To be honest, Caliph was impressive. Even while struggling to adjust to Litia’s body, she had been strongly drawn to him.
That night, he had eased her anxiety, released her pent-up frustration, and even gave her pleasure.
If her heart hadn’t been so complicated—if her situation weren’t like this—she wouldn’t have tried so hard to run away that day.
Even if she wanted more, Litia was bound by too many restrictions.
Duke Mont was far more frightening than she had expected. He didn’t hesitate to replace people. For example, on the day Litia fell into the lake, all the knights and servants who had been on guard at the estate were said to have been executed. Only Emilia, who was closest to her, survived with a month of confinement.
They said he beheaded them without mercy. Litia couldn’t even bear to imagine it.
If anything stood in the way of her becoming Tenia, he would remove it—no matter what.
She had heard later, in passing, that the reason he had allowed her relationship with Jit to continue was because Jit was insignificant and could be dealt with later.
According to Emilia, when Duke Mont was informed that Litia had kicked Jit Tresh away, he was pleased, saying his daughter had truly come to her senses.
She had wondered why someone as sensitive to rumors as Duke Mont had left that boy alone for so long. It was because he hadn’t even been worth dealing with.
But Caliph?
He was a man who could suppress the powerful holy energy that was the most important requirement for a saintess. She didn’t know how he did it, but if Duke Mont found out, would he leave him alone?
She couldn’t let an innocent person get hurt.
And then another doubt arose.
Who was he, to be able to suppress someone else’s power so easily?
It was probably impossible, but… could he be one of the Orb?
In the original story, it was said that unless absolutely necessary, a Theos and an Orb might never meet even once in their lifetime. The chances of that happening were incredibly low…
As far as Litia knew, Orbs had no clear physical traits. Nothing was written. It would have been easier if they at least had horns or something.
What nobles called impurities, outlaws, calamities—beings of darkness and discomfort.
But Caliph didn’t match those words at all. If anything, he carried the most aristocratic air of all.
“As long as I can use my power, I don’t need anything else.”
So she deliberately kept her tone cold.
Caliph reached for her cheek.
Litia instinctively stepped back.
Instead of her cheek, he gently gathered her long, silver-thread-like hair in his hand.
“You can use it whenever you want.”
“Whenever?”
“And I can help you whenever.”
“Why?”
“Because I decided to. So why not lower your guard a little? Like that day. This doesn’t feel like I won at all. Hmm?”
Caliph whispered.
After a moment of hesitation, Litia spoke. It was something she had been wondering for a while.
“Did you…?”
“Hm?”
“Have you seen me before? Or watched me for a long time or something…?”
“Is this an extension of love at first sight?”
Embarrassed, Litia’s face flushed as she carefully nodded.
Caliph looked like he was holding back laughter. Her face turned even redder.
“No. I saw you for the first time that day.”
“Really?”
“And you already know.”
“Know what?”
“Who I’m interested in.”
“……”
“Does that answer your question?”
“More than enough.”
“So are you still not going to tell me your real name?”
“……”
Litia closed her mouth again.
Another reason she didn’t want to get more involved.
She didn’t like the way he spoke as if he knew her true self.
She didn’t know what he knew—or how much. And even if he knew everything, she had no intention of accepting it.
Why would she willingly give someone leverage over her?
In every way, this man was dangerous.
It was unfortunate she had only realized it after spending a night with him.
So before Caliph could say anything else, Litia lifted her head.
“My name is Litia. I don’t have another name. And you—are you sure that’s your real name?”
She pretended ignorance and pressed him instead. There was no noble named Caliph. She had searched. She had checked whether it was a first name or a family name—nothing. Of course, he might not be a noble, but then he wouldn’t have been able to attend the banquet.
“It’s my real name. Why—did you look me up or something?”
“No.”
Litia shot back immediately.
Caliph laughed, as if amused.
Something strange flickered in his eyes, as though he knew more than he let on.
