* * *

Andante thought he had briefly lost his mind. No—he had decided to stop running from it, so he might as well admit it. He had done it simply because he wanted to.

He hadn’t expected her to accept. But wasn’t the human heart swayed by even the smallest possibility?

He had just wanted to show it a little. Even if she failed to notice and responded with her usual cold glare and dismissive tone, he was confident he could laugh it off comfortably.

But Chris’s reaction was that of someone who knew. In a word—she was appalled.

‘Ah, I’ve ruined everything.’

It had been hasty and foolish. He had been far too giddy over his first act of rebellion in his life. If his relationship with Chris fell apart from here on, it would be entirely his fault.

His chest ached several times worse than the hand Chris had pushed away.

Andante parted his trembling lips. Regardless of everything, he needed to pull Chris out of this uncomfortable situation.

“I’m sorry…….”

“Unlike you, I am working right now. Did you think I was simply standing against the wall because I had no partner?”

“Uh, not particularly…….”

“The son of Duke Serif dancing with his supervising professor. What a lovely picture that would paint.”

As she said this, Chris’s gaze drifted oddly toward the ceiling. Andante followed her line of sight with a puzzled expression, then finally understood.

‘Someone’s watching.’

Someone was watching this hall. Perhaps this entire Holy Kingdom.

Even Andante, who had spent years living hyperaware of others’ gazes, would have remained oblivious without Chris’s blatant hint.

Suddenly, his palms seemed to grow clammy. The soft, fluttery feeling from moments ago was instantly replaced by tension.

‘Did the professor know about this situation from the start?’

Where surveillance was necessary, that much danger lurked. In other words, there was no room for leisure. One never knew when something might erupt.

“I told you earlier. You are separate from us.”

‘So Andante wouldn’t get caught up in this unnecessarily……’ Was that what she was thinking? Andante looked at Chris with confused eyes.

Then he turned up the corners of his mouth. So that to others, it would simply look like a boy embarrassed after being turned down for a dance.

Though the words he spoke were entirely different.

“I don’t mind. In fact, if I can help you, Professor, I’d like to.”

“A cocky little brat, aren’t you.”

“If you’re maintaining some kind of cover, dancing might actually look more natural. I’m good at the woman’s part too, and I can also lead.”

“Just like a damn noble young master.”

Chris clicked her tongue with a tsk.

Andante himself had no idea where this courage was surging from after already being rejected, but somehow…….

‘My heart feels lighter.’

The moment he realized Chris had simply been thinking about her mission, he could be certain.

This wouldn’t ruin their relationship over something so trivial. Chris was, in the truest sense, a teacher—someone who humored her student’s pretenses to a reasonable degree.

Well, he’d have to be a bit more tactful from now on, though.

“Professor, by any chance… can you not dance?”

“……Shut up.”

“Ah, that’s fine. I’ll teach you next time.”

“I don’t need it.”

Seeing Chris respond with an even more sour expression than before, Andante couldn’t help but laugh brightly.

Of course.

‘What could they be talking about that makes him smile like that.’

No one knew what Michael, who had been watching the two of them, was thinking.

However, there was one thing to recall at this point. The fact that Chris had rejected the sudden quest.

And wasn’t there a condition in the quest that needed to be resolved here—that the banquet had to be concluded “without incident”?

Which meant…….

“Emergency! The Holy Relic that was scheduled to be unveiled today has suddenly vanished!”

“What? Damn it, when did someone steal that? Gasp, Your Holiness!”

“The Holy Relic’s aura can still be sensed within these walls, so seal the entrances. I must now ask for the understanding of all our distinguished guests. In truth, a notice arrived the day before this banquet declaring the intent to steal the Holy Relic. Therefore, we can conclude that the thief is among us here. We will begin the search immediately, so I ask for your full cooperation. That is, if you value your lives. This Holy Relic is… a rather peculiar one.”

The incident erupted faster than anticipated.

‘Fuck. I thought it felt oddly heavy, but this was a huge fucking mess… I should’ve known something was up when they gave me a dress with pockets.’

That the stolen Holy Relic had ended up nestled in Chris’s bosom was, well, unavoidable.

* * *

I hadn’t expected things to pass quietly. Considering the quests the System had given so far, an incident was bound to happen.

‘But isn’t this a bit much even so?’

I didn’t even know what that damn Holy Relic looked like. Let alone when it crawled into my dress!

‘Calm down. Sure, something appeared in my pocket right when the Holy Relic went missing, but there’s no guarantee this is it, right?’

[One of the Five Great Holy Relics, ‘Purity,’ which is in your pocket, requests a conversation. Will you accept?]

Oh, fuck. How kind of them to finish me off with a confirmation shot.

‘But wait—a conversation? Who knew a Holy Relic could talk?’

Before nodding, I carefully scanned my surroundings.

Priests struggling to line people up in single file, and nobles protesting why they were being subjected to such treatment.

My adorable students, apparently deciding to rally around their professor first, were all heading my way.

Uh, my back is suddenly feeling awfully damp. Damn it, I’ve done nothing wrong, so why am I the one who’s screwed?

I couldn’t be caught holding this thing. The moment I tried to explain, the ‘Chris’ character roleplay would crack, and if I kept my mouth shut to maintain the act, I’d end my life in a holding cell.

For starters, it was questionable whether anyone would even believe I wasn’t the thief.

‘So I had to do something before the search reached me. Accept conversation.’

[Beginning conversation with the Holy Relic ‘Purity.’]

What unfolded right before my eyes was a translucent chat window. Even Holy Relics communicate via chat these days. What a wonderful world we live in.

[Purity: You damn ■■ bastard, whose pocket did you shove me into? Hey! You tell me. What the hell are you?]

Oh my, cursing at me when we’ve just met. Someone’s got quite the nerve, huh?

I watched my students asking each other if they’d seen anyone suspicious while composing my reply. Then, just as I thought it, a message was typed into the chat window.

[Illegal Player: That’s what I want to know. How the hell did you end up here?]

Ah… wait, why is my nickname that? Change it to Law-Abiding Player. I stared in disbelief, and the next message arrived immediately.

[Purity: You understood me just now? Hah, that’s a first since I ended up like this. You’re not a child of the Creator God, are you?]

“Cough.”

Startled, I suppressed the sound that nearly escaped me with a cough.

Well, I mean, my soul was at least a product of Earth, not this world, so technically… I shooed away the Protagonist, who was hovering around asking, “Professor, are you catching a cold?” and replied.

[Law-Abiding Player: Why does that matter?]

[Purity: Because I’m ‘Purity,’ not some other Holy Relic! It’s a disaster for me to be attached to someone who isn’t a child of the Creator God!]

I had the illusion that something was wriggling inside my pocket. So there was a bigger problem than just being framed as a thief.

[Purity: If I were Mercy or Love, it would’ve been fine, but I’m Purity, and I can’t stay attached to you. After a certain amount of time passes, a magic activates to eliminate impurities.]

Wait a minute. That magic isn’t something extreme like an explosion, is it? It’s a Holy Relic, for crying out loud—does it really need to be that aggressive?

[Purity: To put it simply, you’re going to die soon!]

Oh my, so I’ve become a legendary idiot phantom thief who stole a time bomb and is carrying it in her bosom.

To summarize: the Holy Relic I was carrying for some unknown reason was going to go off soon, and to detach it from my body, I’d have to advertise that I was harboring stolen goods.

Nothing but a dead ending in sight. Goddammit.

“Professor, are you really alright? Your complexion looks…….”

“I’m thinking, so don’t talk to me.”

How thoughtful of them to remind me I need to mind my expressions even at a time like this. I took a short breath, maintained a serious brow, and thought.

[Law-Abiding Player: Then what do I do??? Am I just going to die like this??? You’re a Holy Relic, don’t you have some special function or something? Like turning invisible and going back to where you belong!!! At least you can talk!!!]