I couldn’t deny that the name was similar to a Korean name.

Rhee Jena.

I was pretty sure that they made it sound like an American name.

‘Who is she?’

I was so curious, but there was nothing I could do right now, at least until I met her and heard her explanation.

“Will Rere be alright….?”

Rather than concern about having to go through this uncomfortable journey, I was more worried about Rere, whom I left behind without saying goodbye.

I was getting up early so I didn’t say goodbye….

“I should buy her a present on my way back.”

With that thought in mind, I looked out the window.

I kept quiet throughout that time inside the carriage because I was anxious about what truth I might discover next.

I slowly fell asleep. Maybe it was due to the rattling of the carriage, or the accumulation of fatigue. And so I woke up because something in my pocket vibrated.

As soon as I woke up in a drowsy mood, a tremendous chill came over me. Fortunately, the knight accompanying me in the carriage covered me with a blanket, but I could still feel the drastic change in the air.

When I looked out the window in a hurry, I could see white snow falling from the sky.

“It’s snowing….”

“Is this your first time seeing snow?”

The knight across from me smiled when he saw me looking out of the window with fascination.

“Ah…I think so.”

I had seen it before, but I just nodded awkwardly because I knew Leona wouldn’t have seen it in her lifetime.

“Snow is indeed beautiful. I love it so much.”

“Is that so?”

“Pardon me for my late introduction. I am the knight that His Grace has assigned to escort you. My name is Felix, and I was born in Ludella.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Once again I’m sorry for not greeting you sooner. I was wrong to talk to you without greeting first…”

He looked at me awkwardly while trying to collect himself.

“No need to complicate it. Were you the one who covered me with this blanket?”

“Yes. The weather is cold here. It has become an uninhabitable place now.”

“Was it not always like this in the past?”

“Yes. It was colder than the capital city, but it was still inhabitable. Because of that I often heard that Ludella is a land cursed by god.”

He looked out the window in sorrow.

“But it’s a very nice place.”

“It feels like a completely different country. A country covered with snow….”

How happy Rere would be if she came here. I should bring Rere here next time. I could imagine the child jumping up and down with her eyes shining brightly like a puppy.

‘I feel like I’ve become a mom for real.’

They say if you love someone, you’ll think of them whenever you eat something delicious or have a good time.

Funny, I thought of Rere before Ian.

He’d probably be sad hearing that.

‘I’m sure Ian would be sad.’

I used to see snow every winter in the past, yet it was quite fascinating to see it here. But when I was about to open the door a little and put my hand out.

“I-It’s cold!”

I heard Felix’ voice, but I had already opened the door. A gush of cold wind froze my cheeks instantly.

“Ho….”

Felix closed the door quickly, but it was after I was already hit by the chill wind.

“Ho…It’s really cold…”

My teeth chattered.

“Yes…It seems like God is really angry that the cold is so unbearable except for certain places. A-Are you alright?”

I rubbed my hands together then put my palms against my cheeks.

“I think I’m okay….”

It was really weird. I couldn’t believe that there was a temple in such a cold place.

In the meantime, the carriage slowed down.

“I think we’ve arrived now.”

When he said that, I was busy blowing air into my hands and rubbing my cheeks, but after a moment I glanced out the window. Surprisingly, there was a building that appeared just beyond the window. The place was big enough to fit an entire village in it.

It was a vacant space where nothing existed except for a temple in the middle.

“This is…”

“It’s a temple. It’s the only building left in Ludella.”

It was the same as I had heard in the description. I stared blankly at the temple as he spoke. It felt so strange.

It was my first time coming to this temple, but my heart was beating like crazy. I was engulfed in an unknown feeling. I felt some sort of longing as if I had been here before.

“Temple…”

And unlike the surroundings that were covered in white, there was a little bit of greenery left in that empty place.

“You can open the window now.”

I raised my hand to the window but I was at loss as to what to do, so Felix smiled and nodded at me. So I opened the window and warm air gushed in.

The temperature was not the same as other regions, but it was distinctly different from the place earlier.

It was kind of warm.

“I think we’re almost there.”

“Ah…yes.”

Unlike the temple in the capital, no one came rushing toward us the moment they saw our carriage. Indeed, unlike there, this place was empty as if no one lived there. I took Felix’ hand and slowly exited the carriage.

The knights who followed us also stepped off the carriage. Ten knights surrounded us in an instant.

“Then, let’s go in.”

“Yes.”

“But is everyone alright? Maybe your armor is cold…”

“We’re alright. We’re wearing thick clothing on the inside. You can enter the temple without worrying about us.”

I took a quick glance at Felix and walked toward the temple. You would think that someone would come out to check on us because of how noisy we were, but nobody did. As if nobody lived here.

“It’s quiet.”

“Yes. I think…there are only a few people staying here.”

“I see…”

When we arrived at the temple entrance a man appeared and blocked our way.

“Identify yourself.”

“I am Duchess Leona Petri.”

“Oh, you’re here for a visit? Please come in.”

“Thank you.”

“But I can’t let everyone in. You can only bring one knight inside with you.”

Hearing that, Felix and the knights’ faces turned grim. But we couldn’t go against the temple owner either. We weren’t here to fight, after all.

“I will go with Felix.”

“But it can be dangerous.”

I smiled at the knight behind me who tried to dissuade me.

“Don’t worry. I have a hunch that it won’t be dangerous.”

“But…”

He still tried to stop me, but I ignored him and went inside.

‘I can trust my hunch…’

I regretted it a little after that. I had thought the High Priest was a good person last time.

‘It’s because I trust people too easily.’

But I was sure that nothing bad would happen this time.

Meanwhile, the unknown priest stopped at the entrance to a room.

“The guests are here.”

“Let them in.”

I thought I was going to hear a woman’s voice, but the voice belonged to a man.

“You have permission, so now you may enter.”

“Alright.”

Only then I was able to enter. Inside that small room, I noticed the statue of God that I had seen at the capital temple, along with chairs for the believers to pray.

A man stood right in front of the statue. And around him were six people bowing their heads.

“Greetings, Duchess Petri. I didn’t expect you to come this far.”

He sounded so elderly, it made me think he was the same age as the High Priest I met at the capital.

I approached him and bowed my head.

“Thank you for granting my sudden visit.”

“No need to thank me, but I haven’t heard of the reason for your visit.”

“I’m here to find someone.”

“Who is this person, may I ask?”

“Someone who you can call the owner of this temple.”

“We don’t have anyone who assumed the position of High Priest like the one in the capital here. Instead, we have the priest in charge. That person is me. I’m the person you’re looking for.”

I stared at him wordlessly while he spoke in such a haughty voice. Perhaps he found my gaze uncomfortable, but the Priest, who had been talking so smoothly, slowly averted his gaze.

“What can I help you with….”

“You’re not in charge of this place, are you?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Are you saying that you are the only priest in charge here?”

“That’s right.”

He spoke with conviction.

“How strange. Then are you the one who came to the Imperial Palace not too long ago?”

“Imperial Palace? I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“You’re such a bad liar. I don’t understand why you are even trying to lie to me.”

“What lie? You’re too much.”

Unlike before, his voice trembled a little. But I ignored him and approached one of the priests who stood with his head bent.

“Do you think I’m lying? Priestess who is in charge of Ludella Temple. Jena Rhee.”

Then, a person who had her head down slowly raised it.

“I didn’t think you’d find me this easily.”

I lifted up the corner of my mouth when I saw someone with eyes similar to mine.

“Are you testing me?”

“That’s right. A lot of people have come here, so I gave them a little test. I was curious about how much research they had done before coming here, and their intentions in coming here.”

“The purpose, huh?”

“If you were going to visit the temple to look for something, you’d just talk to the priest in charge. But if you purposely sought me after doing your research, I suppose you must have other intentions in mind. You don’t seem to have come here just to look for treasure.”