Since what she had just seen was so shocking, even after Greg buckled his belt back on, Veronica still stood frozen in place, taking several seconds to gradually regain her senses.
She recalled that it seemed to be a legendary curse mark.
It was said to only appear on a believer of the Goddess of Night after they had committed an extremely intimate act with a believer of the Goddess of Light.
But the problem was, even if Greg had been a believer of the Goddess of Night before regaining his past life's memories, why would he have such a curse mark on him?
Had he done that kind of thing to someone in the Church of Light?
Greg seemed to notice Veronica's confusion and spoke up at the perfect moment:
“I imagine you must be very confused right now—as to why I have this curse mark on me, right?”
Veronica looked up at him with a complex gaze and nodded gently:
“Yes... I am indeed very confused. I know the origin of this curse mark very well, but it shouldn't have appeared on you.”
“Mm, you're right. It indeed shouldn't have appeared on me.”
Greg said in a tone tinged with bitterness and helplessness:
“Actually, I didn't know why at first either. In fact, when I first discovered this mark, I thought it was a punishment from Lady Serafina for my betrayal in this life.”
He gave a bitter smile and continued:
“But I later speculated that this might be related to me regaining my past life's memories. In my past life, I was female and believed in the Goddess of Light, Lady Serafina. In this life, however, I am male, and before regaining my memories, I had already joined the Dark Night Order and believed in the Goddess of Night, Nightmare.”
“Now that the memories of two lifetimes have merged into one, and two completely different faiths are intertwined in the same body... I believe it must be this unique situation that caused the curse mark to misjudge. It mistook my situation as me having committed that intimate act with a believer of the Goddess of Light, which is why it appeared on my body.”
His tone was sincere and open, and his logic was clear and self-consistent, as if he had truly spent a long time contemplating and refining this conclusion.
Veronica fell into deeper thought after listening to his explanation.
She kept her head lowered, her platinum-blonde hair draping over both sides of her cheeks, as she gently rubbed her chin, carefully turning over each of Greg's words in her mind.
The memories of two lifetimes merged into one, and two faiths intertwined in the same body...
Although this explanation could not be supported by orthodox theological theory, considering that Greg's situation was indeed unprecedented...
...this might truly be the reason behind it!
After all, in Veronica's eyes, Greg was an incomparably devout believer, so he was absolutely someone who would never do such a thing.
Thus, the more Veronica thought about it, the more reasonable it felt. Finally, she nodded:
“Yes, perhaps the reason really is as you say. Due to the blending of memories from two lifetimes, the curse mark made a misjudgment.”
She looked up at Greg. “Then, is this also the reason why you didn't return to the Church immediately?”
Hooked!
Greg thought to himself, immediately stepping into his best-actor mode.
He lowered his head, his shoulders slumping slightly. He exuded an aura of being crushed by a heavy burden, and his figure even began to tremble slightly:
“Yes, because I believe... someone like me, bearing an unclean mark, is not worthy of returning to Lady Serafina's embrace.”
“Whenever I see this mark, I am reminded of the fact that I am a believer of the Night in this life. Although it was not my intention, the mark is real, after all. So I... I don't dare to return to the Church and tarnish Lady Serafina's glory.”
Listening to Greg's words, which were filled with self-blame and pain, an uncontrollable surge of emotion welled up in Veronica's heart.
She tightly clenched her hands in front of her chest, her voice carrying an unprecedented determination and excitement:
“Lord Greg, please do not say such things! You are the most devout person I have ever met—bar none! In this world, no one is more qualified than you to return to Lady Serafina's embrace!”
She took a deep breath, her tone becoming even more resolute:
“Moreover, you joined the Dark Night Order before regaining your past life's memories. That was not your fault! Lady Serafina is merciful; she will surely understand your difficulties!”
Hey, what I want isn't just your verbal comfort!
Greg maintained his dejected and self-reproachful look as he said:
“Thank you... for recognizing me like this. To receive the acknowledgment of the current Saintess is already an immense honor for me, but...”
He lowered his head, his voice growing even softer:
“When I think of myself bearing such an unclean mark, I... I feel like I have no face to meet Lady Serafina. Every time I pray, I feel like I have betrayed her, and whenever I sleep, I always wake up startled in the middle of the night...”
Looking at Greg in this state, Veronica felt as if her heart was being violently squeezed.
She bit her lip, remaining silent for a moment. Then, as if she had made up her mind, she raised her head and looked at Greg with a firm gaze:
“It's all right, Lord Greg, because—I will remove this mark for you.”
Yes! That's exactly what I wanted!
Greg snapped his head up, a perfectly measured look of surprise on his face:
“Is that possible? But I recall... it seems no one has ever successfully removed this mark before, right?”
Veronica nodded firmly:
“It is possible. As Lady Serafina's messenger, I indeed know how to remove this curse mark.”
She paused, her voice growing slightly faint, and a few patches of crimson dyed her cheeks:
“As for why no one was able to remove it before... it's because the method is somewhat special. Special to the point that... no Saintess of any generation would be willing to do it, let alone for a heretic.”
Hearing this, Greg's curiosity was instantly piqued.
Since this was knowledge that even Silvia, a Candidate Saintess, didn't know, just what kind of method was it to be kept so mysterious?
However, Greg couldn't ask directly. That would make him seem too eager, which wouldn't fit his current devout and self-reproachful persona.
Therefore, he put on a look of concern, a trace of worry in his tone:
“Can I really trouble you with this? Since this method is something previous generations of Saintesses were unwilling to do... I don't want to make things difficult for you either.”
Looking at the genuine concern in Greg's eyes, a warm current welled up in Veronica's heart.
She lowered her head slightly, her platinum-blonde hair obscuring half of her flushed face, her voice soft yet firm:
“If it is doing this for you, Lord Greg... I am willing. Because I know that you are a devout believer, and your soul is also that of a woman.”
She raised her head, her gaze carrying a clarity that transcended worldly prejudices:
“So, please leave this matter to me with peace of mind.”
Rate on N.U.
