Chapter 89

The priest had been abandoned at the gates of the monastery of Clay since he
was a child. Fortunately, he was handsome and naturally intelligent, knowing
how to make use of everything around him.

Achill, on the other hand, was an orphan as well, but unlike the priest, he
wasn’t abandoned. He lived with his own parents, only to watch them taken away
by poverty and disease.

Due to hunger, Achill once went to beg at the Clay monastery. The priest
followed the nuns to give alms. Although the priest himself was an orphan, he
looked down on these begging children. However, he never showed his true
feelings. He always appeared kind, and Achill found the priest’s golden hair,
green eyes, and constant smile very beautiful, so he developed a liking for
him.

Afterward, the priest often came out to give alms to the nuns. Achill boldly
said to the priest, “Hello.”

The priest was taken aback for a moment, then smiled, “Hello.”

Achill and the priest, who was still a young monk, became friends until the
priest left Clay. They got along well.

Of course, this is from Achill’s perspective. In the priest’s view, he had
just gotten rid of a little beggar; he never needed friends.

The priest joyfully headed to the capital, throwing himself into the journey
of climbing up. He had already forgotten everything about Clay.

However, two years ago, the priest unexpectedly met Archer again.

At that time, Archer had just joined the revolutionary party. The party
assigned him a task: to assassinate a wealthy nobleman. It was Archer’s first
murder, and he almost failed.

After firing several shots near the church, the guards came to arrest him.
Achill took advantage of the chaos and hid in the Church, where he met the
priest who was “taking care” of an injured bird.

To be honest, if it weren’t for Achill’s sudden appearance, the priest was
planning to secretly roast the bird and eat it.

Achill was ecstatic, knowing he was saved this time!

Unaware of the priest’s hypocrisy and greed hidden beneath his saintly
appearance, Achill trusted him as a friend and a sympathizer to the
revolutionary cause. He considered the Church a safe house for his operations,
even sending some money to the priest when he went back to the capital for
business.

The revolutionary party was detestable, but money was still valuable. The
priest didn’t refuse the money; his audacity and greed maintained their
“friendship” with Achill, which could be useful when needed.

“Stay here and don’t wander around,” the priest whispered.
“Wait for my message.”

Achill replied, “You too, be careful.”

The priest nodded and left the shack.

Outside the shack, the river flowed, not as clear as it seemed, polluted by
the sewage of Colby. The prince stood by the river, wearing a faint smile, as
if the scenery before him was exceptionally beautiful. Hearing the sound of the
wooden door opening, the prince turned his face, though the priest couldn’t see
it, the prince chose to show his unburned side to the priest. “Is it
done?” he asked.

“Yes, let him stay quiet by himself…” the priest said, closing
the door.

The prince picked up his cane and approached. “What illness does he
have?”

“It’s hard to say,” the priest replied softly. “Let’s
go.”

“We?” The smile on the prince’s face widened. “Oh, that’s a
pity.” He tried to control his tone, not overly joyous, after all, it
wouldn’t be respectful to someone on their deathbed.

“Perhaps he needs some funds for the funeral expenses,” the prince
suggested.

“You’re truly kind, Your Highness,” the priest said. “If
you’re willing to help, you could entrust it to me.”

The prince thought, handing money over to the priest. Wouldn’t that be like
giving it away for good? Despite the priest’s greed, the prince didn’t blindly
ignore it just because he was in love. He found the priest somewhat adorable.
Oh, this money-loving scoundrel…

“Very well,” the prince stepped forward, his smile gentle.
“I’ll have Bill give you the money later.”

The two of them traversed through the streets of Colby. There wasn’t much to
see in the slums. Even though the prince was lost in the beauty of love, he had
to admit that in just a few days, Colby had returned to its messy state.

Transforming a place from poverty to prosperity, from barbarism to
civilization, was not something that could be achieved overnight. When the
prince first arrived in Oss, the situation there was dire as well. People were
crushed by heavy taxes, wearing expressions of exhausted defeat. Poverty and
disease hung over the continent, with no hope in sight.

The familiar scene made the prince’s expression somewhat grim. His personal
happiness made him deeply feel the misfortune of the people.

The people of Colby felt nostalgic seeing the prince and the priest walking
together. Commoners leaning against the walls stood up as they passed by,
silently bowing to them. The prince nodded lightly, feeling ashamed of his
father’s governance of the country.

“Your Highness?” The priest felt the sudden silence of the prince
and sensed a slight downturn in mood. He wondered if the prince had noticed
something. After all, he was the protagonist; he couldn’t be taken lightly.

The prince returned to his senses. “Father, Brune will inform me
tomorrow that the king will decree your promotion to bishop of this district.
Congratulations. You’ll become the youngest bishop in all of Lecy.”

As expected, the priest didn’t show excessive joy, as the prince had
predicted. “I will prove the king’s choice to be wise in the future.”

The prince smiled. The priest’s pride stirred the prince’s emotions.

Bill looked miserable. He reluctantly told the prince that apart from the
apples, all the money he had on him was taken.

“They surrounded me, one after another,” Bill said to the prince
with a helpless tone. “They’re pitiful yet cunning children. I couldn’t
help it.”

The prince chuckled, not blaming the servant’s soft-heartedness. He opened
the carriage door, intending to assist the priest.

Bill quickly said, “Allow me.” He courteously helped the priest to
his feet and onto the carriage.

After the priest got into the carriage, Bill suddenly felt as if the prince
was staring at him coldly. After some thought, he tentatively reached out his
hand. “Your Highness, do you need me to assist you too?”

Ignoring Bill’s offer, the prince stepped into the carriage with his cane
and closed the door directly.

The carriage was spacious. The priest sat quietly, smelling a lingering
fragrance inside.

His fingers, crossed on his knees, were suddenly lightly touched. The
prince’s fingers were warm, with a slightly rough texture.

The priest didn’t move, not surprised by the prince’s desire. The prince was
quite passionate, but deliberately avoiding it for some time. Although he
couldn’t see, he could feel the fiery gaze of the prince when he was
unsatisfied. It was also a torture, albeit a different kind, that brought him
pleasure.

The priest was waiting to see how eagerly the prince would touch him, but
the prince pushed aside his fingers and placed something soft and cool in the
priest’s palm.

The priest gently moved his fingers and realized it was a flower.

Before handing the bouquet to the servant, the prince secretly left one
flower.

The priest cradled the pale-colored flower in his palm, his light-colored
lashes drooping low as if staring at the slightly wrinkled petal in his hand.

The prince felt an indescribable sweetness in his heart.

He really wanted to say a thousand, no, ten thousand words expressing his
love right now. Unfortunately, he couldn’t say them, and the occasion wasn’t
suitable. After all, Bill was outside the carriage.

“What kind of flower is this?” the priest whispered.

“Roses.”

The prince also lowered his voice.

“Put it in your sleeve,” the prince imparted his experience to the
priest. “It won’t be noticed.”

The priest sent the flower in his hand in the direction of the prince.

The prince was somewhat stunned.

“I don’t like flowers.”

“…”

After a brief standoff, the prince retrieved the flower from the priest’s
hand.

The atmosphere became somewhat strange.

The prince didn’t know what went wrong, but something was definitely off.
This was his first time falling in love, and he felt a bit lost.

Perhaps he should have left an apple, the prince thought.

The carriage returned to the church. Bill jumped down from the carriage and
opened the door. This time, he greeted the prince first, reaching out his hand
courteously. The prince, who never allowed himself to be waited upon, jumped
down from the carriage. He stood in front of the servant, blocking the
servant’s attempt to assist the priest again. Instead, he reached out his hand
and clasped the priest’s arm, allowing the priest to use it as leverage to step
down from the carriage.

“Thank you.”

The priest’s tone was polite but also icy.

The prince looked at the priest, feeling a bit flustered. He couldn’t
understand why the priest was so cold towards him.

“Father, I’d like to talk to you about your baptism later. Do you have
time?” the prince calmly asked.

“Yes, let’s talk in my room,” the priest replied in the same calm
tone.

The prince breathed a sigh of relief in his heart and smiled faintly. He
thought the priest probably just didn’t want to reveal anything in front of
others.

After the two returned to the priest’s room, the prince immediately closed
the door. He casually threw down his cane and embraced the priest, deeply
inhaling the fragrance from the priest’s neck. He kissed the priest’s cheek.
“I’ve missed you terribly, absolutely desperate for you.”

The priest didn’t respond but didn’t resist the prince’s affectionate
gesture either.

The prince soon kissed the priest’s lips. The priest’s lips were soft and
slightly cool, which fascinated the prince. He parted those two gentle lips and
tasted the flavor he had been dreaming of for the past few days.

The air seemed to grow hotter, and the prince’s kisses conveyed his intense
desire.

He was craving him like mad.

The priest pushed the prince away.

The prince didn’t expect the priest to do that. He staggered back a step,
his face showing a mixture of surprise and disappointment. “You…”

As the prince felt his poor heart sinking, the priest raised his hand and
slowly undid the button on his collar…

The black robe fell onto the dark floor, piling up at the priest’s feet.

The priest raised the hem of his robe with both hands, slowly rolling it up.

“It’s daytime now,” the priest said calmly as he rolled up his
outer robe. “Stand up. Don’t make any noise.”

In the dim corner, the priest’s face was pressed against the slightly cool
wall. Behind him, the pristine fabric concealed all the sins.

The sudden situation, resembling a cRandestine affair, made the prince’s
blood boil. He kissed the back of the priest’s neck, then his ear, then the
corner of his mouth, forcibly intertwining his tongue with the priest’s. He
rubbed against the priest with force, and both of their breaths grew more
urgent and intense.

In his excitement, the prince wanted to lift the priest up, but the priest
shook his head, refusing. “No, the floor will make noise. No, Randes…
wait until nightfall. Sneak up quietly then…”

Oh, they had just made a cRandestine agreement!

The prince kissed the back of the priest’s neck forcefully, and his strength
was too much. The priest couldn’t help but let out a soft moan and grabbed the
prince’s hand, pulling it away from him.

It was a deadly pleasure…

After a brief calm, the prince felt his chest surging with love, and it
burst out of him.

“Father,” the prince kissed the priest’s eyes affectionately,
“I truly love you… You can’t imagine how much I love you. From the
moment we first met, I deeply fell in love with you, Eugene… you must be sent
by God, you must be.” The prince pecked at the priest’s lips like a bird,
and at the same time, like every person in love for the first time, he tightly
hugged his lover, eager to respond with joy. “And you? Eugene, tell me, do
you love me? Hm? My dear Eugene, you charming little rascal, tell me, do you
love me?”

The prince kissed the priest affectionately, playing around and asking, but
the priest’s silence gradually made the prince realize that something was
wrong.

The prince stopped kissing the priest and fixed his gaze on the priest’s
face.

There was still a lingering blush on the priest’s face from the extreme
pleasure, which made the prince relax a bit. “Eugene, it’s just the two of
us here…” the prince said gently, his tone containing suggestive
undertones of anticipation. “You can tell me the truth, my dear.”

The priest blinked lightly, his moist lips slightly parted. “Are you
sure you want to hear the truth, Your Highness?” Despite the lingering
blush on his face and the moisture in his eyes, his expression had completely
returned to its calm and serene state.

The expression on the prince’s face slowly froze.

He seemed to realize where the problem lay.