My Husband Was Definitely a Paladin
‘What was I expecting…‘
In that instant, Irene’s face flushed bright red.
Just for a moment, she had thought that perhaps he had proposed a pair to her because she was special in some way—and the thought was utterly shameful.
“What on earth is happening?”
“I heard he’s Sir Michael, the Holy Knight.”
“What? You’re telling me he really came to this place?”
The murmurs from the people standing nearby snapped Irene back to her senses.
She didn’t know why he had come here or what had changed about his state, but she would not repeat her past mistakes.
“I… I’m not worthy of that.”
With those words, Irene tried to pull her hand away.
But instead of letting go, Michael gripped it even more tightly.
“…!”
Irene was once again stunned by his action.
‘He never did this before.’
Michael had never been the type to reach out to women, and even during basic escorts he never gripped someone’s hand with force.
The moment she tried to pull away—even slightly—he would notice immediately and release her at once.
But the Michael standing before her now did none of those things.
“You aren’t a Purifier?”
His eyes were full of certainty that you couldn’t possibly be one, yet they also carried a tinge of resentment as if wondering why he wasn’t being healed by her despite his injuries.
Irene had no idea what to do.
Her purification power was weak anyway.
‘Moreover, healing someone right here in front of everyone would be the same as announcing that we had formed a pair.’
Purifiers could heal multiple people, but the stronger the ability could be used when there was only one target.
Therefore, healing someone in the presence of others was no different from declaring that the contract was over and that the person had become your pair.
‘Michael probably doesn’t know about this yet.’
Not much time had passed since the Kingdom Alliance notified the continent of the laws, so he likely had no idea.
And if he had known, he would never have asked her to heal him right here in front of everyone.
While Irene was wondering how to explain herself, someone approached them.
“It’s been a long time, Sir Michael.”
Just hearing the name made Irene instinctively turn her head.
It was a voice she remembered clearly.
“Princess Cecilia…”
Irene muttered the name like a sigh and turned her head.
There stood a beautiful woman with long black hair that reached all the way to her waist, wearing a gentle smile.
Cecilia Mocenigo Visconti.
The first princess of the Visconti Kingdom and the strongest Purifier among them all.
And…
Irene felt cold sweat soak through her already clenched hands without realizing it.
Princess Cecilia hated Irene.
She often summoned Irene to meetings of Purifiers and would say things like, “If your abilities were stronger, Sir Michael wouldn’t suffer so much.”
Those sighs mixed with words that were entirely correct had only stabbed deeper into Irene’s chest.
‘And she was the last person I saw.’
In the past, on the day Irene died, the last person she had spoken to was Cecilia.
“Where do you think you’re rushing off to?”
“I was hoping to say my final goodbye to Sir Michael, but I don’t know where he is…”
“Ah, I was looking for Sir Michael.”
The princess nodded and reached out to point toward the lowest remaining dungeon.
“Look at that remaining dungeon? Sir Michael went in to clean it up. This is probably your last chance to atone. Go in now. All the monsters should have been cleared out.”
She had told him where he was, then turned and entered the fortress as if she had nothing more to say.
After that, she had gone into the dungeon as instructed…
‘And died.’
Contrary to what she had said—that the dungeon had been completely cleared—monsters filled it inside.
As if no one had ever entered.
Not long after Irene entered, monsters that smelled human blood rushed in, and she was forced to flee deeper into the dungeon without being able to leave.
Irene tightened her trembling arms.
Recalling the moment when her breath had stopped, the unerasable fear came flooding back vividly.
Irene looked at Princess Cecilia.
In the past, it was Cecilia who had given her the wrong information, causing her death. But whether it had been intentional or an accident, she couldn’t tell.
It wasn’t likely intentional. Princess Cecilia had no reason to harbor such resentment toward Irene. Yet there were too many suspicious details to call it mere accident.
‘But now… it doesn’t matter.’
Irene forced her mind to calm.
She would never enter the dungeon that Cecilia had warned about in the past. And she wouldn’t even ask.
In this life, she had no connection to Michael at all, so she had nothing to fear from Cecilia’s contempt.
‘It’s all for the better, actually.’
In her previous life, when Michael appeared, Cecilia had already left the scene.
‘That’s why many people regretted that the princess wasn’t there.’
If she and Michael had formed a pair, they would have created a legendary pair of unmatched strength.
Moreover, as a princess, Cecilia wasn’t as bound by money as other Purifiers were. So even if Michael gave most of his reward to the Temple, she wouldn’t have minded.
‘So this time, if the two of them formed a pair with each other…’
Michael might be seriously injured, but he would heal just from holding hands, and he wouldn’t be banished.
A proud Cecilia would become a legend beside him.
That was the correct path.
Irene turned to leave the place as quickly as possible. Now it was their problem to handle since the princess had arrived.
That was when—
“…!”
A strong golden light spread from Irene’s hand, which Michael was still gripping.
The light spread to everyone’s faces—Irene’s, Cecilia’s, and everyone around them—with expressions of shock.
“This…!”
Irene’s breath caught in her throat.
She had seen it countless times in the past, but never from her own hands.
‘Purification light!’
The light that appeared when a Purifier with strong power healed or purified someone.
In the past, only Cecilia and a few high-ranking Purifiers she was close to had ever shown this light.
Then why was it appearing now?
“It’s the light of purification!”
“That person was said to be the lowest rank! Then how…!”
Among the shocked people, Irene was the most bewildered.
‘What is going on here?’
Everyone was shocked by the purification light, but Irene was even more shocked by something else.
‘I didn’t use my power!’
Naturally, purification was a power that appeared through the Purifier’s will.
No matter how much a knight wanted it, the Purifier had to permit it.
But how was this possible?
While everyone was in astonishment, Michael’s appearance changed rapidly.
The wounds all over his face and body vanished, and the blood of the demon covering his entire body gradually lost its red color and became transparent.
Soon, the place where the blood-soaked knight had stood was filled only with the paladin everyone knew.
At last, the moment she faced the Michael she remembered.
“Eh?”
Severely dizzy, Irene collapsed forward.
It was a familiar sensation.
Dizziness when pushing purification power to its limit.
Just as she thought she would fall embarrassingly on the ground, a thick arm pulled her waist in at once.
Even through her hazy mind, Irene realized it was Michael’s arm.
In the past, when they had mixed bodies and she was healed by him, she had tried to escape several times because the way he clung to her had been too intense.
Each time, his thick arms had trapped her waist like this.
Now, only she remembered the past. As she felt embarrassed, Michael, who had caught her, spoke in a trembling voice.
“…Thank you for becoming my pair… We will definitely….”
And then he whispered something more.
Irene’s consciousness cut off right there.