Elysia had to admit that the priest robes that Enma had gotten for her fit her perfectly.m they were not too restraining and allowed Elysia to breathe around easier.historical

They were even convenient to put on and Elysia did not have to undress fully to get them on. They made her look like a young and fresh priest which was good for her image.

She must have looked alright in a boyish outfit because Enma had gone quiet after seeing her dressed like a guy. Elysia was sure that if she had a problem with her outfit then Enma would be the first one to speak up.

He was vocal about anything that could get him in trouble. And helping Elysia sneak into the temple and especially in the male section was something that would get him in trouble.

"Now then, it is time to head in and finish my job."

The sooner Elysia was done here, the sooner she would be able to head back home and get to her regular schedule.

She was about to enter the temple when she heard the sound of light footsteps behind her. They were headed toward her but their timing was startling.

They were closer to her than they should be. Elysia should have noticed them coming toward her a long time ago, but she did not.

"You there, wait a minute. I need to talk with you."

Elysia turned around with an elegant swirl. She had to behave like a priest now; priests were taught all kinds of manners before they were ready for public service.

Most people thought that the training nobility went through before their social debut was strict but it was nothing compared to the training priests went through to curb their temper.

After all, no one would like a priest who was ready to fly off their handle at a moment's notice.

"You! I have never seen you before. Who are you? Identify yourself."

The young priest who had managed to drop behind Elysia sounded suspicious. Elysia could see Enma panicking out of the corner of her eyes.

Enma had a really weak mentality so he would carve in and spill the beans if Elysia was not careful in handling this situation.

Thankfully, she knew how to maintain herself quite well.

"I am a guard from the temple of the empire. I was tasked here to accompany our god's messenger while he is here. It is quite regretful that I was not able to send a prior notice."

Enma's panic was becoming chronicle. It seemed like he would even stop breathing any second now.

Elysia tried to tell him to calm down with her eyes but it did not seem like he was getting Elysia's message.

"God's messenger-? Ah, it's you! Sorry, I did not see you before. I apologize for my rudeness and I will take you to the Head Priest here as soon as possible."

The priest changed his tone as soon as Elysia pulled his attention toward Enma. Elysia just smiled a passive smile, not letting the young priest's words get to her.

Between herself and Enma, one of them had to stay calm to not alert others about their bluff.

"There will be no need for you to show us the way. Since our dear messenger has been to this temple before, I am sure he remembers the way around. Besides, you must be quite swamped with work right now. I heard that the main temple is always short-staffed."

It was gossip in the empire's temple branch. Since the temple branch had a lot of people and responsibilities were shared in-between everyone, it was easier to manage.

However, that did not stop the people back at Elysia's home to keep on making fun of the under-staffed Akatsuki's main temple. Especially since it was not a religion the people of Akatsuki showed belief in.

"Will you be alright-"

"I-It alright. I know the w-way around here and I have m-my aid with me so I will be alright. You should get back to your work now."

Enma's voice was short of breath. Anyone could see that he was panicking but it had been brave of him to speak up like that.

The priest in front of them looked a little taken aback and worried because of Enma's voice but there was no way Elysia could allow herself to be accompanied. She would not be able to sneak around once that happened.

The only one allowed to see her here was the Head Preist who was the receiver of the box Elysia was carrying with her.

"I see. If that is the case then I will let you be on your way now."

The guard finally left the other two alone but Elysia still got the feeling of having eyes on her back. Ir seemed as if the priest had not left without taking some precautions against her.

"E-Elysia, that man-"

"I know so don't say much for now. Just follow after me and we will be alright."

Elysia could feel the note in her pocket trying to lead her to the box's recipient. It had been written with magic so it would always lead Elysia to its intended if he was in range.

And it seemed like the Head Priest was in range right now for the note to be acting like this.

"How are we going to get rid of that man following after us? Won't it be bad if we are caught like this?"

Enma hissed his words out and then he quickly looked around. He sighed in relief as soon as he noticed that no one was coming toward them or seemed to have heard Enma speak.

His paranoia was something that surprised Elysia every time and she could not understand why this kid was like this when he should be carefree and joyful.

To her, Enma felt more like an old man than a child sometimes.

"Enma, we are not going to get caught. But if you do not calm down then we won't be able to make it undetected as well. Look, there is our chance to escape our watchful eyes."

Elysia pointed toward the praying hall in front of her. It was currently being filled with people since it was prayer time. The afternoon mass would begin and commoner people would come and fill it up.

It was pure luck that today was a day when the door of the temple was open to everyone. It would be easy to get lost in the crown of people and priests.

"Now then, let's head in there and lose our tail. You should also start heading back to the other ladies now. I can see how nervous you are."

Elysia was calm and collected as she walked into the crowd. She had experienced was this kind of thing since stealth was something needed for her temple missions.

She could feel Enma drifting away from her as his hands got more and more sweaty. Elysia needed to send him away before he ended up doing something foolish.

Elysia was so close to her goal now so she wanted to cut off any unnecessary burdens before had. She felt relieved when Enma let go of her but before he could go, he tugged at Elysia's robes a little.

She quickly looked toward the child to know what he wanted from her but Enma was not looking at her.

His neck and side cheeks looked flushed but he did not feel sick to Elysia. She did not want to jump to any conclusion so she did not say anything. She just waited for Enma to say something.

"B-Be careful out there and c-come back home safely. D-Don't take unnecessary risks because I will not be able to tell your brother and lovers what happened here. I love my life, alright."

Enma might not be looking at Elysia now, but his concern was filling her up. He finally seemed like a child in front of Elysia and she could not help but laugh a little at his cute attempt.

That laugh caused Enma to puff his cheeks out and he looked at Elysia with an annoyed expression.

"W-What's so funny about what I said? I was just w-worried about you but you-"

Enma hissed, his red face going scarlet at the embarrassment he was feeling. Elysia laughed even louder, unable to believe what she was hearing from Enma.

'H-How cute. He is all red and flushed. Now I can see why Sorias keeps him around. Enma is funny when he is flustered.'

"D-Don't worry about it. I have received your concern and I promise to come back home safely. Now you should head out before someone catches us here."

Enma's annoyed expression faded into relief and he soon parted away from Elysia. This parting was as much for Enma's sake as it was for Elysia.

She still had the box in her possession so she could not risk anyone else seeing it. Even if the other person happened to be Enma, she could not afford to show the box in open.