Aravel

Chapter 80

That evening, Kaze was accompanied by Lunaria to the cathedral after they departed from the research facility.

Upon reaching the front of the place, Kaze decided that he needn't enter to show his respects. The reason for coming to the cathedral in the first place wasn't for a visit, but rather to pray towards Goddess Tiel and thank her for her advice. Since Tiel gave him her advice regarding meeting Lucentia under the tree, he had progressed not only his relationship with her, but also with Lunatea. It helped the overall relationship with his sisters since he was now also open to pursuing Lunaea and Luniel, hence why he wanted to show his appreciation to her.

"Kaze, are you sure you're fine with simply praying from the front? We can walk in," Lunaria asked Kaze, watching him get on his knees and putting his hands together.

"No, its fine. I wouldn't want to disturb anyone who could be inside," Kaze rejected her suggestion with a kind smile. "Besides, this is a simple prayer, it doesn't require any sort of ritual."

"Ah... if you are fine with it," Lunaria reluctantly nodded.

"Do you want to pray too?"

"No, I'm fine. I don't seem like it, but I'm not much of a devotee."

"Alright. Please wait for me then, it won't take long."

Kaze closed his eyes and uttered a silent prayer. His intentions were already filled in his heart, meaning that he didn't need to speak out loud for a goddess to receive his prayers. After all, a god or goddess had power that was unimaginable to mortals like Kaze. If Goddess Tiel was able to summon him into a different realm, have a talk, and send him back without time even changing, then it definitely proved that gods and goddesses had a different kind of ability compared to magic.

Halfway through his prayers, he picked up on the sound of footsteps approaching from behind. They came close to him but stopped where Lunaria was standing. He didn't feel it to be a concern if the footsteps approaching them stopped by Lunaria, meaning they were either waiting for him judging by the silence or that they were waiting for their turn to pray. As such, Kaze quickly finished the rest of his prayer and turned around, greeting the person who had approached them.

"Laevia-sama?" Kaze recognised the Empress and quickly bowed. "I just finished praying."

"It's fine. You could have entered to pray too," Laevia patted his head, treating him like a child. "You don't have to be so uptight around me, you know."

"Mother, I don't think anyone can naturally say they aren't nervous around royalties," Lunaria sighed at her mother. "Besides, he would be nervous if his girlfriend's mother were around him."

"Ara? Is that so?" Laevia pretended to look confused and acted concerned. "Should I be more open with him then?"

"T-Thank you for your kind consideration, Laevia-sama, but I'm fine for now," Kaze sweatdropped, defusing the situation before it got any worse. "Will you be praying too?"

"Nope. I just happened to be passing by when I saw you two," Laevia shook her head. "Shall we return if you're done? It is almost dinner time."

Heading back to the palace, Kaze stifled a gasp when Lunaria laced her fingers around his as they walked since prying eyes were not easily found at this time of the day. She could show her feelings for him more easily, such as handholding while walking together. With Laevia walking in front of them, since she was the Empress, Lunaria didn't need to fear her mother making fun of her expressing her love with her lover.

Once they had returned, Lunaria and Kaze took a quick shower together before they headed to the dining room where everyone was. Dinner was served as usual with the casual discussion of the events of the day, though much of the topic circulated around Kaze's absence. It was not revealed that he went to the lab to get himself tested after all, so it would cause some of his friends to become curious, though some of them quickly concluded he went on a secret date with Lunaria.