Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 22
Translated by Elphie
At that moment, one of the knights who had been hovering around Michael approached Irene.
“Hello, Lady Purifier. My name is Maxime from the Kingdom of Solveizie.”
“Hello.”
Irene greeted him, but she couldn’t help but feel tense.
From past to present, none of the knights who approached her first were entirely sound. Most of them sent curious glances, wondering whether she truly was a 10th-grade Purifier.
If it ended there, she would consider herself lucky. There were some who grabbed her hand or pulled her arm, wanting to see how poor her purification ability really was.
‘Back then, even if I were Michael’s pair, he rarely sought me out….’
To the knights, she probably appeared as a purifier without a pair. Like a dog without a master. That’s probably how it felt.
Recalling that time, Irene, still tense, looked at Maxime.
While she wondered why he was talking to her, he said, “Oh, it’s nothing… Um, I was wondering if Sir Michael uses the training grounds in the fortress. If he does, do you happen to know what time he might use them?”
“What?”
Irene made a startled sound at the unexpected question.
“I wanted to ask Sir Michael directly, but as you can see, everyone’s crowding around, and they’re not giving me any space.”
Saying that, he scratched his cheek as if embarrassed.
Unlike the other knights Irene had seen so far, Maxime didn’t have a conspiratorial stare or a mocking sneer. He seemed to be nothing more than embarrassed about not being able to ask a respected figure directly.
Maxime seemed like a knight who had just come of age—a knight who hadn’t yet outgrown his youth. Any knight on the continent would know Michael’s name and admire him. However, meeting the legendary figure in the fortress for the first time left Maxime trembling and unsure of what to do.
Seeing his nervous demeanor, Irene felt the tension release. Somehow finding it adorable, she couldn’t help but smile as she responded, “I’m not sure about that. I don’t really know Sir Michael’s schedule either…”
She truly had nothing to share about how Michael spent his day.
That’s when it happened.
Michael, who had been surrounded by people, turned his head and looked directly at Irene. In that instant, he ignored everyone around him and walked straight towards her.
Standing between Irene and Maxime, he positioned himself in a way that concealed her from view.
“What’s going on?”
His voice was markedly colder than when he was talking to other people just moments ago. Both Irene and Maxime turned to look at him, stunned.
“No, um, I was just…”
He was finally able to talk to the person he’d been looking up to, and it wasn’t at all what he expected. Maxime fumbled and stammered, unable to find the right words to say.
Irene felt somewhat sorry for the young man and intervened.
“He was just asking about your schedule, Sir Michael.”
However, even after the explanation, Michael’s voice remained cold. Irene couldn’t understand his attitude.
‘Why is he acting like this?’
Michael was known for being courteous to everyone. He only got stern when someone behaved improperly or was about to turn into a monster. Otherwise, he treated everyone with respect, which earned him even more respect in turn.
But now, anyone could see that he was reluctant to do so now.
‘Could he be already corrupted with magic?’
She leaned to the side to get a better look at Michael, but she couldn’t see the telltale signs of bloodshot eyes, typical of someone overwhelmed with magic energy.
In the end, Maxime stammered some more and hastily backed off, as if fleeing the scene.
Watching Maxime’s retreating figure, Irene felt an unnecessary sense of pity.
As she was lost in her thoughts, Michael asked, “Do you know him?”
“No. I met him for the first time today.”
“Then why…”
“What?”
Whatever he said, it wasn’t audible as a pair took off on their mounts, drowning out the conversation. In the end, Irene had to turn away without knowing what he wanted to say.
