Mary was angry that these guards were not taking her seriously, but it was her fault (she refused to admit it).

She had walked into the battlefield with three kids in her toes and one kid in her arms. Once she had been there, she had demanded to see the Cardinal because it was an emergency, and she needed help.

The temple people around her had looked annoyed by her but also cautious of such a courageous person.

But since this was a battlefield, mercy had no place. The guards needed to be firm if they wanted Mary to hear their voices.

"I apologize, miss! But we do need you to leave this battleground. Even if it is not for your sake, you must leave for the sake of the kids you are dragging behind you. It is not safe for them to be here."

The guard tried to be calm about it and advised Mary, but she was not one to listen to anyone else but herself.

"It will be fine. We are not at the battlefield yet. Get the cardinal out here before I make this place a battlefield. I am not in a mood to play around."

Mary complained as she felt her temper rise.

She did not like repeating her words, but she was being made to feel irritated now.

Seeing Mary get irritated caused many guards to become alert and focus on her. They could not afford to deal with her outburst on top of the war they were fighting. They did not have enough resources at hand to handle it all.

"Tsk, stay back. If you don't, then you leave me with no choice but to put you behind bars."

The temple guard spoke seriously before he stepped forward to capture Mary.

The clearing's temperature dropped before he could touch it, and an amused voice echoed across the camp.

"Don't bother with that. Duke Lockhart's maid is not someone a guard like you can handle. If you don't want to die, then you should run away now."

Cardinal Bishop spoke softly but firmly, letting everyone know he acknowledged Mary.

Since the cardinal had spoken, no one else could make an argument or try to fight against him.

His words were final, and he was the real voice of authority here.

"B-But Cardinal, surely you cannot be on these people's sides? They broke into our camp and are causing all these problems. We cannot let them do as they wish-"

The guard asked, and the Cardinal sighed in regret.

"You are right! We cannot let these kids do whatever they want. That's why I am going to take charge of them. You all are dismissed. Miss Mary, please follow me to my tent, and we can look at…the young lady in your arms."

The Cardinal spoke softly, but his words made everyone else cringe.

Until now, they had not seen the kid in the maid's arms because they had been so focused on the maid herself.

Mary looked annoyed but also relieved to have someone on her side who paid attention to her miss.

"I was not in a mood to forgive, but I will put my lady first. If you have any more problems with me or my miss, you can come to me, and we can settle this down."

Many people looked interested in Mary's offer, but they quickly backed down once they noticed the blood-thrusting expression on Mary's face.

"You all better forget getting close to Mary. That maid is too much for you all to handle and too powerful to keep by your side. Ah, but perhaps you can act as a meat shield for her? I am sure that would help her a lot."

Saintess Cana laughed as she walked past the stunned people and quickly entered the tent after the Cardinal and the maid.

The camp shivered under her intense gaze, and they all remained frozen until the Saintess was gone.

It was generally agreed upon in the camp that Saintess Cana was not someone they could handle. So, despite her beauty, she did not have a single admirer brave enough to approach her.

On the other hand, Mary looked softer and easier to approach for the party. But if even Saintess Cana considered her a lost cause, it was better to keep their distance. They had learned their lesson the first time around.

...

"Put the kid down and let me have a look. Also, would you mind telling me the source of this unique magic I am feeling? I have never felt something this intense before."

Cardinal asked suspiciously as he reached out to touch Layla's chest.

He was almost there when he felt that magic source moves toward his house. At the same time, Mary spoke up.

"It's a young dragon that imprinted on our young miss. Don't worry; it's harmless for the most part and cooperative as well. But I don't know how it will react to the fact that we need to help Layla out."

Mary spoke, and the cardinal gave a small flinch before pulling his hand back.

"A young dragon, huh? I should have seen this coming…. well, this complicates things. I must put my magic into Lady Layla's body to examine her, but the dragon might take offense and attack me. What should I do now?"

The cardinal asked, but the dragon seemed to have enough intelligence to pull himself away from Layla's chest and up Mary's shoulder.

It gave the Cardinal space to work with its contractor and gained an advantageous position it could use to attack anyone who wanted to hurt its master.

This trust surprised the Cardinal, but he also felt afraid for his life if anything were to go wrong. There was too much pressure on his back at the moment, and he was not sure if he felt suffocated or relieved when he pulled his hand back after observing the lady he was looking after in Mary's arms.