CHAPTER 859: HIS OPINION OF HER

Pope Claudius’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing Aldrian’s question. He inwardly wanted to cry because he did not know how to answer it!

There was no way he could just say, "Well, my daughter said she likes you, and this has been weighing on my mind. Maybe you could add her to your harem? I hope you don’t mind it."

He did not know how Aldrian would react after hearing that, and he did not want to make their relationship awkward.

What if Aldrian distanced himself from Angelica if he knew about it?

That would be a sad situation for her, as she already seemed to like him deeply from her stories. He did not want her to be sad, he wanted her to stay happy beside Aldrian. After hearing Angelica’s story about how she felt toward Aldrian, he knew that her feelings for him ran much deeper.

Of course, he understood it well, as he had once felt that way in his long life. He was the type of person who was not too strict about whom Angelica liked romantically. As long as the man was trustworthy and could make Angelica happy, he would agree with it. After all, there had been some cases in the past where a Saintess had a romantic relationship.

However, the problem was the person Angelica was interested in. Of course, he did not doubt even a little bit about Aldrian’s quality and character. He was the best man for his beloved daughter, and she would be truly happy to become his woman, even if she was not his only one.

He also did not mind if Aldrian already had other women before Angelica, because Aldrian’s case was a special one. If it had been another man, he would never have allowed Angelica to enter a harem.

The only thing weighing on his mind was Aldrian’s opinion about it. He knew that with Aldrian’s intelligence and sharpness, sooner or later, he would likely realize how Angelica felt about him. When that time came, how Aldrian treated her would decide her happiness.

He did not want to see his daughter sad because Aldrian distanced himself from her. That was not even counting what Aldrian’s other women might think about the matter. What if they did not want Angelica once they learned about her feelings? His daughter would be even sadder, and she would likely return to the church in tears.

Just imagining it already made his heart ache. But then, another thought came to his mind.

’Maybe His Majesty already knows about Angelica’s feelings toward him but decided to just let her be?’

This might be possible, because there was little to nothing that could be hidden from Aldrian. But still, all of this was only an assumption inside Pope Claudius’s mind.

Aldrian, who was waiting for Pope Claudius to say something, noticed that the man seemed to be deep in thought. He did not want to read his mind, as he felt that would be a bad thing to do, and in this case, unnecessary.

He patiently waited for the pope to speak, and from his silence, Aldrian could tell that Pope Claudius was weighing whether he should say it or not.

After waiting for a few seconds, he finally saw the pope sigh and sit down on the floor.

"My apologies for seeming out of focus this past week, Your Majesty. But I do have something on my mind," he said, suddenly bowing deeply.

"And once again, I apologize for what I am about to say. Please don’t take offense to it."

Aldrian raised an eyebrow and sat down as well. "Of course, I’m not someone who takes offense easily, especially from Your Holiness. Please rest assured that I’m not that petty. You can tell me what has been weighing on your mind all this time without worry."

At this moment, Aldrian grew even more curious about what Pope Claudius had in mind. Why did he sound so worried?

Pope Claudius straightened his body and sighed again. He looked at Aldrian, hesitating for a moment before finally speaking.

"Well, umm... Your Majesty... uh... what do you think about Angelica? Well, as a person?"

Aldrian’s expression turned confused. "What I think about Angelica? Well, I already consider her one of my closest people. After all this time, I’ve come to see her as part of my own group, someone who holds a special place in my heart."

Pope Claudius nodded. "I’m glad that Your Majesty thinks that way about Angelica." But then his eyes grew hesitant again, and he seemed unable to focus. He took a deep breath before finally gathering the courage to ask the question he had been holding back.

"Uhmm... Your Majesty, what do you think of Angelica as a woman?"

Aldrian’s expression shifted from puzzled to thoughtful, and then something strike his mind.

"Your Holiness, are you looking for a man for Angelica? Are you trying to couple her with me?"

Pope Claudius was stunned, then scratched his head awkwardly. "Well, not exactly looking for a man, Your Majesty, but I wanted to hear your opinion about Angelica because, well, uhhh... she seems to be interested in you—something like that."

His gaze carefully watched Aldrian’s expression, wanting to see how he would react. What he saw was Aldrian raising his eyebrows, as if surprised, before letting out a small sigh. Pope Claudius wondered why Aldrian sighed.

Did he find it troublesome or something?

His heart trembled at the thought that it might have offended Aldrian. He suddenly regretted bringing up the matter and was about to apologize, but then he heard Aldrian speak.

"I knew it, as I thought."

Hearing that, Pope Claudius was stunned before his eyes widened.

"Your Majesty, did you already know about Angelica’s feelings toward you?"

Aldrian sighed. "Well, it’s not too difficult to notice that she’s interested in me romantically. The way Angelica acts in front of me has become quite obvious recently. At first, I didn’t think too much about it and assumed it was only admiration. However, as time passed, I realized that Angelica’s feelings run much deeper than admiration."

"I’ve been acting normally to avoid creating any uncomfortable situation. But still, her gaze, which holds deeper feelings, is something I’ve taken notice of. I know that even Sylphia and Baek Jimin would likely notice it sooner or later, or maybe they already have, but chose not to talk about it? I don’t know, since we never discussed this matter."

"There’s also her status, and Your Holiness’s opinion regarding it. As a Saintess, she’s not like Sylphia or Baek Jimin. She’s someone regarded as holy by many people. I don’t know what they might think if they found out that she’s interested in me, a man who already has two women. I don’t care about what people think of me, but I can’t say the same for Angelica."

"Your Holiness must also have your own thoughts on this. As the Saintess of the church, whether she likes it or not, Angelica has to consider Your Holiness’s opinion. In fact, not only yours, but also that of the entire church, what they might think of their revered Saintess having feelings for a man who already has two women."

Aldrian expected Pope Claudius to show an understanding expression, but what he saw was different. The pope looked stunned for a moment before giving a slight smile.

"So, Your Majesty doesn’t see any problem with Angelica being interested in you?" he asked.

Aldrian didn’t quite understand the change in the pope’s expression, but he still answered.

"Of course not. I can maintain our relationship normally, even if she has feelings for me. I don’t know what the future will bring, but for now, as long as nothing is wrong, I can keep it this way until something changes. Only then will I act according to the situation I’m in."

Pope Claudius nodded. "I see. That’s good. At least Your Majesty didn’t immediately reject the idea of Angelica having feelings for you and is even open to any possibilities. That means Angelica still has a chance."

Aldrian’s eyes widened slightly as he suddenly understood the direction of Pope Claudius’s words.

"Wait, Your Holiness—"

"Your Majesty, please give Angelica a chance to be with you, to accept her as one of your harem," the pope interrupted, cutting off Aldrian’s words.

Aldrian let out a deep sigh. Pope Claudius had finally said it.

"Did you hear what I said, Your Holiness? Although you approve of Angelica being with me, what about the others who see her as a holy being? Even if she’s interested in a man, how could she enter a harem? What about her status?"

Pope Claudius’s expression did not change.

"I think Your Majesty is still underestimating your own reputation and influence among the people of the empire," he said. "Your Majesty’s reputation has already reached the point where even if you make a mistake, they would see it as an act of wisdom."

"They believe that anything connected to you, or anything you do, is something that should not be criticized. To them, Your Majesty is a perfect being, and they assume that everything you do carries a hidden good intention."

"There may be backlash if Angelica were interested in another man, especially if that man already had a harem. However, this is Your Majesty we’re talking about, a being many already see as flawless, a being considered by many as a god. So, I think there would be no problem with her having a relationship with Your Majesty."

"Moreover, the fact that Your Majesty allows her to stay close to you while keeping those feelings already indicates that Your Majesty is not against the possibility of adding her to your harem if needed, right? If Your Majesty truly didn’t want her to have those feelings, you could have kept your distance much earlier, or done something to make her forget about them." Pope Claudius said this with a smile.