Chapter Summaries

Charlie returned home but was forced by Old Charlie to proceed with his wedding to the Second Princess, despite insisting he wanted to choose his own love. At the wedding, Claire recognized Charlie as the young man she had met earlier, and Shane presented the Tulip Shop’s new product, Cupid’s Gift.

• Old Charlie confronted Charlie about refusing to marry the Second Princess, and Charlie said he wanted to find his own true love.
• Old Charlie insisted the wedding would go ahead and threatened to break Charlie’s legs if he failed to appear; Charlie changed clothes and resigned himself to the marriage.
• The wedding began with the King and Old Duke Charlie addressing the guests, and the Second Princess descended to join the ceremony.
• Claire recognized Duke Charlie as the young man she had encountered in the restroom, while Irene spoke warmly about her second sister’s admiration for him.
• Shane presented the Tulip Shop’s Cupid’s Gift and began telling the romantic story behind it.

During the wedding, Shane presented Charlie with a mind-influencing Cupid’s Gift, intensifying Charlie’s resentment over being forced into marriage. Claire interrupted his attempt to rebel and redirected the ceremony, leaving Charlie kissing the Second Princess after she declared her love for him.

• Shane told the story of Cupid’s Gift and handed the pink crystal to Charlie, whose anger at his arranged marriage grew.
• Claire realized the crystal could amplify Charlie’s feelings and feared he would call off the wedding.
• Charlie resolved to resist his father’s decision, but Claire shouted, rushed onto the stage, and took the crystal from his hand.
• Claire explained that the crystal should only take effect when a man put it on the woman he loved, then urged Charlie to place it around the Second Princess’s neck.
• The Second Princess was affected by the crystal, kissed Charlie, and told him she loved him.
• The Second Princess embraced and kissed Charlie on the lips, while he found the experience more pleasant than he had expected.

After Charlie's wedding, Claire and Shane adjusted their crystal product plans to prevent the crystals from causing trouble for couples. Their conversation turned to arranged marriages, and Shane decided he knew who his future wife would be.

• Charlie realized he was grateful to Claire for stopping him from disrupting his wedding, but he could not find her to thank her.
• Claire explained to Shane that the stronger crystals had nearly pushed Charlie to call off the wedding, so they agreed to sell only Level One crystals and change how they were packaged and worn.
• Shane told Claire that noble young ladies saw her as a desirable match because she had influence despite being a viscount.
• Claire and Shane discussed how their families expected them to enter political marriages, and Shane speculated about his own future wife.
• Shane concluded that Prince Albert's youngest daughter was likely to be his future wife because she was close to his age and reportedly as cute as Irene.

Claire returned to Nafu City after ensuring the Heart-shaped Crystal launch was going smoothly, while the Church of Light began preparing to expand its influence there. Bishop Randolph accepted a mission to establish the Church in Nafu City, and Claire learned that Pastor Oma would leave for training and a new bishop would take his place.

• Claire returned to Nafu City after Heart-shaped Crystal preorders surpassed Shane's expectations, boosted by news that Princess Irene owned one.
• A white-robed bishop told Randolph that Nafu City and its lord, Claire, were gaining influence, and urged him to establish the people's faith there before the city grew further.
• Randolph studied the Church's information on Nafu City and confidently accepted the mission to take the city for the Church.
• Claire returned to the Baronial Manor and found Pastor Oma waiting with a letter calling him to the royal capital for further training.
• Oma asked Claire to keep their transactions confidential and said the Church would likely send a bishop to replace him.
• Claire wished Oma well and began considering how she would deal with the arriving bishop.

Claire handled Nafu City's development and welcomed Bishop Randolph, who became wary of her influence over his pastors. Randolph asked Claire to help locate a missing pastor connected to Baron Eugene.

• Claire approved Regan's plans for an agricultural town and supported businesses developing along the coast.
• Randolph arrived in Nafu City with several young pastors and was struck by the mermaid statue and the city's prosperity.
• Claire personally toured Randolph and the pastors around the city, while Randolph noticed citizens favored her and his companions praised her.
• Randolph realized Claire had learned his name without being told and asked her to find his missing pastor acquaintance, who had been close to Baron Eugene.

Claire denied knowing what happened to the missing Nafu City nobles and warned Bishop Randolph to stay in the city. Randolph began preaching, while Claire used the law to manage his gatherings; after a sudden downpour disrupted his first sermon, they exchanged guarded courtesies.

• Claire told Randolph she did not know where Baron Eugene and the other nobles had gone, then warned him that bandits might abduct him if he left Nafu City.
• Regan reported that the church had begun preaching, and Claire ordered him to maintain order rather than directly interfere with the clergy.
• Randolph split his priests into groups to preach across the city, drawing crowds with their sermons and Divine Arts.
• A sudden torrential rain scattered the gatherings, so Randolph moved his sermon into the small church and preached until dusk.
• Claire praised Randolph's preaching as they parted and wished him a smooth missionary effort.

Isaac’s Magic Airship crashed into the southern district church, and Claire defused Randolph’s anger by promising compensation and a punishment for Isaac. At Rona’s clinic, Isaac revealed he had faked his injuries and reminded Claire to fund his new airship with a hundred thousand Gold Coins.

• A flaming Magic Airship crashed into the church, destroying its upper half and setting the building ablaze.
• Claire rescued Isaac from the airship and sent Hant to take him to Rona’s clinic.
• Claire told Randolph the crash had been an accident during Isaac’s experiment and offered to pay for a new church and confine Isaac to the research institute for a year.
• Randolph accepted Claire’s terms after deciding they would preserve the church’s dignity.
• Isaac relaxed in the clinic, where he reminded Claire that she had promised him a hundred thousand Gold Coins to build a new Magic Airship.

After realizing Claire’s notice and rebuilding plans were part of a scheme to weaken the church’s influence, Randolph tried to understand the demolition around Nafu City. He waited at the Baronial Manor until Claire finally appeared, leaving their confrontation about to begin.

• Randolph realized the destroyed church left the priests without shelter and arranged for them to stay in residents’ homes.
• Randolph read a notice that blamed the church’s destruction on an accident and said prayers could resume after the new church was built.
• Randolph discovered that Claire’s workers were also demolishing nearby homes to build Mermaid Park, while residents accepted compensation and temporary lodging.
• Randolph concluded Claire was moving the church away from the southern district to hinder preaching and refused to give up.
• Randolph waited for three hours at the Baronial Manor, and Claire came downstairs to ask why he had come.

Claire and Bishop Randolph argued over where to rebuild the church, and she maneuvered him into accepting the East District. Randolph left believing he had won a concession, while Claire hinted that the new site was part of her own plan.

• Randolph demanded to know why Claire planned to rebuild the church in the North District, and she challenged his claim that the church should be in the South District.
• Claire pointed out that Randolph could ask the relocated residents to return, exposing how their compensation and new homes made refusing the park politically costly for him.
• Randolph threatened to revive the dispute over the mages and Isaac, so Claire agreed to place the church in the East District.
• Randolph accepted the East District and prepared to leave, but Claire revealed that every inn in Nafu City was occupied by relocated families.
• Randolph refused to return to the royal capital, and Claire let him go while privately suggesting that he had not truly won the East District site.

Randolph struggled to find lodging and attract listeners for his preaching in Nafu City, while Claire used overtime work and extra school lessons to keep residents too busy to hear the priests. The chapter ended with Randolph deciding to ask the Pope for help.

• Randolph refused to let his priests seek shelter at the Baronial Manor and made them stay in a dilapidated house.
• Claire ordered overtime at the Salt Factory and construction sites, raised the price of dried shredded squid, and canceled school weekends to keep Nafu City's residents occupied.
• Claire told Regan to take responsibility for the school schedule so the children would blame him rather than her.
• A priest failed to persuade an exhausted worker to listen to his preaching, and Randolph recognized Claire's influence over Nafu City.
• Randolph, increasingly wary of Claire, decided to write to the Pope for help.

Randolph used Church funds to distribute necessities and establish his preaching in Nafu City, while Claire avoided competing with him directly. The chapter ended with Claire welcoming Wendy, the bard she had been waiting for, as she prepared to respond to the Church’s growing influence.

• The Pope sent Randolph a Spatial Ring containing one million Gold Coins, and Randolph vowed not to underestimate Claire again.
• After learning that priests were giving away supplies to attract listeners, Claire canceled overtime rather than raise wages to compete.
• Claire sent the Water Cloud Beast to drive away the crowd with rain, but the priests blocked it with a Magic Scroll’s Air Barrier.
• Randolph’s preaching continued for several days, and he gained recognition among Nafu City’s residents while spending nearly a thousand Gold Coins each day.
• Regan told Claire that a young lady wished to see her, and Claire revealed she had been waiting for Wendy, the bard who had spread the mermaid story.

Wendy visited Claire in Nafu City and asked to take the job Claire had once offered her. Despite earning a fortune as a famous bard, Wendy wanted to leave repetitive touring behind and become a pure bard again.

• Wendy arrived at Claire's home carrying a mermaid sculpture she had bought in Nafu City, and Claire considered developing souvenir sculpture-making in Nakin Town.
• Claire offered Wendy her usual performance fee, but Wendy asked whether Claire's earlier offer of work in Nafu City still stood.
• Wendy told Claire she earned about 150,000 Gold Coins a month but did not care how much the new job paid.
• Wendy explained that constant touring and repeating the Mermaid Princess performance had made her lose the joy she once found in being a bard.
• Wendy said she wanted to be a pure bard and had hurried from the royal capital after receiving Claire's letter.

Claire hired Wendy to run Nafu City’s Grand Theater, where Wendy began rehearsing a play featuring Melly as Cupid. As news of the free performance spread, Randolph saw fewer people coming to hear him preach and worried that Wendy’s show would draw even more away.

• Claire offered Wendy a position at the Grand Theater, gave her the key, and arranged for her to take charge of the theater with help from experienced staff.
• Word spread that Wendy would perform in Nafu City and that residents could attend for free, drawing excitement from locals and more tourists.
• Randolph overheard people discussing the performance and suspected Claire was acting against him, but he continued preaching about the God of Light.
• Melly played Cupid in Wendy’s rehearsal of “Cupid’s Gift,” and Wendy praised her before giving the actors notes on their performances.
• Randolph noticed that fewer people were coming to pray, especially as crowds gathered outside the Grand Theater, and feared attendance would fall further once the show began.

Randolph’s preaching venue sat empty as Nafu City residents flocked to Wendy’s performance, and even the few believers who arrived had only come because the theater was full. Cass then suggested that Randolph wanted to attend the show too, and he collapsed.

• Randolph arrived at the southern district preaching site and found no residents there, while the priests said they had waited since morning without an audience.
• Randolph learned that Vincent had gone to Wendy’s performance, claiming he was gathering intelligence, and felt humiliated by the betrayal.
• Several women arrived, and Cass told Randolph that the others had gone to see Wendy’s show.
• Cass revealed that she had come only because the theater seats had filled before she could get in, leaving Randolph and the priests speechless.
• Randolph canceled the day’s preaching, but Cass guessed he wanted to see Wendy’s performance too, and he collapsed.

After Wendy’s performance drew enthusiastic crowds, Claire’s fictional tale became more believable among Nafu City residents. Randolph realized the show had undercut his missionary work, and Claire’s teasing drove him to flee in humiliation.

• The audience praised Wendy’s performance, and Nafu City residents asked older locals whether the tale had really happened there.
• Claire’s plan to make the fictional story seem true succeeded, helping promote Nafu City and Heart-shaped Crystals.
• Vincent admitted to Bishop Randolph that he had watched Wendy’s performance, and Randolph let him go with a warning.
• Randolph recognized that the theater had drawn away his followers, while Claire mocked him and offered him tickets.
• Randolph hurried away from Claire, and Claire’s shouted offer of a handkerchief made Randolph spray blood from his mouth.

After Randolph returned to the royal capital, the Church of Light backed him to resume his campaign against Nafu City. Claire sensed the Church was preparing a major counterattack, and Randolph arrived at the city gates with dozens of renowned performers and playwrights.

• Randolph reported his failure in Nafu City to the Archbishop in White, who reassured him and kept him in charge of the city campaign with the Church’s full support.
• Claire worried that Randolph’s disappearance meant he was gathering strength, and he lamented that the conflict had stalled his magical research.
• The Church mobilized its connections, recruited famous performers and playwrights, and drew the attention of nobles across the kingdom to Claire’s clash with the Church.
• Randolph returned to Nafu City with the performers, and Claire recognized Master Morey, Master Borg, Master Malon, and many other celebrated figures among them.
• As the crowd reacted to the gathering of masters, Claire realized the Church intended to challenge him through sheer numbers and expense.

Randolph secured royal approval to stage the church’s performances in Nafu City, prompting Claire to compete with them through Wendy’s plays. As both sides prepared, Wendy’s story neared its climax and the Grand Theater filled with spectators.

• Randolph showed Claire an outdoor performance permit bearing the Grand Judge’s and King’s seals, and Claire accepted that the church could hold its event.
• The church brought tens of thousands of chairs to Nafu City and used mages to build an outdoor venue, while Claire told Regan to buy dried corn for popcorn.
• Claire visited Wendy’s rehearsal and offered to handle the script and production as Wendy prepared to perform daily against the church’s masters.
• Claire worked with Wendy over the following days, while Randolph’s playwrights revised sacred stories into dramatic performances about the God of Light.
• Wendy’s story approached its climax as the Grand Theater filled to capacity and spectators crowded every available space.

Claire and Randolph launched competing performances in Nafu City, drawing the city’s residents and tourists to different venues. Randolph began his Church of Light opera to a reverent audience, while Claire prepared for Wendy’s climactic show and the coming confrontation.

• A husband and wife decided to attend Wendy’s performance first, planning to see Bishop Randolph’s show afterward.
• Nafu City filled with tourists, and residents debated whether to watch Wendy’s story or Randolph’s Church of Light opera.
• A boy persuaded his mother to take him to Wendy’s performance because it offered free popcorn.
• Randolph began his performance after Morey confirmed the theater was ready, and priests projected an image of the God of Light.
• Claire saw that the Grand Theater was full but less crowded than before, and she anticipated a direct confrontation after this opening contest.

Claire and Randolph’s sides continued competing with theater productions, but Claire realized the Church of Light was gaining influence despite the close contest. She paused performances to let Wendy rest, confident she had devised another way to counter the church.

• Randolph celebrated that his side had nearly matched Claire’s audience and planned to offer free snacks, while Claire worried the competition was strengthening the Church of Light in Nafu City.
• For a week, the theaters traded new productions and giveaways, exhausting Randolph’s masters and costing the church tens of millions of Gold Coins.
• Wendy credited Claire’s scripts and production work for helping her compete with the senior playwrights and asked what show they would perform next.
• Claire announced a few days’ break because continued performances were increasing the Church of Light’s influence, and she told Wendy she had a new way to deal with them.

After Randolph’s troupe suspended performances to rest, Nafu City prospered as tourists spent money on its attractions. Randolph then discovered that people had turned against him because damaging reports about the church’s corruption and crimes were spreading.

• Claire’s theater suspended performances, and Randolph approved a few days of rest for his exhausted masters.
• Tourists flocked to Nafu City’s other attractions, and the city’s reputation and tax revenue grew.
• Randolph noticed that townspeople regarded him with fear and disgust, then hurried to the theater to learn what had happened.
• Priests told Randolph that reports of church officials’ corruption and serious crimes were spreading.
• Randolph recognized many of the allegations as real abuses that the church had previously suppressed.