Chapter 29
“Saintess, this way.”
“…How many months do you think I’ve lived here at Arien Academy?”
“….”
Aria’s quiet remark, delivered in her elegant white dress, was cold as ice. Within those few words was a sharp reprimand the Saintess of old would never have given.
-I know this place well, so I don’t need an escort. Don’t restrain me.
The three holy knights understood the reprimand.
And they understood that the Saintess was very angry, too…
‘…She’s completely different from the way she was in the Theocracy.’
But they didn’t respond.
“….”
“….”
“….”
They belonged to Raul’s personal guard.
As members of one of the renowned elite units among the Theocracy’s mighty Holy Knights, they simply followed their orders to the letter.
Their orders were to escort the Saintess.
Those orders had nothing to do with the Saintess’s wishes.
Raul had given them their orders that morning.
-As soon as the examination ends, escort the Saintess to the chapel. There will be a gathering with the believers of Gallia who wish to strengthen ties with the Theocracy. It’s very important, so the Saintess must attend as well.
So the holy knights escorted the Saintess in silence.
“….”
“….”
“….”
Aria hadn’t expected them to answer in the first place.
“…Phew.”
‘They’ve even been granted the authority to defy the cardinals, as long as it doesn’t go against Lord Raul’s orders…. They’re not going to obey the commands of a Saintess who has no real power in the Theocracy’s politics.’
Aria felt helpless. Everything had been uncomfortable and difficult for the past few days.
「Have you forgotten the Saintess’s true duty?」
She had thought being a Saintess would make her free, but
it seemed being a Saintess had made her powerless instead.
Was this really what she was supposed to do?
She didn’t know.
In the end, she sighed and started walking.
“…All right. Let’s go, then.”
“Yes, Saintess.”
Aria headed to the chapel under the ‘protection’ of Raul’s holy knights. They kept at least three steps between themselves and Aria, but it was practically a forced escort.
The Saintess and the holy knights walked in silence. The only sounds were the soft rustle of fabric and the clank of armor.
In the suffocating silence,
the cheers of the crowd still caught up in the Hero’s examination could be heard.
-Waaaaah—!
They were cheering for the boy who had defeated the Theocracy’s holy knights.
The holy knights left the sound behind them,
as if they were in a hurry to pretend it had never happened.
“….”
“….”
“….”
Only Aria turned her head slightly to look back.
“….”
The training ground was already far away, but the cheers were still vivid. Somewhere in that roar, the boy at the center of the day’s events must be lying down, exhausted, and resting.
She wanted to run to him.
She wanted to ask if he was badly hurt.
She wanted to apologize for not being able to cheer him on in person….
She wanted him to know.
“….”
‘Hero….’
If…
If…
if Aria weren’t a Saintess,
would she be holding his hand and celebrating with him right now?
‘If I hadn’t been a Saintess to begin with, we wouldn’t have met at all.’
Even so, she imagined it.
Aria pictured herself in that imaginary scene:
a plain, unremarkable girl
from the countryside of the Theocracy.
“….”
In her imagination, she ran up to the battered Arti, clasped both his hands, and jumped up and down. Then she cried out with more joy than anyone else. The words came straight from her heart, just as they did now.
-Arti! You were absolutely amazing—!
-Aria, thank you.
Imaginary Arti smiled brightly.
His face was dusty and tired, but he wore a proud smile. He gave the same smile to her, even though she wasn’t a Saintess.
「I could do it because you were watching, Aria.」
-I could do it thanks to you, Saintess.
It felt familiar.
Aria flinched.
“!”
‘…Those words. I feel like I’ve heard them before, not just imagined them.’
Why?
Why had she heard those words?
-I found the strength because you were by my side.
‘But Lydia and Mave are already by Arti’s side….’
-Thank you.
“….”
But Aria was the one who had heard those words of gratitude.
“…!”
When she realized that anew,
it felt as if her heart had dropped.
‘The place I should be, the place I truly belong….’
As if possessed, Aria tried to turn around.
But….
The sight of the training ground, where the cheers rang out, was blocked by the shadow of a huge man. His white armor and cloak kept her from seeing past him.
Raul was smiling behind her.
“Hehe, well, would you look at that. I was about to hurry after you all the way to the chapel. But you were already on your way.”
“Lord Raul….”
“Perfect timing. The believers of Gallia have asked to meet with us. Why don’t you join us and represent the Theocracy? The believers will be delighted.”
“….”
Raul courteously held out his hand. But the holy knights blocked the way behind Aria.
Aria looked at the hand.
“….”
The Inquisitor’s hand.
A dependable hand that had dealt with countless heretics and apostates as a hero of the Theocracy. He had reached the Ignition stage years ago, and Aria could sense a power in him that might soon carry him to the Aurora stage as well.
The Holy Theocracy called this the hand of a hero.
Aria didn’t take it. Though her body trembled, for the first time she refused the hand of the hero who had cared for her for years.
“No. I, I…. I won’t attend.”
“….”
Aria refused him firmly. Her defiance came from an emotion she herself couldn’t recognize, but for the first time she had openly gone against Raul’s wishes.
But Raul’s smile only deepened.
“Hehe….”
“?”
He said something completely unexpected.
“You’ve finally become fully human.”
“What…?”
“When I first went on a mission and found you, a young Saintess, in the forest, you had no feelings at all. You were like a doll, and it frightened me. You really did seem like an angel sent by the Sun God….”
“?!”
Aria’s eyes shook violently. She began to break out in a cold sweat as an inexplicable fear seized her.
When Raul saw her like that,
the corners of his mouth lifted.
His eyes curved into a smile.
He was proud.
“Hehe.”
He recalled the past.
An expressionless face.
A young child, empty because she knew nothing of love.
-Who… are you?
A shy smile.
A good child who followed the teachings of the Theocracy.
-Thank… you, Lord Raul.
Now that child had grown into a girl who coldly defied him.
Just as Raul had wanted, she had become fully human.
He was proud of that.
“Hehehe….”
‘She’s human, after all. Even pining for a first love she can never have is a natural part of the life the Sun God has ordained for her. And someday, realizing her true destiny will be just as natural.’
She would grow,
lose her way,
and eventually return.
It was a flawless arc of growth.
As if it were a work of art Raul himself had created.
‘A gift of fate the Sun God prepared for me, His faithful believer….’
Then Raul had to prepare to welcome her as a hero of the Theocracy. He had to prepare to make Aria ‘his own.’
‘I’ll make every preparation—politically and by force.’
Raul gazed fondly at Aria, who was glaring at him.
“….”
“….”
Even this expression seemed to him like another part of the fate drawing her toward him.
So he smiled.
He couldn’t stop smiling.
“Hehehe.”
She was so adorable, but
now was the time to tell her the harsh truth, as an adult.
‘…Now is the time for each of us to do what we must.’
Raul wiped the smile from his face and spoke. His expression carried the charisma of a man who had seen the blood of countless people.
“Saintess.”
“….”
“Now is the time to fulfill your duty. We must strengthen the Theocracy’s standing, which could be shaken by these unexpected events.”
He slowly reached out his hand toward Aria, who was frozen with fear. But that hand could go no farther.
A deep voice rang out from far away.
“Hey.”
“?!”
Raul turned around.
There stood an old man in battered black armor, wearing a lopsided expression. The holy knights, who had only just noticed him, all looked flustered.
“He came up behind us all of a sudden…?!”
“What?! Wh-when did he get here?!”
Instructor Zach ignored them and pointed at Raul.
“What are you doing?”
“What brings Sir Black Knight of Gallia, a man of such renown, here?”
“An old geezer shamelessly trailing after a young woman is suspicious enough. It’s not something you see often in the Kingdom of Gallia, so I followed you. Looked like something a pervert would do.”
“….”
Instructor Zach spoke evenly.
“Keep your hands off an academy cadet. Even if you’ve taken a vow of chastity, laying hands on someone weaker than you is a disgrace to any knight.”
“Hehe. It seems there’s been a misunderstanding.”
“Then explain why three holy knights have blocked her escape while a man at the Ignition stage reaches out to a girl who hasn’t even learned self-defense.”
“….”
Raul’s expression stiffened slightly, but he spoke as calmly as ever.
“…This is an internal matter of the Theocracy.”
“This is Arien Academy. It’s neutral territory recognized by the Holy King of the Holy Theocracy. And I’m in charge of security and the Department of Swordsmanship here.”
“My apologies. I’ll respect your authority.”
“Then tell me what’s going on.”
“We had a minor disagreement on our way to meet with devout believers from Gallia. We, the powerless ones, had to respect their wishes.”
“….”
Zach, the ‘Black Knight of Gallia,’ narrowed his eyes.
Raul’s words had been cleverly dressed up.
-From now on, we’re going to meet people whose nobility you can’t stop, no matter who you are.
That was what he meant.
‘…What a nauseating man. Every word he says is crafted to dodge responsibility and pressure the other person. It’s practically instinct for him.’
He was the very embodiment of political ambition and power. That was probably how he’d risen to become an Inquisitor, a position where he could earn more honors than anyone….
But Zach wasn’t about to give him credit for it.
“…Then there’s no problem. This isn’t an academy matter, but something involving our respective countries.”
“Hehehe, thank you for understanding—”
Zach ignored him. Instead, he looked at Aria and called out in a deep voice.
“Then let ‘the powerless Saintess’ Aria obey the command of Her Highness Princess Lydia de Gallia. Her Highness is hosting a tea party with the noble cadets to celebrate the academy holiday. Attend it.”
“…?”
Only then did Zach turn to face Raul.
“There’ll be plenty of Gallia’s high-ranking nobles and devout followers of the One God there, too, so that should be fine, shouldn’t it? It’ll be a good chance for the young people to get to know one another.”
“….”
Raul looked confused.
‘The princess? Why is the Gallian princess…?’
Aria was startled.
“Pardon…? Princess Lydi—Her Highness?”
*
Lydia sat calmly before a tea table.
Served by her maid, Mirian, she watched the new noble faction cadets from the Department of Swordsmanship arm-wrestling. Morgan sat beside her, silently turning the pages of a book.
The academy’s rear courtyard was lively.
-Hah! Take this, Dominic—!
-Graaah?! Mave, you little—how can you be that strong when you’re a girl?!
-So you lose to girls, too, Dominic….
-No! I haven’t lost yet!
Lydia spoke to Aria.
“Come, Aria.”
“….”
“This is a tea party I’m hosting. I forgot to invite you, my friend.”
“Th-thank you, Your Highness.”
“That’s enough. Just call me Lydia here.”
“….”
Aria sat beside her, still uncertain.
Then Mirian, the maid, courteously poured her tea.
“Welcome, Lady Aria.”
“Ah, yes…. Thank you.”
Lydia said warmly,
“That white dress suits you very well.”
“…Th-this is…”
“I’m sure the priestesses who came with the holy knights forced you into it to uphold the Saintess’s dignity. I’ve been through that sort of thing more times than I can count, so I know.”
“….”
For some reason, hearing that made Aria feel more at ease. The feeling of being out of place among the cadets in their uniforms seemed to fade.
“Um…. By any chance…”
“If you mean Arti, he went back to his quarters and fell asleep. The examination was so brutal he must have been exhausted. Of course, he did manage to overcome it splendidly.”
“…Yes.”
“He’s safe. And he was worried about you.”
“….”
Aria was starting to feel a little fluttery.
‘How does Lydia know exactly what I’m thinking…?’
Lydia spoke up.
“I won’t go on at length. I have no right to judge what you’re going through right now.”
“!”
“…So let me tell you about my first love.”
“What?! Lydia can fall in love—?!”
Aria reacted in shock, rudely. Morgan’s hand, which had been turning a page, stiffened as well.
Lydia smiled brightly.
‘To be precise, it was Lee Dae-yoon’s first love in my previous life. As a princess, I haven’t experienced any romance worth mentioning.’
Even so, it might help in its own way.
She spoke in a tranquil voice.
“It happened a long time ago.”
“….”
“I fell in love with someone I hadn’t meant to. They were simply there beside me, and then one day I found myself looking at them.”
“….”
“But I couldn’t get close.”
“…Why not?”
“I thought I wasn’t worthy of them.”
“?”
A princess?
Aria tilted her head.
But Lydia continued.
“I thought the circumstances, the timing, and the conditions wouldn’t allow it.”
“…I see.”
“So I distanced myself. I forgot about them.”
“….”
“But looking back…”
Lydia murmured wistfully,
“I didn’t need any particular conditions. Simply being by their side was love. There was nothing I needed to do to prove it.”
“….”
“That’s all I wanted to say.”
“…Thank you.”
“This is a secret between friends. Don’t tell anyone.”
“Hehe, I won’t.”
Silence settled over them.
It was a strange silence, filled with both comfort and tension.
Amid that,
Morgan’s silence grew even deeper.
The rumor she’d heard earlier came back to her.
“….”
-Wasn’t she even considered a possible match for Sir Lucian, the ‘Golden Knight,’ who’d been a prodigy since childhood? Of course, the engagement fell through.
No way.
Lydia’s first love was…
No way.
“….”
For some reason, Morgan’s silence…
…hurt.