Chapter 34
The Prayer Priest solemnly declared.
-Then the final test, the ‘Trial of Oaths,’ will take place at dawn tomorrow. The Hero candidate shall swear to his own path beneath the Sun God, before the Saintess.
The second test was over.
Everyone’s attention was on the Gallian boy who had overcome today’s trial. But the Inquisitor Raul’s eyes were fixed solely on the Saintess.
“…Saintess.”
But Aria didn’t hear him. She had gone over to the battered Hero and was saying something to him.
Quietly, but
in a voice that no longer trembled.
-From now on, I’ll choose to stand by your side, too.
-Thank you. …For staying by my side.
-So please stay by my side, too, Hero.
-…!
Arti nodded. He looked overjoyed.
The Hero and Saintess smiled at each other.
A reunion after ten days,
a very quiet conversation.
But now they were no longer wavering.
Their eyes held a firmer confidence than before. Enough to stay by each other’s side as they prepared for the final test.
The Prayer Priest said to them.
-The Hero and Saintess, familiarize yourselves with the next test.
-Yes!
-Yes.
They spoke with determination,
standing by each other’s side.
For something to be called an awkward first love…
they seemed far too strong and steadfast.
Raul could only watch them.
“….”
Something was wrong.
It felt as though what he believed in was wavering.
‘The Saintess is… the partner the Sun God chose for me…?’
Ten years.
He had waited ten years.
-Who… are you…?
-Uncle Raul?
-Lord Raul.
-Lord Raul…!
-Sir Raul!
“!”
Raul unconsciously reached out.
He tried to wedge himself between the Hero and the Saintess.
But the area was packed with distinguished guests who had gathered to watch the Hero’s test. He couldn’t just shove them aside.
As an Inquisitor,
he might be misunderstood.
It would tarnish the reputation he had built.
“….”
For the first time, Raul felt that his hand couldn’t reach Aria. It was as shocking as seeing the doll he’d hidden in a cupboard walk out on its own.
Strange.
‘This can’t be happening….’
*
The plain at sunset.
Since Aria’s declaration, Cardinal Albert had desperately tried to take her away. But Lydia had blocked him.
“What?!”
Lydia greeted the Cardinal elegantly.
“Cardinal, we saw each other at the entrance ceremony, but this is our first proper meeting. A pleasure.”
“…?!”
“Please forgive my discourtesy in not meeting you sooner, despite being a devout Gallian believer.”
“Ha, haha. Of course. Even if we don’t see each other for a day, the sun always rises again. But what brings you here…?”
“Nothing in particular. I simply wanted to exchange greetings with Cardinal Albert.”
“It’s an honor. I shall pray that Your Highness will always receive the Sun’s blessing.”
The Cardinal made a show of praying as if to signal that their business was over, but…
Lydia smiled and didn’t move aside. Instead, she invited the Cardinal to her tea party.
“Is that so? Then how about joining me for tea right here and discussing matters of faith? This is my first chance to speak with you, Cardinal, so I could learn a great deal.”
“….”
Mave and Morgan were startled as they watched.
“Lady Lydia…?”
“Lydia…?”
Cardinal Albert looked bewildered.
‘What on earth is this upstart royal brat plotting? I heard she’d been completely ostracized from high society. Could she really be this oblivious…?’
After entering the academy,
it was impossible to understand why a royal who had quietly holed up in the Department of Swordsmanship would suddenly act like this in a public setting.
‘Is she trying to act like Gallian royalty now?’
The princess and the Cardinal face-to-face.
People gathered around them, murmuring.
-What’s a member of Gallian royalty doing?
-She’s always been so quiet…
-The Cardinal doesn’t seem too pleased.
-Could she be trying to become a new link with the Theocracy?
-Maybe her enrolling in the Department of Swordsmanship was some religious maneuver by the aristocratic faction…
-Maybe this is the birth of a new religious faction between Gallia and the Theocracy—.
The princess who had never attended social gatherings.
The princess who never reacted to much of anything.
Lydia de Gallia.
She had made her move.
The longer the silence,
the more attention she drew.
Even academy cadets on their way back stopped to watch.
Cardinal Albert’s lips grew parched.
“Phew…”
Honestly, he didn’t care about some discarded princess. He had to propose a ‘different direction’ for the Hero’s test right now.
Damn it,
of all people, a royal he couldn’t easily ignore…!
“….”
Before he was swept up in the atmosphere any further, Cardinal Albert spoke firmly. He couldn’t afford to prioritize tact, even if people thought him a little rude.
“Ha ha, I see. Unfortunately, I have an important matter to discuss with the Saintess regarding the Hero’s examination today. Please understand that I have no choice but to leave.”
“…Hmph.”
Lydia paid him no mind and spoke to the Cardinal. Her smile was more elegant and confident than ever.
“How convenient. Aria and Arti have been friends of mine since shortly after the entrance ceremony.”
“Pardon?”
Lydia smiled broadly.
“I have plenty to discuss with them as well, so why don’t we all gather for tea together?”
“….”
This was not the sort of gathering Cardinal Albert wanted.
“This is a matter for the Theocracy, so I hope you understand that I have no choice.”
“As a member of Gallian royalty, I could say this is an important occasion to welcome the Hero and Saintess. Then the Cardinal’s dignity would be preserved as the witness to this historic occasion.”
“….”
“As the representative of the Department of Theology, you can proudly tout your achievement in fostering a friendship between Saintess Aria and the high nobility. It would be a mutually satisfactory outcome for both you and me.”
“Th-that…”
“Do you have anything to say, Cardinal? What greater honor could there be for a believer in the Sun God?”
“….”
Every one of Cardinal Albert’s ‘excuses’ had been dismantled.
Please,
just
shut
up.
“Hmm.”
But Lydia was royalty. If he openly ignored her, he would draw the attention of the entire southern continent.
Then ‘everything’ would fail.
“….”
Albert looked at the attendants and knights of nobles from the three kingdoms gathered nearby, then fell silent. He gave Lydia a stiff smile and shook his head.
“I’m afraid this old man would spoil the mood among the young. I’ll take my leave.”
Lydia answered with a bright smile.
“How considerate! I appreciate it, Cardinal.”
“….”
Cardinal Albert wore a smile,
but his eyes were colder than ever.
‘What on earth is she plotting?’
Why…?
Why was some little royal brat of a freshman
suddenly… doing this to him…?
*
Arti sat awkwardly in a corner of a private room in the royal dormitory. The fact that he had casually entered a place where female royalty lived pricked at his conscience.
‘Still, the Saintess came too. Maybe I don’t need to feel so guilty…? No, is it okay for a commoner to be here? But Mave’s a commoner too….’
The dawn training group.
Arti, Aria, Mave, Lydia, and Morgan.
For the first time in a while, they had all gathered together.
Arti remembered Lydia’s suggestion.
-What?! I’m going to Lydia’s dormitory?!
-Hero… when you put it that way, it sounds so suspicious.
-N-no, what I mean is…
Lydia had smiled more brightly than ever. It was the first time he had seen such a relieved smile.
-Isn’t today a day worth celebrating? We should all have dinner together ‘safely’ and take it easy.
That was why he had come here.
“….”
Was this really okay,
on the eve of the final test?
Arti sighed.
“Phew, I don’t know.”
At the same time,
Aria was preparing a meal in the private room’s kitchen. She wore an apron. Beside her was Lydia, wearing an apron just like hers.
“I-is this the right way to do it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Pardon?”
“I said, I don’t know how to cook.”
“….”
In the end, the two of them made a mess of the place. An hour later, they had barely managed to make a lopsided loaf of bread and some stew.
As she watched the stew bubbling,
Aria spoke softly, her face dusted with flour.
“…Lydia.”
“Why do you call me?”
As they walked around the dormitory grounds,
Aria brought up one of the things she had been thinking about.
“I, um, actually felt jealous of you at first.”
“….”
“Watching you by the Hero’s side, knowing everything and helping him with everything… I felt like I was being replaced as the Saintess.”
“….”
“If the Hero knew about the Sacred Sword and how to grow stronger as a Hero… what use would there be for a Saintess whose prophecies had stopped?”
“….”
Lydia looked a little troubled.
“I failed to leave any room for you to claim your place. That was my mistake.”
Aria let out a small laugh.
“…Why would that be your fault, Lydia? I was the one who made it all up in my head.”
“That’s…”
“And…”
“?”
“Thanks to you, I was able to make up my mind, too.”
Aria carefully took something out from inside her clothes. It was the letter she had been holding when she made her declaration before the Prayer Priest earlier.
Just as Lydia had promised,
it had been hanging from the tallest tree on the Department of Theology dormitory grounds.
It said:
-I was too weak to hold on to my first love. But I hope you’ll be different.
“….”
When Aria saw the letter,
she understood how Lydia had felt as she watched her.
‘From the start, she wasn’t trying to take my place… She was trying to help me grow, too.’
Without being a Saintess,
all that would be left was an unremarkable country girl.
But Lydia had tried to help her grow.
Then…
‘How should Aria grow?’
‘First, let me go to his side. And walk this path together as I discover… my own feelings.’
Not as a Saintess,
but as Lydia’s friend.
‘That’s where I need to be.’
It was just as she was about to leave through the main gate.
She saw the carriage waiting for her there.
Aria had no choice but to climb aboard.
And then.
Now they could face each other again like this.
Aria spoke with all her heart.
“Maybe Lydia’s path wasn’t taking something away from me… Maybe it was helping me move forward faster.”
“….”
“And if fate allows it, I want to walk that path with you.”
“….”
“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”
“…I see.”
“Yes.”
The only sound in the kitchen was the stew bubbling.
“….”
“….”
Lydia opened her mouth.
“…Tomorrow.”
“?”
“Good luck.”
“Yes.”
Aria said nothing more. From now on, it was time to show her feelings not through words, but through actions and trust.
Lydia looked at the simmering stew.
Bubble, bubble…
“….”
In the murky broth,
it seemed a shadow was slowly stirring. A shape crawling out, no longer able to endure the heat.
‘So, tomorrow.’
*
The dark chapel.
Shnk—!
“Guh…?!”
Raul’s eyes widened.
The Cardinal was stabbing him with a ‘black stake,’ wearing a gentle smile. The blood welling up from his belly flowed along the stake.
“H-how…? You…”
“Hmm, do you mean the Ignition stage? Or my identity?”
“How…”
“Let’s be honest with each other. We share the same lust for power, don’t we? We’re brothers bound by desires thicker than blood.”
“I…!”
“Brother Raul.”
Albert smiled coldly.
“Isn’t it only natural for there to be shadows beneath the sun? Do not fear the darkness permitted by the Sun God. Countless people have already accepted the shadow.”
“I…!”
“You carry it in your heart, too, don’t you?”
A cold voice sounded in Raul’s ear.
-Aria.
“…?!”
When he thought of her,
Raul’s eyes turned black.
Albert smiled confidently.
“Heh heh… My, my. The esteemed Inquisitor has gone berserk with lust for the Saintess and thrown the Hero’s examination into disarray.”
Well, well…
This is quite serious.
Really, what a disaster.