Chapter 90
“My child, it has been a while.”
The voice that suddenly rang out was all too familiar to Yusti-ah. What more needed to be said?
It was the voice that had seated her in the position of saintess, so even if she wanted to forget it, she simply couldn’t.
But apart from that familiarity, Yusti-ah was feeling confused.
“Why on earth…”
The last time she heard God’s voice was when she received the revelation to become saintess.
And since that was before the Hero’s Party had even gathered, it was so long ago that her memory was hazy.
Of course, that didn’t mean her memory was actually hazy.
Because the memories of that day still remained like shackles in her mind.
“Have you been well all this time?”
Have you been well, she asks - no matter how much of a pleasantry it was, she shouldn’t say such things.
Because being chosen as the saintess meant she had truly spent the worst of days.
She had to leave on a journey to subjugate the Demon Lord, and as a saintess, she had to live a life far removed from her own desires.
Thanks to Franz, she had changed her mindset and was living a peaceful life, but that didn’t mean she had forgiven the Goddess.
But who could have known that the Goddess would be the one to bring up the topic of Franz?
At the very least, Yusti-ah had no idea.
“Actually, I met a person named Franz this time. He is probably someone you know well too.”
“H-him…? You did, Goddess…?”
She hadn’t expected the Goddess to bring up that name, so Yusti-ah was simply bewildered.
The Goddess chuckled. “You are finally showing a reaction.”
“Yes, well, more importantly, please tell me quickly, Your Highness. Why did you meet him?”
Even as Yusti-ah pressed the Goddess for answers, she felt a little puzzled.
Why did she get so flustered whenever it involved Franz?
Whenever she came to her senses, things had already happened.
- just like today, when she got swept up by the secretary and ended up in a cooking competition.
“Hear about that part from Franz. That will be better for you as well.”
If she wasn’t even going to tell her, why on earth did she bring it up?
Just as Yusti-ah was about to harbor such complaints, the Goddess said,
“More importantly, I heard a truly absurd story. Would you like to hear it?”
“…What kind of story was it?”
‘Well, that World Tree fellow said that her child would become Franz’s wife, you see? What was her name again? Did she say it was Hera?’
Hera was the World Tree’s child.
She was probably talking about the elf Hera that she knew.
Anyway, Hera becoming Franz’s wife - no matter how she thought about it, that made no sense.
It was true that they were close, but she was slated to become a slave, not a wife.
Franz himself didn’t seem to want that, but with Hera’s stubbornness, it was obvious she would fulfill the promise anyway.
However, the Goddess’s next words were so absurd that it was enough to make her let out a hollow laugh.
‘So I told her. My child is the one who will become Franz’s wife.’
“No, why would you say such a thing?”
‘Hm? Because you like him. Don’t you?’
The moment she heard those words, a picture began to form in Yusti-ah’s mind.
Sleeping in the same house as Franz, having one son who looked like him and one daughter who looked like her, and living harmoniously together.
Bickering with each other, yet happy in their own way…
Yusti-ah, who had been continuing that imagination, shook her head vigorously from side to side.
Because no matter how she thought about it, it made absolutely no sense.
Was it absolutely impossible? Well, not exactly, but anyway, it was ridiculous.
“Then was I mistaken…?”
“Yes, I do not like that man.”
‘Weren’t you sad that he hasn’t been calling you lately?’
“Well… that is true.”
But that was far from the emotion called love.
Because no matter how much you hate doing something, if someone always calls for you and then suddenly stops, it’s only natural to feel a bit disappointed.
‘Before going to sleep, you sometimes thought of him and blankly stared at the robe he left behind, didn’t you?’
“…How did you know about that too?”
“There is no way I could fail to know your affairs.”
It was truly embarrassing, but it was a fact.
Lately, he had quite often popped into her mind before she went to sleep, and every time that happened, she would blankly stare at the robe he had left behind.
But that wasn’t love either.
Why, wasn’t she entangled with him in many ways?
They were comrades who subjugated the Demon Lord together, and they were also pondering the subjugation of the Cultists.
Because of that, he just often came to mind.
“In this world, they have agreed to call such a thing love.”
‘…Anyway, I don’t.’
No matter how she thought about it, there was no way she liked him.
His personality was filthy, he was always holed up in the Magic Tower, and he was even a man who would raise his hand against a woman if he didn’t like something.
Of course, his personality had gotten a lot better recently, and working hard in the Magic Tower was a bit cool, and hitting her had been for her own sake.
Anyway, no.
…Absolutely not.
“Well, it is more important for you to realize it yourself than for me to say it a hundred times. We got sidetracked for a moment, but anyway, the important thing is that I made a bet with that World Tree fellow.”
“What kind of bet…?”
Even as Yusti-ah asked, she felt an ominous feeling for some reason.
As Yusti-ah put together the stories that had come up earlier, it was undoubtedly related to Franz.
And that prediction was exactly right.
‘On who will be the first to have Franz’s child, I naturally bet on you.’
Should she say the scale of the gods’ bets was truly grand?
It seemed they had lost their minds out of sheer boredom.
‘Why on earth would you make such a bet…! No, wait. You have already lost, because I have no intention of having that man’s child.’
“Do not be too certain. Human life is a series of unexpected events, is it not?”
“Stop, that is enough.”
Yusti-ah cut her off firmly.
Because if she kept listening any longer, she felt like her head would really go crazy.
At Yusti-ah’s reaction, the Goddess let out a gentle chuckle.
“All right, then I will come to visit again soon, so take care.”
With those words, the Goddess truly disappeared.
She definitely had a mountain of things she wanted to say, but she couldn’t say a single word about them.
Because Franz’s story had come up again this time, she had been momentarily distracted.
Yusti-ah let out a sigh.
Having Franz’s child - what kind of ridiculous bet were they making…
* * *
The next day.
“Franz, make some time for me later.”
In the middle of their meal, Yusti-ah suddenly spoke.
As it happened, Franz also had something to say to her, so the appointment was naturally made.
Eventually, after finishing their meal, the two faced each other in a secluded corner of Duke Phrygia.
“What is it that you dragged me all the way here?”
Franz asked in puzzlement.
They had often conversed in corners at the cathedral too, so it was familiar in a way, but it still didn’t feel very good.
It would be troublesome if rumors spread that he was having a secret rendezvous with the saintess for no reason.
Yusti-ah let out a sigh and spoke.
“Did you, by any chance, meet with the Goddess?”
“I was actually planning to talk about that anyway, so this works out well. But how do you know about that?”
“The Goddess told me yesterday that she met with you.”
“She told you directly…?”
Franz was filled with worry.
Because Yusti-ah hated the Goddess.
Could her feelings have been deeply hurt while they were talking?
He absolutely refused to go back to how things were before, with her wishing for the destruction of the world or whatever.
Just thinking about the notification window blinking in front of his eyes was already terrible.
“Well, nothing bad happened, right…?”
“B-bad happened, what do you mean…? Do you know about it too…?”
Yusti-ah was visibly flustered.
He didn’t know the reason, but it was definitely not a positive reaction.
It seemed something had happened yesterday.
“Well, I roughly know about it for now.”
What the Goddess told Yusti-ah was definitely about the sealed armaments.
There was a high chance she had told her to cooperate.
It was from then on that a certain misunderstanding began to form between the two.
“You knew and yet you didn’t say anything?!”
“To be honest, it’s a hassle for me too, you know? But well, it can’t be helped. It’s not a bad thing, so I have to accept it.”
“A hassle?! Is that all you have to say?!”
She usually said she hated the Goddess so much, but was she still a saintess after all?
It was truly fascinating that Yusti-ah was taking the Goddess’s side.
“Then I’ll take back the part about it being a hassle.”
“More importantly, are you really okay with it…?”
“She said it had to be me. So I accepted it.”
“It’s a child. A new life is being born, and you’re taking it so lightly…!”
Yusti-ah spoke as if she was incredibly disappointed.
But Franz was only puzzled by her reaction.
What child, and what new life? Were they even talking about the same thing in the first place?
“What are you talking about?”
“Why are you pretending not to know now?! You said you knew everything too! About who between me and Hera will make a child with you first!”
…?
A single question mark popped up in Franz’s mind, which had gone completely blank.