Chapter 36
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: The Red-Haired Saintess of the Slums - 1
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Rain falls from the sky. The heavens, which refused even a drop when I wanted to cry, now pour down raindrops as if squeezing out forced tears, pounding my entire body when I don't.
"Luca..."
Blood flowed from her face. Blood is naturally meant to flow inside the body. Yet the people who face me always bleed from the outside. They shed blood before tears, revealing their hearts before their true feelings.
"Sera."
Her name slipped from my lips once more. In this scene where rain poured from the sky and blood streamed from her body, silence finally settled between us. I gazed at her eyes, disheveled and soaked beyond mere wetness, and opened my mouth.
"Vanessa."
But my first words weren't for Sera. Without turning my head, I continued quietly.
"Take the kids and run."
"Why?"
"The Saintess fled here. With a church priest's head in tow, no less. It can't be anything good. Sorry to drag you into this, but it might be best if you and the kids head somewhere else."
"I see it differently."
But Vanessa replied without wavering, aiming steadily at Sera.
"There's nowhere we can go with the kids except the brothel anyway. Whether we kill or get eaten, we have to hold out here."
"But..."
"And the church won't dispatch a large force right away. The Saintess's disappearance is a massive scandal that would shatter their authority—they can't talk about it openly. Sending out troops blatantly would look suspicious. Plus, they'd never expect her to hide in a slum like this."
"What if someone's tailing her?"
I voiced the concern gnawing at me, and she fixed her single eye on me.
"Then we'll have to deal with them."
"I'll check it out."
"No. Watch the kids for me."
She answered firmly, lowering her crossbow and gripping her crutch tight.
"Dealing with the church's rank-and-file seems easier than that crazy Saintess anyway."
"If there are a bunch, it'll be tough."
"Amateurs who haven't killed before are all the same."
It sounded reckless, but her steely gaze held not confidence, but boredom. In the end, I could only nod.
"Got it."
Vanessa vanished toward the direction Sera had come from without a farewell. Once she was gone, I finally turned to face Sera.
Shooooaaa...
Once it started, the rain showed no sign of stopping. The sky, stripped of all color by the dark clouds, was as achromatic as my mood. Feeling the raindrops clinging to my cheeks, I turned my gaze forward again.
"Sorry... Luca."
Our eyes met, and Sera clasped her hands shyly before speaking. Her voice trembled with the excitement of a lovestruck girl.
"I couldn't wait any longer."
"I don't think I ever told you where I was."
"Would you believe me if I said I came to after blacking out and suddenly I was here?"
"Not a chance."
"But it's true. You know I can't lie."
She took a step toward me. I didn't back away and simply spoke.
"Still caught in Bobby's spell?"
"What do you think?"
"Last I saw, you were head over heels."
"I was. But not anymore."
The distance between us shrank again. Her blurred features sharpened in the rain, revealing Sera's form.
The traces of the past day were stark on her skin. Obsessive scratches from something blunt, handprints from strangers all over her body. Just a glance told me exactly who and what had been on her last night.
But what drove her here remained a mystery.
"Luca."
Sera called my name. Looking up through the pouring rain, I saw her flawless, unscarred face.
"Why did you come to save me?"
"I..."
"No, actually... the reason doesn't matter. All that matters is you came for me."
Sera cut me off urgently, stepping closer. Water droplets flew from her hair, splattering my pant legs. I was soaked too, but hers felt heavier, colder somehow.
"Right, Luca? You came to save me. Didn't you?"
I didn't answer. Her confidence from moments ago vanished as her voice thinned to a quiver.
"Why won't you answer? It's true, isn't it? Why else would you come all this way?"
"..."
"Please, say something. Anything?"
Even if I told you the truth, could you accept it now?
No—even whether you had the will to try was doubtful.
The longer the silence stretched, the more Sera trembled with anxiety. Truth you can't prove yourself eventually crumbles, no matter how fiercely you cling to it.
"Luca..."
Sera finally approached and clutched my clothes lightly. Hot fingers slipped through the folds, bringing unwelcome warmth. Hanging on me, she stared only at my lips. I tossed her a curt word.
"Why."
"Huh?"
"Why do you think I came to save you?"
"Well..."
Her reflexive answer stuck in her throat.
"Because we're..."
"Friends?"
I repeated her own words from before. Sera flinched as if stabbed, gripping my clothes tighter. The sticky delusions she'd mulled over alone last night clung to the inside of her mouth.
"Just friends?"
"What else would it be?"
"We're not just simple friends."
"Then what?"
"That's..."
She couldn't answer. Instead, she clutched harder.
Now I could guess what she'd been thinking last night to come here. She probably believed I loved her enough to follow.
But she knew better than anyone that wasn't true. Sera had watched Eli and me longer than most. Still, she'd gritted her teeth and ignored the facts.
A hollow laugh escaped me. I'd thought Sera was forcibly ensnared by Bobby's hypnosis. With him gone, maybe I could bring her back to herself.
But no. Sera had reached the point where she needed her own self-hypnosis to survive. Having lived a lifetime of lies, trapped in the fear of those lies being exposed, she couldn't endure without magic to deny reality. Like an addict drowning in booze and drugs to ignore a sewer-like life.
Yeah.
Maybe Sera was addicted not to Bobby, but to hypnosis itself.
"Sera."
"Yeah?"
To dispel her trance, I brushed her bangs aside with my hand. The smooth ring touched her cold forehead, and she swallowed involuntarily.
"You know who it was that wasn't just a simple friend with me."
"..."
Sera had no reply. Truth can't be hidden just by covering your eyes.
Her self-imposed hypnosis crumbled, and she bit her lip before pressing her forehead to my chest. In a crawling voice, she spoke.
"...Hey, Luca. I have something to ask."
"What?"
"How much do you hate me?"
She couldn't even ask how much I liked her. Yet her voice trembled on the verge of breaking. Still, her gaze never left me, even knowing my answer wouldn't be pleasant.
I gave her the truth she'd craved.
"As much as I loved Eli."
And as much as you once loved Eli.
Sera fell silent. Watching her dragged my memories to an irretrievable past.
It was always like this before. Sera approaching brimming with false confidence, me seeing through her hypocrisy. When I spat the truth, she'd collapse and cry alone.
Sera—to some, a saintess and whore, hero and traitor. To me, still just a lying girl. Clinging to lies she wasn't even good at, a foolish child with nothing else.
"...Then."
Head bowed, clutching my clothes, Sera met my eyes again. With desperate longing, she whispered.
"Can't you love me that much again?"
Shooooaaa...
Useless raindrops kept seeping into my mind. The rainy sky and Sera before me—I couldn't help recalling a girl who'd grabbed my shoulders in the snow, confessing her heart.
What would Eli have done here?
She would've forgiven, surely. That's how Eli and Sera always were. Sera errs first, Eli forgives. Sera regrets late and apologizes. Looking back, Eli might've seen Sera as a little sister. No matter how infuriating, she'd worm her way into that deep family spot in Eli's heart.
Yeah. Eli would've forgiven Sera.
...
But I wasn't Eli.
"You want to be loved that much?"
My words fell over her like salvation. Sera's eyes lit up like a puppy reuniting with its owner as she looked at my face.
"Yes, Luca."
"No matter what I make you do?"
"Yes. No matter what you do to me."
Madness beyond resolve gleamed in Sera's eyes. I met them, then placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Alright."
Hope flickered in her eyes. But I shoved her shoulder back and turned away.
"Then follow me."
I walked toward the shack without looking back. I knew her choice without checking.
Soon, small footsteps pattered through the falling rain, following me. Like chasing Eli, who'd already left me behind, Sera endlessly trailed my receding back.
Pushing open the door, raindrops plopped onto the damp floor. I hadn't hoped for warm air, but the unheated room was icy. Instead, Rachel's monotone voice greeted me.
"You're back, Luca. Vanessa..."
"She'll be here soon."
"...I see."
She started toward me but stopped at the sight of Sera behind. No children's voices meant they'd been hidden in the basement. I stripped off my wet clothes in the corner and slumped into a chair. Sera fidgeted by the door. Rachel glanced at her and edged toward the basement door.
"This must be the famous Saintess. Nice to meet you. I'm Rachel Moonlight."
It was fairly friendly, but Sera didn't respond. She scowled and turned to me.
"Who's this woman... Who's she, Luca?"
"Someone to help you pay for your sins."
"...That sounds pretty ominous."
Rachel sighed deeply and tried sliding a nearby chair toward Sera. But I hooked my foot to stop it and looked at Rachel.
"Let's talk sitting down."
"Fine... Sure."
Feeling Sera's glare, Rachel sat awkwardly and leaned toward me.
"Didn't expect you'd bring the Saintess here."
"What did you think I'd do?"
"Just... y'know."
She shrugged and mimed strangling an invisible neck. I shook my head slightly.
"Can't do that. Need to meet Bobby."
"Hm... Planning to infiltrate using the Saintess?"
"Maybe. But with her missing, I doubt Bobby's holing up in the basement on some ritual excuse. Ask Vanessa for details."
"Why not send her back now? Keeping her here's too risky."
"She won't want to go."
I finally glanced at Sera, then ignored her again.
"And who knows what else she'll pull. Better to keep her where I can see."
"Can't argue there. So, what's the plan?"
"Use her another way."
"Luca..."
Sera sidled up beside me. Forced to meet her eyes, I saw her faint smile.
"So you need me, right? Yeah? I'll help however I can. Anything to be useful. This time, I'll do exactly what you say, no weird stuff..."
"What have you even heard, Sera?"
"Huh?"
I frowned, and her smile faded. Indifferently, I spat it out.
"I need the Saintess. Not you."
"Th-that's the same thing. I'm the Saintess. Don't play word games..."
"No. Completely different. I need the red-haired girl called the Saintess."
"...Pardon?"
This time Rachel tilted her head. Between the two redheads, I looked back and forth.
"More precisely..."
I touched a finger to Sera's throat.
"I only need a red-haired girl with the Saintess's voice."