The Saint's Holy Book
In a private room at a study cafe not far from the annex building in Uijeongbu, a loud thud echoed as the long desk shook violently.
I had rented out the entire study cafe. Now I alternated my gaze between the absurdly massive book sitting in front of me and Adel, who was panting heavily with an exhausted expression.
“What… is this? Don’t tell me this is the holy scripture?”
Adel caught her breath and answered with enthusiasm.
“Yes! That’s right! It’s the bible of our faith!”
No way… what kind of bible is so huge you can’t even span it with your thumb and pinky? On top of that, the book had no cover and a metal spring binding running down the side. It was basically just an oversized notebook. Was there really a holy book made this sloppily? And where the hell did she even get it from?
I carefully opened the scripture. On the first page, written in large, cute handwriting in Korean, was the title: [Doctrines of the Rosario Faith].
I immediately realized that Adel had written this herself.
Letting out a dry chuckle, I asked the girl sitting across from me, who was beaming with a bright smile.
“Don’t tell me you wrote all of this yourself?”
“Yes! I started writing it back when I was first learning Korean! I finished this one about a week ago! There are five more volumes besides this, but those are still incomplete!”
She puffed out her chest proudly. Six volumes in total. My vision swam for a moment.
I should’ve just built up affection points normally and asked her on a date… Why did I have to brag about wanting to learn the doctrines…
I mentally hurled curses at my past self and asked,
“So you memorized all six volumes?”
“Of course I had to memorize them! I am the representative who delivers Lady Rosario’s will, after all?”
Her tenacity was no joke. I had a feeling she was going to explain every single doctrine in excruciating, exhaustive detail.
I nodded slowly and watched as Adel drank from a water bottle. After gulping it down cutely, she rested her arms on the desk and stared at me with wide eyes.
“What are you doing? Hurry up and read it.”
“…Excuse me? You want me to read this?”
“It’s written in Korean, so there won’t be any problems understanding it. Today, make sure you completely memorize the first hundred pages!”
What kind of slapdash education is this? I made a dumbfounded face.
“Um… shouldn’t we start with something like an introduction to the religion to spark the interest of potential converts…?”
“Ah, is that how it’s done?”
Why are you asking me? She was the Saint who was supposed to be at the forefront of missionary work. How could she not know something so basic?
Ah, right. On her original planet, the believers just did whatever the higher-ups told them to do. That must be why she never noticed anything strange about her approach.
When I let out a small snort of laughter, Adel’s face flushed red and she quickly continued.
“I-I was going to start with an introduction too, you know?”
“I’m sure you were.”
Seeing my slightly unimpressed expression, Adel grew flustered.
“Um… to put it simply about our faith… well… first of all…”
As she began to ramble incoherently, I spoke to her in a gentle tone.
“If you’re not prepared, we can do this next time…”
“Ah, no! You’ll run away!”
From the way she said that, it seemed there had been previous cases where prospective believers had fled. No wonder, if she taught like this.
I pretended to look regretful about not being able to escape and stayed quiet. Adel let out a sigh of relief and clapped her hands together.
“Shall we start with a prayer? Place your elbows on the desk, clasp your hands, and rest your forehead on them. Bow your head slightly and close your eyes.”
“Ah, yes…”
I obediently followed her instructions. Then, Adel’s clear, bell-like voice flowed beautifully into my ears.
It was a prayer written entirely in Korean. She didn’t stumble over a single word. It looked like she had practiced quite a lot for my sake.
I watched her through half-lidded eyes. The moment a faint golden glow began to rise from her body, I flinched.
Just reciting a prayer generates divine power?
Maybe learning the doctrines wasn’t such a good idea after all. Surely that power wouldn’t flow into my body, right?
I swallowed my anxiety. But when the golden radiance filled the entire room, an inexplicable sense of disgust washed over me. It wasn’t that my hidden magi was reacting. I just felt utterly sick.
Still, since I was currently in a human body, it seemed I wasn’t affected even when the power was this close. That was a relief.
The instant Adel finished the prayer, the radiance was sucked back into her body in the blink of an eye.
I quickly closed my eyes. Only after she told me it was okay to open them did I unclasp my hands.
The room had returned to normal, just as it had been before the prayer. I took a deep breath as if a massive storm had just passed, then let it all out at once.
Adel asked,
“How do you feel? Does your heart feel more reverent?”
“Hmm… I’m not entirely sure yet, but I do feel somewhat refreshed.”
“That’s it! Don’t forget that feeling!”
Adel bounced with excitement. I gave her a gentle smile, then perked up my ears as she began her introduction to the Rosario faith.
Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles. I had rarely suffered losses after gathering information in advance. So I would thoroughly dig up every last detail.
**
I learned quite a lot from Adel.
The purpose of the Rosario faith was to punish evil, save living beings, and bring about peace. It was remarkably similar to the nature of the mysterious power known as Aether.
Rosario was the Goddess of Light and the ruler of the heavenly realm. Though that realm apparently consisted of only her, she had servants under her command, much like my lovely demonic beasts.
In the distant past, when the universe was in utter chaos, Rosario had operated on a very wide scale. But now, she rarely moved directly. Instead, she would have prophetic dreams. If the content of those dreams was ominous, she would choose an agent, deliver an oracle, and grant them partial use of her power.
It definitely seems directly connected to Aether…
I wanted to learn more, but Adel’s introduction to the faith ended there. I couldn’t obtain any further information.
For now, I could be certain that the prophetic dreams Rosario had did not specify exact targets. I was confident in that. After all, the only oracle Adel had received was to gather comrades and save the Earth from evil. If the dream had been more detailed, my true identity would have already been exposed.
This much was safe. I could move freely.
That was all the harvest for today. It was a little disappointing, but once my relationship with Adel grew much closer, I would be able to dig out more information. For now, I just had to obediently do whatever Adel told me to do.
After organizing the information in my head, I opened my mouth.
“I’ve heard the story well. It seems my respect for the Rosario faith is growing.”
At those words, Adel smiled brightly. I couldn’t wait for the day I would turn that beautiful smile that seemed to illuminate everything around her into a wicked, depraved one. My motivation surged.
“Right?! It’s amazing, isn’t it? As expected, Jihyeok, you have such a wonderful mindset!”
“Thank you. Shall we read the scripture now? Should I start from the Book of Genesis?”
“Yes! I’ll just sit here quietly, so if there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask me anytime! You can analyze it as much as you want, but the most important thing is to accept it deep in your heart! Think of me being right there with you!”
“Understood.”
As I read through the scripture, I asked Adel about any parts I was curious about. She was delighted by my excellent attitude toward learning and answered my questions in great detail.
In that way, we spent nearly eight hours talking only about the stories in the holy book.
By the time the sun had completely set, I was still concentrating on reading when a loud growl came from Adel’s stomach. I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
Adel hung her head and shouted,
“D-don’t laugh at me! I didn’t even eat breakfast before I came here, okay?!”
Seeing her suddenly get angry… felt pretty good. It meant she was comfortable enough with me to act this way.
“I wasn’t laughing at you. I laughed because I’m hungry too. How about we call it a day here?”
“Mmm… okay. There are still twenty pages left, but I’ll let it slide.”
“That’s quite the Spartan-style education.”
“What’s Spartan-style education?”
“It’s the training method used for soldiers in an ancient Greek city-state. It’s also called the Agoge. It was infamous for being extremely harsh.”
Adel clapped her hands together.
“Aha! That country must have been incredibly powerful then?”
“It actually collapsed because of that education. Completely ruined.”
“…..”
Her mouth fell open in shock. She looked so adorable that I ended up laughing even harder. After laughing loud enough to shake the entire room, I waved my hands.
“I’m joking. Let’s go eat.”
Adel let out a relieved breath, then pouted at me.
“Haa… You scared me! And yesterday with the candy too… You’re really too much!”
“As an apology, I’ll take you to a really good restaurant.”
“If it’s not delicious, you’ll be in trouble.”
Where did she learn to say things like that?
I pretended to flinch and stood up from my seat.
“I’ll take the scripture with me. Is that okay?”
“Of course. You should read it whenever you have time. If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can text or call me!”
“I will.”
**
After enjoying an expensive meal at a nice restaurant, I suggested to Adel that we take a walk to help with digestion. She accepted without hesitation.
We left the restaurant and strolled slowly side by side along the sidewalk. Adel looked around at the scenery, letting out sounds of admiration. I watched her with a warm smile.
“The food was delicious, right?”
“Yes, it was incredibly good.”
“Then nothing boring will happen. That’s a relief.”
Adel giggled. Then, out of nowhere, she apologized.
“I’m sorry, Jihyeok.”
“Hm? For what?”
“Today at the cafe… Now that I think about it, it must have been really boring for you. You wanted to learn the teachings to find mental peace, but I forgot about your feelings and was only obsessed with accepting you as a believer. My method of spreading the doctrine was stupid too. It’s no wonder you were bored. I’ll reflect on it.”
Listening to her lament, I pulled a candy from my pocket. It was the same mint-flavored one I had given her yesterday. I held it out and said,
“Want one?”
“I’m not joking around! I’m being serious!”
“I’m being serious too.”
“I’m not nervous! I don’t need it!”
“It’s just to freshen your mouth and melt away that lump in your chest. It’s refreshing, isn’t it?”
“…Well, that’s true… Then I’ll take it.”
Just like yesterday, Adel snatched the candy from my palm in one swift motion. As she ate it, I took out a new one for myself and popped it into my mouth.
After the crunching sounds faded, Adel pursed her lips like a goldfish and sucked in air, trying to feel the refreshing coolness of the mint. Watching her, I smiled like a proud father and encouraged her.
“Everyone learns through trial and error. And you did well, Adel. Reading the scripture really put my mind at ease.”
At those words, Adel pressed her lips together and looked at me. Then she asked, half in doubt,
“Really…?”
“Yes. I didn’t even get a migraine today, so it was wonderful. I was truly satisfied, and I want to learn more. Please take good care of me from now on. We might not be able to meet often, but… I’ll make sure to study hard in advance.”
“Whoaaa…!”
Adel’s eyes sparkled. She seemed genuinely happy that she had been helpful.
“In the latter part of the section you need to memorize, there’s a passage like this. The holy Lord purified Orcus, who was once pure evil…”
Adel began chattering away about the contents of the scripture again. That day, all the way until I walked her home, I listened to stories about Rosario’s achievements until my ears nearly bled.
I had zero interest in any of it, but I focused as much as possible. That way, if Adel ever gave me a surprise quiz later, I could answer without hesitation and earn points.