Chapter 11
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 11 - The Saintess's Blessing
"Haa... it's over..."
Seeing the people cheering on the podium, it finally felt real that one major incident had ended.
The evidence the Saintess possessed, the 'Soul Crystal Sphere'.
I knew from reading the original work that evidence of Count Wilhelm's treason was contained within it.
But I didn't expect it to be an uncensored gore film like that.
Ugh... seeing people die in live-action like that really made me feel like throwing up.
When I barely maintained a poker face and arrested Wilhelm, the bastard shouted as he was dragged away.
"Uwahahaha! Amazing, Edric Noel! Fine, I will go to the afterlife first and wait for you. It will be fun to watch how you devour this empire! I will watch carefully to see how far your endless thirst drives the empire!"
What do you mean devour, you old man, if I do something wrong I'm going to be killed by the princess!
There was a little noise like that, but Count Wilhelm was arrested, and half of the direct knight order following him were turned into a 'kni/ght order' by Liesel, and the rest were obediently subdued.
Hmm... looking closely, it seems they didn't become a kni/ght order, but rather a knight/ order.
You should have lived a good life; committing acts like a massacre and not even receiving sympathy, tsk tsk.
I looked at the nobles sitting on my left and right.
"S... Sir Edric, w... we didn't know."
"Th-that's right! We had absolutely no idea that Count Wilhelm, no, that traitor was committing such acts!"
Their faces had all turned pale blue, and they were terrified.
There was probably no one among them who knew Wilhelm's goal.
Because if they had known, Wilhelm would have killed them. However, there were probably quite a few people who had knowingly or unknowingly lent power to his treason.
"The details will all be revealed in the upcoming investigation. Then..."
"S... Sir Edric!"
Ignoring their desperation, I moved my steps.
Most of the Southern nobles were connected to Wilhelm.
I couldn't kill all of them, but they wouldn't all be able to get off scot-free either.
They will probably have to spit out most of what they've eaten while exploiting the people up until now, give up large portions of their territories, and cower in a corner.
Otherwise, if they even tried to disobey, they would immediately be tied to Wilhelm and their families would be destroyed by the crime of treason.
Even if I didn't do it, the Empire's judiciary would do it 100%.
At that time, a chilly presence was felt in the shadows behind my back.
It was the 'Shadow Warrior' attached to me by the prince.
"Sir Edric, I have something to report."
"Speak."
"Behind the inn where you are staying, three carriages loaded with gold and rare treasures of unknown origin were discovered. It is determined that Count Wilhelm's side secretly moved them there."
'Wow, old man Wilhelm. How generous of you.'
It seemed to be the 'gift' he mentioned earlier in the day.
To bring bribes by the carriage load, it truly was a scale befitting the ruler of the South.
If it were the original work, Edric Noel would have excitedly swallowed it whole, but the me of now is different.
If I touched this, the princess's blade would end up turning my neck into 'Ed/ric'.
"Good work. Do not touch a single coin of those treasures, and confiscate them all by the command of His Highness the Prince. Register them as evidence to be returned to the imperial treasury and monitor them thoroughly."
"......I accept your command."
The Shadow Warrior fell silent for a moment, then looked at Edric with eyes full of awe, bowed his head, and disappeared.
That Shadow Warrior had seen many Chancellors pocketing their own bribes while carrying out numerous missions.
But Edric was the first to say he would return everything to the empire's treasury.
'Edric Noel is a true loyal subject of His Highness the Prince.' Although a Shadow Warrior who shouldn't have personal thoughts, for that moment, he did not hide his admiration for Edric's integrity.
The truth was that I threw it away because I didn't want to get swept up in bothersome background checks later, but there was no way the Shadow Warrior could know that.
"Everyone is excited..."
I looked down at the plaza below.
Everyone was shedding tears of joy and could not stop cheering.
Among them, I locked eyes with Saintess Azelia.
In the original work, because of the responsibility of being a Saintess, she was a character who suffered under immense stress between lies and truth at every moment.
Seeing such a her shedding tears and rejoicing like an ordinary girl made my heart ache strangely.
'The Saintess has also suffered a lot.'
When I thought that a girl younger than me had become a Saintess and suffered such emotional distress up until now, my heart was touched.
I showed a benevolent smile like an uncle looking at his niece.
Then, Azelia made a strange expression as if she had read my gaze, and silently mouthed something.
[In the evening... see you at that place.]
That place? Where is that place? I tilted my head for a moment, but soon realized where the place she was talking about was.
Our own secret meeting place, the abandoned ruins on the outskirts of the village.
As the night deepened, Southern Livia was engulfed in a hotter fever than ever before.
The commoners, liberated from the tyranny of the nobles, poured out into the streets, dancing, singing, and enjoying the festival.
In the ruins where the boisterous sounds of the festival coming from afar could be heard faintly like a fog, I faced Azelia again.
"You have arrived, Lord Edric."
"Is it alright if you don't participate in the festival? The Saintess is no different from the main character of tonight."
At my question, Azelia smiled faintly as if it was fine.
Her appearance, always shining having received the god's blessing, met the beautiful moonlit night and made her feel like a true goddess of the moon.
"Because the festival will continue tomorrow, and the day after as well. Experiencing the joy later is enough. More importantly, is it really alright for Lord Edric to not enjoy the festival?"
"Because I am in the middle of executing official duties. And if I join the drinking party, everyone will be uncomfortable."
"Fufu, Sir Edric is truly harsh on yourself."
Azelia laughed quietly.
Seeing a smile that had become much more comfortable than when I first saw her, my mind also felt at ease.
"I think it is less than the Saintess. You have carried that burden alone and come all the way here, haven't you."
"......Please call me Azelia."
"Pardon?"
"Instead of the title of Saintess, my name is Azelia Wisp. I would like it if you called me Azelia."
Azelia spoke while looking straight into my eyes.
Facing beautiful Azelia's gaze directly, I once again recalled the prince from the original work.
Yeah! With such a Saintess right in front of you, you could afford to ruin a country a bit!
Wait, no! What kind of crazy talk is this!
I gathered my thoughts and spoke.
"A... Lady Azelia?"
"Drop the 'Lady' too!... Please just call me Azelia comfortably."
She stared at me, stubbornly asking me to call her Azelia.
Surrendering to that straight gaze, I awkwardly parted my lips.
"I understand... Azelia."
"Hehe, that sounds much better."
As a satisfied smile spread across her face, I also felt my chest warm up.
Is this also a divine authority of the Saintess?
However, soon a sense of loneliness mixed into that smile.
"Are you... returning to the capital now?"
"Yes... there are many things to process regarding the crime of treason, so it seems I must return to the capital quickly."
"I see..."
Azelia looked genuinely lonely.
To care this much even for me, who doesn't have a very deep connection with her... As expected, the Saintess was indeed a Saintess.
"Then... will I not be able to see Lord Edric again now?"
Azelia looked at me with moist eyes.
I don't know how things in the world will turn out, but if I am next to the prince and she is the Saintess, there was no way of knowing how we would meet again in the future.
"Because the world is small. If we have a connection... the day we meet again will surely come."
A brief silence flowed.
Azelia lightly tugged my sleeve as if she had decided something.
"A... Azelia?"
"Would you follow me? There is something I want to show you."
Following her, I exited the ruins and headed to the end of a collapsed wall in the forest.
What is it? Is she trying to dispose of me here?
For a brief moment, I even had a terrible imagination, but the moment I arrived there, I could tell what Azelia wanted to show me.
Pop-! Pop— Pop, pop!
That place was a prime spot.
A prime spot where the gorgeous fireworks embroidering the night sky beyond the Livia Citadel in the distance could be seen.
Gorgeous fireworks created by magic filled the sky of Livia as if they were right in front of my eyes.
The bursting fireworks dyeing the black sky with gold and silver made me recall the beautiful sky I had seen at an amusement park in my childhood.
"This is a prime spot that only I know. Because it looks the prettiest from here."
"......It certainly is a good spot."
We sat side by side and watched the fireworks display.
Azelia quietly confessed.
"I... actually... doubted Lord Edric. I doubted and feared until the very end that Lord Edric might betray me and join hands with the nobles."
My heart stung at her words.
Because the Edric in the original work had actually done that.
Feeling lonely over deeds committed by a me that wasn't me, I spoke.
"I understand. People are prone to changing their minds overnight, and my impression is a bit snake-like."
"Ah! No! That's, I mean... right! Lord Edric is like a kind snake!"
"............"
"What I mean is, well..."
Azelia desperately tried to defend me.
That appearance made me even sadder.
Ugh! Why did I have to become a narrow-eyed villain character of all things...
Accepting everything, I spoke.
"It is fine... And in the end, didn't everything work out well."
"That's right. It worked out really well. Truly..."
A brief silence arrived.
The sound of fireworks and the joyful cheers of the people...
Within that, riding the wind, Azelia's clear scent of dandelions could be felt.
I feel like I'm really going to be bewitched... When I was having such thoughts, Azelia turned her head and looked at me.
"Weren't you... displeased to be doubted? Lord Edric was risking his life for us..."
Towards whom were those words directed?
Were they words directed at me? Or were they words directed at herself who had endured up until now?
I merely told her what I felt and thought.
"Being doubted by someone is naturally not a good feeling. However..."
There were words my parents told me in my past life.
That people are foolish and can commit evil deeds, but that does not become a reason for us to commit evil deeds.
I thought those words were truly beautiful.
"His Highness the Prince trusted me, and Azelia trusted me. And thanks to that, I too was ultimately able to save everyone."
"........."
"I think that is enough. Because in the end, we trusted each other."
Who was it that was saved by those words?
Was it me, who wanted to rationalize myself even like this?
No, was it Azelia, who had been acting as the Saintess until now?
One thing that was certain was that someone was saved in that place.
"Lord Edric..."
"A... Azelia?"
For a moment, Azelia's pupils wavered.
She stared at me with moistened eyes as if moved, and then approached me.
And then she stood up... and softly kissed my forehead.
Mwah — !
"!?"
Along with a soft touch on my forehead, a warm and divine energy embraced my whole body.
This was definitely that.
The very blessing the protagonist received after opening the Saintess's heart in the original work...
It was the highest blessing a Saintess who shares the god's love could give, the 'Protection of the White God'.
"Azelia... this is..."
"It is the repayment I can give. This light will protect Lord Edric."
The Protection of the White God was truly the highest blessing a Saintess could bestow.
To grant something this important to me...
When I was panicking not knowing what to do, Azelia spoke with a bashful expression.
"Someday... someday, on the day I am officially ordained as the Saintess, could you come?"
"...Of course. I will definitely come visit."
"Y... you promised! You definitely must!"
"I understand. I promise."
The festival's fireworks burst loudly one last time, casting our shadows long.
Watching those fireworks, I promised my next meeting with the Saintess, no, Azelia.
Three days later, having wrapped up all the duties I could do, I departed Livia while receiving a send-off from Azelia and the people of the South.
It was time to return to the capital where the prince, the princess, and my father were waiting.