Expanding Beast Territory! (2)
“Come on, Mariel! Hurry up and get ready! If we're late, that hysterical old spinster Magdalena will chew us out again!”
“Ugh, got it, Kate... But if she catches us calling her that, we'll get in even more trouble...”
“It's fine! She's off with the saintess for her summons right now! Anyway, hurry!”
“O-okay!”
As I packed the candles into my bag, Kate kept urging me on. Today was the day we had to go prepare the unused small chapel for mass, accompanying the senior nun Magdalena. With so many people in Radia, they couldn't fit everyone into the main church, so small chapels dotted around the city held services. There were twelve such chapels in Radia altogether. We only had to prepare one of the ones used just on weekends, but it was still quite a trek, so it took some time. And it wasn't just setting up for mass—we had to clean too. Heading out after lunch like today, if we dawdled, we might not get back until evening.
Especially since our supervisor today was Sister Magdalena. If the preparations were even a little sloppy, who knew what tirade we'd face.
“...By the way, Kate. What do you think Sister Magdalena's meeting about right now? She said we'd have our interviews after...”
“Who knows? Probably calling her in for some weird assignment again? Ever since she became the saintess, she's been doing all these incomprehensible things. Like sending out only the male priests on missions.”
In truth, preparing the small chapels was a weekly task, so if we kept to schedule, it wouldn't be this rushed. But today, every nun had a private audience with Saintess Clea. That's why Kate and I were moving so frantically—because of these interviews.
“...Speaking of which, Saintess Clea... Hasn't she been kinda off since becoming the saintess?”
“...Yeah, her vibe's changed a bit...”
Saintess Clea, who became the saintess last year, was originally a senior nun at our Radia church. She had a quiet personality and lived relying on her senses since she was almost blind. Her holy magic was exceptional, but hardly anyone thought her eyesight would let her become saintess. So when she returned as one, we were all shocked. But the biggest surprise was how her atmosphere had completely transformed. Her gentle demeanor hadn't changed, but everyone felt a chill whenever they saw her or heard her voice.
And what felt even stranger than that atmosphere... was the thick, intoxicating fragrance emanating from her—one so heady it made your mind spin. It was too intense for perfume, yet oddly alluring, drawing you in. Inhaling that dense scent made hearts race and heads fuzzy, leaving everyone wondering what perfume the saintess used.
I felt the same... Only a few, like Senior Nun Angela—the nuns' representative—and some others, seemed fine with the saintess's new vibe and scent.
“A bit? It's way more than that! Forget the weird orders—even that indecent saintess robe, what was she thinking?!”
“Kate, voice...”
“Everyone thinks the same! Mariel! Our church rep walking around in that shameful outfit—doesn't it weird you out?”
“Well... yeah, it does...”
Definitely. Before becoming saintess, she was so modest about her attire. That brazen exposure made no sense. She said she'd modified her perfectly fine saintess robe for easier adventurer work. Was it because she couldn't see? She seemed oblivious to how revealing the changes were.
“A cleric—no, the saintess—insisting on adventurer gigs? And with such a vicious monster, no less...”
“Hold on, Kate. The title!”
“...With Divine Beast Sema... it makes no sense.”
How we referred to the divine beast accompanying Clea was a big deal among the nuns. One who'd carelessly called it a “monster” in front of Clea got slapped so hard her cheek bled, then locked in a cold isolation cell for half a month. And she was the eldest nun too. Even with such harsh punishment for someone like that, Angela backed it as justified, so no one dared stop the saintess. If there were male priests, maybe someone would've spoken up...
But the male priests were all dispatched far away, chasing Hero Eater threats. Among the mostly meek nuns, few would risk punishment to speak frankly to Saintess Clea. At least she didn't get mad if we stuck to calling it “Divine Beast.”
The kingdom didn't treat divine beasts with much respect anyway. Why Clea fawned over this one so much was beyond me.
“...Seriously. The other day, she even got tattoos with that divine beast and some guild folks... That shameful rumor making the rounds...”
“...Nah, no way...”
“Ugh! What is she thinking?! And that church building they were renovating the other day! I have no idea what Saintess Clea is up to!”
The shameful rumor quietly spreading among the nuns... was that the divine beast and saintess were in a romantic relationship.
...Yeah. Of course... Divine beasts have intellect, so they could fall in love. I'd heard in the Water Kingdom, where divine beasts abounded, humans even romanced them. But Sema the divine beast... unlike others who could take human form, wasn't even humanoid... And that ferocious aura, that terrifying appearance that sent shivers down your spine...
Sure, ignoring the menace, some nuns found its muscular build hot. But still, was that really okay...?
“...Come to think of it, what were they fixing in that construction? The church building doesn't look much different...”
“Sigh. No clue. Just wasting budget pointlessly... My guess? Saintess Clea won't last long~.”
“Kate, that's too rude...”
Just the other day, Saintess Clea had workers renovating some part of the church. Word was they fixed up old sections... But for all the noise, nothing visible had changed. The workers climbed everywhere, used magic tools too. What exactly did they repair? The interior looked the same... She blocked it off completely during work, no entry allowed...
Since becoming saintess, Clea's actions were full of these baffling moves.
“Ugh, whatever... But why's Sister Magdalena taking so long? Interviews are supposed to be 15-20 minutes, right?”
“Yeah... At this rate, we won't have time to hit the chapel after ours...”
“Nooo... Late for dinner means just that rock-hard bread... Better if we blow it off till tomorrow...”
“Why bother calling us one by one? Just make us wait up front...”
“Right? Totally baffling... Huh?”
As Kate grumbled with a scowl, Sister Vanessa—who'd had her morning interview—approached us from afar.
“Sister Kate, you're next. Head to the saintess's room.”
“Huh? Not Sister Magdalena? Wasn't it her turn now?”
“...Hehe. Sister Magdalena's probably occupied with something else right now.”
“What...? It's not just interviews? What happened? You just came from yours, right, Sister Vanessa?”
“You'll see when you go. Don't keep the saintess waiting—off you go.”
“Sigh... Fine~. Got it~. Mariel, I'll do my interview first.”
“Okay. See you.”
Kate waved as she followed Vanessa toward the saintess's room. For some reason... as they walked away, a strange unease welled up in my chest. No reason to feel anxious inside the church... What was this?
Was it because I'd caught that eerie vibe and scent from Vanessa—the same as from the saintess?
“...Kate...”
And so, with this odd foreboding that I might never see Kate again... I found myself thinking Vanessa's belly looked a little swollen.