Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Black Letter (1)
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Kooook—
It felt like the embrace had already lasted dozens of minutes.
I couldn't even voice my discomfort; I just stayed there, held tight.
"......"
Even though I was the one hugging her, she was so much taller that it somehow looked like I was the one being held...
Every time this happened, I was newly struck by how much smaller my body had become compared to before.
'It's a bit... stifling.'
The hug dragged on endlessly, with no end in sight.
But... honestly, something like this was something I could endure just fine.
Of course it was. How could I possibly push away someone who'd just cheerfully offered to shell out tens of billions for my sake?
And truthfully, I didn't hate it.
Celestina, who was holding me now, had always been a flawless beauty without a single flaw.
Not to mention her wealth and abilities, she even outshone most actresses in looks.
Radiant platinum hair, a slender figure. Her sharp features only added to her haughty charm—she was the perfect all-around beauty.
Skinship with a stunner like that, admired by men and women, young and old alike...
'It'd be weirder if I didn't like it.'
Still... personally, the situation was a bit awkward.
Being pressed so closely together inevitably meant our bodies touched in all sorts of places.
Her warm body heat, soft skin.
That intimate sensation only tormented me more.
'She has no idea there's some uncle trapped inside here...'
Did she even realize how dangerous it was to so defenselessly beg to be hugged like that?
I wanted to sternly advise her to watch her behavior, but honestly, in my current form, my words would fall on deaf ears.
So I just patted her back, which showed no sign of letting go, and sighed inwardly.
'Haa...'
Only after a good long while did she finally release me.
Even then, the way she looked at me held a hint of lingering regret... it was a little disconcerting.
"......"
Fortunately, she seemed somewhat satisfied.
She didn't ask for another hug, after all.
But I never imagined an even more awkward topic would come up instead.
Celestina said,
"Oh, right, Eve. Did you know? I heard something really interesting the other day."
"Huh? What is it?"
She grinned playfully.
"In virtual reality streams, they give reactions to sponsors as thanks, right? I sponsored pretty generously, but I haven't gotten anything back yet. When are you going to do it?"
"...Huh?"
Truly, it was the last thing I'd expected from her.
At first, I thought it might be a joke.
But those red eyes staring straight at me.
The earnest glint in them left me flustered, and I stammered,
"R-Reaction...? Is there something specific you want, Miss Celestina?"
"Yeah, there's something that's been bothering me for a while."
She replied with a cryptic smile.
"You still call me so formally, Eve. I taught you my nickname from the first time we met, remember?"
Then, as if struck by a sudden idea, her face lit up.
"Actually, why don't we practice it right now?"
"Huh?"
"Come on, repeat after me. 'Cela sis, thank you. You're the best, sis!'"
"......."
Her words turned me to stone on the spot.
"Eve...?"
"......"
Sis. It was a request I never saw coming.
A faint instinctive revulsion rose up.
Yoanna had called me that before, but I'd never addressed anyone that way.
It felt way too embarrassing and awkward for me now.
But... having just received such enormous gifts, I couldn't bring myself to refuse.
In the end, I swallowed my shame and mumbled in a tiny voice,
"Ce-Cela sis... thank you. You're the best, sis..."
The moment I finished as instructed...
"......"
Her crimson eyes, watching me, flashed with an eerie gleam...
I flinched, wondering if I'd done something wrong.
But the hesitation lasted only a moment. Celestina lunged forward and hugged me tightly again.
"Eve!"
"Eep...!"
Trapped once more in her embrace, a soft murmur leaked into my ear.
"Haa, seriously... what am I supposed to do with this."
I tilted my head, not understanding.
"...?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The meal ended on that note.
Just before parting in the hotel lobby, Celestina handed me a small data chip.
"This'll help."
Back in the car heading to the cathedral, I inserted the chip into my terminal and opened it.
'This is...'
Inside the chip was a single document file.
Site candidates for the church's dedicated medical facility, construction costs and timelines, equipment procurement plans, scouting strategies for experts in various fields, and even projected salary tables.
It was a hospital business plan, perfectly prepared as if she'd foreseen this exact turn of events.
A presentation that made the odds of success crystal clear, even to my inexperienced eyes.
'Amazing...'
As I reviewed the plan, the car arrived at our destination before I knew it.
Returning to the city cathedral late at night, I wandered the corridors lost in thought.
Naturally, I ended up in front of Yoanna's office.
"....."
Yoanna, who oversaw all the church's key administrative tasks.
Her role would be crucial to pulling off this plan successfully.
That's why I'd come to discuss it with her.
Knock knock—I rapped lightly on the office door.
"Yoanna, I've got something to consult you on briefly..."
As I stepped inside, the sight made me lower my voice instinctively.
"......"
The quiet office.
Piles of electronic documents awaiting approval and various business materials stacked like mountains.
Amid the glow of multiple monitors, a young girl lay slumped over the desk.
"......"
Snore... snore, a soft breathing sound reached me.
I closed the door quietly and approached, gazing down at the sleeping Yoanna.
She must have been exhausted. Her face, lost in a deep dream, looked utterly innocent.
The electronic documents and materials floating on the screens, contrasted with the child who had collapsed from fatigue right in the middle—it suddenly made me feel all over again the weight of what Yoanna had shouldered for the church.
I felt proud, and grateful anew.
Truly. Without this girl quietly toiling away behind the scenes, running the church would have been far harder.
Unthinkingly, as I reached to stroke her sleeping head—
"...?"
Something was pinned beneath her palm.
A transparent plastic pouch, like a ziplock bag, caught my eye.
'What's that?'
Curiosity piqued; I gently slid the pouch out without waking her.
Inside the packaging was a single, familiar silvery-white thread.
A small label in the corner read:
[Holy Relic / 2079.08.05]
"...?"
I stared at the thin, elongated silver strand carefully preserved in the pouch, pondering vaguely for a moment.
Then realization dawned, and I shuddered in shock.
'No way...! My...?!'
After a long daze of disbelief, a deep sigh escaped me.
Yoanna's occasional odd behaviors weren't new... but what the hell was this?
I wanted to wake her up right then and grill her about it.
But facing that innocent, sleeping face buried in church work, I couldn't bring myself to.
'...Good grief.'
I sighed softly to myself again.
Yoanna's actions could be over the top sometimes.
But she was also the girl who worked so hard for me, even in the shadows.
She tended to every overlooked corner of the church, handling all the messy, complicated tasks.
'All just to be helpful to me.'
How could I possibly dislike a girl like that?
Despite the quirks, the time we'd spent together had built trust.
These occasional... weird antics could be overlooked once or twice, considering all the help she gave me normally.
So in the end, instead of confiscating the pouch, I gently placed it back beside her hand.
As I did, she seemed to sense the emptiness even in sleep and fumbled across the desk.
When her fingers touched the pouch, she clutched it dearly to her chest and drifted back to sleep.
"Hehe... sis..."
I let out a wry chuckle at the sight, then carefully lifted the blanket draped over the chair.
I laid it over her shoulders and quietly slipped out of the office.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The prestige of corporations in this era stems mostly from monopolies.
They dominate essential goods, services, and technologies, offering consumers no alternatives.
They exploit the subjugated masses in those markets, squeezing out endless profits.
That was the structure by which corporations ruled this era.
Thus, those already at the top of the monopoly actively crush upstarts threatening their positions.
So perhaps it was inevitable.
The news arrived before we'd even broken ground on the new hospital linked to the church.
I asked the priest who brought the report, my expression hardened.
"...The city government rejected the hospital construction permit?"