A Baptism of Rest

While Sirien went to return the ceremonial sword, I decided to receive my baptism as well. It wasn't a decision born of some sudden surge of piety. While it was true that this order had ultimately saved my life, the one who had actually done the deed was Sirien. The order had merely served as her instrument.

Just as one wouldn't thank the scalpel for a successful surgery, I didn't feel any particular gratitude toward Hibras. Thus, my decision to join the order was purely pragmatic. If this order revered Sirien as their Saintess, then they were our strength as well. I would take whatever advantages I could get. Besides, the original Rajen probably wasn't a devout believer either. My personality wasn't exactly stellar, but the original Rajen's temperament had been far more atrocious. He was hardly the type to solemnly serve a god.

What mattered to me was the power I would receive from Hibras. Now that Sirien had become the Saintess of this order, I had no intention of standing idly by. Since Hibras would surely want his Saintess protected, he would undoubtedly grant me his Authority as well. Our interests aligned perfectly. After all, the gods of this world were quite transactional, much like merchants.

"With this, you too have become a believer of Rest. In the past, there was a custom of bestowing baptismal names. Though that was quite a long time ago... I can give you one if you wish."

"No, thank you. I quite like my own name."

"A wise choice. I've been told I have no talent for naming."

"I figured as much."

The baptism itself wasn't particularly difficult. Perhaps due to the original author's lack of imagination, it still involved water. In a room completely sealed off from any outside light, the entire ritual consisted of being submerged three times in holy water beneath the glow of a single lantern.

I had wondered if the god might speak to me directly, as he had with the original female protagonist, but the baptism concluded from start to finish without a single hitch. It seemed Hibras wasn't so easily moved. The God of Light, on the other hand, had spouted plenty of vague, cryptic nonsense when reincarnating the female lead.

The man who administered my baptism was the green-haired man from before. According to Sirien, he was the Guardian who protected this place, the Sanctuary of Hibras. She had explained that everything past the Boundary we had crossed was considered the sanctuary. Perhaps because my status had shifted from 'outsider' or 'uninvited guest' to 'believer,' his attitude had softened considerably.

"Offer the Saintess plenty of encouragement before she begins her rituals. None of them are dangerous, but they are by no means easy. It will be a grueling and exhausting endeavor."

"I will. Thank you for the advice."

Still, his taciturn nature remained unchanged. While I dried myself with a towel, he was already preparing to leave. I had no idea what kept him so busy in this tiny place, but I felt that if I let him walk away now, it would be difficult to cross paths with him again.

"Just as you said, I'll take good care of the Saintess. So, how about you and I do some sparring from now on?"

"And why should I do that?"

"Aren't I supposed to inherit that Guardian position eventually?"

"I have said no such thing. Nor am I so weak that I must hand over the mantle of Guardian just yet."

The man let out a dry chuckle. It was a smirk that looked down on me as if I were being impudent. But I held his gaze directly. In the original novel, Rajen had definitely held the position of Guardian within the Church of Hibras. I had never read anything about him clashing with this green-haired man during that process. In fact, this man was a complete mystery, never having been mentioned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in the original story at all.

"Are you just naturally unpleasant, or are you trying to test me? Besides, you can't even leave this place, can you?"

"Who told you that?"

"Nobody had to tell me; it's just obvious. There's no reason for an entire order to remain cooped up in a place like this when they have a Sword Master like you. Do you have any idea how influential other churches are when they have a Sword Master as their guardian?"

"Hmph. It seems you aren't an utter fool." His eyes scanned me thoroughly.

"Come to think of it, you did not let go of your sword even when you were on the verge of death. It was a decent showing."

"In front of the giant?"

"Yes. Though closing your eyes at the end was a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bit disappointing, it was enough to earn a passing grade."

His gaze lingered primarily on my right hand—the hand I used to grip my sword.

"I see you have also learned to manifest Sword Qi. Has that given you the confidence to think you can defeat me?"

"I'm asking to fight precisely because I don't think I can win. If I knew I could beat you, why would I bother? It'd be a waste of time."

"Very well. I like your attitude. I shall take a look at your swordsmanship later."

I cheered inwardly. I was about to stand up immediately, but the man raised a hand to stop me.

"But not today. There is still poison lingering in your body. Let us meet again in two days, at noon."

"Is that a promise?"

"Do not worry, I do not break my word. I simply have duties of my own to attend to."

Even after I returned from my baptism, Sirien did not show up for a long time. I considered going out to look for her, but I decided against it, remembering her strict instructions to stay in the room until she returned. If we somehow missed each other, I would have to endure her grumbling for the rest of the day.

And besides, I have some homework to do. In my hands was a thick book—a scripture containing the doctrines of Hibras. I had been told that while it didn't matter if I remained a mere lay believer, memorizing it was mandatory if I aimed to become the Guardian.

To think I would have to study the doctrines of a god I cared nothing about. I absolutely detested the idea, but the problem was that his reasoning was sound. What would people say if the Guardian of the order didn't even know their own teachings? Even if I couldn't preach eloquently like the proselytizing priests, I at least needed to be able to recite the basic tenets. The only issue was that trying to study after such a long time made me incredibly restless.

Though reading through it, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly problematic...

Hibras, the God of Rest—or the God of Death. Hibras preferred his divinity to be referred to as Rest rather than Death. This was because his duty did not end with delivering death to the living; it only truly concluded when a wandering soul was laid to sleep in its final resting place.

For this reason, the order's symbol was not a scythe symbolizing harvest, but a lantern that guided souls. A lantern leading lost spirits through the dark night was the very reason for the Church of Hibras's existence. Most of the doctrines reflected this sentiment. No matter how sinful a soul may be, it possesses the right to enter Rest after death. All sins committed by the living are washed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠away through death. And...

The reason a follower of Hibras had to respect the living was solely because they possessed a soul. The reason they guided the dead was also because every soul had the right to find Rest. Consequently, a body devoid of a soul... for instance, a corpse, required no respect whatsoever.

Although the scriptures didn't explicitly state such extreme conclusions, it was a perfectly valid interpretation based purely on the doctrine. No, it wasn't just a matter of "it could be interpreted that way." The moment Hibras was branded an evil god, the Sirien of the original novel had raised an army of the dead without a shred of hesitation. For now, she refrained only because of how the outside world would view her. But once those constraints vanished, she was capable of doing it whenever she pleased. Aside from simply raising corpses, there were several other grotesque Authorities at her disposal.

No wonder they get called an evil god in the future.

Well, it wasn't as if other gods lacked such dark facets. The God of Light, the God of War, the God of Faith, the God of Benevolence—all of them possessed aspects that were difficult to reconcile with modern sensibilities. Most of those flaws were simply packaged under the excuse that mortal humans were incapable of fully comprehending the divine will.

Ultimately, I closed the scripture before finishing it. My head was beginning to throb. Not long after I lay down on the bed, Sirien returned.

"I'm back! What were you doing?"

"I was reading a bit and just lay down. Did you take a bath? You smell like flowers."

"Yeah. I can do it every day now. If I ask in advance, they even heat the water for me. They scatter flower ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠petals in it, too."

The scent of the petals she mentioned was familiar, but since I knew next to nothing about flora, I couldn't identify the flower. Back at the castle, she had lived in such luxury that they might have blended several different varieties. At any rate, it was a distinctly different fragrance from what she used to wear. Perhaps because her natural body odor was so faint, she easily absorbed other scents.

"That's good. You always did love taking baths."

"Soaking in the water made all my tension melt away. The tub is a bit small and feels a little old, but it's good enough."

"Still, there's no way it compares to what you had back at the castle."

Her pale face beamed with a bright smile. Perhaps because she had just enjoyed a refreshing bath, her skin looked even smoother than before. Given all the hardships she had endured recently, one would expect her complexion to have suffered, but I suppose she was simply blessed with incredible genetics.

"What's that in your hand?"

"Some fruit I brought for us to share. There are strawberries, too. Hurry and try one."

The moment Sirien set the basket down, her fingers pinched a piece of fruit. The hand holding the fruit immediately lunged toward my mouth. Her fingertips brushed against my lips briefly before pulling away. It was only a fleeting touch, yet the warmth lingered for a surprisingly long time.

"Mmm."

"How is it? Sweet, right? I think the fruit here actually tastes better than what we had at the castle."

"Oh, you're right. It's really good. Maybe I should ask for some fruit tomorrow too."

"Let's do that. Do you want another one?"

"I'll feed myself."

The basket Sirien had brought contained a small assortment of apples, grapes, and strawberries. We sat side by side on the edge of the bed, eating the fruit bite by bite.

"I heard today that it will take about three days to prepare for the ritual."

"What are you going to do until then?"

"Tomorrow, I want to walk around with you. I want to introduce you to the people here. I got quite close to them during the week you were asleep. Since only you and I are using this building, there must be some people you haven't met yet."

"Is the room next door yours?"

"Yeah. Do you want to come in? There's not much to see, though."

"...Into your room? No, I'm fine."

Even back in Leheim, I had never once stepped foot inside Sirien's room. Aside from when she was an infant, not even the Grand Duke of Ilencia had ever entered her chambers. There was no way I would have been allowed. Even now, I didn't feel particularly inclined to go in. For some reason, a strange sense of guilt welled up inside me.

Sirien's eyebrows twitched, clearly displeased by my refusal.

"Then feed me that grape."

"Eat it yourself."

"Feed me! I fed you earlier!"

"What do you mean, 'feed you'? Why are you suddenly acting like a child?"

"Ah, I don't care! Feed meeee!"

Unable to win against her whining, I finally fed it to her.