The Real Saint (4)
Ethan was practically radiating killing intent at Gehmajoshigi-gwat, coiled like a man ready to draw his sword and charge at any moment. Truth be told, from the instant that nonsense had left the Hero's mouth, I'd had a vague premonition it would come to this.
From the very start, this guy Gehmajoshigi-gwat's attitude had been far too wishy-washy. When the two of us had spoken in private, he'd wrapped up the matter of making Serista the saint nice and neatly—only to turn around now and sing a completely different tune.
'Don't tell me this bastard actually has the hots for me...'
I could only pray with everything I had that it wasn't so. Things with Ethan were already balanced on a razor's edge as it was—if that bastard Gehmajoshigi-gwat came pouncing on me on top of everything else, this whole affair would become a genuine headache.
From the perspective of a former unicorn, my personal doctrine had always been that the number of men a woman could give herself to in one lifetime could not exceed one. The moment a woman shares a bed with two different men, she is, for all intents and purposes, a non-virgin slut.
Fine—I'd concede that much. The fact that I'd possessed Lilith, the very Lilith fated to become that non-virgin slut I just described, was forgivable. After all, I had changed that fate through my own efforts and shut that future down, and thanks to that, I'd escaped the miserable destinies of gang rape, drug conditioning, even being screwed by a dog.
Somewhere along the way, Ethan and I had admittedly ended up doing quite a few... things together, but even so, I was still, by my own standards, comfortably within the range that qualified as a virgin. It wasn't as if I'd done anything strange with any man other than Ethan, and even with Ethan, I had never once crossed that final line.
But if, in this state, Gehmajoshigi-gwat got his hands on me next? Just like that Lilith in the original story—the one 'saved' by the Hero?
...That one thing, at least, I had to prevent no matter what. If I became a genuine "Lilgirlchang" even in this world, I might well end my own life out of sheer self-loathing.
"I'm not finished yet, Young Master Ethan. So don't misunderstand—just hear me out."
"I can't for the life of me find a single part of what you just spouted that I could possibly misunderstand. To anyone watching, weren't you one breath away from announcing you'd be putting my Lilith in your party? That party of yours, stuffed to the brim with women who fawn all over you?"
"...Hold on. I have never once fawned over that guy. Don't go lumping me into something weird."
Agnes bristled and shot down Ethan's accusation, while Seraphin and Serista held their silence, quietly averting their eyes.
Since I had a rough grasp of Gehmajoshigi-gwat's heroine-conquest progress—information I'd never wanted in the first place—the Hero's rebuttal came back without missing a beat.
"All I'm saying is that we need to settle, once and for all, who is truly more suited to be the saint. I never said Lilith had to be the saint, and I'm not claiming the Hero party absolutely needs her either."
"...Then explain yourself properly. If your reasoning fails to convince me, we will be continuing this conversation with swords instead of words."
"The qualification of a saint is a power granted by a god, not by humans. Do you really believe humans can just shuffle it around as they please? What if you pull a stunt like that and an enraged Goddess Aurelia revokes the saint's qualification she granted Lilith altogether? If neither of them is a saint, how exactly are we supposed to deal with the Demon King—the threat that's coming for us all?"
"...Just as Lilith didn't become a saint the moment she was born, someone else carrying the saint's qualification will probably appear somewhere in the world. For all we know, that young lady you always keep glued to your side could receive a fresh revelation and become the real saint."
"If Serista becomes a saint that way, I'm all for it. I'd rather keep my longtime apprentice as my partner anyway. But what if a girl with the saint's qualification turns up in some backwater village that doesn't even have a church? No—what if the qualification of saint vanishes from the world entirely? What then, huh?"
"So in that head of yours, Goddess Aurelia is apparently that irresponsible a being. Do you truly think the Goddess would overturn a matter on which the world's very survival hangs on a mere whim?"
"...I'm an atheist from another world, so there's no point making that argument to me. Besides, even if the gods' actions do carry some deeper meaning, how is a human being ever supposed to understand it?
Here's what I'm saying: a god exists, and that god chose the saint. So if we're going to rewrite that destiny, then we have to present proof that Serista deserves to be the saint—proof undeniable enough that even the god herself would accept it."
"...What?"
"Huh?"
"Pardon?"
At the utter nonsense pouring out of Gehmajoshigi-gwat's mouth, Ethan, Agnes, and my own mouth all spat out questions in perfect unison.
And yet, amid all that, two people appeared to have actually understood him—presumably Serista and Seraphin, who I'd wager had the strongest faith of anyone in the room.
"The Hero Gehmajoshigi-gwat's argument is not entirely without merit, Young Master Ethan."
"What do you mean by that, Princess Seraphin?"
"If Goddess Aurelia had a reason for designating Lady Lilith as the saint, then it would be much the same reason Miss Serista was not chosen. At the very least, at the moment Lady Lilith received the saint's qualification, she must have been a presence closer to sainthood than Miss Serista was.
But more than seven years have already passed since the day of the revelation when the saint's qualification first descended. Whether Lady Lilith still possesses the finer qualities of a saint after those seven long years, or whether Miss Serista—who has labored steadfastly throughout that time—has now become the more fitting candidate, is something no one can know unless it is shown directly to the goddess, is it not?"
"..."
"The most widespread tradition holds that the saint is the Hero's partner, so Lady Lilith ought to serve as the Hero Gehmajoshigi-gwat's partner at least once. And by comparing how she fares in that role with how Miss Serista has performed as his partner all this time, we can prove which of them is more worthy of being the saint.
So long as we demonstrate, at the very minimum, that the saint's qualification Miss Serista possesses is in no way lacking, we will never incur the wrath of Goddess Aurelia."
With Gehmajoshigi-gwat, Ethan had flared up at every turn, doing his utmost to rebut each point one by one—but with Seraphin's words, he listened on in a comparatively settled posture.
Though his expression still made it abundantly clear that the very notion of me serving as the Hero's partner, even briefly, sat with him not at all.
"Lilith... as that Hero bastard's partner..."
"Once is enough, Young Master Ethan. After all, Miss Serista has racked up countless feats at the Hero Gehmajoshigi-gwat's side all this while, even without possessing the saint's qualification.
The goddess will not throw away the worth of everything Miss Serista has poured into the Hero's side merely because Lady Lilith joins him for a single outing."
"..."
"...Young Master Ethan?"
Faced with a decision that would be anything but easy, Ethan deliberated at considerable length, and before rendering his final judgment, he turned his gaze toward Serista.
"Miss Serista, before I pass judgment, there is one question I would like to ask of you. Will you permit it?"
"Ah, y-yes, of course..."
"Setting aside all matters of blasphemy and faith—have you, Miss Serista, ever wished to become the true saint so that you might aid that Hero?"
"I-I, um..."
"I would have you answer honestly, Miss Serista. Only then can I bring myself to judge this matter with a clear head."
Serista trembled faintly at the realization that her words might sway the final outcome—but fortunately, what came back out of her mouth was an answer that laid her honest desire bare, word by careful word.
"I have, not even for a single moment..."
"..."
"Not even for a single moment have I ever forgotten my wish to become the true saint..."
"...I see."
"Always, at the Hero's side, I have prayed so desperately to be just a little stronger. Whenever the Hero was wounded, I thought—if only I were the true saint, he would never have been hurt. And whenever the Hero fell into danger, I thought—if only I possessed the saint's power, I could have saved him. Every day, every single moment, that is what I think."
"..."
"A-as one who serves the god, I know it is an irreverent state of heart. B-but this is my truth, Young Master Ethan."
"...Very well. Understood. Thanks to your courageous words, Miss Serista, I can now reach my decision as well."
Nodding as though Serista's stubborn sincerity had settled the matter in his mind, Ethan spread three fingers before the others gathered in the meeting room.
"...And what conditions would those be?"
"One: the accompaniment shall take place exactly once. I am graciously extending a single outing as partner, and I will not tolerate you changing your tune once the matter is concluded. You have already accompanied Serista on countless occasions, so if you start spouting that Lilith must be granted the same terms, I will relieve you of the tongue responsible for such drivel. Consider yourself warned."
"...Fine. I figured once would be enough anyway."
"Two: I permit your service in the Hero party as partner, but I will allow no physical contact of any kind between you and Lilith. Ignore my warning and so much as reach for Lilith's hand, and I will sever that hand of yours at the wrist."
"No matter the situation?"
"...If it is a situation where it is needed to save Lilith's life, then that alone shall be the exception."
"Good. I was just about to ask that myself. So what's the last one?"
"The last is..."
Ethan's eyes swept over the lineup of Gehmajoshigi-gwat's party members gathered in the meeting room. Then, as though the decision had finally settled, he appended his final condition for attaching me to Gehmajoshigi-gwat as a one-time partner.
"The Hero party that you and Lilith will be accompanying—I shall naturally be joining as well. That harem party of yours, nothing but you and a flock of women, is not something I can bring myself to trust."
"..."
"Refuse this, and I will take it to mean you harbor other intentions toward Lilith—and I will take your head right here and now."
...Why on earth was even a single temporary partner outing meant to hand over the saint's qualification turning into such a circus?
One thing, at least, was certain: this outing was not going to end easily.