Act 3. Northern Continent, Arktera (Complete)

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Gluttony vanished under Marian's holy power, and my body plummeted powerlessly to the ground.

"Noel-nim!"

Marian ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠caught my boneless, mushy form and gently laid me on the ground.

"Healing Touch!"

Her holy power seeped into me, and recovery began almost immediately.

Oh... as expected, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a saintess's heal is on another level.

I was back to normal in no time and thanked her.

"Thank you, Saintess."

"That was way too reckless."

Marian puffed out her cheeks slightly and lightly tapped my chest. Then she spoke again.

"...Sorry. And thank you."

"For what?"

"J-just... everything..."

"I won't know unless you tell me~?"

I teased, and Marian's face flushed bright red as she bowed her head.

"Haha, got it. Shall we sit and rest a bit?"

"Y-yeah..."

We sat on the snowy mountain peak, gazing out over Arktera's landscape.

"No fear of heights or anything?"

"Haha, nope. You okay, Noel-nim?"

"Me? I'm pretty fearless, you know."

As Marian chatted with Noel, an inexplicable sense of comfort washed over her. Having spent most of her life in the cathedral, this was the first time talking with Noel made her feel like she could breathe freely. She'd never felt this way even when chatting with other heroes or sneaking off to help kids in the slums.

"Whoa, aurora!"

"Huh? Oh, it really is..."

With Gluttony gone, all the monsters under its command had vanished too. Whether it signaled Arktera's return to peace, the beautiful landscape now shimmered with auroras unfolding before our eyes.

"...It's beautiful."

"Hehe, sure is."

Marian had seen views like this before, but somehow it felt brand new. Was it the sense of liberation in her heart? Or maybe because she was sharing it with someone special? She stared blankly at the breathtaking sight for a while.

Then, the witch beside her held out a vial filled with blue liquid.

"Cold resistance potion. Here, it'll keep you from freezing."

Marian took it from Noel and stared at her blankly.

My holy power means I don't need this to stay warm, but...

She downed the contents anyway.

"Eek, it's so bitter!"

The childish slip made her clap a hand over her mouth.

"Haha! Yeah, it's pretty bitter, huh?"

Marian flushed and hung her head.

"D-don't laugh..."

"Should've asked for blueberry flavor next time, maybe?"

"Eeeek..."

Her face beet red, Marian playfully swatted at Noel. It felt more like a pout than anything painful.

In front of this person... I can act like this.

Marian had always maintained her dignity as a saintess, but with this witch, it felt okay to let loose. Living alone in the cathedral, she needed a friend she could truly relax with. Thanks to Noel's cold resistance potion, her heart felt warm.

......

"Noel-nim."

"Yeah?"

"From now on... could you call me by my name?"

"..."

"Is that... no good?"

"Of course it's fine, Marian-nim."

Marian puffed her cheeks again, looking dissatisfied.

"We're friends."

"How could I casually address the Saintess..."

"Can't you speak casually with me...?"

A bit flustered, I saw her puppy-dog eyes in the rain and sighed helplessly.

"...Okay, Marian. Friends sounds good. I'll work on speaking casually... You can drop the honorifics with me, Marian-nim."

"...Yeah, Noel. Hehe."

That's when something rustling behind Noel and Marian caught their attention.

Rumble rumble—

"What’s that?"

A stone door rose suddenly between the eyes of the peak.

Rumble rumble—
Thud!

The stone door slowly opened, revealing stairs descending below.

"...A trap?"

"...Nah, doesn't seem like it."

Noel snapped her fingers knowingly and turned to Marian.

"Wanna head down? I think... something I've been waiting for is there."

"Sure. Let's go together."

They descended the stairs slowly. After some time, the dark space brightened, and a massive door appeared.

"Hmm, it's closed..."

Noel grinned and placed her hand on the door. It swung open effortlessly, revealing the chamber within.

A blue light illuminated the room's center. Noel stepped under it.

......

A black dress with a mystical aura descended from the blue light. Noel took it, smiling.

"Wow... such a mysterious dress."

Marian's impression matched mine exactly.

"I'll check the effects later..."

Marian tried to step under the blue light too, but it had already faded after I claimed the dress. I patted her drooping back consolingly.

With our reward secured, we headed back out and began descending the snowy mountain. I used Blink on steep slopes, and with no monsters left, we made quick time.

"By the way, what about those holy knights?"

"The knights? ...Yeah, I've got some grudges piled up too."

After hearing Marian's full story at the peak, I could only imagine how much she'd endured. But her eyes now burned with vengeance—no need to worry.

The village came into view as we reached the base.

"Saintess-nim! You're back!"

"Are you alright?!"

The holy knights waiting at the entrance—without even climbing up—made my face sour. Pretending to care for Marian, they drew swords on me.

"Can't you stop that right now?"

"...Pardon?"

Marian spoke to them coldly.

"If Noel— I mean, this person—hadn't been here, this continent would've been consumed by demonic energy. What do you think you're doing?"

The knights, stunned by this new side of Marian, sheathed their swords in bewilderment.

"And holy knights who came down due to an avalanche, then didn't climb back up with the Saintess but just waited here? Does that make any sense?"

Unlike before, Marian scowled and unleashed a tirade.

Whoa... she's scary when she's mad...

They say gentle people are terrifying when angry. Marian berating the knights was downright frightening.

"You're all dismissed. Consider yourselves lucky you're not executed."

The knights paled at her words. Just hours ago, Marian had been like a child with power she couldn't use. Now, she was a lion baring her fangs.

"Ah, aaah... Saintess-nim! Please, not that..!"

"Forgive us! Just one more chance..!"

The knights knelt and begged, but Marian ignored them and came back to me.

"Noel, where's your next destination?"

An orange quest window popped up before my eyes.

"Noel?"

"...Probably to the Empire. It'll take a bit, but..."

Marian's face lit up at my words.

"Really?! I'll tell the others about you ahead of time. And I'll invite you to the cathedral!"

"Hehe, thanks."

We revisited the villages in Arktera.

"Sis!!!"

"Lena!"

The black-haired girl from the first village, Lena, ran and hugged Marian.

"Oh? Chef sis, hi!"

"Hi."

The now-healthy villagers gathered one by one, thanking us ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠profusely.

"Haha, thank you. Whoa, you don't have to give us anything!"

"Nah, take it. The fish caught here are so delicious."

They showered us with thank-you gifts, showing their modest gratitude. Seeing them made the earlier hardships feel rewarded.

"Hey! I said you don't have to!"

...Their gift barrage continued for a while.

......

"Come straight to the cathedral when you reach the Empire!!!"

"Got it! See you later!"

Marian boarded the ship to the Empire, waving as she slowly faded into the distance. I smiled and waved back until fog hid her. Stopping my wave, I turned around.

The long journey was over. Time to wrap it all up.

"Alright, everyone. Hope you enjoyed the show?"

The broadcast uptime neared 22 hours, with about 2,000 viewers still watching. Their chats scrolled too fast to read.

"Having finished this long journey... it's finally time to end it."

"I was pretty beat too... so I won't be able to shout out donors today."

"Thank you all for sticking with my stream for so long."

"I ran pretty hard today, so I'll rest up and see you next for the 4th Job Change stream."

"That's it for today's broadcast. Have a great night, everyone."

After 21 hours and 53 minutes, Noel's stream came to a close.