A Saint's Sign of Blessing Arrives at the Lancaster Temple
Until the Saint's mark reached the Pope's church and arrived at this Lancaster Temple, we stayed as guests at the temple.
The life of a guest... was truly a life of 100% satisfaction. No effort needed—meals appeared automatically, warm water flowed, and there was a fluffy bed.
As a guest, my only responsibilities were offering morning prayers and giving thanks to the goddess before eating. Compared to the benefits received, these were incredibly simple tasks.
Mom, I want to live here forever.
“...But I don't see the Saint anywhere.”
For a while now, the Saint hadn't shown even the slightest sign of coming to see me. Thanks to that, I heard less of those annoying noises, but without anyone always by my side, it felt strangely empty.
“...Well, she might just be really busy.”
And anyway, once the mark arrived from the Pope's church, we'd be together again. Until then, I had to enjoy this freedom to the fullest.
Knock knock.
At that moment, a knock sounded at the door. She knocked politely, only once or twice, as if waiting for me. I could tell who it was without even looking.
I hesitated for a moment. But it felt too much like a bad idea, so I sighed and stood up.
“...Cloe, what's the matter?”
As expected, when I opened the door, there stood a girl with purple hair. Cloe. The culprit who kept coming every day lately, claiming they wanted to play together because the Saint was so hard to see.
Today's Cloe, however, was wearing something a little different. It wasn't a strange outfit, but something Cloe would have no reason to wear.
“Hero-nim, how do I look?”
“...That's a nun's habit, isn't it?”
Cloe was dressed in the habit worn by nuns of the Solaria Church. You believers of the Rudria Church...?
“Since I'm staying at the temple and just playing around, I decided to help the nuns by wearing this.”
“Ah, you came back after serving?”
“Yes! Did I do well?”
That was oddly impressive.
...I was stuck in the room playing all day. I felt a little embarrassed now.
“...You did well. You worked hard.”
“Hehe, but Hero-nim!”
“What is it?”
“How do I look?”
Cloe pointed at herself with a bright, beaming smile, wearing the habit. It was almost as if she was demanding praise.
It reminded me of a nephew proudly showing off his perfect answers on a cram sheet.
“Cute. It suits you well.”
I complimented her with the same heart I felt when looking at a nephew. With this much praise, I figured Cloe would probably be satisfied and leave.
But Cloe's reaction was far more intense than I expected.
“R-really? Really cute?!”
...Why, why are you like this.
Cloe's eyes sparkled as she asked me to confirm it again.
If I didn't answer, she'd probably cling even more. With no choice, I gave a light nod.
In response, Cloe blushed deeply, cupped both her cheeks with her hands, and twisted her body cutely.
“Aah~♡ The Hero-nim said I'm cute!”
“...No, that's not what I meant...”
By now, Cloe was completely lost in her own fantasy, listening to my words as if they weren't directed at her. Cloe seemed even weirder than usual today.
...I had better leave this spot right away.
Cautiously stepping past Cloe, who was twisting her body in her own world of imagination, I exited the room. I escaped!
#
If the Hero wishes, I can wear other clothes too. Of course, I would be glad to wear whatever you prefer... Hero-nim?
When Cloe snapped back to reality, her eyes widened in shock. The Abel who had been here earlier was gone.
“...Hero-nim?”
After that, Cloe had been searching everywhere for Abel.
#
“...Haa, haa... A little guy like you is terrifying lately.”
She had practically thrown herself at me. Was she trying to turn me into a criminal?
The moment I escaped the room, I ran away as fast as I could. For a while, Cloe wouldn't be able to find me. I took deep breaths and scanned my surroundings.
“...But where exactly am I?”
I had just run around blindly and had no idea where I was. The temple grounds were vast, and since I hadn't explored everything yet, I didn't know the layout.
“Marble?”
This path was entirely paved with pure white marble. It felt like a place for holy ceremonies.
Thinking about it, when I had come this way earlier, I remembered seeing a large ivory door. Was this area also dedicated to the goddess?
Curious, I stepped a little further. Nothing appeared ahead. Just some rising steam. What was this steam?
“Hee~♬”
A voice hummed. Oh, the voice was nice. It was prettier than the one the Saint had sung for me at the adventurer's guild.
I followed the song, curious to see the face behind such a beautiful voice.
But the thicker the steam became.
“...Why is there so much steam here?”
Where the hell was this place? I hurried along, planning to ask the singer.
I walked along the white marble path until I reached the source of the voice—and the steam.
“...Eh?”
“...Hero-nim?”
...A bath?
#
The place Abel had fled to was the “Sanctuary of Purification” inside the temple. A place where believers washed away impurity by pouring holy water over their bodies to purify themselves.
Abel had entered that sacred space. It wasn't a problem in itself for him to step foot in the Sanctuary of Purification, but the fact that he had chosen a location meant for female believers was the issue.
“...Eh... eh...”
Abel stood frozen in shock, and Estelle, facing him, was no different.
The usual arrogant expression and tone were nowhere to be seen. Her face had gone completely pale as white as paper as she stared at Abel.
Both of them, bewildered and unable to accept the situation, were at a loss for words. Estelle spoke first.
“...Y-y-y, Hero-nim, w-what in the...?”
Estelle stuttered, her tongue twisting as she spoke. At her question, Abel shook his head even more flustered than before.
“I-I-I’m sorry!!! I’ll leave right away! Please don’t misunderstand, I must have entered the wrong place...!”
Abel turned his body and tried to bolt from the spot. But footsteps approached from the entrance.
Abel and Estelle instinctively locked eyes without hesitation, scanning the situation to resolve it. But the problem was that Estelle was completely naked.
“...Eh....”
Abel's mind went blank, and he stood rooted to the spot. Estelle, seeing him, blushed and plunged fully into the bath.
Throughout this, the footsteps grew steadily closer. If things continued like this, Abel really would become a criminal.
It was one step away from becoming the shameless hero who had tried to assault the Saint bathing in the Sanctuary of Purification.
Abel hurriedly glanced around. Was there somewhere to hide? But in this holy place, there was only a massive marble wall that prevented anyone from peeking at those bathing, and no hiding spots.
“...Hero-nim, come here.”
“...Eh?”
“Quickly!”
Splash!
“Oh my, the Saint is here.”
The ones who had entered the Sanctuary of Purification were the temple's nuns. Among them was the nun who had brought Abel breakfast that morning.
To them, Estelle greeted with a gentle smile.
“Hello, sisters.”
With a smile that looked like she had written “I am the Saint,” the nuns bowed politely. One of them asked Estelle.
“Saint, I heard a voice earlier. Was someone there?”
At the nun's question, Estelle covered her cheek with one hand and spoke shyly.
“No, it was just me. I was humming because I was in a good mood, but apparently I was heard.”
“Ah, I see.”
The nuns, upon hearing Estelle, reacted cutely and began removing their clothes, planning to take a bath themselves.
While carefully observing their reactions, Estelle used her blessing.
The Grace of Solaria
Directed at Abel, who had been forcibly pulled underwater. Because he couldn't breathe, Estelle was poking him with her legs.
As the blessing took effect, the suffocating oxygen deprivation vanished like a lie, and her entire body felt at ease.
Abel was amazed by the blessing's power, but he found it hard to accept the current situation easily.
“...This is driving me crazy.”
Once his breathing was restored, other things he had missed came into view.
The biggest problem was that Estelle had pulled Abel underwater, so her bare skin was completely exposed to him.
On top of that, as she pulled him down, her soft thighs pressed against his cheek.
And if he looked up even slightly, Estelle's chest was right there.
“...Good thoughts, good thoughts, good thoughts.”
At this moment, he had to be more restrained than a bodhisattva. He knew Estelle wasn't teasing him out of mischief—she was saving him.
How could he look at her body in this situation? He felt like he was below human standards.
Moreover, the situation itself was his own fault, so he squeezed his eyes shut and tried his best not to acknowledge her body.
But Abel wasn't a bodhisattva. As a hero, he was still an ordinary man at his core. It was hard to stop his eyelids from twitching instinctively.
When his eyelids slightly parted, he would recognize Estelle's bare skin and close them tightly again, only to be defeated by instinct and sneak a peek once more, repeating the cycle.
“By the way, Saint, you have a really good figure~.”
“...What? Ah, compare it to Sister Rebecca?”
The nun called Rebecca truly possessed a massive reserve of holy power, as Estelle had said. Hearing that, Abel almost turned his head, but he held it in to avoid looking like an animal.
“Hey, nowadays men love the slender style like the Saint. It triggers their protective instincts. I'm big anyway, but even if the Saint is slender, your figure is still amazing.”
“...Thank you for the compliment, it makes me shy.”
Estelle wasn't the type to avoid such conversations. It was between women, and she was interacting with nuns—there was nothing to hesitate about.
But right now, the situation was the situation, so this conversation itself felt a little embarrassing. All of it was happening while Abel listened underwater.
After quite some time, the nuns who had purified their bodies stood up and asked Estelle.
“Saint, will you stay a little longer?”
“...I'll go in just a bit more.”
“If you stay too long, you'll faint~.”
“Yes, I'll be careful.”
The nuns changed their clothes and left the sanctuary. Estelle let out a sigh of relief.
“Haa....”
And she released the hand pressing down on Abel's head.
Abel cautiously surfaced, and the moment Estelle saw him, she turned her head sideways.
The two, each trying to see whose face was redder, turned their heads without a word, their ears also bright red. Whether the redness came from the hot water or embarrassment, it was unclear.
“...Hero-nim.”
“...I-I'll be going!”
Abel, suddenly called and flustered, tried to leave in a hurry while stammering. At that moment, Estelle grabbed his hand with a tap.
“...Sister might not have left completely yet. Wait a moment.”
“...Eh... uh... eek....”
In a situation where the naked girl was holding him, Abel couldn't process the moment at all, and his head spun.
Of course, Estelle's action was based on extremely rational judgment, but Abel had no time to think about that.
“Stay here for a moment. I'll go check if there are people around.”
“B-but then what do I do...?”
Abel asked what he should do while Estelle was out of the bath.
“...Close your eyes. Don't open them until I put on my clothes.”
“...Eh?”
“Quickly.”
Abel panicked at her words and, with no choice, squeezed his eyes shut.
“...Closed.”
“Keep them closed. Don't open them under any circumstances.”
“...Yes.”
Estelle stood up. As she did, the water poured out with a splash, so Abel knew she had risen.
Estelle came out of the bath with a shy expression and looked at Abel. She was checking if he really hadn't opened his eyes.
As Estelle had said, Abel kept his eyes tightly closed the entire time. Watching him quietly, Estelle smiled gently.
“He listens well and is cute♥”
While feeling that, she was also curious to see if he had truly kept his eyes closed.
Estelle crouched in front of Abel and watched him quietly. But Abel truly kept his eyes closed.
Seeing that, Estelle suddenly felt a little petulant.
“...Doesn't the Hero-nim care about my body?”
...That was impossible. Just from seeing Estelle after her shower, he had clearly been looking.
But if he was holding back that much? Estelle glanced down at her own body. Her skin was snow-white and smooth, with a slim waist. Unlike Cloe, her body had enough curves to be ideal.
Plus, the contrast of her wet black hair clinging to her white skin looked attractive even to her own eyes.
“...Hng.”
It should have been hard to endure. Was it because she was sure Abel would never open his eyes? Suddenly, Estelle forgot her embarrassment and her playful side bubbled up.
Estelle's finger poked Abel. But...
“...Eh?”
“...Eh, e-e-e-e?”
Abel had opened his eyes. The moment he did, he saw Estelle and let out a weird sound in shock, and Estelle froze completely, speechless.
Abel hurriedly turned his head and spewed a ridiculous excuse.
“I-I-I’m sorry! I thought you had put on your clothes since you were touching me!”
“...A-ah...”
An awkward silence stretched for a long time. Estelle covered her face with both hands, looking embarrassed, while Abel kept his head turned and coughed emptily. His eyes were squeezed shut again.
“...I'm sorry. I'll change quickly....”
“...Sorry for coming in.”
#
“...I'm fully dressed now, Hero-nim. You can open your eyes.”
“...Ah, yes.”
Fwoosh. He really thought he was going crazy. When he turned his head back to normal, there stood the Saint in priestly robes.
“...You received the priestly robes?”
“...Yes.”
“...This time it's black.”
“...Yes.”
Shit, it was awkward as hell. In an instant, he went from normal to completely awkward with the Saint. How was he supposed to handle this atmosphere?
“...Hero-nim.”
“Yes?”
“...Ahem! You mustn't do anything strange today, Hero-nim♡”
“...Yes???”
That annoying sound again...
“...Eh?”
...No. She had been trying to tease him as usual, but there was no teasing smile or arrogant grin. Instead, she looked embarrassed.
She was probably just trying to break the awkward atmosphere by throwing a usual mischievous comment.
If he reacted strangely here, the atmosphere would become even more awkward.
“...No.”
“...Liar♡ You already looked through every corner of my body~♡”
“...I didn't look.”
I did look. Honestly, I can't forget it even now, but I'll try to forget...
Estelle spoke with an extremely awkward smile, not her usual natural one.
“...Pervert♡ Beast♡ I was harassed by the Hero-nim♡ Now I can never get married~♡”
“The Saint will never get married anyway.”
When I threw my usual counter, Estelle glanced at me.
...Eh? Did I do something wrong?
Estelle's eyes toward me became sharp. A look that didn't like something. Looking at me with that gaze, she said one word.
“...Idiot.”