The Sun Saint's Tsundere Confession and the Shadow of the Joyful Holy Sword
“...Hero-nim, what on earth are you doing so... flustered~?”
“...Ah... I’m sorry....”
Abel was still lost in shock, unable to process what had just happened. It was only natural, after all. Chloe had launched an unexpected ambush. No matter how much he hated the type, a woman who came at him like that would leave any man completely flustered.
That sight made Estelle clench her teeth so hard it hurt.
‘That sly cat...!’
When Chloe had bowed her head to Abel, Estelle had instinctively reached out. But she was a fraction too late, and she had failed to stop Chloe from doing her little trick.
‘I hadn’t even kissed him yet...!’
She never thought she would lose the lead. The secret date last time, the peck on the cheek… everything she had planned to be the first to do had been stolen from her.
‘Ugh…!’
The thought twisted into pure jealousy, and suddenly it became the perfect excuse for Estelle to act petty toward Abel.
“You seemed to enjoy it that much, didn’t you? Hero-nim really can’t get enough of women, can you♡ This lolicon♡ criminal♡”
“...Me? When?”
Abel’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. That reaction only made Estelle angrier. If he looked truly shocked, it meant he really had been affected.
“This perverted hero♡ I guess you really got off on it~! You little pervert♡”
“...It’s noisy.”
Abel frowned slightly. The expression made Estelle jolt. He really must have been annoyed.
Normally she would have stopped right there, but jealousy had shut her brain off completely. She was unconsciously dragging Abel down.
“Kyaa, the pervert hero spoke to me♡ How mean♡”
“...Saint-nim, why do you always talk like that? It’s so unpleasant to hear.”
In the end, the words “unpleasant” slipped out of Abel’s mouth.
Given how Abel usually spoke to her, that single sentence meant he had been genuinely hurt.
Estelle was suddenly overcome with panic.
“I’ve hit my limit.”
Abel’s voice was unusually serious. The moment his words returned her to her senses, Estelle regretted them in her heart.
‘I’m an idiot! I should have held back…!’
Abel narrowed his eyes at her, and Estelle answered with a stammer.
“...I’m sorry.”
“Of course I know you were just acting on instinct.”
Abel spoke those words and suddenly his eyes widened as if he had remembered something important.
“Oh, Saint-nim.”
“...Yes?”
“There’s something I’ve been dying to ask.”
“Hm?”
Estelle waited with a puzzled expression, wondering why he would suddenly be curious after getting angry.
“Saint-nim, you’ve been calling me ugly every day. Why?”
“...Huh?”
Estelle was startled. She had avoided the question because she feared Abel would realize his own appearance and start attracting even more women, but she couldn’t say that now.
“No, you always said I looked like a goblin. But where’s there a handsome goblin like me? That’s why I was curious. I thought it was just teasing, but you’ve said it every single day, so it’s weird.”
Abel’s direct question left Estelle flustered and speechless. That only made him push further.
“You weren’t just teasing me every day because you liked me, right? Is that why?”
Abel had read her mind perfectly. In truth, he had simply blurted it out in the heat of the moment.
But to Estelle, it was devastating. Her head spun as she blurted out the first thing that came to her.
“W-what are you saying! You pervert! You think I like that scrubby hero-nim, that I find him cute…! How could I ever think something like that?!”
It was a well-known saying that once a person lost their rationality, their true self came out. That was why people invented the phrase “drunk talk.” That was why Estelle’s words now held her real feelings.
Abel looked slightly taken aback by her outburst.
“...I’ve never said anything like that.”
“Hah…!”
Estelle snapped back to her senses. The moment she realized what she had said, her cheeks flushed bright red.
“...I’ll use the wish-granting charm.”
“...What? Huh?!”
Why was she suddenly talking about a wish-granting charm? Yet her heart was pounding wildly, completely against her rational mind. What exactly did she plan to wish for?
“If the Saint-nim saw me, would you say I’m handsome? Be honest.”
“...Huh?”
“I already used the wish-granting charm. If you lie, it won’t work. Swear to the goddess and tell the truth.”
Who would use a wish-granting charm for a question like that? Estelle gave Abel a bewildered look, but he showed no sign of withdrawing his statement.
“...Honestly?”
“Yes.”
Estelle lowered her gaze and answered.
“...Y-yes, you’re handsome.”
Abel smiled with satisfaction as Estelle openly admitted it.
“Since the Saint-nim said it herself with her own mouth, you’re never allowed to call me a goblin again.”
“...Yes.”
On that day, Estelle had lost to Abel for the first time.
#
The matter with Chloe had been taken care of, and now they were wondering where to go next. Abel asked the loser—the one who had lost the bet—and she looked slightly pouting from the whole thing.
“Saint-nim, why are you still pouting?”
“...I don’t know.”
The Saint glanced at him sideways and then turned her head away sharply.
...She’s adorable when she does that. Maybe it would be better if she just stayed pouting every day?
“Saint-nim, you have to tell me where we’re going.”
“...The next regular report meeting is in the Vesta Kingdom.”
“Oh, I see?”
So the next destination was the Vesta Kingdom. Traveling like this, hopping between countries, really did feel like a backpacking trip.
The Saint suddenly reached out and patted his cheek twice, then stood up abruptly.
...Why is she like that?
“We don’t have time to dawdle. We need to make the hero-nim act more human before the report meeting.”
“...I’m already human.”
“You’ve only just stepped out of the ant stage~♡ You need to get a little stronger.”
“How much time is left until the report meeting?”
“About two weeks. It takes about a week to get from Athens to Poculum.”
They didn’t have much time left. The report meetings were supposed to be held every few months, so that explained the timeline.
What had I been doing since the last report meeting?
After the one in Habsburg City, I hunted monsters, took on guild requests, saved Chloe after she turned into a monster, and on the way to Lancaster City to hand her over, we even caught an ogre...
...Thinking about it, a lot really had happened in just two months.
“Should we head out right away?”
“Yes, that’s right... Oh, right. Hero-nim, I have something to tell you.”
What is it?
“I heard from Cardinal Yohan that a decree has been issued to all churches.”
“What? Did something big happen?”
If decrees were going out to every church, not just the Solaria Church, it meant some major incident had occurred.
“The Saint of the Ludria Church has gone missing.”
...What?
“She wasn’t traveling with Hero Levius?”
“Yes, she was. But it seems she escaped.”
...What kind of nonsense is this? Even the Saint is running away now?
“What do we do?”
“If we run into her while traveling, we’re supposed to escort her back to the Ludria Church. We have our own schedule, so we can’t just go looking for her on purpose.”
“Ah... I see? But why would the Saint leave the hero?”
“...It’s just a guess, but maybe it has something to do with Hero Levius’s personality.”
Personality? Did Hero Levius have some kind of major flaw? The only weird thing he said last time was when he suddenly suggested swapping the Saint. Nothing else stood out.
“...Huh?”
Now that she mentioned it, she had said she and the hero had a bad relationship. Was that the reason?
“Saint-nim, I figured it out! Hero Levius and the Saint have a bad relationship! That must be why she ran away!”
That explained the escape! I had no idea, you little—!
But when she heard my theory, the Saint let out a light giggle.
“Fufufu♡ I already knew that.”
“...How?”
“You asked me about it, remember? Hero Levius told you he wanted to swap the Saint, and you asked what I thought. And then the Saint ran away this time. The answer was obvious, right?”
...She’s sharp.
“The way you proudly boast about something so obvious is so foolish~♡ You dummy♡”
...I should have swapped her back then.
“...So what about Hero Levius’s personality makes you think that?”
“About Hero Levius... I haven’t spoken to him directly much, but there are a lot of rumors.”
Rumors?
“Hero Levius comes from the Grosfeld family, one of the noble families in the Minerva Kingdom. Because of that, he has a rather arrogant side.”
“Really?”
“And there are rumors that he doesn’t treat people outside the nobility like they’re human. He sees commoners as tools. Apparently, many people dislike him.”
...He really is a terrible guy. Commoners aren’t even people to him? How dirty.
“So how did he become a hero? The holy sword doesn’t care about personality, does it?”
“No, it’s extremely picky. It wouldn’t choose just anyone~♡”
“Then how did Hero Levius become a hero?”
“The holy sword chose him because it was unusual.”
Because it was unusual? Does that mean he’s like a demonic sword?
“What’s so special about Hero Levius’s holy sword?”
“It’s the Holy Sword of Joy.”
“...Joy?”
Joy would mean something very happy and pleasurable. It’s an exaggerated way of saying it, but it’s still not a bad word.
“Why is the Holy Sword of Joy unusual?”
“Unlike other holy swords, the Holy Sword of Joy has no penalties, and its unique ability is extraordinary.”
“Penalties?”
She had never heard that before.
“I told the hero not to hurt people. That’s because of the holy sword’s penalty. The more the hero hurts someone, the more he loses strength and sharpness.”
Really?
“...Wait, but last time when I knocked people out, I didn’t—”
“Fufufu♡ You don’t have to hold back~♡ As long as you don’t cause fatal injuries, it’s fine.”
...Thank goodness.
“So the Holy Sword of Joy has no penalties?”
“Yes. That’s why Hero Levius is the only hero who can kill. It’s strange, isn’t it? The hero who is supposed to protect people can kill them.”
“...I see.”
A hero who kills people... isn’t that just the opposite of a hero?
“Then what’s the ability of the Holy Sword of Joy? You said it was unusual.”
“It strengthens the user when they feel pleasure.”
“...What?”
...Pleasure?