The Saint's Secret Kisses
“Master, I want you to kiss me, peck me, and do all those other things too!”
The sudden question hit me like a bolt from nowhere, leaving me momentarily stunned. Even Estelle looked just as flustered. Her face flushed bright red.
Telling the Pope something like that already meant he must know what was going on. I hadn’t given anything away, yet here he was.
“…When exactly did you figure it out?”
“It’s because Estelle calls me ‘Hero’ by name. That’s how I knew.”
…She’d spilled the beans the moment she said “Abel.” She was fast, all right.
“…As Your Holiness believes. If that is indeed what you anticipated…”
“Hahaha, Reina was the same, and Estelle follows right in her footsteps.”
“……Haha.”
I scratched my head, and the Pope’s gentle smile vanished in an instant.
…What’s with the sudden seriousness? Why are you glaring at me like you’re about to devour me?
And then he said it while staring at me with murderous intent.
“Seducing the pure Estelle is an unforgivable sin.”
“…Huh?”
…Pure? Who?
“So tell me, what candy-coated lies did you feed Estelle? My attitude will change depending on your answer.”
Wait, hold on. You’re mad because your granddaughter went to some random guy? I get it, but I didn’t seduce her!
“…Grandpa, it was me who confessed.”
“……Eh?”
“I told Abel I love him. He just… accepted my feelings. He’s not brave enough to cross that line himself. He’s just a coward, a big coward ♡”
Coward? What the heck is that?
The Pope looked genuinely surprised by the revelation, but when he saw Estelle’s honest, blushing expression, he sighed in defeat.
“Hoooh…”
“Of course I love Estelle too, but her words are true.”
The Pope glanced between me and Estelle, cleared his throat, and sat up straighter.
“…I must have been mistaken. Sorry, old age and I’ve lost my edge.”
“No, it’s fine. I understand how you feel.”
The Pope turned to Estelle.
“You’re moving too fast. Even if you want to think about your future, you should decide carefully…”
“I already gave my first time to Abel, Grandpa.”
“…What?”
Whoa, hold on. You can’t just say that!
Estelle flashed me a bright smile and hugged my arm tightly. The soft, warm feeling made my skin tingle.
“I’ll retire and marry Abel. Is that okay?”
“…Estelle! Have you forgotten the teachings of the Church!?”
“Anyway, I’m just a proxy chosen by the Goddess herself. What’s one rule compared to that?”
“Sigh… How did you become such a rebellious girl?”
…Poor Grandpa. But since the real problem clearly wasn’t an issue, the Pope let it slide.
After all, the Goddess had chosen for herself—what did a few human rules matter?
“…Control yourself. Your role is to help the Hero defeat the Demon King. Do not forget that, Estelle.”
“Of course, I know~♡”
“……Hah.”
The Pope shot me a sharp glare. I quickly looked away, pretending I hadn’t seen.
“…Have your questions been answered, Your Holiness?”
“…Yes, thanks to you, they’re settled perfectly. Hahaha.”
“Hahahaha…”
…Sorry. Truly sorry.
The conversation finally wound down. Estelle and Celine gave the Pope their farewells and left the study. I followed, but then something occurred to me. I turned back.
“Your Holiness.”
“Why is it?”
He still had that prickly tone. Grandpa, just forgive me already…
“I’m sorry, but can I ask just one more thing? When I met the North Queen in the nest, she said something strange to me.”
The Pope’s eyes lit up with interest as he listened. Estelle’s loud protest—“Master, wait!”—made me hold up a hand. Then I said,
“He said he took something from the Demon King?”
“…What do you mean?”
“I don’t know either. I’ve never seen the Demon King before. Well, who even has? Anyway, the North Queen said I took something from him, and he sent me away so he could take it back.”
The Pope’s eyes widened. Even the words about stealing something surprised him, but what really shook him was the part about the Demon King sending me away.
“You don’t understand? If the Demon King saw the Hero as a threat, he could have just killed you. Why drag you all the way here?”
“I did manage to survive thanks to you, though…”
“Hold on. Hero, did you tell anyone else about this besides me?”
“No. This is the first time I’ve told anyone. I figured if it was Your Holiness, who leads the Solaria Church, you might already know something.”
High-ups often hide secrets from everyone else.
“…That is fortunate. If the rumor spread, it would have been a disaster.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it. The Hero slays monsters and protects people. If people learned the Demon King was openly targeting the Hero, what would they do?”
…What would they do?
I couldn’t answer, so the Pope pointed at me.
“They would force the Hero to sacrifice himself.”
“Eh?”
“The Hero is built for that. He’s always fighting for people, sacrificing himself… that’s his role. If the Demon King openly hunts him and sends monster waves on schedule, what would people think?”
…That sounds pretty harsh.
“Still, I’ve never been attacked by monsters before. This is the first time it’s happened in the Glacier Mountains.”
“…Now that you mention it, there was an incident near the border between Apollo Kingdom and Vesta Kingdom where an Amon-class monster and a Mother moved together.”
“…Yes?”
The Pope looked at me.
“They headed straight for Vesta Kingdom. And at the time, Hero Abel—were you in Vesta Kingdom?”
“…Eh?”
…Wait, now that I think about it… what did the Mother say right before she died? What was it again?
I racked my brain. She said… something like that. Yeah, that’s right. I thought it was weird then, but she was asking me to give it back, wasn’t she?
“…Your Holiness, but I’ve never even met the Demon King. Could I even have taken something from him in the first place?”
“I’m confused too. No matter how you look at it, you’re just a normal human. As far as I know, you were a simple farmer before you were chosen as the Hero.”
“Yes.”
Actually, I don’t remember much about that time, but I did live like a backwater village kid. What chance would a normal village body have of meeting the Demon King?
Even if I had, I probably would’ve died on the spot. How would I have survived and stolen something from him?
“…I don’t understand.”
“I feel the same way. It’s a pity I couldn’t be more help.”
It felt like I was sinking deeper into a maze.
“Have there been cases like this before?”
“…This is the first time I’m hearing it from the Hero. I’ve never heard of the Demon King targeting one specific Hero before. Probably never happened.”
…What is it? I don’t even know what to do. If those Amon-class monsters and Mothers near the Vesta border were after me… that means wherever I go, danger follows, right?
“…So what should I do?”
“…First, carry out your duty as the Hero. To understand why the Demon King is doing this, you’ll need to contact the Mothers—the ones who answer directly to him.”
Contact the Mothers and find out why the Demon King is acting like this.
The Pope said,
“Of course, but getting stronger comes first. With your current power, you’d just get dragged back to the nest if you tried to attack.”
“…Yes.”
“Do not tell anyone about this. Not even Estelle. Only you and I should know.”
“…Understood.”
#
After leaving the Pope’s study, I felt completely drained. Is this what a blind date feels like? I’m mentally exhausted.
“What took you so long?”
Estelle eyed me suspiciously. We hadn’t just chatted for a minute—we’d had a long conversation.
But since the Pope had ordered me not to tell anyone, I spun a plausible excuse.
“…I got scolded by Grandpa for a bit.”
“Grandpa!?”
Estelle’s face turned red. Her cheeks puffed up.
Oh no, I’m using that title too early?
“Haha, it was a joke.”
“…Have you been thinking about marrying me since earlier? You’re so shameless ♡ Just like the perverted Hero ♡”
…Look at that. She thinks I’m still that old me? I’m not holding back anymore.
Even when Estelle tried to roast me, I just smiled and said,
“Yeah, I’ve already decided on the grandchildren’s names.”
“Eh…”
Her amber eyes went round. A mix of embarrassment and confusion filled them.
Her reaction was hilarious.
“…Hero, I’m right here. Are you only looking at her?”
Ah, Celine was there too.
“Celine’s name is on the list as well.”
“Huu? What?”
“If it’s a granddaughter, how about Selina? For a grandson, maybe Seleus. Both sound good.”
Perfect—naturally. I puffed out my chest proudly, and Celine let out a soft chuckle.
“Well, I’ll let you off the hook for that.”
“……”
…Sharp-witted girl.
“Abel, I’m going to see Sister Katarina for a moment.”
Katarina? I know that name.
“Ah.”
I immediately remembered. That woman! The nun who taught Estelle that awful speech pattern!!!
Estelle clasped her hands and looked up at me.
“…Can you come with me?”
…She’s adorable. There’s no way I could refuse.
“Yes, I really want to meet her.”
And then, I’d better ask why she taught that disgusting speech in the first place. Since Estelle said I could come, she smiled brightly.
“Hmph, you wanted to be with me after all? You should have just said so, you shy thing ♡”
“…Sure, let’s do that.”
I asked Celine,
“What about you?”
“…I’ll make an excuse and slip away.”
“Eh?”
“Like you said, Saint Estelle, I had you all to myself for a while. Let me have my turn once.”
…I don’t think I really need to, but if Celine insists, I’ll respect it.
Estelle heard Celine’s words and yanked my arm.
“Go already, you cat burglar!”
“…Hehe, you’re so cute. But Saint, I’m not giving you up at night?”
“Wh-what…”
Who gets to decide who gets to keep you?
“We’re going to race on whose bed the Hero likes more?”
…She’s actually serious?
I felt my head spinning. Estelle, embarrassed yet defiant, shot back,
“Ah, I know! Just wait and see. I’ll make Abel say my name!”
“That sounds fun. I’ll make the Hero say my name too.”
These two… they really don’t know there’s another way?
“Anyway, go have fun. I’ll rest in the room.”
“Yes, Celine. Rest.”
“Ah, Hero.”
Celine walked over, suddenly stood on tiptoes, and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. Then she pulled back with a cute little smack.
“See you later~♥”
The sudden skinship made not only me but also Estelle, who had been hugging my arm, stutter.
“…E-eh… y-yes.”
“Th-this, this, this, this cat!!!”
“AHAHA! I’m going~.”
Celine laughed brightly and left. I stared at Estelle, still dazed. Her head was bowed, and her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.
“E-Estelle? Why are you crying?”
“…Abel, why won’t you kiss me…?”
“Eh?”
“I-I want to kiss and make out and do all those things too! Why only to Celine?!”
This was all Celine’s doing… oh right, she’s the shy one.
Estelle looked upset, pouting. She clearly didn’t know how to express her embarrassment properly.
“…Sigh… What do I do with this shy Saint?”
“Eh?”
“Come here.”
I pulled Estelle’s waist close and kissed her lips right in front of everyone.
“Mmph!?”
I held back from putting my tongue in—she’d probably get other ideas. But I made the kiss deep enough to satisfy her.
A surprisingly long time passed. When I finally pulled back, Estelle’s face was flushed, and she stared at me with desperate eyes.
“…We’ll finish the rest later.”
“…Yes.”
“For now…”
The moment the kiss ended, I noticed people staring. Avoiding the shocked glances, I said,
“…Let’s move somewhere else.”
#
Estelle returned to her senses and headed for Sister Katarina. Abel trailed behind her, following close. As she watched him, Estelle thought,
‘Even when he’s this cute, he suddenly turns into a man the second we get skinship…’
It was such an annoying change. Earlier, when he grabbed her waist and kissed her, he’d looked so cool it was enough to make her feel weird.
“Estelle, the Pope’s palace is huge.”
That was probably why, trying to hide her embarrassment, she answered with a bold smile and sparkling eyes.
“You ask such obvious questions~♡ The Pope’s palace is basically a small city. Inside the grounds there are restaurants, shops—everything.”
“Hoo…”
“The address is listed under Delphoi, but it’s really like Delphoi has a satellite city attached to it. There are tons of clergy, priests, and nuns living here, and the Holy Knights’ order too.”
“Since it’s the Solaria Church, there’s even more, right?”
“Of course. Our Church is the largest on the continent, no matter who says otherwise~♡”
Estelle unconsciously showed pride in her Church. Abel smiled lightly and said,
“You really love and cherish the Solaria Church, Estelle.”
The words struck a nerve. Estelle’s expression changed instantly. She blushed, embarrassed, and muttered,
“Ugh… it’s not like I have a choice. I grew up there for over ten years.”
“I wasn’t teasing. I like it because it makes you happy.”
“…Idiot.”
Abel and Estelle walked far from the Pope’s study. Abel thought how vast the palace grounds were when Estelle suddenly stopped. He had no choice but to stand still.
“Estelle?”
“…That woman.”
“Eh?”
Abel looked up. What he saw was a nun with long red hair being playfully tugged by children. She paid them no mind, just laughing and playing in the grass with them.
Estelle called out in a gentle voice.
“Sister Katarina.”