Fury at the Anesa Church Central Headquarters
Anesa Church Central Headquarters. This place, which controlled branches across the entire continent, was seething with rage.
"Such fools! Does the Rubystone family truly think us idiots?!"
In the grand conference room boasting majestic splendor, a man seated at the round table slammed his fist down with a bang! He wore luxurious priestly robes of white cloth embroidered with gold leaf, grinding his teeth without hiding his fury.
"Badeo, calm yourself. We lack clear evidence."
The man beside him tried to soothe him, but Badeo's voice only rose as he spat out his anger.
"Our brothers and sisters have all been swept away by the waters!! We lost two saintess candidates!! Does that make any sense?! That orcs could come up with such a scheme?! You might as well say a zombie wielded Holy Power!"
"....."
Unable to refute his words, the man's lips pressed shut heavily, his staff trembling in his grip.
"Brothers. Calm yourselves."
The elderly priest who had watched it all slowly spoke up. His voice boomed low and thick. Those present bowed their heads slightly in reverence the moment they heard it.
"The Rubystone family... the Goddess will judge them Herself. Do not rage—wait for the right time."
"....Then... shall we simply pray to the Goddess?"
Badeo cautiously voiced his doubt. But his eyes blazed fiercely. The old priest quietly observed his unquenched fury.
"....The time will be shown to us by the Goddess. Do your duty as Central Paladin Captain, Badeo."
".....Understood, Bishop."
"Then, how shall we handle the aftermath of this disaster?"
"Beseto's suggestion seems best, Topfman. Provide consolation payments to the bereaved families and prepare a joint service for their souls."
"Understood, Bishop."
Badeo's silence allowed everyone to breathe easier. Thanks to that, the cleanup discussions proceeded swiftly.
"What are your thoughts on the saintess candidates?"
"We shall have to select new ones, it seems. Beseto, draw up two or three options referencing past cases. I'll report directly to His Holiness."
"Yes, Bishop."
Everything concluded with his single word. Clean and efficient, without excess.
Now was the time to leave the sad matters behind and rise—but,
"Ah. One thing I'm curious about."
""...??""
The old priest flicked a sheet of paper to draw their attention.
"An old friend at the branch sent me a letter... He says something's off no matter how he looks at it. Seems investigations from various angles have failed. He's asking me to verify."
"What do you mean by 'off'..."
"By any chance... do you know someone named Huu?"
"....???"
"The letter has some rather amusing contents."
Huu? What kind of name is that? Question marks floated on the faces of everyone at the round table.
To think I'd get hosed down by those muscleheads whose brains are packed tight with nothing but more muscle. In the original story, orcs were just dumb monsters getting sliced up willy-nilly by Amelia or the hero. Am I dumber than them? Self-loathing washed over me.
"Lord Huu, are you alright?"
"(No! It's shocking!! To get done in like this by those green idiots!! I've seen every freakish thing in life now! Kuhahahaha!!!!)"
"Er... I see.."
She must be trying to comfort me. Wrapped head to toe in bandages, slumped over with a dazed expression—maybe that's why. Ludia, now on her feet, approached me.
"(Anyway! Is your body okay?!)"
"Yes. Thanks to your treatment, Lord Huu, I'm all better already!"
Look! All good now. She spread her arms and bent slightly. No biceps would pop on those slender arms, but... Ptui.
"...??"
Something even bigger seemed about to burst out, so I quickly averted my gaze.
"(Bitch! Either strip naked or get dressed—pick one!!!)"
"..Hahut!!!"
Her upper body was fully exposed, wrapped only in bandages. Her face flushed red as she scrambled to gather her scattered clothes.
"(Kuhahahaha!!! Too bad, but no unwrapping the bandages today!)"
"Ah, I know! I won't take them off today.. No no, I'll get dressed!"
The burning heat from her embarrassment seemed to radiate to my back. Was it because she was still damp? The memory of stripping her clothes earlier to check her back wound resurfaced unbidden. Peeling off the wet fabric revealed pristine white skin. A softness like milk poured over her, white in perfect harmony. That firmness that yielded yet pushed back. The pink tint like cherry blossoms wet with dew...
Plop.
"Huu.... All dressed now."
"......."
Just as the memory threatened to evolve into fantasy, thankfully, Ludia's touch pressed against my back. We sat back-to-back, our warmth mingling with every shift.
"Now... what do we do?"
"(What do you mean?)"
Lost in the warm sensation for a moment, she spoke first.
"We have to return to the Church, right?"
"(If that's where we go, yeah.)"
"Then what about running away?"
"(...Bitch, I've been thinking.)"
"....??"
"(If we go to the Church, we're dead.)"
"Y-Yes???"
Ludia's voice jumped in shock. I could picture her wide eyes without looking.
"(I opened my eyes, and your wound was healed. It was a serious injury. Neither of us has healing ability.)"
"That's.. because you treated me so well, Lord Huu..."
"(No. Someone else healed you. I just bandaged and collapsed like this.)"
Tap tap. I pointed to the exposed flesh.
I'd unwrapped my bandages to rewrap hers and passed out right after. Which meant I'd basically advertised myself as a zombie.
"Who on earth... healed me?"
"(The owner of this, probably.)"
"?!!!"
I handed her an item from my pocket. A crude wooden ring. The moment Ludia saw it, she flinched and trembled.
"N-No way...."
"(I woke up, and it was at my feet. With a stamina potion too.)"
"......"
"(And the guy probably saw your shoulder too.)"
"Then...."
I felt her tremble even harder. Her fumbling hand reached for her shoulder. The pale skin marred by the hideous brand.
"Why on earth..."
"(Dunno. But one thing's clear: the Church isn't safe anymore.)"
"........"
It felt like reopening an unsolved homework assignment. They must've seen it. But why leave it and go? Why heal us? Wasn't Ludia a rival saintess candidate?
"Th-Then... no options left..."
"(Yeah. And this is just my gut...)"
"...?"
Something's off about this whole operation. Too many suspicions. Amelia suddenly abandoned by her family, orcs exhausted before the fight. And orcs using strategy? The gap from what I know is huge. More convincing that someone intervened and sabotaged.
"(Smells bad!)"
But trying to explain it all just lumps it as "suspicious parts." ...The ring's speech is always like that anyway.
"Eek!"
"...??"
But Ludia reacted instantly to the absurd words. She suddenly sniffed, checking her own scent.
"R-Really?? Do I smell??!!!"
"...??"
What's with her suddenly?
"S-Sorry!! Must be all the sweat!!"
"..........."
Her face beet red, she flailed around hunting the source. No... how do I stop her? What do I even say?
"Should I wash again??! Hah..! Shouldn't have run around so hard earlier!!"
("Kuhahahaha!! No! Your scent's great, bitch!! Makes my power surge!)"
".....Pardon?"
"...Uh? (Huh?)"
Shit. No, Ludia. Why'd that pop out?! I glared at the ring with triangular eyes for the first time in ages, my face as red as hers.
In the end, our choice was to vanish. With my identity exposed, entering the Church was suicide. Thankfully, Ludia had no regrets about becoming a saintess and nodded in resignation, but
"Th-Then.. could we make one stop, maybe?"
She suggested a destination first.
"(Where?)"
"It might be the last time... I really want to go once."
Her big eyes rolled pleadingly at me.
...Were her eyes always this pretty? Thick lashes, soft shape. Unblinking, her black pupils reflected my dazed stare.
...Nod.
"Thank you!"
Only then did she smile brightly, eyes curving shut. A pang of regret hit as her gaze released me.
"(But where are we going?!)"
"My hometown."
"(Hometown?)"
First time. Hearing something personal from Ludia. Come to think of it, she wasn't in the original, so I knew zilch about her background. Why hadn't I asked till now? Basic sleuthing on meeting, right?
"Hehehe... Not much to see there... Just... people I miss. Hehe...."
"....."
An awkward laugh tainted the end. But unlike Amelia, Ludia couldn't hide her expressions. Her thoughts were crystal clear.
"(..Let's go! To see mom and dad!)"
"Eek! How'd you know?! I didn't say!"
"(Obvious! When bitches are down, they run crying to mom and dad! Uhahaha!!!)"
"...Tch..."
Annoyed at being babied, her cheeks puffed out.
"(Uh?! Where'd you learn such cute tricks?!)"
Squish..!
"Ahht!!"
Playfully, I pressed her cheeks lightly with my palms. They squished, her plump lips pursing out.
""........""
Time slowed suddenly. No... not even in battle—why the tension?? It's just lips. I breathed into them earlier for CPR. If there's no ulterior motive, swearing to the heavens I'd never... heavens reliable...? My thoughts tangled wildly.
"Uuu..."
Trembling lips. Blushing pink cheeks. Ludia's eyes quietly shut sometime ago. My heart pounded madly. Eyes thumping up and down in illusion.
"....Ugh! (Argh!)"
Tap.
"Ow!"
Shoving aside all emotions, I lightly pushed her forehead away. Tension melted like waking from ice.
"(Let's go, bitch! Pack your stuff quick!)"
"...Huu....."
Damn.. why's the mood like this suddenly. To the poor branded girl, what am I...? Not the time. Avoiding her gaze, I fumbled around. The cave air was cool, but I felt sweltering.