Chapter 23
Chapter 23
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: The Saint's Inner Thoughts Can Be Heard
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Haha, you must be surprised! I was born with a constitution that makes others' magic ineffective against me!"
Paladin Wilhelm walked alongside me through the Papal Court, laughing heartily.
Originally, he should have just finished the inspection, but he seemed interested in me and followed along.
"So that's why you're in charge of weeding out suspicious individuals in front of the Papal Court. With your eyes, no one can hide their identity using magic."
I had heard about Wilhelm's constitution somewhere before. I'd seen research that if someone's mana circuits are tangled from birth, others' magic is almost ineffective against them.
I covered my face with my hand and let out a deep sigh. Had I known this would happen, I shouldn't have said I was Victoria's lover.
I only hoped that rumors wouldn't spread to her when she returns to the Holy Kingdom later, causing a lot of trouble to clean up.
"Yes! That's how I could immediately recognize your identity as a mage, sir! I've always wanted to meet you someday!"
The situation had spiraled out of control.
Wilhelm, smiling brightly and looking at me with admiring eyes, bowed his head to me, expressing his respect.
This kind of attention was burdensome. The current me needed to meet the Pope without anyone knowing and find a solution for the flower on Victoria's body.
"So, is it true that you're the Saint's lover?"
"No, that was just a joke earlier..."
"It's already been a year since you left for the Demon King subjugation, so it would be strange if romantic feelings didn't develop between a man and a woman!"
"...Please, just shut up for a moment."
I gritted my teeth and held back my anger. This was better than causing unnecessary trouble by picking a fight in the Papal Court.
"The Saint is so beautiful and noble that she's called a goddess, so she would surely be a match for a hero like you, Sir Astal!"
I was using Perception Hindrance Magic to prevent our voices from spreading around us. His continuous questions about my relationship with Victoria were incredibly annoying.
But something bothered me.
"...I heard there are many men in your Paladin Order who joined because of Victoria."
Originally, I knew there were many humans in the Holy Kingdom who coveted Victoria.
Since the guy called the top leader, the Pope, is a perverted bastard, it was obvious what those below him would be like.
But this guy was strange.
He seemed more interested in me than in Victoria.
"Hmm! That is certainly true! Since His Holiness Pope Porcus ascended, many lust-filled bastards have entered our order!"
Wilhelm nodded his head, affirming the statement. He showed no particular hesitation even when talking about the Pope, who was above him.
"Are you different?"
Seeing him act differently from the Holy Kingdom paladins I usually knew, I couldn't help but ask him.
"Yes! I wanted to become someone who saves people like you, Sir Astal, which is why I applied to the Paladin Order!"
Wilhelm gave a bright smile, sticking his thumb up at himself. Confidence overflowed from his demeanor.
"Like me? I thought no one in this Holy Kingdom followed me except Victoria."
Seeing that attitude, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu. Even though part of his face was covered by a mask, someone with such a vibrant personality wasn't easy to forget.
"Do you really not remember me? That's a bit disappointing! The Harmless Mage, Sir Astal!"
Then, Wilhelm took off the white mask he was wearing and showed me his bare face. A large burn scar ran across his forehead and the area connecting to his eyes.
Anyone could see that was a mark intentionally burned by demons or monsters. Despite the hideous appearance that made me want to click my tongue, I calmly searched my memories.
"Don't tell me, that time..."
I had saved a child with such wounds before.
"Yes! The country boy you saved when you were staying at the Blue Magic Tower. Wilhelm! It's an honor to see you again!"
Wilhelm's face, smiling brightly again, was filled with the joy of a youthful boy more than anything else.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The beginning of the incident was like this.
After my parents passed away, there was a time when I desperately researched magic that could save people.
It was because of an extreme mindset that it was the only atonement and the only reason I could live.
Staying up all night alone, poring over magic papers, was my daily routine, to the point where other mages called me a 'stubborn mule'.
Whenever there was a dispatch mission from the Magic Tower, I would throw myself into saving people. If even one person died, I would use all my wealth to comfort the bereaved families.
"So, your eyes still can't see...?"
And one of the children I saved back then was Wilhelm, who was now beside me.
The child, whose eyes had been burned by a demon, losing his sight and screaming, later forced a bright smile and thanked me when I left the village.
"Ah, the Saint fixed that for me! I can see perfectly now! You don't need to worry about it!"
Wilhelm smiled at me as if telling me not to worry, putting his mask back on. The hideous scar was covered again.
"But why the burn scar...? If it was Victoria's miracle, she could have fixed it completely."
I asked Wilhelm, just in case. Given Victoria's nature, there was no way she wouldn't have completely healed such a wound.
"Ah, I asked her to leave it! I thought you might not recognize me without it!"
The reason was unexpectedly absurd. He simply kept the scar on his face while waiting for the day he would meet me again.
"Why on earth would you do that..."
I looked at Wilhelm with pitying eyes. This boy was also one of those who had suffered great trauma from demons, similar to me.
The forces under Demon King Ergosum committed atrocities like killing or massacring people, so getting injured like this had become common.
"This is also a medal proving I survived hard! Of course, many people in the Holy Kingdom find it uncomfortable, so I cover it..."
Wilhelm pointed at his mask with his finger. Originally a boy from a village not far from here, he said he became a paladin because he admired me.
"But you didn't necessarily have to become a paladin."
I spoke to Wilhelm with pity. This boy, who didn't even look like an adult yet, chose the profession of paladin to fight demons and monsters.
If becoming a dog that had to follow the current Pope's orders was far from the ideal he wanted. Porcus III was so corrupt that it made me doubt how he even became Pope.
"My mana circuits are tangled, so I couldn't learn magic. I just had a little talent for swordsmanship."
Then Wilhelm said while touching the hilt of his sword. The constitution that made others' magic ineffective also had the disadvantage of not being able to use magic oneself.
"We're only a few years apart in age, but seeing you save people with magic deeply moved me!"
"......"
"Of course, if it were anyone else, they would have gotten angry or arrested you the moment you called our Saint your girlfriend..."
Wilhelm stopped walking abruptly and bowed at a right angle to me again, looking at the floor.
"But it's different if it's you, Sir Astal, who saved my life! May I call you brother?"
And his outstretched hand. His gaze, staring intently at me as if requesting a handshake, was incredibly burdensome.
"Just call me Astal."
I tried to stop him by shaking Wilhelm's hand.
But,
"Yes! Brother! Understood!"
As if he had already made up his mind, he was calling me brother.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Astal and Wilhelm heading to meet the Pope. Currently, Victoria was secretly following behind them.
- So, is the Saint doing well? If you came to the Holy Kingdom so suddenly, is there some problem...?
- It seems I need to remove the flower that bloomed on her body.
Victoria eavesdropped on the two men's whispered conversation while maintaining a certain distance, following without being noticed by anyone.
This was the place where she spent her childhood and had explored here and there to sneak out, so she knew it well.
'I need to eavesdrop and find out what thoughts brought him to the Holy Kingdom secretly...!'
Victoria clenched her fists and steeled her resolve. She believed that conversations in places where the person concerned wasn't present held the truth.
That's how the Holy Kingdom where Victoria grew up had always been.
The inner thoughts of the people who revered her as the Saint had, at some point, started treating her as a consumable item for using miracles.
Disillusioned by such selfish humans and having grown cold, Victoria hurled venomous words with her tongue and treated people with a cold attitude.
Despite this mask, if someone begged and pleaded, apologizing to her, she would show kindness by using miracles.
'Sir Astal must surely hate me.'
That was the survival method of the Saint, who lived being hurt by people, having her body and mind gnawed at by the flower.
- Hmm? Brother? Why are you suddenly looking back? Is there something behind us?
- I feel like someone is following us. Maybe it's just my imagination...
Then, Astal looked back as if he had noticed someone was there. Startled by the sudden action, she immediately hid her body behind a pillar.
- So, how did you end up dating the Saint? Please tell me too! I'm dying of curiosity!
- Do I really have to talk about it?
- Yes, your partner is that pure and faithful Saint! She seems like someone who knows nothing about the world's filth or darkness!
Hearing Wilhelm's evaluation, Victoria felt shame rising from deep within her heart. Originally, in the Holy Kingdom, she was a girl far from vulgarity or lewdness.
The holy garments she wore covered her skin and hair tightly, and she maintained clean speech and attitude every day toward humans who didn't think of her as a consumable item.
'This is all because Sir Astal wouldn't fall for me...!'
Victoria bit her tongue lightly in irritation. The reason she started wearing clothes so revealing they could be called fabric, and always making lewd jokes while teasing Astal, was all because of the insensitive Astal.
Now, her outfit revealed her lower chest to the point it could barely be called clothing, and she always engaged in vulgar talk, teasing Astal.
Surely a bad evaluation would come. Victoria tightly closed her eyes, fearing the future that lay ahead, but...
- To me, she's a precious person.
'Wha, what did you say...?!'
Unexpectedly, the words Astal uttered were warm, filled with affection for Victoria.
- Victoria is a kind and good person. I just hope she doesn't suffer anymore in the future.