The Saintess's Letter
“Julian? Did something happen?”
For someone who was usually so airheaded, she could be sharp at the worst times…
“Nothing much.”
How was I supposed to say I’d been grabbed by some man and had a rough time of it? If it had just been the two of us, maybe. But Sister Mary was right there, which made it even harder to talk about.
The moment I mentioned what had happened, she’d ask who the guy was, track him down, and report it up the chain so they could “deal with him.” I could already see the whole mess spinning completely out of control.
Of course I wasn’t going to just let it slide. I planned to write a carefully worded letter to the Cardinal. Once that man got a proper scolding, he’d hopefully fix that high-handed attitude of his…
Besides, I was leaving soon. There was no point making an enemy out of someone I was unlikely to see again.
My sister kept staring at me steadily. She’s still suspicious, isn’t she?
But I had no intention of telling her.
I was flipping through the books she and Sister Mary had found, deliberately avoiding her eyes, when footsteps approached from deeper in the library. I looked up to see Priest Daniel emerging. He glanced our way, then immediately averted his gaze.
In that fleeting moment of avoidance, the expression on his face was pure cowardice. The reason was right beside me—the young master, eyes blazing with murderous intent.
He was glaring at Priest Daniel as if he might chase him down and throw a punch any second. The pressure was so intense even I could feel it from next to him. No wonder the guy looked away.
Anyway, I hoped that would be the end of it. I rubbed my sore wrist and decided I’d heal it a little later.
There had been no real gains today either, so we were told to spend the remaining time however we liked.
The young master had spotted a book that interested him and settled in to read, while Sister Mary stuck to my side like glue and refused to leave.
“Sister Mary, you should rest comfortably too.”
“I am here to serve the Saintess.”
Her stiff formality was a little uncomfortable, but given my position, maybe it couldn’t be helped…
“What about you, sis?”
“Dunno.”
She sat there blankly, showing zero interest in the books.
I was reading a volume on Holy Magic. I figured I might as well use the chance to find something useful among the spells I hadn’t learned yet and try to master it.
“Insect-repelling Holy Magic, huh…”
The book was full of Holy Magic whose original purpose was a complete mystery.
“It’s actually quite an excellent Holy Magic.”
“Is it?”
“Yes. It even works on insect-type monsters.”
…That was a bit unexpected. The problem was that the spell looked difficult; I didn’t think I could pick it up right away. While I was mulling it over, Sister Mary gave me a more detailed explanation of the Holy Magic… and it turned out to be pretty interesting.
Apparently a priest who lived in a temple near the jungle had created it. There were so many insects around—dangerous ones, too—that he’d devised it as a way to keep them at bay. Of course, it had to be cast as a large-scale magic circle like a formation, and the duration was short relative to the Holy Power it consumed, so practical use had been deemed a failure… but the completed Holy Magic had still been passed down.
So it needs a lot of Holy Power… That doesn’t apply to me, does it? Maybe I should just memorize the formula for now?
After reading diligently for a while, I got bored and wandered over to the young master.
“Young Master, what book are you reading so intently?”
“A monster bestiary.”
He smiled and held the book out so I could see. The page displayed the large word “Troll” alongside a detailed illustration.
“Monsters…”
“I learned all of this back in my Academy days, but the new editions are remarkably clean and well-organized.”
“Really?”
“Yes. It’s been more than five years since I attended the Academy, after all.”
A troll… The illustration was so densely detailed that even as a drawing it managed to look terrifying. Trolls were major monsters that showed up constantly in the works I’d known in my previous life. They were famous for another reason, too—in countless stories they were used as potion ingredients.
There were quite a few settings where they magically processed the blood of highly regenerative trolls to make potions…
Trolls, trolls…
Come to think of it, monster materials could be used in alchemy too, couldn’t they?
“Is something the matter?”
“O-oh, nothing… I just thought I might like to try hunting a troll?”
“A troll, you say?”
The young master’s expression turned serious. I had learned about monsters from both my Master and my Instructor, but unless I’d actually faced one myself, I didn’t really know how strong a monster I’d only heard of by name would be.
“If the three of us moved together, I believe we could take one down without much trouble.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. With Miss Julian’s support, it would be more than enough.”
He spoke with complete confidence. So two Knight-class fighters plus a mage could handle a troll?
“I’d like to fight one myself if the chance ever comes up.”
Hunting monsters would make the surrounding area safer… and I’d get alchemy materials. Two birds with one stone, right?
“If the chance comes up, then.”
He smiled and turned the page, revealing another monster. I sat beside him, looking at the book together and chatting the time away.
I thought I heard whispering behind us, but once I focused on the book it quickly faded from notice.
After spending a dull stretch of time in the library, we finally stepped outside.
Our next destination was decided by my wish for some fresh air: the steeple of the temple.
“So places like this exist as well.”
“It is not a location one may enter freely.”
Meaning they’d only opened it because I’d asked for a place with a good view?
“Still, the view really is wonderful.”
Aside from the Magic Tower, this was probably the highest point around. From here you could look down over the entire city. And because it was so high, the wind was cool and the vista stretched wide open.
Wizheim. I’d known it was big, but it truly was an enormous city.
“So this is Wizheim, the headquarters of the Order…”
Maybe it was because I was seeing it from so high up, but a strange feeling settled over me. Realizing that the countless people living here could move at a single word from me filled me with a heavy sense of responsibility… and left me a little dazed at the same time.
“You need not feel so burdened.”
“Ha… the wind is cool, but my stomach’s aching.”
While I was lost in sentiment, muttering to myself, my sister came out with pure nonsense.
“Hungry?”
“What?”
“Is your stomach aching because you’re hungry?”
The way she tilted her head was cute, but… what exactly did she take me for?
“No, it’s not.”
Gazing down at the city, still half-immersed in the mood, I made up my mind.
“Yeah. I should leave tomorrow.”
My sudden declaration startled my sister, the young master, and Sister Mary all at once.
“So suddenly?”
“S-Saintess?!”
“Julian?”
“Well, think about it. Staying here any longer would only be a burden, and I still have my original goal.”
Life here was so comfortable and secure that if I lingered any longer I was afraid I’d just settle in and never leave. The moment I made my intentions clear, the young master and my sister accepted them at once.
“I see. Then I shall make the preparations.”
Sister Mary tried to hold me back.
“You may stay a little longer if you wish.”
“I know how hard you’ve been working for me, Sister Mary.”
I could feel just how diligently she had been serving me.
“In that case…!”
I pressed a finger gently to Sister Mary’s lips.
“I began this journey for the sake of my research—and to see the wider world.”
At those words, Sister Mary bowed her head deeply.
“I understand.”
With a lightened heart I came down from the steeple and went straight to dinner. After eating I returned to my room and immediately wrote a letter.
“There. Done.”
In short, it stated that I had decided to leave tomorrow, and it also covered the unpleasant incident that had occurred today.
“Sister Mary?”
“Yes.”
“Please deliver this to Priest Daniel’s father.”
The moment the name Daniel left my lips, Sister Mary’s brow furrowed slightly.
“That gentleman…”
Apparently it was a name she knew well.
“I heard he’s a Cardinal.”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“I’ve written down what I wanted to say to him. Oh—and that includes the fact that I’m leaving tomorrow.”
“Understood.”
Once Sister Mary left the room, I stretched.
“Now then… shall I get ready to leave tomorrow?”
I looked at my bag. My luggage hadn’t really increased, but I still needed to organize it properly.
For more than fifty years he had devoted himself to the Order. That was how he had risen to the highest seat of all—Cardinal. His piety had even been proven by a direct oracle from the Goddess.
And now that man was tasting the greatest humiliation of his life.
In his hand was a single letter.
The moment he read its contents, he felt as though the world itself had split in two.
The shock was so severe he nearly fainted on the spot.
And he regretted.
Because the boy had been a son obtained late in life, he had merely watched even when the child grew a little spoiled. Yet the boy’s faith as a believer in the Goddess had been genuine… and because he possessed Holy Power, the Cardinal had believed he would change.
That son of his had caused an incident.
An incident far too large.
“Ghk… ghk…”
Clutching the back of his neck, his face flushed so red it would not have been strange if he collapsed then and there.
“B-bring Daniel here at once! Immediately!”
He could neither crumple the letter in his hand nor throw it away; his fingers only trembled violently as he shouted. The priest attending him received the order and hurried from the room in a panic.
Thud!
His rage still uncooled, he could only pound the innocent desk.
“Hah… my own son did such a thing?”
He regretted not having disciplined the boy sooner. Because the child had been born as his wife lay dying… because he was the only son, and the Cardinal had pitied him, he had merely watched. He regretted that past now.
He let out a low sigh and leaned back in his chair.
After a short while with his eyes closed, his son entered the room.
“Father? I actually had something I wanted to say, so this works out well.”
He slowly opened his eyes and looked at his son’s face. The boy approached with an expression full of anger.
“Very well… what is it you wish to say?”
Before scolding him, he would let the boy speak his mind. He could scold him afterward. No—considering the gravity of the matter, this might be the last mercy he could afford to show.
“Do you know what happened in the library today? I was attacked by some insolent priest and a nun!”
He already knew his son behaved like a scoundrel. Was it because the boy had no mother? Or simply because he was at that age? He often caused trouble by harassing women. The only reason the Cardinal had continued to watch was that the boy at least never brought women to his bed—and that had been the mistake.
“Father? Are you listening?”
“Yes…”
“Those damn people attacked me, I tell you!”
“Is that so?”
Listening to his son’s words, he could confirm that everything written in the letter was true. There was truly no room left to retreat…
If this matter became known to others, what would happen? He would have to step down from the position of Cardinal.
And if that were the end of it, he would be fortunate. In the worst case, his son could face being torn apart by horses—a truly grave situation.
Of all people, he had to lay hands on the Saintess…
“The priest was just ordinary blond, but the nun had a distinctive color, so she should be easy to find. Father, please do something about them.”
Could he truly hold his son fully accountable? The letter had stated that she herself had not revealed her identity, and that she had struck first, so she asked that the boy not be punished too harshly—that mercy be shown.
This was partly his own failure as well. If only he had told his son about the Saintess… But the matter had already exploded.
“Tsk. So that nun had pink hair, did she?”
“Father?”
His son looked at him with startled eyes. No—perhaps this was an opportunity.
He would use this reprimand to correct that rotten nature. He would give his high-handed, spoiled son the chance to become a new person!
“Do you even know who it was you laid hands on when you say such things?!”
“F-Father?”
Seeing him angry for the first time, his son flinched violently and landed hard on his rear.
“Do you know who the person you so casually touched actually is?!”
“H-how am I supposed to know that?!”
Yes—he had never been told, so of course he might not know. That was why he was being given a chance.
“The person you laid hands on is the Saintess of our Order!”
In that instant his son’s face transformed with shock. Even a spoiled boy like him possessed genuine faith in the Goddess, which was why he reacted that way.
“Th-the Saintess?”
“Yes! How many times have I told you to be careful with your conduct?!”
He had spoken to his son about the oracle. Delighted by the news that the Saintess had arrived, he had shared it over a meal. And just yesterday he had excitedly shown him the book-classification method the Saintess herself had devised, declaring that the Goddess’s choice had been correct.
So his son knew as well.
“Th-th-that… that lady…?”
“The one with beautiful pink hair and ruby-red eyes—that is the Saintess.”
“I-I didn’t know…”
His son began to tremble violently in terror. At least he understood he had committed an act worthy of divine punishment—that was something.
“Fortunately, the Saintess said she herself was partly at fault and has shown you mercy. But this father of yours will find it difficult to protect you.”
“F-Father?”
If he excommunicated his son, that kind-hearted Saintess would blame herself and worry. Therefore he could not impose too severe a punishment.
As he fretted over what penalty to levy, a brilliant idea suddenly struck him.
“The Holy Knight Order has long had their eye on you, have they not?”
His son possessed a large frame and a solidly built body; from childhood he had been praised as excellent material for a Holy Knight, and many had wanted him. But the Cardinal, reluctant to see his son endure hardship, had always refused.
Even while saying it was for the boy to decide, he had hoped his son would succeed him.
That was no longer possible.
More than regret, the first thought that came was that he should have sent the boy to someone else for proper training long ago.
“As of today, you will enter the Knight Order and receive training as a Holy Knight!”
So that someday, when the Saintess returned, he would be able to stand at her side and protect her…
That was the punishment he handed down—and the opportunity, and the mercy.