Royal Capital Barga (6)
Going in boldly through the front gate was out of the question….
"Mary, go let them know I've arrived, and arrange for us to slip in quietly through the back door."
Sister Mary looked at me and nodded with a stern expression. Once she set off, we headed for the temple's rear entrance as well.
Come to think of it, for a temple in the capital, the place felt oddly quiet. It wasn't as though people were streaming in and out, and despite the spacious grounds, few souls were outside. Sister Mary was exchanging words with a holy knight at the entrance — gesturing with her hands and feet as they talked. I couldn't hear a sound, but it was entertaining to watch.
The holy knight's whole-body reactions made the situation perfectly readable even from a distance.
At first he stretched out a hand to stop her and shook his head. When Sister Mary stamped her foot and pressed him, he shrank back a little… and when she raised her voice in anger, he jumped in alarm and sent someone inside.
We had already started moving when Sister Mary came scurrying over.
"Did the talk go well?"
"Yes. He tried to stop me at first, so I persuaded him."
I praised her for the hard work.
"I'll guide you through the back door."
Having spent several years here, she would know the layout well. The rear entrance seemed to be where goods were delivered — a quiet yet spacious area, close to the shopping district.
Quiet, but not entirely free of watching eyes.
"I wanted to slip in without anyone knowing, but that might be difficult."
There were eyes on us — a party standing at the temple's back door without so much as a cargo wagon.
"I'm sorry."
Sister Mary apologized with a pained expression, bowing her head and speaking formally.
I'd told her we were colleagues and she could speak casually, yet somehow things had settled into this awkward middle ground…. Well, Sister Mary was something like my alchemy assistant and disciple, so it wasn't entirely strange….
It was fortunate she wasn't wearing her nun's habit. If she had come in her habit — a person who was clearly a nun bowing her head and apologizing to me — people would have looked at me with suspicion.
Sister Mary had sealed away her habit with that very concern in mind.
After a brief wait, the back door opened and someone appeared. And I let out a deep sigh.
"Ugh."
At the sound of my sigh, Sister Mary began fretting all over again.
And for good reason….
The ones who opened the temple's back door and came out were a whole crowd of priests, nuns, and holy knights.
Not a modest two or three, either. One priest in distinctive vestments, three nuns, and a full seven holy knights. And that wasn't all — behind them trailed more than ten people who looked like deacons.
"I-I'm so sorry. This is my failure."
"You're really going all out to spread the word, aren't you."
Ugh! I should have sent Sister Mary ahead first to properly prepare things. This was not something to do on impulse.
"I-I'll go say something."
"It's fine. Looks like a bishop has come out too, so I'll handle it."
I strode forward confidently, with Sister Mary and my older sister flanking me. Young Master Maximilian followed quietly behind.
"Welcome, Saintess."
The man in the uniquely different priestly robes bowed his head to me. How should I make them kneel….
Part of me wanted to slap him across the face. But that would have been far too tyrannical.
So the method I chose was to ignore him.
I disregarded the greeting from the man I presumed to be a bishop and prioritized going inside. The expression of the nun attending him went ashen, and the holy knights looked flustered.
I ignored them all and headed for the open building.
Whether Sister Mary felt sorry for them or had simply had enough of them, she ignored them right along with me.
I quickened my pace further. There had been a few eyes on us earlier. Seeing a whole group of temple personnel come out like this, rumors could spread. Better to vanish as quickly as possible so my face wouldn't be seen!
Once indoors, I moved even faster deeper inside. Somewhere without people!
"This way…."
Sister Mary, who knew the temple's layout well, led me on. The place we arrived at was something like a conference room.
"Phew!"
Getting this far should be enough….
I plopped down into a chair.
"I'm truly, truly sorry."
"It's fine. The damage is already done — what's the point of blaming anyone?"
Besides, I didn't know whether it was Sister Mary's fault or the problem of that man who seemed to be a bishop. We could sort out right and wrong later.
A short while later, people came pouring in.
And every last one of them knelt before me and bowed their heads. Even without me saying a word, they seemed to have realized they'd done something wrong.
My teeth were grinding. Please, please let no rumors have started….
"Ha. Do you know why I'm like this?"
They couldn't raise their heads. They hadn't even thought to verify whether I was truly the Saintess. For proof, I first took out my pendant and opened it. The luminous token….
"Everyone, raise your heads."
When they looked up, I held out the token.
"You've seen this, yes?"
Everyone seemed to recognize it, as they all quietly nodded.
"Mary, what message did you deliver at the front gate?"
"I-I informed them that the Saintess had arrived, and that since her identity needed to be concealed, I asked them to arrange quiet entry through the back door."
Hmm… based on that alone, Sister Mary didn't seem to be at fault.
I crossed my legs, folded my arms, and glared at them.
"She says she told you the identity needed to be concealed?"
"I-I'm sorry."
"You're the one in charge, aren't you?"
I placed a hand on the shoulder of the one priest whose vestments were different. He began trembling violently.
"Because of your foolish actions, rumors will start circulating. Rumors that someone special is at the temple. That sort of thing."
It might not even be about me as the Saintess.
"Word of the oracle may already have leaked from other denominations, and now there'll also be rumors that someone special has appeared at the temple?"
In Wizheim, information control had been so thorough that a priest had hit on me without even knowing my identity. Compared to that….
"Saintess, please calm your anger."
"Mary?"
Sister Mary knelt before me and bowed her head.
"This man is not the overall head of this temple. So please…."
No — if she does that, I feel like I'm becoming the villain here….
"Then we'll discuss disciplinary matters once the actual person in charge arrives."
"I-I'm truly sorry."
Seeing the man trembling in terror and sniffling didn't leave me feeling particularly good. I waved them out, telling them to leave already.
"Everyone, please leave. And bring the Archbishop."
Sister Mary began clearing the scene. Once all the nuns and holy knights had left, I let the tension out of my shoulders.
"Did you really need to go that far?"
My older sister said it with a listless expression. She didn't even seem particularly interested — why ask?
"With things like this, you have to seize the initiative in advance."
That way they'd listen to me properly and not cause accidents.
I didn't know how long I'd be staying in the capital — what if the temple people caused trouble while I wasn't around?
"Besides, this time they truly were the ones who made the mistake."
Sister Mary offered no defense of her fellow church members. That was how serious this incident was.
I'd clearly said I wanted to enter quietly….
About ten minutes later, an elderly man came rushing in.
"I-I'm terribly sorry. I am Leopold, the one responsible for this temple."
"Archbishop…."
Sister Mary looked at him with sorrowful eyes, as if she knew him.
"Saintess, I am truly sorry. I heard that my subordinates caused a problem."
"As long as you properly punish those involved — especially the person responsible — that will be enough."
"Upon my name…."
Looking at the situation, he didn't seem to know what had actually happened. Just the sense that he'd only been told an accident had occurred. Sister Mary seemed to pick up on that as well and explained the circumstances to Archbishop Leopold.
He clenched his teeth.
"I'm sorry. It seems they wanted to make a good impression."
"It's not as if I don't understand that feeling."
They simply hadn't understood how the world worked. Once things were roughly sorted out, I introduced everyone.
This is my older sister, the young master is a companion, and so on….
And I also learned that the elderly Leopold, overall head of the temple, was an Archbishop.
Cardinals held a higher rank, and given this place's importance, shouldn't there be a cardinal here…? Well, how would I know about that sort of thing?
I had no desire to interfere, so I didn't ask.
"I don't think I'll be coming to the temple anymore."
"S-Saintess…."
"This is the capital, after all. There are many watching eyes. Now that I've been spotted once, coming again would be risky."
In particular, I absolutely wanted to avoid my identity becoming known to the nobility.
"If the temple needs anything, I'll send Mary here. That should be fine, right?"
Archbishop Leopold looked at Sister Mary with pitying eyes. Probably hoping she'd put in a word for him. Sister Mary… shook her head.
"I understand."
With this bothersome incident having erupted, I hadn't even been able to bring up research-related matters, and I felt bad making any requests. I'd said I wouldn't come again, so asking for this and that felt a bit off….
I didn't need to be considerate, but still….
"More than that, the temple seemed rather busy…."
When I pointed out that the news of my arrival had gone to some other bishop rather than the Archbishop, Archbishop Leopold broke out in a cold sweat.
"W-we were organizing the library."
The library…. This was because of me, wasn't it?
"The decimal classification system, I take it?"
"Yes. I heard that the Saintess devised it."
"Well, yes…."
Apparently an order had come down from the headquarters about a month ago. A new book classification system had been created, so reorganize the library's books with all due haste….
"Th-there's no need to rush it…."
"We've also been working with the expectation that it will take over a year, so please don't worry."
Apparently Archbishop Leopold, as the temple's overall head, had been leading by example, and had left receiving guests to another bishop.
Which was why Sister Mary's message had gone to a different bishop rather than the Archbishop….
"It's all my fault."
"So, Archbishop, what do you think of the decimal classification system?"
"I find it extremely useful. And the famous words the Saintess left behind have also been passed along."
What?! The things I said back then?
I hung my head in embarrassment. What had I said back then? Ugh….
"Is it not work for making good use of the wisdom of those who came before?"
Archbishop Leopold smiled brightly.
Aaaahhh!!
Why would they pass that on!
I'd said it back then to persuade other people, but there was no need to convey even that!
We exchanged various bits of conversation. First, that I would be staying in the capital for some time; that I preferred not to reveal my identity to the world if at all possible; that after this incident it would be difficult to visit the temple frequently; and finally, that I was researching a field on my own and needed support.
"Support, you say?"
"Yes. It seems headquarters didn't tell you about the alchemy?"
Apparently they'd kept it hidden because I still had no intention of making it public.
"You can hear the explanation from Mary. I may request money or materials that are hard to obtain."
"Please don't worry. We shall assist with all our heart."
I felt a tiny, tiny bit guilty, but receiving a little help was fine, right?
As a final final matter, I informed them that I was currently staying at Young Master Maximilian's family residence.
The Archbishop looked at the young master and reacted as if surprised he was a noble.
"Not all nobles are the same, after all. And any errands will likely all go through Mary."
"I understand."
I'd said everything that needed saying, so it was time to head back…. I felt the energy drain right out of me.