The Saintess Approaches
Unlike Julia, the Saintess of Astrea, who had been granted her own dedicated space, the arrival of Lana, the second Saintess, immediately sent ripples through the Academy. The reason was simple and clear: her presence was overwhelmingly powerful. One might assume that any saintess would naturally command such attention, yet the reality was slightly different. While her title as a saintess certainly drew eyes toward her, it was not her status that completely captivated them. It was Lana Flor herself.
Her beauty was like that of a goddess descended upon the mortal realm. Her gentle aura felt as though the Goddess of Mercy herself resided within her. She spoke and acted with kindness and warmth toward everyone. All of these qualities combined to make people notice her, to gaze upon her. How could one's heart not stir when a noble saintess, so high above, approached and conversed as though she were an ordinary person? The effect was even stronger because of the precedent set by the first saintess, Julia. After Julia—who had permitted no one's approach and remained impossible to draw near—came Lana, who was nothing but gentle and kind. The contrast was stark.
Thus, the moment Saintess Lana Flor appeared at the Academy, she burned her existence deeply into the minds of its people. With the Academy in such an uproar, rumors about her naturally reached even those who had little interest in saintesses. Sebastian Ebenros was one such person.
"A saintess, huh."
Sebastian held little interest in the existence of saintesses. The same had been true when Julia, the Saintess of Astrea, first arrived at the Academy. She was beautiful, though. More beautiful than any woman he had ever seen. Yet that was the extent of his thoughts regarding Julia. While he admired exceptional individuals, Julia Librel had been far too sharp, far too rigid. She felt less like a person and more like a drawn blade. He respected the special nature of saintesses, but only to that degree. From the beginning, Sebastian had never placed much importance on status. If anything, he believed that those who held high rank or position should conduct themselves accordingly. In that sense, even saintesses were not particularly special to him.
Still… I suppose I should meet her.
Whether from the perspective of his standing within the Academy or his position in the Empire, Sebastian was one of the figures who could represent both sides without issue. He was the designated heir of House Ebenros, one of the Empire's great noble families, and within the Academy he could practically be considered the representative of the student body. Of course, the student council president was Ernen. However, that position had been granted purely out of respect for his status as a prince. Royalty was certainly noble, but that was all. Princes who were not the emperor received respect but did not rule. The current succession struggle had effectively been decided in the crown prince's favor. As time passed, Ernen would only lose more power.
In contrast, Sebastian had long been chosen as the next head of House Ebenros. Even the emperor could not treat a great noble house like Ebenros lightly—let alone a prince who had essentially been pushed out of the succession. There was no comparison. Therefore, while Ernen nominally held the position of student council president, the true representative of the students was Sebastian. Of course, he was not without rivals. Bellard Berwen, the heir of House Berwen, possessed a comparable background. Even so, the current situation made their positions different. Sebastian had built his own faction, while Bellard had not. The future was uncertain, but for now Sebastian's influence was far stronger, making him the rightful representative of his generation of students.
For that reason, Sebastian made up his mind. He would meet the saintess. Whether as the heir of House Ebenros or as the students' representative, he could not ignore a guest of her stature without showing his face. With that decision, Sebastian began walking.
Finding the saintess was not difficult. Her presence drew crowds wherever she went, so there was always a throng gathered around her. Sebastian let out a small sigh at the sheer number of people, but he steeled himself and began pushing through the crowd. After some time, he finally laid eyes on her—
"……"
He lost his words.
Her appearance seemed to monopolize all the freshness of the world, and her smile was soft and warm, as though the Goddess of Mercy had manifested in the flesh. She was beautiful. Incredibly beautiful. He had already known from rumors and reports that her looks were extraordinary, but the saintess Lana's actual appearance and presence far exceeded his imagination.
Thump. Thump.
Sebastian's heart, which usually beat with calm steadiness, lost its rhythm and began pounding wildly of its own accord.
"……"
Unable even to compose his wide eyes and parted lips, Sebastian stared fixedly at the saintess's face.
After Julia left and Lana arrived at the Academy, I felt two conflicting emotions at once. Regret and joy. It was a shame that I would not see Julia for a while, even if it was not a permanent farewell, yet I was glad that I could see Lana's face again after so long.
While wrestling with these contradictory feelings, I made up my mind. I should go. I decided to go see Lana. Or, more precisely, to go look at her.
Finding Lana was not difficult. Crowds always gathered around her, forming a constant throng. In other words, she stood out no matter where she went. Moreover, her location was practically shared in real time among the students, so if one wanted to find her, it could be done in an instant. As expected, I soon spotted the crowd. And beyond it, I could also see a familiar face.
Wavy green hair that reached her waist. Light green eyes holding the fresh color of new sprouts bathed in spring sunlight. It was Lana.
"……"
The moment I saw her, I lost my words. It was not from being moved by her beauty. Lana was certainly very beautiful, but I had already seen that appearance through the game. What stirred me was Lana's expression—specifically, the smile on her face.
In my memories, or rather in the game, Lana had always smiled as well. However, that smile had never carried even a hint of gentleness. It had only felt eerie. But what about Lana's smile now? It was soft and warm, like sunlight on a spring day. It was a beautiful, gentle smile that could lift anyone's mood just by looking at it.
…I'm glad.
I murmured inwardly. Just by seeing that smile, I could tell. Lana was different from the Lana I had seen in the game. Just like Julia, Lana had changed as well. Seeing it with my own eyes filled me with relief and joy. At the same time, I wanted to speak to her. I wanted to approach her right away. However, that was obviously impossible. Right now, I was in a position where I could not reveal my identity. I was not Gunter but Kyle Berwen, and to Lana I was simply a man she had never met before. There was no way someone like me could suddenly approach her.
It doesn't seem like she rejects everyone outright like Julia did, though……
Both the rumors and what I could see with my own eyes confirmed it. Unlike Julia, Lana was kind to others and did not reject approaches. She treated everyone with gentle warmth and did her best to respond even to those who suddenly spoke to her. That was the fundamental reason the crowd had formed. Many had gathered hoping to exchange even a few words with her. After all, when else would they get the chance to converse with such a noble saintess? It was not a baseless hope. In reality, Lana treated even those whose intentions seemed obvious with kindness. However, that did not mean access to her was completely unrestricted.
"You there, stop." "Honestly, just go away, will you?"
The priestess beside Lana, likely assigned to assist her, was blocking excessive approaches. She prevented anyone from coming closer than a certain distance and outright rejected those whose motives were obvious at a glance. She also intervened to cut conversations short whenever someone seemed likely to monopolize Lana's time. Those being turned away, and those who had come hoping to form some kind of connection with Lana, frowned at her, but I felt relieved watching the scene. With someone like that by Lana's side, she would not have to suffer from getting entangled with strange people.
Still, there was one problem— My approach will probably be blocked too.
This was only a guess, but I figured the priestess likely knew who I was. It was not arrogance, merely a reasonable assumption. When placing a saintess into the Academy environment, they would not fail to check for problematic individuals, and Kyle would certainly be on that list. My reputation had improved slightly after defeating Jerim recently, but it had not actually become good. I had merely gone from being a talentless scoundrel to a scoundrel who might have some skill. My reputation itself was still at rock bottom. There was no way someone whose duty was to protect and assist the saintess would permit my approach. Even without her, the people watching from the surroundings would not stay silent.
In other words, there was no way for me to approach Lana right now. The only possible method would be to wait until there were no people around her, but… well, that did not seem very likely either. The crowd showed no signs of thinning. For a while, people would probably follow Lana wherever she went.
It'll be difficult for now.
Having reached that conclusion, I turned to leave. I thought I should take more time and find another way. It was a shame, but there was simply no opportunity to get involved with Lana for the time being. At least, that was what I had thought.
"Hello, you are Kyle Berwen, correct?"
…Until Lana came looking for me herself.