Her Little Secrets Hidden in the Room
Perhaps Baron Zeke hadn't thought I'd personally intervene.
Snatching the dagger from Lucia and threatening him was one thing, but wielding violence directly inside the temple was quite different.
He must have known he'd have to face imperial judgment and the church's punishment as well.
Just freezing with a dumb expression was enough.
"Kuk...! Kuek...!"
One step. Closing the distance. Only after being struck hard in the abdomen did the baron seem to understand the situation.
He immediately corrected his stance and swung the dagger down towards my shoulder. It was closer to a reflexive response from training rather than conscious action.
After all, the movements of a soldier rather than an administrator were ingrained in him...
What kind of guy is this?
While vaguely guessing his origin, I twisted the wrist holding the dagger.
"Kk. This is...!"
Surprisingly, the baron handled it skillfully. He dropped the dagger from his restrained hand, used his shoulder to block my view, and grabbed the dagger with his other hand.
He aimed at my waist. Was he trying to target a non-vital point first?
Or perhaps he just wanted to prevent the sword hanging at my waist from being drawn.
"Don't worry. Would I really draw my sword over something like this?"
I reached out to him while feeling a bit of interest.
The baron gritted his teeth and lunged, but he was caught in my hand as if sucked into empty air.
"Grabbing scrap metal is part of the job, you know."
"Wha... t...!"
He struggled belatedly.
But soon realizing movement was futile, he showed panic.
Suppressing the baron wasn't bad, but since Boris was absent, leaving this man at the temple would make it hard to deal with him. At least Lucia might think that.
It would be better to send him far away.
"If you're an inspector, you're an Empire person, right? I'll leave you roughly in the capital and expect you to survive on your own."
"What... huh...!"
I didn't plan to answer one by one.
Taking advantage of his shock, I carved a spell.
His body was enveloped in blue light, starting to crack like glass a little at a time.
"Magic...?"
"Quite the observant one. Have you seen it before?"
"……… Kk!"
"Then come back and tell your boss directly. I don't know who you are. Sending such an incompetent human alone means either they didn't mean it or they're playing it safe, but one of the two."
"Wait! Who the hell are you...?"
I cut off his words and lightly pushed with my finger.
That was it.
The baron's voice no longer continued.
His body was already gone from this place. What was visible was just his reflection in the mirror.
Magic dealing with space is delicate.
The glass shattered and scattered randomly, breaking the form.
The scene of light reflecting off the sun scattering in all directions was like melting quickly in the wind as if ice crystals were flying.
"Uh... uwaaaak! A person died!"
"Theo! Snap out of it, anyone can see it's not dead. That's magic, magic! You just sent him somewhere else!"
Theo shouted loudly, and one of the novice priests covered his mouth.
People who can handle magic are quite rare. It's not like there's anything to be wary of, but I understand why the boy and girl with round eyes staring at me like baby birds find me interesting.
Seeing the children with big eyes looking at me like baby birds, a mischievous thought crossed my mind.
"Maybe they don't know. He might already be dead."
"Liar... You said you sent him to the capital, right?"
"Who knows if you sent him 100m up in the open sky with a clear view or into a sewer overflowing with sewage."
With that answer, I shook my hand and turned my gaze.
Lucia hadn't said anything yet. I asked her as if greeting her.
"Isn't that right, Priestess Lucia?"
The answer didn't come.
She seemed to act first.
My vision darkened, and a warm feeling enveloped me tightly, making it hard to breathe.
A strange yet nostalgic sensation made my shoulders tense for a moment, but I decided to trust my body.
Lucia said with a bright smile.
"You came really quickly."
"It was a bit busy. In many ways."
"But it was too late."
"…… haha… ha…."
"But you came back safely. Come in."
In the small words by the ear, there was a mix of joy and nostalgia.
I hadn't thought she would welcome me this much, so I froze in the embrace I hadn't expected.
"Mom mom mom mom mom! I brought a lot of bread! I didn't leave any this time?! I did well..."
"……………."
"……………."
It seemed she had finished her errand.
The footsteps approaching totter-totter had a mischievousness beyond innocent expression.
... Her name was Tina, right.
The little girl blinked her eyes and tilted her head at Lucia who was hugging me tightly.
A pure expression.
But in between, there was mischief surpassing purity.
"If it's adultery, you'll tell Dad later~"
That was the first line.
***
The expression "getting a bump on the head" I had thought was just a metaphor until now.
But actually seeing it... this is really a bump.
Tina shed a few tears and rubbed her head.
"Coo... it hurts..."
"Being scolded for saying bad words."
"I didn't say bad words..."
"Haa... Tina. Mom definitely said if you learn bad words, you'll get scolded. Where did you hear such words?"
"Mom keeps hitting my head so Tina's head is getting bad.... I don't remember that."
"This!"
"Uwaaaaa! Kyahaha! You're hitting me again!"
Tina ran bubbly behind Theo and the novice priests, then suddenly hid behind me.
"You... can't come out like this."
"Mom mom! I brought bread! And um... Ah! Isn't Ria unnie coming soon? We have to prepare, prepare!"
Lucia tried to say something but checked her watch and shook her head.
The quick-witted novice priests, sensing the moment, took Tina and hurriedly left.
"Interesting friend."
"Huu! I didn't think the child born between Boris and me wouldn't listen like this..."
Lucia let out a short sigh and told me.
"That's right... Oh, thank you. Gray. The Baron Zeke... is thanks to you. I don't know what would have happened if you weren't there."
"It's no big deal."
"By the way, where did you learn such strange magic?"
"Things happened. If I couldn't learn that much, I would have died an unnatural death last night."
While exchanging a few words, a bang! sound came from the opposite side.
Tina's laughing voice faintly heard.
"Tina must have gotten into trouble while I was away... Sorry. Is it okay to talk in detail in the evening?"
"Ah, please enjoy your work. I heard you were doing a tour at the orphanage."
"That's right. Ria will come soon. Ah! Who is Ria..."
Lucia trailed off and smiled cautiously.
"... You know who?"
"I think so. Shall I greet them? Since you said they'll come soon..."
It was a light remark, but to Lucia, the conversation seemed to have a different focus.
She suddenly started looking serious, pondering.
"Well... um... that... I think it would be good to meet properly in a quiet place later."
"What? Is something wrong?"
"That... Ria is..."
It might be hard to express with words.
There were several possibilities.
Astasia had told me there was someone waiting for me at this temple, but it wasn't necessarily Elysia.
It's common to not welcome someone who reminds of the past while living a new life away from a somewhat awkward past.
Even if that person was the one who helped.
"Maybe if Elysia doesn't welcome me, I'll go quietly later. It's possible enough."
"Eh? ... Eh!? Going? No! What are you doing? Then I can't handle it?"
"What? Handle?"
".... um.... ah... there are things. Anyway, no. Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely no. I can't say it right now, but anyway."
It was more than just missing me leaving; it was suspicious how she was panicking.
But I lightly brushed it off thinking it's no big deal.
"Then is there anything else I can help with?"
"No. If I help and meet Ria, it's a bigger problem. Let's have a separate talk until evening."
'Bigger problem'... Is it just my imagination that it sounds very ominous.
Before I could think about it, a key fell into my hand.
"First... um, yeah. With this key, if you enter the inner garden, there's a house. Rest there for a while."
It felt like being deceived.
It seemed Elysia really didn't want to meet me....
But since I couldn't rashly act as a guest, I had no choice but to nod obediently.
Following the path she pointed to, I found a small house.
Upon inserting the key, it didn't turn.
"... Priestess Lucia... what if I give the wrong key, how do I get in."
I smiled bitterly and looked around. I couldn't guard the entrance all night.
To me, as if gesturing, one window was wide open as if not caring about thieves.
I approached that room without thinking.
A strange room.
The outside wind mixed with a strange smell inside the room, containing a pleasant air.
"...... What is this...?"
The room looked extremely ordinary but not. The first thing that caught my eye was the landscape scattered on the desk.
On one side of the room, many small and large paper scraps were stuck together densely, and since the sun wasn't fully coming in, I squinted to figure out what it was.
It was something close to gluing together various newspapers, books, and magazines.
"…………… Eh?"
What made me feel strange was that the photos pasted covering one wall were very familiar.
"This... all of them are photos of me...?"