The Saintess Arrives
The real Saintess was going to come.
It didn't even take a full day for that prediction of mine to come true.
Word spread that a single carriage had rolled into our small, quiet city. Theo and Rosa, who'd been looking out over the countryside from the open hilltop of the temple with Tina, were the first to spot it.
"Our church's banner was hanging from it? Really?"
Boris was still away at church headquarters. Lucia bit her lip, looking distinctly more tense than usual. The source of her anxiety was the crowd that had been gathering around the temple since early morning. If she hadn't shut the doors, things might well have gotten out of hand.
Unfortunately, the onlookers didn't all seem to be locals. Even Tina, who tore around every corner of the city on a regular basis, said there were a lot of faces she'd never seen before. They'd probably heard the rumors in a neighboring village and made the trip in a single day.
And as it turned out, the people who'd crossed that distance in just one day to show up at the temple weren't merely ordinary rubberneckers.
"Let's see... the banner of the Astasia Church... two holy knights escorting the carriage. And it looks like there are two people riding inside..."
The carriage headed straight for the temple without so much as a glance to either side. The murmuring of the onlookers who'd been lingering near the grounds until late afternoon carried all the way to us.
"It's an Astasia Church carriage!"
"They must've been dispatched for the new Saintess. Ahh, our Priestess Lia is going to leave the city... Greeting her every morning at the temple was the joy of my life..."
"You idiot, she's not a priestess anymore — she's a Saintess!"
The carriage slowed as it reached the temple garden. Driving the crowd far enough back that only the carriage could enter fell to Rosa and Theo. At last it rolled safely into the empty temple grounds, and the holy knights promptly opened the door.
The first to step down was a slender girl.
Black hair brushed her shoulders, and her eyes hinted at a calm composure. She was petite, but it was more that she looked thin for her age than that she was particularly short. The dull, solid-colored outing hood was probably meant to conceal her identity — though the clumsy way she'd thrown it on rather advertised the opposite. Given that she couldn't even hide the aristocratic air in her gait and manner as she stepped down from the carriage, it was a fairly pointless effort.
"Hnnngh...! Haaah...! That was so exhausting..."
Whether she realized any of this or not, the girl stretched with all her might and caught her breath. Then she took a light step forward.
That was the first of her eccentricities.
She turned around as naturally as anything, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, and looked back in the direction they'd come from. Had she not seen us? Should we call out to her? Just as a flustered Lucia opened and closed her mouth, the girl started walking back the way she'd come.
So she hasn't changed a bit, even after all these years.
Is being directionally challenged an incurable disease?
Fortunately, someone else was there to point out her behavior.
"Saintess, that's the wrong way. That direction leads back out of the temple toward the city."
A man's voice, somehow familiar, came from inside the carriage. Tina waved her hand and shouted, "It's Dad!" He chuckled and waved back.
"... Huuh? Wait... is it... this way?"
"Saintess. That way leads to the mountain behind us. It's this way. Look ahead. You need to go forward."
"Aha, whew! I'm sorry, Parish Priest Boris. I have no sense of direction... But to have memorized the local geography in advance — as expected of Parish Priest Boris. That's impressive."
"Memorized, Saintess? This is our temple. How could I not know the front yard of the temple I live in?"
"Ah, right...!"
She clapped her hands, then, apparently embarrassed by her own behavior, corrected herself a beat later.
"Ahem! I was joking. Just a joke."
I simply watched in silence. Amazingly, that had been completely sincere.
Meanwhile, that girl stood demurely before us and offered a greeting. For a brief moment, our eyes met.
"Hello, brothers and sisters. I'm sorry for dropping in so suddenly without any notice."
"Not at all, Saintess. I'm Priestess Lucia. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Thank you so much for the warm welcome! Mmm... actually, we did write a letter in the middle of the night saying we'd be coming this way... but after I put the stamp on it, I got to thinking — wouldn't we arrive faster than the letter?"
She pulled a neatly folded letter from her robe and smiled proudly.
"So I just brought it myself! Here you go."
No... bringing the letter that announces your departure yourself kind of defeats the entire purpose...
Lucia, who'd obviously had the exact same thought, accepted the letter looking thoroughly bewildered. Then Tina bounced up and down beside her, staking her claim.
"Mom! I want the letter! I wanna have it!"
"Oh my, thank you, little sister. Would you accept my letter?"
"Wow, a letter! This is the first letter Tina's ever gotten!"
"Hehe... Have you ever written one yourself?"
"I wrote one for Mom's birthday this year, giving her three massage coupons. Mom sure wants a lot of things."
"My goodness. How admirable. I'm sure your mother was very happy."
"You really don't get it, big sis. That was just something I made up to get through her birthday on the cheap... Yowch! That hurt..."
Smack! Lucia flicked her on the forehead. Tina pouted but kept fidgeting with the letter.
"There's a weird picture stuck on here..."
"... Ah, do you recognize that stamp? It's one of my treasures! A magnificent limited-edition stamp, one of only a handful in the world. I steeled myself and used it this time. It's already been used so the post office won't take it again, but if you ever want to attach it when giving something privately to your parents..."
"Huh? A stamp? You mean this?"
RRRRRRRIP!!!
"... Ah, KYAAAAAH! The Irish Silver Edition stamp of the latest three-cylinder engine, a limited run of two hundred issued to commemorate the Imperial Engine Expo...!"
The Saintess let out a piercing scream, slumped into a squat, and plunged into sudden depression. Tina patted her shoulder, waving the tattered scraps of the stamp.
"It's okay, big sis. That's just how the world works."
"...... Sniff! ... Y-you're right, little sister. There's no reason to feel attached! No matter how much you treasure something, the meaning of an object is in being used! That's why I steeled myself and put this stamp on in the first place!"
The Saintess clenched her fists, stood up, and greeted us once more. A girl whose emotions flipped as freely as turning over a hand. She was just as chaotic now as she'd ever been.
"Let me introduce myself again. I am the Saintess of the Astasia Church. I'm truly sorry for barging in like this."
"I told the Saintess about it yesterday. I wanted to get word to you before we arrived, but it just didn't work out."
Boris said this as he set down his luggage. Parish Priest Boris, whom I hadn't seen in ten years, was wearing a silver-rimmed monocle. He had the look of a scholar. As he busily unloaded the bags, he noticed me.
"... And while I was away, a welcome guest arrived."
"It's been a while, Parish Priest."
"So it has. It's good to see you, Gray. I've heard news of you from various places. From the Saintess as well, of course."
Wondering just what unsourced news he'd been given, I glanced at the Saintess, only to find her avoiding my gaze and whistling poorly. Not that I'd expected any better.
"Hm? But I don't see Lia."
"Ah... Elysia is... she just came to. She fainted yesterday."
"...? Fainted?"
"... There were circumstances."
"Hmm... well, I understand. This whole affair may have come as a shock."
"Hahaha..."
"First, since it seems we all have familiar faces here... why don't we go inside and talk."
The temple's reception room. It wasn't a place that usually saw much use, but in an unprecedented turn of events, its roster had been updated in a single day, following yesterday. The stars of this occasion were Parish Priest Boris, who administered the local parish, and the Saintess of the Astasia Church.
The Saintess, in particular, seemed fascinated by the temple, and had been looking around with her mouth forming a little square of wonder for some time now. Given her position, she never had reason to leave the church headquarters building, so even the scenery outside was apparently a delight and a novelty.
As long as she doesn't get lost, we'll be fine.
But contrary to my hopes, there was a minor incident where she'd gotten lost all on her own and asked Rosa for directions from the bathroom... I decided to pretend I hadn't noticed.
It was only after sitting down in one of the faded chairs in the reception room that the Saintess properly cleared her throat.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sister Lia."
"No... Saintess. That's Lucia. She's my wife. Priestess Lia is the friend sitting next to her."
"Oh? I'm sorry. If she's next to... KYAAH! Oh my...! I'm so sorry! You were so quiet I didn't even realize you were sitting there!"
At Boris's correction, the Saintess jumped back in shock. Anyone else might have thought she was saying that on purpose, but the Saintess wasn't the type to load her words with hidden meanings. She was simply, purely saying that Elysia had been so quiet she hadn't even noticed she existed.
Well... it was understandable. There was a presence sitting there like a ghost, not reacting even though Tina had been poking her out of half-curiosity for a while now. Nobody had bothered to mention it, but Elysia's condition seemed strangely off.
"...... Gray is... leaving... abandoning me... to church headquarters... another ten years... no... this time, it might be twenty..."
Her soul seemed to have left her body. Her bleached-out face looked like someone had taken bleach to it. She'd been like this ever since she'd woken up from her faint. Boris, unable to watch any longer, asked Lucia.
"... What's wrong with her?"
"Hm? Ah... Lia's been like this since this morning."
"Hmm... the Archangel descending is certainly a serious matter, but she doesn't need to be this shocked and depressed about it. At least the church finished assessing the situation before things got out of hand. Isn't that right, Saintess?"
The Saintess, apparently under the impression that Elysia's reaction was her fault, kept saying I'm sorry, I didn't know you were there, I'm really sorry to the unresponsive Elysia, then straightened her back a beat late.
"Ahem! Yes, that's right. Thanks to Parish Priest Boris getting word to us immediately, we were able to take action quickly."
"... Action?"
"We requested the cooperation of the people from the Ragnea Church who were at the scene, and Ragnea agreed not to publicize it first. We're buying as much time as we can, suppressing the press and rumors as much as possible. ... We couldn't stop the rumors from spreading to nearby villages, though. Still, we should be able to buy some time. The problem is the attitude of that overseer who harassed Priestess Lia, and the Palinya family..."
"Those two fled the moment they faced the Archangel. Quite disgracefully, I might add. I don't think they'll voluntarily report the birth of a new Saintess to the Empire."
"Parish Priest Boris is right. From their perspective, there's nothing to gain and everything to lose."
Lucia, sensing something off, cut in.
"Wait a moment, Saintess. Just buying time leaves the problem intact. Does the church intend to cover up what happened at the temple?"
"No. Archangel Elaim descending to the mortal world for someone belonging to our church is the highest honor imaginable. Hide it? On the contrary, it should be recorded in as much detail as possible — enough to live and breathe through the church's history."
"... Then... our Lia..."
"But it's also true that Lady Astasia is watching over Sister Lia closely enough that the Archangel personally appeared in the mortal world."
Following the Saintess's words, Boris spoke as well.
"It's not as if there are no people who receive revelations without rising to the position of Saint or Saintess. There's one at the Ragnea Temple right now, in fact. But the Archangel personally descending to the mortal world is a different matter. It hasn't happened in the last thousand years. Even if she didn't specifically designate her as a Saintess, and even if she herself has no such intention, from the church's perspective, promoting her as a Saintess is the most natural thing in the world."
"You... you know perfectly well how Lia came here..."
"I know. Which is why it's not as if there's no way."
"... A way?"
"Lia wasn't granted a Lettering from birth. She manifested it later. As you know, when she first started living with us, she was an ordinary person without a Lettering."
Boris habitually reached to light his pipe, then caught Lucia's glare, smiled bitterly, and gave up.
"... Cases of receiving a Lettering later in life aren't unheard of, but Lia is a bit special. ... From what I heard from the Saintess, the Goddess granted this Lettering as a special favor, at someone's request."
"Then..."
"Isn't that right, Gray?"
Boris's gaze turned to me. The Saintess spoke up as if she'd been waiting for this.
"Hehehe! Teacher? As the Saintess, I must ask you as well. It looks like we'll need to rely on you again this time!"
I'd more or less expected things to turn out this way. I nodded instead of answering.
"T-Teacher...? What do you mean...?"
Meanwhile, Elysia — the actual subject of this conversation — had been muttering to herself this whole time about ten years this and Gray abandoning her that, until the Saintess's single word made her go deathly pale. She shot up from her seat.
"Lia, what's wrong?"
"W-wait a minute! No, wait. Gray!"
".........?"
"T-Teacher? The Saintess and you... know each other...?"
Elysia looked back and forth between me and the Saintess, her face a mix of confusion, anxiety, and ashen dread. The Saintess and I exchanged a bewildered look and nodded.
"Uh... well... yes?"
"Why? Why? Whyyy...?"
"Why? Well... it just kind of happened...?"
"Just? What do you mean, just? That's weird! And Teacher? Teacher...? What kind of teacher...?"
"W-what about it...?"
"Y-you shouldn't be close, should you...?"
For the first time, Elysia wore something resembling an actual expression, her voice sounding like she was about to cry as she made her unreasonable demand.
"It's not like it's not allowed... is it?"
"It's not allowed!"
".........?"
"I... I... augh... whyyy...? Why...? The two of you... ah, ahh... mm. I get it. Gray is giving me an implicit signal that he wants to abandon me at church headquarters and start fresh with the Saintess... I'm being discarded just like this... mutter mutter..."
Elysia... is that really what you're worried about right now?