The Village That Waited
The morning sky over the frontier pioneer village was still tinged with the pale blue of water, as if night had not yet fully released its hold. Watching the stars one by one close their eyes, Sister Celine gazed at the changing of day and night in this foreign land with the same wonder she reserved for the stars themselves. Even here, so far from the Holy City, the starlit sky was no different. The thought brought a soft smile to her lips.
By the time they reached the village, morning had fully stretched its limbs. Over Harnok’s shoulder, the rough mountain path gave way to an open view, and at its end stood a modest settlement. The village seemed only just stirring from sleep, yet it was already bustling. More and more chimneys sent up thin trails of smoke. The lively energy, even from a distance, made Sister Celine’s eyes sparkle like starlight. Carried away by the sight, she found herself swinging her legs back and forth in excitement—until the realization struck her like a splash of cold water. She froze mid-swing.
She was still riding on Harnok’s back.
And it was barely dawn.
Her face began to burn as fiercely as the midday sun. She could not bring herself to lift her head. In fact, she was almost grateful to be hidden behind his broad frame.
“…P-please put me down…!”
“Hm? Is something the matter, Sister?”
Harnok turned his head at her sudden whisper, and Celine let out a small yelp, burying her face even deeper against his back.
“Please, put me down…!”
Her voice had begun to tremble on the edge of tears.
“I-I’m fine now…! A grown woman—a nun—cannot possibly let the villagers see that she arrived on the back of a man she only met yesterday. Especially one who was bare-chested at the time!”
Meanwhile, the village drew steadily closer. The sounds of daily life—rustling, clattering, the mingled scents of cooking and work—drifted toward them. Celine’s face was nearly pressed flat against Harnok’s back. If the surface before her eyes had been cold stone instead of warm muscle, she might have truly buried herself in it. Her cheeks felt ready to burst.
“But Sister, you fell asleep several times even today! The fatigue from being captured by bandits must still linger!”
Whose fault do you think that is—!
Celine swallowed the retort so hard it nearly choked her. If it escaped her lips, her face would surely explode on the spot. Yet somehow, in that moment of crisis, an answer came to her.
“W-we cannot greet the villagers like this…!”
“Hm?”
“W-what kind of nun arrives on her very first day being carried on someone’s back? At the very least, one should stand on her own two feet to offer proper greetings.”
Harnok considered this and found it reasonable. With a great nod, the barbarian immediately set her down. Celine had to bite back a scream. Even after her feet touched the ground, she stood blinking rapidly for several seconds, unable to comprehend how being lifted and lowered could produce such a sensation of descent.
“Sister, are you truly all right?”
At Harnok’s doubtful question, brows slightly furrowed, Celine answered in a rush.
“I-I’m fine!”
……She had also managed to bite her tongue.
Morning light washed over the village like a gentle golden tide. Between the soft waves of radiance, small children toddled about. The settlement hummed with the sounds of waking life—preparing meals, gathering tools for work. Yet the loudest sound by far was the children spotting Harnok and racing toward him.
“It’s the big-muscle uncle—!”
Sister Celine’s expression tightened slightly at the sight. The children wore no shoes. Their bare feet pattered across the dirt, a stark reminder of how harsh life was in this pioneer village. Without the slightest hesitation, they flung themselves at Harnok. Four children—two per arm—hung from his biceps, giggling wildly as he lifted them with ease.
“We listened to Mom and Dad yesterday!”
“Me too! I was the first one to fall asleep last night!”
Harnok grinned, teeth flashing.
“Well done! If you hadn’t, I would have eaten you!”
……The words were terrifying, yet the children only laughed harder. Even Celine, who had been watching with a stiff face, felt her lips curve into a smile at their bright laughter.
“Huh?”
One little girl dangling from his arm blinked at Celine. Their eyes met, and Celine offered an awkward wave.
“Ah, hello……?”
“Mmm……”
The girl only frowned, studying Celine from head to toe. After a long look, she leaned toward Harnok and whispered.
“Big-muscle uncle, big-muscle uncle. Who’s the pretty big sister?”
“Hm? Ah, she’s the nun! She’ll be taking care of our village from today onward!”
“A nun?!”
“She’s a nun?!”
“This pretty big sister is a nun?!”
The children’s interest shifted with astonishing speed. Still hanging from Harnok’s arms—how they maintained their balance, Celine could not begin to guess—they chattered like sparrows. Celine felt a wave of flustered confusion.
“Uh, um? No, I, well……!”
Just as the whirlwind of voices threatened to make her dizzy, salvation arrived.
“You children! Are you bothering the knight again?!”
“Eek! Auntie’s scolding again!”
“Run!”
The woman who had come to Celine’s rescue was middle-aged. She sighed as the children scattered, then turned to Harnok with an apologetic smile.
“I’m terribly sorry, Sir Knight… The children still lack sense……”
“Nonsense! It is proof of their health. Pay it no mind!”
“I’ll be sure to give them a proper scolding later… Hm?”
The woman’s head tilted when her eyes met Celine’s. Celine’s own eyes widened like full moons before she hurriedly bowed her head.
“G-good morning!”
“And this lady is……?”
“She is the new nun! She will be stationed in our village starting today. The reason I left the village yesterday was to escort her here!”
At Harnok’s explanation, the woman clapped her hands together.
“Oh my! A nun! Does that mean we’re finally receiving proper support from the Holy City?!”
Celine desperately wanted to say that was not the case, but it was already too late. Beaming, the middle-aged woman took Celine’s arm.
“You’ve come at just the right time, Sister! You have no idea how long everyone has been waiting for support from the capital. Come, come! Let’s go spread the good news!”
“Ah, no… W-wait a moment……!”
Celine shot Harnok a pleading look, but he only nodded with his usual enthusiasm.
“Truly wonderful, Sister!”
Celine wondered if there had ever been a moment she had prayed to the Lord more fervently.
Two hours later, Sister Celine found herself hanging laundry on a clothesline in the home of the woman who had introduced herself as Maybon. She blinked her large golden eyes blankly, wondering how on earth she had ended up here.
The pioneer village women’s capacity for inclusion was beyond imagination. What had begun as a meeting about village support had seamlessly transformed into a work party. Celine could not even pinpoint when the shift had occurred. Before she knew it, she was one of them. Hanging laundry was the third task of the gathering. Before that, she had chopped ingredients for a massive pot of soup and twisted ropes to reinforce the village palisade. Having never done such work before, she had let out a delighted shriek upon completing her first rope.
Recalling the satisfying ache of honest labor and the way the women had patted her backside in praise, Celine was pulled from her thoughts by Maybon’s weary sigh.
“So in the end, there won’t be any support at all, I suppose? Ah, Sister, give that to me. This fabric wrinkles too easily if hung outside—we’ll need to dry it separately.”
“Yes, well…… Ah, of course…!”
As Celine quickly handed over the laundry, she felt a strange sensation. Maybon’s tone was as casual as if she were saying, “The weather’s poor today, so outdoor work is out of the question.” Elsewhere, several women were trimming vegetables while murmuring among themselves. Though Celine could not catch every word, fragments like “As expected……” drifted over.
“Um… You all don’t seem very surprised.”
Maybon tilted her head at Celine’s question, then nodded with an “Ah.”
“We did have higher expectations than usual. It’s been eight whole years since anyone from the Holy City was dispatched here—aside from the knight, that is. Which means it’s been eight years since we last received any support. After waiting that long, you get used to it.”
“……”
Despite the words, Maybon’s final sigh carried the weight of deep disappointment and quiet resignation. The villagers’ feelings were closer to acceptance than mere familiarity. Celine found herself at a loss for what to say.
“Still, we’re fortunate the knight has been here. Without him, this village probably wouldn’t even exist anymore.”
Maybon’s voice had softened. Celine turned to follow her gaze. There, in the middle of a group of children, stood Harnok. Surrounded by the little ones, he looked like a giant from a fairy tale about to devour dwarves. The contrast was striking, yet every child’s face was alight with laughter. Watching them, Celine felt a smile tug at her own lips.
“Sir Harnok…… seems to be an indispensable presence in this village.”
“Needless to say. You nearly got taken by bandits yourself, didn’t you? Before the knight arrived, such incidents were common. Even if the village men stood watch all night, the days without raids were easier to count. And that’s not even mentioning the monster attacks.”
“……Monsters?”
Celine flinched. Monsters were far more terrifying than bandits. A single one could wipe out an entire band of thieves.
“Well, this is the frontier. Unlike the Holy City and its surrounding regions, which have driven monsters out and built proper defenses, there’s nothing here. In the early days, this wasn’t even a proper village—just a gathering of people. Daily monster raids, bandit plunder…… There were plenty of suicides. One of them was a mother who lost her five-year-old son. Even now, attacks still happen from time to time, though less frequently than before. The fact that the village looks like this at all is thanks to the knight.”
As Maybon spoke, her eyes, fixed on Harnok, shone with affection and admiration—the same kind a mother might show her child. Celine hesitated before asking softly.
“Has Sir Harnok always been like this……?”
Maybon burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Well, our knight wasn’t exactly the most likable fellow at first!”
“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant……!”
Celine waved her arms frantically, denying any ill intent, but the blush spreading across her face betrayed her. The sight only made her cheeks burn hotter.
“I understand. When a barbarian suddenly showed up claiming to be a paladin assigned here, no one believed him. I imagine you felt the same. It’s hard to picture now, but back then some people even cursed at him and told him to leave. He was no different from monsters or bandits in their eyes.”
“Then how……?”
“He helped us. Every single day.”
Maybon shook out a piece of laundry as she spoke. The fresh scent of soap tickled Celine’s nose.
“When monsters attacked, he threw boulders and drove them back—creatures we never would have dared to fight. When bandits kidnapped people, he was the first to charge into their hideout. When sudden floods trapped children in the valley, he waded through the raging waters to save them. All of it was the knight.”
Maybon’s smiling gaze lingered on Harnok—or rather, on the Harnok of the past.
“Thank you! Truly, thank you! For saving the children…… Thank you so much!!”
“I am the one currently serving as temporary leader of this place. We are truly grateful you saved the children. However…… why do you continue to do this? We have done nothing for you. In fact, we have only ever insulted you and told you to leave……. If you seek some reward, I am sorry to say we have nothing to give. This is a place where we barely have enough to eat each day. Look—potatoes are all we can offer. We know you are different from ordinary Bahon tribesmen. But if you expect payment, you need not do this anymore. Even if one of us falls into danger and you turn away, we will not resent you. After this, we may not even be able to give you these potatoes……. At most, we could offer a place to sleep……”
“Nonsense! How could a paladin’s service ever be given in exchange for reward!”
“……Pardon?”
“I am a paladin! There can be no reward for a paladin’s service!”
Maybon was certain she would never forget the sight of Harnok pounding his chest with a fist, laughing heartily. And indeed, she never had.
“That was when we realized—even in this corrupted Holy Kingdom, there are still people like the knight. Which meant support might not be entirely impossible after all. We hadn’t been completely abandoned. And today, that possibility feels even greater. After all, someone like you has come, Sister.”
At Maybon’s gentle smile, Celine found herself smiling in return.