Encounter (3)
The Priestess of the Night Sky.
A woman gifted with the rare ability to read destinies from the constellations.
I was sure I'd heard she lived at the farthest edge of Demacia. So what was she doing here?
"These are vegetables I grew myself. They're hard to come by, so please try one and consider buying."
"Oh! They do look rare!"
…Why is she selling vegetables?
I knew she grew them. I had no idea she sold them. Maybe she simply hadn't had the means to spare any at the point the original story began.
People cast fleeting glances at her stall as they passed. Her setup itself wasn't unusual—most of the "stalls" around here were little more than makeshift screens. What drew the eye was the unmistakable presence she couldn't hide even under a pressed-down robe, that strange, otherworldly air that clung to her.
"I'll go buy some—"
"Evan!"
Lapis cut Felix off, her face lighting up as she tugged at my sleeve.
"I… I want to eat those vegetables…!"
"…Understood."
…Right! I'm not approaching her because I want to. Lapis asked me to. There is absolutely no ulterior motive here.
"Felix. Aegis. Please wait a moment."
"As long as you like."
"I've been wondering since before we even got here—why do you keep using formal speech?"
I ignored Felix's useless question, swallowed once, and stepped toward her.
At the stall, the Priestess looked up. The corner of her mouth, unhidden by the hood, curved into a smile.
"Welcome, honored one."
Her gaze was not on me. It was fixed on Lapis standing behind me.
"The master of a vast destiny has arrived."
"…Me?"
"Yes."
The Priestess gently prepared one of the vegetables before her and held it out. The motion was as natural as flowing water. Lapis accepted it without thinking.
"I cannot read everything, but I can read how vast a fate is. In my eyes… I see a great vortex swirling around you."
"…You can really see that?"
"Of course."
The Priestess smiled.
"You are destined to overturn the balance of the continent."
"…"
Lapis fell silent, as if something had clicked into place. To a casual ear it sounded like the usual cultish nonsense, but something about it seemed to hold her.
The Priestess's head turned.
"The one behind you as well. A destiny that fled and reclaimed freedom and dreams… You are of royal blood, a princess."
"What—how did you know that?!"
Aegis recoiled in shock. A runaway princess—very few people should have known. If it had been a question, she could have played dumb. But the Priestess had not asked. She had stated it as fact.
"One of the few talents I possess. Growing vegetables like these works on the same principle."
She brushed her fingers—white, as if they had never known hardship—along the produce.
"There are no children more sensitive to the whims of the heavens than these… Seeing destinies, steering them clear of misfortune, letting them grow without trouble… That is what I can do."
"…"
Lapis stared at the Priestess for a long moment. Had she been shaken? Fortunately, it didn't seem so.
"…Then," Lapis said, carefully tugging my sleeve and looking up at the Priestess, "what about Evan?"
"Evan?"
"Can you tell how vast a destiny Evan was born with?"
The Priestess looked puzzled for a beat, then whipped her head left and right.
"…I'm sorry, but I can't see very well with this hood. Is there someone named Evan here?"
"He's right in front of you?"
"???"
"???"
An awkward silence settled over us. The Priestess carefully lifted the edge of her hood. Two eyes were revealed—violet irises glittering as if entire constellations had been poured into them—and they met mine.
"…Ah."
Only then did she register my existence, her expression turning apologetic.
"I'm so sorry. I usually keep my eyes covered, so…"
"We found you just fine," Aegis said, looking baffled.
The Priestess had no answer for that. She pressed her lips together, then offered a half-excuse.
"Well… I usually distinguish people by their destinies, and this gentleman simply… doesn't show…"
"???"
Aegis turned with a look that said what is she talking about. Lapis wore the same expression. Distinguishing people by destiny? She wasn't blind.
"Ah! So she senses people through spiritual perception! Remarka—"
"Be quiet."
"Mmph."
Aegis sealed Felix's mouth with a quick bit of alchemy, looking thoroughly irritated.
"…It's all right," I said, forcing the words out.
Right. She had her hood pulled low. Her eyes hadn't been visible. Of course she might not have noticed me.
The lore did say she identified people by destiny rather than by looking at them directly.
I just never thought it was literal. Nothing like this had ever happened in the game. This is what I get for not buying the DLC. I should have played through everything before I got dumped in here!
A small sigh escaped me. I resented past Evan—no, past Lee Han-ol.
Absolutely not because I was hurt that my favorite character had ignored me…
"Ahem."
The Priestess cleared her throat awkwardly.
"I'm sorry. My training is still lacking."
"…It's fine. Not everything in this world flows as one wishes."
"Thank you for understanding."
She pressed her hands together. Looking at her now, she did resemble Osera somewhat. The Priestess had called herself the older sister, so Osera must have learned from her.
"Honored one. May I ask your name?"
"…Evan Alcarte."
"Hmm."
Hearing the name, the Priestess glanced at the sky, then tilted her head.
"Is that your true name?"
"…"
Did she figure it out?
Evan was not truly Evan. He was Lee Han-ol, an ordinary twenty-four-year-old from Earth—a transmigrator. If she had seen through that…
"It isn't an alias, is it? If it were, I wouldn't be able to read it…"
"It is not."
"Hmm. Then there's no reason it shouldn't be readable…"
She kept tilting her head. Thankfully, she hadn't realized I was a transmigrator.
"I'm sorry. Perhaps it's because I've been in poor condition lately…"
"It's fine."
I-I'm safe!
"More importantly—may I purchase some of your vegetables?"
"Ah, yes! Of course! Which ones would you like?"
"From here to here."
I took out my wallet.
"All of them, please."
"…!!"
With my allowance alone, I could have bought an entire mansion without breaking a sweat.
"Lapis. That's enough to last until tomorrow, so please eat sparingly."
"Yes!!"
Lapis's cheeks flushed with delight. The Priestess watched the two of us for a moment, then muttered hollowly,
"…Looks like I'm unemployed for the day."
Isn't that a good thing?
The newly unemployed Priestess agreed, at least for a little while, to sit and talk with us.
A nearby café. Though "café" was generous—it was closer to a restaurant. I shoved the murky sludge that may or may not have been coffee over to Felix.
In the meantime, the Priestess caught sight of the golem horse I had brought and her face went blank with shock.
"A g-golem…?"
She fumbled at the horse, running her hands over it. Was a golem really that fascinating? It wasn't even that hard to make.
"…Nothing. I can't read anything from it."
She lifted her hood slightly and took the golem in with both eyes. The golem horse stood perfectly still, almost as if it recognized her. As if it knew she was my favorite character.
She really does look better in person.
I'd only seen her eyes, but I was certain. She was on a completely different level from the version I'd seen in the game. A favorite character's first criterion is always looks. That alone was enough to satisfy me.
Being treated like a ghost earlier had stung a little, though!
"…So golems can't be read. How curious. If it isn't too rude—may I ask just one thing?"
"?"
"Are you, by any chance… a golem?"
"Ah… no."
Do I look like a golem?
I nearly snapped back on instinct. I swallowed it for fear of tanking her affection.
Damn it. The Priestess doesn't even have those universal high-affinity dialogue options.
One drop and it could be over for good. She was kind by nature, so she probably wouldn't hate me—but it might make future meetings difficult. I needed to keep the best impression I could.
"I am human. If you doubt me, you may touch me and see."
She was known to avoid physical contact, so I figured she wouldn't. That was the calculation. Instead, the Priestess seized my hand without hesitation.
H-huh?!
"…Yes. You're human."
She squeezed my hand a few times, then stepped back. Not a trace of embarrassment. No sign of the aversion she was supposed to have, either.
Can she really see nothing from me at all?
That would make this a total wash. The original plan had been to build rapport while having her read my fortune and destiny. A two-for-one deal. But if she couldn't see my destiny at all?
That was not in the script.
Tch. What now?
While I fretted, Lapis muttered under her breath.
"Golem Evan… Golevan… Golvan…?"
"…"
Aegis heard that disaster of a naming sense and made a face that was not quite disgust, but close.
"You're really bad at naming things, huh?"
"…I only need the name Evan gave me."
"No, that's not what I—"
"She simply has no sense."
"Be quiet!"
Lapis barked. Felix scratched his head with a vacant look, as if thinking, Is that so?
"Ahem, ahem…"
The Priestess cleared her throat and steered the conversation elsewhere.
"Please forget the discourtesy I showed you today. I seem to have made more mistakes than usual."
"Not at all."
"Since I've made so many already… if there is something you would ask of me, I will grant it."
She lifted her cup with elegant poise. For the record, it was coffee I had paid for.
"You came looking for me because you had business, did you not?"
"…What? How did you know?"
"Neither of your destinies belongs in a place this remote. You must have wanted something of me specifically, to come so far."
She smiled gently.
"Speak freely. Ordinarily I would refuse… but thanks to you I am unemployed, so I have the time."
Originally, I had planned to build rapport by asking about fortunes and the like. That plan was scrap. Asking her to read something only for it to fail again would be the most awkward outcome possible.
"It isn't anything urgent."
First, build the relationship. Honestly, it was harder than expected. But we had come this far.
You can do this, manly Evan!
"First, I came to deliver this."
I drew Osera's letter from my coat and held it out. The Priestess's face went rigid.
The Priestess stared at the letter, her expression frozen. She was grateful for the hood pulled low over her face. Without it, her agitation would have been plain.
Osera…?
The only group the Priestess had ever belonged to—the Spacetime Magic Tower—and the younger sister she had cherished like her own blood. Osera. Why was this man carrying a letter she had left behind?
I never imagined he approached me for this…
Evan Alcarte. A truly mysterious man. Someone she could only perceive when she looked with her actual eyes.
His destiny cannot be read… and no other form of observation works either.
As if he had come from another world. Impossible, of course. The Alcarte name was famous enough even she knew it. There was no way he could have deceived the eyes of that monstrous duke.
And his manner is far too natural…
His face was expressionless; his eyes held not a single emotion. A perfect poker face. Every gesture carried dignity, and his speech was steeped in fundamental respect. His skill was clearly exceptional as well—nothing less could have produced a golem of that quality.
A man of both ability and standing, traveling all this way just to deliver a single letter…?
Unlikely. He must have some purpose.
Osera's lover, perhaps? No. One look told her he was still a child who had not even undergone his coming-of-age ceremony. Osera was not the type to pursue a man with that much of an age gap. And even if she had, her chatty nature would have spilled every detail.
Then—
Could he have discovered my secret…?
The Priestess's secret, known to no one. A secret known only to the constellations hanging in the sky above. If he had approached her knowing that…
Her rigid expression refused to ease. The bloodletting roughly two weeks ago had quieted things for now, but there was no telling when it would wake again. If he had come hunting that…
First, I need to read the letter…
The moment she carefully moved to unfold it—
Clank. Clank. Clank!
The sound of armor joints striking together. The Priestess lifted her head.
Three knights in silver plate over dark skin had surrounded them, hostility and wariness plain on their faces.
"Are you the infamous 'Witch'?"
"…If it is the Priestess you seek, then yes."
"You'll be coming with us."
"…On what grounds?"
"The recent string of abductions. We've received a report that you are involved."
Clank! Clank!
They leveled their swords at her. An open show of force.
"If you will not come willingly, we will drag you."
The Priestess glanced sidelong at Evan. How would he react?
He still wore that same calm expression, as if nothing could frighten him. Setting down his teacup, he spoke.
"…I will go with you."
"Pardon?"
"This woman is my companion. If my companion is being taken into custody, I must accompany her."
He was… volunteering to come along? When they might both be executed together? That unhurried composure was hard to believe as pure goodwill. What was he counting on?
…Shit. Maybe I should have just stayed quiet.
Evan, for his part, was already regretting it. A perfect chance to raise her affection—and he had overcommitted. You absolute lunatic! What if this gets you killed?!
…N-no. As long as I don't die, it's fine, right?
The old, spineless Lee Han-ol might have been another story. But this was Year-One Survivalist, hardcore, manly Evan. He had more than enough to make it out alive. He had No. 5, the living golems, and Aegis.
If I get close to her, I might be able to change Lapis's destiny…
There was no other choice. Evan pressed a hand to his cramping face and stood.
…What is he after?
That should have earned me some affection points, right?
Two hearts at complete cross-purposes. Together, they left the café.