291. Shadow of Radiant Light (2)
291. Shadow of Radiant Light (2)
- 1 -
After the Archbishop Council ended, Esther took Leticia for a walk in the Holy Kingdom's garden.
The garden, filled with green grass, colorful flowers, and white statues, was one of the most peaceful places in the Holy Kingdom.
At least, this space was.
"Saintess..."
Leticia carefully opened her mouth. Her voice was full of anxiety.
"Actually, I still can't believe it. Can I really serve as your apprentice, Saintess? Could it be a mistake? Me, a saintess..."
Esther looked at the girl.
Only fifteen, her innocent eyes were full of purity, unaware of the world's ways. Just like her own self once.
"Of course."
Esther's voice was low and reliable as always, but there was a bitter note hidden within.
"Hysen is a beautiful country. There, you will be able to see and learn many things."
Seeing the sparkle of anticipation like stars in the girl's eyes, Esther smiled gently.
She understood her worry. Normally, teaching a saintess was something done by numerous educational sisters.
Having a personal apprenticeship under an active saintess was such a rare opportunity.
'But the reality that this was a surveillance task targeting me... she probably has no clue.'
Esther's heart chilled as she recalled the hidden truth.
'No one would have told her.'
"I... want to be like you, Saintess. Because you are considered the most 'noble' even within the Holy Kingdom."
"You flatter me."
Unaware of Esther's inner thoughts, Leticia's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
The Saintess hesitated for a moment.
Should she tell this innocent girl the truth? About the dark underbelly of the Holy Kingdom, the fate saintesses truly faced?
As she did, her mind drifted back through the waves of memory.
[Saintess. Welcome to Hysen.]
Even in the last 1st round, Duke Astermark had been courteous at first.
As one of the most influential nobles in Hysen with connections to the Holy Kingdom, he treated Esther with the utmost respect, as if she were the Holy Emperor.
But as time passed, his attitude changed.
First respect, then desire, and finally obsession.
[Saintess, for the alliance between the Holy Kingdom and Hysen, our marriage is necessary.]
The duke's gleaming eyes pierced into Esther's face.
His voice carried both desperation and desire.
Seeing those aged eyes rake over her body, Esther trembled with rage and humiliation.
[Your Grace, I am a servant of the Holy Kingdom. Marriage is...]
As she tried to refuse with a shaky voice, the duke cut her off.
[The Archbishop Council of the Holy Kingdom has also agreed. This is for the future of both nations.]
A confident smile of victory spread across the duke's face.
In that moment, Esther realized she was being sold off.
In the end, Esther sought help from the Holy Kingdom, but the archbishops ignored her concerns.
Rather, they tried to sacrifice her for the alliance with Hysen.
Finally, when the duke tried to forcibly take her to his castle,
Esther could no longer control herself.
[Let go.]
The duke's eyes showed bewilderment. Yet he did not let go of Esther's arm.
[Now.]
At that moment, a dazzling light erupted from Esther's body.
Pure white holy power enveloped her entire body and unfurled like wings.
[Ah...!]
The duke's face turned pale.
He instinctively tried to step back, but it was too late.
The radiant holy power engulfed the duke, and he fell to his knees on the spot.
[Aaaargh—!!!]
The duke's scream echoed throughout the castle.
His vitality, especially his vitality as a man, slowly withered away.
Esther hadn't intended it, but the holy power responded to her resentment.
After that day, everything changed.
Word spread that the duke had become permanently sterile, and relations between Hysen and the Holy Kingdom deteriorated sharply.
The furious archbishops of the Holy Kingdom summoned Esther and conducted a harsh interrogation.
[You used the divine power for personal matters! This is an unforgivable sin.]
The Archbishop Council initially demoted her status to 'saintess candidate,' and in the face of protests from Duke Astermark and Hysen, ultimately decided to strip her of it entirely.
She was excommunicated. And then...
[Human experimentation on a former saintess. Is this not a fitting honor prepared for the excommunicated? Former Saintess Esther.]
She was handed over to the inquisitors.
If not for the help of several senior sisters and some clergy, she wouldn't have been able to leave the Holy Kingdom on foot back then.
Anyway, Esther left the Holy Kingdom.
She became a wanderer.
"Saintess?"
Leticia's voice brought Esther back to reality.
"I'm sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment."
Esther stroked the girl's head.
"The secret to becoming a true saintess is simple. Always follow the truth, help the weak, and protect justice."
"Just like you, Saintess!"
Leticia nodded, her eyes sparkling.
"...Yes."
After Esther's hesitant reply, Leticia's expression clouded.
"...The archbishops said I am the future of the Holy Kingdom. But I am scared."
"It's natural. To fear a new path, and a great path. What is important is the courage to move forward despite that fear."
Holding the girl's hand, and looking into her clear eyes...
Esther saw her own childhood.
That purity, that faith... and the possibility that such purity might be stained by the cruelty of reality.
'No.'
Soon, she inwardly shook her head.
'This child will have a different future.'
The one who came to mind was the image of her true master, who occupied her heart.
Serving that person, rather than being a saintess of the Holy See partly dominated by an unknown demon, would be true happiness.
'That's right.'
Esther wholeheartedly believed so.
- 2 -
Time in the Holy Kingdom passed quickly.
Because there was much to do for a saintess who had been away for so long, Esther spent her days so busy she didn't even have time to blink, literally.
Esther formally accepted Leticia as her apprentice through an official ceremony, and it was decided they would depart together for Hysen the next day.
While Esther was deep in meditation in the prayer room, a knock sounded.
"Saintess. I apologize for the interruption."
The voice belonged to the Central Archbishop who had selected Leticia.
Esther turned around.
"What brings you here, Your Eminence?"
"I have come to deliver the newly prepared holy scriptures for Leticia. Please use them for her education."
The archbishop handed her a thick holy book with golden decorations.
As Esther accepted it, she peered into his soul. And reconfirmed the shocking truth she had discovered.
'It was definitely a trace of the demon tribe.'
Deep within, a trace of demonic energy that seemed to have been planted long ago was writhing.
It hid its presence like a coiled snake, but the current Esther could sense it clearly.
'At the council, there were too many people to distinguish...'
When focusing on one person, she began to roughly guess what kind of energy it was.
'Lust. But if the Demon Duke of Lust had come here, he would inevitably leave traces on the continent... In that case... the Archduke of Obsession.'
Astaroth.
One of the master's great enemies, who lay sleeping in the eastern sea and attacked human nations bordering the waters.
Esther's eyes gleamed coldly as she identified another of her own enemies.
"Saintess?"
Sensing her strange gaze, the archbishop called her with a puzzled expression.
But Esther's expression had already returned to calm.
"Thank you, Your Eminence. This will be good teaching for Leticia."
After the archbishop left, Esther fell into deep thought.
'Astaroth was influencing the Holy Kingdom...'
This was a shocking discovery.
If the Archduke of Obsession was influencing the high-ranking clergy of the Holy Kingdom, it meant he could affect all of the Holy Kingdom's decisions.
Perhaps Astaroth's intentions lurked behind the system of 'selling off' saintesses?
'There's no way to know. But... I will find out soon.'
She shook her head and moved her feet.
She had a master who showed a path clearer and brighter than anyone else's.
Esther left the prayer room and headed to Leticia's quarters.
"Leticia, we will leave early tomorrow. Have you finished all your preparations?"
The girl was packing for the journey.
"Yes, Saintess! I've finished everything!"
"Good. But there is one more thing to be careful about."
Esther lowered her voice and placed a hand on Leticia's shoulder.
"During the journey, let's only talk between the two of us. You must not speak with other people from the Holy Kingdom."
"Why, Saintess?"
Leticia asked with wide eyes.
Esther put on a gentle expression and simply told the 'truth'.
"To give you the right teachings. Teachings mixed with various people's values can only be conducted under rigorous discussion. But right now, I am the one teaching you, am I not?"
The girl looked briefly confused, but soon nodded.
"Yes, Saintess. I promise."
Esther stroked the girl's soft hair.
The girl's pure trust tugged at her heart, but there was no hesitation.
Because this was the more right thing to do.
- 3 -
As dawn broke, Esther and Leticia had finished preparing to leave the Holy Kingdom.
The archbishops and clergy came out to see them off.
"May the Lord's blessing be with you, Saintess."
The ceremonial archbishop bowed his head in greeting.
Esther wore an expression of sincere gratitude.
Her soul was incomparably pure compared to the other archbishops.
"I pray for the welfare of the Holy Kingdom. Leticia will grow well under my protection."
As the carriage passed through the Holy Kingdom's main gate, Esther looked back.
The brilliant spires of the Holy Kingdom shone in the morning sunlight.
Thinking of the darkness hidden behind that brilliant exterior, her heart grew heavy.
As the carriage left the city center, Esther once again returned to memories of the past.
[Haah...]
After fleeing the Holy Kingdom, Esther lived as a wanderer for a while.
She still possessed holy power, but that power gradually weakened.
The Holy Kingdom's 'excommunication' carried such a function.
Of course, she was still a woman with powerful strength, even as a cleric.
Strength enough that someone might covet her power.
One night, while staying at an inn in a small village,
a woman came to her room.
[Are you Saintess Esther?]
A small woman in a black dress spoke to her condescendingly, as if it were the most natural thing.
Her skin was pale yet full of life, and her violet eyes seemed to pierce through Esther.
It was strange. She felt no discomfort whatsoever.
At that time, she had an arrogance she didn't even realize; though she had chastened herself and turned her heart, a person who had been served for a long time unconsciously developed a certain angle to the chin.
But before this woman, all of that felt utterly meaningless.
As if... it were fate.
[That is correct. Who are you?]
At that time, Esther's voice trembled with a premonition. Filled with excitement.
[My name is Libertas.]
The woman answered with a gentle face.
That voice was as clear as a heavenly bell, and as low and soft as a velvet blanket.
[I have come to offer you a new path.]
That night, Esther listened to Libertas's story.
The coexistence of demons and humans, her vision for a better world, and the truth about the Holy Kingdom's corruption.
[The Holy Kingdom has already rotted from within. What they did to you was only the beginning.]
Esther was skeptical at first, but was shocked by the evidence of 'saintess trafficking' that Libertas showed.
[Choose.]
She whispered in a low voice.
[Will you continue to wander alone, losing your power... or will you come with me and build a meaningful life, even as a remnant of a saintess.]
Esther agonized all through that night.
And as dawn approached, she made up her mind.
[I will follow you, Lady Libertas. Please use me meaningfully.]
"Saintess! I see a village ahead!"
Leticia's bright voice scattered Esther's memories and pulled her back to reality.
The Saintess of the Heavenly Church of Darkness lifted her eyes.
The carriage was now on the road out of the Holy Kingdom's territory, heading towards Hysen.
And beyond that...
'Master...'
Her master would be there.
That fact was gradually easing Esther's tension.
"I see. Leticia, let's stay in that village tonight and continue on tomorrow."
As the carriage headed toward the village, Esther looked at Leticia.
In the girl's pure eyes, the hope of the future seemed visible.
'This child will have a different fate. I will make it so.'
She once again firmly resolved.
- 4 -
"Saintess. What kind of person are we meeting today?"
At Leticia's question, Esther placed a hand on her head and stroked it.
"The one who governs this nation, and the one presiding over this union."
The young saintess candidate's eyes sparkled.
Seeing her excitement clearly, Esther stroked her head.
"Could it be... Her Majesty the Queen...? Queen Yurena?"
"Yes, that's right."
Esther had spoken of 'several,' but Leticia seemed to have understood differently.
But it didn't matter. She would soon know the truth.
- Come in.
Hearing the voice she had so longed to hear even during the brief separation, Esther opened the door herself and entered.
"I have returned, Your Highness. And..."
Inside was the face she had dreamed of.
"Lady Philia."
There, her master, Libertas, sat in a neat black dress.
Feeling her heart warm, Esther filled her face with deep affection.
While feeling the young gaze poking at her cheek from beside her.