The Suspiciously Suspicious Saint - 1
I quietly switched off the television and stretched out on the bed.
Ystua.
It was not because the name that had once given me a roof over my head in my first reincarnation still endured to this day. It was a family with a long, storied history—one that had amassed its fortune through popular leisure ventures like hot springs. I still remembered how my eyes had gone wide at the string of accomplishments that poured out from a simple internet search.
Strange.
It was not the distant affection one feels toward a remote descendant. It felt closer, more familiar than that. Had I fallen in love with the woman on the screen, a face I had seen for the first time today? That was not it either, yet something about her left me oddly unsettled—like trying to thread a needle and missing by a hair’s breadth every single time.
After a short nap I woke, ate breakfast, and stepped outside. Having the company dormitory right on the premises meant a short commute, which I appreciated. There was a computer, and meals were provided. As a janitor whose only job was cleaning, the work itself was light and comfortable.
A remote island cut off from the mainland. If I could only overcome the sense of exile that came with a place like this… I actually liked that feeling. It was more than comfortable. In my previous life I had worn myself thin keeping my spines forever raised like a hedgehog, and the exhaustion still lingered.
“Hello.”
“…Yeah.”
Walking a corridor that felt like army barracks, I ran into a man and offered a greeting. He returned it halfheartedly. Freshly posted, his face was lined with fatigue and quiet suffering—necessary work, yet miserable for the people who had to hold the post. Given that the place had earned the nickname “prison,” reactions like his were far from rare.
That should do it.
I headed for a corner of the base and found a fairly large, imposing black steel cylinder waiting there—an essential piece of equipment, since food waste could not be collected every week. A crushing-and-drying food waste disposer. A small lamp on the lid glowed red while the machine ran; when the light went out, the cycle had finished or the unit was idle. This time it was the former. I bent slightly and pressed the button on the lid. With a sharp click the lid yawned open. Crusher blades like fan vanes sat on the floor, belching hot steam along with the dirt-like residue piled around them. Hard to believe all of it had once been food scraps.
Thud, thud. I took up a nearby plastic scoop, shoveled the residue into a trash bin, and emptied the water tray on the left. Well-dried food waste could cool for a few days and serve as compost; the water in the tray came from steam and was not truly dirty. I could splash it across the ground or scatter it over the flower beds with the crumbled residue and be done.
Whoosh. The moment the cleaning finished, a sea breeze arrived as if on cue, tickling my nose—salty, faintly fishy, yet so clean I felt no urge to turn away. Finished, I climbed a nearby outpost. Without walls it stood open on every side, and the blue sea stretching to a distant horizon was plain to see. The base had several such outposts, but they sat unused in ordinary times. They had never been built for simple surveillance. When the armies of the specters were identified, these posts existed to defend against—and strike—the enemies flooding toward the base.
“…Mm.”
The sea wind drew a soft sound from me. Not only the cool air, but the blue-and-white horizon looked almost painfully peaceful. A plummeting population. People with special abilities like something out of a game or comic—the Awakened. An unreal reality where monsters simply appeared. Hard to believe any of it was real.
I slowly descended the outpost stairs and walked into the building to clean the interior. Thankfully the private offices and rooms were handled by their occupants. If I had been responsible for those as well, the workload would have been considerable.
“Mr. Seo Ji-hyuk.”
I was still rummaging through the cleaning supply closet for a large commercial vacuum and a mop when a heavy middle-aged voice called my name. The overall person in charge of the Galdo Coast Guard Guard Post—forty-five-year-old base chief Na Hyun-soo.
“Yes, Chief. Is something the matter?”
I straightened, mop still in hand, and Na Hyun-soo nodded.
“Nothing major. I called you because I’d like you to put a little more care into things than usual. I know your work is tidy, but put in some special effort today.”
Even as base chief, Na Hyun-soo was a friendly, unauthoritative man—exactly like the good-natured neighborhood uncle who might wander into a drama.
“Is some VIP visiting?”
VIP meant not only the president but key political and military figures: division commanders and above, National Assembly members, ministers—Awakened whose real power might even surpass theirs, and so on.
“Huh? How did you know? Did you already hear the news?”
Na Hyun-soo’s eyes went wide. My offhand guess had actually landed.
“No. But when someone says to be extra careful with the cleaning, it usually means someone we need to watch ourselves around is coming. So I took a shot.”
“Is that so? Pretty sharp. That’s right. A very precious guest is coming.”
“Is it classified?”
“Classified… not quite that far.”
Ordinarily, when a high-ranking visitor was expected the whole organization knew. A person in charge wanted to present not a disheveled reality but a carefully staged neatness.
“Can you tell me who?”
“Don’t be shocked. The Saint herself is coming all the way out here.”
“Really?”
For a moment my eyes went wide without my meaning them to. My heart pounded at the thought that the woman I had seen on television only a few days earlier was actually coming.
“Why would I lie about something like this?”
“Isn’t the Saint a distinguished person? Why would someone like that come to a remote island like this…?”
“This is the southernmost tip in its own way, isn’t it? To check whether there’s any impure energy, and for a morale visit as well.”
“A morale visit? A French person for Koreans? Did you get a shot of nationalism or something?”
“Nationalism, nothing. She’s simply such a kind person that she can’t bring herself to pass it by.”
Whether her meddlesome nature came from being a descendant of Joan of Arc or she was simply a mutant, I had no idea.
“Amazing. Knowing someone I saw on television recently is coming all the way here has my heart racing.”
“Same here. Anyway, she’s arriving in the afternoon, so please do a thorough job on the public areas. Rooms and offices the staff will handle themselves.”
“Afternoon?”
Then there was not much time. My already pounding heart raced faster still from the urgency—fast enough that I half-wondered whether it might leap out of my mouth.
“Yeah. Afternoon.”
“I’d better hurry. You should get back to work too, Chief.”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
When Na Hyun-soo turned and left, I immediately started the vacuum. I plugged the cord into a nearby outlet. Wheeeing—a loud roar filled my ears. First floor, second floor. The longer I worked, the more my ears seemed to go numb. Today especially, I paid attention to every corner. After the vacuum came a floor polisher—a machine with a disk at the end of a mop handle, what industry people called a roller—and I put a shine on the floors. Ordinarily I simply mopped, but on a day like this the machine was necessary.
“Oh. Look at that hallway shine. Looks brand new.”
People who had been going about their own work stared at the gleaming corridor in open admiration. Normally I just wiped it down.
“Good work. If you’re finished, take a rest. We won’t do any inspections or anything.”
“Thank you.”
I bowed my head in greeting and finished the cleanup—emptied the vacuum’s dust bin and, just to be safe, cleaned the supply closet as well.
I feel oddly self-conscious.
The idea that she might be my descendant was too faint; she simply felt like a stranger. And because she felt like a stranger, the tension remained. Even after I returned to my room, neither computer games nor videos streamed through the television held my attention.
Might as well sleep.
Skipping one lunch would not kill me. Thinking I would simply eat dinner a little earlier, I headed for the shower room. Washing before sleep always left me feeling clean.
A noise like a giant bird beating its wings rolled across the sky above the base—the sound of a helicopter landing. Na Hyun-soo swallowed dryly as he watched the machine settle slowly onto the pad. He had no ambition of earning a glowing evaluation or a promotion. He only hoped the visit would pass smoothly, without incident, much like any other slightly anxious but boring day.
Rattle. Once the rotor blades had completely stopped, the firmly shut door slid open.
“Wow… she’s really pretty.”
“Yeah.”
Two staff members behind Na Hyun-soo whispered. New stimulus and surprise had momentarily driven the gloom from their faces. Fine. If they could forget the depression even for a little while, that was enough. While he felt the pressure of the visit, Na Hyun-soo still judged the day a positive one.
But she is beautiful.
Golden eyes that sparkled as brightly as her carefully tended blonde hair. An office-lady look. The woman television had been calling the Saint was far more striking in person. Accompanied by a man behind her, she bowed her head with careful courtesy. The man wore a hard expression and sunglasses, a full suit completing an appearance that bordered on suspicious.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Elodie Ystua.”
Surprisingly, Korean flowed from her lips—even though her life should have had nothing whatever to do with Korea. The eyes of Na Hyun-soo and every staff member present went wide.
Na Hyun-soo asked, “You speak our language well…?”
“I’m honored by the compliment, but I’m still far from fluent.”
“Ah—yes. I’m Na Hyun-soo. I serve as base chief.”
When Na Hyun-soo lowered his head, the staff hurriedly followed suit.
“I’m sorry for the sudden visit. I knew it would be a burden, yet I truly wanted to come and see for myself.”
“Not at all.”
Why did his tongue suddenly feel so smooth? Her words were polite, soft, and warm all at once, and they left Na Hyun-soo quietly astonished.
“Standing like this forever is hardly ideal, so I would like to move inside. Where would you prefer to begin looking around? Or would you rather rest first?”
“If the Chief permits, I would like to see the surrounding grounds first.”
“Understood. I’ll show you the exterior.”
Na Hyun-soo led the way and the others followed. The base and its outer walls stood on high ground with clear sightlines in every direction. Stepping outside and looking down revealed the sea and the quiet traces of daily life—a view that could fairly be called beautiful and even romantic.
“It’s beautiful. It wouldn’t be strange if a small village stood here.”
Looking downward, Elodie murmured while blinking. Na Hyun-soo nodded in agreement.
“Yes. In the past, trash used to wash up on the beach… but these days it is very clean.”
“Oh my, was that so?”
“It was because of people. From nature’s point of view, some even said humanity itself was a disease.”
“People are a disease…… That doesn’t seem entirely wrong.”
Elodie smiled gently as she met Na Hyun-soo’s eyes. The cheeks of the man facing her flushed a faint red.
“Ahem! Would you like to look inside now?”
“Yes. Please. Fortunately there don’t appear to be any particular problems.”
No traces of contamination either. Elodie swallowed the rest of the thought and walked shoulder to shoulder with Na Hyun-soo. Past the staff dormitories lined in a row, through the offices, and finally to the observation room that formed the true heart of the base.
“No abnormalities, and everything is remarkably clean. I can see how hard everyone is working even under difficult conditions. The people of Korea must be proud.”
“Hmm……”
The single sentence Elodie offered while gazing at the large monitor made Na Hyun-soo’s chest ache—overwhelming emotion. The people following behind him felt it no less keenly.
“Thank you.”
When Na Hyun-soo managed the words, Elodie’s eyes curved softly. It was the smile of a saint—benevolent yet alluring, alluring yet never vulgar, carrying real depth.
“Not at all. More than that—could I meet everyone here? Though I am lacking, I would like to examine them once……”
“Of course!”
The Saint’s personal care. It was an excellent opportunity, and there was no reason to refuse—especially when it was known she never demanded any particular compensation. Perhaps that was why Na Hyun-soo nodded without a single thought, purely by reflex.
He never noticed that the Saint’s eyes were sparkling with particular, crystalline clarity.