Chapter 10. Stubbornness and Arrogance (3)
Chapter 10. Stubbornness and Arrogance (3)
No matter how much of a theocracy it was, the Church's power was not greater than the power of the entire government. If anything, it was weaker.
What it actually handled was the nation's welfare, and even that was limited.
So although the Church in this world held more practical power than any religious organization in South Korea, where I'd lived in my Past Life, it still wasn't power that could normally be wielded so freely.
"If a being like you didn't exist, that is."
"......."
At Ria's words, I simply said nothing.
Normally, just hearing the title of Saintess would have made me flinch and object, but this time I couldn't claim I hadn't wielded that power.
The government had been quite opposed to me meeting the Dwarven Kingdom's princess. The Gnomes had to open a channel at least to restore the Mana Stones I'd blown away—because I had opened that channel 'too wide.'
I was the justification, while the practical benefits should have gone to the government through that exchange.
But after seeing my power, the Gnome Church took an interest in me. They even proposed stationing some of their clergy in this world.
Going one step further, some even wanted my Holy Power. That power would indeed be highly effective in friction with the Dwarven Kingdom.
"I had no choice. If I hadn't, it would've definitely become a huge problem for the world we live in too."
"Is that really all it is? You actually wanted to save the Dwarves too, didn't you?"
"......."
Ria's words shut down my grumbling once again.
No, but I couldn't just leave it alone. No matter how you looked at it, this was the most effective decision.
"When you said you'd never call forth any Holy Power again if they didn't allow it, even the faithless politicians all went pale. They seem to get scared when they think they can't receive healing. And on top of that, you even put a halo behind your head when you said it."
"Those people wouldn't ever need my healing anyway, unless they got into some major accident."
"Hmm, well. The Church is starting to treat you as one of its most important people. There's no way the Church would provide favors to someone you were boycotting, right? The government isn't the only one that needs your Holy Power."
"......."
"Well, don't worry. If you don't want to use it, you just won't use it. What could those guys even do?"
"Wouldn't they have plenty of ways to deal with me? Without Holy Power, I'm just an ordinary person who can't do anything."
"Well, I don't know about ordinary, but you definitely wouldn't be just one person on your own."
At those words, I narrowed my eyes and looked at Ria.
"Are you planning to keep being my escort knight even if I stop being a Saintess Candidate?"
"Can't I?"
"......If that happens, there'd be nothing I could do for you from then on."
"I'm not so miserly that I'd charge money just for helping a friend."
Ria said that, then blushed for some reason.
The rearmost seat of the rattling car. Even though the vehicle had fairly large wheels, it shook quite violently. The road wasn't paved with cement or asphalt, after all.
Even though the Gnomes and Dwarves were practically at war, there was one fairly decent road. Whether it was for efficient movement toward the battlefield, or whether they maintained at least minimal exchange.
Thinking back to the novel, there did seem to be minimal exchange. It seemed the Gnomes had sent word to the Dwarven Kingdom that I was coming this time too.
"......Ah!?"
But apparently they weren't actually on active exchange terms, and the road wasn't made for large, heavy vehicles like buses in the first place, so there was a spot in the middle that jolted hard.
For a moment, my butt bounced upward. The wheel, which seemed to have run over a somewhat large rock, came back down quickly, but the spot where it landed must have been sunken in. Before my butt could even land back on the seat, the seat had twisted to a different angle.
"Oof."
And because of that, I ended up toppling toward Ria.
Something soft and squishy briefly touched my face.
"......!?"
Instinctively judging what that sensation was, I quickly pulled my body back.
As I nearly fell the other way, Ria swiftly grabbed my waist and sat me down. Thanks to that, Ria ended up in a position that looked like she was sitting with her arm around my waist, holding me against her side.
"Hey, be careful, would you."
"......."
"And what's there to be so flustered about? We already touched when we were dancing, didn't we?"
Ah, right.
I belatedly realized why I'd moved on instinct. I had already felt that sensation before, so I remembered it.
And seeing my face, Ria giggled.
"It tickles."
Feeling embarrassed for no reason, I smacked away Ria's hand that was holding my side, but Ria wore a pleased expression for a long while.
Maybe because I usually teased her too much. So even if it was an accident, she must have enjoyed getting payback.
......But somehow, it was infuriating.
In the end, I sulked a little for the several hours it took to reach the Dwarven Kingdom.
Ria just looked at me and laughed as if it was amusing, which made it even more infuriating.
*
Having arrived at the Dwarven Kingdom, I didn't go straight to meet the Dwarven Kingdom's princess.
But at the same time, the government didn't step forward to handle the practical matters first like before.
There were almost no high-ranking government officials in this delegation. The government was currently focused on relations with the Gnomes. So they didn't seem inclined to deliberately draw the attention of the Dwarves, who were on bad terms with the Gnomes.
The people who came here were just a handful of civil servants, practically an inspection team.
So while I was effectively the highest-ranking person among those visiting, that didn't make me a head-of-state-level figure.
In the first place, I was a Saintess Candidate, not a Saintess.
And even a Saintess occupied an awkward position within the Church. The head of the Church was the Pope, while the highest-ranking person in the Korean Church was the Cardinal.
It was essentially an honorary position, flexible enough to mean different things depending on the situation. So even as the leading Saintess Candidate, I still didn't rank alongside a king or the princess who would succeed him.
After arriving and briefly exchanging greetings, I rested for a while to recover from the journey.
My butt and back ached somewhat from riding for hours over rough terrain in a vehicle whose ride quality wasn't exactly great.
On top of that, we'd even gotten out and walked from the halfway point. I supposed it was fortunate that it wasn't high enough to cause altitude sickness.
"Though they say there are places high enough for that."
Ria said with a shrug.
"No matter what, the higher you go, the harder it is to keep out the cold. If a landslide happened, you could get buried before you could even respond. So the higher-ups apparently live on the lowest level among those."
That was fortunate for me.
"And if war breaks out, wouldn't the lowest level be the most dangerous? So they seem to have some justification of noblesse oblige in their own way."
"No matter how I think about it, that just sounds like an excuse they tacked on."
At my reaction, Ria's shoulders shook as she laughed briefly.
"Ah, somehow I figured you'd say that."
Lying face-down on the bed, I turned my head toward Ria and stared at her.
"Why?"
"Because no matter what position you're in, if something like that happened, you'd just run straight in without asking questions."
"......."
Just what kind of person did Ria think I was?
"If you're tired, why don't you catch some sleep? I'll let you know."
Seeing my expression, Ria said.
"......What about you, Ria?"
"I'm still fine. I didn't march anywhere, so it'd be embarrassing if I got sleepy from just this."
At Ria's words, I nodded.
Well, it was convincing. A being who could run through the sky with a woman her own age tucked under one arm while swinging a sword wouldn't get tired from this much.
"Still, let's take turns sleeping......"
"Yeah, yeah, got it. I'll keep watch here, so rest easy. There are still a few hours left."
"......Wake me in the middle."
"I said I got it."
I fell asleep listening to Ria reply with a laugh.
Ria didn't wake me until those few hours had completely passed.
*
Like with the Gnomes, it was said to have been carved out of a cave inside the mountain, but the interior was magnificent.
The high ceiling was all polished so smoothly that it gleamed, and whether the walls had been carved from stone or built by erecting other stones, the atmosphere felt like stepping inside a huge building.
A splendid sight you'd typically imagine when thinking of Western fantasy.
"I greet Geurond IV, King of the Dwarves."
Following the etiquette I'd learned beforehand, I answered while slightly lifting the skirt of my nun's habit.
The Dwarf King, whose face was half-buried in his own beard, nodded with a solemn expression.
"I welcome Sister Anna, Saintess Candidate of another world's Church. Please, make yourself comfortable during your stay."
His thick voice matched his appearance exactly.
I shifted my gaze slightly to look at the Dwarf Princess sitting a little ways off to the side.
She was short and a bit plump, but quite beautiful. As described in the novel, she looked a few years younger than me.
Among Dwarves who could store and use Mana within their bodies, she was a being evaluated as capable of wielding the most powerful Mana.
The princess looked at me and gave a soft smile.
A slightly guarded expression.
......It was probably because I was capable of wielding that much Holy Power.
I had a bad feeling that the plan wouldn't go entirely smoothly.