Chapter 21
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Saintess... Are You Really?
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After finishing our meal, Jenia and I returned to my room and sipped the tea the servant had brought us.
Jenia, still buzzing with excitement, kept chattering nonstop about Mother and Serena.
It was adorable, but now it was time to talk about the future.
I called Jenia over and explained our plans.
"Jenia, I'm going to build up fame. Using the info you've given me, I'll gather money, take down the heretics, and even claim the throne."
Jenia's expression turned serious as she nodded.
"Yes, Your Highness."
"And you're part of that process. I want our engagement to go off without a hitch—no rumors from those corrupt nobles. So my goal is to rack up enough fame to earn inspection rights."
Jenia's information alone would suffice, but her talents were too valuable to waste.
"...I'm prepared for it."
"To get inspection rights, we'll need the church's recognition too. We'll probably cross paths with them a lot while hunting heretics. If we want to look like a righteous, powerful group even on the surface, you need to get strong fast. Lancelot and I can already protect ourselves on our own."
Jenia's eyes sparkled with determination as she gazed at me.
"I'll make it happen. I'm confident I can grow stronger than anyone else."
She could—stats were an absurd blessing, after all. But there was another issue.
"I first encountered a heretic at age five. Even as his throat was being slit, he swung a fist at me, trying to kill me. The heretics we met recently were the kind who rip out people's hearts as offerings to their god—total lunatics."
Jenia swallowed hard.
"I hate that these things are trampling over the empire like dirt. I want to wipe out every last heretic—for my sake, and for the things I love.
You could just hand over the info and stay safe somewhere. You could play with Serena, go to parties, bask in Mother's affection, and live it up. Your intel's worth that much.
But if you stick with me, you'll see some ugly stuff. It could mess with your head. You'll have to cut and tear through some vile bastards—and that's on a whole different level from killing a few servants."
A shadow fell over Jenia's face. I added one more thing.
"Still, if you join me, I'll protect you no matter what. I promise."
Jenia closed her eyes briefly, then smiled.
"Your Highness, I've resented the world all this time. I resented the god who dropped me here, even thought about killing everyone and then myself—dozens of times.
But seeing you for the first time changed everything. My favorite character was alive, breathing, talking... the world looked different.
Watching Serena babble on your lap made my heart race—I wondered if I could change the future like you."
Jenia grinned mischievously.
"There's no law saying a one-line extra lady can't change the world, right?"
Jenia's smile, declaring she'd upend fate itself, was dazzlingly radiant.
It was so infectious I couldn't help but smile too.
Her dream-packed declaration sounded too fun—I flashed the same mischievous grin.
I stood and extended my hand.
"Looking forward to it, Extra Lady."
"You too, future Crown Prince!"
We grinned at each other.
It was probably the bond of comrades united to protect something similar.
As we clasped hands, Jenia said with a smile,
"Your Highness, before we dive into the plan, shall we recruit some comrades?"
Her voice brimmed with confidence.
I felt the same way.
Three people were too few; more talent was always better.
"The more, the better. Anyone we need to approach urgently?"
Jenia beamed.
"A healer for the party is a must, right?"
I agreed completely. From an RPG perspective, our current lineup was two swordsmen and one mage, wasn't it?
'So we're missing a healer and a thief?'
But on second thought, we didn't need exactly five. Was I being too game-brained? As I dismissed the idea, Jenia spoke up.
"Well... the healer is the most urgent, but... there's a slight problem..."
"Huh? What kind of problem?"
Jenia looked sheepish.
"The potential's definite, but... at this point in the story, her mind's a bit... off..."
'What?'
The next day, I went about my routine until I got word from Grandfather, setting the date for our departure to the marquisate.
"Jenia, we'll head to the marquisate in three days."
As I grabbed my overcoat, Jenia said,
"Yes, Your Highness. Heading out now?"
"Yeah. Even by carriage, it'd take a while, so I'm riding."
"Makes sense. No teleport array there either..."
I asked at her response,
"By the way, how'd you even figure out a spot that remote?"
Jenia beamed.
"Oh! I get anxious with dark areas on the map, so there was this time I lit up the whole thing over a week, day and night. I even made an exploration guide and uploaded it to XTube, but sigh..."
"...I'll be back."
Her torrent of words was par for the course now.
Jenia must be the type who clears the map first in RPGs.
I donned a black robe, mounted my horse, and left the palace.
Riding along the map for a good while... I arrived at a rundown church in the woods.
Long neglected, vines climbed the walls with cracks visible between them, and the wooden cross was rotted through.
'Someone lives here?'
The eerie vibe straight out of a ghost story made me uneasy as I entered.
More eye-catching than the smashed furniture everywhere was the shattered goddess statue.
A large hammer lay amid the stone dust, as if it'd been used to smash it.
Moonlight filtering through the windows felt ominous rather than holy—like heretics could burst out any second.
I ignored it and headed to the basement storage.
'Left corner, so this is it?'
The stairs down bore brown footprints from frequent use.
Opening the door at the bottom revealed not a storage room, but a dug-out cave.
Pitch black at first, but channeling mana lit it up like daylight.
As I ducked into the tunnel, a faint scream echoed from somewhere.
-Hiiiaaak! Guh... Kugh! Forgive me! I repent!
'What the?'
The chilling sound spurred me down faster. The space opened into an unbelievably vast chamber.
Bones stained with blood were pinned to reverse-cross wooden frames on the walls, and red candles flickered sporadically on pillars.
Amid the perfect heretic decor and skulls, atop an altar, I spotted the back of a head with long, radiant platinum blonde hair draped down.
From the altar came the sound of flesh parting.
-Splurt!
"Aaaah! I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"
-Splurt! Crack!
"Aaaaaah! Please!"
A clear, seductive voice contrasted the horrifying sounds.
"It's fine, brother. You should pray to God, not apologize to me. Who knows? He might take pity and save you. Oh, by the way—I wasn't saved. Kyahaha!"
Peeking at the altar, I saw a platinum-haired girl wielding a large knife, methodically slicing the arms and legs of a man pinned by giant nails.
Blood gushed from the split leg; stirring the knife exposed bone with a grisly sound.
The mangled leg bled profusely, but a brilliant light from the girl's hand sealed the wounds, regenerating the skin.
'Whoa, shit.'
I'd heard her head was a bit off, but this was full-on insanity.
As I pondered what to say, the girl, mid-work on his shoulder, sensed me and turned.
Her cat-like eyes, glowing purple with excitement, and thin red lips curved alluringly—but the blood streaking her face was unsettling.
Seeing me, she clasped her hands demurely, still gripping the knife, and smiled softly.
"Hello, brother. What brings you here?"
Her eerily calm tone left me flustered, speechless.
"Uh...? Well..."
"Here to repent your sins? Or confession?"
"Not exactly..."
Who'd come here on purpose to confess?
At a loss for recruitment lines, she tilted her head curiously.
"Hmm? Then why are you here? Lost your way? Pass out for a bit~ Outsiders can't see confessions."
With that, the knife handle flew at my forehead. I ducked hastily.
My hood fell as I gathered light in the air.
Aiming to subdue her, I reached out—but she stared blankly at my face, then clasped her hands and knelt.
Stunned, her ecstatic voice burst out.
"Hah! Apostle! You've finally come to punish me!"
Caught off-guard, I blurted dumbly,
"Pardon?"
Ignoring my confusion, she gushed with rapture.
"Ahh... Doubting God brought the Apostle himself! I knew it! Apostle! I've had so~ many questions! Has God heard our prayers? Have my siblings forgotten this life and gone to His embrace? Is making heretics repent a sin? If so, why grant a sinner like me such great power? What's my divine mission?"
'How the hell should I know, you crazy bitch...'
Her barrage tested my mage's mental discipline sorely.
As she rambled on despite my fluster, I cut her off desperately.
"Wait, stop!"
"Yes, Apostle!"
She neatly folded her hands on her knees, beaming attentively.
Collecting my thoughts on how to handle this, I said,
"Nice to meet you, miss. First off, I'm no angel or apostle."
"My name's Veronica, Apostle!"
'...Is she even listening?'
"...Right. Nice to meet you, Veronica."
"Hah! The Apostle said my name!"
She clutched her mouth, eyes tearing up. Even blood-soaked, it was just creepy. I craved Grandpa's mental training.
Suppressing dizziness amid her fanatical fervor, I pressed on.
"So, I'm telling you, I'm not an apostle."
"You are the Apostle!"
'...Breathe. Just breathe.'
"Veronica, what makes you think I'm an apostle? I've barely set foot in a church."
It was true—no major events, and this agnostic skipped services. Apostle? No basis.
"You are! Look at that holy stigmata on your forehead, shining so brilliantly! And that faint line on your chest! I knew it the moment I saw you."
Confused, I asked,
"Wait... stigmata on my forehead?"
Pointing to mine, Veronica jumped up and approached.
"Hah... Yes, sparkling in an unbelievable color even now."
She drew close, placing one hand on my chest, the other gently stroking my cheek.
Her bloody hand stuck to my skin, thumb softly rubbing my forehead.
"Haaaah... So... so beautiful."
Her hot breath washed over me as I stood dazed.
Blood and her scent mingled into a chilling yet intoxicating aroma that muddled my senses. Her glowing purple eyes gleamed softly, devouring me.
I felt overwhelmed by her bewitching gaze.