The Saintess

"It huuurts, it huuuurts!"

"Stop that."

The grinding of Yona's teeth was anything but ordinary. That gnashing sound, followed by that awful clacking of molars, was enough to send shivers down anyone's spine — yet Alec didn't seem to notice it in the slightest. Even as the two of them walked down the dim corridor, he was too busy mimicking Yona's voice to pay attention.

If Sister Aize hadn't poured her healing into him at the very last second before his breath gave out, Alec would have died right then and there. But now that he was back among the living, he seemed to have nothing on his mind but tormenting her.

"It huuurts, it huuurts, Aleeeeec—!"

"I said stop it, you bastard!"

SMACK!

Yona finally brought her hand down hard on the back of Alec's head. The blow was so much fiercer than anything she'd delivered before that Alec nearly toppled over mid-stride.

"Yona."

Yona, who had been snarling at Alec like she was ready to kill him, flinched and froze at the voice that came suddenly from behind her. It was calm and gentle — and to Yona, the most terrifying sound in the world.

"You mustn't hit your comrades. And after you both made ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it home safe and sound, too — that alone is something to be grateful for."

In the end, it had been Aize who saved Alec's life. She was a true priestess, plain and simple — or perhaps it was simply the weight of her experience. Whatever the reason, she had healed his deep, terrible wounds with holy power powerful enough to cover his entire body, and that was the only reason a man who had been seconds from death was still breathing. Which meant that, thanks to her, Alec now had the perfect excuse to tease Yona about it.

"...But, Teacher, this bald jerk—"

"Mind your language."

Yona couldn't even look at Aize properly. And no wonder — Aize's hand had already settled, ever so casually, on top of her head. One wrong move and that dreaded grip of hers would come tightening down again, so Yona had no choice but to nod.

"O-okay. I won't do it again."

"Good girl, Yona. And Alec, you shouldn't either. Do you have any idea how heartbroken Yona would have been if you had died?"

"I-I wasn't heartbroken at all!? That guy drops dead, there's a hundred replacements lined up before he even hits the— owowowowow!"

It took punishment from Aize's own two hands before Yona finally went quiet.

By the time they emerged from the Catacombs after the demon's destruction, dawn was already breaking in a hazy half-light. The sun had not yet risen, but it was close. The miasma that had been seeping from the Catacombs had vanished as though washed away, and all that remained now was to explore the third floor and gather the spoils. But that wasn't a job for now — it belonged to whatever adventurers came after them.

Being alive was what mattered.

The knights, mindful of their dignity, held themselves together, but the adventurers had no such pretensions. The moment they left the Catacombs and reached the campsite, every last one of them collapsed onto the ground. Only a dozen or so remained — the very adventurers who had once stood proud in their full gear now sprawled on the dirt, armor loosened, breathing long, slow breaths.

Thirty had gone into the Catacombs. Barely three in ten had come back out alive.

"Still... we made it back..."

Yona let out a long sigh as she lay sprawled on the bare earth of the campsite. Honestly, she had no idea how she had survived. As far as she could remember, she'd done nothing but chase after Kayak and Alec in a panicked daze, spamming healing with her hands flying everywhere — and then, somehow, the demon was simply gone.

Come to think of it — that Ludwig guy, or whatever his name was... is he really the Hero?

He'd claimed he killed the demon — the Dullahan. Yona hadn't seen it with her own eyes, but everyone said so. The knights said so, even the priests said so, so it must have been true. For something like that to be possible, the man really would have to be a Hero.

A Hero, huh...

Part of her thought they might as well have made her the Hero, but she quickly shook off the stray thought. It was all in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the past now — no amount of brooding would change a thing.

Besides, once she collected her pay for this job, she'd have seven gold coins. She'd earned enough for the journey to the Wizard Community. The biggest hurdle was behind her.

"The moment I get paid for this job, I'm heading straight for the Community..."

At Yona's words, Alec — who had been lying sprawled nearby — shot bolt upright.

"Hey, the pay! Now that you mention the pay, I just remembered something."

Then he started kicking at Yona's feet, nagging her to get up already. She swatted at him and grumbled, but she sat up anyway — and Alec beamed at her, raising both hands and wiggling his fingers in a slow, lecherous little dance.

...Oh.

Seeing that, a certain memory flickered through her mind.

"You said — that if you came ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back alive, and if you didn't die — you'd let me play with your tits as much as I wanted. Remember?"

"...Uh, wha—?"

Yona scooted backward on the spot, slow and sneaky, one hand clamped over her chest. Something about the way she retreated like that, guarding herself, was inexplicably erotic.

Had she said that? Yes. Yes, she had.

She had... hadn't she?

No — this is mortifying.

She hadn't said it expecting Alec to actually die, of course. But at the time, she'd figured — very manfully — that letting a guy grope her chest was hardly the end of the world.

"What's this? Backing out now? Very manly of you, promising to let me have a feel and all."

Alec was grinning ear to ear, making squeezing motions with his hands as he scooted across the ground toward her, closing the distance inch by inch.

"...Hmm."

Yona paused to think it over. She had made that promise, true enough. A promise was something you had to keep, and once you'd made one...

Ah, whatever. Who cares.

I'm a man anyway.

"Fine. Here you go."

And Yona thrust her chest out.

"Wh— r-really?"

Oddly enough, it was Alec who panicked. He'd asked for it, sure — but now that Yona had offered herself up this easily, he was the one caught off guard.

"Yes, really. It was a promise, and promises are meant to be kept. Go on, have at it, no limits. It's not like an opportunity like this comes around twice, is it?"

Alec's breathing grew ragged. His eyes stayed locked on Yona's chest, refusing to move.

That enormous mass of flesh, right there in front of him. He had thought it so many times — if only, if only I could just once, without limits, bury my hands in that...

How many nights had those breasts stolen his sleep? Countless, countless nights they had dragged him down into torment — and now here they were, presenting themselves to him, utterly defenseless.

"Hey. You're not even touching them?"

But against all expectation, Alec let out a long sigh and lowered his hands.

"Save it up for later, man."

"...Save it up?"

"Later. Whenever you feel like it — you let me have a go then. Not as a promise or anything."

"...That day is never coming."

Never. Because I'm going back to being a man.

"Then how about this — that place, the Community? You said you'd get magic treatment there and turn back into a man, right? Right before that. Just before the procedure. That works, doesn't it?"

"W-well, I suppose it does. But then you'd have to come with me...?"

Alec scratched at the back of his head. It was his habitual gesture when something embarrassed him, so Yona watched him closely, waiting to see what he'd say next.

"...Yeah. Let's go together. You're just a healer — how are you supposed to survive a journey that long on your own? You need at least one guy watching your back."

"Uh... yeah... okay then. Let's do that."

Somehow, before she knew it, Yona found herself nodding.

Well — fine. Whatever.

The Community was crawling with famous mages, so surely she'd be able to become a man again there. And before receiving that treatment, she'd just let Alec grope her all he wanted.

Simple as that — or so Yona thought.

"Come on, everyone, pack it up. Gathering time!"

Kayak had originally been the one leading the expedition, but at some point the role had shifted to Ludwig. Love him or hate him, the single greatest contribution to this subjugation had been his, and the party members who had returned alongside him — Carlson, of course, was dead and absent — had come to believe that Ludwig really was the Hero.

At Ludwig's command, the adventurers rose one by one from where they lay sprawled, pulled their gear back on, and gathered around. The pre-dawn haze had lifted while they rested, and full morning was arriving. It was time to head home.

Brilliant sunlight poured down over the ridge of the eastern hills. The bright morning rays illuminated the whole world, slicing apart the last shreds of darkness that still lingered.

And at that very moment, a magnificent pillar of golden light came crashing down from the heavens.

"Wh— what...?"

The pillar of light struck down right where the priests were gathered — and it was the priests whose faces changed first. Aize was the very first to drop to her knees. Vigrind followed, falling to her knees beside her. The five other priests knelt at once, and as though the gesture were contagious, the knights and adventurers began sinking to their knees one after another.

Something extraordinary was happening.

Leading them, Aize and the priests each clutched their rosaries and began to recite their prayers. As the clear voices of the prayer rose and echoed through the morning air, Yona — kneeling with the rest — lifted her head just enough to look up at the sky.

The woman was beautiful beyond words — long golden hair gathered up into a lonely, elegant knot. Behind her, a massive golden seal depicting a lute hung suspended in the air, and the golden radiance pouring from it alone was enough to proclaim that this was no ordinary figure.

"We behold the Heavenly God."

Aize bowed her head until her forehead nearly touched the ground, offering her greeting to the woman.

The Heavenly God. A being whose true name could not even be spoken aloud — the Heavenly God. She appeared from time to time, though never once had she declared what she intended. And now that very god had descended upon this place.

"Not so, O Heavenly One. We, your humble children, have lived wickedly upon this earth and allowed these vile seeds of evil to take root — we can only hang our heads in shame."

Not only the priests led by Aize, but the knights and adventurers alike lay flat against the ground. Everyone knew the rule: one must never gaze carelessly upon the face of the Heavenly God. And even beyond the rule itself, some inexplicable instinct drove them all to bow, pressing their faces into the dirt as though desperate to hide.

At the god's words, Vigrind's shoulders gave a violent tremble. What those words meant, in other words, was —

A Saintess is about to be born, right here.

The Heavenly God's gaze swept across the gathering. It passed over Yona, then settled on Vigrind, then moved on to Aize.

"Yes, Heavenly One."

Vigrind slowly lifted herself from where she had lain prostrate. Inside, she was screaming with joy — but that was not something she could ever let show.

"We shall humbly receive your command."

"It shall be done, without fail."

The voices of Aize and Vigrind intertwined, each answering in turn.

For the first time since Saint Sonia — the long-awaited moment had arrived, when a new Saintess was born into the world.