The Summoning of the Hero
The capital of the Holy Kingdom, Ramiel, was said to have been named after a great archangel who served the gods. Fitting its reputation as the capital of the Holy Kingdom, the city was always lively and filled with a bright atmosphere.
However.
Where there is bright light, shadows must also exist. Following that law, even the Holy Kingdom had its share of troublesome districts.
Every city had its slums on the outskirts, and the Holy Kingdom was no exception. The only difference was that, being the capital of the Holy Kingdom, there were abandoned churches scattered throughout.
Inside one such abandoned church.
A woman in a white nun's habit knelt alone before a statue, offering her prayers. Her light green hair, unhidden by a veil, was neatly braided down to her hips. Her flawless, porcelain-like skin would have surely stirred the hearts of many men.
Yet there was something unusual about her habit. Unlike a standard nun's attire, it was far too revealing. For some reason, the sleeves had been cut away, exposing her shoulders and underarms, with the severed fabric tied around her upper arms by belts to maintain some semblance of sleeves.
Unlike typical habits that covered the legs, this one had open slits on both sides, boldly revealing the elegant lines of her legs and the daring curve of her hips. Her exposed legs were wrapped in stockings up to her thighs—an utterly unconventional design.
The tight fit emphasized her modest chest, which was somewhat regrettable, but that was another matter.
Another peculiar detail: while crosses on clerical garments were usually white or gold, the cross embroidered on this nun's white habit was crimson.
The nun slowly rose, having finished her prayer. Despite her mature presence, she was rather short in stature. With her eyes still closed, she gently caressed the rosary around her neck with one hand before turning toward the figures who had entered the church unnoticed and were now holding their breath as they watched her. In a beautiful voice, she asked:
"How long do you intend to keep me waiting?"
At the same moment, violet energy began to ripple throughout the church.
"Get her!"
Seven dolls flew toward the nun.
"Forgiveness for the sinful, salvation for the suffering, and for evil—"
Even as she heard the sounds of the attack, she calmly kissed the rosary in her hand and opened her eyes. Her brilliantly shining golden irises bore a red cross-shaped stigma.
"—judgment."
"…Saintess. Please keep your hands raised properly."
"Hnnng."
This is so unfair. I didn't do anything wrong.
I only returned to the capital after a long time and thought the Director would be pleased, so I rounded up and wiped out the demon worshippers in the slums. I never expected to be punished like this.
"How old are you now, Saintess, that you're still making sounds like 'hnnng'?"
"…Twenty-two years old."
"……Haa…."
I had been rather confident in my aegyo, which everyone seemed to like, but it appeared to have the opposite effect on the Director. He smacked his forehead and sighed, making me feel a bit guilty.
Still, I think this treatment is unjust.
"If you're tired, would you like me to help you relax?"
"Rather than helping me relax, I'd prefer you avoid creating situations that cause fatigue in the first place. Please."
"Ehh~ What do you mean, situations that cause fatigue? You've been saying the demon worshippers in the slums have been bothering you for ages, Director. So I just gathered them up and dealt with them on the way back…"
"…Saintess."
"Yes?"
I feel no guilt whatsoever.
"I said the demon worshippers were bothering me. I never said the churches and buildings in the slums were bothering me."
"…."
That's not my fault, is it?
"I think it's the collapsing buildings that are at fault for attacking a helpless, weaponless girl like me. I'm sure the Goddess would agree. Next time, they should build them stronger!"
"…Hup!"
Soleil, the Director of the Inquisition, covered his eyes with one hand and sighed before looking at me. He extended his hand in front of my forehead and clenched it into a fist.
Wait, is he trying to hit the Saintess right now?
Why is he putting so much strength into his fingers? This is sacrilege, you know?
—Thwack!
"Kyaa!"
Ow! He actually hit me! Where does he even find a spot to strike so naturally?
It's been fifteen years since we first met, and lately I've been feeling depressed because Soleil treats me too harshly.
"Keep your hands raised properly. Your activities as an Inquisitor are suspended for the time being. The suspension lasts until my mood improves."
When I tried to protest this abuse of authority, the Director quickly shut me down again.
"This has already been approved by His Holiness the Pope. I will not accept any objections."
"Th-then!"
I'll have to use my once-a-month Goddess trump card!
'Is this my fault, Goddess?'
—…Leila. I'm busy right now. Didn't I ask you to limit this to once every two or three months if possible?
'But the Director has been so cold to me lately.'
—Haa… I wonder what you see in that clumsy man…
'It's not like that. So, is this my fault?'
—Yes. You were at fault, Leila. As penance, keep your hands raised properly.
'Hnnng.'
"See? This is what happens when you keep bothering a busy person with trivial matters."
"Wait, can you hear the Goddess's voice too, Director? How auspicious!"
"My faith is lacking, so I cannot hear it directly, but I can tell the situation just from your expression, Saintess."
"Liar."
"Stop trying to lower your hands and keep them raised properly."
"Tch."
Since the Goddess had also told me to keep my hands raised, I straightened my posture and decided to continue my punishment.
That's right.
Ever since the day I resolved to become a true saintess, fifteen years had already passed.
I completed the hardcore training that Sister Teresa had sworn would take at least five years—in just three.
During that process, my speech patterns were corrected so thoroughly that they became second nature. Now the old way of speaking feels more awkward, which is a little strange.
After that, I began training under Soleil to become a holy knight.
Even Soleil, who had been confident that my body—blessed and beloved by the Goddess—would make me give up quickly, was left speechless by my extraordinary physical abilities.
I was appointed a holy knight at the youngest age of fourteen. At eighteen, I surpassed Soleil and officially became an Inquisitor of the Inquisition.
And finally, at twenty-one last year, I rose to the position of Chief Inquisitor Holy Knight.
I had put in tremendous effort to defeat Soleil's attempts to make me an ordinary holy knight instead of an Inquisitor.
Anyway, time had passed whether we liked it or not. Soleil had gone from a handsome young man to a middle-aged uncle.
Some people seemed displeased by his appearance. Lately, I've noticed contempt in the way certain individuals look at the Director, which leaves a bitter taste.
Even though he's retired from active duty, aside from me, there are only a handful of people who could beat him.
I once told him that if he shaved his beard and tidied his hair a bit, his old self would show for about five seconds, so there was no reason to be dismissed as an uncle. In response, he deliberately made his beard even messier and his hair more unkempt, which annoyed me greatly.
Since then, I haven't brought up his appearance again.
Still, I sometimes worry whether it's acceptable for a priest serving the Goddess to look like that.
So why is he the Director of the Inquisition?
After losing to me, Soleil had tried to retire and slip away quietly, but Grandfather came and grabbed him by the collar, forcibly seating him in the Director's chair while saying:
'Die.'
Ah, that wasn't it.
'You lost the bet, so you must follow my words, Director Soleil.'
Grandfather had apparently wagered something important. He radiated such killing intent that I wondered if I had misheard, and spoke to Soleil.
Of course, when I hugged Grandfather and told him gambling was bad and he should refrain from betting in the future, his mood improved quickly.
Anyway, I no longer hid my true self and lived as I pleased, doing whatever made me happy.
I exchanged occasional words with the busy Goddess and lived as a model saintess, just like now.
Many people sigh and say that compared to my childhood, I've actually become less mature, but that must be their imagination.
"If you've reflected enough, you may lower your hands."
"Yeees~"
While I was lost in thought, Soleil gave me permission to lower my arms. Not long after, Grandfather entered without knocking.
"Greetings, Your Holiness."
"It's not like we see each other every day or two, yet you're still so stiff."
"That's just my personality."
"Grandfather~"
"Oh my, I heard you caused another incident today?"
"It wasn't like that…"
"Today you destroyed one church in the slums and three other abandoned buildings. Fortunately, there were no casualties."
"…."
Grandfather's eyes had gone cold.
Still, I wish I had a chance to explain myself.
"If I'd had my Staff, the buildings would've been fine."
"I'd rather you destroy buildings than this."
"That's exactly what I wanted to say."
"What do you think we should do, Director?"
"We should melt that damned Staff in the furnace right now—"
"No! If you do that, I don't know what I'll do. This is a warning."
"…I would like to, but as you can see."
"Ahem…"
It irritated me to watch them casually discuss melting someone else's weapon.
But that Staff was the masterpiece that the church's artisans and I had poured two whole years of effort into, working as one!
Melting it arbitrarily would be a great loss to the entire church and an insult to the artisans' hard work.
Both Soleil and Grandfather have been treating me too harshly lately, haven't they?
"Anyway, the Staff is still off-limits."
I had planned to act cute and get it back from Grandfather, but it didn't seem like it would be easy.
"Ahem. That's enough."
"Yes, Your Holiness. By the way, what brings you here today? I was planning to send the Saintess over soon."
"Of course Leila is important, but I came today because of an urgent matter."
"A matter?"
"Word has come from the Empire. They will soon summon a hero."
So it's finally happening.
"Leila, you already know about this, but I'll say it once more."
"Yes."
"That's right. Once the hero is summoned, a hero party will be formed to defeat the Demon King, and you, as the Saintess, are scheduled to be a member."
"Even after thinking about it, wouldn't it be faster if I just went and defeated the Demon King alone?"
We don't even know how strong this hero will be. If they're not used to fighting or are weak, they'll only become a burden.
"No. You heard the oracle too."
"That's true, but…"
That's right.
Even though the calamity known as the Demon King had appeared, the only reason I remained still was because of the oracle.
Unlike usual, this wasn't a message given directly to me. It was an oracle publicly announced to all.
After interpreting its hidden meaning, this was the result:
『Only the hero can kill the Demon King.』
When I later asked the Goddess about it, she told me that if I was curious, I should follow along and see for myself.
She said there was no need to worry about the Demon King and that I should simply help the hero party grow stronger in moderation.
This Demon King was cunning, so threats the hero party couldn't handle might appear. I was only to step in at those times.
In short, it meant I was supposed to babysit.
Indeed, even though I occasionally went to the front lines, the Demon King was so meticulous that he kept sending decoys wherever our firepower was concentrated, using annoying tactics that exhausted everyone.
If he knew he was destined to have his head cut off by me alone, that petty man would naturally resort to such methods.
"Anyway, the Empire will soon summon the hero. Once summoned, the hero will likely come to meet you first, as the Saintess. For now, cease your activities, pray, and wait."
"Yeees~"
So the strict punishment was just an excuse.
I thought the penalty seemed excessive compared to usual, and this was the reason.
Some time later.
We received word that the hero had been summoned from the Empire.
After a brief rest, news came that he was heading toward the Holy Kingdom.
And then.
A full month passed beyond the scheduled arrival time of the hero.
The hero still.
Had not arrived.