Hyde Heads to the Nunnery!?

"Those afflicted by sorcery leave traces of mana behind. Mana is an evil energy, after all. But you, Monk Hyde—there is no residual mana on you."

The man with a leather sack pulled over his face untied me from the chair. It was as if they had declared me innocent: possessed by Rust, yet free of any aftereffects or side effects.

Holy Knight Alter, who had been watching the whole affair, asked,

"Hyde, are you truly all right? I've heard Rust is a monster of a devil. If a man like that seized your body even for a moment, it must have left some mark."

Well, common sense would say so.

But Rust is me and I am Hyde—what mark could there possibly be?

Still, if I said that out loud, the inquisitor would strap me back into the chair and start branding me with hot irons for sure.

I put on a deliberately solemn face.

"I am a monk more devout and full of faith than anyone else, so there should be no problem. Besides, I managed to land a solid blow on Rust myself."

"You landed a blow on Rust?"

"Taking ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my body couldn't have been easy for him. Rust will be the one feeling the aftereffects—he won't show his face in the world for a while. I'm certain of it."

Not for a while. From now on, Rust must never appear in the world again.

I want that.

These past few days, how many insane things have I had to do with that mask on my face?

Just thinking about them makes my vision swim.

I've committed far too many sins.

While I was silently reciting a prayer of repentance, Alter clapped me on the back.

"A pious monk named Hyde, is it? You look the part. While the inquisitors were examining you, I read that novel you wrote—Backstreet Nymph's Village."

"You read it?"

My masterpiece.

Yet somehow in Fierenzo it had received nothing but scathing reviews.

Psyche and her little brother Dihon had gone wild over how entertaining it was, though.

The recent string of harsh criticism had left me a little deflated, so I tensed up wondering what this Alter fellow would say about my story.

Writing is always like that.

No matter how proud you are of a work, showing it to others always makes you nervous.

"It was quite fun, actually. I liked those nymphs as well. I even thought it would be good to read to the young trainees under my charge in Barakan."

"Really?"

See?

True quality recognizes true quality.

Alter Archibold.

Honestly, he had seemed so perfect that there was a tiny—truly tiny—corner of me that found him irritating, but that feeling vanished in an instant.

This guy's a good guy after all.

Alter continued,

"Especially the early part, where the nymph struggles desperately not to lose hope in a strange new world—that stayed with me."

Oh.

This bastard actually gets it.

"That's the part I put the most care into writing! Alter, you've got a better eye than the artists of Fierenzo. I suppose the title of Holy Knight isn't given to just anyone."

Alter.

He was a knight who, like the 'Last Virgin Psyche,' had resisted the cultists to the very end. In terms of faith, he was someone you could trust, in a way.

Yet he turned out more humble than I expected.

"I don't think I'm anything special. I just genuinely enjoyed it. While we're on the subject—would it be all right if I showed it to His Holiness the Pope?"

"To the Pope?"

The Pope.

A title similar to the Pope of twenty-first-century Vatican, yet the two were alike and different at once. The Pope here was both the religious leader and the king of the Allied Kingdom.

The Unizer royal line had been wiped out, so someone had to occupy the 'king's' seat, or so the story went. In any case, he was an extraordinary man.

Even I, once called the Great Sin Seat of Lust, Rust, had never met Pope Gregory II.

Might I meet him in this life?

What if my Backstreet Nymph's Village is so entertaining that he summons me to Barakan? What if he snaps his fingers and appoints me to the archbishopric left vacant by Coramdeo and Medici's mess?

I was still turning those thoughts over as we stepped out of the interrogation chamber when Alter laid a hand on my shoulder.

"My friend Hyde, this is just man-to-man—what do you think of my little sister Milli? I think it would be good if you married her."

"Is that so?"

"Wood Badge Monk Hyde of Agarpe. When I only heard the stories, I found you unreliable in many ways, but seeing you in person, I understand. You're a man worth trusting."

"Of course."

"And the fact that you reclaimed your body after that man Rust seized it—that's remarkable. Have you seen the artist Michelan?"

Michelan.

Even after being declared innocent, that man was back in prison again, wasn't he?

For trying to set fires all over the place.

"That Michelan is the sort of man who can cast a 'hypnosis' so powerful no one can escape it. I hear even Galatea, the Knight of Divine Punishment, fell to that Rust and is still being treated?"

Alter seemed to know Galatea's name.

Well, she had been a good female knight—good enough that even I acknowledged her.

Anyone with Alter's eye for quality, the kind that recognized the true worth of my novel, would naturally have taken notice of Galatea.

"To be able to control people at will... I've never heard of such a power. It's that dangerous. His Holiness Gregory has even issued a personal decree."

"His Holiness the Pope?"

What decree could the Pope have issued against Rust?

When I showed curiosity, Alter said,

"Rust—that man is to be killed on sight. Every sinner has the right to forgiveness, the right to defend himself, the right to a trial... but not Rust, he says."

Kill on sight, is it?

Well, I'd already expected as much.

Same as the last five years.

"Anyway, it was good to meet you, Hyde. The Archibold manor will be noisy for a while. Fierenzo too—no, all of Durgien and the kingdom will be noisy. I think it would be best for you to return to the Agar pe territory."

I thought so too.

Staying in Fierenzo any longer wouldn't do me any good.

I'd already gotten everything I came for.

A promise of one of the Six Knights and a detachment of the Holy Crusade, after all.

"What about Milione?"

Only Milione weighed on my mind.

Milione Archibold was currently under house arrest at the Archibold grand manor, or so I'd heard.

"Ugh, damn it!"

Milione was irritated.

One year.

That was how long she would have to serve at the nunnery this time.

The place was packed with strict nuns—dull and utterly boring.

Why do I have to go somewhere like that!

It had been Alter Archibold's suggestion, they said.

Milione Archibold had caused so many incidents already that this latest affair was certain to set tongues wagging, so it would be best for her to hide away at the nunnery for about a year.

"I have to go back to that boring Grande Nunnery again?"

A space for female monastics in the Palchea region.

Just thinking of having to go to that tedious place made her want to run away somewhere—anywhere.

If the execution had gone through, I was going to raise hell, escape, and live the rest of my life as Las... but that didn't happen.

Milione felt no attachment to her own name.

Nor to the life of 'Milione Archibold.'

If she had been sentenced to death, she had planned to cast everything aside, put on the mask, and live freely—but that never came to pass.

Because one man had stuck his nose in and ruined everything.

"Hyde, that bastard. He actually overturned the verdict."

Of course, it wasn't Hyde who had overturned the verdict, but the papal decree her older brother Alter had brought.

Father probably pulled some strings. But the one who bought time while Alter traveled from Barakan to Fierenzo was Hyde. That guy... he's more capable than I thought.

Milione decided, with pure sincerity, to acknowledge Hyde's contribution. He was also the only man who had raised his hand for her when no one else would defend her.

Why had he done it?

Because he was a true cleric who never turned away from the innocent?

No—Milione did not think so.

No. There's no such thing as a true cleric in this world.

As Medici's daughter and Alter's younger sister, Milione knew that better than anyone. So why had Hyde done something so reckless for her sake?

Just then, the maid who was combing Milione's hair spoke.

"Lady Milli, you're truly beautiful. Someone so lovely—that's why Lord Hyde risked his life to defend you, isn't it?"

Milione looked at her reflection in the mirror. She had bathed three times and had the maids dress her hair, so it shone with a glossy luster that made her extremely attractive.

"Lord Hyde was dashing, wasn't he? Tall, pale skin, and a handsome face."

"That guy is handsome?"

Milione frowned.

Hyde, handsome?

She had never particularly thought of him that way.

The maid chuckled.

"Well, Lady Milli, having grown up beside Lord Alter and Lord Medici, you might not notice, but that face is quite handsome. The slightly gloomy look is a flaw, though."

"Is that so."

She was still turning the thought over when—

Knock, knock.

Someone rapped on the door.

"—Hyde here. May I come in?"

"Eek! My lady, I'll take my leave then!"

The maid withdrew.

At the same moment, Hyde entered.

"I never said you could come in."

Milione put on a slight show of irritation.

Hyde merely shrugged.

"You never said I couldn't, either."

"So? What do you want?"

"I heard you have to go to Grande Nunnery for a year. Just... take care of yourself. I'm heading back to Agarpe now. I've been in your debt. Our marriage talk ended up fizzling out, too."

That was all Hyde said.

As he bowed his head and turned to leave, Milione felt a faintly complicated emotion. She herself did not know what it was.

"Ah, I almost forgot—"

Swish.

Hyde turned back around.

Milione startled and straightened her posture as she asked,

"What? What did you forget? Do you have something to say to me?"

"Yes. I heard there's a letter that arrived from the Agarpe territory. It must be a letter to me from Psyche."

"Ah."

The maid who had been quietly listening nearby clicked her tongue. She rummaged in the pocket of her apron and held out a letter sealed in red to Hyde.

Monk Hyde sniffed the letter and looked utterly delighted.

"Psyche... she sent me a letter."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"……."

Milione thought it was the first time she had ever seen the gloomy-faced man Hyde smile so brightly.

Was receiving a letter from Psyche really that joyful?

He's never smiled like that in front of me.

Milione's mood suddenly soured.

She herself did not know why her mood had turned bad.

It was the first time she had felt such an emotion in her life.

Anger?

No—it felt slightly different from that.

So Milione spat out the unknown feeling.

"It's obviously divorce papers. Hyde, Psyche is dumping you. It's already been a month since you last saw each other. When bodies grow distant, hearts grow distant too."

"I don't think so."

Crumple.

As Milione scowled, Hyde opened the letter.

My beloved Psyche.

Just seeing her handwriting feels healing.

And that Psyche is in the Palchea region.

Even if I return to Agarpe, I won't be able to meet her?

I see.

There was a sister in difficulty at the nunnery.

Psyche was kind-hearted as well.

But if Psyche had left the territory, wasn't that leaving it far too defenseless? Well, that problem would be solved once Parmas and the Holy Crusade were dispatched to the territory, so perhaps it didn't matter.

I was still thinking that when Steward Fred entered the room.

"Lord Hyde! So this is where you were! A decree from His Holiness the Pope has just arrived for you! Please read it at once! It was delivered through Sir Alter only moments ago!"

A decree from the Pope?

Could it be a demand for a sequel because Backstreet Nymph's Village , introduced by Alter, was too entertaining?

Rustle.

That was all that was written.

Steward Fred then held out a box to me—an elegant wooden box finished with lacquer.

When I opened it, a bronze cross glowing with a bluish light lay inside.

Clink.

"A bronze rosary."

"Ohh, magnificent, Lord Hyde! To rise straight from Wood Badge monk ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to Bronze Badge priest! His Holiness the Pope must have his eye on you! What an extraordinary honor!"

Fred.

The seasoned steward rejoiced as if it were his own affair.

I, too, was pleased to have been promoted to Bronze Badge priest, yet a sense of puzzlement remained.

Go to Grande Nunnery, is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it?

Beside me, Milione, who had been sneaking glances at the decree, spoke.

"They're sending you to drive out a ghost, it seems. Hyde, even if it was by chance, you're the man who drove Rust out of your body. Chance or not, it's still incredible. I'll admit that honestly."

"……."

"Rust is a demon among demons, a fiend among fiends that no one can expel. Since you drove out a living spirit like that, they figure you can handle other ghosts too—something like that."

"What are you talking about?"

"Hyde, do you know why Psyche and I are called two of the Three Flowers of the Kingdom?"

I knew the reason clearly enough.

"Because people are mistaken. The only real flower of the kingdom is Psyche."

"What...!? Hmph, fine, think whatever you want. Anyway, it's because there are three beauties like me, so they get lumped together. And one of them is at that Grande Nunnery."

The Three Flowers of the Allied Kingdom.

Meaning the third one?

I had never heard of that woman, nor met her.

"What kind of woman is she?"

"A complete lunatic."

—No, that would be you.

"I once caused a huge incident and Father forcibly stuck me in Grande Nunnery. I met her then. Wow, in all my life I'd never seen a girl that crazy. She was seriously possessed!"

For even that Milione to speak this way...

A truly possessed person, then.

"That girl—her hair is pink! How can a person's hair be pink!?"

A pink-haired woman possessed by a ghost.

I wanted to meet her once.

—Drive out the spirit that has possessed an innocent one—.

If one dreams of becoming a devout and excellent cleric, it's one of those things you'd want to try at least once.

Perhaps the rumor of Priest Hyde the ghost-exorcist would spread far and wide, and the Agarpe church would be packed with throngs of the faithful!

"Milione, let's hurry to Grande Nunnery!"

And while we're at it, I'll drop Milione off at Grande Nunnery too.

A perfect plan.

As expected, I'm brilliant!