The Saintess Calls Him a Hero

"Haa, haa, huuorgh...!"

Arthur, who had been panting and letting out groans, finally dropped her sword and collapsed onto the floor. As if her stamina had been completely drained, she sat down right there, bracing her hands against the ground. Kyle carefully extended a hand toward her.

"What are you doing? Get up already."

"J-just a little..."

"A little? Your enemies won't wait for you even a little bit."

It was a cruel thing to say, but it was the truth. Hearing Kyle's words, Arthur let out a faint groan and forced herself back to her feet. As he pulled her up, Kyle suddenly felt a spine-chilling gaze flying in from somewhere. He flinched and whipped his head around. Seeing this, Arthur tilted her head in confusion.

"Kyle? What's wrong?"

"...It's nothing. Must be my imagination?"

For a brief moment, he had sensed an intense stare from someone at least at the Master level. But there was no way another Master existed in the academy without his knowledge, so Kyle decided he must have been mistaken and let it slide. After brushing off the strange feeling, he resumed the spar with Arthur.

It did not take long for him to realize the gaze had not been a mistake after all.

"It's been a while, Hero-nim."

"...Hero?"

The moment class ended, the pink-haired Saintess approached as if she had been waiting for it. Arthur, standing beside Kyle, reacted immediately to the word "Hero" that left the Saintess's lips.

The Saintess gave a soft chuckle as she glanced at Arthur, then carefully explained why she had chosen that particular title for Kyle.

"Yes. You are the Hero. You eliminated the demon that destroyed the city before any greater damage could occur. That achievement is more than enough to earn the title."

"Eh... Kyle, you fought a demon too?"

"Just briefly during vacation."

It was hardly something to mention in passing, yet Kyle spoke of it with complete indifference, as if it were nothing special. Whether it was nonchalance or sheer boldness, Arthur could only let out a soft "Heee—" of amazement. Here was a man who had defeated a demon whose mere appearance could doom an entire nation, and he looked utterly unfazed.

"But why call him a Hero?"

"Exactly as I said. Since you defeated a demon, it is only proper to address you as the Hero."

"No, that's not what I meant... In the fairy tales I read as a child, the Hero was someone who confronted an overwhelmingly powerful foe... Defeating a demon is certainly an incredible feat, but before the battle even begins, wouldn't the term 'hero' be more appropriate than 'Hero'?"

"......"

The Saintess narrowed her eyes at Arthur's incisive question. As the girl had correctly pointed out, one who defeats a great enemy is not called a Hero. Once the task is complete, that person is a hero, not a Hero—an already finished existence.

Yet the Saintess had deliberately chosen to call Kyle a Hero. It was proof that the fated enemy he was destined to face still remained. Still...

The Saintess poked her own cheek with a finger and acted adorably. It was a deliberate attempt to dodge the subject. This little trick usually worked on people at the church and elsewhere, so she pulled it out whenever there was something uncomfortable to discuss.

Her ploy succeeded without a hitch once again. Arthur made an awkward face but let the matter drop without further suspicion or questions.

Having easily fooled the girl, the Saintess turned back to Kyle with a gentle laugh.

"And so—Hero-nim. I have transferred to Dairos Academy starting today. I'll be in your care from now on."

"Yeah. Sure."

"...Um, Kyle? Aren't you going to introduce her?"

"Huh? Arthur, you don't know who this is?"

"I... don't, really..."

Kyle clicked his tongue as he stared at Arthur, who had failed to recognize the Saintess despite her unmistakable pink hair, nun's habit, and generous figure. No matter how rural her upbringing had been, as a student at this prestigious academy she really ought to read newspapers and keep up with world affairs. (Never mind that Kyle ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠himself had barely read anything except the newspaper Gawain had recently forced into his hands.) Shaking his head, he spoke.

"She's the Saintess of the Holy Kingdom."

"S-Saintess?"

"Ahaha... I didn't expect there would be someone who doesn't recognize me."

The Saintess let out a small, dry laugh and cleared her throat. Meeting Arthur's eyes, she carefully brought her palms together in a prayer stance.

"I am one who receives protection beneath God's name. I am called Lagrisha, though the title of Saintess feels far too generous for someone like me."

"I-I'm Arthur."

"Yes, Arthur-nim."

Arthur stuttered slightly. Seeing a real Saintess for the first time in her life was overwhelming. The mere name of God carried that much weight—enough to completely overpower a countryside girl who happened to have a Dragon's Heart implanted in her chest.

The Saintess chuckled softly while watching Arthur's hesitant speech, then glanced at Kyle. After a moment's hesitation, she leaned in close to Arthur's ear and whispered.

"...Um, Arthur-nim?"

"Y-yes? Why are you suddenly—?"

"Are you, by any chance, in a relationship with the Hero-nim...?"

"......Pardon?"

Arthur stared at the Saintess as if the question had come out of nowhere, then blushed as she recounted what she had witnessed earlier. How Kyle, who always acted coldly toward other women, would blush and intertwine hands without the slightest hesitation when it came to Arthur—the same gender as himself.

After listening with a blank expression, Arthur burst into laughter.

"Saintess, Kyle already has a fiancée."

"Ah, I see."

But the Saintess did not take the words to heart. For all her divine selection and superhuman power, she was the type who believed only what she saw with her own eyes. And from what she observed, the relationship between Arthur and Kyle was far too intimate to be dismissed as mere friendship between those of the same sex. There was clearly a secret they kept hidden from others.

'You can't fool me.'

Chosen by God, she could temporarily borrow divine wisdom. She could discern whether her own judgment was true or false. According to that wisdom, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her hypothesis was at least partially correct. Whether the two shared an unusual relationship or were hiding some secret—one of those had to be true.

To the Saintess, it was clearly the former. Because that would be far more interesting.

"In any case, I'll be in your care from now on."

News of the Saintess's transfer spread through the entire academy like wildfire. Although the newspapers had announced her arrival, many had refused to believe it until they saw her with their own eyes.

"Saintess!"

"Please look over here just once!"

"Kyaaaaak—!"

No matter their noble status, in a world where the existence of gods was all but confirmed, the popularity of a Saintess chosen by the divine soared to the heavens. After all, she was the one who represented God's will on earth.

The Saintess lightly waved to the students cheering for her. A few even asked about their futures, treating every word from her lips as if it were the word of God itself.

"Saintess, what will become of us after graduation...!?"

"Train diligently. The day when your strength will be needed will surely come."

"Aah, thank you...!"

While the Saintess monopolized all the attention, there were a few who viewed her with clear displeasure. They were the noble faction known as the Royal Road.

"Does God really exist?"

"Isn't it just a Force ability? I've heard even the most devout people often receive nothing at all..."

The club presidents who ran the academy's various clubs had formed their own separate group. The very ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠same club that Kyle had once joined and subsequently ruined. Its members now began to speak ill of the Saintess. Most were high-ranking nobles who looked down on their peers, which only made their disdain sharper.

Carlos, the current president of the Royal Road and a student from the Art Department, took a sip from his glass as he gazed at the Grand Duchess who elevated the dignity of his club. It was Izna Hella, princess of the Hella ducal family.

She might have been a tiny girl with both short stature and a modest chest, but her background was anything but small. She was the successor to Duke Hella—the founder of a colossal trading company that handled the empire's entire logistics, established by a former chancellor, and owner of more than forty percent of the empire's currency.

"Izna, what do you think?"

"......"

"Haha, lost in thought, I see."

Carlos assumed Izna was deliberately ignoring him. It didn't particularly bother him. Of course, Izna wasn't ignoring him on purpose. She had her own reasons for being unable to focus on his words.

'...That.'

She had been born with the innate ability to see what others could not—their abilities, statuses, titles, and more. She had never encountered anyone with similar ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠powers, nor even anyone who realized she could "read" them.

At least until this very moment, before meeting the Saintess.