Chapter 136: End of Vacation (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 136: End of Vacation (2)
Abel crouched down, listening intently to the old woman's words.
"Let's see... around that fellow. One, two, three, four... Oh my, look at this. I see people clinging to him, especially women, multiplying like dividing cells. At this rate, he's practically a walking pheromone. Tsk, tsk."
Nod, nod.
"Hmm. But the problem is... he's incredibly dense. To anyone else, it's a fate to die of envy. Yet, he himself has absolutely no clue. It's not even like he views the opposite sex as mere stones, either."
Nod, nod.
Abel nodded vigorously at the old woman's words, which scratched exactly where she itched.
"But there seems to be a reason for this. It's not just that he's clueless about relationships, it's more like..."
The old woman closed her eyes tightly and caressed her crystal ball. Grayish-white smoke swirled inside the soccer-ball-sized sphere.
She mumbled a chant under her breath.
"Asurabalbalta... Asurabalbalta!"
The old woman's eyes snapped open. Her gaze, looking possessed, gleamed as clear as glass.
"...This fellow, his humanity has been drying up."
"What do you mean, his humanity is drying up?"
As the old woman's expression turned grave, Abel swallowed hard in suspense. The old woman spoke in a low voice.
"That will be an extra fifty thousand—"
Snatch. A fifty-thousand-won bill was thrust into the old woman's hand. The deal was struck.
The old woman smiled with satisfaction for a split second before instantly wiping it off her face.
Ahem, ahem. Clearing her throat a couple of times, she deliberately lowered her tone and spoke.
"Exactly what it sounds like. His emotions, reason, empathy, morality... the things one naturally possesses as a human being are gradually fading away."
"For what reason?"
"Regrettably, I can't see the reason. Since I took your money, I'd love to spill everything, but speaking of things unseen invites divine punishment. I simply feel sorry for the young man. At this rate, he will soon become nothing more than a monster wearing a human mask. What a tragic life, truly tragic."
The old woman clicked her tongue in pity.
"..."
Abel's face darkened. Just a few minutes ago, she hadn't believed in these street fortunes at all, but now she was completely engrossed in the reading.
Shail placed a hand on Abel's shoulder.
"My lady, let's go now. I made a mistake. I shouldn't have asked you to do this when you don't even like these things. And..."
Shail glared coldly at the old woman. This was the person who had cluttered her lady's mind with useless words. A deep surge of irritation welled up inside her.
If the woman had been a pure fraud, Shail would have snorted and walked away. But honestly, the old woman was an uncannily accurate fortune teller.
She had described Lord Geomma as if she had seen him with her own eyes.
His eroding humanity, his emotional landscape as dry as a drought-stricken land, his inorganic impression.
When you put together everything the old woman was rattling off, it all pointed directly to the character of 'Kang Geomma.'
Even as Shail glared with narrowed eyes, the old woman merely smirked and shrugged.
Amidst the awkward atmosphere, Abel, who had been crouching like a totem, suddenly asked,
"If that's true... is there anything I can do?"
"Of course."
The old woman gazed calmly at Abel. Despite her frail, elderly body, her eyes overflowed with vitality.
"A person can be healed by another person. By nature, the character for 'human' represents two strokes supporting and relying on each other. That is how we humans live humanely."
The old woman continued.
"And that's not all. No matter how incredibly dense he is, if someone stays by his side consistently, his humanity will fill up again. If that happens, it might even lead to a relationship beyond just friends."
"A relationship beyond friends?"
The old woman raised her pinky finger.
"Lovers. And if you go further, maybe even life partners? Wasn't the spot next to him what you wanted?"
Shake, shake.
Abel crossed her arms in an 'X' to deny it.
"No? Not at all! I... I just owe him a huge debt, that's all! Besides, I hate people who constantly have members of the opposite sex around them the most!"
With that, Abel jumped to her feet. She tightly linked her arm with Shail's and quickly turned around.
"Shail, let's go."
Shail nodded with a bewildered expression, startled by her lady's sudden about-face.
Toward Abel's rapidly retreating back, the old woman called out in a faint voice.
"Still, to give you your money's worth, there's really only one person you need to worry about. The one with light blue hair—she is the most dangerous. So, you just need to keep her in check."
Abel froze instantly.
"..."
After standing still for a few seconds, Abel started walking again, her fists clenched tightly.
"Hehehe."
The old woman let out a raspy laugh.
* * *
The old woman remained seated on the rug, staring in the direction Abel had vanished.
It was then.
"Pant, pant. So this is where you were!"
A young man, pale as an anemic patient, approached her. Wiping the sweat dripping from his chin, he gasped.
"You couldn't even wait and just vanished? I've been looking for you everywhere! Seriously, didn't I tell you not to do this kind of thing? And what is with that look?! Every single bit of this is blasphemy. You, of all people, should know that..."
The young man nagged endlessly even while catching his breath. A look of sheer boredom washed over the old woman's face.
I get it, I get it. The old woman waved her hand dismissively. Then, she grabbed the skin of her own face.
Riiip— The sound of tearing flesh echoed. Only after the loose human skin mask peeled away was the twist revealed.
A girl with silver hair and black eyes. She was a beautiful girl who exuded a somewhat sacred aura. She shook her head, scattering sweat.
The young man watching her looked disgusted.
"Can you please stop using that Human Skin Mask? When you run away wearing that, I can't find you at all."
"But that's the whole point. Hmm, it took Welter ten minutes longer to find me this time. If I study it a bit more, I bet I can hide for over thirty minutes."
"No... why on earth are you doing this to me?"
"Oh, come on~ I made a hundred thousand won while you were gone, Welter!"
The woman giggled slyly. Welter covered his forehead in exasperation, letting out a weary sigh.
"...Sigh. Please, whatever else you do, just don't play fortune teller. Seriously, you could be put on trial for blasphemy, Saintess."
"The meaning of Saintess is 'holy woman.' And that's me. So, by your logic, I'd be blaspheming myself, which means I can just do a self-confession. 'I absolve myself of my sins~.' See? Easy."
"Oh, Lord! Why do you test this lamb so!"
Welter, the escort priest, felt like he was going to lose his mind.
To think such a person was the Saintess. Even in an era where myths had met their end, her very existence was a walking insult to God.
Welter closed his eyes. He repeatedly drew the sign of the cross to calm his mind.
Whew.
Thanks to the faith he had diligently built up, he quickly managed to control his agitation. He felt his turbulent mindscape clear up like a blank sheet of paper. Good.
Welter opened his eyes.
"Hehe."
"..."
Regardless of his inner struggle, the Saintess was busy licking her fingers to count her two fifty-thousand-won bills. A vein throbbed on Welter's temple.
"Saintess!"
"Whoa, you startled me. Why are you shouting?"
"To think you would use your divine mysteries for such pocket change!"
"Go dig the ground and see if a hundred thousand won just pops out. Besides, the higher-ups at the Outer God Papacy rake in slush funds all the time, so why are you only nagging me? This is money I earned through hard labor!"
Welter's face instantly went blank. He barely managed to hold onto his faith, which had almost evaporated entirely.
No, even if she's only seventeen, how can a person who is the Saintess be so frivolous?
Even so, Welter couldn't bring himself to argue back harshly.
Saintess Yoo Se-in. She was the one and only woman among humanity permitted to communicate with the Outer Gods, the deities from outside the world.
Yet, her speech was full of internet slang, her hobbies were playing mobile games and reading webnovels, and she spent most of her daily life slacking off.
Whenever she went out on official business, she would slip past her five-man escort priest squad to make money somewhere.
Furthermore, she spent the money she scraped together on in-game purchases or webnovels.
This was because she couldn't use the Outer God Papacy's official funds for such things.
Just imagine if church offerings were spent on mobile game microtransactions or webnovels.
The faith of the believers would instantly turn to ashes.
Yet, despite all that, Yoo Se-in performed her duties as Saintess flawlessly. Prayer, meditation, conducting mass, and the administrative work of the Outer God Church—she didn't miss a single thing.
The problem was that she spent her free time making bizarre things like that Human Skin Mask.
If she dedicated that outstanding talent to religion, the believers would weep tears of joy, even if she refused to hear their confessions...
While Welter was sighing deeply to himself, Se-in slipped the two yellowish bills into her pocket.
"How did that go? The transfer to Joaquin Academy for the second semester."
"Ah, as for that, we have just finished creating your fake identity. We set your background as the third daughter of a minor noble from the provinces. Since your identity is what it is, Saintess, it took a full six months."
"Changing your nickname in a game is so easy. Reality has way too many annoying procedures."
"But didn't His Holiness finally grant permission only because you kept begging him for the past year and a half? And the reason for that was..."
Bzzz~
Se-in's pocket vibrated softly. She pulled out her phone.
Welter asked,
"...Is it that friend you play games with again?"
"Yeah, I just got a notification saying he leveled up, so I should reply."
Se-in's dark eyes focused as she carefully read the screen. Then, her fingers tapped against the glass display.
A moment later, a smile curved her lips.
"I want to eat sushi."
"Pardon? All of a sudden?"
"Yeah, whenever I hear from this guy, I crave sashimi or sushi."
"Just who on earth is he... to go so far as to enroll in Joaquin Academy... I really don't..."
"Welter, what is the role of the Saintess in this world?"
"Yes. Escort Priest Welter, at your service."
At the mention of doctrine, Welter straightened his posture.
"In this day and age, after the end of the mythical era, your sacred role is to communicate with the Outer Gods outside the world and deliver their teachings. That is your holy work and duty, Saintess."
"You know it well. That's why I'm going. To perform that holy work and duty."
"...Excuse me?"
"Well, there's also the fact that this guy's leveling speed is way too slow, so I need to go carry him. Otherwise, his future might be a bit bleak."
"Bleak? Are you talking about that mobile game?"
Instead of answering, Se-in simply smiled. It was a truly angelic smile that didn't match her usual behavior at all.
"You wouldn't understand even if I told you, Welter. Anyway, whatever. I actually found a delicious sushi place in Geneva!"
"Ah, ah. Yes, I understand."
Se-in marched forward with an excited look on her face.
"A bleak future..."
Welter stood there blankly, mulling over her words a few times before finally following her.
* * *
Time continued to flow.
Just as I was getting used to daily life at Castle Sigurd, the day to leave Switzerland quickly arrived.
Before leaving, I held the doorknob and looked around the room where I had stayed for a month. The memories of my time here seemed to linger on the furniture and walls.
"..."
Creak—
I quietly closed the door. When I stepped outside the castle, the Sword Emperor, who was the head of the family, and the butler, Karon, were standing side by side.
They were there to see off Abel and me as we headed back to the Academy. Originally, the Sword Emperor had planned to travel with us, but he mentioned he would be a bit late due to some unfinished business.
Thus, it was just Abel and me heading to the Academy. Shail would drive us to the airport.
The Sword Emperor spoke to me.
"It feels like just yesterday you arrived in Switzerland, yet a month has already passed. Come to think of it, quite a lot of major events happened during this time. You did well, Cadet Kang Geomma."
"Not at all. I am the one who is grateful. I learned a lot."
The Sword Emperor patted my back lightly. I then turned my gaze to the butler.
"Thank you for everything, Lord Karon. Thanks to you, I had a comfortable and enjoyable stay."
"I will ensure your next stay is even more comfortable. Please, be sure to visit us again."
Karon bowed politely. I bowed in return to show my respect.
Once the farewells were mostly over, Shail opened the car door for us.
"I will escort you safely on the way."
With one foot on the car, I stared at Shail for a moment, then nodded.
"I feel safe with you behind the wheel, Miss Shail."
She responded with a bright smile.
"Grandfather, Karon. We're leaving now!"
Abel poked her head out of the car window and waved. The next moment, the car shot forward like a thrown spear.
The Alps swept past the window. The grueling month of vacation felt much like those rugged mountain ridges.
After taking in the beautiful scenery outside the window, I leaned back against the seat.
Now, to my home.