Guardian Wipilud (4)
The day after the mental training wrapped up without further incident, Eluke and I still couldn't set foot inside the Crimson Bandits' village. We lingered outside.
The culprit was the massive Aura explosion I'd set off. Nobody had died, but word was it had whipped the whole place into a frenzy of terror and chaos. Apparently they now looked at me as something close to a violent criminal.
I could see how they might think that, so I didn't bother trying to clear my name. I was still a Public Enemy anyway — the description actually fit. Being allowed to stay even on the outskirts was lucky enough.
"That was far too extreme."
"Yeah, the second I threw the punch I knew I'd gone too far."
Why had I launched such a reckless attack? I always regretted things after the fact and never actually improved. No wonder I'd been excommunicated.
Berating myself, I leaned against Blackstone's leg and gazed out across the plains. The blast had wiped out even the sparse patches of grass that had managed to grow here. A wasteland of nothing — a complete disaster. Without the Earth Spirit King stepping in, putting it back together looked nearly impossible.
"You did wonderfully."
"That's the corrected version, right?"
"Having even my sarcasm rewritten on its own is rather inconvenient."
I awkwardly swept my bangs aside. From now on, I needed to build the habit of thinking things through before I acted. Resolving to change, I stared blankly at the desolate landscape. The battle against surplus time had begun.
"Are you sleepy?"
A deep yawn escaped on its own. My eyelids kept trying to drop.
"Shall I pour you another cup of tea?"
"Thanks."
If I had nothing to do, I might as well keep my mouth occupied. This was already the fourth cup.
"You've really gotten addicted, haven't you."
Before I knew it, I'd fallen completely for tea. Another version of me had already confirmed as much, so it was only natural.
"Would you care for some as well?"
Eluke offered tea to the vampire sitting alone, apart from us.
"I'm good."
"And why is that?"
"I feel sorry for the plants that went into it."
"I see. I am no longer even surprised."
She still held to her conviction of respecting every form of life. Wipilud was crouched inside the shadow Mole had formed, fidgeting with a pebble. Vacant expression. She seemed just as bored as we were.
"If you're that bored, just go back to the village. Why sit out here when it isn't even night?"
"Because the Saintess is here."
"..."
Ever since she'd come to after fainting, Wipilud had been trying to stay near me. Mole had told her the truth about yesterday's incident. The mental training I'd intended had been far more effective than I'd expected.
"They said the Banished Saintess helps the Hero's companions. It was true."
A brightly sparkling gaze flew over and pinned me. Whatever happened to her saying she hated me?
"That good, huh?"
"Yeah. Now I can finally offer genuine comfort to the souls that come to me."
A faint smile. The first I'd seen since we met.
"My emotions have dried up again for now, but unlike before, they keep stirring. I can't wait to see when they'll come out next."
Seeing her so purely happy made me unexpectedly pleased, and a smile slipped out of me too.
"I heard you comforted the soul that went into our Mander, too."
"I did, yeah."
I'd just done the same work I used to do.
"It was nothing."
"Thank you. I'll forgive you for bringing that human all the way here."
The mercenary captain had performed his role a little too well — well enough to make a girl with no emotions angry, even. He'd been helpful, but he wasn't a quality person. If I ran into him as an enemy next time, I might not bother holding back.
"So where'd you put Lepith?"
"I dumped him somewhere far away."
What was he, garbage? Not that the description was entirely wrong. I'd given him a generous payout, so he shouldn't have any complaints. He'd have to find his own way back to Serda, though.
"I can still feel the anger I had toward that mercenary so clearly. The Saintess performed a miracle on me."
Her goodwill had climbed all the way to worship. This was starting to get uncomfortable.
"That's enough of that."
All I'd done was bring in someone who was her complete opposite to provoke her, and she was overestimating me way too much.
"The Saintess changed my life."
"I was excommunicated. Why do you keep calling me Saintess?"
"Someone must have framed you. There's no other explanation that makes sense."
A serious face spinning conspiracy theories. This wasn't just flattery — she was completely sincere.
"In a different sense, her condition has gotten even worse."
She'd completely turned into my follower. I'd solved one problem only to add another headache. I was already worried about Selen and the others treating me too familiarly. At this rate, my grand dream of being hunted down by the Hero's party was going to fall apart completely.
"Now that I think about it, that's not entirely a bad thing. I hope Lady Clitia's desires get thwarted just like this."
Sun-bask had finally crossed the line.
"You're banned from talking for a week starting today."
"Aaaah, I'm sorry! I was wrong!"
Ignoring the pleas, I turned my gaze on Wipilud, who was about to open her mouth again.
"There's a Saintess among the companions chosen alongside me, right?"
"Of course."
The next-generation Saintess was residing at the Sun Court under the Church's protection. Given her location, she'd probably be the last companion to join.
"I want to work with the Hero's party now."
The resolution I'd been hoping for.
"Why the sudden change?"
"I can ask the Saintess to pray for the dead every single day."
For someone with the spirit-sight, that was definitely an appealing arrangement. Though the Saintess — my direct junior — would find it a bit annoying.
"If you join the Hero's party, you'll have to kill a lot of demons and monsters. You okay with that?"
A question to test her mindset. The true final step of the mental training.
"I understand now. There are lives in this world that shouldn't be protected. To prevent unjust deaths, you have to fight death with death."
I nodded in satisfaction. Final pass.
"From now on, focus only on your work with the Hero's party."
A Guardian contracted with countless spirits, including Mole, a High Spirit. A force with a powerful presence was about to be added to the Hero's party. She still had plenty of rough edges, but she'd fulfill her role well enough. Spirit magic packed considerable power just by overwhelming with numbers.
"Then I'd have to abandon my plan to become the Vampire Lord."
"No need to rush."
I had a rough idea why Wipilud had been chosen as Guardian.
"Think about what happens if a vampire performs brilliantly as a member of the Hero's party."
Perceptions would surely shift, little by little. It wouldn't change overnight, but it would gradually get better.
"The Goddess wants to eliminate discrimination, too."
Human, dragon, fairy, vampire elf. That also explained why this generation's Hero party was composed of such diverse races. Harmony. Wasn't Her intention for them to stop fighting and warmly take each other's hands? Truly gracious, as always. In that case, I needed to actively participate in the Goddess's will as well.
"Meanwhile, I'll hunt the pureblood vampires."
Those things were practically demons. Rather than clasping hands, they needed a fist swung at them.
"You're planning to kill them all?"
"Not all of them — just some. I need to leave the ones who'll actually listen when you become Lord."
There was a chance a few exceptions existed. Ones who weren't gentle like other elves, but steadfast — like our master.
"You understand what I'm saying?"
"I understand."
"Good."
I downed my tea with a satisfied heart. I had a good feeling about this.
"I'll go tell the boss."
"Alright."
Wipilud started to stand, then sat back down.
"I want to know what kind of person the Guardian who was your companion was."
"..."
"Is that not okay?"
"No, it's fine."
It didn't require deep consideration.
"He was the one who led our party in the Hero's place."
The previous Guardian, Logan. The eldest of our party and our reliable pillar. A bright, cheerful personality. An expression that never lost its smile. A way with words that could resurrect even a dead atmosphere like a ghost. Most of the flowers of laughter that bloomed on our journey were Logan's doing.
It was a party composition that left no other choice. Liam the Hero was only interested in booze and women. Erin the Sage was still young and spent most of her time depending on me. Ivar the Great Warrior was a taciturn training fanatic. And I, the Saintess, had a bone-dry sense of humor. So Logan ended up having to take the lead and pour energy into us. He was so lively he never found it bothersome — he actually enjoyed it.
"Thanks to him, we rarely had any mentally tough times."
"What about his spirit magic?"
That seemed to be the question she'd really wanted to ask.
"His talent wasn't particularly outstanding. You're an elf, so if you put in a little effort you'll catch up in no time."
"I see."
"So train hard."
Wipilud nodded and headed back to the village with Mole.
"It feels like another child has been added to the Banished Saintess Orphanage."
"Tell me about it."
Surely even the Saintess wouldn't think well of me. The Goddess had told her to stay away from me, so there was no way that would happen.
"But why did you lie?"
Eluke asked casually as she collected the empty teacup.
"Saying Logan's talent was nothing special? About the most gifted spiritist in history?"
The truth was, Logan had been a genius who'd completely rewritten the framework of spirit magic. He'd kept it to himself, and in the end he'd died to the Demon King.
"So I should've told the truth and crushed her spirit?"
"I spoke without thinking."
A growing sprout needed to be nurtured with care.
"Anyway, let's get ready to hunt some vampires."
"Understood."
It was time to launch a large-scale mosquito extermination.
A barren plain. A place already bleak was steeped, in an instant, in a sinister aura. Black smoke rose and touched the sky, carrying a fierce grudge directed at someone — with the force to devour the sun drifting leisurely above. The space itself was swallowed by a formless energy. The earth trembled. The wind died.
At the center stood a knight clad in pitch-black armor. A being who carried a darkness that contrasted with the bright light of day. Liam stood motionless, planted heavily in place.
Search every inch.
Countless swarms of Corpse Locusts generated from within his body scoured the desolated stretch. The newly chosen Guardian of this generation was definitely somewhere around here. He had to find them and reveal the Goddess's true nature. They needed to be awakened to the truth.
Soon after, the will of a subordinate unit was transmitted. Good news.
"Clitia. You were here too."
Liam coated his sword with the venomous energy surging up from within.
A grotesque, wheezing chuckle leaked through the cracks in his split face. He believed, at least, that he himself was smiling brightly.