The Saintess's Mad Collection of My Foot Jelly Dolls
The training grounds of the Imperial Palace's knight corps.
In what had once been a crisp, clear space filled with the sharp clacks of training swords and energetic shouts, today there was only a heavy, earth-shaking sigh that seemed to shake the very ground.
“Haah….”
Demian stood there, dragging the training dummy across the floor with a weary drag.
His shoulders hung slumped like a wet puppy, and his usually neat hair looked disheveled and dull today.
“Kyuuung~”
Why is he like that?
“Your Highness, you really should continue your sword training….”
“Quiet. What good is a sword anyway? My heart was already cut to pieces.”
Demian tossed the dummy aside and collapsed onto the bench with a heavy thud. His expression was more desolate than that of a people who had lost their country; he kicked at the pebbles scattered on the ground with a hollow rhythm.
Constant sighs mixed with grumbles spilled from his lips.
“Everyone else has one of them—Father in the study, Sister in bed, the Tower Master in her arms….”
His resentment was aimed squarely at the white tiger doll that had been delivered yesterday.
A rare and lifelike Blanc doll crafted by Saintess Lina from the saintess’s collection of the divine beast’s shed fur.
That precious doll had somehow bypassed the crown prince.
“What did I do wrong this time? Did I tickle him because he was sleeping and his nose was twitching? Or was it because I tried to pet his belly and he snapped?”
Demian sank into serious self-reflection.
“I… I want one too….”
As he bowed his head in defeat, his hair drooped listlessly. The sight was unbearably pitiful.
Watching from the shade of a distant tree, I clicked my tongue.
“Kyuu…”
Isn’t it strange how he’s so fixated on fake fur when real stuff is right here?
I chewed the dried meat stuck between my toes and stared at Demian.
Honestly, Demian had treated me pretty well. Every time I arrived he brought the finest snacks, and when I napped he even shaded me from the sun.
It was a little pitiful, though.
Looking at that slouched back made my heart soften. My butler dignity was in serious trouble.
I set the meat down for a moment and waddled toward the bench.
“Haah… I just wanted a doll….”
Thud.
Something warm and heavy settled against his thigh.
“…?”
Demian lifted his head. Right in front of him was the soft, fluffy face of Blanc.
“B-B Blanc?”
I didn’t say a word. I headbutted his side with my head and then rubbed myself against him slowly and deliberately.
Scrub… scrub…
My soft fur brushed his armor and clothes, making a satisfying clicking sound.
“Kyuuung~”
There—real service. Beats a fake doll, right?
I patted his back lightly with my tail to comfort him. What do you need a fur doll for? The real thing is right here doing the head-rubbing.
“…!”
Demian’s eyes widened in shock.
“B-B Blanc… are you comforting me?”
“Rrrr…”
Yeah, buddy. Stop chasing the knockoff and enjoy the real deal.
I answered with a rumbling in my throat and gave his chin a quick lick.
“Ooh… Blanc! You’re the best!”
Demian’s eyes sparkled with life again as he reached to hug me.
I ducked out of the way in a flash. Where do you think you’re going?
“Yes! What’s the point of a doll when there’s this warm, fluffy belly right here!”
I rubbed my rear against his knee once more, then turned away. I only do this when I’m truly missing something.
Lina watched the warm scene from behind a pillar, hidden.
Even the Crown Prince is this heartbroken…
She hadn’t refused to give him one out of spite.
She simply hadn’t realized she was short one. But to think the Crown Prince would look this devastated, and even the divine beast himself would step in to comfort him…
Her conscience as a priestess prickled.
This couldn’t continue. Hoarding was greed that contradicted the goddess’s teachings.
Lina made her decision and stepped out from behind the pillar.
“Your Highness…”
“Hm? The saintess? What brings you here?”
Demian greeted her with a brightened face. Lina glanced at me cautiously before speaking softly.
“Could you… come to my private prayer room with the divine beast? I have something to show you.”
“Prayer room? What is this about?”
“Kyuu?”
If it’s the prayer room, no one else besides Lina is allowed in, right?
“The divine beast must come too. There’s something I must show you that only he can see.”
The solemn light in Lina’s eyes made my ears perk up. A holy relic? Is it food? Or another cat tower?
I couldn’t resist. I tugged at Demian’s pants. Let’s go.
The Saintess’s Private Prayer Room in the innermost depths of the Princess Palace annex.
Normally a sign reading “In Prayer” hung on the door, barring all access to this forbidden zone.
Lina stopped at the entrance, her hand trembling like she was about to open a Pandora’s box of disaster.
“Don’t… be startled. It’s still being tidied….”
Kiiick—
The oil-smooth door swung open, and the moment I and Demian saw what lay inside we froze solid.
“……”
“……”
This… isn’t a prayer room.
It’s a scene of madness.
The moment I stepped inside, shelves crowded the walls. Dozens of me stared down from them.
Countless lifelike dolls made of my fur filled the entire room.
“Kyuuuung…?”
It wasn’t just the quantity. The details were terrifyingly realistic—every toe pad, every whisker, every tail curl perfectly recreated.
Even in the center of the room, a massive Blanc statue crafted from bundled fur stood enshrined on an altar.
“Kyuu…”
This is heresy, isn’t it? Worship of idols? Really?
Goddess… is the saintess the only one left? Seriously?
“What… is all this…?”
Demian’s voice shook violently.
“I… I have been gathering the divine beast’s fur in secret and creating these… holy relics.”
Lina’s face flushed as she answered in a voice barely above a whisper.
“You said you were short on fur, right?”
“Ah, that’s… it’s because I was making personal collection pieces…”
Lina avoided my gaze.
I dropped the meat I was holding. Crazy.
A chill ran down my spine—the same terrifying premonition I’d felt when I first met Kailian.
This woman is serious.
Those dolls… she didn’t secretly pluck my fur while I was sleeping, did she? With Kailian? Could she have entered the princess’s chambers?
Or maybe she picked up every single one that fell to the ground?
Both possibilities sent a shiver down my spine. This wasn’t faith anymore. This was pure madness.
I looked up at Demian. He was giving me the exact same horrified expression. His eyes screamed one message.
Run.
As if we had agreed, we slowly turned to look at Lina.
It’s better that she’s the saintess than… than anyone else. I don’t even want to imagine what would have happened otherwise.
Reading our eyes, Lina startled and waved her hands frantically.
“O-oh, no misunderstanding! This is pure faith! I pray for the empire’s peace every night while looking at these little ones!”
“Praying… to a doll…?”
It really was idol worship, wasn’t it?
Demian asked warily.
“The divine beast has to sleep at night, so these are substitutes so I can see him!”
Lina rambled desperately to explain herself. Sweat poured down her face.
Her mind raced. If this continued, her saintess image would be ruined.
She dashed to a display case and snatched up a doll.
“Here, Your Highness! Take this!”
She forced the lifelike doll of me lounging arrogantly with my paws under my chin into Demian’s arms. The quality was insane.
“This… I didn’t have enough fur to make it… yes, it’s a special limited edition, so it’s late… you understand, right?”
Lina’s eerie gaze froze Demian and me in place for a moment.
“Divine Beast, please look! Look at this. I made it to worship the divine beast. It’s not weird at all. You understand?”
“Kyuuuung… kyuung~”
Yes! I know! I know…
I slowly backed up and hid behind Demian.
“Anyway! I’ve given you the gift, so now you have to leave! I-I need to finish my prayer time! I have to perform purification rituals!”
Lina’s face was about to burst as she started shoving us toward the door.
“Wait, saintess! We need an explanation—!”
“Out! I’m locking the door!”
Klang!
The heavy door slammed shut.
Click.
Only after the sound of the lock engaging from inside reached us did I finally exhale. Truly… this was the most terrifying moment of my entire life so far.
We stood there for a long while staring at the closed door in silence.
From inside, faint sounds of Lina’s rough breathing and muttering drifted through.
Swallow.
Only after swallowing hard did I realize I was still in reality.
Demian slowly lowered his head and looked at me.
He knelt on one knee and placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Blanc…”
“Kyuu.”
“Listen. This is advice from the crown prince—and from your family.”
His trembling hand stroked my head.
“If… the saintess tries to sneak up on you at night or approaches with scissors…”
Demian’s eyes burned with both anger and resolve.
“Shout. I’ll bring the knights to save you.”
“……Kyuuung.”
That sounds like it would happen.
“Got it? That woman is dangerous… your fur might not even be left.”
I stared blankly at him for a moment, then slowly nodded.
“Kyuu.”
Got it. I’ll remember.
I shuddered at the doll clutched in Demian’s arms.
But she did keep it, huh?
Tonight I would hide deep inside Kailian’s bed. I’d make sure the door was locked tight.
Demian hugged the doll close while constantly glancing back to watch the prayer room door.
We fled the corridor with an uneasy sense of dread in the air.
“Haah… I still haven’t been caught on that one…”
Behind us, Lina’s voice echoed faintly.