Chapter 67
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Everyday Life Together is Strange (3)
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Passing noon, the sunlight beaming down from its highest point in the sky only looked warm on the surface, its place quickly stolen away by the winds blowing in from all around.
A cool breeze wove between the buildings, and amid the streets where people bundled up tightly hurried along, two figures slipped in unnoticed.
Having finished our peculiar outing at the department store, we now scanned our surroundings as hunger stealthily crept up on us.
"Hmm~ Arsius, what should we grab to eat? I'm so curious about the food here."
Seren draped one hand over my arm while rubbing her stomach with the other as if to emphasize her hunger, asking me that.
Her curiosity, unbroken from home to the department store, felt so childlike and utterly adorable.
"Want to go for something pricey? Steak, seafood, whatever Seren's craving."
"Hm..., honestly, nothing in particular sounds good. And you know how it was in Pretoria—we'd grill bugs when we got hungry. Well..., we were basically high-status beggars, hehe~"
Back when we roamed the demonic realms and fought nonstop, we'd run out of rations and end up roasting the bugs clinging to monster corpses.
I'd even tried monster meat once, but the thick demonic energy leaking out nearly killed me with stomach pain. When you're starving, who cares if it's monster or whatever—you just eat. It was a memory (not that I wanted to remember) of me sneaking bites alone and getting chewed out by Seren.
"Then..., let's just wander and pop into whatever looks good."
"Yeah, sounds good. Let's stroll around the streets while we're at it!"
Seren took the lead, heading off toward some unknown street, and I was simply dragged along by her hand.
The downtown streets buzzed with quite a crowd, even though it was still too early for rush hour.
The subtle white noise flowed quietly—not quite boisterous, with only the occasional children's laughter drifting lazily by—creating just the right atmosphere for a leisurely walk.
Even as the cold air settled in, it didn't feel all that chilly. The dense forest of towering buildings around us, the cars passing between them, and the warm energy emanating from the people walking nearby all blended together.
We simply held hands, soaking in the vibe to the fullest.
"Hmm~ I've been thinking this since earlier, but the air here is refreshingly murky. It's so thick, but without any mana or demonic energy mixed in... Feels fresh, but kinda not?"
Seren took a deep breath in and out, tilting her head curiously.
"The divine power has definitely weakened too.... It was already cut in half, and now it won't even gather properly—kinda worrying, right? How about you, Arsius? You okay?"
Seren asked me while flickering divine power over my hand a few times. She must have been feeling the drop in her strength since both mana and divine power were so faint compared to Pretoria.
"Same here. Tried using some divine power and mana in a gate last time, and it ran out after 4 or 5 uses. Gotta use the efficient stuff wisely."
"Eek~ Isn't that way too tiny? Hmm..., should we build an Evgenia Church here...?"
That might replenish the divine power a bit....
She mumbled to herself, her face lost in thought.
"You'd get dragged off as a heretic. We won't need to use our powers much anyway, so just eat and play."
I said that and stroked Seren's head.
It was a habit I'd had since she was young—a remnant of those days when I'd pat her head because she always seemed lost in thought, desperately holding back, and it made me feel sorry for her.
"Ah, I'm not a kid anymore!"
Seren pouted and shot me a glare at my touch, but...
"Should I stop then?"
"No! Keep petting me!"
When I tried to pull my hand away, she hurriedly grabbed my wrist and placed it back on her head.
This was another habit we'd kept up for ten years.
"Hmm~ Feels all cozy since it's been a while~"
Her beaming smile and humming were just too cute.
As I started looking around, figuring it was time for lunch, I spotted a family approaching from afar.
Out on an outing with Mom and Dad, the kid's excited laughter rang out. Watching them bounce along holding their parents' hands, expressing joy with their whole body, brought a smile to my face.
"Seren, isn't that kid coming our way super cute?"
"Huh? Where? Oh, the one hopping around? Must be thrilled to be out with their parents~ Yeah, kids are the cutest like that."
"Right? Nice to watch."
"Nice to watch?"
Seren's eyes sparkled as she asked.
"Yeah. Isn't it?"
I wondered why she was asking out of the blue and asked back.
"Then... wanna make us look nice too?"
It hit me like a truck.
".... Saintess, have mercy. Remember your position before you speak."
"I'm not the Saintess anymore~?"
Her mischievous grin poked at my side, driving me nuts.
"No..., you still are."
"I retired. Don't even believe in God anymore!"
No, you have to believe. He's the generous one who's filled you with divine power all this time....
As I turned my head to dodge Seren's playful face-thrusting, a child's bright giggle—kya rruk!—came from ahead.
The kid slipped free from their slowly walking parents' hands and came dashing forward first, ignoring their cries to be careful, hopping along with an innocent smile.
But as the child ran ahead, away from their parents, they tripped on a stone.
"Uh-oh...? The kid can't get hurt!"
Seren hurriedly chanted a prayer.
Divine Protection
A gentle light enveloped the falling child's body, protecting them.
The child, who had squeezed their eyes shut and curled up, felt no pain despite the fall and looked around in bewilderment. Their parents rushed over and helped them up.
Seren shot me a playful wink at the sight of the child grinning brightly at their worried parents.
"Hmm, I did good, right~?"
"As expected of the Saintess. You showed off God's grace perfectly."
"Ah...! But I don't believe in God anymore!"
Too late to deny it now.
We resumed walking forward, and the child instinctively looked toward Seren.
They alternated glances between their unscathed knees and Seren, tilting their head.
So Seren waved at the dazedly staring child.
"Glad you didn't get hurt~"
She pulled down her tightly wrapped mask just a bit to smile, and the child stared wide-eyed before running into their parents' arms.
At that, the child scampered over to us and bowed deeply—so deeply it seemed like they'd touch our legs. Adorably so.
"Pretty big sis! Thank you!"
Their bright, warbling voice like a little bird was music to the ears.
"You're welcome~ Be careful next time. Big sis can't always watch over you."
"Okay, big sis!"
The child beamed and passed by us, and we exchanged greetings with the parents before continuing on our way.
I simply patted the still beaming-with-pride Seren, wrapping up our pleasant lunch on a high note.
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"Haa~ So full. Gukbap, was it? Looked just like the beggar slop from back then, but it was so good."
Seren patted her belly, daring to compare gukbap to beggar chow.
"Apologize to the tens of millions who love hearty gukbap."
"Huh...? But it looks the same...? And Arsius, you wolfed down beggar slop with me back then too—what's with the apology? You were the one pounding your belly saying how filling it was...."
Says the even bigger beggar.
Seren stared at me like I was ridiculous, and I averted my eyes to gaze at the PC bang instead.
"Seren, wanna try gaming?"
"Changing the subject smoothly, as always."
If she knows, couldn't she let it slide a little?
"Ahem, there are tons of games you can play on those computers like the one at home? Super fun."
"Pfft~ Fine. Let's go play games. Oh, but Arsius sucks at games."
"No, I don't. That was a board game. I can win this one."
Yeah, I got absolutely wrecked.
"Hey, what do we say in situations like this? Sio taught us!"
"No."
"Ah! Arsius, rice-for-brains!"
No, what kind of saintess wields a blade and slaughters like that?
She got the hang of it quick and beat my character to a pulp.
Thanks to that, I trudged home sullenly as evening fell.
As we opened the door and entered, Karin approached to greet us.
"Ah, Hero, Saintess—did you enjoy your outing? I prepared dinner in case you might be hungry. Please, come in.
"You made dinner too? We could've just ordered delivery—no need."
"How could I? Homemade is far more reassuring than outside food. I'm so sorry if my humble skills made it too modest...."
She was already doing us a huge favor by preparing dinner, yet Karin bowed apologetically.
"No need to apologize. Perfect timing—I'm hungry. Is it set on the table?"
"Yes, this way."
She took our outer clothes and led us to the dining table.
Following Karin, the table was laid with a full 24-course banquet.
I stared blankly at the array of mountain and sea delicacies covering the table, their colors gleaming brilliantly. Where on earth did she get all these ingredients?
"Modest, huh."
And "sorry," she said.
"It's for the Hero and Saintess..., all because of my lacking skills."
Lacking? Modest? Sorry about what?
Two beggars, fresh off gukbap for lunch....