Chapter 4
Translator: True Detective
[Let's Educate the Saintess - 03]
I was stretching, loosening up my stiff body.
Since coming to the capital, I hadn't engaged in any notable real combat, only training, so my slightly stiff muscles might be surprised in an actual fight.
As I warmed up more diligently and seriously than usual, the Saintess quietly watched me.
The Pope was also watching with concern, but she didn't exactly stop us.
The Saintess was probably feeling dumbfounded.
This Saintess understands that she is strong.
Until now, for whatever reason, she must have crushed everything with her overwhelming power, so she has no reason to fear anything.
Violence wasn't something enjoyable for the Saintess, but she treated it merely as a suitable tool to shut up and eliminate anything that annoyed her.
Right now, it's fine because she is isolated from society thanks to the Pope. But later, when she begins to truly interact with society, there won't be as many things that go her way as she thinks, and there will be many occasions where she must endure, observe etiquette, and acquire social skills.
When that moment comes, there is no guarantee that she won't become a villain who tries to crush everything with power again.
Just handle everything annoying with power.
To make matters worse, she lacks empathy, so she doesn't even know why that is a bad thing.
It could be said to be a rather bad case, but fortunately, she hasn't crossed the final line yet, and moreover, she is just a young girl.
If it's now, it might still be reversible, and depending on how things are done, it might be possible to somehow equip her with at least a level of social skills.
Right, it might be possible.
I didn't have the certainty that it was possible either; it was just a mindset of giving it a try for now.
The existence of the Saintess held a symbolic meaning for the Goddess Religion, and since there were many who viewed the existence of the Saintess itself as proof of the Goddess's existence, if the Saintess were in this state, things would become troublesome in various ways.
Furthermore, there was a sufficient possibility that she could go beyond just being a troublemaker or a menace and become a real villain. If that happened, it would be an event that could shake the religion in many ways.
For the sake of peace, the Saintess must somehow be made to possess a minimum level of social skills, keeping her at the level of just a 'Saintess with a bad personality.'
Because one's innate nature cannot be changed, it would be difficult for her to have a good personality, let alone become a good person.
"Will you really be alright? You could get hurt. No, you could die."
The Pope asked, looking at me with concern.
"Please do not worry. Depending on the situation, the Saintess might get hurt a little, will that be alright?"
I intended not to inflict any wounds as much as possible, but depending on what the Saintess does, she might suffer some injuries.
"It does not matter. She can recover quickly anyway."
"Is she capable of self-healing as well?"
"Yes."
"Phew, she is a child whose future is becoming more and more frightening. If she were incompetent, there wouldn't be a need to worry this much, but she is far too competent. I can understand your concern, Pope."
"……."
If just one of the countless ordinary people not in the position of a Saintess had been born with that kind of nature, it wouldn't be that big of a problem.
Of course, they could join a criminal organization and commit evil deeds, but it would end strictly within the limits of what an ordinary person can do.
However, the Saintess in front of my eyes right now, Anastasia Lacroix, is different.
Overwhelming power.
Talent.
Explosive potential.
She was equipped with everything.
'Self-healing is much more difficult than healing others; is she capable of achieving that at that young age?'
Because healing essentially works by transferring one's mana to others to influence them, surprisingly, many people feel awkward about the act of transferring their mana to themselves and fail to learn it properly, taking a considerable amount of time to master it.
Therefore, if it was said that a cleric was capable of self-healing, it meant that person was an expert to the point where they could make a living off that profession with just that skill alone.
Even without any information about that person, at the point they were capable of self-healing, it was a level where one could already evaluate them as an 'excellent person.'
"Huu."
I let out a breath and stood in front of the Saintess.
"Shall we confirm the conditions one more time? If I win, you will quietly listen to my education and obey my words until you come of age, Saintess."
"On the contrary, if I win, you will stay in that position as a scarecrow of an educator, and you won't bother me until I come of age……. Right?"
"Yes."
"Good, let's finish this quickly."
The game I proposed to the Saintess was a simple, yet somewhat violent method.
Sparring.
I just had to win a head-on sparring match.
The condition was not to kill.
Since there was nothing else, the Saintess would probably try to launch an attack that would blow off at least one of my limbs. And right about now, she must be feeling dumbfounded.
My mana capacity must be visible.
Because I wasn't hiding it on purpose.
The Saintess, having seen my mana capacity, would have understood the difference between it and her own mana, and judged that she could easily beat me.
In reality, even at this point, the Saintess had many aspects where she was superior to me, and if looking purely at overall abilities, it was an undeniable fact that the Saintess was superior.
Mana capacity.
Firepower.
There was a vast difference between the Saintess and me in all innate aspects, and since the Saintess would become even stronger as she grew, she could even dream of becoming the strongest creature existing in this world, not just the strongest among all Saintesses in history.
That is why she is careless, and that is why she never considers the possibility of losing to me.
A pure monster who has only ever used overwhelming violence to wield it against others.
That was the Saintess's current state.
'I told her not to kill, but she'll probably try to inflict a wound capable of causing permanent damage to my body.'
"Here I go."
"Yes, let's begin."
Light wavered.
An absurdly fast casting speed, but the concentration unique to light magic seemed to be required.
Now that I've confirmed it, that's enough.
Boom!!
The light, possessing physical force, cornered me.
As I moved quickly back and forth across the sparring grounds, the Saintess frowned and moved her hands rapidly, making the light spread out.
I could understand that the lights flying at me like waves would tear my body to shreds the moment they touched me.
Originally, light magic didn't have many offensive spells, and many were specialized against the undead or evil things, but this Saintess was using light magic suitable for fighting a person, as if she instinctively understood how to use it.
'These are techniques she has never been educated on?'
Her precision was higher than most wielders of light magic in the field.
Boom!!
"It grazed you."
"Usually, this isn't called a graze."
My arm was torn and blood was flowing down, and it was also flowing from my forehead.
The offensive power is immense.
It was an absurd power, enough to create the illusion that I was fighting a monster rather than a human.
My eyes gleamed at the overwhelming talent that made all the 'geniuses' I had met so far look like ordinary people.
If this could be made to shine, how many people could she save?
I knew I shouldn't be thinking about other things in the middle of a fight, but she was just that overwhelming.
Depending on how this jewel was crafted, it could save countless people.
Conversely, it possessed the potential to kill more people than anyone else.
"You move quite well. Like a rat."
"……."
"It's annoying if you keep running away, so I won't miss this time."
As the Saintess gestured, the surrounding lights wavered, completely blocking off any room to escape.
The mana, which seemed to burst as if running wild, was definitely being controlled by the Saintess, and before long, it had eliminated even the spots I could run to.
Perhaps because she had developed a tiny bit of interest in me, she forgot the rule 'Do not kill' and was excitedly using her techniques.
In terms of technique, she was not at a level where anyone could teach her at this point.
However.
Sometimes, experience is more valuable than innate technique.
"……!"
The Saintess's eyes widened, seemingly feeling a momentary sense of incongruity.
One of my eyes shone with a different color.
I charged straight in and swung my sword, and the light magic scattered around as if breaking.
"What, the?"
The Saintess showed a flustered face for the first time, and I aimed for that opening and dug inside her guard.
When the Saintess tried to use light magic again, I used light magic first.
"Shine."
Flash!!
"Ugh!"
I wasn't at the Saintess's level, and my healing magic was at best on the level of treating minor wounds on others.
I couldn't perform self-healing, and my light magic wasn't my specialty to the point that it was difficult to even stop the bleeding of a severe injury.
A Holy Knight, yet light magic wasn't my specialty.
It sounds somewhat contradictory, but unlike priests, the conditions for becoming a Holy Knight did not require knowing how to wield light magic.
"My eyes……!"
The light, which spread similarly to a flashbang, posed no threat whatsoever, but facing it head-on would hurt the eyes quite a bit.
The ability to cope with sudden situations mostly comes from experience, and no matter how outstanding one's talent is, they fail to cope properly when something beyond their expectations occurs.
The reason talented people usually lose is a lack of effort and a lack of experience.
Conversely, filling just those gaps would make them a perfect entity who would never lose to most people.
"……!"
The Saintess backed away, fumbling with her face.
It seemed the Saintess's eyes were regaining focus.
'Can she even wield the power to reverse status ailments, not just wounds? Truly, she possesses all the powers befitting a Saintess.'
But I had already closed the distance enough, and the Saintess had yet to regain her composure.
She seemed unable to properly cope with a situation occurring for the first time.
As the Saintess raised her hand again to activate light magic, I threw what I was holding right in front of her nose.
Her gaze was drawn to the bladed weapon that suddenly appeared before her eyes, and I did not miss that opening.
"From now on, I will commit a discourtesy against you."
"What?"
Grab!!
I grabbed the Saintess, who had one hand raised, by the neck and tackled her backward.
"Ugh-k!"
While holding the Saintess down, I placed her in a chokehold, trapping her arms along with her neck.
She struggled and tried to use light magic, but the light magic formed above the Saintess's palm and then dissipated.
Her casting speed for light magic was absurd, but light magic was an attribute that demanded more concentration than any other magic.
A person accustomed to such situations might be able to pull it off, but as the Saintess, who had eaten well and lived well in this place without ever experiencing a fatal wound or the sensation of nearly losing consciousness, she would be unable to gather the light.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
Time passed.
The sky is blue.
"……Haa, uh."
I released the restraint just like that and backed away.
"Haa, cough! Cough! Haa……. Hah……."
The Saintess rubbed her neck and coughed several times while gasping for breath.
It seemed the Saintess also understood that she would have fainted if I had kept that up for just a few more seconds.
Although blood was flowing from my forehead and arm, considering it was the price to pay for a decision victory against a monster of this level, it was cheap.
I looked at the Saintess and smiled.
"I have won, Saintess."
"……."
There was no frustration or anger in those eyes.
It just seemed as though an interest in a new stimulus was wavering within them.