[Saintess for You - 16]
[Saintess for You - 16]
"Let's talk for a moment."
"Hm? Sure."
I said, looking at the Saintess-nim.
The Saintess-nim looked at me while drinking black tea.
"What about that Infinite Cult?"
"They are currently being detained. Since the necrosis was stopped by the Saintess-nim's power, they are scheduled to be transported to the Royal Capital with us."
"I see. And the bracelet?"
"It will also be moved with us and sent to the Magic Tower to have its condition examined. Since there are experts in that field there, it might be possible to find out more."
Since it was a tool that forced mana amplification while causing all sorts of side effects, it was definitely a matter for the Magic Tower.
This was because one of the things the Magic Tower did was to properly investigate and prevent the misuse of such magic tools.
In the first place, the Magic Tower was established to prevent people from not knowing magic properly or understanding magic tools, and to somehow reduce the accidents caused by that.
Although it now had an image of gathering somewhat arrogant people, they surely hadn't forgotten that fundamental mindset.
"Right, I'm glad things seem to be settled. You were praised by the villagers as the best, Saintess-nim... and you received thanks from Ed's family over and over again. Since you were even acknowledged by the grandmother, who can practically be called the true owner of this mansion, I think this action to raise your reputation was quite good."
"That is so."
"So... don't scold me."
"Pardon? Scold you?"
"Hm? You weren't going to scold me? Your expression looked a bit heavy, so I naturally assumed I was being scolded for being reckless by saying that this incident happening before going to the forest looked good for raising your reputation?"
"No. If you had said it in front of everyone, that would be one thing, but otherwise, there's no need to scold you. I know better than anyone that the Saintess-nim is not someone who is good to the core or possesses a goodness that has truly reached the point of madness."
A person's inner thoughts are not that important.
There's a reason for the saying 'ten thousand thoughts pass through one's mind.' In any situation, people think of countless possibilities, set up countless hypotheses, and have countless delusions.
Because people want to know that they don't dislike something, they think even more deeply about that part.
In the forest at dawn with no one around, the sound of grass rustling often sounds unpleasant for no reason.
As such, humans are animals that imagine, fantasize, contemplate everything, and think, so even a person with goodness reaching the point of madness has hesitations, and there were really many cases where they had ugly thoughts inside.
Results are spoken by actions.
Whether you caught monsters and saved people for money.
Whether you saved people out of genuine goodwill.
Or whether you saved them because there was someone you liked among those you saved.
Either way, a good deed is a good deed, and there is no reason for it to be treated as foolish.
Therefore, no matter how indifferent, pessimistic, or negatively the Saintess-nim views people on the inside, if it doesn't show on the outside, it is not judged.
"Saintess-nim, you cast a barrier in that forest."
"I did."
"That was a dangerous action. If there had been additional monsters, I wouldn't have been able to protect you, and the Saintess-nim would have been attacked. And if you were attacked while overexerting yourself like that, there was a risk that you would have died instantly because healing magic wouldn't have been cast in time."
For example, getting bitten on the neck.
For example, getting the head or heart pierced.
It was a common occurrence to die instantly without being able to use healing magic because of taking damage so quickly that one couldn't even think.
Monsters also learn, so they often target those parts that can cause fatal wounds, which is why it happens a lot on the battlefield.
Especially since priests often don't have very high direct combat power, it was easy for them to fail to react to a sudden surprise attack and die.
"Yes."
"I educated the Saintess-nim to make you judge that living kindly like this is beneficial. I wanted you to think that rather than living wickedly and selfishly, it is more beneficial to at least outwardly be mindful and live in harmony with others..."
"That's right. You were the only one who knew my nature and didn't try to change it. You tried to hide it and make sure it wasn't discovered with a mask called acting. It was very novel, and it didn't feel bad because I felt accepted."
Right.
I understood up to that point.
I had also thought about the possibility that the Saintess-nim, who had been half-denied her very existence until now, had accepted my words as an affirmation of her existence.
I thought it was fully possible, and the reasoning leading up to that was natural enough that I could accept it.
Since it was common for people to be saved or fall in love because of a single word that no one else had said to them, a 'single word' had more ripple effects than one might think for the existence called a human.
Perhaps it might even be called a single moment.
"Saintess-nim, you tried to protect people there, taking the risk that you might die."
"......Hmm, I did."
I smiled.
"The goodness within you is now becoming a matter of course. I am so happy about that."
"......."
For the Saintess-nim, 'being good' was becoming common sense, and everything that acted not good was becoming 'nonsensical'.
Like the natural daily routines of waking up in the morning, eating, finishing work, and going to sleep, everything was becoming 'natural' for the Saintess-nim.
That could be said to be much more fortunate than what I had hoped for.
I thought it was really fortunate that we met in childhood.
As I think every time, it was because it was childhood that I could change that thinking, and it was possible to leave a space in that heart.
However, if we had met after becoming an adult, that nature and all those things would have become 'common sense' and 'natural' for the Saintess-nim, so no matter what I said, it wouldn't have worked.
There was a very high possibility that she would have become what is commonly called an 'absolute evil' or 'pure evil' existence.
Of course, since I am not a prophet, nor a person from the future, maybe she just luckily wouldn't have become such a bad person.
But with that nature, the possibility of her causing trouble was definitely high.
Therefore, the Saintess-nim's current appearance could be called a part of a miraculous possibility, and that was the happiest thing of all.
"Therefore, I would like to tell you what the Saintess-nim is concerned about."
"What I'm concerned about?"
"Because it seemed like you were concerned about what I was concerned about."
"How did you know?"
"Ha."
I laughed.
"As much as you are getting to know me, I am also getting to know you."
"......."
The Saintess-nim opened her eyes wide and looked at me.
Every once in a while, whenever the Saintess-nim made that face, she looked like a girl of her age.
"I know that the Saintess-nim wants me."
"Well, I've never hidden it."
"I was worried, to be honest."
"You're not talking about the age gap, are you?"
"Of course, that part is by no means a small problem."
It was truly a pity that the term 'twelve-year age gap' didn't exist in this world.
Because there is rarely a word that can intuitively convey an age difference as well as that.
Anyway, I was 27, and the Saintess-nim was 15.
When the Saintess-nim turned 20, I would already be over 30, and no matter who looked, that age was perfectly fine to call an 'old man.'
Honestly, depending on the person, there were some who classified my current age as an old man too.
I was really concerned about social perception, and to be blunt, if asked if I had ever seen the Saintess-nim as a romantic interest, it was a bit subtle.
Perhaps it was because in my eyes, she was still closer to a young girl.
"The moment the Saintess-nim gets me, in other words, the moment I accept the Saintess-nim... I was worried that your enthusiasm or interest would cool down there."
"......Oh, I see. In other words, you want to say this, right? Because I haven't obtained you, I'm working hard to cater to your whims, but once I actually obtain you, I don't need to cater to you anymore, so I might act selfishly again?"
"In the worst case, I even thought about the possibility that your interest in me itself would be cut off; even if not that, there are many people whose interest cools down just by obtaining something."
There are many people who carelessly store jewelry or valuable items they wanted so much.
There were plenty of cases where people who sang about love so much saw their enthusiasm and devotion drop compared to when they were courting after they started dating or got married.
There was no guarantee that this wouldn't apply to the Saintess-nim as well.
The Saintess-nim was silent for a moment, then stood up from her seat and approached me.
Hmm.
I could have understood if she got a little angry, asking how I could know her heart.
Therefore, I thought I might get hit depending on the situation, but the Saintess-nim looked up at me with a calm face.
"That's surprisingly a plausible statement, isn't it?"
"Ah, you are objective about that part?"
"I still don't know about my own emotions, so I can't completely deny the possibility that it might really happen. But, well, if I had to say, many things are becoming natural to me."
"......."
"Thinking that everything I considered foolish is for your sake makes me happy."
It was quite burdensome that all value judgments revolved around me.
Even more so because that person had no judgment of good and evil and didn't even know the value of life.
And that person possessed the power to fight a nation alone.
Everything seemed to be giving me a headache.
"So."
"So?"
"I will be a Saintess for you."
"......."
I stared blankly at the Saintess-nim.
"As long as you wish for it, that is. ......Well, you'll still be anxious, right? I don't know the future after that either. But I can promise the present. So please do your best. Make more things natural, so that I can remain a good person. So that I can remain a Saintess for you."
"......You are arrogant, and a law unto yourself."
"Yes, that's right. That is exactly who I am."
I thought my assessment that she was an innately arrogant queen was definitely correct and the best way to describe the Saintess-nim.
"To be honest, the Saintess-nim does not look like a woman to me yet."
"Wait, I'm going to grow more."
It's not a joke, but the time should be coming soon when growth plates close and she won't grow any more.
For some reason, it felt like the Saintess-nim would grow more.
It didn't feel like just her appearance or atmosphere would mature, but that she would physically grow larger.
"Let's think about it after you become an adult first."
"Right, so. ......Don't try to run away from me after you become an adult."
"Hmm."
"Hey, you're supposed to answer here!"
But, Saintess-nim.
Sometimes the way you look at me is very scary.
It wasn't a joke; it was a gaze filled with sticky emotions as if I were going to be eaten.