Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Please Tell Me You Could Control It
This expedition into the Demon Realm had taken about a week.
Objectively speaking, it wasn’t all that long, but for some reason this particular mission had felt unbearably drawn out.
Probably because of those damned nightmares that came every single night.
Thankfully, when I finally returned to my room in the Order and fell asleep, I slept deeply for the first time in days without dreaming at all.
Apparently a full week of sleep deprivation had pushed both my mind and body to the limit, because by the time I woke up, morning had long since passed.
“…Ah, I missed dawn prayers and training.”
I stared blankly at the brilliant sunlight pouring in through the window cracks as I muttered to myself.
Wake up at dawn. Offer prayers to the Goddess. Then head to the training grounds and loosen up with a few spear forms.
It had been my routine ever since I started life as the Saintess, and I had never skipped it once.
But today was already too late, and my body still felt heavy with exhaustion.
Since it had come to this anyway, I decided to completely laze around for the day.
I hugged the soft, fluffy blanket again and buried myself back into the bed.
“Hm… maybe the environment in the Demon Realm really was the problem.”
I rolled around in bed for a while, enjoying the warmth of the sunlight and the soft scent lingering in the sheets while staring blankly at the ceiling.
The Demon Realm was not a place for humans. It was the domain of demons and monsters.
Ordinary people couldn’t survive there.
The monsters themselves were dangerous enough, but the real problem was the demonic energy saturating the entire region.
The only force capable of resisting and purifying that corruption was divine power.
That was why anyone entering the Demon Realm absolutely had to bring at least one of the following: a priest, blessed equipment or artifacts, or a generous supply of holy water.
Ignoring those rules and walking into the Demon Realm unprotected was basically suicide through demonic corruption.
What I was trying to say was simple.
No matter how often I had come and gone from the Demon Realm over the years, it was still a horrifying place.
So having horrible dreams there probably wasn’t strange at all.
…Right?
“Fuaaah…”
After rolling around lazily for a long while, I stretched and finally got out of bed. My stiff joints cracked loudly.
After washing up, I stepped outside my room.
First, I took a leisurely stroll near the knights’ training grounds.
From the distance, Vargas’s thunderous shouting echoed across the grounds. Watching Holy Knights tumble and roll across the dirt made me smile nostalgically.
I used to get rolled around like that too.
Maybe I should stay and watch a little longer.
With that thought, I sat down on the grass and absentmindedly watched the knights suffer.
“Saintess! Great work surviving the expedition! Would you like some of this?”
A group of priestesses approached with bright smiles, handing me chilled fruit juice and sweet cookies.
I sat on the grass chatting idly with them for a while before eventually moving on again.
After finishing my little walk, I stopped by the Order’s library, picked out a few books, tucked them under my arm, and headed back toward my room.
These small, peaceful moments within the Order were one of my greatest joys.
And every time I enjoyed days like this, I reaffirmed my resolve to protect the Order no matter what happened.
In the original story, our Order had collapsed first. Pathetically. Meaninglessly.
The Saintess became Cassian’s toy. The Pope wasted away bedridden. The Knights devolved into a useless mess.
But I had no intention of letting any of that happen.
Pope Sylvester, who in the original story grew weaker by the day before being imprisoned by Cassian and dying alone.
If I remembered correctly, the story described him losing strength, becoming thinner and thinner, and eventually even going blind.
The priests called it a sacred death. They said his devotion was so profound that his soul had burned through his body.
But from the perspective of a modern person?
It just looked exactly like diabetic complications.
Think about it.
The old man had originally been a warrior, so he naturally had plenty of muscle mass. But as he aged and became Pope, his activity levels dropped drastically while his eating habits stayed exactly the same—greasy food, high-calorie meals, sweets, alcohol.
And the priests, seeing him lose energy, responded with:
“You must eat even richer foods, Your Holiness.”
Which basically meant they were feeding him to death.
So the first thing I changed was his diet.
“Grandpa, no more white bread starting today. Eat whole grain bread. And cut back on sweets, meat, and alcohol too.”
Fortunately, he already seemed aware that his health was worsening, so when I told him this could help him recover, he obediently followed my advice without complaint.
Now, instead of looking sickly like in the original story, he was as sturdy as ever.
Then there was Vargas, who originally died in an accident in the Demon Realm.
I used the excuse of my “prophetic dreams” to keep him stationed at the temple.
He seemed a little bitter about it at first, but when I told him:
“If you leave, who’s going to protect the Order? You want to hand command over to Leonid?”
…he immediately accepted it.
So Vargas was still alive too, serving as the steadfast shield of our Order.
Leonid was another case.
In the original story, he had been an arrogant piece of trash who harassed priestesses and drowned himself in alcohol every day.
But now?
Now he was different.
Because I beat the shit out of him until he became a decent person.
Sure, he still acted cheeky sometimes, but underneath that he had become diligent and dependable.
Everything was perfect.
This time, I wouldn’t be dragged around by the original story’s fate.
“Saintess.”
While returning to my room with my books, I heard a familiar voice.
Turning my head, I saw Pope Sylvester smiling warmly at me.
“Ah, Your Holiness.”
“I simply followed my feet where they wished to wander and happened to meet you. Would you care to share some tea and conversation for a while?”
“Sure. I actually had something I wanted to discuss with you anyway.”
We needed to talk about the strange abnormalities we had encountered in the Demon Realm.
Leonid had probably already submitted a formal report as vice-captain, but that alone wasn’t enough.
I followed the Pope into his office.
The room reflected his personality perfectly—simple, humble, yet somehow warm.
Once the heavy doors closed and we were alone, I immediately dropped all decorum and flopped onto the sofa.
“Grandpa, how’s your health lately?”
“Hoho, thanks to your concern, I’m still perfectly healthy. In fact, I feel more energetic than I did in my youth.”
Without others around, I spoke casually instead of formally.
After confirming the old man was still healthy, I moved straight to the main issue.
“The Demon Realm’s been strange lately.”
“I heard from the vice-captain. He said your party was attacked by hundreds of monsters even near the outer regions?”
“Yeah. And they moved almost like they were under someone’s command.”
“As though they were operating under coordinated control…”
The Pope pressed fingers against his deeply furrowed brow and fell silent.
After a long pause, he spoke again.
“There are two possibilities.”
“What are they?”
“First, stronger monsters from deeper within the Demon Realm may have migrated outward, displacing the weaker ones. It is a phenomenon that occurs from time to time.”
I had considered that possibility too.
But too many things felt off.
“There were too many monsters. And they just happened to attack us specifically? At dawn too, when people are least alert? There are too many suspicious details.”
“In that case… we must consider the second possibility. Though admittedly, it is one I would rather avoid.”
His expression darkened noticeably.
And instinctively, I already knew what he was about to say.
“The Archdemons of the Seven Deadly Sins, who have remained silent for so long, may finally be moving once more.”
The Archdemons dwelling in the deepest reaches of the Demon Realm.
If they were stirring again, then the era of peace was ending.
In other words—
The original story was about to begin.
My expression naturally soured.
“I personally believe the latter possibility is more likely. What do you think, Saintess?”
“…I agree.”
“If they truly have begun moving, then their first target will undoubtedly be the Holy Empire of Sektia. Every time they rise, they always seek to destroy Sektia first—the greatest obstacle standing in their way.”
I silently nodded.
“The servants and followers of demons may already have infiltrated Sektia’s borders.”
“We need to prepare.”
“Indeed. The Council of the Seven Holy Seats will convene soon. I shall raise the matter there.”
After speaking, the Pope took a sip of tea.
“Saintess.”
“Hm?”
“Do you know which demon stands opposite our Order?”
“Yeah. Lilith, the Archdemon of Lust.”
Among the Seven Deadly Sins, Lilith bore the sin of lust.
She was our Order’s greatest enemy.
“Correct. Though her martial power ranks among the weakest of the Seven, she is a cunning demon who prefers to destroy her enemies from within through elaborate schemes. The complexity and difficulty of her curses and sorcery are beyond compare.”
I frowned.
Schemes. Manipulation. Psychological attacks.
Honestly, she sounded like the exact opposite of me.
I preferred smashing obstacles head-on.
“If she has begun making moves, then the first targets will most likely be you, me, or the Captain of the Holy Knights.”
“We’ll have to be careful.”
Could Lilith have been responsible for the fall of the Order in the original story? For the Pope’s decline? Vargas’s death? Beatrice’s destruction?
…I couldn’t be sure.
But it was possible.
“Have you noticed anything unusual recently? Even something minor.”
“Nothing unusual…”
I stopped mid-sentence.
Because the nightmares from the Demon Realm resurfaced in my mind.
“So there was something.”
The Pope’s sharp gaze settled on me.
After hesitating briefly, I explained only the surface-level details while omitting the actual content of the dreams.
“…While we were in the Demon Realm, my dreams were bad. So bad I barely slept all week.”
“Hm… dreams are among Lilith’s domains. Though even an Archdemon should not be capable of freely controlling the dreams of a Saintess…”
…No, please.
Please tell me she controlled them.
“Still, it is possible she may have distorted them to some degree. Though such interference would only be possible while you remained within the Demon Realm itself. Her influence should not reach this far.”
“…Really?”
Hearing that actually reassured me.
Because that meant those horrible dreams might not be my future at all, but simply Lilith screwing with my mind.
…What about the dreams where I went on dates with men around the Order or acted all clingy while cuddling them?
Shut up.
“If you remain worried, perhaps you should ask the Goddess directly later. She would surely provide a clear answer.”
“Got it. Thanks for the advice, Grandpa.”
That concluded our discussion about the Demon Realm’s strange activity and the ominous signs surrounding us.
“Ah, Saintess. Have you met High Priest Bartholomew since returning from the expedition?”
“…No?”
The moment the Pope casually brought up that old man’s name, my heart nearly stopped.
Why was he suddenly talking about him?
Considering how many guilty memories I had involving Bartholomew, I instinctively started gauging the Pope’s expression.
“He has been searching for you quite desperately. He visited my office countless times asking when you would return.”
“Shit— I mean, this is bad.”
Bartholomew was definitely furious.
…But what exactly was he angry about?
Skipping theology classes?
Getting caught asleep in the bushes using thick scripture books as pillows?
Raiding the Order’s wine cellar with the Holy Knights and getting so drunk that I conducted morning mass while still half wasted?
…Actually, there were too many possibilities.
I genuinely couldn’t narrow it down.
“Hoho, your liveliness is admirable, Saintess, but please try not to torment the poor man too much. Watching his forehead grow wider by the day pains me greatly as an old friend.”
“Can’t divine power heal that?”
“……”
The Pope did not answer.
Instead, he simply wore a deeply troubled smile overflowing with sorrow.
“…It can’t?”
“……”
“Dear god.”
Even divine miracles couldn’t fix it?
An overwhelming sense of guilt suddenly crashed down on me.
Because I was absolutely certain a large portion of that expanding forehead was my fault.
‘I should stop giving the old man so much stress.’
As I left the Pope’s office, I made that solemn vow in my heart.
Though admittedly…
I had no idea how long I’d actually keep it.