Everyone present fell completely silent.
Well, of course they did.
If the Saintess suddenly declared she was quitting her sacred pilgrimage to settle down in some random rural village, “surprised” didn’t even begin to cover the reaction.
Naturally, Grana was the first to snap out of the shock.
“W-What are you saying, Raphiel-sama!?”
“My journey ends here.”
“That’s absolutely unacceptable!! You carry the sacred duty of a Saintess!”
“Couldn’t care less. Starting today, I shall become a member of Eight’s household.”
…No, seriously, that was a massive problem for me.
“P-Please stop joking around!! Come now, we’re leaving at once!!”
“I refuse. I’m resigning as Saintess.”
“…Fwah!?”
“If I cease being a Saintess, then there should be no issue, correct?”
Raphiel casually announced her resignation from one of the most important positions in the kingdom as though she were discussing the weather.
W-Wait a second!!
Saintess wasn’t the kind of job you could just casually quit, right!? Right!? There had to be procedures or something!!
“THERE ARE SO MANY PROBLEMS WITH THAT I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO BEGINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!”
Grana completely exploded.
It was such a pure, soul-shaking scream of anguish that it almost felt refreshing.
Exactly!!
There were problems everywhere!!
Yet despite Grana’s emotional breakdown, Raphiel remained perfectly expressionless as she calmly began her counterattack.
“Then allow me to ask you the opposite, Grana.”
“W-What do you mean…?”
“The bath last night was wonderful, was it not?”
“Hyah—!”
Without making a sound, Raphiel suddenly appeared beside Grana and whispered directly into the knight’s ear.
Apparently Grana’s ears were sensitive, because the armored warrior violently twitched on the spot.
“The shampoo thoroughly cleansed the scalp and left the hair refreshed. The conditioner made the hair silky and smooth.”
“Guh…!”
“The body soap left the skin soft, while the hot spring warmed the body all the way to the marrow of the bones. And afterward, the fruit milk after bathing was delicious, was it not?”
“Gah…!”
“You were also deeply moved by the cleanliness of the toilet and the existence of the washlet. Personally, I found that sensation dangerously addictive.”
“NUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!! I WAS TRYING NOT TO THINK ABOUT IT!! I WAS DELIBERATELY TRYING NOT TO REMEMBER IT BECAUSE THE REST OF THE JOURNEY WOULD BECOME TOO PAINFUL OTHERWISE!! RAPHIEL-SAMA, YOU DEMON!! DEVIL!! DARK LORD!!”
Grana collapsed to the ground and repeatedly slammed her forehead against the earth with enough force to dent the helmet.
Ah…
The armor actually caved in a little.
Also, was it really okay to call the Saintess things like demon and devil?
“I’m literally the Saintess,” Raphiel pointed out calmly. “Afterward, we enjoyed curry and slept in fluffy futons.”
“T-That’s…!”
“During pilgrimage journeys, camping outdoors is common. Naturally, one must remain wary not only of monsters but also of bandits and thieves. As my escort, you have undoubtedly endured far greater physical and mental exhaustion than I.”
“Ugh…”
“How was it, then?” Raphiel asked softly. “Your first proper night’s sleep in a long while?”
Grana was utterly destroyed.
The knight had been completely defeated.
“Uuu… B-But if another Saintess completes the pilgrimage first, you may lose not only the chance to become a Divine Child, but even your qualifications as a Saintess! Are you truly fine with that!?”
“I’m,” Raphiel answered instantly. “I’ve never been particularly attached to the title of Saintess in the first place.”
“Eh!?”
“To begin with, I never wanted to go on this pilgrimage at all. Traveling is nothing but exhausting, and the food along the way is terrible.”
…Well, she wasn’t wrong.
Pilgrimages in this world weren’t leisurely sightseeing trips like modern tourism.
The standard meals were rock-hard preserved rations barely fit for human consumption. You couldn’t properly clean yourself without a nearby river, and bandits could attack at any time.
There was nothing remotely enjoyable about it.
“Therefore,” Raphiel continued, “starting today, I shall reside in this village. Please take care of me, Eight.”
“No, I refuse!! Why are you acting like being taken care of is already guaranteed!?”
Raphiel tilted her head slightly, her face utterly blank as though she genuinely couldn’t comprehend my objection.
“Eight. I’m a beautiful girl.”
“Well… yeah, that’s true, but—wait, what does that have to do with anything!?”
“You would be living beneath the same roof as a beautiful girl such as myself. Perhaps exciting romantic developments may even occur. Surely that’s fortunate?”
“Damn it!! It’s hard to argue because you really are beautiful!!”
Fine, I admitted it.
Raphiel was stunningly beautiful.
Even after subtracting points for the absurd narcissism of saying it herself, she was still overwhelmingly gorgeous.
If an ordinary guy got to live together with a girl like that, most people would absolutely call it luck.
But—
Raphiel was the Saintess.
A woman ranked directly beneath the king himself.
If I started living together with someone like her, there was no telling what kind of trouble would come crashing down onto my head.
No.
This was the moment for me, a proper Japanese man, to firmly say no.
“Saintess-sama, I’m terribly sorry, but—”
“Incidentally, if you refuse, I shall report to the temple that you’re a Hero chosen by the gods.”
“…Eh?”
My body froze solid.
“Hypothetically speaking,” I asked slowly, “what would happen if you reported that?”
“Without question, the temple would dispatch people to retrieve you. After enduring severe training, you may eventually be sent to fight against the Demon King’s army. Your life would certainly be placed in danger.”
“……”
“You may choose whichever future you prefer,” Raphiel said calmly. “A heroic life as the chosen Hero… or a peaceful daily existence spent near a beautiful girl such as myself.”
“Fu… hahaha.” I suddenly laughed.
Then, without hesitation, I bowed at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
“Please stay as long as you like!!”
“My complete victory.”
Raphiel flashed a double peace sign with absolute composure.
Damn it!!
Why did that somehow feel so frustrating!?
If this was how things were going to turn out, I never should’ve told them I came from another world.
Back when I told the villagers—including the chief—their reaction had basically amounted to, “Huh. Okay. Anyway.” So I’d completely lowered my guard.
“Even so,” Raphiel continued, “I’m not shameless enough to expect care without contributing anything in return. Please lend me one empty room.”
“That’s fine, but what exactly are you planning to do? This house is filled with memories of my grandfather, so I’d rather not have it turned upside down.”
“I possess healing magic. Therefore, I intend to establish a small clinic so I may treat the sick and injured whenever necessary.”
“…Honestly, that would help a lot.”
Papel Village was tiny, but as long as people lived here, injuries and illnesses were unavoidable.
Having even a small clinic in the village actually sounded incredibly useful.
At that moment, the village chief quietly muttered to himself—
“A village where even a former Saintess heals illnesses and injuries… Heh heh heh… this will surely attract people from all over…”
This old man—
He’d gone quiet because he was already calculating how to use Raphiel staying here for village promotion purposes.
Seriously, his survival instincts were absurdly strong.
“Eight,” Raphiel asked, “what are we having for lunch today?”
“Hm? Oh, there’s still some leftover curry from yesterday, so maybe I’ll turn it into curry soup.”
“Curry soup!! Even hearing the name fills me with excitement.” Raphiel nodded in satisfaction before glancing toward Grana. “That aside, Grana, please stop wallowing in despair and recover already.”
“Ugh… V-Very well. I shall report Raphiel-sama’s intentions to the temple. You understand what that means, correct?”
“Do as you wish.”
…Please.
Please let this be the end of the trouble!!
◇ ◆ ◇
At the grand temple in the royal capital of the Kingdom of Elde, chaos had already begun to spread.
“Have you heard? Apparently Saintess Raphiel-sama may abandon her pilgrimage journey.”
“W-What!? Is that true!?”
“A letter arrived this morning from her escort knight, Grana-dono. I heard it directly from one of the priests, so there’s no mistake.”
“Come on, if even Raphiel-sama drops out this early, then who in the world will complete the pilgrimage?”
“There are other Saintesses, yes… but none possess blessings from the gods as powerful as hers. The entire race to determine who shall become the Divine Child has suddenly become uncertain…”
The temple priests whispered anxiously amongst themselves.
And slipping elegantly through the noisy crowd was a single woman carrying an enormous amount of luggage.
She was beautiful, with vivid crimson hair that swayed behind her like fire.
“There’s no way the perfect Saintess whom everyone admires—Raphiel-sama—would ever abandon her pilgrimage…” the woman muttered obsessively to herself. “Something must have happened to her!! I must save her!! Anything that obstructs Raphiel-sama’s glorious future, I shall personally eliminate!! And once I do… surely Raphiel-sama will finally return my feelings!!”
She was a blind devotee of the Saintess Raphiel.
No—
More than a mere believer, she was a fanatic.
A zealot willing to destroy anything and anyone that dared corrupt the woman she worshipped above all else.
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