Chapter 22: Illusion or Reality: Questioning the Saintess

“…I can’t say I don’t understand.”

If I am the Saintess, everything makes sense…

It’s an interesting claim.

“But Saintess,”

“Yes?”

“How will you prove that you are a sentient being?”

The Saintess seemed flustered and started sweating.

Her lost eyes darted around.

A succubus’s illusion.

I’ve experienced this phenomenon once before.

An illusion so close to reality that it’s almost impossible to detect.

Last time, I was able to break the illusion because something nonsensical happened, but…

If she uses my memories like this, wouldn’t I die without even knowing?

How do I know if this Saintess is the real Saintess, or just a whore?

“…Ugh. You’re having some very rude thoughts.”

The Saintess whispered, her white face flushing red.

I’m having legitimate doubts.

I’ve done nothing wrong.

The Saintess sighed deeply and clasped her hands together.

A clear prayer posture.

I crossed my arms, nodded my head, and said nonchalantly,

“I don’t know about this.”

“Really…just wait and see.”

As the Saintess’s hands began to glow,

a flood of information poured into my head.

Information about a past I couldn’t possibly have.

The birth of the Saintess.

How wonderful would it have been if it were a cozy house with a red roof and a windmill on a green plain.

It would have been even better if it were within the Holy Kingdom, where all devout believers are protected.

But this Saintess was not born in such a place.

“…What is this?”

This Saintess was a child found among the corpses of demons when Duke Inverness Regal was fighting a great battle. Not just any great battle, but the ‘Northern Liberation Battle,’ which remains in the history of the empire.

The Sauvignon region in the north was the area closest to the demon world.

Therefore, it was also an extremely harsh place for humans to live.

There were few people because of the cold comparable to snowy mountains, the poor farming conditions, and the lack of beautiful scenery.

Sauvignon was just a place for people to hide their identities or for criminals to hide.

That’s why the empire didn’t deploy many knights there, and so the Sauvignon region was invaded as soon as the demon invasion began.

When the argument that demons must be completely driven out after a long war was dominant, the last battle was the Northern Liberation Battle.

When countless demons and humans were killed.

When mountains of corpses and a sea of blood were formed.

The Saintess was found in that hell on earth.

Barely alive, used for the demons’ healing.

“Every part of her body except her hands was bound with barbed wire, and countless marks of beatings… Those damn demons.”

Inverness Regal sighs quietly and readjusts his sword.

His young face, unlike now, feels strangely familiar.

“Wait a moment, child.”

I will deal with all these demons.

As soon as the Duke finished speaking, the death throes of the last remaining human soldier could be heard.

There are roughly more than ten thousand demons. On the human side, only Inverness.

But strangely, I feel at ease.

More than at ease, I feel confident.

This man will definitely protect me.

He is someone who has surpassed the level of Sword Saint.

Someone who understands the sword so well that he has become the sword.

The sword bends at a strange angle.

The orange aura slowly follows the sword, illuminating the darkness.

“Salut Swordsmanship, First Form…”

“Gladius Perdere (Lost Sword).”

The annihilating sword is swung.

The compressed aura approaches, as if to tear even space apart.

And the demons disappear.

It’s only natural.

To him, demons are things that disappear when cut with a sword.

After defeating all the demons, he cuts the thorns binding the little girl.

And touches her body, covered in blood, with her own hand.

Fwoosh-

With a small light, still faint, all her wounds disappeared.

“As expected…you are the Saintess.”

Inverness quietly kneels and offers his hand to me.

A helping hand, and an invitation.

“I’ll tell you first. There is a way to heal children like you, and there is a way to heal anyone who is sick…anyone with power.”

“But if you choose the second path, you will gain honor, and if you choose the first path, you will have to hide your identity and stay in one place.”

“Which do you prefer?”

Is he crazy?

Asking such a question to a child who looks about twelve years old…

Swipe.

The girl raises one finger.

A clear expression of her will to choose the first path without a word.

“Ah, I see. The last Saintess was her eyes, the one before that was her ears…so you lost your tongue.”

Inverness smiles and carries the Saintess on his back.

“I will help you until you become the academy’s health teacher.”

 

***

 

“Haha, I’ll take that as a yes.”

Inverness feels the young Saintess, my hand, touching his head and smiles.

And the scene changes to his mansion.

“What name do you think would be good?”

The Saintess, fresh from a bath, was breathtakingly beautiful.

Her pure white silver hair was not just holding light, but slightly reflecting it, and her blue eyes, though having lost some of their brilliance, still shone brilliantly,

harmonizing beautifully with her clear skin.

When she grows up, she’ll definitely become a beauty.

The most beautiful in the empire…no, the continent.

The Saintess carefully held up a sketchbook.

“[Rei]”

“Hmm…any other names?”

“[…Reiel?]”

“No, why are you so insistent on including Rei?!”

As I was having a trivial argument with Duke Inverness,

his wife entered.

“What are you doing? You could just give her a name yourself.”

She laughed, her green hair disheveled.

She’s a truly beautiful woman.

As I looked at her yellow eyes, I remembered that she was deceased in the present time.

How unfortunate…

Regal couldn’t have failed to protect her, so she must have died of an illness.

For such a healthy-looking woman to…

“Haha, is that so?”

“[I want to be called ‘Il’Rei’la.]”

The seemingly warm atmosphere was shattered, and silence fell over Duke Inverness’s room.

A simple, yet clear intention.

“Fine, do as you please.”

Duke Inverness took Cecilia’s hand, smiled, and left the room.

The Saintess quietly raised her hand and stared intently at it.

Explosive divine power surged within her hand.

I…no, the Saintess thinks.

‘Why did God give me this power?’

‘And even cast a curse that makes me think my tongue was taken, even though it wasn’t.’

…?

What is the Saintess thinking?

The moment I tried to listen more closely,

my vision went black.

“I suppose this is proof enough? Ileia.”

“Saintess…no, it was me.”

I sighed and thought.

What came first, and what is real?

Life on Earth after the Saintess’s life. And then now?

Or is it all jumbled up?

“Well, I’ll tell you about that later.”

The Saintess says to me with a small smile.

“It’s time for you to go back now, sleepy Saintess.”

W-

What.

This bastard.

“What’s a whore who sleeps with students saying?”

“…You know it’s you, right?”

…F*ck.

I lost.

“You’re awake? I was worried.”

“Yes, I was worried, heretic.”

As soon as I woke up, I saw Serenade and the Headmaster.

The Headmaster was openly frowning, and Serenade’s eyes were slightly teary.

“…I’m sorry for worrying you.”

I apologized while holding my aching head.

Since the trauma was a device that slowly inserted the Saintess’s memories into my head, it wasn’t strange that my head ached.

By the way…

“My blood, was it calm this time?”

“Don’t even ask. It was a rampage.”

The Headmaster pointed to the spot where I had collapsed.

A knife made of blood was stuck in the ground, still shaking.

“…I apologize.”

“So, heretic, what memories did you have?”

Hmm…

It would be a bit much to tell a Holy Kingdom native about the Saintess, wouldn’t it?

“It’s nothing worth mentioning.”

“Tsk…how stingy.”

The Headmaster laughed heartily as if he wasn’t even curious and said to me,

“Hahaha! That’s right. A man has a past he hides from women!”

…I shouldn’t explain.

My head hurts even more.

Now that the trauma is over,

there shouldn’t be anything else left.

Ah, right.

The demons are focusing on me, they said.

I have to deal with that too…and the dinner appointment can wait.

“Alex.”

“What’s wro…what’s wrong, Ethan?”

Ethan said, clutching his red hair,

“Did the teacher forget about us…?”

“No way. Teacher Raven wouldn’t do that.”

There’s no way a crown prince would have attachment issues.

Is this kid a bit obsessive?

Damn it. I can’t concentrate with the Crown Prince next to me.

I closed the book and said to Ethan,

“I can’t concentrate because of you, so let’s go find the teacher toge—”

Bang!!!

As I was speaking, the door burst open with a loud crash.

This is the club room we prepared.

We haven’t even advertised for club recruitment yet…

Who is it?

“Are you looking for your teacher?”

This voice…

“Arthur, Head of the Disciplinary Committee?”

Close to the position of Sword Saint, the dream of all swordsmen.

A modern-day hero!!!

“Ah, it’s you. I came in because I heard you calling for the teacher…not really.”

Senior Arthur’s eyes suddenly drooped.

Although it’s hard to say this to a senior, he looked a bit like a puppy caught in the rain.

“Sigh…I heard you were having dinner with the teacher, so I came to see if you were his favorite disciple.”

“…Why do you care, senior?”

Ethan snapped at the senior.

“O|| +?”

“I’ve had dinner with the teacher before, so I just came to…chat.”

Senior Arthur widened his eyes slightly and then said to Ethan with a smile.

Ethan narrowed his eyes suspiciously, then looked straight at Senior Arthur’s face and said,

“…Even if it’s not dinner, would you like to go to a cafe together after this?”

Huh? Suddenly?

I looked at Ethan with a puzzled and protesting look.

Ethan looked at me and mouthed the words,

‘Arthur’s ideology needs to be verified.’

…? Serenade clicked her tongue and looked disappointed.