episode_0125

“Huuuh… I slept well… Ugh… Sleeping indoors really makes me sleep soundly… Huh?”

For the first time in a long time, I woke up feeling refreshed after a truly restful sleep. But the sight that greeted me upon waking… *gasp*… left me dumbfounded. What is this? Am I still dreaming? Why is the door shattered… and outside… what?!

“…Th-that… surely… it’s a p-person, right? B-but… it looks like… just an arm… Aaaaaah?!”

Realizing that the object lying isolated on the guesthouse floor was a human arm, I was utterly horrified. Why on earth was there a human arm here?! And where had Aria gone?! Unable to hide my bewilderment at the sudden situation, I headed out of the room. And then…

“…What is all this?”

The scene outside the room was even more horrific than the single human arm I’d seen inside. The corpses of people with shattered heads lay scattered everywhere, and the floor and walls were broken. As I stared, lost in the gruesome spectacle, I noticed something strange about the corpses and looked around.

“What is this? There are so many corpses, but no blood? Wait… these corpses… they’re not people…”

They’re dolls. Not corpses, but dolls. Realizing this, I immediately ran out of the building. Seeing many dolls sprawled on the ground in gruesome states, I looked around and realized something important.

“…! The fog is gone…”

The fog was gone. Outside, the fog had been so thick that the village was invisible, and inside, the sky hadn’t been visible either. But realizing that the fog had completely vanished, to the point where the stars twinkling in the late night sky were clearly visible, I speculated about what had happened while I slept… No, as soon as I stepped outside and saw this situation, I immediately understood.

“These dolls must have attacked me, and Aria must have dealt with them herself… And she must have gone outside to defeat the puppeteer controlling these dolls… But these dolls… they look exactly like the villagers I saw yesterday… Does that mean everyone I saw yesterday was actually a doll?”

I immediately realized that everyone had been a doll, and when those dolls attacked me, Aria had saved me from them and gone to defeat the puppeteer. Because if I assumed that Aria, seeing me in a deep sleep, had intentionally not woken me so I could rest comfortably, then everything made sense. But…

“Where on earth is Aria?”

I couldn’t predict Aria’s whereabouts, which was the most important thing. She was clearly either fighting the puppeteer or chasing after them… So I wandered around the village, searching for a place where Aria or the puppeteer might be, and when a colorful tent on the outskirts of the village caught my eye, I didn’t hesitate and went straight inside. And then…

“Hehehe~ Zeke-nim~ I’ll go! I should get praise~!”

“…Did you call me?”

“…!! Aaaaaah~! Zeke-nim~!!!”

Inside the tent, Aria, filled with elation at the thought of receiving praise from me, lifted both arms high and ran towards me, embracing me tightly. Ugh… look at all the dust on her clothes… How fierce was the fight…? Wait… these clothes…

“…Why are you wearing my coat…?”

“…!! Ah… Ahaha… Th-this is…! W-well… there was a r-reason for it… Hehehehe… S-sorry!!”

As if she’d forgotten she was wearing my coat, Aria was startled when I asked why she had it on, then apologized to me. Hmm… So Aria had this kind of preference… I had no idea she had such a taste… Or maybe…

“If you want that coat, just take it… You bought it in the first place…”

“Ah… No way!! What I want is Zeke-nim’s coat, not my own! So it’s only right that Zeke-nim wears this!! So… here you go!!”

When I told her to just keep the coat, Aria insisted she absolutely couldn’t and returned the coat she was wearing to me. Hmm… well, it was cold anyway… But more importantly, why was Aria secretly wearing my coat? What was so good about it…?! Ah, that’s not the problem right now…

“So… what exactly happened? The people turned out to be dolls… What is this place… Why are there dolls here too… What kind of fight did you have…?”

“Ah! I’ll tell you everything, Zeke-nim! So, hehehe… you have to praise me a lot later, okay?”

“…Alright… Let’s find out what happened first…”

When Aria offered to explain everything and demanded lots of praise later, I agreed. Then Aria led me to a tavern. She pulled out a backpack from under a table and started taking out all the books inside. These are…?

“They’re diaries, aren’t they? And looking at the condition of the paper, I can tell… they seem quite old…”

“Everything is written in those diaries, Zeke-nim. Hehehe… This Aria collected every single book in this village for Zeke-nim!”

“Hmm… Haha, you worked hard, Aria. I’ll read them gratefully.”

When Aria triumphantly revealed that she had collected all the books in the village, I, who was checking the diaries, chuckled, patted Aria’s head, and told her she’d worked hard. Aria blushed, looking embarrassed, and while she did, I read through the diaries Aria had collected, one by one. Hmm… So that’s what happened… This kind of thing happened in this village…

“So… there was an orphaned girl named Tiavel, and she was simply living diligently, secretly observing how other people lived… and she even made dolls to try and befriend other children… but she transformed like that after meeting a certain Saintess, right?”

“Yes. And whether it was the Saintess’s doing or not, Tiavel had also become a doll. Tiavel herself had no idea, but I immediately noticed a red thread wrapped around Tiavel’s neck, and realizing that there was no sign of life from Tiavel, I knew she was a doll, not a living person.”

“…Do you know where that child is now?”

At Aria’s words that Tiavel was also a doll, I asked Aria where Tiavel was. Aria then led me back to that tent and meticulously explained what kind of fight had taken place. Was the red thread inside Tiavel’s body binding her mind…? What exactly was the identity of that red thread? A power to turn people into dolls… I’ve never heard of such a power before…

“So… Tiavel is here now…??”

“…? Where is Tiavel here?”

As Aria explained the fight with Tiavel and entered the tent, pointing to where Tiavel had fallen, both Aria and I were perplexed to realize Tiavel wasn’t there. Then, a presence was felt from somewhere, and Aria, sensing something, tilted her head and mumbled.

“There’s someone behind that giant house model. I can sense a presence there too.”

“Behind the house model?”

At Aria’s words that someone was behind the house model, I went behind it with Aria. Then, a girl with brown bobbed hair making dolls behind the house model came into view, and as soon as I saw her, I immediately realized. This child must be Pier Tiavel.

“This is Pier Tiavel, right, Aria?”

“Yes, that’s right. It seems she’s returned to her human form, just as she looked when she was a doll.”

“???”

Tiavel, who had returned to her human form exactly as she looked when she was a doll, turned around when she heard Aria’s and my voices from behind. Then Aria noticed something, looked surprised, and tapped my arm, saying:

“Oh my. Zeke-nim. When I saw her before, Tiavel’s eyes were red, weren’t they? Now they’ve turned yellow.”

“Isn’t it because you removed that red thread? This might have been her original appearance. If not, well… Hello, Tiavel? No… Are you Tiavel?”

I asked the girl in front of me if she was Tiavel, with a bright smile. However, the girl presumed to be Tiavel simply set aside the doll she was making and stared blankly at us. Hmm… Could it be a language barrier…?

“*Sigh*… This is troublesome… If she’s like this, I can’t tell if she’s Tiavel or not…?”

The moment I was feeling helpless because the girl showed no reaction, she suddenly stood up and entered the house model. Then she came out with paper and a pen, wrote something on the paper, and showed it to us… Ah…

‘Sowwy. I cannot speek. My name is Pier Tiavel.’

From the words Tiavel wrote on the paper, I understood. Why it was hard for Tiavel to get along with other children, and why she never once rebelled. It wasn’t just that Tiavel was kind… she was mute… Aria also looked greatly flustered, as if she had no idea about this either.

“She spoke well just a moment ago, Zeke-nim… It might be because of that red thread too.”

“Huuuh… Alright… I understand… Anyway…”

“…!”

Confirming that Tiavel was still unharmed, I let out a deep sigh and embraced Aria with both arms. Aria was startled and her face turned red, and I patted her back as I spoke to her.

“You worked hard, Aria. And… I’m truly relieved… Even though I knew you were strong… seeing that mess, I was worried about what might have happened to you… I’m so relieved, Aria… And thank you. For doing so much for me while I was sleeping.”

“Eh… uh huh? Hehehehe… Uheeeeee…”

“…Huh?!”

As if she had never imagined I would suddenly hug her, Aria became flustered in my arms, then collapsed, her face completely red and nose bleeding, fainting on the spot. I, who hadn’t expected Aria to react so strongly, was greatly bewildered.

“Wh-what?! A-Aria?! A-are you alright?! Aria?!”

“Hehehehehe… Twice in Zeke-nim’s arms, heheheheh…”

“…*Groan*… I’m sorry, Aria…”

“…???”

As Aria completely lost her mind in my arms, I apologized to her, and Tiavel tilted her head, looking back and forth between Aria and me. Aria, who had been enjoying paradise in her dream, regained consciousness and, opening her eyes on the blanket, immediately sat up and looked around.

“Hah…!! I definitely saw heaven…!! In Zeke-nim’s arms…!! But this place is…”

“It’s Tiavel’s tent. I was waiting for you to wake up. Tiavel even laid out a blanket on the floor for you.”

“…Hehehehehe… Even thinking back, it was indeed heaven… Please do it again next time, Zeke-nim~”

When Aria asked me to hug her again, I remembered how she had completely lost her mind and fainted, and realized with my whole body that I should never do that again. Then Tiavel wrote something on a piece of paper and showed it to us.

‘Are two people a couple?’

“No… By the way, is it because you haven’t learned to write or speak…? Do you know you’re getting your sentences wrong?”

When I pointed out her sentences, Tiavel nodded, saying she knew she was writing them incorrectly. Huuuh… So this is the best she can do… Having lived such a difficult life, perhaps it can’t be helped… Knowing Tiavel’s past, I felt truly sorry for her, who had lived so diligently, and at the same time…

“Alright! Everyone wait there!!”

“…Huh?”

Aria brought a handful of something and shouted for us to wait. Uh… aren’t those cooking utensils…? Huh? C-could it be Aria…? Aria is cooking for someone else?! Seeing Aria begin to cook for the hungry Tiavel, I was greatly bewildered, and then, when Aria made meat stew and handed it to Tiavel and me, I was even more perplexed.

“Are you alright? Making food for Tiavel… Is it because you fainted earlier?”

“Hehehe… Although I’ve been a bit out of it today… I received a gift, so I feel like I should return the favor. And thanks to it, Zeke-nim even hugged me, so this is my heartfelt repayment!”

“…You haven’t changed, have you…?”

‘…..’

At Aria’s words that Tiavel had just given her a doll as a gift, and that she was merely returning the favor because, somehow, I had ended up hugging her, I let out a wry laugh and straightened my expression. Then, seeing Tiavel take a spoonful of Aria’s stew and start shedding tears, I chuckled and stroked Tiavel’s head, saying:

“Eat slowly. There’s plenty.”

When I told her to eat slowly, Tiavel nodded and began eating Aria’s stew again. Perhaps because she was finally eating food made by someone else for the first time in a long time… no, for the very first time, Tiavel shed tears and chewed every bit of the stew Aria made, as if wanting to savor it for a long time. While Tiavel ate, I was outside the village, making a sign by myself.

“Huuuh… This should be enough, right?”

Dolga, the Ruined Village of Two Tragedies

Having made a sign to announce what kind of place this was, I set it up at the village entrance. Tiavel’s tragedy and the tragedy caused by the Saintess… This village had two tragedies… By the way… what exactly is the identity of that Saintess? And what was that thread…?

“Zeke-nim! Tiavel has come to see us off!”

“…? What? See us off?”

The moment I was lost in thought about the Saintess and the thread while setting up the sign, Aria, having packed her things, came to me with Tiavel, saying Tiavel had come to see us off. I tilted my head. What did she mean, “see us off”?

“Are you going to keep living here, Tiavel?”

“Yes, she says so. She says she has a way to live here, and she won’t leave because it’s a village she’s grown fond of. She says she’ll never leave this place.”

It seemed Aria had already asked the same question, as she answered for Tiavel, having heard Tiavel’s response… Even after experiencing such a tragedy, she had grown fond of it…? As an adult, leaving a child who is only 9 years old alone in such ruins feels a bit… difficult, but…

“Alright… But… if we ever come back, will you come with us, Tiavel?”

We couldn’t dare negate Tiavel’s current decision. Because Tiavel, who was the victim here, decided it herself. So I made a promise of reunion to Tiavel, and Tiavel readily nodded, saying she understood. Then I took out necessary items for Tiavel from my backpack and said to her:

“Let’s definitely meet again, Tiavel. I’ll surely come back.”

At my words that I would surely return, Tiavel smiled sweetly and nodded. So, with Aria, I waved back to Tiavel, who was waving to us, and left Dolga. Having made a promise of reunion with Tiavel… And when dawn passed and morning arrived, Tiavel, who had been sleeping inside the tent amidst the temporary dolls she’d made, woke up, rubbed her eyes, and headed out of the tent. And there…

“Oh? This is Zeke’s handwriting? So Zeke stopped by here…?”

‘…..?’

Reading the sign erected at the village entrance and realizing Zeke had been here, a lady with long white hair in a white dress, Yuria, was encountered.

Hello, this is Photon, the author of Black Saintess, which has more published chapters than the main series, Dimensions.

Wow… I truly never imagined it would reach 10,000 reads already.

I thought it would take around 150 chapters [to reach this milestone] hahaha.

When I actually saw it reach 10,000, I screamed for a moment.

Oh my… I want to express my gratitude to all of you who have shown so much interest in Black Saintess!

…Hmm… Anyway, since this is a chat, I plan to share various stories once more.

So, where shall I begin…

**1. Chapter Count**

Currently, Black Saintess has more chapters serialized than the main series, Dimensions.

While Black Saintess has a large number of serialized chapters because I previously serialized five times a week, it’s also due to Dimensions currently undergoing a remake.

Since it’s a story that started a full 14 years ago…

However, some acquaintances have wondered if Black Saintess, being just a side story, should have such a large volume of serialized content, so I’ll explain…

Currently, Black Saintess, with 125 chapters serialized, has less than half the total serialized volume of Dimensions.

Dimensions is such an enormous novel that even Black Saintess, with over 100 chapters, is treated as a side story.

**2. Suddenly Appearing Future Civilization**

With the appearance of a character named Dio V Runner, many might be curious why a future civilization suddenly appeared.

Of course, there was already an instance where Estur flew to another dimension with a propulsion device.

In the Dimensions worldview that Black Saintess follows, everything from the future, modern, and medieval eras appears.

Therefore, it’s perfectly fine for a future civilization to appear in Black Saintess, as it follows the Dimensions worldview.

**3. What is Aria’s current condition?**

Aria is currently in an ambiguous state.

After the battle with Eli, Aria’s mental state has improved significantly compared to before…

As you know, that’s all limited to Zeke; others still remain outside her interest.

However, if it’s someone related to Zeke, she has reached the point of pondering.

**4. Missed Tags**

Actually, I couldn’t add it because there’s a limited number of tags, but this novel has a ‘growth’ tag.

Aria growing with the help of Zeke and various others is a prime example of this.

**5. Wasn’t Pier Tiavel the Part 3 Boss?**

Unfortunately, Pier Tiavel is not the Part 3 boss.

If they were the boss from the start, Aria wouldn’t have defeated them so easily.

Tiavel can simply be seen as a villain encountered in passing.

Furthermore, the main stage of Part 3 is an underground facility, so it’s still a long way until the Part 3 boss appears.

**6. Does Dio V Runner really have no real name?**

Yes.

To this day, Dio V Runner still has no real name.

Hmm… This was actually a question an acquaintance who knew the Dimensions worldview asked me, but…

Just in case, I’m mentioning it. Haha;;

**7. What abilities can Zeke Looprian currently use?**

Iruvan’s fire, the method of using demonic energy (magic power) obtained from Cecilia’s memories, and combat abilities… but all of them fall behind Aria… *cough*.

**8. What happens if Zeke dies?**

I’ll leave it to your imagination.

**9. Why doesn’t Zeke feel love for Aria?**

From before, Zeke was only interested in exploration.

As a result, he completely lost interest in romance, and consequently, Aria continues to pursue him… though everyone knows that.

If you ask why he still doesn’t feel love for Aria… he feels burdened by her excessive affection and is avoiding the situation.

However, because Zeke has always had a kind personality, he simply treats Aria gently.

**10. How far do you think this novel will go?**

To the ends of the universe.

Anyway, that concludes everything I wanted to say.

Thanks to all of you who have shown sincere interest in Black Saintess, I’m still writing the novel haha…

I ask for your continued interest in Black Saintess in the future, and I express my gratitude once again.

Thank you all very much!!!

Author: So now, it’s time for a proper hiatus… Aria: If you do, you’ll die ^^ Author: Yes, *sniffle*.