Chapter 52: Establishing the Pecking Order

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The two children gathered in Sugar’s room. They sat close together, pencils in hand, scribbling something on a piece of paper.

While they were wrestling in the courtyard earlier, Guardian Cedric had called them over and handed them paper and pencils.

‘You little rascals. Come here.’

‘We need to know what happened to you that day. Talk to each other and write it down. You know how to write, right?’

‘And if there’s anything you want to talk about, come find me.’

The last part seemed directed particularly at Riley, but regardless, they had work to do. So the two of them sat together, writing their report.

“They must have run some tests while I was asleep. They detected the demon god’s mana. I’m not sure how to write this part.”

“Your mana must have been exposed too.”

“Yeah…”

As they talked, they also wrote on a separate piece of paper.

‘How do we hide the part about the book? We should erase all traces of it.’

They decided not to mention it out loud, just in case. Riley hesitated but eventually drew a circle, and Sugar continued writing.

‘Let’s write up to the part where I escaped from the altar… Then we can just say, “Suddenly, Louveci appeared…” and leave it at that. Like, one of the apostles betrayed the cult and helped us escape. Riley just came up the mountain looking for me and got caught up in the mess—something like that.’

‘The magic I used at the end is hard to explain.’

‘We’ll have to be honest about that. My mana nature is already exposed. Let’s just say I tried something and it worked.’

‘I was curious. How did you pull off that technique? Can you still do it?’

‘I haven’t tried since they took my wand, so I’m not sure. Back then, I heard a voice and followed it, but now… I think I’d need to practice or have the right conditions.’

Riley paused his writing for a moment. He seemed to be thinking, tapping the paper before finally writing a response.

‘Why did you reach out to me back then? I mean, how were you so sure?’

Sugar glanced at Riley’s face and continued writing.

‘I knew the attack would be weak if I did it alone. I figured you could help me.’

‘So you thought I could change your mana—’

Riley stopped writing mid-sentence. Sugar tapped his arm and when he looked up, she was already standing.

“Hey, where are you—”

“I’m hungry. Let’s eat first, then write.”

“…”

Riley stood up with a puzzled expression. Sugar had already opened the door and was heading out.

Is food more important than answering my question? Feeling a bit sulky, Riley followed her. As he did, Sugar whispered quietly.

“Of course I trust you.”

Why does she always do this! Riley clenched his mouth shut.

‘Come to think of it, it’s been a week since they last ate. Can people even survive like this?’ Sugar marveled as she set out to find the dining hall.

The Holy City’s cathedral was the largest on the continent, and newcomers often got lost. Of course, there were usually guides to help, but the two children hadn’t come through the proper channels, so they had no guide. They had to stop passing priests to ask for directions.

“Is that building the dining hall?”

It certainly looked like it. The smell of food wafted through the air, and it seemed to be lunchtime.

Sugar’s eyes sparkled. Her mouth watered, her body practically bouncing with excitement.

Seeing this, Riley sighed. No one else around them was running or acting carelessly. People were chatting lightly but generally moving about quietly. Sugar’s behavior stood out starkly.

“What! Kids are supposed to be like this.”

“What about them?”

Riley pointed to a group of children quietly lining up to enter the dining hall. Were they also victims of the heresy incident like Sugar and Riley? Or perhaps they were the children of the holy knights.

Either way, Sugar suddenly darted off.

“Hey…! Where are you going?”

There was no stopping her. Did she want to make friends? She confidently approached the children, exchanged a few words, and then quickly returned to Riley.

But her expression was different now. Dark and gloomy. She looked like she’d been through something. It was unusual for Sugar.

“I got put in my place…”

“What?”

“Those kids are scary… No, they’re not kids…”

What on earth did they say to her? The children were smiling and waving at her.

Sugar shook her head vigorously and clung to Riley’s side.

“You’re the only one for me.”

She nuzzled her soft cheek against Riley’s shoulder.

The sudden physical contact left Riley unsure how to react. He stiffened.

“Yah, yah, yap, yap.”

She seemed to enjoy it, making strange noises as she continued to rub her cheek against him.

What does this even mean? What is she trying to do?

The warmth and the wriggling movements were indescribably sweet. Riley glanced down at Sugar. She was frowning with her eyes narrowed, her cheeks flushed.

Sugar looked up at his face.

“What? It’s a friendly gesture.”

Her expression was completely calm. Truly a formidable opponent. No change in her expression.

Wait, her cheeks were slightly red. But she showed no sign of embarrassment, standing her ground confidently.

“Whatever.”

Riley turned his head away.

He walked into the dining hall without looking back, and Sugar followed closely behind, thinking to herself.

‘Pecking order established.’

She secretly made a victory sign.

What happened in the courtyard earlier had been a mistake. Looking at the boy’s face had made her heart race inexplicably. She managed to brush it off, but it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.

She was supposed to be the one making Riley flustered and embarrassed, not the other way around.

She was older, after all, and technically his ‘Older Sister.’ It was only natural for the elder to tease the younger.

‘Hehe.’

‘You can’t do this, can you? You wouldn’t dare, right?’

It wasn’t exactly something to boast about, but Sugar had always been a bit of a strange child.

Giggling happily, she entered the cathedral’s dining hall for the first time.

.

.

.

“Good heavens…”

Is this heaven? The food on the serving trays was modest by most standards, but for Sugar who had been eating thin orphanage soup every day, it was a luxurious feast.

Meat stew, white bread, and salad. These three things were enough to move the poor girl’s heart.

“Ah…”

She took a sip of the stew, and it seeped into her. The warm brown broth seemed to flow through her body, turning into blood and flesh. She hadn’t even started digesting yet, but she could feel it.

She tore off a piece of white bread and put it in her mouth. The bread was as soft and fluffy as Sugar’s cheeks, with a faint buttery aroma. She dipped it into the stew, and it was pure bliss.

The salad was also a delight, with fresh, crisp vegetables she hadn’t eaten in a long time. Each bite was refreshing and satisfying.

Riley, too, was quietly but diligently enjoying his meal.

“Ooh~ It’s Riley~”

Sugar teased him, spearing a bright red cherry tomato with her fork. Riley silently pinched her cheek in response. Sugar made a strange noise but continued to stuff the tomato into her mouth.

It was then.

“Finally found you… You’re already here…”

A female holy knight stumbled over to their table. Sugar recognized her—she was the one who had been with Cedric on the day of the incident. The knight slumped into a chair and buried her face in the table.

“What brings you here?”

“The captain told me to bring you to the dining hall… I went to your room, but you weren’t there… I searched the entire cathedral… Finally found you…”

They must have missed each other.

“Ah… Sorry about that.”

“No need to apologize…”

After finishing the cleanup of the heretics and handling the aftermath, she had returned to the Holy City and immediately started searching the cathedral. It wasn’t a difficult task for a holy knight, but the accumulated fatigue had left her exhausted.

“Have something to eat first.”

“Ah… Alright… I’ll give you a tour of the cathedral after I eat. You two are almost done… Can you wait a bit? Or you can go out and play.”

Just don’t go too far—she gave them options, so they decided to wait and get to know her better. The holy knight returned with a tray piled high with food. Sugar thought she ate a lot, but this was on another level. The knight consumed the massive amount of food silently, almost as if absorbing it.

“So this is what a holy knight is…”

“Why are you impressed by that…?”

Sugar whispered to Riley, who then chimed in with a retort.

After finishing their meal in five minutes, the three of them stepped outside the dining hall.

“How’s life here? Is it alright?”

“It’s warm and the food is delicious, so it’s nice. But sometimes, it feels like people don’t understand us… There are those kinds of people, so, um…”

Riley nodded vigorously beside her. It seemed he had been through a lot too.

“Haha… I get it. But that’s just how it is here.”

It made sense. The Saint was the one who spread magic across the land and drove out the evil spirits that plagued the continent. This was the resting place of a hero sent by the heavens, and his descendants still lived here. It was only natural that they would establish their own rituals and procedures to maintain their authority.

“But now, there are many free-spirited Guardians, so it’s much better than before. Back in the day, you couldn’t even breathe loudly in the dining hall. You had to enter with your right foot first, keep your head at a certain angle, and handle the utensils in a specific way… All those rituals had to be followed.”

“Really?”

It seemed that since the Guardians were the ones practically running the place, the atmosphere changed depending on their personalities. Either way, it was a relief. If those rituals were still in place, Sugar might have lost her mind.

“Were you here back then, Holy Knight?”

“Call me Sister Peko. And no, of course I wasn’t here back then. That was a long time ago. I just heard about it from other colleagues.”

Nodding, Peko took the lead.

The exciting cathedral tour had begun.

“You can tell by the size, but this is the main hall. Pretty much everything is here. That annex over there is the priests’ quarters, and that one is the children’s school.”

Sugar’s expression turned sour as she looked at the school.

‘Welcome, Sister! Are you here for a meal? I haven’t seen you before! We welcome you, Sister! Where are you from, Sister? Have you been baptized? Join us!’

“…”

Remembering the terrifying children from the dining hall earlier, Sugar turned her head away.

Then, a tall tower caught her eye. A white tower towering outside the cathedral. It was impossible not to notice.

“Ah, that’s where the Saintess resides.”

Peko explained as Sugar stared at it.

The bloodline of the Saint, passed down for two thousand years. Not the nonsense of heretics, but the real Saintess.

Sugar stared intently at the tower where such a person lived, and Riley approached her.

As if asking what she was doing, he took her hand. A completely natural gesture.

“What are you doing? Let’s go.”

“…”

Sugar subtly rolled her eyes to look at the hand. Riley, finding it strange that Sugar wasn’t moving, followed her gaze.

“…Ah.”

Whether he realized it or not, Riley clenched his mouth shut and gently tried to let go, but Sugar grabbed his hand tighter. She interlaced their fingers firmly and let out a soft ‘Hmm.’

Not to be outdone, Riley held her hand back and pressed his shoulder against hers. He couldn’t bring himself to do what Sugar had done in front of the dining hall, so he settled for something similar.

The height difference. The boy who had been slightly shorter than Sugar at their first meeting was now a full handspan taller. Feeling the freshness of the high air, Riley looked down at the small girl, who was trembling slightly.

Though this act was embarrassing, seeing her reaction made him feel oddly pleased. Smiling faintly, Riley tried to pull his hand away, but Sugar resisted.

Thus, the second round began. Holding hands, they struggled against each other.

Peko, who had been briefed by Cedric about their relationship, watched with a tired expression. Though she called for justice, her face was filled with the bitterness of a woman in her late twenties who couldn’t meet her lover due to work.

*******************

A tower so high it seemed to touch the sky.

The noble residing there sat quietly in her chair as usual. Though her face was veiled, those who had served her for a long time could somewhat gauge her mood.

“Saintess… He’s run away again…”

A priestess spoke with a hint of regret, and the Saintess, fully aware of the situation in the Holy City, nodded.

“Bring him back.”

“As you wish…”

She wasn’t particularly upset. It was something that happened almost every day, so there was no reason to be. Saintess Ione wasn’t someone with volatile emotions. If anything, she was as steady as a rock.

She simply closed her eyes, wondering when her younger sibling would finally listen.