Ch.67Confession (2)

    The snow was dyed with silence.

    Melina wore a troubled expression as she gazed at the full moon.

    “I’ll be going somewhere for a while.”

    With those words, Olivia disappeared. Melina couldn’t stop her.

    “How long will it take?”

    “I’ll be back within a week.”

    It was gratifying to know she was trusted enough to leave her disciples in her care, but letting her go so easily was another matter entirely.

    Who knows what might happen when she goes.

    But…

    “Please help me just this once.”

    Melina let out a deep sigh.

    ‘When she looks at me with those eyes, how could I insist on going with her?’

    They say no teacher can win against their student, and Melina was the perfect example.

    Melina felt inexplicably melancholic.

    *****

    “There will be a brief inspection. Everyone, please exit the carriage.”

    Olivia observed the scene below from the sky. Since the sun had long set, there was no worry of being detected.

    The path to the Holy Kingdom wasn’t difficult. If she had traveled by land, it wouldn’t have been so easy, but fortunately, Olivia was a mage.

    ‘This is why I became a mage.’

    No matter how superior warriors’ physical abilities might be, when it came to travel speed, mages were far superior.

    “Your identification?”

    “Ah, no… I must have it somewhere.”

    “Go back. Those whose identities cannot be verified cannot enter the Holy Kingdom.”

    All such troublesome procedures could be skipped with a single spell.

    Olivia entered the Holy Kingdom in an instant.

    Thud.

    As she spread her magical senses to survey the surroundings, the area was filled with the clanking of armor. But Olivia’s expression showed no concern.

    ‘The Holy Kingdom is truly the Holy Kingdom.’

    The security was so tight that one might mistake it for wartime. Surprisingly, this was the Holy Kingdom’s normal state.

    ‘Even with personnel reduced for the Pope’s escort, it’s still this tight.’

    [Paul]

    – Level: 43

    – Job: Holy Knight

    – Title: Official Holy Knight

    Those patrolling in the late dawn were all Holy Knights. Befitting the Holy Kingdom’s knights, their levels all approached those of the senior mages of the magic tower.

    Among the hundreds of Holy Knights visible nearby, not a single one was dozing or neglecting their duties.

    One would expect humans to at least engage in small talk.

    Of course, Olivia knew the reason.

    It was because of the Holy Kingdom’s doctrine.

    Aither, the Goddess of Light whom the Holy Kingdom believed in and followed, bestowed blessings and divinity upon her believers while simultaneously imposing duties and responsibilities.

    Duty and responsibility.

    That was why these Holy Knights could maintain such rigid postures.

    It wasn’t that great power comes with great responsibility.

    Rather, great power is given to those who bear great responsibility.

    That was the principle of Aither, the Goddess of Light.

    ‘Aither is quite clever.’

    At first glance, it might seem like the priorities were reversed, but that wasn’t the case.

    Those who entered the order simply to gain power couldn’t endure for long and dropped out.

    It was impossible to shoulder responsibilities beyond one’s capacity.

    That’s why apprentice Holy Knights learned about fulfilling responsibilities and duties before anything else. The same applied to apprentice priests.

    This was the secret to how the Holy Kingdom had avoided corruption for the past few centuries.

    ‘Not that there aren’t any who have fallen.’

    Anyway, the tight security was all thanks to that.

    “Whoosh!”

    Olivia moved without hesitation. By the time the Holy Knights sensed something amiss and turned their heads, Olivia was already gone.

    ‘Hmm.’

    Before she knew it, Olivia was standing on a building’s rooftop.

    Drip.

    A droplet formed at the tip of Olivia’s finger. After infusing it with a bit of cold energy, a familiar-looking spirit was created.

    The spirit quickly multiplied into dozens. As Olivia waved her hand, the fingernail-sized spirits scattered in all directions.

    ‘Now, where might she be?’

    Just as she was sharing vision with the spirits:

    “Lady Irene. The night is deep.”

    A familiar name reached her ears.

    “No matter how fervently you pray, what use is it if your body suffers? So please…”

    “How can I sleep when Livga is fasting?”

    “Lady Irene…”

    “If you insist, I’ll only hear confessions until the next person.”

    Olivia directed all her spirits toward Irene. It seemed she had just finished hearing confessions and was taking a brief rest.

    But wait.

    ‘Livga is fasting?’

    The farmlands of the Holy Kingdom were truly blessed beyond comparison. Not only the yield but also the quality was incomparable to other regions.

    In such a Holy Kingdom, the meaning of fasting was singular.

    Voluntary abstinence.

    Olivia’s head slowly turned backward. There stood a mountain so high it seemed to touch the moon.

    “…Of all places, the Hall of Repentance?”

    Olivia furrowed her brow.

    She couldn’t help it.

    The mountain where the Hall of Repentance was located was under the Goddess of Light’s prohibition.

    A prohibition that equally prevented the use of any power, be it holy power, aura, or magical power.

    Of course, a sufficiently powerful individual could offset the prohibition to some extent, but that didn’t mean they could be completely free from it.

    After silently eavesdropping on their conversation, Olivia recalled her spirits.

    According to the gathered information, Livga was currently using the Hall of Repentance alone. She had even obtained the Pope’s approval to avoid disturbances.

    For an entire week, no less.

    ‘…’

    Suddenly, two people crossed Olivia’s mind.

    The first was undoubtedly Melina. And the second, surprisingly, was Calliophe Linesel.

    They had one thing in common.

    And that was…

    *****

    Livga remained silent.

    “Hello, Saintess.”

    She prided herself on having faced and forgiven many sins.

    As the Saintess, Livga was unable to leave the order except in special circumstances. Yet, the reason she could face numerous sins was simple.

    It was thanks to confession.

    The sacrament where one confesses sins to God through a priest and receives the grace of forgiveness.

    Since the Saintess was also included in the broader category of priests, hearing confessions was one of Livga’s duties.

    She had met so many people. From a 7-year-old child abandoned by parents to prominent figures from various countries.

    Since humans are creatures who commit sins throughout their lives, the types of sins they committed were diverse.

    There was a Duke. Despite being renowned for his excellent character, he beat three servants to death in his mansion.

    Without any reason.

    Since the servants’ parents weren’t told the cause of death, they repeatedly expressed gratitude to the Duke, who provided them with generous condolence money.

    Serial murder.

    Deception.

    But she forgave him.

    She kept it as a secret deep in her heart.

    Because her God would have forgiven him.

    There was a knight. He was a warm-hearted person who donated half of his wealth to help the impoverished.

    But he had raped eight civilians and buried them alive.

    This too was a terrible sin, but she forgave him.

    Because judgment is rendered by God.

    And, there was a mage.

    “Lady Livga. May I help you?”

    She was a person whose heart was as beautiful as her appearance.

    She always respected the weak and never put herself forward.

    She was closer to the goodness that the God of Light pursued than anyone else.

    But…

    The screams from that day echoed in her ears. The screams of tens, hundreds of thousands dying in agony.

    Livga bit her lip.

    ‘I don’t want to forgive.’

    Her heart wavered.

    Livga lowered her posture even more. She clasped her hands more earnestly. Without stopping for a moment, she confessed her sins to God.

    As someone who had been the Saintess, she hated someone to the point of wanting to kill them, regarded someone as an enemy, and couldn’t love that enemy like her own body, let alone forgive them…

    It was all sin.

    Every single bit of it was sin.

    A human so full of sin had no right to be the Saintess.

    She didn’t want to forgive Olivia. She couldn’t forgive her.

    She had prided herself on having faced and embraced countless sins.

    But, Olivia alone…

    At that moment.

    She sensed a presence behind her.

    ‘…Is it Lady Irene?’

    She had asked her not to come.

    Livga calmed her emotions. Irene had nothing to do with her current anger. She couldn’t take it out on her.

    But the voice that reached her was completely different from what she expected.

    “Lady Livga.”

    Livga’s eyes widened as much as they could.

    What…!

    Livga’s head whipped around. There was no one at the main entrance.

    ‘Was it… an auditory hallucination?’

    Livga jumped to her feet and looked around. No matter how many times she checked, the result remained the same.

    She was the only one in the Hall of Repentance.

    ‘…’

    Livga sighed, holding her head.

    Even so, to hear hallucinations…

    It seems she had been more affected by her than she realized…

    “Lady Livga.”

    “…!”

    Livga’s body flinched.

    This wasn’t a hallucination.

    She heard it clearly with both ears.

    The old confessional.

    From inside, the voice of her enemy was heard.

    “I’ve come to make a confession.”


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