Chapter 12. Honor and Sacrifice (14)

There wasn’t much I could do for the Pope, as I had thought.

The Pope’s body was already frail, and that was something irreversible.

“…Are you feeling a little more comfortable?”

I asked, but the Pope kept his eyes closed.

He was breathing. He looked as if he had simply fallen asleep peacefully.

The black light on his fingertips was no longer visible.

Even as I stood up from my seat, no one spoke to me unnecessarily.

As I turned around, people quietly moved aside. Their faces showed surprise, and some seemed to have a look of understanding.

Some were crying.

Among the crying people was Sister Maria.

“…Thank you.”

“I just did what I had to do.”

Rather, I hesitated too much.

What if, when there’s a dying person and I save them, I’m misunderstood by others? What if that misunderstanding, whether good or bad, is something I don’t want?

Should I just leave that person behind?

…I might have to. Perhaps there were people around that person who hated them so much that they were waiting to kill anyone who helped them.

Or, conversely, perhaps there were people waiting to shift all the responsibility onto the person I saved.

Surely, saving him would lead to troublesome things.

But leaving a person behind for the sake of trouble was something I was very reluctant to do.

“Is it okay?”

“Is it okay?”

Ria, who was following me, asked me, and I got a little annoyed.

“Probably a lot of troublesome things will happen. They’ll be talking a lot about me being a saint or something, and they’ll probably start asking me a bunch of questions about scriptures and such.”

“And then?”

“…Even so, I can’t just leave him. He’s a good person, isn’t he? If he were a villain involved in all sorts of crimes, then maybe it would be different.”

I heard Ria’s laughter and turned around. Ria was indeed laughing comfortably.

I stopped walking.

The footsteps of the many people who had been diligently following us also stopped.

But all I could see was Ria’s expression. I didn’t care about anyone else.

“Yeah, it’s for the best.”

“…Are you okay, Ria?”

At Ria’s words, I tilted my head.

Ria was the one who told me not to use my power carelessly…

“Hmm, well,”

Ria tilted her head and said.

“To be honest, it’s not that great. If you go up, I’ll have to go up too, right?”

“Didn’t you dislike that?”

“I dislike it. Of course, I dislike it. It’s probably as much as you dislike becoming a saint.”

“But, you’re okay with it?”

“Aren’t you just deciding to think of it simply? Regardless of what anyone says, you’re just going to go your own way, aren’t you?”

“…Well, that’s true, but…”

“Am I not your knight?”

Ria took a step closer.

I think I understood the meaning of that smile a little.

Ria didn’t just decide to smile because it happened this way.

One of the emotions in that smile was ‘competitiveness’.

A kind of competitiveness that says, ‘Bring it on, fate’.

“That means, literally, ‘your’ knight. Let me say it again, I don’t care about titles or anything like that. My honor comes from keeping my promise to protect you.”

Just as I decided my path-

Ria is saying that she doesn’t care about anything else.

Why?

I don’t really know. I don’t understand Ria’s words well.

That’s my destiny.

The being above sent me to this world with this body because it wanted me to act this way. Because it couldn’t save everyone with its own power, it sent a proxy to save as many people as possible.

Perhaps I made some kind of deal with the being above.

But Ria is not like that.

Ria has countless choices. There are so many things she can do. If she uses her talent for something, she will become a very famous and capable person.

Yet, Ria is saying she will protect me with that talent.

She is saying she will protect only me.

Why?

I don’t know the reason.

But I knew one thing: my heart was warming up.

“Because I’m your knight,”

Ria said with a smile.

“I’ll just follow the path you take. I’ll just break down whatever is in front of your path. Whatever it may be.”

So, if someone tries to force me into the position of a saint, Ria will destroy even that being.

Perhaps Ria’s father would hate that very much. No, not just Ria’s father, but everyone in this world might hate it.

But because I want it.

Because Ria is my knight-

“…Okay.”

My face felt like it was about to crumble strangely, so I quickly turned around.

And as I moved straight forward, I said.

“Then, first, please help me with what I’m trying to do.”

“Are you trying to do something again?”

“Can’t you recall it quickly? I’m Anna. The person Ria wants to protect.”

At my words, Ria laughed.

*

What should one think when seeing someone being healed by a shower of light?

I thought that Ria, who is only twenty years old, might not have seen such a sight in her childhood.

The rules of this world have been established for at most a decade or two, so it could be said that the rules are still not fully established.

There are still people who equate the beings people consider gods with the beings people previously considered gods. Even within the church.

And because of that, there were those who forcibly superimposed the concepts of saints and blessed ones onto previous concepts.

The act of healing people with light, at first glance, makes one think that way. Ria also inevitably thought of such gods and the beings who received the power of gods at times.

Even though the person at the center of that light was someone who denied the existence of such a god.

The act of praying for the dying person, enveloped in light, is sacred in every way.

Perhaps, praying for the Pope like that is for one of the few people in this world who understands her thoughts.

Ria’s heart strangely pounded as she watched her stand up and walk with confidence, as if her work was done.

Watching her, who was always confident yet precarious, made her want to protect her.

Even though she said she disliked it several times, it felt like she would jump in and become a light without hesitation when a crisis befell the world.

While Anna was praying, Ria looked around.

Some were admiring, some were praying along. Some shed tears, and some knelt down.

That was not an attitude towards people.

It was the appearance of those who would clap and sing with joy if Anna were nailed to the cross bearing the weight of the world. It was the appearance of those who would sing that the atonement was complete, original sin was gone, and there was no need to suffer under the old law.

Did the being above really send Anna down for that reason?

… .

Perhaps so. It seemed like there were definitely things in this world that only Anna could handle.

But, I don’t like it.

Ria didn’t want to leave it at that.

The Anna that Ria saw was a human. A human who cried, laughed, rejoiced, and suffered, no different from anyone else. Just a person who did good deeds a little more often than others, and had slightly unique beliefs.

Therefore, if Anna says she dislikes something, it is truly disliked.

She dislikes it, but- she has to do it.

Because if she doesn’t, there’s no one else to do it.

So she makes sure to accomplish it.

“Can’t you recall it quickly? I’m Anna. The person Ria wants to protect.”

Because of those words from Anna, Ria felt many things.

So she smiled.

If Anna is Anna, then Ria is Ria.

Although I don’t know for what reason Anna truly came to this world- in the end, just as Anna decided and acted that way, Ria also decided and acted that way.

Anna let her golden hair flutter. The ends of her hair were glimpsed beneath her veil. Perhaps slightly disheveled from running, Anna’s veil was casually placed as she always did.

But Ria was certain that no one present could say that her appearance was disheveled and unholy.

Because Anna’s conviction did not come from mere clothing.

“… .”

Oh, heavenly being.

Please give me the strength to protect that person.

If Anna is a being who came to protect everyone, I only wish to be able to protect that one person.

All I can offer is faith.

The faith that you sent Anna to my side.

I will move forward with that faith alone.

So please-

May Anna live the life she desires someday-