Chapter 13. Crisis and Opportunity (1)

Chapter 13. Crisis and Opportunity

I don’t want to do anything.

Although I’m not doing anything anyway- if I were to say that, honestly, I was doing too much.

First of all, I live in a church. To be precise, I am a nun living in a convent attached to that church.

And the life of a nun is not leisurely at all.

Although the work intensity is somewhat lower than that of a civil servant who sits in front of a computer for eight to nine hours a day, nuns still spend a lot of time and effort on church maintenance.

Thanks to the establishment of an officially recognized religion by the state, the church has a lot more to do, and naturally, nuns have a lot more to handle. While it’s not eight hours of focused work every day, it’s accurate to think of it as light-intensity tasks spread broadly throughout life, regardless of the time.

Moreover, nuns do not have separate vacations. There are holidays of sorts, during which they are rarely asked to work, but sometimes they become busier during the times when others go on vacation.

So, unfortunately, until now, I have lived a life quite far from ‘doing nothing’.

In addition, I also handled separate tasks that others didn’t see due to the holy power I could wield.

“Should we go on strike?”

I asked seriously.

“Pfft.”

However, Ria’s reaction to my words was not serious at all.

I scowled and sat up from my seat, glaring at Ria.

“What’s wrong? Do you think I’m joking?”

I’m already sensitive these days.

That’s right.

Every time I see that white ‘nun’s habit,’ a nameless resentment wells up from the depths of my heart.

As the Pope said, the Pope is firmly holding his position. Thanks to my recovery of some health, it seems that discussions about his replacement due to health issues have almost ceased.

But even so, the Pope doesn’t seem like the type to rule dictatorially, does he?

It seems he couldn’t completely ignore the words of the believers and the clergy.

As a result, I was able to become a nun who received slightly more special treatment while maintaining the position of ‘Saint Candidate’.

That white nun’s habit serves that purpose. It shows more clearly that I am ‘Anna’.

“A joke.”

Ria pondered for a moment and then said.

“So, if someone suddenly gets injured during the strike, won’t you go to them?”

“…”

I had no choice but to shut my mouth, hesitating at Ria’s question.

“…If someone collapses next to the strike site, there will be many people ready to help.”

I tried to say something plausible, but…

“If someone whose job is to save fallen people saves them, then the strike is meaningless, isn’t it?”

That reasonable remark came back.

I jumped back into bed and buried my face.

“Well, don’t think of it too negatively. You’re not a real Saint or Blessed one yet, are you? In any case, the beatification ceremony hasn’t happened, nor has the beatification process begun.”

“…”

“It seems the devil’s advocate, who calls herself an atheist, said something like, ‘At this point, isn’t my presence meaningless?’ But well, don’t worry too much about it.”

“How! Can! I not worry about it!?”

As I shouted, Ria couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“No, in the first place, our opinions differed a lot. That person said the holy power itself is just a natural phenomenon and that the being above doesn’t exist. You just said the concept of God is wrong. If you don’t deny existence in the first place, isn’t claiming to be an atheist meaningless?”

“Okay. Let’s go to Myeongdong tomorrow and insist on giving God a scientific name.”

“Given the current situation, it seems like something worth seriously considering?”

“Ugh!”

At Ria’s words, I thrashed around on the bed.

“In the first place, the fact that the power you use is called ‘holy power’ means that even if you don’t want to become a Saint, it’s meaningless, isn’t it?”

“Then, all nuns who use holy power are Saints.”

After saying that, I felt something flash through my mind.

Seeing me lift my head with sparkling eyes, Ria seemed to sense an ominous feeling.

“Wait a minute. I don’t know what you’re about to say, but it’s definitely a terrible idea.”

“I haven’t said anything yet?”

“I just have a feeling.”

I completely ignored that unfair and unjust evaluation.

I got up, sat cross-legged, and looked straight at Ria.

Regardless of whether Ria frowned at my wide smile, I spoke first.

“Then, it would be fine if the number of Saints increased significantly, wouldn’t it?”

Ria put her hand to her forehead.

“Where on earth do you get such an idea?”

“Of course, it comes from my head.”

“Where is your head connected to?”

I completely ignored that unfair and unjust evaluation once again.

“Just listen.”

I said, holding up a finger.

“I’m not the only one who can use holy power, right? The Pope also endured fighting mana for a long time, and the Saint Candidates were all chosen for their positions because they had superior holy power compared to ordinary nuns.”

“…So?”

Knowing that I wouldn’t stop just because she told me not to, Ria eventually gave up and half-heartedly went along with my story.

“But that’s discrimination, isn’t it?”

“…”

“In my opinion, holy power comes from the depth of conviction, but it also seems to be influenced by one’s origin.”

That’s right.

I don’t know about the other Saint Candidates, but at least my body itself is presumed to have been created from above.

Since my body was created for that purpose in the first place, it’s not strange at all that I can wield holy power like shooting laser beams.

“But dividing people by their background is too unfair, isn’t it?”

“If what you’re saying is true, then isn’t ranking students in school also discrimination? People’s intelligence is also divided by genes, so some are smarter than others.”

“…”

“And, no matter how I think about it, you are in a slightly different position. Even if you combine all the holy power used by the Saint Candidates, it’s not as great as the holy power you use alone. Moreover, you’ve even shed blood because of holy power. To be blunt, you might be more amazing than the Saints who actually existed.”

I closed my mouth.

In my opinion, the position of Saint Candidate, as determined by the church, seemed to have rather ambiguous criteria in many ways.

To designate as a Saint Candidate someone who is particularly devout and can use holy power overwhelmingly.

In the first place, when the candidates were just ordinary nuns, the problem was simpler. Those candidates would all be somewhat lacking compared to real Saints.

But if the ‘Saint’ is set as the standard, and someone who ‘surpasses’ that Saint appears, then even objectively speaking, it’s not strange for me to ascend to that Saint position.

“No.”

But I answered firmly and shook my head.

“That’s not it.”

That’s right. No matter how I think about it, that’s not it.

The reason a Saint is called a Saint is because she dedicated herself from the beginning to protect people. She knelt in the midst of countless monsters, prayed, repelled the monsters, and bought time for hunters and heroes to fight, sacrificing herself, which is why people praised her as a Saint.

Therefore, it doesn’t matter who uses brighter or wider-ranging holy power.

“I have no intention of comparing myself to someone who sacrificed their life to save people and saying I’m better.”

At my words, Ria’s smile faded from her lips.

“That… is true.”

Ria, who understood the weight of the name ‘hero’, seemed to agree with my words.

And then, with that same expression, Ria looked at me quietly and said.

“Then, if that’s the case, shouldn’t the title of Saint not go to just anyone?”

“…”

Thump.

I lay back down on the bed.

And thrashed around aimlessly.

“Haa.”

Ria sighed deeply.

“Hey, I can see inside.”

I lowered my legs without a word and pulled down my skirt, which had ridden up.

“Pervert.”

“What are you talking about?”

Ria said that without being swayed at all by my random remark.

“…Well,”

As I lay on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, Ria also lay down on her bed and said.

“Don’t worry too much, though.”

“Yes?”

When I turned my head, Ria was also lying on her bed, only turning her head to look at me.

“If the weight of the Saint’s position is that heavy, doesn’t that mean the possibility of you becoming a Saint is slim?”

Ria said with a slight smile.

“Especially if you have to risk your life at the end. You don’t have anything to risk your life for, do you?”

“…”

“In that situation, I’ll be by your side anyway. If I protect you, that’s enough, isn’t it?”

“Hey, Ria.”

“Yeah?”

“You say incredibly embarrassing things so casually.”

“…”

Ria stared at me blankly for a moment,

“Kyaak!?”

And threw a pillow at my face.

…Well, even so.

Hearing Ria say that made me feel relieved.

After all, Ria has a track record of smuggling me out of Rome and bringing me here. She will surely keep her word.

…

If that moment truly comes, I will save Ria even if it means sacrificing myself.

But there’s no need to tell her that in advance.