Chapter 148: Act 4, Off-Script

Saintess, Narea of the Holy Land of Acrede.
She, the reincarnation of Narea, appeared as an uninvited guest.
‘Is she out of her mind?’
Not long ago, there had been an operation to assassinate the Saintess.
And yet, she was recklessly moving outside the Holy Kingdom—clearly not in her right mind.
But now that she was already here, there was nothing to be done about it.
I quickly made my way to the room where Iris and the Saintess were.

A private guest room in the women’s dormitory.
This was a place where even male guests could enter without issue.
Iris’s personal maid, known for being tight-lipped, opened the door.
Soon after, a familiar face came into view.

The moment I stepped inside, I could sense a startled reaction from within.
There sat Acrede, looking small and withdrawn.
Even today, she had expertly concealed her fearsome weapon, resembling a small animal in her demeanor.

Soon, our eyes met.
And then, a flustered smile appeared on her lips.
“O-oh, waah, i-it’s been a while.”
Right after that, her emerald eyes sparkled as if she had just encountered a savior.

I got the general idea of the situation.
‘The current owner of the body is Acrede.’
Acrede possesses two souls.
One is Acrede.
The other is the Saintess from her previous life, Narea.

The one currently in control of the body was Acrede.
And that fact was making things quite difficult for me.
‘I didn’t expect things to turn out like this.’

I silently stared at Acrede.
Acrede is a passive person.
She has always left the role of the Saintess entirely to Narea.
She dislikes being in the spotlight or receiving praise.
So all the duties of the Saintess had mostly been handled by Narea.
As a result, Acrede’s personality had become even more withdrawn.
She especially struggles to speak with people she’s meeting for the first time.

And now, in front of Acrede, sat one of the most prominent figures of the Hyserion Empire—
The Third Imperial Princess, Iris Hyserion.
Perhaps because Iris was staring at her the entire time, Acrede’s body had shrunk into itself.

At that moment, I—someone at least vaguely familiar—appeared.
So she unintentionally showed her relief.
Normally, Narea would have handled a situation like this entirely.
But now, there was no sign of Narea appearing at all.

I wasn’t unaware of the issue behind this.
But there were two problems here.

‘First, the timing of events is overall a bit too early.’
The incident of rescuing Musica from the Eldritch Being.
The Autumn Demonic Palace incident happening sooner than expected.
A series of events had started to diverge from the official storyline.
Honestly, it wasn’t a good trend.

‘My strength lies in knowing the scenario.’
I was someone who had been navigating the world by following the scenario I knew.
If things got out of hand, I might not be able to follow the flow anymore.

‘The second issue is Acrede herself.’
I looked at Acrede with a complicated expression.
She tilted her head, flustered, not understanding the meaning of my gaze.

Enough.
In the end, it was always my job to keep the scenario on track.
‘Let’s not overthink it.’

Anyway, this was something that was supposed to happen around the end of the Winter Demonic Palace arc.
This was also the reason why I had been trying to get my hands on new, compact equipment.
But first, confirming the facts takes priority.

“Miss Acrede, did something happen to Miss Narea?”
I asked as I pulled out a chair and sat down.
Sure enough, Acrede’s eyes went wide in surprise.
“Ho-how did you know?”
So it had come to that.
This was, after all, an incident that required her to travel from the Holy Kingdom all the way to Zeryon Academy.

Meanwhile, Iris took a slow sip of her tea, completely unfazed by the situation.
Even now, she remained endlessly composed.

“How did you end up with the Saintess, Miss Iris?”
“Who do you think was the contact that Whitewood mentioned?”
So it was Iris, huh.
It seems Whitewood, seeing the connection between Iris and me, opened the path through her.
Whitewood might even be planning to make the Empire owe a debt to the Saintess.

Though Whitewood is a hero, she is also a noble of the Empire.
She wants the Empire to grow stronger.
So of course she arranged things to benefit the Empire.

“I see. I didn’t realize.”
“That’s thanks to me. If it were just me alone, there’s no way a private line to the Saintess would’ve been made.”
Iris said this with a seductive smile.

“And now I get to meet the new girls gathering around my dear younger brother, too.”
She’s making me sound like some kind of irresistible playboy.
Sorry, but it’s just the people around me who are weird.
It’s not like that at all.

If I talked with Iris any longer, Acrede—already an outsider—would only become more withdrawn.
It was time to steer the conversation back to her.

“So then, Miss Acrede. Could you explain the situation in more detail?”
The sudden switch from Narea to Acrede taking action—
Acrede opened her mouth to speak about the reason.

“Um, excuse me…”
She glanced over at Iris.
It was a look that said she wasn’t sure if she could say this with Iris present.

My eyes turned to Iris.
She eventually stood up and leaned in close to whisper in my ear.
A decadent voice flowed into my ear.

“Seems the Saintess is carrying a pretty terrifying weapon. If you let that slide, I’ll be mad.”
How did she know that?
The Empire’s intelligence network is terrifying.

“And what do you think I am to you, Miss Iris?”
Iris tilted her head slightly, pressing a finger to her chin.
Her ink-black hair slipped down along her pale face.

“…A beast?”
A stuffed toy, maybe.

When I raised an eyebrow at her, Iris chuckled as if it were just a joke and left the room.
Iris was getting more and more jokey these days.

“Well then, please speak freely.”
At that moment, Acrede clutched at her chest.
Then, with a great weight, something fell out.
So that can be described as falling out, huh.

I stared blankly for a moment before coming back to my senses.
Now I understood why Iris called it a terrifying weapon.

“Phew.”

Acrede wore an expression that looked like she had finally caught her breath.
Then, when her eyes met mine, she cleared her throat awkwardly, as if embarrassed.
“I don’t know how Narea endures this every time. I seriously feel like I’m going to suffocate.”
I had already seen Acrede’s chest directly before.
Maybe because it had already been revealed, she decided there was no point hiding it in front of me anymore.
‘Was that why she sent Iris out of the room?’
Maybe it really was just because it was squeezing her too tightly.
If I were an average man, I would’ve been totally entranced by now.
Whatever the case, it’s always best to be in a comfortable state.

Shrinking back under my gaze, Acrede looked apologetic.
“…Is it a bit much to look at? It’s unsightly, isn’t it?”
There aren’t many people in the world who would dare call that unsightly.
Most would just lose their minds, overwhelmed by the sheer mass.
It’s probably only because she’s a Saintess that that kind of mass and shape is even sustainable.
If she were just a regular person, her body would’ve long collapsed under the pull of gravity.

“No, it’s an impressive weapon you’ve got there.”
“That’s… that’s the first time anyone’s called it ‘impressive.’ It doesn’t suit a Saintess at all.”
Acrede gave a gloomy expression as she gently squeezed her chest.
Don’t do that.
It keeps stealing my attention.
If I, who have no lust, am struggling like this, what must others be going through?

“All the previous Saintesses were slender and willowy. I’m the only one like this, so I always feel ashamed.”
Just as she said, the past Saintesses had all been slender in build.
But unlike them, Acrede wasn’t.
Since she’s also a Saintess, that contrast must weigh on her mind.

“Miss Acrede, first of all—let’s straighten your posture.”
“St-straighten it? Is that even possible?”
“No, I meant your back. Let’s fix your posture.”
Due to her large chest, Acrede tended to slouch a little.
Normally, Narea would help correct her posture, but right now, Narea wasn’t present.
If left unchecked, the Saintess could end up with a hunched back.

“L-like this?”
As Acrede straightened her back, her chest lifted along with it.
Because of that, her dress, which had fit fairly snug before, now looked a bit too loose, but it was fine.
Just from fixing her posture, Acrede’s natural elegance began to shine through.
The divine aura enveloping her entire body as a Saintess flowed out naturally.

“To my eyes right now, Miss Acrede, you look more like a Saintess than anyone else. No matter what the previous Saintesses looked like, you are without a doubt still the Saintess.”
Acrede has low self-esteem as a Saintess.
So when I gave her a bit of affirmation, the corners of her lips trembled slightly.
Seems being acknowledged like that made her happy.

“Ah, eheh… Normally, Narea handles all this, you see. I’m just the one supporting from behind, so being praised like this feels kind of nice.”
“Yes, and now… let’s talk a bit about Miss Narea.”
What happened to Narea?
It was time to hear the full story.

“…So, it was shortly after I returned to the Holy Kingdom.”
After the attack from Cardinal Centrion.
Acrede had returned straight to the Holy Kingdom.
And then, one day, while carrying on her usual duties as the Saintess—
She awoke to find herself alone.

“Narea disappeared from within me.”
Acrede felt like her heart had dropped to the floor.
Narea had been with her ever since she was five years old, a second personality she had lived with.

The loss of Narea.
To Acrede, it felt like losing a lifelong friend.
More than anything, Narea had taken on the role of the Saintess in her stead.
Because Acrede was so passive, Narea had no choice but to step forward in her place.
And now, with Narea gone…
Acrede had no idea how to fulfill her duties as a Saintess.
On top of that, there was no one she could confide in about it.
Naturally—because no one knew about her dual personality.

And then, just one person.
One face floated to mind.
‘That’d be me.’
The only man who knew about Acrede’s split personality.
The man who also knew about the reincarnations of the heroes, and who had ties to Baek Mokgong.
‘Acrede even saved me this time and put herself in my debt.’
Only then did I realize why she had rushed down to the Demonic Palace to treat me.
‘She must’ve come to ask for my help in finding Narea.’
But I had been so out of it that I missed the chance to hear her out.
Which meant that in the end, she had to come again, belatedly, like this.
‘And to top it off, Acrede figured out that I’m hiding my identity.’
Her hiding the Veil Bandages for me had been entirely her personal decision.
That, in itself, was a subtle sign of how much she was cooperating with me.
She must know that if she used my secret as leverage, I’d have no choice but to help.
‘…Does she really know that?’

My eyes met Acrede’s.
She looked at me with such honest, sincere eyes.
Narea would probably be able to pull off blackmail, but Acrede… not a chance.
She must’ve hidden it purely because she thought I’d have a hard time helping Narea if I got exposed.
And I’m nothing but grateful for that.

“I-I can’t do anything without Narea.”
Though Acrede had gone about her daily life, she had never actually lived as the Saintess.
Narea had taken care of all the duties for her—
So now, she was terrified of making a mistake and being criticized.
That fear had likely pushed her further toward running away from the Holy Kingdom.

“B-but I didn’t come here recklessly! I sent an official document to Zeryon Academy, saying I’d be caring for the wounded heroes. Of course, on paper, it says I arrive tomorrow…”
Acrede gave an awkward smile.
She must’ve come early, hoping to find a lead to solve Narea’s situation even one day sooner.
I understood what she meant.

“The reason Miss Narea disappeared is simple.”
So I decided to explain things to her.

“Do you remember getting stabbed by Cardinal Centrion’s sword that day?”
“Y-yes.”
But it wasn’t Acrede who got stabbed—it was Narea.

“That sword Centrion used must’ve been imbued with a Mystery.”
A Mystery—Soul Hunter.
A type of Mystery that originated in a massive communal grave.
Normally, it would’ve snatched both Acrede and Narea’s soul at once, since they’re essentially one.
But because of the resistance from Acrede’s body, their souls split—
Half and half, like their personalities.

Thanks to the overwhelming divine blessing that suited a Saintess,
Even after being separated, both souls managed to remain intact.
And the Soul Hunter could only take one of those two souls.
This time, it took Narea’s.

Who could’ve predicted that the Mystery was embedded in Centrion’s sword?
As I said before, the scenario had gone off-script.
Originally, this was supposed to happen at the end of the Winter Demonic Palace arc.

The Mystery cultists, having failed to kidnap Acrede,
Send a second assassin after her.
And Acrede is injured by that assassin.

That’s right—Acrede is the one who gets hurt, not Narea.
And in that process, the soul that disappears is Acrede’s, not Narea’s.
Afterward, Narea comes to Zeryon Academy to ask Lucas for help in bringing Acrede back.

That’s how it was supposed to go.
Act 4, Scene 6: After the Winter Demonic Palace.
It’s Act 4, Scene 7.

But because of me—and because of Baek Mokgong’s dog—Narea ended up being the one attacked by Centrion.
His sword must’ve already been imbued with a Mystery meant to hurt Acrede.
I had completely failed to anticipate that.
‘This script didn’t just twist—it twisted hard.’

I looked at Acrede with a complicated expression.
When our eyes met, she tried to force a smile.
That smile didn’t inspire much confidence.

In this scenario, the one who was supposed to be the most reliable ally was Narea.
But now, standing in her place, was the passive and unseasoned Saintess, Acrede.
I was already starting to worry whether this scenario would hold together at all.