Chapter 17. Humility and Refusal (1)

Chapter 17. Humility and Refusal

About two weeks passed after that.

In other words, time had passed a bit since the new year.

After that, Ria continued to treat me well.

However, the atmosphere was slightly different from usual.

The wall I had put up briefly when we first met had long since crumbled, and since the weather turned truly cold, we had been sharing the same bed every day.

This means our relationship is by no means distant.

However, lately, a few more behaviors have been added to Ria’s actions.

Until recently, she rarely clung to me in front of others, but now, wherever I go, she holds my hand or links arms with me. Even couples from another world, who openly kissed, stood separately in front of others, but Ria did.

I didn’t refuse it. Honestly, I didn’t dislike it.

Furthermore, whenever there was a place to sit, Ria would often pull me onto her lap.

Well, even then, she was somewhat conscious of others’ eyes. She wouldn’t do it unless there were a few nuns of similar age nearby.

Especially in front of the Nun Superior and the Priest. Was Ria afraid of excommunication even now?

…I doubted if they would excommunicate someone for something like this now.

Well, I liked this too. Although it was embarrassing, I liked Ria in the first place. Why would I throw away the chance to sit on Ria’s lap? Especially since she had given me permission.

Moreover, it was hard to call that act overtly lewd. You know, high school girls sometimes sit like this.

…….

Actually, I don’t know. I’ve never been a high school girl. I only received a high school level education as a nun.

I didn’t have friends in the first place.

Well, anyway.

So, I just thought these two actions were good. It’s not that I wasn’t embarrassed, but it was good.

However, the behavior I’m about to explain is a bit different.

Ria kept kissing me, for some reason. Not on the lips, but on the cheek.

With a ‘smack.’

Well, she didn’t do it very often. Not in front of anyone. It was just randomly once whenever I said something nice, praised Ria, or did anything that would make Ria very happy.

Why on earth?

No, I know the reason.

It must be because of that kiss I gave Ria. After that, it felt like a limit had been released.

At first, I thought she was just teasing me. Because every time Ria kissed my cheek, I would be startled and look at her.

It was probably to show me how absurd my actions were.

But when it continued for two weeks, I started to think that way.

Is there some other purpose?

Every time I was startled, I saw Ria’s face light up with a smile, and I thought so, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask further.

I just had some strange expectation that there might be something behind it, and then I was a little disappointed.

…….

No matter how I think about it, I don’t think I have the makings of a Saint.

“Sigh.”

As I sighed deeply, Ria tilted her head.

I can’t even ask directly, and I’m too scared to take a step forward. I just stay embraced in Ria’s arms.

For the first time in a while, I disliked myself a little.

*

Despite all this, life goes on.

This is the fourth time I’ve heard news of me saving another world. Well, two of those were about gnomes and dwarves, and strictly speaking, those two worlds were one, but people don’t seem to think so.

Moreover, the last world-the world where Anna and Mari were-was a bit difficult to call ‘saved’.

I was unilaterally kidnapped and escaped, and that world… well, it’s empty now.

“You don’t need to blame yourself for helping others.”

I don’t know how I brought up that topic, but Mari reacted that way.

“It can’t be your fault for not knowing beforehand. You wouldn’t have known such a world existed in the first place. Rather, you saved us, who didn’t need to be saved.”

“…….”

Hearing such words makes me feel embarrassed.

It’s not that I feel bad. I don’t dislike being praised. As long as they don’t intend to make me a Saint, it’s fine.

“Besides-“

As Mari was about to say something, my waist was suddenly pulled. It wasn’t someone grabbing my clothes, but someone putting their hand into the narrow part of my waist and pulling me towards them.

It was Ria.

When I turned sharply towards Ria, Ria was staring intently at me.

……Why?

Mari gave a wry smile looking at the two of us. Somehow, she seemed to know what was going on. That was also a mystery.

Could it be that Anna told her the story she was thinking of? That would be a rather serious misunderstanding.

“-Besides, if you blame yourself like that, what about the others who saved us with you?”

I couldn’t say anything to that.

“Not taking credit for yourself and greatly praising others’ achievements is not always a good habit. Your friends will support you, but there will also be those who try to take advantage of it.”

It felt like profound advice, so I was grateful-

But it seems the tighter Ria hugs me, the more she pulls me in as I continue talking with Mari.

When I looked up at Ria with a bewildered expression, Ria gave me a smile.

It was a smile I liked.

Is she doing this knowing that? If she knows, there’s no one more malicious than this.

…….

Well, she probably doesn’t know, so she’s doing this. If she knew I was in love, and if she had no intention of accepting those feelings, Ria would actually try to distance herself from me. Ria is quite perceptive.

So, it’s highly likely that she doesn’t know these things well and is just doing this because she has a close friend she likes to tease.

After all, she probably never had a friend like me before.

Shall we say, a friend on equal footing?

Perhaps my position is even higher, so she might feel more at ease. I have no reason to treat Ria calculatingly.

Ah, whatever, I leaned my face onto Ria’s shoulder, and only then did Ria loosen her grip on my waist a little.

Now I think I’m starting to understand how to respond. Ria isn’t as bulldozer-like as I thought, and if I charge forward like this, she actually backs off a little.

Seeing our harmonious appearance, Mari let out a hollow laugh as if she found it absurd.

*

“If you don’t take your own credit, someone will always aim for it,” Mari said.

My reason for deferring my credit is simple. I have no intention of becoming a Saint. I’m quite stubborn, so I’ve been holding on reasonably well even in this situation.

The church backing down a step is proving beneficial now. The church seems satisfied as long as I wear the white nun’s habit.

However, amidst the whirlwind of surrounding events, there was one organization I hadn’t paid attention to.

The church is not the only organization that manages this country. Rather, in terms of power, the church was not in a very high position. It has some support and is responsible for a part of the nation’s health and welfare, but its scope of power is quite limited because it only controls those aspects.

Then, who holds the remaining power? Naturally, it’s the government.

“Uh… well, that is to say.”

I mumbled a reply while looking at Mr. Kim Hyun-gang in front of me.

He is the chairman of the Hunter Association, where I take classes, and the person Ria calls uncle. He has a swimming pool at his house, and a shooting range… Ah, that’s not so important right now.

“You’re saying the government people requested collaboration?”

I asked again slowly, as if replaying what I had heard.

“There was no mention of meeting in person.”

Perhaps knowing I would refuse immediately, the uncle told me that first. That was a relief.

First of all, I am a ‘nun’. There was a minor blunder where a reporter who took my picture at Christmas mistakenly reported me as a ‘Saint’, but in reality, I was not in a position to confidently face the President or people like that.

It’s not that they can do anything to me, but in terms of hierarchy, I’m just an ordinary citizen.

Basically, the government and the church don’t interfere with each other.

“It seems that the people who live here are in politically high positions.”

“…….”

No, well, that’s true.

I ran my hand down my face.

Well, I thought the topic would come up someday.

Of course, it was definitely not something I had hoped for.