Chapter 2. Encounters and Opportunities (9)

Ria pulled my arm and dragged me a little distance away from Lee Si-yoon.

The area around the gate was leveled and finished so that several heavy equipment vehicles could be brought in, so it couldn’t really be called a secluded spot.

The gazes that had been focused on me turned towards Ria’s back, but Ria didn’t seem to care much.

“Hey.”

Ria’s expression as she said that was a little scary, unlike her usual demeanor.

Hmm, thinking about it again now, Ria’s impression wasn’t really soft or gentle. Rather, it was a sharp impression, one that wouldn’t be out of place among the delinquent groups if the setting were a school.

Since I, who couldn’t fit into such groups of delinquents or popular kids in my past life, was here, Ria’s expression, being taller than me, was a bit intimidating.

“Why, why?”

As I asked, shrinking back a little, Ria shook my arm, which she was still holding, and said,

“What are you doing right now?”

“Doing what?”

As I asked with wide eyes, unable to grasp what she was talking about, Ria’s expression changed slightly. Instead of an angry expression, it became one of utter exasperation.

Still, this expression was better than the one that seemed about to explode just a moment ago.

“You, you remember why you’re here, right?”

“Well, to heal the injured-“

“No.”

Ria cut me off and said,

“It’s not just because you have the ability to heal. You’re here because you’re a Saint Candidate.”

“I…”

“I know. You don’t want to be called by that name. But what can you do? Among those belonging to the church, your status cannot be completely revoked. Divine power is a gift from God. You can take away rights, but you can’t make that proof disappear with just three inches of tongue, can you?”

“……”

“You seem to have a lot to say, but please bear with it here for now. The reason you get to stay in the convent for another year is because I’m your escort. For now, I’m the escort protecting the Saint Candidate. Look over there.”

Ria pointed behind her back with her thumb.

It was crowded with people there.

There were Hunters who had just come out of the gate, but there were also Saint Candidates who had rushed to heal the injured.

I couldn’t see those Saint Candidates directly, but it was because they were blocked by people presumed to be from the ‘Knight Order’.

“You lived in the convent your whole life, so you might not know, but people called Saint Candidates are by no means ordinary people?”

“Uh…”

“Don’t say you know. It’s no different from you not knowing. If you knew, you wouldn’t have rushed out like that and acted friendly towards a civilian who isn’t even affiliated with the church.”

“……”

Uh,

Hmm.

As I stood there unable to say anything to her words, Ria sighed deeply.

“You, even if you don’t think of yourself as a Saint, you think of yourself as a nun, right? Even when helping people during worship, you stay far away?”

That was true.

At least, although we weren’t separated by space, I left a few rows of seats empty in between and sat behind them, maintaining a certain distance from the secular people in front.

Even if they weren’t full-fledged soldiers like the Knight Order, older clergy members would sometimes admonish people who spoke casually to the nuns around them.

“If it’s difficult to speak as a nun, do you think it makes sense for a Saint Candidate to rush out and speak to a man?”

“That…”

Damn, I have nothing to say.

Indeed, although I had various thoughts in my head, they weren’t things I could explain to anyone else. At best, I’d be treated like a madwoman. And since I’m already officially considered half-mad by the church, creating that image further would be a highly inappropriate response considering my remaining social standing.

As I drooped my shoulders, Ria also let go of my wrist.

“Well, it’s not that I’m blaming you. You might have something you want to say. But don’t just run out because you thought of it. People will see you strangely.”

“…I’m sorry.”

I replied, feeling a little dejected.

“…No, it’s not something to apologize for.”

Ria sighed deeply, scratched her head, and said,

“For now, I’m considered to be beneath you, right? Usually, they bring along a nanny-like figure and are surrounded by knights like a wall. But you don’t have that, so you can speak through me.”

“So, if I tell Ria something, Ria will convey it to the other party?”

“That’s right.”

Ria nodded.

From a distance, the Nun Superior and the Priest were cautiously approaching. It seemed the incident I caused wasn’t as minor as I thought.

After all, why would it be called a convent if it wasn’t for nuns?

I closed my eyes and let out a deep sigh.

“So, what did you want to say?”

Ria asked subtly. She seemed to want to hear what I had to say before the Nun Superior and the Priest arrived.

Should I tell her?

Actually, I wanted to tell them not to go into the gate again. If it’s about following the bloodstains, it should have been possible to judge the situation by going in this time.

But somehow, there’s a lack of justification.

Actually, there is one way. It’s to spout nonsense about divine revelation or something.

I think it’s nonsense, and I’ve never actually received any revelations, but the people in this world think of the being above as God, and for some reason, they think they must risk their lives to follow Him.

Moreover, that being, slyly, actually gave power to those people. Seeing as he keeps showing me light, it seems he intends to make me acknowledge his existence.

If that wasn’t the case in the first place, it would have been impossible for me to enter this world.

……

Well, when have I ever acted after carefully considering such things? Just about a month ago, I said something similar to Ria.

Does a dying person come back to life on their own just because I maintain my pride?

If someone’s life is at stake, isn’t it a human duty to break one’s pride and even lie to prevent such a situation from occurring?

As I made up my mind and opened my mouth, my eyes felt a little dazzled.

“Ah, come on!”

I don’t know what the intention is behind shining light on my face like waking up the next guard on duty who isn’t awake. It’s excited again just because I’m lowering my pride a bit.

No, more than that, doing this in broad daylight means the light is really strong. How excited are you?

Honestly, my insides were burning, but for now, I waved my hand in front of my face to brush away the divine power.

And as I was about to open my mouth-

“…Is it perhaps related to God?”

Ria asked first, on her own initiative.

I didn’t miss the opportunity and quickly nodded.

“Ah~ that’s…”

I rolled my eyes around, then looked back at the people behind us.

The people who had been watching the two of us talking separately had lost interest and returned to their own tasks. The Hunters who were not injured were heading towards the building in groups, and the Saint Candidates were still healing the people lying down, so a little light was visible.

It seems they didn’t see the light shining on my face.

“How many Rank 7 Hunters do you think there were among those who entered the gate today?”

At my question, Ria blinked.

Phew, I guess this was the right thing to say.

I felt like Ria would get angry again if I singled out Lee Si-yoon, so I just spoke about all the lowest-tier Hunters.

“Probably quite a lot? Usually, the lowest-tier Hunters in a significant association like this are half-apprentices.”

As expected, it’s a proper association.

I heard there are quite a few Rank 7 Hunters who operate individually. Those people are never called ‘apprentices.’ Even though they are Rank 7, they are still Hunters.

Usually, saying that to someone below your rank is no different from ignoring them… but, well, there’s an ‘affiliation’ here.

“Don’t they go and move equipment and do things to learn the system? They also do tasks like guarding the luggage left behind. Although there is a base right outside the gate, I heard they usually build another headquarters deep inside. In this case, the incident probably happened after going deep inside.”

Hunter associations are basically entities that operate for profit.

If they can search the inside of the gate with their affiliated Hunters, even if it’s dangerous, they search as widely as possible. If they can eliminate threats and obtain benefits from the inside, they do so.

Usually, when the government commissions an association to search a gate, it’s for that reason. It’s more efficient than sending public officials, and it’s mutually beneficial.

However, in the case of this gate, they had to be much more careful.

The reason for that, of course, is because of the ‘protagonist’ and the ‘heroines’-

“…I have a bad feeling about this. How about excluding the low-level Hunters from this search?”

“Well, that’s…”

I nodded.

Still, I couldn’t bring myself to outright lie and say it was divine revelation.

Well, if they don’t believe me, I’ll have to bring up that story eventually.

I glanced back towards the gate again, and then my eyes met with a nun who was slowly leaving her spot.

It was only for a very brief moment, but through the shoulders of the knights surrounding that nun.

The nun who saw me smiled with a slight snort.

Ah, that must be the other Saint Candidate who came instead of me. It seems I’m in a position where I’m somewhat looked down upon within the church.

Well, if the church looks down on me, I’m grateful.

I shrugged my shoulders and looked back at Ria.

“Can you convey my message? Knight?”

At my words, Ria blinked as if slightly taken aback, then chuckled and tapped her chest once with her fist. If she had been wearing armor, it would have looked like a knight’s oath, but, well.

Honestly, the sight of that large chest moving was a bit embarrassing to stare at.