episode_0145

Cider is the person I’ve known longer than anyone else.

Alana prided herself on knowing a knife better than anyone in the world, at least until last year.

now…

I don’t know.

It’s difficult to answer with confidence.

Rather, I am not confident.

I’m now ashamed to say that I’m the only one who can count the swords.

The jaw is closed and the pulse is rapid.

Because the sight of the sword beyond the iron bars was unfamiliar.

What is the situation between the two of them now…

It’s ambiguous.

There is no way to describe it other than as an ambiguous relationship.

Alana tried to reconnect the two ambiguous people.

Isn’t that why you applied to this place, the Academy Temple?

Although there had been no progress so far, and the awkwardness between them after the kiss and the questioning still made things uncomfortable, she was realizing it herself.

That there is only one person that fate has connected you with.

“Oh, it’s been a while.”

Alana managed to open her mouth.

I tried to pretend not to be nervous and picked up the fallen chair, but my stiff body language was incredibly awkward.

The golden gaze beyond the iron bars silently held Alana in his thoughts.

“Sir Nathan asked me to say hello.”

“The Holy Knights are watching everything I do anyway. If they want to offer me a job, my answer is the same.”

I wanted to break the awkward silence with some pointless conversation.

I brought up Nathan’s story of being friendly to Carl at church, but Carl’s reaction was lukewarm.

“How are you, Director and Rachel?”

“Same.”

“I guess it’s still the same. Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve been to the Information Agency’s safe house.”

“Alana, you are now a full-fledged member of the church.”

“… … ”

The princess’s identity was revealed and many things changed.

The delicate tension between the Empire and the Church, with the Information Bureau at its center.

The sect, which needed a focal point to oppose the princess, began to actively promote Saint Alana.

Therefore, it has become difficult to meet intelligence agency personnel on a personal basis as before.

That is the position of a saint.

But now, the words ‘religious person’ coming out of Carl’s mouth sounded particularly painful.

Alana looked like she was going to get depressed at any moment.

To hide her emotions, Alana sat back down in her chair and asked.

“What brings you here?”

“Go to confession.”

“Stop joking.”

“Really.”

Carl was still watching Alana through the bars.

“Then tell me. Confessor, I will share in your sin.”

Alana suddenly turned into a priestess’ pose.

The tense and flustered look disappeared, and she exuded the holy and majestic aura of a saint.

“But keep in mind, mocking this species is blasphemy.”

“… … ”

So, that means don’t bring up the kiss again.

It was warm yet firm.

Her long beige hair was visible in the candlelight.

“Killed a person.”

“I know.”

embrace.

We all know that Carl got blood on his hands trying to save Alana from the Archbishop.

“That is unforgivable.”

“The weight of sin that weighs you down is not yours alone. I will share it with you.”

“My sin is entirely my own.”

“No! Don’t push yourself like that. You-”

For a moment, Alana almost jumped out of her seat.

Because he felt responsible for the innocent boy being thrown into the harsh world.

It was difficult to hide my regret.

wickedness-

Alana slyly covered the iron bars with the cloth again.

If things continue like this, I might end up shedding tears.

“The guilt you feel is proof that you are good. You fought to do good, to protect precious… precious people.”

“… … ”

“Confessor, by the light of the Lord, I will share your sins. Please continue to do good and make the right choices.”

Alana closed her eyes and whispered a prayer.

And actually she was praying to God.

For poor Carl, I was desperately praying that God would protect him.

“Mercy to those who confess, may the light look upon you… Go now. And do not forget the weight of life you feel now-”

“I will kill you in the future too.”

The saint’s calm voice stopped.

The firm yet cold voice of the sword feels unfamiliar.

“That, that’s what… … ”

It’s not just Carl’s answer that’s surprising.

Anyway, since you are working for an intelligence agency and living as a journalist, there is no way to avoid sin.

But just a moment ago, Carl’s voice contained more determination than hesitation, which made me feel embarrassed.

It sounded more like a warning and a declaration than a confession.

“I will continue to commit many sins. So even if the path I take is filled with sin, and even if the pure white holy sword is covered in blood… Will you forgive me?”

“… … ”

Gulp-

Alana swallowed dryly.

It’s a good thing the iron bars are covered.

If not, I would have been caught showing my distress and revealing personal emotions that a saint should not dare to harbor.

The pink eyes that had been shaking ceaselessly stopped.

Alana was finally able to calm her pounding heart by staring at one point.

“Yeah.”

Alana said in a calm atmosphere.

It was an infinitely soft voice.

“I’ll forgive you for everything except leaving me.”

The candles illuminated the saint’s gentle smile.

She looked beyond the iron bars, which were hidden by the cloth.

I felt strange.

I vaguely know that I shouldn’t be like this, but my heart feels incredibly uncomfortable and pounding, and I can’t stop.

No feeling could be greater than the anxiety and fear of losing one’s sword.

*

After giving an impulsive answer, Alana felt incredibly embarrassed.

At this point, isn’t it practically a confession?

How shameful it is to say that I will forgive you for everything except that you will leave after becoming a saint…

Bam, bang

Alana got up from her seat and walked out of the confessional.

I’m trying to run away.

As she was leaving the temple without looking back in embarrassment, Karl followed her and grabbed her hand.

The two, who had been bickering for a while, sat side by side in the temple’s chapel again.

There were only two of them in the large chapel.

In the stillness, Alana tried to calm her churning mind. Meanwhile, Carl, sitting next to her, seemed completely at peace with the world.

It’s so absurd…

Alana felt like she was being dragged in all the time.

It wasn’t like this before.

“What does it mean that you will continue to harm people in the future?”

“That’s exactly right. I’m going to jump into the middle of the war.”

“You’re still an academy student.”

“He’s also an intelligence agent.”

It’s a pointless question.

The Imperial Academy itself was created during the great war with the Demons. Being a cradle for training warriors meant that they were both students and warriors.

But why did it have to be Carl, why did he have to go through such a terrible thing? Alana felt sorry for him.

She became a saint, and the sword became the master of the Holy Sword.

The two who were each other’s world on a small colonial island now have no choice but to stand at the center of the world.

At first, I was delighted to realize that I would meet you again in a wider world and at a higher place.

But when the royal family showed up and she was drawn into a dangerous war, she couldn’t help but worry about her sword. She really is not worthy of being a saint. How could a saint have such selfish thoughts?

I sometimes have fleeting thoughts about what it would have been like if Carl had been ordinary, if he had been able to wait for Alana in his place as an ordinary man.

Every time that happened, I felt guilty.

Because it was none other than Alana herself who had been pushing the sword and urging them to meet at a higher place.

“Why, why like that… ”

“That’s a stupid question, Alana.”

“I know. But just… ”

Alana held the rosary in her hand and muttered softly, feeling that she would not be able to forgive herself if she did not ask this question.

Carl looked at Alana like that for a long time and said.

“I’m going to catch the princess. It’s my mission. It’s something only I can do.”

“… … ”

Alana looked up and stared at the knife.

The burden of being called ‘princess’ was considerable.

He was right next to me, and was with me until the very moment he revealed his identity.

Princess – Just knowing Beatrice weighed heavily on Alana’s heart, so how much heavier must it have been for Karl, who was close to her.

For a moment, Alana remembered the night of the Christmas Eve.

Oh, that scene please.

It’s a terrible memory for Alana.

I want to forget the sword that danced with the princess.

“… Catch it?”

Alana asked cautiously.

My heart is pounding.

I’m afraid to hear the answer.

But I want to know.

“You’re going to catch the princess and…kill her? Is that also included in today’s confession?”

“No.”

If you hesitate, I just want to urge you to answer.

But the sword answered right away.

Alana flinched.

“Princess, Tricky Green must disappear.”

It was a firm voice.

“But it doesn’t have to disappear through death.”

“… Then?”

I was anxious.

A woman’s intuition, unfortunately, becomes more accurate in times like this.

“Alana, I feel responsible. That day… Responsibility for not being able to convince her, and responsibility for not being able to stop her even though I knew her true identity.”

“… … ”

“The war will grow to an irreversible level. The royal family’s magic will bring chaos and despair.”

Alana examined the knife.

So, I just wanted to ask, shouldn’t she be eliminated because she’s the kind of woman who would commit such a terrible thing?

I want to ask that, but I also know that I shouldn’t ask.

because…

Because the sword might have the princess in mind.

“I will purify Beatrice.”

“Purification?”

“With the power of the Holy Sword, with the ability given to me, I will erase all her power. Isn’t that pitiful? A life that is swayed by the cursed power of inheriting the blood of the royal family.”

How pitiful, I can’t believe it.

I felt sorry for the sword that pitied the princess.

Alana’s intuition tells her that Carl’s feelings for the princess are not limited to sympathy.

That’s why it’s even more sad.

“I can’t hand her over to the Empire or the Church. If I do, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive myself.”

“Knife… ”

“So I’ll find Beatrice before anyone else. I’ll find her, catch her, and purify her.”

“That doesn’t mean the princess’s sins disappear.”

“I know.”

Carl looked back at Alana with a grin.

The sacred fire of the temple appeared in front of the two people sitting side by side.

In front of the Holy Fire, the sword was practically confessing. So what he is saying now must be the true nature of the sin he is about to commit.

“But if she were to lose her power, if she were to become incapable of harming anyone anymore… Beatrice would finally be a non-dangerous being.”

“… … ”

“Until she is forgotten, until no one remembers her, I will watch over her.”

What the heck is this…

Alana felt a chill down her spine. Her heart ached.

It’s an unbearable sin.

This kind of sin, this kind of thinking, cannot be forgiven.

You’re keeping the royal family alive?

Now the sword was like a heretic trying to break a taboo.

“Alana, you said you’d forgive me for anything, right?”

“… Except for the one that makes me cry.”

“Yeah. I’m not leaving.”

But Alana couldn’t stop the knife.

The eyes that were always straight are even straighter today.

There wasn’t an inch of falsehood in what he said just now.

“So help me. I alone am not enough to purify Green’s power. Alana, you, the saint, can do it.”

“… … ”

Dare I ask the saintess to become my accomplice this time.

Alana looked at the knife in surprise.

“Aren’t you… leaving?”

Alana’s eyes wavered.

It is shameful to sit in the chapel facing the Holy Fire, trying to answer a request that a saint should never answer.

Carl placed his hand on Alana’s head, who was muttering as if possessed.

Between her long fingers, beige hair was held.

Carl gently stroked Alana’s head.

“This is the sin I am about to commit. Holy One, please forgive me, a sinner?”

“… … ”

“I will atone for my sins for the rest of my life, and spend the rest of my life in a place where no one can find me. My atonement is to purify the last remaining royal family members, keep them alive, and watch them so they never come out into the world again.”

“Knife… ”

Carl finished speaking with a bitter smile.

“Or, would you like to join us?”

Nod nod-

Alana nodded quietly.

In the temple, surrounded by light passing through stained glass, under the watchful eyes of the Holy Spirit, I couldn’t bring myself to answer.

This confession was a failure.

The saint could not forgive the sins of the penitent.

Rather, the saint became a participant in the sins of the penitent.