episode_0179

Episode 179: Swordsmith Village (5)

I answered the voice coming from behind me.

“You’re here again today.”

“Of course!”

“What for today?”

“Does a saintess need a reason to find the saint?”

The answer remains unchanged no matter how many times I ask. She’s consistent in her own way.

Immediately after, I felt Estella approaching. Then I remembered that she was with Ruina.

‘Come to think of it, have they ever greeted each other?’

They’ve seen each other’s faces. They came together when coming to Eustia. However, I don’t remember them talking separately or facing each other.

I reached my hand out behind me and introduced Estella.

“Senior, this is Estella. You know her well as the saintess, right? And this is a professor at Tianis Academy, and my senior.”

I finished introducing my senior.

“I’m Estella.”

Estella bowed to my senior with the face of a saintess. However, instead of the words I expected, the other side showed a different reaction.

“Senior?”

“Yeah….”

“Why are you hiding?”

“…Just because.”

Even while saying that, my senior didn’t show herself to Estella. She hid tightly behind me.

‘It must be difficult.’

Estella is a being with immense divine power. She must be feeling a huge sense of rejection. Especially since she’s close, it’ll be even greater.

“Senior, can’t you at least accept her greeting?”

“If you keep her away….”

“Okay. I’ll keep her far away. Did you hear that? My senior is shy, so stay there.”

“Yes, Saint!”

When Estella stayed still, my senior peeked her head out. Then, in a voice as small as if she were crawling on the ground, she said,

“Hello….”

At that moment when she greeted, Estella disappeared. The place she appeared was in front of my senior. Approaching in an instant, she grabbed my senior’s hand and shouted.

“Hello, Professor! But are you really a professor? How old are you? You don’t look much different from the Saint… 20? 21? Ah, I heard there’s a youngest professor at Tianis, are you that professor?”

She pours out questions. She asks endlessly, as if she has so many things she’s curious about.

But Ruina was startled and screamed silently. After shaking off Estella’s hand, she immediately hid behind a rock.

“…I told you not to come.”

“I, I didn’t know you’d dislike it this much….”

“You stay here.”

After glaring at Estella, I approached my senior. As if terrified, she trembled. She was scratching various parts of her body with her hands. It seems to be a reaction caused by Estella’s divine power rejecting her body.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah….”

When I took her hand, Ruina finally came to her senses. But that was only for a moment, and she said, slightly tearful.

“She, she’s rude… She came even though I told her not to…. She’s a saintess but she doesn’t keep her promises….”

“I’m sorry. I told her well, but she’s still like this.”

“I, I want to go back… to the dorm….”

“Would you like to?”

“Yeah….”

“Let’s go together. I’ll take you there.”

“Yeah… except for her….”

“Okay.”

I moved Estella as far away as possible, then left the volcano with my senior.

Even while moving to the Holy Academy, my senior often looked around, checking if Estella was there. Her actions earlier seemed to have become a huge trauma. I calmed her down each time.

We arrived at the professor’s private quarters. Since students are prohibited from entering here, I saw her off.

“Go in.”

“Yeah. Ah, just a moment….”

Before going, my senior came to me and stroked my head. She showed a satisfied expression and greeted me.

“Goodbye.”

“Yes, see you next time.”

Ruina entered the professor’s quarters. Immediately after, Estella appeared. I grabbed her cheeks and pulled them out.

“What’s all this commotion because of you? Huh?”

“I’m sorry, Saint…. I didn’t know the professor would dislike it so much….”

“You need to be punished.”

“Ugh…!”

Since others were watching, I couldn’t scold her like when we were alone. But I could punish her in this way.

“If you act rudely to my senior like that one more time, I won’t let it go.”

“Heeing, I understand….”

Only after hearing the answer that she wouldn’t carelessly approach my senior again did I let go of pulling her cheeks.

“Ugh, you really….”

“Hehe, I’ll be careful next time.”

I left Estella, who was chattering like that, and moved my feet. Estella ran to my side and stuck to me, chattering.

“Saint, Saint.”

“What.”

“Was that person really a professor?”

“Yeah, she’s a senior who graduated last year.”

“The world is so wide. A professor at 20. Isn’t she a complete genius?”

“You shouldn’t be saying that.”

If you only consider talent, the saintess is not far behind. Besides, compared to the title of saintess, a genius was a very common type,

“I feel good that the Saint is complimenting me.”

“Don’t smile.”

“Eueee….”

I grabbed her cheeks again. Her smiling face was too hateful.

I walked alongside Estella for a while. Then she asked me.

“But Saint.”

“What again.”

“That professor was quite unique, right? What did they call it? Umm, definitely an alchemic term….”

Estella spoke the knowledge in her head.

“Homunculus, I think they called it. Right? Your senior. Did you know?”

“…Uh, I knew.”

I answered after a long silence. It didn’t make sense that Estella wouldn’t recognize Ruina’s identity, even if it were someone else.

“So that’s real. It’s my first time seeing that homunculus. In the past, alchemists made them all the time, so there were many homunculi among the believers. But now they’re all gone. The last one who was alive was 100 years ago? Yeah.”

“Is that so.”

Even a homunculus doesn’t live forever. Without the Philosopher’s Stone, it’s just a human with a very strong body.

And then it was.

“Then, Saint.”

Estella called in a low voice. She gently took my hand.

“Did you also know that she’s a black magician?”

“…….”

I answered with silence to that word. Estella slowly came to me and made eye contact. Her sky-blue eyes turned to me.

“I was dubious at first. The smell of black magic was so faint. But… I could tell when I got close. That professor, your senior, is definitely a black magician.”

“…….”

“I guess you knew.”

Estella, who had read the heart in my eyes, said that.

“Saint, black magicians are evil. They look down on life, and they commit any atrocity without hesitation for their purpose. Maybe she did something terrible that you can’t even dare to speak of.”

“I know.”

“Knowing that, do you feel sorry for her?”

“…Yeah, I feel sorry for her.”

All of my senior’s evil deeds were by order. It’s mixed with other people’s will, not her own. Estella doesn’t know that fact, but I know it so well.

“Then do you want to save her?”

“If possible.”

“But Saint.”

Estella paused for a moment before continuing.

“Unfortunately, she can’t be saved. Whatever choice you make, every path leads to destruction. It’s a cruel word, but that’s her fate.”

“…….”

“Sometimes there are people born with that fate. I’ve met a few. Of course, I tried to save them. But the end… was only despair.”

Words that eliminate even a shred of hope. I would have ignored it if someone else had said it, but since it was the saintess’s word, I couldn’t pretend I didn’t hear it.

“Of course, there are examples of avoiding fate like the Saint, but this is a special case. Usually, they follow their predetermined fate.”

“I know.”

It wasn’t just said to mean I understood, I knew that fact too well. Sometimes even God can’t avoid fate.

That’s why I was more accepting of Ruina. As Estella said, all that awaits her is death.

“So it’s better not to do anything unnecessary. Otherwise, the Saint will also be destroyed together. I also feel sorry for her, but I don’t want the Saint to become like that. You’re my only Saint.”

A smile came out at those words. Who is worrying about whom?

“That won’t happen, so don’t worry.”

“Can I believe you?”

“Yeah.”

“As expected, the Saint is the best!”

Estella smiled brightly with a relieved face. But I had something to say to her.

“But Estella.”

“What is it, Saint?”

“From now on, don’t say things like fate in front of me.”

Estella looked at me and said cautiously.

“Are you angry…?”

“A little.”

The word fate. As someone who heard that word, it was a very absurd and unpleasant word. She hasn’t even experienced fate, yet she’s saying that.

“Um… I’m sorry, Saint.”

“You didn’t know, so there’s no need to be sorry. Just be careful next time.”

“Yes!”

In the meantime, we arrived at the men’s dorm. I said goodbye to her.

“I’m going in now. You rest too. And don’t even think about coming into the men’s dorm. I’ll kick you out if you come.”

“Okay.”

“Keep your promise.”

“Would the Saintess lie?”

“I’m saying it because you’ve broken it so many times.”

Anyway, I went inside the dorm. Behind me, I heard Estella’s shout.

“Saint, see you tomorrow!”

I waved my hand roughly and closed the door.

***

“Hum hum~.”

Estella was humming happily as if she was in a good mood while returning to her house.

“Saintess, did something good happen?”

“Yes, it did!”

It was so obvious that all the believers asked. She was smiling so brightly that they couldn’t help but ask.

“What happened?”

“It’s a secret!”

Of course, the believers could guess what made Estella smile. It must be something related to the Saint. Actually, after Kyle Arden came to the Holy Kingdom, the Saintess’s face was never without a smile.

“I’m going now.”

“Yes, go in. Estella Saintess.”

Estella greeted the holy knight guarding the entrance and left inside.

Arriving at her room, she threw herself on the bed. Then she hugged the pillow and laughed.

“The Saint is changing every day.”

Is it because I’m close? Estella could see different sides of Kyle every time.

That was really joyful, but on the other hand, it was a pity. Because the exchange meeting ends in a few weeks.

“It would be nice if we could just live in Eustia together….”

Is there no way to keep him in the Holy Kingdom?

Estella fell into thought. But no matter how much she thought, she couldn’t think of a way to keep her Saint in Eustia.

After worrying with her head spinning for a while. Estella remembered what happened earlier.

“I’ve never seen him do that before.”

The Saint’s eyes full of pity. The Saint felt sorry for her so much that I could immediately understand why he treated her so specially.

“Hmm, should I have told him?”

Actually, the future that Estella first saw was clearly only destruction. But in the middle, that future gradually became blurred and began to become opaque. It was as if the future was changing.

It was the first phenomenon while living as a saintess. It was as surprising as the Saint’s stopped future.

“Ah, I don’t know.”

Of course, considering the Saint’s reaction, it seemed like not saying it was the right choice. He reacted sensitively to the word fate.

After finishing thinking about that, Estella faced her back down. It was too uncomfortable because of her chest when she was lying face down.

“What should I do with the Saint tomorrow? Ah, are we going to Parang’s territory next week?”

An event that came to mind late. Estella went to sleep early thinking about what she should do with the Saint on the beach.