episode_0189
by fnovelpiaAs usual, Elise was doing her duties as a nun when Mother Superior Mathilda approached her.
“Sister Elise?”
“Yes, Mother Superior. What is it?”
“I have something to talk to you about. If you’re not busy, could you please stop what you’re doing and follow me?”
“…? Okay.”
Usually, if you have something to say, you say it briefly in the meeting. It was unusual for Mathilda to call Elise aside for a private interview.
Could it be that she is receiving the Mother Superior’s favor?
The nuns’ already poor impression of Elise was a result of this. She was like adding fuel to the fire, so they were met with negative reviews.
But Elise wasn’t the type to care about such things.
He looked at the nuns and snorted as if they were nothing.
“That’s…!”
I went into the director’s office, ignoring the noises coming from behind me.
As for my connection with the Mother Superior, I only asked her about Roman a few days ago. I can’t think of any reason to have a private meeting.
‘Have I aroused your suspicions?’
That sounds plausible… .
“You don’t have to look so serious. I didn’t call you to scold you.”
“I’m sorry. Why did you call me?”
“Nothing else. Cardinal Marsenus of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith wants a nun to assist him. So I have recommended Sister Elise as a candidate.”
“Huh? Why me…?”
As Elise spent more time at the convent, she began to take on various tasks. However, unlike the general tasks performed by all nuns, the Cardinal’s assistant was different.
There is no success like this.
If the other nuns find out about this… .
It’s annoying just to imagine.
Matilda smiled brightly, whether she knew his true feelings or not.
“Watching you work next to me, I can tell that Sister Elise is a very capable person. I would be more than happy to entrust you with the job of Cardinal’s assistant.”
“But… .”
“I already told the Cardinal that I would recommend Elise to him… . Please save my face.”
Matilda asks with a kind smile.
Elise was helpless too.
***
“Haa… .”
Elise walking down the street.
I keep sighing.
I have no idea what the hell I’m doing.
Not only did she work as a nun in the holy country she hated so much, she also achieved great success as an assistant to a cardinal. She even felt as if the world was deceiving her.
That’s all.
“Hey you. Do you think you’d like to join the Sashin Church? If you become a believer, all your fatigue will disappear?”
It’s because of that guy.
I thought he was stuck in the inn all day, but it seems he wasn’t. He was out and about, busy with missionary work. And he was in the middle of the holy country.
“What? Are you a heretic?”
“I’ve never done Taekwondo before.”
“What are you talking about? Get out of here before I call the guards!”
Karami raised his index finger.
“Sign up now and get 1 gold coin for free.”
“Clothes?”
“Wow… I was just saying. Is your faith worth only a single gold coin?”
“Get out, you son of a bitch! Ao! ”
“Aka.”
“What was that just now!”
“No.”
Karami stepped back as the man tried to rush at her.
The man spat and disappeared.
“Ugh. Almost there.”
“Where are you looking?”
“Oh, Sister Elise. What a coincidence to meet you here.”
The fact that Elise is Karami’s slave is a secret between the two of them. Outside, she doesn’t call her Master, and Karami treats her as a nun.
Elise burst into laughter at such a ridiculous attitude.
“What’s the coincidence? What were you doing? It looks like you’re trying to get people to join a religious group.”
“As you can see.”
Since there was nothing else to do before the incident happened, I thought I should try growing the sect. Once the number of believers exceeds ten thousand, a new sect skill will be activated.
I thought it might help progress the story.
“… Are you crazy?”
From a third party’s perspective, it was just crazy.
The Church of Order and Balance does not force its doctrines on others.
I understand atheists, I understand people believing in other gods, I understand elves believing in the World Tree, I understand dwarves believing in the Heart of Magmar.
However, if you openly proselytize in a holy country, hostility will inevitably increase.
Look at that. Aren’t the guards who don’t like Karami’s behavior already looking at me with sharp eyes?
“If you cause any more trouble, you will be expelled from the Holy Land. If you want to leave, I won’t stop you. But please let me go when you leave.”
“I want to stay with Sister Elise for a long time, so I’ll stop here.”
“Tsk.”
Bat-like human.
It’s not something Elise should be saying.
“But what happened to Sister Elise? She came here sighing heavily.”
“… This isn’t something to talk about on the street. Let’s walk a bit.”
Elise gave a slight bow to the guard, meaning that she would watch over Karami to make sure he didn’t do anything foolish.
The two began walking toward a remote area with few people.
“Something happened, I guess.”
“Yes. That is a very big deal. I was selected to be the Cardinal’s assistant. The Mother Superior personally recommended me.”
“Congratulations. You’ve made a fortune.”
“There’s no way you’ll be successful. Are you doing it on purpose?”
Karami laughed it off lightly and then continued speaking in a more serious voice than usual.
“This is definitely not an ordinary job. No matter how capable Elise is, there seems to be some kind of ulterior motive behind her being the Cardinal’s assistant.”
“Maybe the Mother Superior is in on it too. She noticed that I was interfering with the experiment and is plotting something.”
Even though Roman is the one carrying out the project, it is highly likely that his superiors are instructing him to manipulate the nuns and gather candidates for the nunhood.
The representative example is the abbess, and the fact that she sent Elise to the Cardinal’s side means that she may also be in on it. There is a high chance that it is a trap.
“That’s a reasonable judgment.”
“I don’t know what the Master wants from me, but can we just leave the Holy Land? We’ll all die like this.”
“It’s okay. I’ve played this game.”
“This isn’t some kind of game!”
Although Elise tried to make her argument seriously, Karami didn’t seem to listen. If he didn’t go, Elise would have to be held here too.
“I clearly warned you. Don’t blame me later.”
“I never do that. If a slave makes a mistake, it’s my job as the master to take responsibility.”
Although Karami spoke confidently, holding his head high, Elise did not trust him at all.
It’s fortunate that he didn’t run away alone.
***
“I have absolutely no idea what to do.”
Elise’s last confessional work as a cardinal’s assistant.
Today, too, Elise represents God and provides answers to the lost lambs, guiding them on the right path.
I still don’t feel rewarded.
Because it would be nothing but a fraud for him to lead them, while covering himself in blood and not even hearing the voice of God.
A lie without even good intentions.
It’s like the shepherd boy’s prank.
But the believers are saved by their own answer and are moved to tears.
What on earth is God?
What is yourself?
What is salvation?
Even if you ask for advice, there is no answer in return.
So then, who can save me, and how can I find the answer?
There is a master author, but I will never seek advice from him even if I die. Even if I talk to him seriously, it is clear that what I get in return is a joke.
After finishing the confession with the last believer, Elise left the cathedral and walked towards the convent. As she was doing so, an old man caught Elise’s eye.
An old man with a stooped back, taking each step with difficulty using a shabby wooden cane.
‘bum?’
If there is light, there must be a shadow to balance it out. Even in the center of the religious order, the holy nation of Cassillon, not everyone can live happily ever after.
If there’s an old person wandering around alone at this late hour, there’s a high chance that he’s a vagrant.
His movements were so precarious that he seemed like he might collapse at any moment. If it were daytime, believers cosplaying as saints would come to his aid, but since it was dawn, there was no one to help.
This is not really my style.
But it was something she couldn’t ignore, so Elise had no choice but to approach the old man.
Shabby appearance.
His face is covered in freckles, and his hair and beard have lost their vitality and turned white.
However, perhaps because of his haggard appearance, the cross hanging around his neck seemed to shine even brighter, and his deeply wrinkled face, rough like the bark of an old tree, seemed kind.
“Grandpa, are you okay?”
“Oh, Sister.”
“Where are you going? I will take you to your destination.”
“Heh heh, where would this old man go? He’d just wander wherever his feet took him.”
Elise, who would have gone her own way with the mindset of ‘I did the least I could do’, felt a small sense of kinship with the old man’s words that he had nowhere to go.
It was like looking at a mirror of myself that didn’t belong anywhere, so I gathered all the sincerity I had this time.
“If you have no place to go, we will take you to the shelter run by our convent.”
“She’s a pretty nun with a pretty heart. But if you’re going to a shelter, I’ll refuse.”
“Why?”
“The rice doesn’t taste good.”
“… Yes?”
“People, you know. Sometimes you have to eat something delicious and stimulating, but old-fashioned priests don’t know that. That’s also a matter of balance. Aww, tsk tsk.”
Elise burst into laughter, dumbfounded.
An old man who would starve to death if left alone is complaining about side dishes. When I see the old man’s shamelessness, I am reminded of that man.
If you put the two together, it seems like they’ll fit together really well.
‘ah?’
A lightbulb went off in Elise’s head.
Is that a good method?
A good opportunity to help the old man and get revenge on Karami for all the pranks he’s done to him.
The corners of Elise’s lips curved gracefully. It was a smile of 100% purity, without any pretense.
“Grandpa, then I will take you to a good place~”
***
“Holholhol, what a wonderful inn. I wonder if it would be rude for me to enter a place like this.”
“Excuse me. It is the duty of a follower of God to help those in need. Here, you can rest comfortably and enjoy a delicious meal.”
As soon as I thought that I should go to sleep since it seemed like Elise wasn’t coming today, Elise came looking for me.
And not alone, but with some old man.
“Staying in such a luxurious hotel room at such a young age. You must be a great person and have great character.”
An old man approached me and gave me a friendly smile.
I stared at him.
‘Why is this human here?’
I know him.
Well, that was Pope Anthony, the predecessor of the Holy Kingdom of Callion.
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