Fake Saintess, Real Saintess (2)

Gyeotmwa Josyegigot seemed quite hurt by my unexpected attack, as he groaned in pain while clutching his chest with both arms.

“Ah, my solar plexus….”

“…Sorry, does it hurt a lot?”

“Of course it fucking hurts! You punched me so hard….”

“…….”

“And besides, anyone could make that mistake. You used to go by the nickname ‘Lilgirlchang,’ yet you suddenly throw a punch just because I asked if you’re really a virgin….”

Looking back, maybe punching him was a bit excessive. …But still, he was the one who made the sexual harassment comment first.

“A-anyway, I didn’t do it! W-why would you even think I did it with Ethan? Give me a reason.”

“From what I heard last time, you two are dating, and every time I’ve seen you together, you seemed really close. Of course I’d think that.”

“…Well, that part is true, but that alone isn’t enough to assume that. And my old community nickname ‘Lilgirlchang’ was from before I observed the virgin Lilith, so it shouldn’t count.”

“I also heard a rumor that the dorm you and Ethan use is the Marriage/Engagement Dormitory. Couple dorms usually have just one big bed, right?”

“…We do share the same bed, but-“

“And 『Luminor Academy』 was originally an adult game, right? In a setting like this, if a pretty girl and a handsome guy stick together, it’s normal to assume they’ve done everything.”

“…That’s also true.”

“Then why the hell did I get punched?!”

Seeing Gyeotmwa Josyegigot’s genuinely aggrieved expression, even I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Most of his points were logically irrefutable.

“W-well, anyway, nothing like what you’re thinking happened, so don’t get any weird ideas. And besides, I’ve been guarding my virginity for situations like this.”

“Right, you were a virgin-obsessed freak, weren’t you? Thinking back to what you used to post in forums, it’d be weirder if you *had* done it. Congrats on becoming the virgin Lilith you always wanted to be, huh?”

“Yeah, you bastard. Anyway, you get now that Ethan and I haven’t done it, right? We’ve had some… incidents sharing a room, but my virginity is still intact….”

“Huh? What kind of incidents?”

“…N-n-nothing happened at all!!”

For a moment, my flustered emotions nearly made me blurt out some of the other things that had happened with Ethan. Damn this loose tongue of mine.

Besides, for some reason, the longer I talked with this guy, the lighter the mood felt, so I decided to quickly move on to my main purpose.

“Anyway, to awaken as a Saintess, I need to be consecrated by a High Priest. That was the rule for Saintess awakening in the original game. So, help me convince Celista to do it.”

“Why do you specifically need Celista to consecrate you? Are you planning to rub it in her face that you’re the real Saintess and she’s the fake one?”

“…I don’t know what kind of image you have of me from my forum days, but obviously, I’m not planning to do something that shitty, so stop suspecting me.”

“I already know. It’s for secrecy, right? If you get consecrated by any other High Priest besides Celista, it’ll inevitably expose that she’s a fake Saintess. I was just messing with you.”

“…….”

-Swoosh.

“…At least don’t resort to violence right away.”

Seeing me clench my fist, Gyeotmwa Josyegigot quietly shielded his solar plexus with his palm.

“Yeah, you get it. Most High Priests of the Aurelia Church who can perform the consecration are elderly men and women in their 60s or older, and the few in their 50s are already involved in the plan to make Celista the fake Saintess. Right now, Celista is the only High Priest who can consecrate you while keeping the secret.”

“I get what you’re saying, but isn’t it just a matter of time before you’re exposed as the Saintess anyway? The aura that appears when a Saintess awakens-wasn’t it impossible for priests to hide or ignore that in the game’s setting?”

“Of course they can’t hide it. A search party for the real Saintess will probably be formed within a month.”

“…And you still insist on getting consecrated? Even now, plenty of people suspect Celista isn’t the real Saintess. They’re just keeping quiet because I’ve been adamant about it. But if you suddenly show up, what’s Celista supposed to do?”

“I know. That’s why I’ll quit being the Saintess before the search party forms.”

“Huh?”

“Once we deal with Machart, I’ll transfer all the Saintess’s power to Celista.”

“…Is that possible?”

“Yeah.”

Honestly, this had been my plan all along, regardless of any search parties. If I absolutely had to awaken as the Saintess, I always intended to transfer the power to Celista as soon as possible and return to a normal life.

Even if I gave up the Saintess’s power, it wouldn’t erase the magic I’d already learned or the fact that my mana capacity had surpassed 3,000. I’d confirmed this in the game during my past life, so I was certain.

Besides, my current status wasn’t that of a commoner but of a ‘baronet’s noble daughter.’ I wasn’t sure how 『Luminor Academy』’s setting-where only nobles could use magic-would apply, but giving up the Saintess’s power wouldn’t make me lose my other abilities.

Anyway, if things went well, Celista would become the real Saintess she always wanted to be, which would help Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, and I’d get rid of my troublesome power while also dealing with Machart. A win-win.

And once I no longer had the Saintess’s power, I wouldn’t need to guard my virginity anymore. So even if Ethan lost control and tried to force himself on me one day, nothing irreversible would happen…

‘No no no no no!’

Are you out of your mind?! What do you mean Ethan would force himself on me?!

It was ridiculous to worry about losing the Saintess’s power in a scenario where Ethan assaulted me. Whether I could become the Saintess or not, some things just weren’t acceptable.

Even if I’d resolved to live a second life in Lilith’s body, there were still things I had to uphold-including my own psychological boundaries.

Even if I’d accepted having a woman’s body, letting a man have his way with me was an entirely different matter. …Of course, if I *had* to choose someone, Ethan would be the only option. But unless I was forced into that situation, there was no way I’d ever do *that* with him.

“What are you doing? Why are you shaking your head all of a sudden?”

“…None of your business.”

“Anyway, let’s get back to what we were talking about. You’re saying it’s possible to transfer the Saintess’s power to Celista?”

“Yeah, it’s possible. I’ve done it a few times while playing 『Luminor Academy』. It shouldn’t be impossible.”

In 『Luminor Academy』, the game from my past life, there were theoretically two Saintesses. The prophesied Saintess was originally just Lilith the Virgin, but even after Lilith ceased to exist, there were two unofficial ways to unlock Saintess-level power.

One was Celista awakening as the Saintess of Faith by truly believing she could fulfill the role.

The other was Lilith awakening as the Saintess of Indomitability after enduring endless humiliation and disgrace without breaking.

And in the case of the awakened Lilith, it was possible to transfer the Saintess’s power to an unawakened Celista. I’d tested this in the “awaken as Lilith first” scenario, so it should work.

Just to be sure, I’d also tried the reverse-transferring an awakened Celista’s power to an unawakened Lilith-but it never worked. Given Celista’s personality, she’d never willingly give up her hard-earned Saintess power to Lilith anyway.

Since the in-game Lilith didn’t particularly like her Saintess power, the game explained that transferring it was possible. So even if I awakened now, giving my power to Celista shouldn’t be impossible.

Just like the in-game Lilith, I genuinely disliked the Saintess power I’d been forced to bear. It was nothing but a nuisance.

“You’re 100% sure it’ll work?”

“…It should. I tested it in-game with different variables at least three times, and it worked every time.”

“That alone isn’t enough to be certain…”

“Besides, if it works, it’s good for Celista too. Once she truly awakens as the Saintess, the other priests will recognize her, so she won’t have to live with the guilt of being a fake anymore.”

“…….”

“…Well, I get what you’re worried about, so I won’t push you. But since I need this to kill Machart, I’ll convince Celista myself if I have to.”

It was better to convince Celista than to risk being framed for treason after killing Machart without proof of his demonic ties. Once I awakened as the Saintess, most problems would solve themselves.

“Then promise me one thing before you do this.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s say you succeed in getting consecrated by Celista and awaken as the Saintess.”

“Yeah.”

“And you use that power to kill Machart, then immediately transfer the Saintess’s power to Celista, right?”

“Yeah.”

“If-just if-you somehow can’t transfer your Saintess power to Celista…”

“…Then what?”

“If that happens, you’ll join Celista in the Hero’s Party. That’s the bare minimum I can compromise on.”