Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Surely He's Not Still Doing That?

“Upsy-daisy...”

I rolled over and lay flat on my back. Staying face-down was pretty uncomfortable because of a certain part of my body.

As I stared blankly up at the sky, I noticed that the weather, which had been clear lately, was now slightly overcast with thick clouds.

Surprisingly, lying around on the training ground wasn't bad at all. With the regular ding-dong of the bells, I felt like I might actually fall asleep right here.

Thump thump-

But the furious footsteps rumbling through the ground from afar shattered that peaceful mood.

The Captain and I sprang upright as if we'd planned it, and a moment later old Bartolomew reappeared in the training ground.

“Saintess, Captain. The Harmonia Order's reinforcements will soon arrive outside the city gates.”

“Yeah, I just heard the bell.”

I hurriedly stood up and dusted the dirt off myself, answering in a somewhat awkward posture.

“Hurry and wash up and prepare yourselves. His Holiness is currently absent, so you, Saintess, must receive the reinforcements.”

“Where did Grandpa go?”

“He went to inspect the barrier on the outskirts of the city.”

If Grandpa wasn't here, that made me the person in charge of the Order.

Great. Now I was stuck with annoying work.

Looks like the Harmonia Order arriving early had thrown the schedule out of whack.

For a moment, I considered dumping everything on the old man and running away, but I decided against it. He might actually collapse clutching the back of his neck.

“By the way, what exactly were you two doing here? My sacred art should have worn off quite some time ago.”

The old man narrowed his eyes at us.

Flinch-

We absolutely could not let him realize we'd been slacking off.

“Uh... I guess we were... feeling the energy of the earth?”

“...?”

The excuse I blurted out in panic was truly pathetic.

The old man stared at me like I'd just said something utterly ridiculous.

If I let him stand there long enough to process my improvised excuse, a thunderous lecture was sure to follow.

I needed to escape quickly.

“We're short on time, so I'll go get ready. I just need to wear the formal uniform, right? I'll ask Marie to help me.”

“I already informed Priestess Marie. She should be waiting in your room. And Vargas, gather the knights and prepare to receive our guests.”

“Understood.”

The Captain and I fled before the old man could figure anything else out.

Just as he'd said, when I returned to my room, Marie was already waiting with the Saintess's formal uniform prepared.

“I'll help you put on your formal uniform, Saintess.”

The problem was, this so-called formal uniform was quite something.

Shouldn't formal clothing, by definition, be modest and proper?

The overall design was white, embroidered with golden patterns.

Up to that point, sure, it looked appropriate for formal wear.

But what kind of formal uniform exposed the underside of the breasts and had thigh-high side slits?

“Marie, I always think this, but there's something wrong with our Saintess's formal uniform. Why is formal wear this revealing?”

I stopped Marie from dressing me for a moment and voiced my complaint.

“There you go complaining again. This is the traditional attire of our Order, you know? And compared to the Sacred Vestments you normally wear, this is incredibly modest—”

“Agh! Stop! Can we please stop bringing up the Sacred Vestments?!”

Every time we talked about clothes, someone brought up the Sacred Vestments.

I couldn't say anything anymore.

Fine.

Compared to those, the formal uniform really was modest.

But I still hated it.

“Hehe, it's cute how someone as daring about showing skin as you gets embarrassed over something like this.”

“...Can you stop?”

That hurts.

I'm still a man, you know.

Even this much exposure is honestly humiliating for me.

Of course, if I said that out loud, everyone would assume the Saintess had been afflicted by some mind-altering curse, so I had no choice but to keep quiet.

“Though I suppose showing just a little skin can be more embarrassing than showing everything.”

“I surrender, so please stop. I'll wear it quietly.”

I muttered gloomily and obediently took off my clothes.

“Hehe.”

Marie smiled and helped me into the formal uniform.

Right.

As long as I was walking around in Sacred Vestments, I had no right to complain that any other outfit showed too much skin.

With a depressed expression, I let Marie do whatever she wanted.

Once I had put on the gold-embroidered formal uniform and finished my makeup, I stood in front of the mirror.

A fairly convincing Saintess was staring back at me.

“I say this every time, but you're really beautiful, Saintess!”

“Yeah. I am pretty.”

Sadly, this body really was beautiful.

A figure with dangerous curves and a gorgeous face.

It had every feature that would make any man gape in admiration.

Would've been great if it weren't my body.

“Wow, you know that sounded incredibly obnoxious just now, right?”

“I know. But what am I supposed to do if it's true?”

I'm simply a person capable of looking at myself objectively.

...At least when it comes to my appearance.

“I see. Since your face actually backs it up, it comes across less as annoying narcissism and more like confidence. I suppose being pretty really is useful.”

I stared silently at Marie.

She tilted her head innocently.

...She used to be so pure.

But lately, she'd started smiling while stabbing straight into my sore spots. Even her choice of words had gotten rougher.

Who the hell corrupted Marie like this?

“...Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing.”

I let out a deep sigh while silently vowing that whoever had corrupted my innocent Marie would someday be hung from the training ground.

“Ah, time to pretend to be a proper Saintess again.”

Even I couldn't act however I wanted in an official setting.

I had to behave with elegance and dignity.

Fortunately, after all the endless lessons from the old man, I was perfectly capable of behaving gracefully even if it made me itchy all over.

Marie and I headed toward the Order's main gate.

A straight road paved with white brick stretched ahead, with armored Holy Knights lined up along both sides.

What a pointless ceremony.

Wouldn't it be easier for both the Harmonia Order, who had traveled such a long way, and our own people if we just showed them their lodgings and let them unpack?

But anyone who had served in the military knew one thing.

This kind of irrational nonsense never disappeared.

“Haaa...”

I sighed, wondering if this was some immutable truth that survived even changes in era and world.

As I stepped forward with an elegant, modest gait, Leonid, who was standing nearby, looked at me with exaggerated surprise.

Hey, Leonid.

I don't know what you're about to say, but are you sure you can handle the consequences?

“Oh, Sis? Look at you actually looking like a Saintess for once. I'm so used to seeing you in rough shape that this feels kind of strange—”

I glared at him sharply, and he immediately shrank back and shut his mouth.

Why does this guy keep begging to be hit?

Does he actually enjoy it?

If so, I should beat the dust out of him.

I'm a Saintess who cares about her subordinates, after all.

I kept glaring at Leonid.

He desperately avoided my gaze while sweating buckets.

Anyway, after wasting some time in that pointless staring contest, the Harmonia Order's reinforcements finally began entering the temple grounds.

Our Holy Knights raised their swords in salute.

True to their virtue of temperance, the Harmonia Order's armor was plain and practical, without flashy patterns or decorations.

At their head stood Harmonia's vice-captain.

I'd met him several times during previous Councils and accompanied him on a few expeditions into the Demon Realm, so his face was familiar.

“I greet the Saintess of the Eris Order. I am Namgung Hyeong, Vice-Captain of the Harmonia Order.”

He walked up to me and offered a formal Eastern-style bow.

The sight made him look as though he'd stepped straight out of a historical drama.

Harmonia was an Order followed primarily by people from the Eastern Continent.

As a result, most of its members were Easterners.

As someone who had lived in Korea before transmigrating, it was one of the few Orders in this Western-dominated world that felt strangely familiar and nostalgic.

“It is good to see you, Lord Namgung. Did you encounter any difficulties on the road?”

“No. Thanks to the guidance of Lord Harmonia and Goddess Eris, we arrived safely. Has Your Holiness been in good health?”

“I've had no particular troubles. Please rise.”

At my words, Namgung Hyeong straightened his knees and stood up with a grin.

It was a far warmer, more familiar smile than the formal expression he'd worn moments earlier.

“Your Holiness seems even stronger than when I last saw you.”

“Who knows. Perhaps we should spar sometime later— whoops.”

I stopped mid-sentence after accidentally meeting old Bartolomew's chilly gaze and hurriedly shut my mouth.

I suppose even he had a right to be annoyed when the Saintess was talking about fighting while receiving honored guests.

Still, it'd be a shame to miss the chance to experience Eastern swordsmanship.

“It would be enjoyable to exchange a few moves with a warrior of Your Holiness's caliber, but unfortunately, it seems we'll have to postpone it.”

“Looks like it. You've traveled a long way and must be tired, so let's skip the troublesome formalities. Why don't you settle in and rest from the journey?”

“Your Holiness's consideration leaves me deeply grateful. On behalf of the brothers and sisters of Harmonia, I offer my thanks.”

He bowed respectfully once more, though as he raised his head, pleasant warmth remained around his eyes.

When he turned and began leading the column forward, the long line of Harmonia priests and knights finally started moving.

After that came the practical handover.

I tried to slip away immediately because getting caught would definitely drag me into paperwork hell.

Unfortunately, the old man grabbed me by the back of the neck and hauled me toward the office.

“With His Holiness absent, every matter requires your approval, Saintess!”

At the old man's warning, I got as far as saying, “But the Saintess is basically just a figureh—” before seeing his face twist like some wrathful demon and meekly doing as I was told.

Official tasks poured in.

Confirm the size of the Harmonia force.

Assign their lodging.

Draft a rough duty schedule.

No matter how annoying it was, we couldn't just leave honored guests from another Order standing around outside, so I burned the word ‘clocking out’ into my mind and processed the work as quickly as possible.

By the time I finished, the sun had already set and darkness had fallen outside.

“...I thought I was going to die. I'd rather fight a whole horde of demonic beasts.”

I was seriously exhausted.

Paperwork really wasn't for me.

Outside, the sky was covered in gloomy dark clouds, looking ready to dump rain at any moment.

I staggered toward the dining hall and asked Priest Jean, the cook, to prepare something light.

“I shall prepare a grand feast—!”

“No, Uncle Jean, I just want something simple—”

“That will not do! For the sake of the Saintess's nutrition—”

“I said I'm fine!”

“Absolutely not! To ensure your body remains healthy during expeditions into the Demon Realm—”

After arguing for quite a while, I ultimately failed to overcome Cook Jean's bullheadedness.

He handed me a tray holding a thick omelet stuffed with large pieces of bacon and chopped vegetables, along with a rich meat stew.

I looked at the small plate of salad in the corner of the tray and sighed.

“I told you I can't eat all this...”

“It'll be fine!”

“Yeah, yeah... Fine...”

This had gone far beyond a light snack.

But I couldn't bring myself to reject Jean's bright-eyed goodwill, so I nodded and accepted the tray.

Carrying dinner, I walked down the hallway and returned to my room.

Outside, the first drops of rain were beginning to fall.

“...I can finish all this, right?”

After setting the food on the table, I stared at it without much confidence.

Ever since becoming a woman, my stomach had gotten considerably smaller.

A bowl of soup and a piece of rye bread were enough to fill me.

If I were back in modern times, one packet of instant noodles would've probably been enough.

Originally, it didn't count as properly eating ramen unless you dumped rice into the broth afterward.

In one sense, I suppose my fuel efficiency improved.

Still, sometimes it made me sad that I couldn't eat as much delicious food as I wanted.

“Still, Uncle Jean's cooking really is good.”

Driven by my personal conviction that food shouldn't be wasted, I diligently finished dinner.

By the time I barely managed the last bite, I was completely stuffed.

I patted my slightly swollen lower belly and looked outside.

The drizzle had turned into a torrential downpour.

Judging by the force of it, it didn't look like it would stop anytime soon.

Watching the rain pound against the window suddenly reminded me of Cassian.

That bastard had said he'd keep kneeling until I told him otherwise.

Could he still be kneeling in some unseen corner of the training ground?

‘...Come on. Surely he's not still doing that? It's pouring outside. He would've gone in on his own.’

I lay down and pulled the blanket over my head, forcing myself to try to sleep.

But the louder the rain became, the more uncomfortable the feeling in my chest grew.

An ominous certainty kept whispering that the idiot really was out there enduring the rain.

“Ah, for fuck's sake...! Goddammit!”

In the end, I violently kicked off the blanket, cursed, and headed for the training ground.