Chapter 9: Why Is the Saint Being Chased?

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The wind blowing across the grassland had begun to carry a hint of warmth. Dawn was beginning to break, and the world around them was faintly dyed in gold. Having finished the simple breakfast, Lloyd sat with one knee raised, looking up at the sky. Beside him, Lusha quietly crushed the empty water skin in her hand as she watched him.

“…So.”

The one who broke the silence was Lloyd.

“So… Why is Lusha being hunted? What does ‘False Saint’ even mean? I’ve never heard anything like that.”

Earlier, she had brushed the question off with “It’ll be a long story,” but now that they had made some distance, they could afford to sit and talk. Fortunately, there was no sign of pursuers. They had released the horse into the wild, and buried the Temple Knights equipment together with the bodies deep in the forest.

He had worried that the makeshift grave would soon be disturbed by animals, or that the Temple Knights corpses might crawl out as zombies. But according to Lusha, she had placed the Earth Mother Goddess Leafia’s  blessing on them, so there was no such danger. Even if the Church noticed the knights’ failure to return, finding those bodies would be difficult. Tracking the whereabouts of the “False Saint” would surely be a struggle for them.

Lusha drew in a small breath and lowered her gaze.

“That’s true… Since I’m going to be in your care, I should tell you everything, shouldn’t I?”

Her voice was quiet, but carried a certain resolve. Then she began to explain her background.

According to her, Lusha Catomiar had been entrusted to the Church as a child as a “girl who received divine revelations.” Perhaps it was because she had been gifted specifically in sacred magic. Treated as someone capable of hearing the voice of the Earth Mother Goddess Leafia, she had lived under strict monastic discipline in the temple.

Her voice as she recounted this was calm, but the weight of her memories seeped through the edges of her words. After enduring the harsh training and living her monastic life, she became the White Saint, but recently, she received a new divine revelation. That revelation became the catalyst for her being labeled a “False Saint.”

“As I was praying like always, I suddenly heard Lady Leafia’s voice. Her voice was very quiet, but… She clearly said, ‘The Church has lost its way.’”

Lusha clasped her hands together, holding them gently before her chest.

“I told the priest about it. But… They wouldn’t accept it. They said the voice of a god that denied the Church’s way of doing things could not exist.”

“So they branded you a heretic.”

“Yes. Soon after, I was imprisoned in an underground cell. They decided I would be purged as a witch.”

“Imprisoned and sentenced to be purged? That’s awful.”

As he listened, Lloyd felt disgust rise within him. Given Lusha’s status, he had expected something along these lines, but the Church seemed even more corrupt than he imagined. To silence any divine revelation that contradicted them by branding it a witch’s delirium and erasing it from the world… Nothing could be more blasphemous than that.

“How did you escape? If you were in an underground cell, you couldn’t have just walked out.”

“Yes. There was one person who believed my words. Thanks to that person’s help, I managed to escape.”

“I see. So there was at least one true believer who trusted the real saint. And… What happened to them?”

When he asked, Lusha lowered her shoulders.

“I was only smuggled out secretly… I don’t know anything about what happened after. That person said he would work something out, but…”

“Well, yeah…”

Considering that Lusha’s escape had been discovered, that the notice of a “False Saint” had been issued, and that she had been pursued ever since, that believer’s life was almost certainly gone. Lusha slowly lifted her face.

“Right now, the Church has appointed another woman as the White Saint in my place. They made her resemble me, so it seems no one has noticed she’s a fake… Yet.”

“So she’s the real ‘False Saint’ then.”

“That’s right. The real fake… It gets confusing, doesn’t it?”

She said it with a faint teasing tone and a small smile, but fatigue showed through it. It was only natural. She had been treated as an imposter and forced to flee. And yet, even so, the fact that she tried to lighten the mood revealed her gentle nature. Lloyd remained silent for a while, his gaze falling to the embers of the fire.

“…I never thought the Church was like that. You really went through hell.”

Those words were brief, but they were Lloyd’s sincere sympathy. Lusha blinked in surprise, then smiled softly.

“It was hard, and I was scared… But you saved me. So I think that my choice, and his choice, weren’t wrong.”

Her smile was pure and unwavering. Lloyd looked away, unable to answer.

That “he” must be the one who freed her. Whether he had been close to Lusha before, or simply a devout believer who trusted her, Lloyd didn’t know. But Lloyd had done nothing to deserve such a smile. He had just happened to be there and helped her. Even that had been spur-of-the-moment more than anything.

Still, at that moment, Lloyd had felt compelled to help Lusha, as if guided by something. And Lusha had become the first person to save him from the rampage of his curse. Maybe that had been the guidance of the Mother Goddess Leafia.

“And… I’ve always wanted to use my power for someone, not for the world or for the Church. So earlier, when I could use it for you… I was happy.”

As if affirming Lloyd’s thoughts, Lusha spoke. She was so lovely as she said it. So delicate, so radiant. Bathed in sunlight, she was breathtakingly beautiful. Without realizing it, Lloyd’s heart thumped hard.

Damn it… Calm down, idiot.

The sudden awareness of his heartbeat made Lloyd want to click his tongue.

This was bad. She was the one called the White Saint, the bearer of divine revelation. She was not someone he should fall for or harbor feelings toward. For a cursed wanderer like him to develop emotions for a saint…That itself was impudent.

Turning away from her dazzling smile, he slowly looked up at the sky. The sky had already fully welcomed the morning.

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