Academy Saintess of My Chūni Writing Days

Being a god all by myself is, in many ways, a ridiculously annoying task.

Honestly, to be frank, I’ve never actually become a god by myself. I just woke up one day and found out I was being treated like one. Of course, the power I possess is no different from that of real gods, but still, I didn’t obtain that power because I wanted it, right?

Anyway, having been constantly threatened with forced ascension every day, I had to find a way to control that power somehow. If I mess up, I might wake up to find Ariel and Baal staring down at me. And considering how annoyingly complicated it is to move between the Temple of Gods and this world, I might not be able to come back down after that.

Well, I could borrow the bodies of Aurora and Linea to descend, but that’s really an option for the worst-case scenario.

Each morning and evening, pouring miracles into the water tanks, healing patients who made pilgrimages from distant regions, and stacking heaps of weapons to bless them, I was desperately trying to consume that power in various ways to prevent any societal shock. One day, a thought crossed my mind.

Isn’t the holy power that numerous priests use originally a god’s power? Despite the fact that there has never been more than one person capable of wielding miracle power in an era, I could assume there wouldn’t be anyone calling on my power as a miracle anymore. But wouldn’t the priests who believe in me be able to use holy power based on my strength?

And the more people using that ‘god’s power’ there are, the more the power I accumulate won’t just pile up in my body, but will be distributed through those people to others who need that power.

In other words, I could have the luxury of controlling my power, and thanks to the numerous priests, rather than my strength being concentrated, it can spread throughout the world!

Why hadn’t I thought of this until now?!

“…Well, if that happens, factions will form under you, and you’ll surely be treated like a sage by those people. I thought you were intentionally keeping quiet after coming up with that idea?”

Rina raised an eyebrow and asked when I put forward this idea while having lunch in late November.

“…W-well, of course, I thought about it!”

Of course, I had never thought about it at all. I was just struggling to somehow deal with the incident that was right in front of me, and I didn’t have time to think of such ideas.

“I’ve heard that the Central Church has been predicting the creation of your sect for decades, so this is great. I can almost hear the Pope jumping up and dancing.”

“Wait, who told you that?”

“Huh? Obviously, I heard it from Andrea.”

Rina made a face that seemed to say it was a mood killer just thinking about it, lowering the sandwich she was holding in front of her mouth.

“She’s completely under my command now. She still doesn’t use polite speech, though.”

“Has the restructuring already finished?”

“Details are still being tuned, but it’s progressing smoothly since the moment I was canonized, and there’s nothing to hide. The knights wait in front of the cathedral every day, forcibly report about you, and act like they know. Plus, they’re making a fuss about expanding the cathedral.”

Rina muttered something under her breath. Though I couldn’t catch it clearly, words like “This is too…” and “For the rest of my life…” were mixed in, indicating she was worried about being stuck in the church and being exploited for life.

…She’s worrying about the same thing I am.

I nearly felt a moment of shared understanding.

“Anyway, if you truly act according to that idea, you’ll probably become more than just a pope… what should I say, you might end up as a living idol?”

“I’m already being treated that way.”

I pouted and grumbled. That’s right. Even though there isn’t an official sect yet, the church is already calling me a goddess and propping me up.

“But how did you get information I didn’t even know?”

“Of course, I’ve seen you running around uncomfortable every time they mentioned that at the church. You wouldn’t even approach unless it was absolutely necessary.”

Ugh.

Rina’s blunt fact pierced my heart. It was such a true statement that it felt like it reached the very deep conscience of my heart.

“So you’ll create a sect in a few decades, huh?”

“If it’s a few decades later, you’ll return to the Temple of Gods anyway. After that, no one will say anything if they create a scripture about you. The problem is that my name will probably be written in big letters in that scripture… Well, by then, I might not even be around, so maybe it won’t matter.”

“Ha…”

I looked at Aurora and Linea, but both looked like they were hearing this for the first time.

Well, considering such a monumental incident has occurred, the church had only sent theologians in the first few days. Priest Turner was still nearby, investigating the incidents I was causing, so he was still technically dispatched, but they hadn’t intentionally bothered me except for the first day they arrived.

Thinking about it, it’s only natural. With a goddess right in front of them, how many people would want to bother her just to sate their curiosity? Even Rina, who acts so confidently in front of others, trembles with fear when facing the god she serves.

…Well, anyway.

If the church is thinking along those lines, I might as well use that to my advantage. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, so it’s best to go along with that for now.

“By the way, what about the priests in the new sect? You can’t just pick anyone, right?”

“Maybe they’ll receive resources… I don’t know the details. I left all the troublesome stuff to Andrea.”

With a nonchalant expression, Rina started chewing on the sandwich in her hand like it had magically become unappetizing, looking like she was questioning why we were discussing such a depressing topic right now.

Well, she was suddenly thrown into a situation like this, so she wouldn’t have all the details down perfectly either.

I… actually have a person around here who’s good at handling these things… Ah, right, there’s one.

Since Rina mentioned she’s leaving everything to Andrea, the captain of her knights—

*

“Are you saying you wish to establish a new sect?”

Uncle Paul looked at me with a somewhat surprised expression and asked.

“Yes, well… I think it’s the best way.”

It was a statement that had been significantly shortened in various ways, but I was relieved that Uncle Paul didn’t immediately start asking me everything under the sun.

“So, there are things I’d like to delegate to the Saint Knights…”

Once I actually brought it up, it felt terribly embarrassing. Rina has her own bunch with Andrea, who tends to bicker with her, and even if she shrugs off some of the work, I can’t expect that from Uncle Paul and me since we don’t have that kind of relationship.

“Hmmm…”

Uncle Paul, seemingly troubled, fell deep into thought.

“Are you saying you want to include the Saint Knights as the forces of the new sect?”

“Uh… In conclusion, yes.”

Oh, saying that makes it sound a bit strange. It feels like something a general planning a coup would say. Although I had no intention of doing that.

“Well…”

After listening to me, Uncle Paul hesitated for a moment while wearing a very troubled expression, then said,

“I’m really sorry, but that’s not something we can decide on our own.”

He politely bowed his head and declined.

That makes sense~

Even if they are under the Saintess, the Saint Knights can’t just join any faction willy-nilly. That ‘faction’ isn’t just a group that can link here and there; it’s a formally established sect determined by the church.

“That’s because the name of the faction we belong to is the ‘Saint Knights.’ Of course, if a Saint or a Holy One appears, we will protect them. But be it Saint or Holy One, they’re bound to appear across factions, right?”

“…Huh?”

When I asked back, completely taken off guard by Uncle Paul’s different angle, he appeared somewhat guilty as he explained.

“The Saint Knights are, after all, a faction created to protect the ‘Saints.’ Just the Saint currently present has already been split into two factions, right? Yes, some of the troops are dispatched to the cathedral where Saint Rina Hicks resides for her protection.”

As I kept listening, the more astonished I became, and I’m sure Uncle Paul noticed my expression of shock and looked uneasy.

…That’s right.

That’s correct.

I remembered that the Saint was no longer just me!

No, technically speaking, I’m not even a Saint anymore! Haven’t I been elevated to goddess now?

Of course, that doesn’t mean the Saint Knights will stop protecting me. They’ve still been accompanying me every morning when I go to the academy. The problem is that now the entity the Saint Knights need to protect isn’t just ‘me.’

There’s Aurora, Linea, and of course Rina, who stays at another cathedral. Naturally, all of them were Sanctified by the church denoting me directly.

But since that organization was born for such a mission, I could argue nothing.

“Uh… Yeah, I see… ha ha…”

Murmuring empty words after hearing that, Uncle Paul replied with a genuinely regretful expression.

“I’m truly sorry we cannot assist.”

“No, well, that’s just how the rules are.”

It’s true; having an organization as significant as the Saint Knights tied to a single sect could create a big mess. Saints can appear from anywhere, after all. In the case of the Inquisition, they conduct their investigations regardless of sect, so it wouldn’t pose a problem if they belonged to a single sect.

…Huh? Wait a minute.

Oh, right. There still is a person who will absolutely have to work objectively regardless of me joining or not!

To be precise, it’s not ‘people,’ but there’s just one person.

Well, the term had originally meant any organization.

“It’s fine! It seems like a good idea has come to me! There’s no need to worry too much!”

I clasped Uncle Paul’s armor cheerfully, and he looked immensely puzzled.

“R-really?”

“Yes! There are always many people to ask for help!”

Actually, there’s not many; there’s just one person. But if I expand the personnel in the future, isn’t that the same?

Seeing Paul getting visibly shaken, I waved my hand happily and immediately turned my body.

Then I headed toward one of the few guest rooms in the cathedral where that person was staying.

*

The position of Miracle Investigator was never a busy role.

Of course, given the unique nature of having to manage complex examples of ‘miracles’, there were often false or mistaken reports. But it was already around 500 years since it was revealed that gods actually exist. There were guidebooks detailing miracles distributed in every cathedral, and the priests usually possessed enough discernment to handle cases of miracles, learning about them beforehand.

Moreover, everyone knew they would eventually be punished if they made up such stories freely.

In general, cases would get cleaned up at the local church level, and only the truly suspicious instances made their way up to the Miracle Investigator. Given that such cases happened no more than a few times a year, it was manageable enough for a single person… or so they thought.

That was until it was revealed that one of the Saints might actually be a Goddess.

These days, Turner, the Miracle Investigator, was seriously contemplating resigning due to the unprecedented number of miracles erupting daily, all stemming from a single entity.

In fact, discussions were emerging among scholars at the Central Church and those still stationed to study the new goddess’s miracle powers whether it made sense to resurrect the institution of Miracle Investigation.

Technically speaking, this was more of a revival since it had never actually ceased to exist.

Yet, Father Matthew Turner had no desire for such a thing. The thought of becoming the leader of some organization and leading dozens or even hundreds of people was unimaginable to him. Rather, he just wanted to casually kill time in the office. It was evident that should the Miracle Institute genuinely become a large organization covering the entire nation, he could never continue a comfortable lifestyle like that, so he held on as best he could on his own.

But if he resigned as Miracle Investigator, he would need to meticulously transfer those piled-up documents he had not organized and hand them over to his successor. Plus, there was no guarantee that he would be able to move to a more peaceful place by doing so.

He was truly stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“If only the goddess would decide my path for me, I would just follow along and live like that.”

Somehow, as he sighed while signing yet another uncountable sheet of paperwork, muttering that under his breath must have been the cause of trouble.

That was the sort of thing he should not be saying.

Far away, above the sky in another realm, the Demon God and Goddess might be indifferent, but coincidentally, the little goddess living in the same cathedral appeared to have taken his wish far too accurately.

As he placed the paperwork he held on the very top of the stack, the door to the guest room burst open forcefully.

Unfortunately, the guest room wasn’t a sliding door; it was a hinged door, and that door, flung inward vigorously, served as a large fan for the room.

Regrettably, the girl holding the doorknob was exceptionally energetic compared to her peers.

The door opened with the air pushing through and had enough force to sweep several pages off the top of the paperwork stack behind the desk. And in reality, that had just happened.

Staring helplessly at the pages flying toward the back of the desk, the Miracle Investigator, Father Matthew Turner, was met with the radiant visage—indeed, she was literally glowing—of the goddess sprinting toward him with a bright smile. He couldn’t get a clear look at her expression, but given her actions beneath that light, she was clearly in an immensely excited and joyful mood.

Based on the assorted information Father Turner had accumulated, this kind of exuberant appearance from the goddess typically indicated that she had discovered a justification to miss something immensely vital or a reason to delegate that immensely vital task to someone else.

Realizing he was alone with her in this room made his heart sink.

“…Greetings, goddess! I’m glad to see you look well today.”

“Yes, priest… I’m glad to see you appear healthy too.”

She definitely hesitated before saying he looked ‘healthy.’

But despite Father Turner’s nervous state, the goddess Clara appeared completely unyielding.

“…Do you perhaps have some request?”

Seeing her posture as though she was waiting for the other to speak, Father Turner, filled with fear, finally asked her.

“Ah, yes! I’m planning to create a new sect this time!”

…

Saying ‘to create a sect’ had the same casual tone as “I popped by the convenience store on my way home from school”!

“Perhaps could the Miracle Investigator assist me in some way?”

“What sort of help can I provide?”

As he struggled to maintain composure, he tried his best to sound polite. From what he heard from Aurora, the goddess Clara had previously promoted a succubus, who had openly opposed her, to become a sect leader and elevated her to sainthood. Had he not heard the insiders’ story, he would probably have thought a devil had merely been reformed into God’s Apostle.

…No, of course, she had indeed been reformed; that was the foundation of why one could believe it.

And having turned that ‘succubus’ into a saint, how high might she elevate someone who already held a title like priest?!

Trembling with fear, he pondered.

“To establish a sect, you need believers of that sect underneath, right? Securing those people generally involves absorbing an already existing group!”

…

She spoke such terrifying words in an incredibly cheerful manner.

“Saint, I’m sorry, but I’m just holding a position, not a group…”

“Yes, I know! But the Miracle Investigator is just a reduced title of the Miracle Investigation group, isn’t it?”

Then, she glanced around the guest room. At least that’s what Father Turner thought. He couldn’t fully gauge if she was turning her head since he couldn’t see her face.

“So, in this opportunity, if we could increase the personnel and receive support from the sect, wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Thunk! The pen that Turner had been holding fell to the desk.

And it rolled off to the side, tumbling under the desk, but he remained oblivious, staring blankly at the goddess.

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