Taming the Evil Saintess

---

It wasn’t in the reception room, but as expected, it was Inquisition Officer Yurede.

The moment I entered the room, Yurede gave a wry smile as if he had anticipated this.

“Ah, so you were here. Even after searching the border thoroughly, there was no trace, so I figured you’d be in Shadowhold.”

“….”

Yurede had previously come to Shadowhold with Ophelia to chase me down. Naturally, he was well-acquainted with Eldarian too. It made sense that he would visit the Magic Tower in search of Ophelia.

Had I underestimated the situation?

Regretting my short-sightedness, I examined Yurede’s appearance.

He was wearing only the thin holy garb typical of the Cathedral. However, Yurede was among the top Inquisition Officers in the Cathedral. There was surely a sharp weapon concealed within those wide sleeves.

I took my seat across from him without relaxing my tension.

“Did you come alone, Sir Yurede?”

“Indeed.”

“Was it a directive from His Holiness? To capture Ophelia?”

“It is solely my own decision. No one knows about this matter. The Inquisition Bureau respects the Pope’s will, but we’re not a group that follows it blindly. My position allows for autonomy in actions.”

Yurede smiled faintly as he said this. His expression remained inscrutable.

“Then why have you come?”

“Naturally, for the Inquisition. I’ve come to investigate whether Sir Elliot is an apostate.”

“I’ll tell you in advance, fleeing from the Cathedral with Ophelia… It’s not that I’m an apostate.”

“That is for Sir Elliot to determine. Only God knows the truth.”

Yurede spoke with a cold expression.

“I’ve heard the details. You took the Saint who was in the Punishment Room and fled the Cathedral. You even brought down five Cathedral Knights.”

“It was unavoidable.”

“I understand. I read the remnants of divine power on my way here. I could also see how fierce the battle must have been.”

Yurede’s tracking ability was at the pinnacle within the Cathedral. Among them, he was quite exceptional.

“I can somewhat comprehend why Sir Elliot was enraged. I, too, do not condone the absurdity of the Punishment Room. However, as someone of lowly status, I can only worry if Sir Elliot, who abducted the Saint, has any ill intentions.”

“….”

“I do not wish to harm a comrade who once shared the same faith.”

Yurede’s eyes narrowed.

“If that’s not the case, perhaps Sir Elliot has always been a false shepherd. Deceiving me, Yurede, with his silver tongue… That’s truly, a thought too dreadful to entertain.”

A chill emanated from Yurede.

An oppressive aura.

I unconsciously placed my hand on the hilt of my sword at my waist.

“What do you intend to do with Ophelia? Are you planning to take her back to the Cathedral? By force? Even at the cost of blood?”

“His Holiness might command that. But even that isn’t up to me. It will ultimately be decided by God.”

“God?”

I frowned at those words, and suddenly, Yurede reached out, withdrawing a dagger from his robe.

“I do not believe Sir Elliot’s display of devotion was false. He swore to give his life for the Saint. What was said in the Inquisition Bureau was the undeniable truth. Therefore, I wish to give Sir Elliot the opportunity to convince me.”

“How would I convince you?”

“Swear before God that you’re not an apostate.”

“Swear?”

“Use the Gears.”

Well, I wondered why this had not come up earlier. The Gears could be used in the face of great danger, but they were also used to pledge oaths and demonstrate faith.

Especially for Yurede, the Gears were tantamount to divine revelation.

“Now, prove your faith through the Gears. Seek the great will of God.”

Yurede strongly insisted, and I licked my dry lips.

I was already under the effects of the Gears.

Of course, using them once more wasn’t impossible.

But I didn’t want to further mortgage my life to God. Being a Hero was already an unpleasant situation as it was.

“There’s no need for that.”

“What do you mean?”

Gazing into Yurede’s ice-cold eyes, I removed my gloves.

Then, I presented the Hero’s Divine Mark etched on the back of my hand before him.

“Will this be enough?”

It should suffice.

The Hero’s Divine Mark.

Among the blessings bestowed by God, it was the most sacred and glorious sign.

In terms of rank, it surpassed even the Mark of the Highest God.

There was no need to prove its authenticity.

Someone of Yurede’s level would surely understand, merely by sensing the energy flowing from the Mark, that this was beyond doubt the real deal.

“….”

Yurede was silent for a moment.

To be precise, he wore an expression so moved that he seemed unable to speak.

“Oh, oh dear.”

How many minutes passed?

Yurede suddenly jumped to his feet.

He twisted his face, grabbed the dagger from the table, and pointed it toward his chest.

“T-this… How blasphemous and foolish my thoughts were! To dare not recognize the Hero bestowed upon us by God! The false shepherd was I myself!”

“Uh… Sir Yurede?”

“Such blasphemy! I shall wash it away with my life….”

“What a madman….”

I instinctively swung my fist and struck Yurede’s jaw.

*

“So, you threw a punch? Why not just quit being a Knight and become a street brawler instead? That would suit you better.”

“It is indeed Sir Yurede’s fault.”

I sighed as I looked at Yurede, who had collapsed with his eyes rolled back.

Who else would attempt suicide for not recognizing a Hero?

There was no fanatic as fanatical as this.

Ophelia, who had rushed in after the chaos in the reception room, looked incredulously at Yurede and me, then frowned upon seeing my bare knuckles.

“You said you’d hide the Mark.”

“I had no choice. Sir Yurede wouldn’t be convinced by mere words.”

“That much is true.”

Having endured Yurede’s torment for two months, Ophelia nodded.

“So, what are you going to do about keeping him quiet? You can’t just kill him, right?”

“I’ll handle it diplomatically.”

“Whenever you say that, it always ends in violence.”

“This time, I truly will resolve it through dialogue.”

I didn’t think Yurede would betray us.

For him, God’s will, meaning the Hero, was likely more precious than the Pope’s command.

“Guhgh.”

As I splashed water on Yurede’s face, he took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

Before he could grasp the situation, he blinked back and forth between Ophelia and me, shivering.

“Oh, oh dear….”

Yurede spread his arms wide and knelt.

“This unworthy Yurede! Saint… with the Hero….”

“Enough of your noise. Just sit still and listen to what I have to say. Stop the self-harm.”

I interrupted him.

Now that I had revealed my identity as the Hero, it didn’t matter if I looked down on him.

Yurede responded with a blink.

“First, I want you to promise that you won’t tell anyone about the Hero’s Divine Mark, no matter what. Especially not in the Cathedral.”

“Why? The Hero’s Divine Mark is a significant blessing from God. If we don’t inform our fellow believers who serve the same God…”

“It’s a divine revelation.”

What a convenient statement.

This single remark would likely convince most clergy.

Indeed, Yurede wore a look of awe.

“The reason I escaped the Cathedral and brought Ophelia with me… Well, it was all a divine revelation. Something like that.”

“….Ah, oh dear.”

“….”

Ophelia looked at me with a face that seemed to ask what kind of third-rate play this was.

I shared her sentiment.

But what else could we do that was effective?

“So, report to the Pope that it seems the kidnapper and the Saint have headed north. I’ll provide you with plausible evidence.”

“North, you say? Why?”

“Because we’re heading south from now on.”

“South?”

That last was Ophelia’s question.

“Why south?”

“The northern Ice Palace is close to the Demon King’s Castle, and since Ophelia doesn’t want to go to the Great Forest in the west, I skipped that option. It’s too far to run all the way to the Eastern Continent, and in the end, there’s only one place left.”

In the southern part of the Empire, a vast desert stretched out. There, a few small city-states formed a loose alliance. While their behavior was somewhat barbaric, it was still a location that was treated somewhat seriously in the game.

“We’re going to the Auriga Desert.”

“I-I want to go too! Please let me follow you on the Hero’s journey! I, Yurede! Will give my very body to it!”

“I told you to be quiet.”

Eventually, unable to take it anymore, I delivered a light smack to the top of his head.

Yurede seemed to bite his tongue, as he was unable to speak for a while.

“You just stay at the Cathedral. If anything is needed, I’ll send a letter then.”

“….”

“Right. I’m asking you to be my eyes and ears. Got it?”

“Is that the will of God?”

“Umm… something like that.”

“Understood. I’ll treat it as a very important mission, and I’ll strive to ensure it can be of help to the Hero’s journey!”

Yurede, having jumped to a conclusion without authorization, was ignited with motivation.

Ophelia, who had been looking at him in disbelief, turned towards me.

“The desert? I hate the heat.”

“It won’t be that hot.”

“Do we really have to go to the desert? We could enjoy ourselves in the southern part of the Empire since we have plenty of money.”

“I’d like that too.”

Yet, there were several reasons to go to the desert.

First, now that I had become a Hero without my consent, I needed to overthrow the Demon King for my own survival.

The Demon King is strong. In Sword & Magic Chronicles, the Hero party had to be optimally arranged to capture the Demon King. The number of members in a Hero party in the game was six. But this world isn’t a game. This means the more companions, the better. Quantity assaults that were impossible in the game were now attainable.

So, I aimed to roam the continent this time and recruit any available character allies.

In that sense, the Auriga Desert was the perfect place.

It was far from the Demon King’s Castle, thus not dangerous, and it was also home to high-performing characters from the game.

Above all,

“There’s an old friend of mine who’s there.”

“You have a friend?”

Ophelia raised an eyebrow.

“You? That Elliot has a friend?”

“What do you think of me?”

“Well, obviously… A loner. You didn’t have any proper friends in the Cathedral either.”

“Ophelia.”

“….”

“Isn’t it written in the Scriptures? In the eyes of a saint, only saints are visible; in the eyes of a pig, only pigs are seen. Conversely, those who are loners can only see other loners. Are you a loner, Ophelia?”

“Not at all!”

“Isn’t it true that you have no friends besides me?”

“That’s not it! I just deliberately chose not to make any! And who’s your friend anyway?”

Ophelia shook her fist, her eyes wide, and I averted my gaze.

Anyway, I still have a few of the few connections left since I became engrossed in this world after arriving. It wasn’t exactly a nostalgic period, but I shared a bond, having crossed paths together through a life-and-death situation.

If what he said was true, he mentioned returning to his hometown in the desert, so I would likely be able to reunite with him there.

Of course, that was assuming he had survived well until now.

“Um, just to ask, this isn’t for any particular reason. Please, don’t misunderstand—”

As I was lost in thought, Ophelia suddenly spoke up.

“I know it’s not true, but just in case, really, just in case… Your friend, he’s not a woman, right?”

“What do you mean by that?”

I looked at Ophelia, attempting to gauge her intentions, but she was just staring into the distance.

No, she had merely turned her head; her gaze was precisely aimed at me.

“I’m just curious.”

“…Hmm.”

After a moment of deliberation, I casually responded.

“Well, if you say ‘woman’, then it would be a woman.”

“…What?”

“Biologically speaking, she is female.”

At that, Ophelia’s eyes shook.

Her expression soured and turned cold.

“Why?”

“What do you mean why? What do you want me to do if she was born as a woman?”

“No, it’s just weird.”

“It’s not weird.”

“…Your friend being a woman is just hard to believe!”

“Ophelia.”

“Why?”

“There’s no dinner tonight.”

I said firmly.