<CHAPTER 50>
There Is Only One Saintess
Clarisse stood before a large mirror made by embedding the most expensive jewels into a golden frame.
“Goddess! Goddess!”
At her urgent cry, the mirror rippled.
Soon a black figure appeared inside it.
Within the fog covered by shadows, faint facial features emerged.
It was a beautiful face, like a doll carefully sculpted by a god.
-Why do you call me in such a commotion, my child?
An elegant voice echoed.
Clarisse tearfully complained.
“Gabriel… the Hero has returned. But when he held my hand, I felt a stabbing pain in my skin.”
Clarisse removed her lace glove and showed the back of her hand.
The back of her hand was swollen red as if it had been burned.
At that moment, a dark crimson light flashed in the eyes of the goddess inside the mirror.
-Where has the Hero been and what has he been doing all this time?
“He didn’t properly tell me. I think he’s hiding something.”
-I see. So that is the case…
A black shadow flowed out from the mirror.
Like a beast, slender fingers with long nails brushed across the back of Clarisse’s hand.
“Ah— Aah!”
Where the goddess touched, a pain like flesh being carved out by a blade erupted.
Soon the skin seemed to turn black, then it quickly healed cleanly.
“Goddess… what on earth is this…”
Clarisse trembled with fear and could not finish her words.
The goddess whispered gently to her.
-Clarisse, this happened because the power flowing inside your body reacted against the Saintess’s power that the Hero carried with him.
…The Saintess’s power?
Her blue eyes shook violently.
“What do you mean? I’m the Saintess! You chose me, Goddess, so why…”
Clarisse felt wronged.
She recalled the memories of how she came to sit in this position.
-One day, my child, can you hear my voice?
When the black shadow first appeared in the mirror and whispered to her, Clarisse had been overjoyed.
“A god? Did you choose me as the Saintess?”
-Yes, my child. From now on, you will become the Saintess who saves the world.
She had clearly been chosen by the goddess.
The fact that only Clarisse could hear the voice from the mirror was proof of it.
The goddess had granted her divine power.
Unlike the previous Saintesses, she did not have the ability to heal people.
Instead, with her voice she could enchant those around her and make them follow her.
Can this really be called divine power?
Clarisse had doubted it for a moment, but soon stopped thinking about it.
Jewels.
Dresses.
Luxurious food.
As the Saintess, she could obtain anything she wanted.
She was satisfied with her new self, completely different from the past when she had been ignored and insignificant.
-My child, you will become a noble hero who saves this empire.
Clarisse followed the goddess’s will.
At the same time, she quietly satisfied her own desires.
Greedy as she was, she did not want to lose this perfect life.
“Wasn’t there supposed to be only one Saintess in an era? Please answer me, Goddess!”
If another Saintess appeared, she might lose her position.
Seized by fear, Clarisse trembled.
-Clarisse, my child, calm yourself.
The seductive voice burrowed into her ears.
A strange sensation, as if something was kneading her brain, calmed Clarisse.
-There is only one Saintess. That is an undeniable fact. Now that another Saintess has appeared, do you know what you must do?
Clarisse blinked blankly.
She already knew what she had to do to keep her place from being taken.
“…I must find the fake and get rid of her.”
-Yes. Very good. As expected of the child I chose.
The goddess’s sticky laughter echoed through the room.
“Yes. I’m the real Saintess. I didn’t steal anything.”
The fear disappeared from Clarisse’s eyes, leaving only madness.
***
After several days of effort, Ehilie’s cabin was finally restored to a decent state.
Thanks to the help of not only Rek but also Herond and Tusi, the work had been finished much faster.
“It didn’t take long thanks to all of you. Thank you, everyone.”
Now it was time to send Rek back to the mansion.
“Rek, make sure you eat well. And close the windows before sleeping.”
“Yes, I understand. I will miss you, Ehilie.”
“…Me too.”
Maybe it was because they had stayed together the entire time.
Even though it wasn’t a permanent separation, her heart felt strangely empty.
Rek gently kissed the tearful Ehilie.
“Ah!”
“Lord Herond, this is when you pretend you didn’t see anything.”
The voices of Herond and Lucy passed faintly from behind them.
Because Rek pressed forward without hesitation as if this moment were their last, Ehilie soon couldn’t think about anything at all.
A kiss that was hot and desperate, as if it would devour her.
After sharing each other’s breath for quite a long time, Rek finally stepped back with a reluctant expression.
It was only a brief farewell for the sake of each other.
Why does the house feel so empty?
That night, Ehilie spent a lonely evening in the unusually spacious cabin.
The next day.
Knock knock.
Someone knocked on the door early in the morning.
Who could it be? No one should be coming.
Curious, Ehilie looked out the window and was startled.
“Rek?”
Rek was standing in front of the door.
When Ehilie opened it, he greeted her calmly.
“Good morning, Ehilie.”
“No, not good morning! Weren’t you supposed to stay away for a while?”
“That was the plan. But after thinking about it all night, I realized your house doesn’t have any food ingredients.”
“Ah, now that you mention it, I haven’t gone grocery shopping yet.”
“Yes. It would be difficult for your delicate arms to carry all those ingredients, so I came to help.”
I’m not that weak!
Still, she couldn’t just send away someone who had come all this way for her.
So Ehilie went grocery shopping with him.
They ate together in the village, visited a nice café, and even took a short walk.
By the time they returned, evening had already arrived.
This somehow turned into a date!
Still, they had bought all the ingredients they needed.
“Get home safely, Rek.”
“Yes, Ehilie. I will miss you.”
Ehilie once again had a tearful farewell with Rek.
This time he kissed her even more deeply, as if it were truly the last.
After finishing that lingering goodbye, Ehilie spent a night that felt slightly less lonely than the day before.
The next day.
Knock knock.
“Rek, why are you here again today?”
He had come again.
“The weather has been cloudy since yesterday, so it seemed like it might rain. The roof repairs weren’t completely finished yet.”
“That’s true, but…”
“I couldn’t sleep thinking that rainwater might leak in and you might catch a cold.”
Is that really something to worry about that much?
Then again, Rek was a rather delicate person.
Maybe he had genuinely been worried.
“Thank you, Rek.”
“No, thank you for understanding.”
After working hard on the roof for half a day, Rek suddenly climbed down and hugged Ehilie.
“Ehilie, I can’t feel strength in my arms. I’ll rest for a moment before going back up.”
Was Rek’s stamina really this weak?
Ehilie felt a bit puzzled but didn’t think much of it.
He had always been frail after all.
At night… well, when people get excited, endorphins are released, so they can exert more strength than usual.
Maybe that was why.
Rek talked with her for a couple of hours, and only after the sun had completely set did he climb back up to continue fixing the roof.
An entire day had passed.
“Thank you, Rek. The roof looks perfect now.”
“Of course. If you ever need me, call me anytime, Ehilie.”
Another farewell.
Unlike Ehilie, who had become calmer about it, Rek still showed deep emotion.
“I will miss you, Ehilie.”
It felt strangely like déjà vu.
After their third farewell kiss, he finally left.
That night, before falling asleep, Ehilie thought to herself.
He won’t come again tomorrow, right?
No way.
There was now plenty of food, and the roof was fully repaired.
There was no reason for him to come back.
…Or so she thought.
The next day.
Knock knock.
“Now what is it this time?”
“Well… I left my handkerchief here yesterday.”
As always, Rek appeared with an excuse that barely sounded believable.
“Rek, if you’re going to keep doing this, why not just commute here every day?”
She had meant it as a joking way of saying he was visiting too often.
But Rek’s face brightened immediately.
“Would that really be allowed?”
Usually he was sly, but at times like this he was unexpectedly pure.
“No, it was a joke. Just a joke.”
“…Ah. I see.”
Seeing his disappointed expression, Ehilie decided to pretend she hadn’t noticed.
“Since you’re already here, come in and at least have breakfast.”
Rek naturally entered the house again.
At this rate, was it even possible for them to live apart?
Hopeless.
Ehilie slowly had no choice but to give up.
Even if she threw him away, he would always come back to her like a cursed doll.
No… calling him a cursed doll is unfair. He’s far too cute.
The fact that she found his silly excuse about leaving a handkerchief behind adorable meant the situation was already serious.
