No, How Can an Atheist Become a Saintess!?

No, How Can an Atheist Become a Saintess!? – 48

EP.48

Chapter 4

Escape and Service (14)

*

Lee Si-yoon had never really considered himself particularly extraordinary. He had barely managed to obtain his hunter’s license. His childhood friend, Yu-ri, with whom he had promised to become a hunter and travel other worlds, had earned hers far more easily. She had even started as the top member of their team, entering the field as a hunter at a much higher rank. Si-yoon had been nothing but astonished.

Well, Yu-ri had always excelled—top grades, athletic talent, and an amicable personality. Si-yoon was sure that there weren’t many boys who hadn’t at least once been enamored with Han Yu-ri. That was why he felt fortunate to have joined the same association and formed a party with her. Being able to protect Yu-ri with his life and miraculously surviving afterward had felt like pure luck.

“Are you going to keep calling me a bunny?”

“Then what should I call you if not a bunny? A deer? Want me to call you a deer? But, hmm, the only soft and fluffy part of a deer is probably its tail. Though, I guess the area near it might be a little squishy too.”

“A tail—!? Is that something a knight should be saying to a Saintess candidate?!”

“Huh? So, you’re not denying the title of Saintess candidate now?”

“You’re the one who suggested using my status in the first place!”

—But really, what was this situation?

As a hunter, and as a man, he knew this was an enviable position.

Including Yu-ri—who had been his close friend since childhood and whom he knew he shouldn’t think of this way—Si-yoon, unfortunately, was still a man.

Yet here he was, sharing the same space with a flawless elf straight out of a painting, the daughter of the nation’s greatest hero, and a Saintess candidate whom even the association murmured might ascend without objection. Even if he couldn’t imagine dating any of them, just being in their company was enough to brag about to his friends.

Of course, neither the Saintess candidate nor her knight seemed to care about Si-yoon at all. Watching them argue, he debated whether to intervene, but they looked like they were enjoying it in their own way. Was it one of those playful squabbles close friends had?

…Though, if he voiced that thought, both of them would likely deny it vehemently.

“Excuse me, Lee Si-yoon?”

“Y-Yes?!”

The sweet voice that called out to him made Si-yoon jump.

The speaker was none other than the elf girl, Gloria.

In her homeland, she was apparently a noble, though judging by the reactions within the association, she seemed far above a mere noble. After all, the one who facilitated her introduction was the Saintess candidate herself.

Her hair, styled into perfect golden curls, shimmered as if it were spun from sunlight. It hardly felt like mere human hair. If he had to compare, it resembled the overly retouched locks of a shampoo commercial model.

“Would it be all right to ask your hunter rank?”

Hearing such polite speech from someone so regal left Si-yoon momentarily stunned.

“S-Seven… Seven-tier,” he stammered.

Naturally, his response was as clumsy as it could get.

“Oh my.”

Gloria chuckled, her laughter refined and dignified. It sounded as though she genuinely found his answer amusing.

Having spent his entire life in a modern Republic of Korea where explicit social classes had long since disappeared, Si-yoon had no idea what a “noble laugh” entailed, but he figured this must be it.

“I see. That’s the lowest rank, isn’t it?”

“Y-Yes, but…”

“I’ve only just begun working as a hunter myself, so I expect I’ll also start at Tier 7. I wonder if I might join the same team as you…”

“……”

From the opposite side of the room, Si-yoon felt an intense burning gaze, causing him to gulp nervously.

On Si-yoon’s right arm, Yu-ri had slipped her arm through his, casting a sharp glare at Gloria beyond him.

“Excuse me, Miss Elf.”

“Oh my, that’s merely the name of my kind. And you are?”

“…You are?”

“Well, I don’t know your name.”

“…It’s Han Yu-ri. We introduced ourselves just a little while ago.”

“Oh my, was that your name? Miss… someone.”

“…Si-yoon, I really think it’s best if you keep some distance from this person. She’s a noble, after all. People like us, ordinary folks, shouldn’t approach someone like her. Really.”

Yu-ri emphasized “really” twice for good measure.

“I heard that such hierarchies were abolished in this world.”

“Well, they still exist in Europe. Speaking of which, wouldn’t it be better to relocate there? You’d be properly treated as a noble there—”

“Oh my—”

Yu-ri and Gloria quickly sharpened their words, trading verbal blows.

Here was the Saintess candidate and her knight arguing openly. And now, for some reason, Si-yoon found himself caught in the middle of a verbal sword fight between a noble lady and his childhood friend.

Si-yoon felt as though a hole was forming in his stomach.

*

“My throat… my throat… it hurts…”

“Well, of course it does, after you shouted like that. There’s no way your voice wouldn’t be strained.”

Ria spoke with a teasing smile as I muttered hoarsely.

“Whose fault do you think—! Ouch, ouch.”

“Here, water.”

“Thanks… though it’s all your fault.”

I spoke, accepting the water she offered despite my words.

It was lukewarm, not too cold. Since Ria had taken it out when we got in the car, it had cooled a little by the time we reached the area near the church.

Now that I thought about it, she had been holding it by the window, likely letting it warm a little under the heater. That might have prevented my throat from feeling worse after drinking it.

…

Surely, she hadn’t done that on purpose, had she? Thinking ahead, knowing my throat would be sore…

No, that couldn’t be it.

Recalling how Ria had stared intently at my lower back earlier, claiming she was searching for a deer tail, I shook my head, trying to dispel such a ridiculous notion.

To escape her gaze, I had spun in circles in front of everyone, and Ria had mirrored me, spinning in circles around me—

I covered my flushed face with both hands.

“Honestly, why did you react so dramatically?”

“Well, would I have reacted that way if you hadn’t started it?”

And yet, she too had turned red in the face. Why was that? Was she so caught up teasing me that she forgot about everyone else?

“Sigh… Whatever. Thanks to you, things went smoothly, so I’ll let it slide this time.”

“Mm-hm.”

Ria opened her eyes wide in response to my words, then returned to her usual expression and asked, as if confused.

“But why do you get to decide to let it slide? I’m the one who did all the work.”

“Tch.”

“‘Tch’ is not an answer, hey!”

Ignoring Ria’s incredulous protest, I turned my head to the opposite side.

There sat Gloria.

In the original storyline, Gloria had essentially settled down in the association’s building. She ate, slept, and stuck to Si-yoon every time he appeared, continuously making her presence known.

This time, however, perhaps thanks to me, Gloria didn’t make herself at home in the building. At the very least, she was heading back to the church with us.

“Huhuhu…”

But as if mocking my thoughts, Gloria laughed quietly.

Her suspiciously sparkling eyes glinted with intensity. Her sapphire and emerald-like irises seemed ready to bore a hole through whatever they focused on. She looked as if she might actually pierce the chair in front of her.

“Indeed, I see now. It makes perfect sense. There’s no way someone so captivating wouldn’t have admirers.”

Ack.

“You’re Han Yu-ri, was it? Hmph. A commoner like you, clinging so tightly to someone of such noble grace, could never compare.”

“……”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. Where I come from, having one or two concubines is something we can overlook. However, in this world, if it’s not a formal marriage, it’s just an affair, isn’t it? Fufufu.”

Gloria’s gaze flickered with dangerous amusement.

“If that’s the case, I’ll simply do my utmost to fight for my place. They say people reveal their true selves over time, but first, you must secure a seat by their side to observe them properly.”

No, that’s absolutely not how it works.

This was a clear case of being smitten at first sight, entirely based on appearances, regardless of my presence or involvement.

“…For now, since my caretaker is hospitalized, I can’t move around recklessly. But very well. After all, both of you are my partners.”

Murmuring this much to herself, Gloria then turned her gaze toward me.

Those sharp, shimmering sapphire and emerald eyes locked straight onto mine.

Her lips curled into a sly smile—one that wasn’t so much beautiful as it was unsettling.

“So, may I ask for your cooperation?”

…Wait. Was all of that directed at me?

Meeting her gaze across the aisle, I quickly shifted my focus to the back of the seat in front of me and cradled my head in my hands.

“Sigh.”

Ria, for some reason, started patting my head gently.

As I felt the surroundings brighten ever so slightly, I glanced up to find a light shining down on me from the bus’s ceiling.

“Are you mocking me!?”

I shouted, quickly dispersing the divine power illuminating me with both hands.

“This is all your fault, Ria!”

“Huh? What did I do?”

What did you do? You were busy arguing and didn’t even notice what was happening!

Still, deep down, I knew the entire situation was my fault to begin with.

Since there was no one I could confide in about the plan, I ended up saying nothing to Ria, who looked at me with a baffled expression. Instead, I buried my head in my hands again, leaning it against the seat in front of me until we arrived at the church.