Taming the Evil Saintess

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Two days passed.

Initially, my plan to leave after receiving only a sword from Olmen could not be realized.

The reason was simple.

“…What are you staring at?”

Breathing heavily, Ophelia, her face flushed, said.

I sighed and replied.

“No, it’s just… I’m astounded.”

Who would have thought Ophelia would be bedridden?

And that…

“She caught a summer cold that even dogs wouldn’t get. In the Great Desert, no less.”

“Shut up! This is your fault…! If you’re going to mock me, just go away!”

Ophelia shouted angrily, trying to swing her fist, but her arm simply fell limply.

It seemed she didn’t even have the strength to support herself.

Holy magic could reattach severed fingers, but just like motion sickness, a cold couldn’t be healed. It was probably because a cold falls under the category of viruses, not something that could be treated as just a simple wound.

“Well, first take care of yourself. Laila went to get medicine from the pharmacist, so if you can hold on a little longer, you’ll get better. Just bear the pain a bit.”

“…I know.”

Ophelia had a severe cold, and we were stuck in a bind.

I hadn’t planned to stay in one place for too long.

Yurede’s letter. It stated that the Shadow of God was on the move. Therefore, we had to keep switching locations.

But in Ophelia’s current state, we couldn’t do that.

“Hugh.”

She coughed.

Her over-excited face looked small in comparison to her hand.

“…You must think I’m pathetic right now.”

“Not particularly.”

I was rather worried about when she would finally collapse.

Ophelia was a woman who had just turned twenty-one, having only learned a bit of swordsmanship. Bringing her along on a perilous journey with mercenaries through the harsh Great Desert was bound to cause her fatigue.

“…Cough.”

After a moment of silence, Ophelia quietly blew her nose.

I slowly soaked a cloth in water.

For some reason, Ophelia’s condition felt different from usual.

If the typical Ophelia were like a 신라면 (Shin Ramyeon), then right now, she would be more like a mild-flavored 진라면 (Jin Ramyeon).

It must be because she was in pain.

When the body hurts, the mind weakens too.

“…”

Thinking this, I placed the damp cloth on her forehead and, at that moment, our eyes met.

Suddenly, I noticed her face more closely.

A light blush. Rapid breaths.

And, those eyes looking at me like a stray cat.

“…Hmm.”

In an instant, I felt my face flush.

I hurriedly looked away.

I didn’t know why.

But somehow, there was a different atmosphere about Ophelia right now.

More sultry, and, well…

“Elijah.”

“Yes?”

“Why are you going this far for me?”

“What do you mean?”

When I asked back in confusion, Ophelia said.

“You’re a hero… You could live comfortably wherever you go… Why are you traveling with someone like me?”

“Is that a problem?”

“It is. The Shadow of God is chasing us right now, you know?”

“…”

It seemed she was still holding on to the contents of that letter.

I forced a smile.

“And you hate me, right?”

“I don’t hate you. If I truly did, would I have gone through the trouble of kidnapping you?”

In fact, I liked her.

Whether in the game or in reality.

Of course, her personality was a mess, but after spending nearly three years together, I had seen and suffered through all kinds of grievances.

When I said this, Ophelia’s long eyelashes fluttered.

“I’m sorry for treating you harshly. I didn’t consider your situation at all.”

“…Are you trying to jinx me?”

“I won’t die.”

That was probably an unexpected statement from me to Ophelia.

I didn’t feel the need to apologize, though.

Still, I brought it up because it seemed that Ophelia was very anxious right now.

“So, let’s just capture the Demon King and live happily ever after.”

“…I don’t have the confidence to defeat the Demon King.”

“Neither do I.”

“Unlike you… I’m weak.”

“Ophelia can become stronger than me.”

“Shut up.”

That’s not true.

Right now, Ophelia was several times stronger than her original self.

And she would continue to grow stronger.

That was the position she held in this world. She was a beloved figure.

“Trust me. Ophelia has talent. You just need to follow along.”

“…Will you take responsibility?”

Ophelia asked cautiously, and I chuckled.

“I said I would take responsibility.”

“You won’t abandon me, right?”

“I said that too.”

“…Alright.”

Ophelia seemed to relax at my words and nodded slightly.

Her little chest rose and fell.

“By the way, why have you become so spoiled? Are you really feeling that unwell?”

When I placed my hand on her forehead to check for fever, Ophelia gasped and her lips quivered.

However, without resisting, she gently closed her eyes.

“Well… I have nothing.”

“Why not? Ophelia, you’re the Saintess of the continent. You have a lot.”

“I don’t have anything.”

However, her answer was resolute.

“There’s nothing to me, who isn’t a Saintess.”

“…”

I didn’t know why she was saying this, but it wasn’t like her at all.

So I took Ophelia’s hand.

Only then did her trembling stop.

“I’m here, right?”

It was such an embarrassing thing to say.

Indeed, Ophelia seemed surprised, her eyes widening as she looked at me.

“….”

Silence lingered for a moment.

Then Ophelia spoke.

“Is it alright to trust you?”

“At least more than the Pope.”

“…”

Ophelia cleared her throat softly.

“Fool. Idiot.”

With those words, Ophelia closed her eyes.

Just as I was about to leave, pulling back my chair.

“Don’t go.”

“…”

“Stay here.”

“Didn’t you tell me to get lost at some point?”

“Just stay.”

In the end, I stayed by Ophelia’s side as she said that.

Not wanting to be idle, I tidied her disheveled silver hair.

How much time passed?

Snore.

Regulated breathing could be heard.

Finally, I left the room and bumped into the Dragonkin Warrior in the doorway.

“…Were you eavesdropping?”

“I just came to get medicine but thought it wasn’t the right atmosphere to interrupt.”

Laila shrugged her shoulders and then grinned at me.

“By the way, it’s intriguing.”

“What’s intriguing?”

“I was surprised to see you say something like that.”

Laila placed her chin on her hand and examined me closely, a sly smile lingering on her lips.

“Is it that the more you like someone, the more you tease them? That sounds like something a child would think.”

“…Shut up.”

Of course, that was something I couldn’t deny.

*

“Resurrection? Perfect.”

“Oooh.”

A week later, Ophelia announced the second coming of Jesus.

She suggested we train to commemorate her recovery, which resulted in a slap to my face.

“…You’re the one who messed up.”

“….”

“I’m sorry.”

One notable change was that she physically punished me and then apologized afterward.

That was quite an improvement.

“You’re doing well.”

Laila added, but I ignored her.

We decided to head north from there.

Our business in the Great Desert had concluded. There was one named creature we hadn’t encountered in the Auriga Desert, but according to the information Owen sent, she seemed to have left Auriga by now.

Thus, our next destination was the Empire, and further, the Great Forest.

Of course, Ophelia frowned at that prospect.

“I don’t like Ear Demons.”

“If you make one more speciesist remark, I won’t feed you dinner.”

“Is Laila not coming with us?”

Ophelia changed the subject, and I nodded.

Laila herself wanted to join the Adventurer Guild of Auriga as well…

“Excuse me, but aren’t you heading to the Demon King’s Castle beyond the Ice Palace, Saint Lady? I absolutely can’t go, haha.”

“As you can see, those from the mercenary group have a negative bias against the north. Same goes for me. I don’t intend to take you there.”

“Uh, um.”

Ophelia nodded as if feeling disheartened.

Although she insulted me like that, it seemed she had some affection for me.

In the end, it was decided that we would part ways with Laila.

She firmly instructed me until the end.

“Be nice to the Saint Lady.”

“I can handle it.”

She was a nosy lizard, to say the least.

After that, we passed through the Empire, and for about a week, our days were relatively peaceful.

There weren’t as many monsters in the Empire as in Auriga. Plus, the roads were well-maintained, making it easy to walk with a single backpack.

Walking all day, I occasionally carried the whining Ophelia, and when thirsty, we drew water from nearby springs.

As the sun set, we set up camp. The lonely campsite, with just the two of us, had a certain charm to it. Grilling fish caught from the stream over the campfire reminded me of childhood retreats.

During those times, Ophelia often found the silence uncomfortable and would strike up random conversations.

“Hey, so…”

Would usually lead to her eagerness to rant.

“You idiot.”

Would often end with cursing. Of course, it was a heartwarming conclusion for both Ophelia and me.

It seemed she didn’t mind the harsh words and was actually enjoying the peace after a long time.

“…Huh.”

However.

Such peace couldn’t last long.

This was the Empire. The well-maintained road didn’t only provide advantages; unlike places like Auriga, it was ideal for tracking traces as well.

“Ophelia, be prepared to fight.”

“Wh-why?”

“We’ve got pursuers.”

It had been some time since they started following us without us noticing.

There were multiple pursuers.

The malevolent aura felt ominous. Their killing intent was of a level that couldn’t even be compared to the elven rangers I sensed in the Great Forest before.

I instinctively realized.

“It’s the Shadow of God.”

“Ugh.”

Indeed, spending too long in Olmen’s village had backfired.

Assassins from the Cathedral pursuing foreigners in another country; did they not foresee the political ramifications?

If not, they might be confident enough to deal with a knight like me.

Whatever it was, I had no intention of surrendering easily.

Swish.

I drew the Holy Sword.

This cool yet weighty sensation.

It had been three years.

It was time to return to being the mad dog of the Black Eagle Mercenary Group.