Chapter 16
Meanwhile, in the quiet hallway that had settled into silence.
“……”
Shine Adiel stared blankly at Cierra, who was walking away.
His mind was a jumbled mess of the events that had just transpired.
Amidst the chaos, the first thing that surfaced was the kind smile he had glimpsed as they passed.
A face he had never seen, except perhaps when they were very young.
The way her sharp impression softened with a single smile was still a novel and fresh feeling.
Perhaps that was why. Strangely, he couldn’t shake off that image.
He only managed to snap out of it when Cierra had gone so far that she was no longer visible even through the window.
“Hah.”
Shine let out a hollow laugh as he checked his own condition.
It felt as if he had been thoroughly bewitched by something for a while now.
“How utterly ridiculous.”
Cierra Eisen was originally the person Shine detested the most.
A human filled with greed, wanting to enjoy all the benefits without a speck of reverence for the gods.
Once, after hearing a false rumor about the ‘Reverse Scale of the Siren’, she even tried to use her family to obtain it.
‘She only gave up after finding out it was merely a piece of scale, not even a medicine.’
And that wasn’t all.
She stubbornly insisted on being made the Saintess, purely out of whim.
And it wasn’t even for her own sake, but solely out of a desire to pull down Eisel Judith.
‘How could she consistently bring nothing but disappointment?’
Cierra Eisen was a person whom even the description ‘the worst’ was insufficient for.
That thought remained firm even on the day of Cierra’s funeral.
But wasn’t it strange? When he faced her, who had died and come back to life, his firm heart began to waver.
‘It was a face I had never seen before.’
Cierra had always acted like a hedgehog with its spines rigidly raised.
But the woman he met again was merely a fragile woman, clearly bearing signs of illness.
How did her sharply venomous aura soften so completely in an instant?
Even when she hardened her expression stiffly, there was an indescribably dazed feeling about her.
He had dismissed it as a misperception, but today, just like last time, the aura she gave off was similar.
Moreover, the divine power he indirectly felt while walking to this hallway was truly.
‘A feeling of being saved.’
To that extent, Cierra’s divine power was extremely pure and, at a glance, destructively potent.
Perhaps that was it.
Even though he knew Envy was a god with a particularly playful nature, he had been completely fooled by those words.
He had even used a message reserved for non-urgent situations, making it all the more impossible not to fall for it.
‘Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense.’
Even if that wasn’t the sole reason, there were several hypotheses.
Since Envy’s divine power was also swirling around her, he might have mistaken her for Eisel for a moment.
Shine’s stiffened expression relaxed as he found a suitable explanation.
‘She even had a cat with her, so it was inevitable to mistake her.’
There were some black cats in the shrine, and Eisel often held those children in her arms.
Considering Cierra used to detest the very sight of animals, that sight was hard to get used to.
Right. Under these circumstances, it would be more strange *not* to confuse her with Eisel.
*Pfft.*
Shine Adiel finally let out a light laugh.
Although finding a trace of Eisel in someone like Cierra Eisen was quite unpleasant, his mind felt at ease.
But that was short-lived.
*Thud, thud.*
Arriving at the room where the names of the capital’s devotees were densely written on the walls, Shine’s expression turned cold as he saw Cierra’s seat empty.
“She’s not here.”
Now, Cierra truly had no obligation to come to this shrine.
At that moment, the smile of hers he had seen earlier hovered in his mind like a mirage before disappearing.
Why?
His heart, which he thought had found peace, now felt as if a small pebble had been placed on it, beginning to feel strangely unsettled.
***
After leaving the Envy church, I got into a carriage to go to the Arte sect.
*Rattle, rattle.*
Getting used to the violently shaking carriage, I placed Tete on my lap.
`Even if the butler’s butt hurts, our master must not be in pain!`
“Meow.”
Tete seemed to be in a good mood too, her tail swishing back and forth.
I stroked her gently, just enough not to upset her, and turned my head to look out the window.
Before I knew it, the carriage was heading towards the central fountain square connecting all the commoner districts.
*Buzz, buzz.*
Even though it was an ordinary weekday, the streets were crowded. Especially, many people were coming from districts 1 and 2.
It was obvious what they had been doing.
“Today is the regular prayer day, right? It seems everyone has been to prayers.”
The shrines of the four major religions were all clustered in districts 1 and 2, the best among the total 26 commoner districts.
‘In contrast, the Arte sect…’
Was in district 22. Since districts 25 and 26 were practically slums, it had barely escaped being the absolute worst.
‘I wonder if the Arte sect can also move to district 1.’
Having already seen the state of the sect once, I felt overwhelmed just thinking about it.
It’s as if I could already see my rough, struggling future ahead…
“Ugh… Well, at least they don’t offer human sacrifices like the rumors say, so I should be grateful, right?”
*Ding!*
[God Arte has donated 1 Florin!]
[I’m really unfair about that! Our sect members are good people if you get to know them, hieeng. (˙ᴖ˙ก̀)]
“I know. The sect leader seemed kind, and everyone else did too.”
Except for that creepy fanaticism…
‘Well, I guess that will fade gradually as we live together.’
Since I’ve decided to act as God Arte’s Saintess, I tried to maintain a positive mindset.
Then, a sudden question crossed my mind.
“Huh? But how did the sect leader come to know about God Arte?”
Thinking it over, it was curious.
Previously, when I listened to Arte’s various complaints, he mentioned that he had been away from this world for quite a long time.
‘He said it was hard enough just keeping up with Earth’s civilization.’
So how did the sect leader find out about such an Arte?
*Ding—!*
[Excessive donation detected.]
[The status window will be simplified temporarily.]
[Arte : Well, my name appeared in ancient texts, and he was researching them when he fell for my charm~ Tehehe ☆٩(｡•ω<｡)و]
What charm? Let’s just ignore that last part.
“Ancient texts?”
The current calendar, ‘Anno Domini’, started from the moment the existence of the ‘Four Great Gods’ was proven.
That was about 4,000 years ago. Records from before that, the distant past referred to as ‘Ancient Times’, are extremely scarce, with hardly any proper historical texts surviving.
So, they are so rare that not only commoners but even nobles can’t easily access them.
[Arte : I think he found a diary with my name in it while excavating a ruin. I did help out a bit before I started creating my children! Hehe.]
[Arte : Ah, our sect leader was originally a high-ranking priest in the Pride faction. A candidate for the next High Priest.]
“Ahh. He was a candidate for High Priest in the Pride faction.”
I see… wait, what?
“Pr-, Pride? *The* Pride, the God of Light and Knowledge?”
How could such an esteemed person…?
For a moment, I thought Arte was joking. It’s understandable because it’s ‘Pride, the God of Light and Knowledge.’
The religion traditionally believed in by the imperial family of the Simona Empire, where I live.
Because of this, the Pride church holds a dominant popularity compared to other religions within the Empire.
Even those who believe in other religions basically hold the Pride church in their hearts as citizens of the Empire.
“And he was a candidate for *High Priest*? No, how could such an amazing person… Why would he choose God Arte…?”
[Arte : Those priests would do anything in their pursuit of knowledge… Cierra, isn’t that too much? I may seem like this, but I’m the Creationㅈ]
“Wow, giving up his religion for the sake of knowledge? Sect Leader, you were an amazing person!”
No wonder he left such a great impression when I met him last time!
‘With someone like him by my side, maybe we really can raise the Arte sect up?!’
The hope that had seemed bleak suddenly began to grow vigorously.
‘Sect Leader! Let’s be together forever!’
[Arte : Hieeng, I haven’t even finished talking… (๑˃̌ۿ˂̌๑)۶]
[Arte turns his head away sulkily.]
“Hey~ But it’s still praise for the Sect Leader, right?”
I laughed, poking the status window as if to appease him. But more importantly…
“…Haaak.”
*Ding!*
[Arte immediately straightens his posture.]
“As expected, Tete is the strongest being in this world.”
He returned to normal after just one ‘Haaak’ from Tete. As expected, Tete is the only one truly on my side.
Ignoring Arte, who was muttering something under his breath as he summoned the status window, I stroked Tete.
Tete, who had slowly opened her eyes and was staring intently at me, stretched her body languidly.
As her warm body temperature spread across my entire lap, I too began to feel drowsy.
‘So peaceful.’
I hope this peace continues even after we arrive at the Arte sect.
But someone once said.
Hoping only leads to despair—that’s the typical romance novel cliché.
Of course, I’m the one who said that.
All the wishes I dreamed of while riding in the carriage…
*Creeeak.*
“My Lady, we have arrived.”
…were shattered into pieces the moment the carriage door opened.
My field of vision was flooded with an inexplicable wave of red.
“W-what is this?”
Its identity was none other than…
