Chapter 05
At the same time.
The Imperial Capital of Ruaar. District 1, Lot 1.
“Hard to see your face these days, huh?”
“…….”
“Did you go to that boarding house again today?”
“…….”
“My son, who do you think I’m talking to?”
The woman shook the fishing rod she held.
The cat responded, not the ‘son’ she addressed. Arden glanced lazily at the gray cat flailing upright on two legs and answered, annoyed already.
“Yes.”
“That’s your answer?”
“Yes.”
“Good grief.”
The woman smacked her chest.
Though midnight had long passed, the room was brightly lit. Piles of documents formed mountains, a massive map of the Empire covered the central table, littered with flags pinned in various locations. Ancient magic formulas glowed blue across the glass windows.
This was District 1, Lot 1—the Imperial Palace. More precisely, the Emperor’s office.
The Emperor questioned his son.
“Why are you still staying there? It’s been nearly three months since you graduated from the Academy.”
“…….”
“Are you not going to answer?”
“…Because I want to.”
“You think only your wants matter? My wants matter too.”
It was a childish line coming from the Emperor, but Arden ignored it as usual.
“Isn’t it time to wrap things up and come home?”
“I don’t want to.”
“And why not?!”
“…….”
“Son, let’s be reasonable.”
The Emperor slammed his desk. His fingers, warped from a lifetime holding pens and swords, pointed accusingly at Arden.
“You’re the Crown Prince. You haven’t had your coronation yet, but as my only child, that’s inevitable. So how long will you keep hiding your identity, pretending to be some low-ranking knight out there?”
“You told me to do it, Mother.”
“That was supposed to be until you graduated!”
I told you to graduate from the Academy, not enlist in the Knight Order! The Emperor thumped his chest.
“Yes, I told you to graduate on your own merit. To mingle as a commoner without relying on the prestige of the Crown Prince. But what—are you rebelling now?”
“…….”
“The time I gave you was freedom—something you won’t have once you become Emperor. You’ll spend the rest of your life working. That freedom was supposed to be temporary, yet this is what you do with it…!”
The Emperor was outraged.
“You think it makes sense for the Empire’s only heir to roll around at the bottom of the Knight Order?!”
If he’d known this would happen, he would’ve unveiled Arden’s face to the public long ago! He hid the boy’s identity all these years to protect him from assassination attempts, and now the brat was using that secrecy for his own convenience!
“What reason do you have to cling to that filthy place? You, a compulsive neat freak!”
What, did he hide treasure there or something?
Even as he spoke, the Emperor didn’t believe himself.
Treasure? Him? The best he’d have is a bath that never runs out of hot water and soap that doesn’t wear down.
He stared hard enough to make the cat bite Arden if he spouted nonsense.
But something was off.
The son who normally kept an expression as flat as a lake—no matter what his mother nagged about—was acting strange. Arden, pretending to adjust an already perfectly tied necktie, had ears tinged red.
“Son?”
He pressed.
“My room…”
“Your room?”
What about it?
“He doesn’t clean it.”
“What?”
“He lives in a pigsty. It bothers me.”
“What in the world are you saying?”
“I’ll be going now.”
Arden vanished before the Emperor could demand clarification.
“What did he just say?”
The Emperor asked the chief attendant beside him, who only tilted his head in confusion.
Left alone, the Emperor lamented.
“With that personality, what woman would ever take him?”
Picky, humorless, overly sensitive, uninterested in romance despite his age, barely speaks…!
“Before I die, I’d at least like to see him speak to a woman first…”
While the Emperor fretted, the palace cat yawned loudly.
Arden, leaving the palace, wondered:
‘What is she doing right now?’
She looked exhausted earlier when he’d gone to buy a handkerchief—one of the employees quit, apparently.
It wasn’t the clothing shop itself that irritated him. It was seeing her forced to do work she didn’t want to do.
He was annoyed at the Academy that demanded more money even after tuition was fully paid, annoyed at Imperial laws that prevented even the Royal Family from interfering in university affairs, annoyed that the laws also made sense—
Everything annoyed him.
Arden’s pace toward the boarding house quickened.
‘Seriously, what is she doing?’
Not like he was curious. But he wanted to know.
Meanwhile—
the senior Arden was thinking about—
was transforming.
The hair she’d tied tight to keep out of the way unfurled. Deep black strands shifted into a bright gold, oddly similar to Arden’s.
Her clothes changed. The dark shirt became a white blouse with sleeves like cotton candy; the long pants became a red lace skirt ending mid-thigh. A giant ribbon in the same color sat on her chest.
Petals of pink fluttered in the air.
Her spinning slowly stopped.
“Transformation complete!”
The Maltese clapped excitedly.
I was horrified.
“What the hell is this?!”
It takes a whole minute to transform! I’ll get shot before it’s done!
I glanced sideways at the adulterer—he stood slack-jawed, too stunned to even fire.
Only the dog seemed thrilled.
“Now you can strut confidently! The Battle Outfit of the Magical Saintess is enchanted with a face-recognition-disruption spell!”
“What kind of magic?!”
“It prevents anyone who knows the Saintess from recognizing her even if they look right at her face!”
“Oh, great.”
So at least my dignity is safe!
If anyone who knows me saw me running around dressed like this, I’d die of shame!
“Evil-doer! Prepare yourself! The defender of justice—the Magical Saintess—has arrived!”
The Maltese pointed at the adulterer triumphantly with his tiny paw. The man finally screamed.
“THE DOG CAN TALK?!”
He wasn’t shocked that I transformed?!
“I’m not a dog!”
“Eek! A ghost!”
“I’M NOT A GHOST! I’M A DIVINE BEAST!”
“AAAAH!”
“Hahaha! Afraid of justice, are we?!”
“Screw this—DIE!”
BANG!
“No—!”
I grabbed the dog and rolled behind a desk.
BANG! BANG!
I shook his limp front paw.
“Wake up, mutt!”
Magical Saintess, my ass!
“Is this seriously all I get?!”
This ridiculous outfit and a face-blurring enchantment?!
“No weapon?!”
Was I supposed to deflect bullets with a mirror?!
“DIEEE!”
BANG! BANG!
“Ugh!”
Room too small to even dodge properly!
“Do something, you useless dog!”
“A v-v-valuable item! Seraphina must have a precious belonging!”
“This! This is precious!”
I pointed at the brooch still pinned to my transformed outfit—the one I used to unlock the door earlier.
“I got it for being an honor student at the Academy! Proof I achieved something through effort! Every time rude customers trample on me, I look at it and remember I’m worth more than they think! When people treat me like a worthless maid who doesn’t deserve respect, I—”
Total lie. It’s just the most expensive thing I own.
“It’s REALLY precious, okay?! Do something!”
The brooch stretched.
Then—
Something appeared in my hand.
A cherry-red toy hammer with wings.
“?!”
POW! POW POW!
The oversized hammer moved on its own, batting bullets aside. Each deflected bullet turned into colorful candy stars that scattered across the floor.
“WHAT THE—?!”
How did it know I always wanted to smack rude customers with a hammer?!
BANG!
“Kya!”
No time to be amazed.
I charged at the adulterer.
BANG!
“Sorry for the wait, sir! Truly! So sorry!”
BONK!
“I can’t! Do that!”
BONK BONK!
“Yes! That means no!”
BONK-BEONK-BWONG!
“You’re in a hurry?! Then come! EARLIER!”
BONKBONKBONK!
With the resentment of every abused retail worker in existence—
RIGHTEOUS HAMMER OF JUSTICE!
WHACK!
“Guh!”
THUD.
The adulterer collapsed after repeated head bonking.
“Hah… hah….”
I lowered the hammer, panting.
“…….”
Shame crashed over me.
A lace skirt and a toy hammer.
Is the power of a Magical Saintess fueled by humiliation?
Like how recalling embarrassing memories makes you run faster?
“Well done, Seraphina! Victory is ours!”
The Maltese finally cheered—after busying himself eating the fallen candy stars.
He never once cared about my feelings.
As I glared at him, paw protectively covering the last remaining candy so I couldn’t steal it—
“Hm~ hmm-hmm~”
Mrs. Scrooge—oblivious to the gunshots and hammer rampage upstairs—finally returned, humming.
“…….”
The adulterer, the adulteress, and Mrs. Scrooge—
The very people who ruined Eli’s livelihood.
Fine. Since I started this, I may as well finish properly.
“Dog.”
The Maltese looked up, mid–candy theft.
“You said we’d serve justice, right?”
