CHAPTER 11. Predetermined Fate

The priest’s chamber was enveloped in a long silence. Only the occasional scent of the canaberry tea that Sister Elexi usually enjoyed drinking wafted through the air.

Despite having requested the meeting, I remained silent for a long time, and Sister Elexi did not rush me. After hesitating for a while, I finally managed to speak as I rolled the macadamia shells, which had been offered as a snack, in my hands until they were completely crushed.

“Why did you recommend me?”

I don’t remember if it was her who put Duna Valorem up as a candidate for the Great Saint in the original story. However, I was curious about the reason behind her recommending me, given that she had sent me on annual leave without any warning.

Instead of answering, Sister Elexi lifted the teapot and poured the tea. The sound of the water trickling into the cup echoed quietly in the serene room.

“The most important thing for a Great Saint is the amount of holy power. At first glance, it seems that other virtues are more important since they oversee the major and minor affairs of the temple, but in reality, the Great Saint is merely a device to prepare for destruction.”

“A device?”

“Yes, a device that must maintain the barrier with all its might in the event of future destruction. For that, a substantial amount of holy power is essential.”

She carefully placed the teapot down and picked up the cup. Then, swirling the half-filled porcelain cup, she savored the aroma.

“You have a lot of innate holy power. That’s the only reason I recommended you.”

“……”

It was such a simple answer that I doubted its sincerity. But upon reflection, it wasn’t wrong.

Since I returned early from my vacation, there was still time to decide on the Great Saint candidacy. After offering a polite bow, I quietly left the priest’s chamber.

The first place I headed after the meeting was the temple’s infirmary. Since Hemosi was still receiving treatment, I went to check on her condition.

And as soon as he saw me, Rancho, who was in charge of her, delivered bad news.

“It’s no good. There’s no sign of her holy power recovering.”

“Still?”

“Yes. It’s as if she never had holy power to begin with. The certificate confirms she was a Stella, though.”

He scratched his head and removed his hand from the sleeping Hemosi. The portable measuring device in his other hand showed no response.

Hemosi had lost her holy power after being kidnapped. The priests were baffled, since they had never heard of someone losing their holy power after it had manifested once.

“Could there have been a measurement error? Maybe she wasn’t originally a Stella, but was registered as one due to an error.”

“It’s possible, but……”

The words of the old woman I heard in the warehouse kept bothering me.

[Ugh, where did you find a kid with such weak holy power?]

The fact that she said this meant that, while the amount might have been small, there was indeed some holy power, right?

[She better have ample holy power to be worth the risk of bringing her.]

Her words, pointing at me, also came to mind. Why did they need someone with holy power?

Then, suddenly, I remembered the black smoke that had swirled in the old woman’s hands. She had been doing something to Hemosi with that unknown, unpleasant substance. Could Hemosi’s loss of holy power be related to that action?

But does it even make sense to take someone else’s holy power? I’ve never heard of such a thing.

“What did Oscar say?”

Oscar, who had taken care of me when I was poisoned by wolven’s poison, turned out to be a veteran priest with considerable experience. I hoped he might have a solution, but seeing Rancho’s face, it seemed he hadn’t found an answer either.

“He came by earlier. He left after just calming the crying child.”

“Oh…”

Come to think of it, Hemosi’s eyes were swollen. The whole household must have been overjoyed to find out she was a Stella, but suddenly losing her holy power must have been heartbreaking.

I felt a pang of sorrow, understanding the sense of loss the child, who was like a younger sibling to me, must have felt. I sighed and patted Hemosi’s forehead.

“Rancho.”

At that moment, someone called Rancho. He turned his head towards the entrance and quickly bowed his head in greeting.

“Chelin.”

“……”

Following Rancho, I also nodded my head towards the former Great Saint, who had now retired. Although I encountered her occasionally, this was the first time I’m seeing her up close.

Perhaps due to the effects of the poisoning, she was in a wheelchair. Shifting her gaze from Rancho to me for a moment, she soon extended her hand and spoke her purpose.

“I came to get more lupine. They said there was none in the infirmary.”

“Oh, you must still be in a lot of pain.”

Rancho’s face turned sympathetic at her request for a painkiller much stronger than pentil. Seeing her emaciated to the point where her bones were visible due to the unpunished crime, it was impossible not to feel sympathy.

Moving faster than Rancho, I rummaged through the box of deliveries in the pharmacy and found the lupine. I approached her and placed the medicine bottle in her hand.

“If you need anything else, please let us know.”

“…Alright.”

She seemed somewhat taken aback, perhaps not expecting me to be so proactive. But just before I straightened up, I noticed a familiar necklace around her slender neck.

“Huh?”

A jewel that looked like a mix of emerald and jade. Where had I seen that before?

“……”

Realizing that my gaze was fixed on her neck, Chelin suddenly clutched her necklace. Then, with rough hands, she stuffed it inside her clothes and tightly fastened her priest robe. When our eyes met, she looked as if she had been caught with stolen goods.

…What was that?

While I stood there bewildered, Chelin, who had even moved her wheelchair wheels to create more distance, quickly turned around. She left the room in a hurry without even a word of thanks.

As I stood there, confused by her inexplicable actions, I heard Rancho clicking his tongue.

“Isn’t Chelin really unfortunate? Especially since her husband is also injured and can’t properly take care of her.”

“…Yes.”

It seemed he hadn’t noticed anything strange about Chelin’s behavior.

Was it just my imagination? Shaking my head, I refocused on Hemosi. For now, the girl in front of me was more important than Chelin Sniter.

* * *

By the time I finished my work and stepped outside, it was already night. Although I returned earlier than planned, there was still a considerable amount of work waiting for me after a long vacation.

As I dragged my tired body towards the dormitory, I noticed a familiar hair color on the opposite side.

Bright pink that stood out no matter where it was.

“Hey.”

“……”

The first word was already unpleasant. Talking to her was never a good thing.

Feeling the fatigue already setting in, I rubbed my eyes. I skipped the pleasantries and asked directly.

“What do you want?”

“You came back early? Are you really trying to become the Great Saint?”

“……”

Her mocking tone made my blood pressure rise.

Well, since she was also a candidate, she must have known I was a candidate for the Great Saint. It must have annoyed her to have a competitor who didn’t measure up.

“I’m still thinking about it.”

“Why?”

A smirk that resembled a sneer spread across her face. Prim looked down at me with a condescending expression.

“Does it seem possible now that Peidos Carmel likes you?”

I opened my eyes wide in surprise. Even without looking in the mirror, I could tell my face had turned pale.

I asked Peidos to keep it under wraps for a while. I was worried about the commotion it would cause, and I had a lot on my mind, so I didn’t want to deal with such matters right now.

I wanted to handle the Great Saint issue first before dealing with anything else. Peidos had readily agreed to this.

“…How do you know that?”

In other words, it was highly unlikely that she knew about it. So how did she find out?

But Prim didn’t answer. Instead, she stepped closer to me.

“Having no real ability, just luck, what are you trying to achieve?”

“What?”

“Honestly, what have you done on your own? You’ve just benefited from men.”