I Will Not Fall For the Villain’s Flirtations - Chapter 89

“……What did you say?”

The insult that crossed the line made my chest boil with anger. Even if I might be a bit less capable than her, was it really something to belittle as mere luck?

Just because I’m a healing priest and don’t have noticeable achievements, doesn’t mean I haven’t lived diligently since my days as a novitiate. As much as I wanted to rip out all the hair from that girl’s head.

“Hey.”

In the end, the anger I had been holding back exploded. If I couldn’t pull her hair, I at least wanted to ruin her mood just as much.

“With that kind of rotten personality, do you think you can act as the temple’s representative?”

“……What?”

“And from the old days, you always go on about Peidos this, Peidos that. If you’re jealous, just say you’re jealous. Don’t be so petty.”

I know he’s originally your husband, after all.

With my mood twisted, my words came out tangled like vines. Having suffered so much from her before, I wanted to say everything I wanted to this wicked girl.

“No abilities at all? You must have forgotten, but I was the summa cum laude. Not you!”

“……”

“You did worse than me, so what does that make you? Someone with neither ability nor luck, just a pitiful person?”

“You little…!”

I don’t know what triggered her, but before I could even say half of what I wanted, Prim reached for my hair.

There wasn’t even a moment to gather my thoughts amidst the sudden physical fight. My mind was filled with only one thought: I must pull out more of her hair than I lose.

“Let go! Aren’t you letting go?”

“You let go, you damn girl!”

An immature verbal and physical fight, unbecoming of our age, continued for a while. How long had we been fighting? In my anger, I had forgotten that sounds echo louder at night.

“What on earth are you doing!”

Finally, priests who heard the commotion began to gather, and a high-ranking priest came to mediate the situation.

Frozen in the position of pulling each other’s hair, we turned our heads slightly to the side. There, we saw Sister Elexi glaring at us and signaling us to follow her silently.

“Shit.”

I heard Prim cursing under her breath. Wow, she really has a foul mouth.

“What are you staring at?”

“……Nothing.”

Was I possessed or something? No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t understand why the original Peidos Carmel fell for a girl like this.

* * *

“Candidates for the Great Saint, no less.”

A quiet yet eerie voice continued.

“Shamelessly fighting in the middle of the temple.”

“……”

“……”

“What were you thinking?”

The weighty reprimand was scarier than a torrent of scolding. Both Prim and I bowed our heads so low that our crowns were visible, repeatedly saying, “We’re sorry.”

“I won’t bother asking why you fought. But if this happens again, be prepared to take off your priest robes……”

Just as the threat, reminiscent of when I skipped practice while drunk during my novitiate days, was about to continue.

“They’re young and full of energy, so is it necessary to be so strict?”

“……”

Turning my head at the languid voice from behind, I saw Chelin Sniter in a wheelchair. She smiled brightly and met Prim’s gaze.

“Are you reflecting on your actions?”

“……Yes.”

It felt strange. It seemed as if some kind of relationship had already formed between them. The way she focused only on Prim without saying a word to me, and even her tone when asking if she was reflecting, felt oddly familiar.

And it wasn’t just my imagination. Chelin soon said she would take Prim with her. Despite causing a ruckus by pulling each other’s hair in front of everyone, which deserved punishment, she said she would take her away, which was practically defending her.

“Great Saint.”

The voice that stopped Chelin and Prim from leaving was as cold as ice. Sister Elexi glared sharply at Chelin and warned her.

“I know you were the one who first recommended Primis Starring to Cardinal Alches. You’ve been watching her since she was a novitiate, haven’t you?”

“So what?”

At those words, I suddenly remembered Chelin praising Prim during the purification practice. Prim, who cleared up to level 10 alone and received brilliant spotlight, and the Great Saint, who encouraged her as if recognizing her successor. That was also the first day I saw Chelin Sniter.

And it was the day I despaired, realizing how distant my position was from theirs.

“If you keep favoring one candidate like that, it could raise questions about fairness.”

“……”

In matters of selecting the next Great Saint, the former Great Saint also holds the authority of an interim cardinal. Even at the potentially disgraceful words that a cardinal must remain impartial, Chelin responded without a hint of embarrassment.

“Isn’t it already decided? Duna Valorem hasn’t even accepted her candidacy yet.”

“……”

“Moreover, she took a leave of absence to match the social season, didn’t she? It’s a position that’s difficult to fulfill even with burning dedication, so I wonder if someone without the will is suitable for the Great Saint.”

Unable to refute the undeniable facts, I hung my head like a sinner. From my perspective, I never intended to aim for the Great Saint position, so my hesitation was natural, but hearing that, I could somewhat understand Prim’s feelings. If Chelin Sniter was concerned to that extent, it meant Prim had shown determination since her days as a novitiate, which could be frustrating.

But what I couldn’t understand was when Prim started to have such a character. Originally, it was Prim who returned from the ball, gave up her leave, and became a candidate for the Great Saint. Not me.

“Let’s go, Prim.”

Since Sister Elexi didn’t refute either, they left the room as it was. Left alone with Sister Elexi, I fidgeted with my hands and broke the awkward silence with a candid confession.

“To be honest, I’m not sure if I have the qualities of a Great Saint.”

It was a secret I was supposed to take to the grave living in the Holy Kingdom, but I didn’t even have deep faith. Unlike the original, where I navigated temple life with enthusiasm, what did Sister Elexi see in me to recommend me?

“Even if I have a lot of holy power, it would still fall far short of Prim’s……”

“What are you talking about?”

Sister Elexi, who had cut off her sarcastic remark, stared at me intently. When I, not understanding the situation, blinked slowly, she furrowed her brow and spoke.

“Despite the fact that you two were ordained not long ago, you were chosen as candidates because your past achievements, holy power, and potential are far superior to those of any other class.”

“But that’s because Prim…”

“Primis Starring has indeed achieved remarkable results, but you have also accomplished significant feats.”

She emphasized in a low voice.

“And above all, you possess much more holy power than she does.”

“…What?”

I gaped in disbelief. But no matter how long I waited, she didn’t retract her words. With her personality, she wouldn’t make a nonsensical joke out of the blue.

Facing Sister Elexi’s extremely serious expression, I asked again in a trembling voice.

“Are you saying I have more holy power?”

“Yes. Of course, you’re still inexperienced and need to hone it much more.”

From the moment I heard her say ‘Yes,’ my mind stopped. Her decisive answer halted all my thoughts, and every fragment of my thinking was sucked into a black vortex.

I have more holy power than Prim?

More than the protagonist who would eventually take the position of Great Saint?

[You’re number one.]

The same feeling I had when I saw my name listed next to summa cum laude was creeping back.

Thinking back, the original plot began to diverge from when I was a novitiate. Despite that, I quickly abandoned the hope that I could change the original story because of Prim, who was flying high, achieving feats like a true protagonist.

[Lady Duna, will you marry me?]

But in the end, Peidos Carmel, the male protagonist, also deviated from the novel’s plot and proposed to me. In a romance novel, what could be more important than the male protagonist’s courtship? Moreover, meeting Keene had completely shifted my life from normalcy, adding to the mystery.

Who, now, is more fitting for the protagonist’s role?

“…Sister Elexi, I want to try my best.”

Suddenly, I felt the urge to test it.

“Does that mean…”

“I want to compete with Primis Starring as a candidate for Great Saint.”

Even in my past life, where I was perpetually second-rate, could I possibly overcome the hurdles and write a reversal scenario?

* * *