With Ghise’s crimes coming to light, the saintess Iris’ honor is gradually restored.
She already has many believers, and very few recognize me as a saintess anymore.
I think I will be imprisoned soon.
I don’t have holy power in the first place. I can make up for it with high rank magic, but that won’t be enough to make people acknowledge me as a legitimate saintess. I can feel it in my skin as the political power I built up crumbles.
It’s not like I have no regrets, but it’s over.
Whatever happens, happens.
“Miss Izekiel.”
Someone suddenly calls out to me from behind.
I turn around, and see Iris. Come to think of it, now that she has been exonerated as a saint, she is also living in the church.
We can both call it home.
“Being out in the wind at night is bad for you.”
“Are you worried about me?”
“Yes. You are Roland’s dear saintess.”
“The people picked you as their legitimate saintess, Iris.”
“I am not the saintess of Roland anymore. No matter how much people want it, I am since long ago the saintess of Minerva.”
She denies her position of saintess of Roland with a clear tone.
What she says is convenient for me, but it really annoys me.
“That’s fraud. No matter what you say, you are the saintess of Roland, so you cannot run away. Your holy power is proof of this.”
I flare up at her, seething as I approach her.
But she doesn’t back down, and looks at me with a serious expression.
“Miss Izekiel, I have made my decision to protect the people of Minerva. These feelings are not brittle enough to be broken by legitimacy called holy power. I will protect people dear to me, that is my belief as a saintess.”
The being I thought was a weak human girl looks very big now.
“Then anyone can be the saintess of Roland!”
“Continue doing so as you have.”
“I can’t. I don’t have the willpower to protect this country. Without him, I see no value in Roland!”
“But haven’t you been doing your prayers every day?”
“W-we…”
“Sephilia told me that Roland has been functioning well without me… And I feel like I know why, after seeing you for the past week.”
“Stop. Say no more!”
I yell and close my ears while moping. But somehow, her words echo in my brain.
I can hear them clearly, as if they carry divine power.
“Miss Izekiel, you already started doing a proper job as the saintess of Roland a long time ago. I highly doubt the people will be happy if we push you aside and install me as saintess again.”
Iris comes close to me from the side, and puts her hand on my cheek.
It’s my first time seeing her face up close, and all I can do is gulp.
“Legitimacy doesn’t matter, Roland needs your power. For the man you love, for the people, don’t abandon yourself, the saintess.”
When I hear that, tears escape my eyes, and my vision shakes a lot.
Iris holds me tightly, and I bawl like my emotions are exploding.
I keep crying for a while, and Iris keeps holding me while gently patting my head.
It’s like the goddess Emeraude is holding a sinful believer with love.
After that, my relationship with Iris becomes a good one. Maybe it’s because there was that precedent called Loyd.
Iris holds my magic with high regard, and asks me questions about it.
I do have confidence in my magic, so I always answer plainly, and that makes her value it even more.
“That’s what I expected from you. With Purification Magic that good, there is nothing to worry about even in regards to the land curse.”
Iris casually mentions land curse, the destructive one placed on the entire western continent.
Rather than using my non-existent holy power, I use Purification Magic over a very wide area to stop the curse from advancing.
That said, this incident depleted my magic energy, so I won’t be able to do it properly for a month.
When I tell Iris that, she looks a little flustered, and says she will take over in the meantime.
A smile naturally forms on my face when she says that.
She was just saying she wouldn’t be the saintess of Roland, but immediately takes action once she knows it’s in danger.
Iris is without a doubt the embodiment of the goddess of order Emeraude.
Join my patreon to support me and read ahead.
