A man twice my size screams as he crumbles to the ground.
While flustered by the immense strength I’m exerting, I press down on the man’s wrist with all my might.
“This little bastard!”
“…!”
A fist the size of my face comes flying at me from the opposite side.
I need to dodge.
Swish!
The punch grazes my hair just barely as it passes by.
“You’re fast─ Gah!”
In exchange for dodging the punch, I press even harder on his wrist.
Now my hand is enveloping his wrist completely.
The man, now a mess, kicks at me with his foot.
“Lady Lily!”
Thud!
The Village Chief, who was clutching his head, rushed over, grabbed a box of apples, and shoved me away just in time to block the kick.
Apples rain down from the sky as the Village Chief sails through the air and lands face-first on the ground.
“…!”
“Looks like you really want to die!”
The man hides his battered hands and stomps over to grab a sword from the tent.
It’s not so much a real sword as it is a slightly dull blade used for butchering.
‘…A sword?’
But the fact that it’s a sword sends tremors through my body.
I’ve faced swords before.
There are plenty of goblins that wield tools, and orcs sometimes carry greatswords or axes too.
But I’ve always caught them alongside the villagers; facing someone with a sword is a first.
Wait, facing a person like this is…
I instinctively back away.
“Are you finally scared after rampaging around?”
“……”
“You must be from this village, old man. Better get ready to be sold off.”
You probably don’t even have a penny to your name!
The sword is aimed at me.
I can’t take on a person wielding a weapon bare-handed.
The common sense I know agrees, and that holds true here too.
So I need a weapon.
But what can I use as a weapon?
What on earth…
“…!”
“I’ll just cut off that cocky right arm!”
An apple.
“An apple?”
Thud!
A much harder apple than usual smacks into the man’s head directly.
And he collapses.
“Huh?”
■
“Lily! Are you okay!”
“I’m fine.”
My mother, who came running with the merchants, hugged me tightly as she checked my condition.
I was completely unharmed.
I was completely fine, without a single injury.
“More importantly, the Village Chief…”
“Right. First, stay back.”
The group confirmed the store of the person who was knocked out by the apple, tied him up with ropes, and took him away.
After that, they guided me, my mother, and the Village Chief to one of the tents to treat the Village Chief.
I felt a bit tense, but inside the tent, there was only a pure-looking white Priest with a friendly impression.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Ekir, a Level 3 Priest of the Holy Nation.”
“I’m Lily.”
“I heard. You subdued the criminal impersonating the Red Dust Group who caused a ruckus.”
“Ah…”
That wasn’t… entirely separate.
No, actually, it was separate indeed.
Even now, thinking back to that moment makes my hands tremble.
I faced a person wielding a knife.
‘That is to say, a person.’
…I wonder if I could have defeated that man if I hadn’t had a ranged weapon like an apple?
Seeing my shaking hands, Level 3 Priest Ekir smiled gently and turned his head toward the bed.
On the bed lay the Village Chief, and as the warm hands of the Priest touched him, the Village Chief’s condition visibly improved.
“That’s enough. If you don’t overdo it for a few days, you’ll recover quickly.”
“Thank you.”
“Really, thank you, Priest.”
My mother and I kept bowing our heads.
As the robe that was covering my face fluttered slightly, Ekir looked straight at me.
“The color of your hair is quite unique? Blue, huh?”
“Uh… y-yeah.”
Indeed, blue hair isn’t common.
Even if this is a fantasy world, it’s also a sign of the Celestial Race.
“Hmm… It’s not yet the time for a revelation…”
“…Revelation?”
“Yes. The revelation of the great Goddess.”
Ekir explained that in this world, there is a great goddess called ‘Revelatio’ who is omnipotent and knows every future.
“She also occasionally gives a part of her greatness to her lambs. They are the great Saintesses of the Holy Palace.”
“Oh…”
That sounds somewhat plausible.
So, according to the Village Chief, was my body also destined to be a Saintess?
I turned to look at my mother for a moment.
She showed no reaction.
No, she seemed a bit uncomfortable.
“…Mother?”
“Huh? What is it?”
“Are you feeling unwell anywhere?”
I looked at my mother with concern.
She responded with a kind smile and shook her head.
“How could I be? I just ran a bit.”
“How about you both get healed as well? Even if there’s no pain right now, the blessing of ‘Healing’ can reduce minor ailments.”
“The blessing of ‘healing’ can also reduce minor ailments.”
“Oh, really?”
“Of course. Now, go ahead and grab it.”
Ekir extended a hand that glowed with a soft light.
Mother closed her eyes for a moment, contemplating, then nodded.
I grasped Ekir’s hand.
“…!!!”
Crash!
The chair Ekir was sitting on toppled over, and he fell right along with it.
“Wha-?!”
“What’s happening?!”
“Priest!”
As the commotion raised, the mercenaries guarding the tent rushed in.
Seeing the priest sprawled out on the ground, they aimed their weapons at us.
“What have you done?!”
“How dare you do something suspicious to the priest…”
“How dare!”
“I didn’t do anything…”
“Stop! What have you done to the great Saintess?!”
Ekir quickly got up and stood between me and the mercenaries.
Confusion flickered across their faces.
“Saintess…?”
“Are you saying she’s a Saintess?”
“That’s right.”
Joy beamed across Ekir’s face.
At the same time, Mother’s expression became a little more solemn.
“The Goddess has sent down the fourth Saintess to this land.”
■
After that, I surprisingly headed toward the Holy Kingdom using the teleportation portal known as “The Goddess’s Gate.”
Once I arrived, I immediately met with the Pope of the Holy Palace, underwent the baptismal rite, and was recognized as qualified to become a Saintess.
“But there was no revelation, right?”
“Well, I guess? But they say the baptism works that way, so what can you do.”
“You can tell just by looking at the hair color and eyes. She’s definitely the Saintess.”
“But if that’s the case, why hasn’t there been a revelation?”
“With such great power, it should suffice…”
People had their doubts about me dropping in suddenly without a revelation but couldn’t refute it.
After all, I truly was qualified to be a Saintess.
Clunk. Clunk.
I peeked my head out.
A wide field with a clear blue sky and a road stretching out.
After a rather grand farewell with the villagers, I boarded the carriage heading to the distant Holy Kingdom.
Of course, it might seem modest to the people of the Holy Kingdom, but for our village, it was the most extravagant farewell ever.
I thought I might use the Goddess’s Gate like before, but they say it’s only used in very important times.
“Is it like catching a fish that’s already hooked?”
The treatment wasn’t great, but hey, I shouldn’t expect too much as a newcomer.
I heard there’s even a top-ranking Saintess and two more ahead of me.
It can’t be helped…
“That’s not it. The Goddess’s Gate is part of the great Goddess. It can’t be used infinitely.”
“The God’s door is part of the great Goddess. It can’t be used indefinitely.”
The pretty maid sitting upright in front of me shook her head.
She said she’s here to assist me with everything from now on, but honestly, I’ve already been treated like a princess in the village, so I’m a bit used to it now.
Her cute appearance doesn’t even faze me anymore.
“If it were my original body, my heart would be racing.”
Now, seeing a pretty woman doesn’t spark much of a feeling at all.
“Is that so?”
“That’s right. Saintess Lily may not know yet, but the Saintesses work for the stability and peace of the world. The door is used for them.”
“But it’s peaceful right now?”
I’m pretty sure this world has a background of a war between the Celestial Race and the Demon Race.
Yet in the five years I’ve been in this body, I haven’t heard of any war breaking out or any place being destroyed.
The worst I’ve heard is someone getting hurt or dying because of rampaging monsters?
The maid nodded.
“That’s correct. We’re in a period of peace now. To be precise, it’s like a candle in the wind.”
“A candle?”
“Just 60 years ago, the world was often terrifyingly destroyed. Kingdoms would disappear overnight, with countless deaths occurring regularly.”
In contrast, it’s so peaceful now that the Giant Merchant Group can casually stroll from village to village.
“But the crisis hasn’t ended. Someday, the world will be thrown into chaos again, and when that time comes, Saintess, your power will be desperately needed.”
“…So the senior Saintesses are dealing with the aftermath of the past?”
“Yes.”
I see…
While I feel relieved, I can’t shake off a slight unease.
My goal is to completely end the war. What if it escalates again?
Will I even be able to survive if it does?
“…Huu.”
“Don’t worry. Saintess Lily is chosen by the great Goddess. You’ll gain strong power soon enough.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Trust the Goddess.”
The maid’s expression was firm.
It seems she’s really trusting in the one called a Goddess.
I turned my head to look out the window.
“Well…”
The ‘God’ I saw didn’t have that kind of name.
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