“Was the magic class enjoyable?”
“Yes. Today was especially fun.”
“I’m glad to hear that!”
Leaving behind the seemingly absent-minded Magic Professor, the next session is physical training.
The Saintess plays a supportive role with holy magic and healing, but ultimately all of that requires stamina to back it up.
We need to run around saving the world, but if our stamina runs out, we won’t get far before collapsing.
The Commander of Knights chuckled heartily while fiddling with a heavy weapon.
“Saintesses don’t need to step into the frontlines, but it’s good to learn at least some self-defense. You never know what situation will unfold on the battlefield.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Alright, let’s start by running 30 laps lightly.”
Lightly, 30 laps.
In the past, I would have thought, “What nonsense is that?” but now it doesn’t faze me at all.
“Sure.”
Running 30 laps is nothing for me.
The Commander of Knights began to run ahead, clad in heavy armor.
As I ran, knights in need of training, or those who wanted to catch my eye, joined in behind me, with Maid Miya following closely beside.
Miya, being on par with the Holy Knights, had no problem keeping up with this speed.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes. I’m fine.”
“…I see.”
Miya silently kept watch by my side.
After completing 30 laps, the knights, sweating, returned to their original spots to rest.
Still, it was puzzling how the knights struggled after just 30 laps, but apparently, running purely on physical strength without using mana consumes a lot of energy.
The Commander of Knights ran at a very fast pace despite wearing heavy armor.
But I felt nothing.
Not a drop of sweat fell from me, so I glanced sideways.
I saw Miya looking a bit tired next to me.
“Are you okay?”
“…Phew. Yes.”
“You don’t look okay.”
“I’m fine.”
While Miya was panting and taking a moment to rest, the Commander of Knights approached, chuckling without a single drop of sweat.
“You seem perfectly fine today as well. Saintess Lily, your stamina is truly remarkable.”
“You seem completely refreshed too, Commander.”
“That’s because I do this like it’s a meal. But you, Saintess Lily, are just starting to train, right? That’s really impressive.”
Is that so?
I really do feel like my stamina has increased a lot since awakening the holy power.
‘Though I’m not quite sure what it means to have awakened that holy power.’
Well, I can’t even cast magic or shoot laser beams.
I just feel like something “exists.”
There’s nothing special about it; nothing has really changed.
Nothing has particularly changed.
“Isn’t it possible that the other saintesses are even more outstanding? It’s not just me with this ability; I’ve only just awakened it.”
“No, no. There is no one more exceptional than Saintess Lily.”
“Huh?”
What does that even mean?
“Both the first saintess and Saintess Mareniya, as well as Saintess Angela, do not enjoy physical training. Especially Saintess Mareniya; it’s been over seven years since she last worked out.”
“…Why? It’s not that difficult.”
Certainly, as saintesses, they should have at least this level of stamina.
If anything, they should be more capable, not less.
The Commander of Knights shook his head with a smile.
“I mentioned it before, right? ‘Saintesses serve a supportive role in the rear.'”
“Did you…?”
“Perhaps that’s why the saintesses don’t feel the need to prioritize physical training. They think that moving their bodies relies more on their special powers, like mana or the goddess’s strength, rather than basic physical capabilities.”
Saintesses are assigned to rear guard roles.
Since it’s not a job that requires a lot of physical exertion, extensive training isn’t necessary.
Other people will do the heavy lifting while they just need to cast spells from the back.
They even move not by physical strength but using mana or holy power.
“In fact, when Saintess Lily first arrived, I thought her first day would be her last. I wondered how long she would last this time.”
“……”
“But she was quite serious about it. Personally, I was quite impressed.”
“How about the other saintesses…?”
“The prior saintesses, excluding the first saintess, couldn’t even manage three laps before stopping. After that, they used mana or divine powers to carry on.”
“…Three laps?”
I glanced around the training ground.
…It’s not that big, really.
“What about the first saintess?”
“She completed ten laps just once, and after that, she never did again. To be precise, she didn’t run during the training times I oversee.”
The Commander of Knights explained that since the first saintess is a senior and has been a representative of the divine in the Holy Palace for decades, she doesn’t receive specific training.
There’s no time for her to be taught.
In that light, my thirty laps don’t quite make sense.
Even without using holy power or mana, I completed thirty laps and could even do more.
“Then shall we… have a spar today?”
■
The weapons primarily used by holy knights are swords or spears, or blunt weapons like maces.
Aside from that, there are shields or hidden daggers, but those are pretty much the main ones.
There are daggers and such, but as for representative weapons, that’s about it.
“Hahap!”
“Come in!”
Kakang! Chaeng!
As I headed to the arena, I already saw quite a few holy knights continuing their sparring.
When it comes to sparring, one would usually think of using blunted swords or wooden swords, but everyone here was aiming at each other with weapons that had sharp blades.
“Isn’t it dangerous?”
“Of course it is. Accidents happen quite a bit.”
It’s supposed to be training that resembles real combat, but it does feel a bit excessive.
However, there’s a reason for this.
At the end of the commander of knights’ gaze, I spotted a building positioned right next to the arena.
Inside the building, which had one wall wide open, several people dressed in white were keeping a close watch on the training ground.
“There are healers, so there’s no problem.”
They were all priests.
Those who can treat minor injuries and help recover.
As long as they’re present, there shouldn’t be any major issues even if someone gets seriously injured during sparring.
“Oh… So can they treat any injury at all?”
“Well, not really. They can only treat light wounds; if limbs are severed or there’s serious internal damage, it’s hard to treat.”
“So, that means…”
You buy some time.
Priests are only a backup.
There is someone specified to treat injuries beyond their limit.
“We’re just buying time until the saintess arrives. If we can just stop the bleeding, we can keep someone alive until the saintess returns.”
“…That sounds really dangerous.”
“But thanks to that, the Holy Kingdom has been able to progress like this.”
They endured pain unflinchingly during training, and as a result, the Holy Palace was able to influence the world.
Watching the holy knights sparring made me a little worried.
‘Uh-oh. Am I going to be the one to do this?’
Right now, I’m the only saintess left in the Holy Palace.
Which naturally means I’m also the only one designated to treat injuries beyond the priests’ capabilities.
But I can’t even use holy magic, let alone heal.
As I hesitated for a moment, the commander of knights chuckled and shook his head.
“Surely, we wouldn’t make you, someone who just arrived, do the work?”
“…Is that so?”
“Of course. I told everyone to be careful in the absence of the saintess, and Angela will be here soon, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
“I’m relieved to hear that.”
I could feel a bit at ease.
Swish!
“Gaaah!”
“…! Denz!”
Huh?
A horrible sound echoed through the arena.
From afar, a hand shot up… or rather, something shot up?
“What are those reckless fools doing?!”
What on earth?!
The commander of knights planted his feet firmly into the ground and bolted towards the scene of the incident.
The surrounding knights who were sparring also headed toward the location of the event.
Heading to the place of suggestion.
No! Didn’t I tell you to be careful!
Why is a hand suddenly flying off?
While I was panicking, the priests who had been waiting rushed out, their faces pale, and Miya quickly came to my side.
“Saintess.”
“Yes, yes.”
“Please stay calm. Shall we proceed?”
“……”
I hesitated.
To be honest, I’m a little scared.
It’s not the fear of having to heal.
‘Seeing a person get hurt.’
I dread the sight of a hand flying away and a person stained with blood.
My instinctive aversion makes me naturally pull back.
Miya blocked my view from the front.
“If it’s too hard for you, you can turn back. I will talk to the Commander of Knights for you.”
“…No. I have to face it someday.”
Right. Since I’ve decided to live as a Saintess.
Since I’ve received that ridiculous quest about ending the war between the Celestial Race and the Demon Race.
It’s an issue I must confront.
I slowly approached the scene of the problem.
-Ugh…
-You! Didn’t I tell you to be careful a hundred times!
-Hold this! If you heal wrong, it’ll stick weirdly!
…The wound is worse than I expected.
The flying hand wasn’t the problem.
The injury on the shoulder is serious, and blood is flowing from the abdomen, especially if it’s a diagonal cut.
I want to ask how this injury happened during a sparring match.
“Wh-What happened, Saintess?!”
“Saintess!”
“…What’s going on?”
“You don’t need to worry! We can hold on until Angela arrives.”
“Is that really enough?”
That’s right. But for an easier treatment later, we need to leave the wound as is, so it might hurt a bit more. I suppose I have to endure it.
“…….”
Is there no other way?
It looks way too painful to leave it like this…
“How about I…”
“Leave it. If you treat it carelessly, it’ll be more of a headache.”
The wound heals.
As the white light seeps in, the knight’s abdomen is completely restored, and the shoulder that had been looking awkwardly damaged is also fully healed.
Amidst the amazement of everyone witnessing this miracle, a little kid smaller than me nervously approached the knight.
“Hey. Hand.”
“What?”
“You have to give your hand for the healing, right?”
Angela.
The third Saintess was right in front of me.
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