Lina had been suffering from an inexplicable anxiety every time she saw Clara lately.
It wasn’t just one specific source of anxiety, but a tangled mix of various facts and emotions.
Ah, it wasn’t the anxiety over being abandoned by Clara, rather the opposite. It was more like a worry that Clara might actually do something like that.
Clara was… mature. There was no doubt about that. She wouldn’t just pass by someone who’s injured; she’d willingly go into places others wouldn’t dare and help people. She was someone who knew how to use her abilities for others, someone with depth of thought.
The problem was that everything else about her felt entirely childlike.
It didn’t seem like Clara was entirely oblivious to sexual concepts. At the very least, she was aware of how revealing her clothes were or how her body lines were exposed, and she seemed a bit embarrassed about it. After all, she had been extremely shy after first wearing the saint’s robe.
The issue was that after that, she acted completely unconsciously.
She never thought about her skirt flipping up while she drop-kicked others or flailing around bare-legged during sparring sessions. Not to mention, this was in front of a bunch of guys.
While she wasn’t completely unaware of the gazes, when she fixed her focus on something, everything else just fell off her radar. In that regard, she was like a child.
Well, fine. That’s something that could be resolved as Clara grew older. If any man with ulterior motives tried to make a move on her, one had to wonder how many could actually pull it off. Even if they tried to fool her, Clara barely interacted with men, so they might not even get the chance.
The real problem was that this ‘innocence’ didn’t just apply to the sexual side of things.
For example,
“Clara doesn’t seem to realize, but the position of ‘Saintess’ has a level of immense power that can’t be taken lightly.”
Exactly. Mostly in terms of politics.
Since Clara became a saintess, her previously tight schedule had loosened up a bit. Thus, both Lina and Aurora, who stuck close to her, found themselves with plenty of free time, but that wasn’t a good sign. If there was free time, who knew what unruly person might exploit the opportunity to request an audience?
“Is that so?”
Seeing Clara tilt her head, Lina pressed her finger against Clara’s nose. Yep, she really had no clue at all.
“In this current era, across the entire Church, no, across all of humanity, Clara is the only one who can be called a saintess. Clara is the only one who can wield the goddess’s power directly. And this is the first occurrence in half a century.”
Aurora nodded in agreement. In fact, she might know even better than the Miracle Investigator, who was part of the Inquisition.
“But Clara is still a nun, right?”
Clara made that assertion. It wasn’t wrong; technically, it held some accuracy.
“That doesn’t mean Clara’s position is just as a nun.”
Lina held back a sigh, explaining slowly.
“Do you know how the Pope is elected?”
“Um, no…”
“There are two methods of electing a Pope. Firstly, the typical procedure is a papal vote. Cardinals from various regions convene to cast their votes for nominated clergy. The only qualification required to be a qualified candidate for Pope is to be a clergyman, so it’s not necessary to be a bishop or cardinal.”
Of course, this was only the voting method for ‘normal cases’. For that ‘normal case’ to even happen,
“However, sometimes the Pope can be elected directly without a vote. This is considered an ‘unusual case’. Before the voting, when the cardinals gather to nominate a pope candidate, there is a ceremony where they all simultaneously call out the name of the person they believe has the qualities of a Pope. If they all call out the same name at that moment, that person can become Pope without a vote.”
Human Society is divided into 23 regions, every region has its own Cardinal. In the 1st District, the Central Church counts as one region, making it a total of 24 cardinals. These 24 cardinals must call out the name of the candidate they desire simultaneously.
Naturally, since they will be calling names in a situation where a candidate hasn’t been determined yet, and since everyone desires a different candidate, the chance of them all calling the same name approaches zero. Thus, if they happen to want the same person, it is thought that ‘the goddess has descended here and appointed a pope’.
In fact, this sort of Pope has only occurred once in nearly 500 years of Church history, about 300 years ago.
What’s crucial isn’t that ‘24 people called the same name simultaneously’ but rather that ‘the possibility of such an event happening is incredibly slim.’ That’s why they judge it as ‘the goddess herself has indicated it’.
Indeed, if a person could receive ‘the selection of the goddess’ through ‘other means’, it wouldn’t matter if it was 24 cardinals or not to elect a Pope.
Lina turned serious as she explained, looking at Clara, whose expression was asking, ‘So why am I being told this?’
“If someone can hear the words of the goddess directly, there would be no need for such a ceremony. There would be no reason for future elections either.”
If you can just pick someone based on the goddess’s word, why go through the hassle of competition?
Of course, the Cardinals aren’t mindless. They are aware that hearing the goddess’s words isn’t an easy feat and that past saints didn’t solely live by the goddess’s revelations either.
But does that really matter?
After all, in a world where living saints exist, if they claim to have heard the goddess’s words, who could prove otherwise? Think about it. In a world where gods genuinely exist, if someone said, ‘I received this revelation’, and wasn’t punished for it, wouldn’t that be proof that the gods recognized them? Especially if that person had already been proven a saint?
Almost no one would suspect that the most devout person would lie about god.
In a world where holy power and miracles exist, only the saint can prove all that.
“So, it’s safe to say that saints—meaning Clara, the saintess—have complete electoral power over the Pope.”
A rule that isn’t written anywhere, not decided by anyone, yet everyone adheres to.
Due to this customary rule, Clara can become a power player herself. Not just as a power holder, but actually create factions within the church.
If she even thought of doing so.
But if, conversely, this saintess was generally pure and a little clueless, what then?
Even if the Church’s power might find it hard to challenge the government’s authority, it doesn’t mean it’s any less significant. In fact, the invisible influence it has over culture and society is so deep and wide that even the government keeps an eye on it.
The method to become the head of the Church would be to win over as many Cardinals as possible and build a support base. The saint from 50 years ago couldn’t influence the election of a new Pope because they didn’t live long enough to see who would be elected. The one before them had maintained strict neutrality towards power.
That means, for almost 100 years, only Popes elected based on support bases had existed.
But now…
The current Pope has already been in his position for over 20 years. His frail body, though backed by a solid support base, can’t last much longer. The chances of a new Pope being elected in the next 10 years are quite high.
In contrast, Clara, now a saintess, is still young and healthy. Unless something drastic happens, she will undoubtedly still possess her beauty ten years from now and continue to live healthily. She is an optimized target for exploitation.
Surely those interested in Church power will find a way to approach her.
But there is one issue…
“Is that so?”
Seeing Clara still looking puzzled after all this explanation, Lina pondered how she could explain the filth of power to her.
*
Ahahaha, I’ll escape when I turn twenty! Hahaha!
In modern times, where the Church doesn’t outright deny individual freedom, one can just ditch the nun life the moment they gain decision-making rights. I’m not sure if it’s possible to even drop the saint title.
Well… I guess I can worry about that when the time comes.
Honestly, this was the first time I learned about the saint’s power. I hadn’t created any saint-type character, and I had only decided on a name and personality for Aurora as the heroine from the Church, so I hadn’t established how the higher-ups of the Church were elected.
I thought a saintess was just a sort of mascot, but it turns out they hold quite a central position in the Church. Well, otherwise, there’s no way they’d hand out gloves that are like relics.
But you know…
Honestly, that wasn’t my concern.
I just wanted to get rid of witches and demons before graduation and live the rest of my life comfortably, maybe establishing a clinic.
Well, that’s still five years away, so I’ll push that aside for now.
What’s important right now is the attitude of the officer school cadets towards me.
Openly talking smack about someone with that kind of power is not simply explained as being big-headed or clueless. These cadets, coming from good families, wouldn’t lack the basic understanding of power.
Didn’t they at least receive a warning from the school?
Hmm…
There definitely was something off. I didn’t know what it was yet, but something was brewing.
Could it be the witch?
…What else could it possibly be? If it wasn’t the witch, then what? Since I had already taken down one (or rather, the God in my body did), I must be marked as a danger.
The overall animosity toward the academy was surprisingly severe, but beyond that, the personal animosity towards me was quite strong too.
Separately from that, it seemed there was nobody who could actually kill me.
While I didn’t expect a witch to be directly around, considering there was a magic point in Lina’s house right in the middle of the city, I couldn’t let my guard down.
I had established peace at some cost; I couldn’t let that go to waste.
First, I should confirm if this mess was indeed the witch’s doing.
As I sighed, I sensed that Lina sitting across from me was also releasing a sigh of her own.
*
Something feels off.
Lina felt that way.
‘There’s a smell of danger lurking.’
It wasn’t the simple scent of something broken and leaking. It was a ‘smell’ from a different dimension, something a pure human couldn’t grasp.
Yes, the smell of demons.
At first, she couldn’t be sure.
Demons in the city generally don’t bother hiding their scent. The smell of a demon isn’t something you just detect because you have a good sense of smell; it’s deliberately noticed or not. Plus, it was an effective way for them to recognize each other. Naturally, demons in the city often maintain cooperative relationships.
But this case was different.
Typically, if there was the scent of demons, just getting nearby would make it easily identifiable as it would grow stronger the closer you got. It wasn’t to the point of being unbearable, but it was at least enough to make her unconsciously turn her head in that direction.
While there were demons or fallen ones who could manage to hide their scent, those were rare among humans. The kind of crazy person wanting to mix with an enemy was exceedingly rare.
Also, aside from high-ranking demons born between witches and demons, they’re generally born from the aftermath of demons assaulting humans.
In other words, that does not indicate a high-ranking demon. The scent had started intensifying the day after the cadets began wandering around everywhere during the welcoming ceremony. That was to say, from the day before yesterday. There were really huge cadets among them, but none that were big enough to classify as a high-ranking demon.
Yet, the demon scent was undeniably present.
In the academy’s corridors, classrooms, auditoriums, and restrooms. The smell diminished as you transitioned to different floors, growing stronger as you went up to the first-year students’ levels.
Wait, “stronger”?
It was more like a light, prickling scent just barely brushing past her nostrils, teasing as it lingered. Was this what happens when a demon stays long enough before disappearing?
That also wasn’t Lina’s scent. If that was the case, she wouldn’t be able to suddenly realize such a smell. It wasn’t even a physical concept to begin with. To dissect, it had magical properties, and just because something lingered didn’t mean it left traces behind. The permeating mana would vanish quickly if the source departed.
She determined that some being was definitely present. However, turning that information into words for others was a different challenge.
[So, you’re saying you don’t know if there was another demon aside from you, huh?]
The day before returning from the frontlines, Andrea, who had brought her in for questioning, responded without disappointment to Lina’s words.
Lina had failed every single mission.
She failed to integrate with the kids, failed to turn relationships into fractures, and even to sow doubt and slander. The lie that everything was progressing well had been exposed, resulting in her being discarded as expendable.
“I’ll be sure to violate your friend in front of you first. Then I’ll say this. ‘They sold you out~’”
The high-ranking demon had said that as she shielded herself and rushed into the battlefield. Was it luck or bad luck—that she hadn’t been found out as a demon? She narrowly avoided being disposed of.
It would be out of character for a demon observing a discarded piece to reveal itself. Therefore, she had no way of knowing.
[In that case, I’d like you to inform me if you learn anything about a demon in the future. I have my own people even within the academy. If you tell me, I’ll get a report back immediately. Without even needing to mention who I am, they probably already know.]
That was essentially a command.
While she hadn’t harmed Clara as promised, there was no guarantee she would continue to do so.
Hadn’t Jian, Clara, and Andrea taken down the high-ranking demon together?
Lina wasn’t entirely certain if Andrea’s skill matched Jian’s, but if it was enough to help defeat a high-ranking demon, it wouldn’t do much good for Lina to struggle. Even if she didn’t say what she would do, it would likely turn out that way.
Thinking of the smirk that Andrea wore sent shivers down Lina’s spine.
Right, informing wasn’t a big problem. After all, between demons and humans, Lina had already become an outsider. It wouldn’t make a difference if she got closer to or further from the Church. In fact, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it would become even more dangerous the more she distanced herself from the Church.
But the thing is, the one she had to tell was someone who was almost always around Clara.
Linea Vikander.
That was probably the person.
Lina thought of Clara.
She had been the one to recklessly volunteer to go to the frontlines in order to catch the witch. She’d head straight there if she even heard a hint of suspicion among the cadets.
That was after almost getting killed last time. She had said her spine was broken.
Every time she thought of that fact, emotions swelled up within her for no reason. So she tried to confront that very person almost daily, attempting to vent those feelings, but while it early relieved them slightly, it never completely disappeared.
Moreover, it seemed like things were only leading to more entanglements.
Lately, they’d been hanging out even in cafes after school.
…
Lina suddenly stopped in her tracks, thinking with a serious expression.
What’s this?
When did this start?
Why am I even worried about her?
She felt goosebumps run down her spine and shivered.
“What’s wrong?”
A voice suddenly popped up from behind, startling her nearly jumping into the air.
“Hey! You can’t just spring that on me like that!”
“Yup? Oh, sorry?”
Jian, who had done nothing wrong, gave a blank reply.
“…Ah!”
Seeing Jian standing there with a dumb expression gave Lina one quick thought.
“Hey, come with me for a sec.”
With that, she grabbed Jian’s wrist and pulled him down a less crowded corridor.
Inside the overly spacious and high-structured academy building, there were plenty of classrooms that were simply empty. She’d heard they were left empty just in case students increased or emergency situations occurred where the building was turned into a regional command center, but that didn’t matter too much.
She opened the door to one of the empty classrooms, shoved Jian inside, and locked the door.
Jian, who had come along without a struggle, had no visible expression of fear, merely a face full of curiosity. That irked her a little.
“I have something to tell you.”
“Go ahead.”
You’d think there would be at least a little flutter if a girl from the same grade said something like this, but Jian remained completely unfazed. It annoyed her even more.
“I’m actually not human, I’m a succubus. It’s a type of demon.”
“…….”
At first, he showed no reaction, but after a brief moment of confusion, he finally started to part his lips in slight amazement. A small satisfaction arose in Lina, but quickly faded. Not really a good thing.
“And demons can smell other demons? But right now, this building—this entire floor with our classroom has the scent of demons. It’s not my scent; I can distinguish that much.”
Jian’s jaw began to slowly close again. Then he thought for a moment and crossed his arms like when he watched Lina spar with Clara.
“So, there’s a chance there’s another demon in this school aside from you?”
He doesn’t even care that I’m a demon, huh? Lina felt triple the irritation. What kind of weirdo is he?
“You don’t care that I’m a demon?”
“Does it really matter that you’re a demon?”
Seeing Jian ask curiously like that, Lina buried her head in her hands.
“……I’m starting to think maybe telling you wasn’t the right choice.”
Thinking it over, she figured asking Linea would have brought back the simple response she was set to expect. Shouldn’t it be better to approach this cautiously if she was a demon? Though that was from a human’s perspective.
“Anyway, you’re not going to harm us. You just worry about this unknown demon sneaking in.”
“Well, there’s that, but…”
“Then it doesn’t matter what you are. Demon or human, you’re still Lina to us.”
Lina’s face flushed with embarrassment. What kind of person can say such things casually? If he weren’t so good-looking, she would have slapped him flat out by now.
“Anyway.”
Lina wiped her face and said.
“So, are you going to help me or not?”
“If it’s about demons, isn’t it better to tell Clara?”
“That’s not an option.”
Lina interrupted firmly.
“Didn’t you hear me the other time? She volunteered to go to the frontlines to catch the witch. She got her spine broken.”
“…”
As Jian listened, a cheeky smile crept onto his face.
“Why, why’s that?”
“Finally starting to like Clara, huh?”
Seeing Jian beam like that, Lina kicked his shins.
“Oof!”
No matter how skilled he was in swordsmanship, it seemed it still hurt. That was honestly a little surprising. Though her irritation from earlier was still rising above all.
“So, are you going to help me or not?”
“Of course, I’ll help.”
As Jian rubbed his injured shins, he replied. Yet the smirk on his face remained, making Lina ponder whether she should kick the other leg as well.
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