There are times, although not often, when I feel, “Wow, I’ve really grown!”
Growth is such a slow process that it’s tough to notice just by sitting still and observing. Whether it’s physically growing taller or improving skills through practice, it takes a considerable amount of time.
But just like a child can finally reach the doorknob without standing on tiptoes, or discovering that I can finish my work much faster than when I started, the opportunity to feel that growth will eventually present itself.
That’s exactly how I feel right now.
Before coming to this world, I struggled to speak in front of even ten people, yet now I stood before a crowd that seemed endless. I didn’t feel dizzy or my fingers tremble. After all, I didn’t actually have to give a speech here.
While it was called a “canonization ceremony,” it was a bit difficult to consider this as a position bestowed by the Pope. The Pope was chosen by Cardinals within the Church. They were indeed the most knowledgeable in religious matters and were endowed with strong Holy Power, excluding saints, but that doesn’t change the fact that they were still mere humans.
In a world where the existence of gods has been proven, it means that those representatives of the gods are not necessarily individuals who can relay the will of the gods.
Even among Cardinals, there are those with misguided beliefs, and not every religious person is a good person.
If someone is to represent the will of the gods, wouldn’t it make sense that only those who have received direct revelations or have conversed with those gods hold that right?
So, while people call it a “canonization ceremony” due to previous religious influences, and the act of being recognized by the Pope as “being canonized,” strictly speaking, the meanings differ slightly.
It’s a declaration to confirm the existence of saints. The Church acknowledges your existence and will follow you.
That declaration is what the modern canonization ceremony represents.
Thus, the Pope doesn’t conduct lengthy and tedious appointing rituals. There’s simply nothing to say. What can a mere representative of the congregation possibly say in front of someone who confirms the will of the gods? How could they dare to “appoint” someone who represents the will of the gods? The Church exists to serve the gods, after all.
Therefore, the canonization ceremony is conducted thoroughly in silence.
“…….”
The Pope stood with a plate in his hands, without saying a word. It seemed to be a thin plate, about the thickness of a pinky finger. A shallow pool of water was laid out on that plate.
With a white cloth covering both hands, the Pope’s face, holding that silver plate, looked very happy.
……It kind of felt like he was attending a granddaughter’s wedding, which was a bit burdensome.
He bowed deeply and raised that plate towards me.
“…….”
Originally, a Cardinal should be in this position, and the Pope should be where I stood, but the process of this event changed slightly due to my existence as the Saintess, the most special Saintess among all historical Saints and Saintesses.
Although I’ve never directly referred to myself as a god, the Church didn’t use the title “Goddess” for me due to that intent, but my actions clearly demonstrated it. The way they would willingly sacrifice their lives for my words was almost frightening.
In an event recognizing those representing the gods, could a being of the divine be absent? Honestly, even I thought it more fitting that I should be in this position rather than the Pope.
I dipped my right thumb into the plate. I could feel the lukewarm water touching the tip of my finger.
Then, with that slightly wet finger, I drew a cross on the forehead of Linea, who was kneeling and praying on the left.
Her face, tense with nervousness, was a little amusing, but this wasn’t the place to make fun of her, so I decided to hold off for a moment.
Once again, I dipped my finger in the plate. This time, I did the same action for Aurora, who was sitting beside Linea. Aurora seemed much more relaxed than Linea. Of course, that didn’t mean she wasn’t nervous.
A transparent cross was drawn on Aurora’s forehead.
I dipped my finger in the plate again and approached Rina.
Rina’s expression didn’t seem tense but rather showed, “I absolutely will not open my eyes.” She forced her eyelids shut, with deep wrinkles on her forehead. Her tightly holding hands trembled.
Honestly, I almost burst out laughing.
Of course, everyone, including all those countless believers watching this scene, would be shocked if I suddenly chuckled, so I tried hard to maintain a benevolent smile as I drew the cross on Rina’s forehead.
Nothing particular happened.
The Holy Water I used this time was particularly infused with my Holy Power. Using “my” Holy Power felt like a bizarre sensation. When utilizing Baal or Ariel’s Holy Power, I would just think of them, but when it came to my Holy Power, I still didn’t know what to do.
I managed to create it somehow, but unlike the Holy Water made with the distinct personalities of Ariel or Baal, it didn’t have their clear traits. It simply exuded a faint white light, like a shallow mist.
I still wasn’t sure what I could do with my power. Looking at how I was able to overcome the Demons, it seemed I could push away their magic just like the other two Holy Powers, but it didn’t seem particularly effective against the Demons like Ariel’s Holy Power, nor did it feel like I could sweep everything away like Baal’s Holy Power.
Well, I guess I’ll find out eventually.
Thinking about it now was just an unsolvable dilemma.
Except for the slight flinch of Rina when my hand touched her forehead, my role in the canonization ceremony finished there.
As I stepped back a few paces, the Pope, who had been bowing his head until then, lifted it. The cloth and plate he held were taken by a nearby Cardinal.
“Would you please rise?”
The Pope spoke in an endlessly polite tone to the three Saintesses seated before him. Upon hearing his words, they slowly began to rise.
“Our Church, and all its congregation, recognize the faithfulness of the Saintesses.”
The Pope then beamed a full smile, looking at each of the three in turn. Linea and Aurora opened their eyes, but Rina remained tightly shut.
……I understand that she’s keeping her eyes closed to avoid getting nervous, but is she aware that this is being recorded? They’re likely broadcasting it live as well.
The image of her keeping her eyes tightly shut during the entire canonization ceremony will probably be recorded forever; I wonder if she thinks that’s okay? No, it’s more likely that she’s too nervous to even think that far. Despite being so bold usually, she struggled immensely when standing in front of people.
“As a believer, I will follow and emulate the Saintesses.”
The Pope gently declared, bowing slightly.
A representation of a believer’s declaration.
It doesn’t ask for anything. It doesn’t try to teach anything or force anything. It’s simply a declaration that as a believer, they will follow the most faithful ones.
“…….”
Linea, Aurora, and Rina did not respond to this, only lightly bowing their heads in acknowledgment to the Pope.
*
“Hah~ I was so nervous…”
As soon as we entered the waiting room, Aurora let out a deep sigh, pressing her hands against the wall.
“Well, you didn’t look as nervous compared to the other two.”
I said, having seen all three of their faces up close, and Aurora cautiously turned her head toward me.
“Really…?”
I pointed to the other two with my hand.
Linea was sitting on a sofa with her eyes closed, limbs limp, and Rina, perhaps too exhausted to even sit, was on her knees, leaning over the sofa. ……Seriously?
Well, if that’s how they express their desperation avant-garde, then I can’t say anything.
“Was Clara this tense, too?”
“Me?”
Seeing that scene, Aurora asked me with a wry smile.
“I don’t even remember that time.”
I answered with a smile.
“I was so nervous that I don’t remember how I got canonized.”
“Did that really happen…?”
Upon my reply, Aurora showed a somewhat relieved expression.
“So.”
Rina, whose face was buried in the sofa, spoke up. Due to her face being pressed into the fabric, her voice seemed to echo as if it were coming from afar.
“What do we do now? Do we just go home?”
Rina, sitting on the floor with her cheek on the sofa, asked this as though she found everything terribly annoying. I purposely made a shocked expression and responded.
“‘We’？ Rina, are you finally admitting that you belong somewhere? Did you just call the convent ‘home’?”
“……If you deny it even now, that just shows a serious lack of situational awareness.”
If I said something like “You’ve been awful at that until now,” Rina might grab me by the collar in the middle of the Central Church, and if a passing clergy were to see a Goddess and Saintess bickering, you never know what kind of wild misunderstandings could arise. So, I decided to hold off from prodding her further.
“Well, actually, it wouldn’t be a major issue if we just went home like this…”
As I trailed off, Linea picked up my thought.
“It must be the teacher you’re concerned about.”
“Right.”
It’s obvious that something significant was going on. There’s no way we could just leave it as is.
It’s not just any school teacher, this is our club’s faculty advisor. Plus, we have a personal connection…
……More importantly, Seo-A is one of the ‘heroines’ I set up.
What characterizes a heroine? Aside from being a character without experience with men (or women), the main traits are—
Exactly. They each have tidbits of the main story interwoven into their narratives.
Though I hadn’t made specific settings for them, that lack of boundaries made me worry even more. When I think about how things I didn’t write regarding the elf village or Arlil have arbitrarily been decided in this world, it’s likely that the circumstances necessitating Seo-A’s visit all the way to the 1st District might be an event much larger than I’m thinking.
And the looser the setting, the more arbitrary narratives can emerge from that world.
She’s characterized as a capable heroine, yet she now works as a teacher at school, and if a story begins to blossom in that gap, it could spiral out of control. I might as well write a completely different novel as an extra, with how much distance could exist between those settings.
Yes, that’s why I’m terribly worried.
“……You, that expression.”
While I was deep in thought, Rina pointed at me.
“Anyone can see that you’re itching to intervene.”
“Me?”
I blinked my eyes in surprise and when I looked to Aurora, she nodded and added in.
“Yeah. That’s the expression you make before doing something that could be an issue.”
Looking at Aurora, she was also nodding in agreement.
“I think so too.”
“……”
If they insisted so much, I couldn’t argue at that point.
……I mean, it’s true that I’m not particularly good at hiding my expressions.
“Are you that worried?”
Linea asked me.
“Yes, I am.”
Certainly, there’s a possibility that everything might resolve without my interference. In fact, it may be more likely that my meddling would complicate matters.
But still, when someone typically lively shows signs of distress, it’s a natural reaction to want to help.
“Why are you pondering, though?”
Aurora asked, appearing a tad surprised.
“That’s not like you, Clara.”
……Was I that kind of character?
……Well, I suppose I could be.
If I wanted to do something, I would dive right in without holding back. Though in truth, it was more accurate to say the situations resolved themselves rather than I solved them.
But—
“……I made a poor choice last time.”
Having been overly confident regarding the Demons led me to nearly mess things up. It was thanks to Linea and Aurora awakening their powers of miracles that significant issues didn’t arise at that time; otherwise, I could have lost both of them.
It couldn’t just end at “thank goodness for the miracle.”
A miracle is literally a miracle, and that’s exactly why it holds its significance. If you gamble your life on an event that has an incredibly low probability of occurring, that’s still a major problem.
What if this situation ends up as a mess because I interfere? That thought crossed my mind.
And worse, I didn’t even know what kind of mission Seo-A had.
“……”
Linea and Aurora exchanged glances. It seemed they understood each other perfectly, and they both nodded, looking back at me.
“Of course, it could be a mistaken choice. There’s a great chance that without understanding the context and jumping in, I would make things worse.”
Linea brought up a valid point. Listening, I nodded in agreement.
“Indeed, so…”
“But.”
Before I could finish, Aurora interjected.
“Then we just need to understand the context before intervening, right?”
With a bold posture, Aurora declared.
“Let’s figure out what’s going on first and what our teacher intends to do. If it’s not our business, we can step back, but if we can help, we shall offer our assistance.”
Aurora looked ready to cough lightly when she said that.
“……Is that so?”
I responded with a slight expression of skepticism, and Aurora nodded assuredly.
“Of course! After all, we have four Saintesses here! I’m sure we can manage anything!”
……Four Saintesses, huh.
I wonder what the hierarchy of the Church is like under those conditions. If there’s only one Saintess, then it’s just a matter of me and the Pope being in charge, but with four Saintesses—
No, let’s not dive into such a complicated mess right now. Surely, the high-ranking Church officials will take care of these matters.
Surely, they won’t be thinking of pooling power within these four Saintesses, including me.
……Right?
Regardless of what the hierarchy among the four Saintesses is, the weight of the title should never be underestimated. It’s likely that government officials would have a splitting headache over it. There are protocols for these things.
When Saintesses visit the government, they receive protocol on par with the Pope, so when four of us arrive together, the protocol would naturally quadruple. Plus, since I had directly confronted the President last time, he couldn’t just ignore us, and they couldn’t arbitrarily alter the protocol for four Saintesses either.
Wherever we might end up visiting, it’s certain that the faces of those working there will turn pale.
“……Now that you mention it, that does sound plausible.”
As I nodded, Aurora and Linea smiled brightly. They both turned their heads toward the still kneeling Rina simultaneously.
“……Why me?”
“……”
“……”
“……”
Receiving the gaze of all three, Rina sighed deeply and hugged her head.
Ah, if you’re a Saintess, you should instinctively move together with the other Saintesses.
It’s common sense.
Though I just invented that common sense now.
*
“So, who should we ask to find out more?”
It’s not like anyone would readily assist if we simply grabbed someone and asked. Just like how it’s natural to expect a soldier on guard duty not to fix a broken car.
“I know someone!”
“Aurora?”
I asked, surprised, and Aurora gave a confident ‘ahem’ expression.
“Of course! Don’t worry, just follow me!”
I looked at Linea, but she only shook her head, seemingly unsure. For the record, Rina looked like a zombie, her arms hanging down as she walked, emitting an entire vibe of “I don’t want to be here, but I’m being dragged along.”
After following Aurora for a while, we arrived at—
The office of the Miracle Investigator.
……Oh, uh, I see.
While I was puzzling over that understanding, Aurora swung the office door open without a hint of hesitation.
“……Huh?”
The Priest, who had his feet resting on the desk, covering his face with a Bible while leaning back in his chair, glanced up at us as if startled by the sound of the door opening.
“I must say, what brings such esteemed individuals here?”
As he answered, he hurriedly removed his feet from the desk and straightened up in his seat. He quickly laid the Bible down on the desk.
……We saw everything, you old man.
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