Chapter: 336
Phoebe, who burst into tears leaning on my shoulder, fell asleep before I knew it.
She clearly hadn’t had a proper sleep even in the morning, and after facing many things with her exhausted body, it was no surprise she would collapse from fatigue.
I laid her down on my thigh and spread my divine grace so she could rest comfortably in warmth.
There’s really no rush. If she doesn’t wake up even after a while, I can just pick her up and carry her back.
Thinking that, I examined the divine grace engraved within Phoebe.
As the level of divine grace has increased, I have become skilled at handling it.
My ability to sense the divine grace of others is also now far beyond what it used to be.
From my perspective, the divine grace residing in Phoebe seems to be incredibly similar to the divine grace of Lord Jushin that I possess.
Did Armadi acknowledge Phoebe’s purity?
Ha. Right. That’s correct.
Phoebe is someone far too precious to be called by the sloppy, perverted god.
I actually think it’s rather arrogant that he didn’t acknowledge her until now.
Who does he think he is, judging whether to acknowledge Phoebe or not? That incompetent god who can’t do anything without me.
As I had those thoughts, I saw Phoebe mumbling in her sleep and gently patted her head.
“Grandpa.”
[Why do you call me?]
“You already know, right?”
It’s troublesome if he pretends not to know now. There’s no way the hero who was called a hero doesn’t remember well, right?
[Indeed. You are right. This child is worthy of bearing the name of the saintess.]
“Right? Grandpa was wrong, wasn’t he?”
It’s too much that he doubted my words when it’s someone else’s business.
How much have I shown him so far, and yet he still wanted to test Phoebe?
“How can a noble holy knight not trust people like this?”
<...I have no words. I’m sorry. This is undoubtedly a bad habit of mine.>
“Anyway, now you have to pay for your doubts.”
[Pay for what?]
“Because of your distrust, I got hurt, so you have to suffer too.”
I had already decided what kind of pain to inflict on him.
I was planning to visit the place where his doll is located during this vacation.
I’ll ask him to explain the meaning behind each action and line of the doll.
Hehe. I can’t help but laugh at the thought of Grandpa needing to explain each and every embarrassing moment he faced there.
[As this matter is my fault, I won’t try to avoid punishment.]
“Oh. Really?”
That’s surprising. I thought Grandpa would make some excuse like he was doing it for me.
[However, it cannot be said that only I was at fault in this matter!]
…Cancel the surprise.
It would have been better if he just made excuses.
I never thought he would drag others into it to share the blame.
Is this the so-called legendary holy knight?
Was there some confusion in the story?
While I was letting Grandpa’s complaints flow over me, I noticed Phoebe’s eyes twitching.
“…Huh? Young Lady?”
“Did you wake up?”
“Did I wake up already? Such a pity~ You were so cute mumbling like a baby.”
Phoebe jumped up before I finished speaking, turning her eyes everywhere to avoid my gaze.
“I-I’m sorry. How dare I trouble the Young Lady?”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
“Don’t worry? I cried so much that I dirtied my school uniform and fell asleep using your knee as a pillow while mumbling on top of that, but so what?”
“I’m really sorry!”
With her ears flushed red, Phoebe repeatedly bowed her head to apologize for her rudeness.
I honestly didn’t think it was a bother, and I thought it was rather cute.
But if I were to say that out loud, it would be weirdly translated and definitely make Phoebe burst out, so I quietly waited for her to calm down.
“…I can’t believe I couldn’t control my emotions like this.”
“That’s enough, Phoebe.”
“Phoebe. If you keep poking at it after I said I’m fine, don’t you think it becomes a bother? Did you spill your intelligence while crying?”
“Not like that, but…”
“More than that…”
“How does it feel to bear the divine grace of the sloppy god?”
Phoebe, who had believed in Armadi since she was very young, thought it was her lifelong wish to hear the voice of the lord and receive the lord’s blessing.
Now that her dream has come true, she should be happy, but the look on her face as she gazed at her divine grace was subtle.
‘Aren’t you happy?’
“What’s this? You’re not happy? Is this not enough? You pretended to be pure, but you’re actually greedy?”
“No! That’s not it! It’s definitely a happy thing that the lord is looking at me!”
After Phoebe passionately explained how long she had hoped for this moment, she suddenly fell silent and, after a few seconds, continued with the word “but.”
“However, there are too many things in this world to purely enjoy that happiness.”
Hearing that she cannot be cheerful like a child because she now bears the will of the lord, I bent down to match Phoebe’s gaze and spoke.
Even though it was an out-of-place, incomprehensible request, Phoebe sincerely followed what I said.
As our gazes met, I flicked her forehead.
“Yikes?!”
Did she not expect this? Covering her forehead with both hands, Phoebe looked at me as if she didn’t understand.
“Foolish Phoebe♡ If according to you, openly showing my happiness means I’m an immature brat, right?♡”
“…No?! That’s not what I meant!”
“Hmm~♡ So all this time, you thought of me that way?♡ I’m so disappointed!♡”
“It’s really not like that! Young Lady!”
As she flailed her arms wildly, spewing out disorganized excuses, I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
Ha. Seriously. They haven’t even graduated from school yet, and they’re acting like a savior.
…Wait. Maybe it’s because they haven’t graduated that they’re trying to act like a savior?
Considering Phoebe’s age, it wouldn’t be strange for her to have a bit of a middle school syndrome.
“What on earth are you looking at me with such a subtle gaze for?!”
As Phoebe protested her injustice, I flicked her forehead again, and continued while watching her nearly in tears.
“I’m just a newbie who just received divine grace, acting all bravado♡ Isn’t it natural to look pathetic?♡”
“That…that’s.”
“Puhuh♡ I should tell the idiot later♡ Just how foolish charming Phoebe looked while drowning in self-importance♡”
When I exaggeratedly mimicked Phoebe, a high-pitched voice burst from her.
“Ladyyyyy!”
You see,
I did like Phoebe, who is the noble saintess in the game, but I didn’t want my friend Phoebe next to me to become like that.
A respected figure seems great from a distance, but it hurts from up close.
Phoebe.
Just like you did in the game, you don’t have to carry everything; everything will turn out just fine.
I hope you remain just as you are now.
Hiding my complicated feelings in laughter created by the mesugaki skill, I earnestly hoped that Phoebe would not tell Joy as I led her out from the basement.
*
It’s been two days since Phoebe received the divine grace of the lord.
Let me share a few things that happened during that time.
Um. Right. I have to mention this first.
After escaping from the orphanage, I put the brakes on Karia’s story that we should return right away.
I wanted Karia to pay the price for doubting me.
Perhaps foreseeing that I would act like this, Karia shrugged her shoulders and told me to do whatever I wanted.
So I did just that.
“The story that Foolish Father told me. A while ago, Auntie was an unspeakable loner.”
“Is it about Master?”
“People are untrustworthy animals…”
“Gah! Stop! Stop! Employer! I’ve made a mistake!”
No matter how perceptive Karia was, she clearly didn’t expect me to share her embarrassing history in front of her disciple and desperately tried to cover my mouth.
Of course, Karia, who lost most of her strength from the past, wouldn’t be able to win against me.
“And also…”
“Stop it!”
I started telling the next story, leaving behind Karia’s scream.
It’s true that Karia doesn’t appear in the game, but unrelated or not, there are plenty of delusional stories about “the shadows of the former kingdom.”
In my mind, I had 101 tales that would make Karia scream.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t tell all those stories.
By the time I finished two of them, Karia’s expression grew sinister.
I couldn’t even open my mouth, seeing her eyes that seemed like she would kill me and herself if this continued.
<…If this is Karia’s punishment, then could my punishment be…>
Somebody watching the whole scene realized their gloomy future, but that wasn’t very important, so I’ll just let it slide.
Oh, I also have to mention this.
On the day I received the lord’s grace at the orphanage, did I bully Phoebe to death until we returned to the dorm?
Was it effective?
The next morning, Phoebe did not mention anything about her mission or burden.
Not only that, she had turned a shade of red and even acknowledged that she must have babbled nonsense, so I could say the mesugaki-style middle school syndrome treatment was a complete success.
However, I didn’t let my guard down with just that.
Having spent a time I never want to remember again, I understand just how resilient the seeds of middle school syndrome can be.
So, after confirming her recovery, I conducted a procedure to prevent Phoebe from relapsing.
What nonsense am I talking about?
“Because it’s too much to enjoy that happiness…”
“Cough. Cough.”
“Lady! I told you not to do that!”
“Heeheehee…”
“Puhahaha! Phoebe! How about mentioning this during your lectures later?!”
“Ahhh!”
I ignored Phoebe’s desperate pleas and told Joy everything.
And why not? I could only fulfill her request that day!
Once that day was over, there is no one who can hold back this mesugaki!
Oh, of course, I left out the serious parts.
If I explained all the circumstances that happened that day, it wouldn’t at all be fun.
Anyway, through our joint therapy, Phoebe’s middle school syndrome withered away in the soil.
There’s a side effect where Phoebe actually gets a little sulky from all of this.
But honestly? Compared to the damage when the middle school syndrome fully bloomed, this is nothing. Yep.
In addition to that, my dungeon published in the academy received high praise.
Or how Frey ran away the moment she saw my face after showing up at the training grounds after a few days.
Or how Arthur let out a scream of joy at my order to memorize the entire dungeon gimmick book I created before the vacation.
Well, the two days of daily life were truly peaceful and joyful.
…
If only I had known that was the calm before the storm.
“Joy, what do you think about this outfit? Doesn’t it fit the doll-like Young Lady perfectly?”
“It’s okay, but um. Let’s see how it looks on you first. We still have plenty of time.”
“Uh, Joy…”
“Joy? Are your eyes not working? Can’t you see the pile of clothes in her hands right now?”
“That’s me trying them on and trying that one on as well, Young Lady.”
Ignoring my words, Joy handed another piece of clothing to Karl, who came along as a porter.
Wow. The pile of clothes on Karl’s arms is almost touching his shoulders.
How long will it take to try all of that on?
“Phoebe, what do you think of this?”
“It wouldn’t have suited the old Young Lady, but for the current Young Lady, it would be very charming.”
“Right?”
…Are they really thinking of me as a living person or just some dress-up doll?
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