It was freezing on the mountainside in the depths of winter, with no room left for debate.
But Yona, dressed not in nun’s robes but in saint’s attire, felt not a bit of that cold.
The saintly garb befitting her status kept all such chills well at bay from the saint herself.
However, the reason for Yona’s tense expression was something else.
They had parked the carriage out of sight on the mountainside, descending into a small clearing below.
“Feeling uneasy?”
A gentle voice.
Yona looked up instead of answering, gazing at the owner of the voice.
Alex, with a warm smile plastered on his face, was grinning back at her.
“…Yeah, a little.”
Seeing Yona’s honest response made Alex smile even brighter.
“Can I sit?”
“Why ask? Just sit.”
Alex plopped down, keeping a reasonable distance from Yona, as the powerful magic emanating from her saintly robes would spark if he got too close.
“Will he come?”
“Yeah. He will. I know he will. Vigrind will definitely come.”
With confidence ringing in her voice, Yona looked down the mountainside.
The mountain path, still devoid of any signs of life, was a spectacle with snowflakes shimmering under the bright moonlight.
Hours had passed since James headed into Evian.
James had gone to Evian instead of Yona, who couldn’t bear to enter.
His purpose was to convey Yona’s request to Vigrind.
To deliver Yona’s invitation to meet.
And the response—or to bring Vigrind back to this spot.
“Do you think he’ll really come?”
Alex asked again, but Yona replied with silence.
He will come.
If it’s Vigrind, he will surely come.
The same Vigrind who would shout at her to stop, to cut it out, will indeed come.
Moreover, James had assured Yona that Vigrind would definitely respond to this message.
The moonlight was clear, and the snow was white.
Though the snow wasn’t deep enough to sink into, it was sufficient to reflect the moonlight beautifully.
“…Yona, what exactly are you planning to say?”
“Not much. I’m just going to check if he knows what’s going on. If he doesn’t…”
If he doesn’t—what then?
Yona’s words trailed off there.
Just when Alex was about to ask what they would do if he was oblivious, Yona let out a small sigh.
“…I’ll grab him by the hair and give him a good shake. Maybe tell him to kneel and raise his arms behind the cathedral or something.”
“And if he knows?”
“Even if he knows, it’s the same. It just means he was simply watching.”
The anger had faded, leaving only blackened ashes.
Digging through that ash, there was still a feeling that Vigrind was a friend.
Whether Vigrind knew or not didn’t really matter; if he knew, there must have been a reason he couldn’t act on it regardless of his character.
“What’s wrong with a saint being kind and gentle? She feels just like a true saint, doesn’t she?”
“What’s wrong with the saintess’s character? She’s incredibly gentle and kind. It’s the very definition of being saintly, right?”
Ludvik thought so, at least from Alex’s perspective.
She speaks softly and calmly, and every movement is graceful.
“…Are you saying that for me to hear? Vigrind is kind, but what about you?”
“Huh? Uh, uh? Why is it like that?”
Alex was taken aback by Yona’s fierce glare.
“Isn’t it true, you baldy brat?”
“Hey, hey, no, that’s not it. It’s a misunderstanding.”
Dark energy began to swirl ominously at the shoulder of Yona’s saintly robe.
It looked quite threatening, leaving Alex no choice but to panic.
“So what is it then?”
“No, it’s not like that. The saintess is just like that.”
“So the saintess is like that, but I’m a saint too! Then why? Why am I so hot-headed? Huh? Even when you brought that nonsense, I didn’t say anything. Isn’t that pretty merciful and gentle?”
Yona pointed to the area where the carriage was stopped.
There stood a warhorse, next to which a cathedral knight in silver armor and a healer named Serad were sitting, looking uneasy.
They had caused chaos while heading to Lukasia, and now they had followed all the way here.
Yona wanted to smash them immediately, but since they were Alex’s old connections, she was holding herself back.
But with Alex praising Vigrind right in front of her, her temper was finally about to explode—
– Thud.
“Oh, that’s a footstep.”
It was a remarkable coincidence.
Yona didn’t intend to say it that way, but Alex’s wit couldn’t save him from this predicament.
“Why are there three of them? Shouldn’t it just be two including Saint Vigrind?”
As Alex said, the shadows reflected on the snow-covered forest path were four.
The giant shadow had long fangs sticking out from its head—James.
The short and lanky one with long hair was Vigrind.
And the tall man—
“…Yona, come here.”
Alex reached out and wrapped his arms around Yona’s waist.
Yona naturally found herself hiding behind Alex’s shield.
It felt prickly, but on the flip side, the feeling of being protected was not entirely unwelcome.
“Hey, halt!”
Alex’s voice rang out softly but powerfully.
With his voice, the shadows came to a stop.
Still, their true appearances were obscured among the thick tree shadows.
“Slowly, slowly step forward.”
At Alex’s command, the shadows began to move cautiously.
The first to emerge from the trees was James.
Next came Vigrind, and finally, Ludvik.
“…It’s been a while, Alex.”
Ludvik’s gaze was locked squarely on Alex’s position.
Due to the elevation difference, Alex probably couldn’t be seen from where they were, but somehow, Ludvik could precisely stare at the spot where Alex and Yona were just by their voices.
“It’s been a while, why not show yourself a bit? As you can see, I’m not holding any weapons.”
Ludvik raised his hands.
True, he appeared unarmed, but one couldn’t let their guard down.
“Yona, you stay here for a moment.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll go down first.”
“Don’t do that, let’s go together.”
Yona clutched the end of Alex’s sleeve.
There was a hint of tension in her voice, and Alex could sense her worries. He couldn’t bring himself to say it was okay.
“I clearly asked to see only Saint Vigrind.”
“Do you think I’d send the Saint alone into enemy territory? Quite an amusing delusion you have there, Mr. Alex.”
Ludvik’s smirk remained, yet Alex could catch glimpses of madness in his eyes every time he glanced at Yona. Stepping slightly in front of Yona to shield her from his gaze, Alex forced a smile once more.
“It’s impressive you recognized me so quickly with my hair like this.”
“Well, you’ve changed quite a bit. Yona behind you has also changed a lot, so it wouldn’t be too surprising for you to look different as well.”
“Is that so? I’d think there should be more changes you notice besides that.”
Alex was about to channel divine energy but remembered Yona was right behind him and stopped. It was easy to summon, but wouldn’t that hurt her? That couldn’t happen.
“Anyway, I understand you couldn’t dare enter Evian, but what do you want?”
A spear appeared in Ludvik’s hand. He hadn’t summoned any divine energy, but a spear was still a spear. Taking out his hammer alongside his shield, Alex prepared himself.
“Please explain why you brought our Saint here at such a time.”
“It’s a conversation between Saints, isn’t it? As someone who serves my own Saint, I don’t really need to dig into the depths of your motives. I’ll follow your lead as long as that’s what you want. No lofty ideals here, but we both have our duties, don’t we?”
The implication in Alex’s words was clear: How dare you question what your Saint wishes to do? Ludvik, grasping the meaning, fell silent.
“Yona.”
In front of Ludvik, Priest Vigrind appeared.
Typically, divine energy radiated a gentle white hue, creating a fine mist when summoned.
But Vigrind was different now. A golden aura swirled around her shoulders, something Yona had never seen before. But with Vigrind calling her, Yona had no choice but to respond.
“She did. But once Priest Vigrind called her, Yona had to respond too.
‘Why?’
She is also a saint.
If Priest Vigrind is the Celestial God’s saint, then Yona is the saint of the Demon Realm.
There’s nothing lacking here, and there’s no issue with their status.
Recalling this fact, Yona approached Vigrind.
Priest Vigrind radiating golden divinity.
Yona igniting crimson demonic energy.
The two stood facing each other.
A moment of silence.
Yet in this charged atmosphere, where anything could happen, Ludvik held his spear, and Alex stood ready with his hammer and shield, prepared for an all-out brawl.
‘—Yona.’
‘If you called me, then speak.’
‘…I told you not to use that title.’
Priest Vigrind’s face turned red; perhaps she was angry.
She hadn’t intended to make it an issue, but now that she faced Yona, her irritation flared.
‘I thought you wouldn’t come if I didn’t say it like that.’
Yona shot back with a deadpan expression.
A very effective method, leaving room for provocation.
‘You called me “Dwarf Poop Bag,” right? That’s the truth anyway.’
‘I’ve told you a thousand times to stop calling me that.’
‘I’m just stating a fact. In the first place, I’m the only one who calls you that.’
‘Whether you’re the only one or not, I said to stop!’
‘If you were indignant, you should have grown when I did. You’re just a “Dwarf Poop Bag” in your grown-up form.’
‘…I told you to stop.’
*
Had Ludvik and Alex not kept Priest Vigrind and Yona apart, a massive fight might have erupted.
Thanks to their timely intervention, the tension dissipated, and Yona and Vigrind awkwardly sat across from each other at the table they had managed to set up near the carriage.
The carriage was supposedly well-hidden by Alebians’ magic, so it shouldn’t have been visible to Vigrind or Ludvik, and indeed, despite the carriage being right nearby, neither seemed to notice it at all.
‘Anyway, what’s the reason you called me? If you want to list your reasons for apostasy, just stop. I don’t want to know about that.’
That was a surprisingly bold response.
She thought Vigrind would rush in right away about her apostasy, but the fact that she simply didn’t want to hear the reasons was certainly surprising.
‘I have no intention of sharing that. I just wanted to tell you to stop that insane thing the Church of the Celestial God is doing right now.’
‘…It is definitely insane.’
Vigrind knew it too.
She understood what kind of insanity Yona was referring to.
Now that Yona had brought it up, Vigrind had no retort.
‘This isn’t something to discuss here. Let’s go inside.’
With Yona’s words, Vigrind nodded slightly.”
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