There are cold and harsh things. Then there are warm and soft things.
If I were to describe this woman named Adrian, she would likely fall closer to the warm and soft side.
She is the kind of woman who makes it impossible for onlookers to utter harsh words and rather brings smiles to their faces.
Innocent and pure, yet not foolish.
Despite being a saint who embodies purity, she has never succumbed to wicked temptations.
Thus, it could be said that she is noble.
Having lived many lives, this is the impression I’ve held of the saintly woman.
Clean and noble to the point where I’d think I couldn’t find a single flaw…
Yet, I was mistaken.
“Hey, kids, don’t pull my hair… It hurts, sis…”
Being surrounded by children and endlessly tormented was quite different from the image I had of a saint.
What should I say? “Insignificant” might be more appropriate.
Even when her hair was being yanked this way and that, she smiled like a fool, seeming to enjoy being with the kids.
To top it off, dirt clung to her clothes from moving around various burdens, with black smudges on her cheeks and forehead.
I might have been wrong about her being a noble saint.
However, I was certain no one else matched the title of a saint like Adrian did.
She wasn’t called a saint for possessing divine power that others lacked, but rather, it was because of her very character that she had been chosen as one.
Seeing her like that left me with a rather profound feeling, causing me to divert my gaze from the saint playing with the kids.
Though I often worked in her stead, unable to move freely due to a sprained ankle, I wondered if it was really okay for me to stay here.
Was I perhaps ruining the atmosphere just by being in such a place?
Even though I was helping to repay the grace she showed me when he healed my neck wound, our paths hadn’t really crossed at all.
Wouldn’t this just be a waste of time?
Just as this cold thought drifted in, it was quickly swept away by a voice from beside me.
“You’re here all alone.”
In the setting sun, her hair was stained a bright red, and the once platinum waves had taken on a muddied hue.
Yet, even so, she was clear as day.
Though her eyes were closed, a pure atmosphere still seemed to envelop her.
“How did you know I was here?”
“The kids told me you were under the tree.”
“I can find my way around here without looking,” she said with a smile, then plopped down on the ground, hugging her knees.
As I looked around, I realized that it was quite a lovely view.
Like paint splattered around, the sky was dyed red by the sunset, disappearing beyond the horizon.
Today, a pleasantly mild breeze rustled through the grass, and a lone willow swayed overhead.
Such a scene.
Seeing the kids gathered together doing something, it appeared that Adrian was struggling to break free from their group.
As I stood there dazed for a moment, Adrian chuckled and spoke up.
“So, what do you think? I can’t see it, so I just feel the brightness.”
“…Well, it’s just okay.”
“Liar! Louis loves it here so much.”
Pointing towards the direction where the children’s laughter echoed, she momentarily reached her hand toward the sky.
It looked like she was trying to grasp something, her fingers wiggling in the air before dropping back down with a soft thud.
“Kids really see a lot. It’s not just because I can’t see ahead; sometimes, they explain things in more detail than the adults do. They must not have learned much yet.”
“I tend to give more detailed explanations than necessary. I haven’t learned much yet.”
“There are times like that.”
“Louis always came here to see the sunset. He said it’s red, but I don’t know what red is, so I couldn’t react. I’ve always been curious. Is red something pretty?”
The closed eyes turn to me.
It was not a plea for consideration. It was genuinely a curious gaze, wondering if it was indeed beautiful.
There is a color that can only be seen at this moment.
The time when the sun sets and the moon rises, a brief moment where day and night overlap.
In a day divided into 24 hours, you get to see this color for maybe just 10 minutes.
The blue sky is stained red at the boundary of night.
As if to pour out all of its remaining light, the sun shines brighter than noon, radiating a final bright red glow as it disappears into the night.
That’s why that brief moment of day can finally be called a sunset.
Since she couldn’t express all the emotions she desired in words, I simply muttered briefly.
“It’s beautiful. Very much so.”
“Is that so… I want to see it too.”
Adrian smiled as if relieved. Then, briefly looking at the sunset, he opened his mouth while watching the slowly fading light.
“Actually, those children aren’t just kids you’d find around here.”
“Is that so?”
“They come from the South. Do you know about sorcerers?”
“There are plenty of magical items, right? I know of them.”
How could I not know about sorcerers?
It was just a bit strange to hear the word ‘sorcerer’ in the context of talking about children.
Adrian added that he was not talking about a common sorcerer.
“The South is a place where the Empire’s influence has not fully spread yet. It could be due to the ancient forests or non-human races there, but it remains largely undeveloped, practically a lawless land.”
I was aware of such things.
However, the combination of the South and sorcerers didn’t quite match up.
Still, it wasn’t as if nothing came to mind.
The South, indeed, was a place where the Empire’s central influence hardly reached, as she had said.
It was a place overflowing with various local beliefs, and therefore occasionally there were people who performed acts that could be mistaken for magic.
To the citizens of the Empire, they might look like sorcerers, but they held far more cruel ideologies.
“Could it be that they were harmed by a sorcerer…?”
Adrian flinched for a moment in surprise, then cautiously nodded after confirming that the children weren’t listening.
“As you know, as a saint, I can’t help but feel sensitive about matters that the gods do not permit. These children are ones I saved in the past.”
“…So that’s why they’re here.”
“Though it’s called an orphanage, the truth is that I’m just taking care of kids who were harmed by sorcerers. Even if they’re smiling now, each of them carries a wound, I suppose.”
Sorcerers viewed the act of offering sacrifices to something as their ritual.
They were executing acts of summoning by offering sacrifices such as children, whom they considered the best offerings.
…If Adrian hadn’t noticed, they all might have died.
Whether she knew that or not, she looked in the direction of the giggling children with a slightly somber expression.
Then, as if remembering something, she smiled softly to herself and moved her lips.
“Don’t tell anyone else I said this. It’s something I shouldn’t share with just anyone, you know?”
“Don’t tell anyone. Actually, it’s something I shouldn’t say to anyone at all. Got it?”
“I don’t plan to talk about it. I’ll just… remember it.”
“Well, that’s relieving. Honestly, I talked about it knowing that you’d respond like that.”
As the sun was nearly setting, the surroundings began to be gradually enveloped in darkness.
Adrian sat quietly, pulling her knees to her chest and staring into the void.
She must have realized that the sunset had faded away as well. And that it was time to go back now.
However, perhaps still holding onto something, she didn’t seem eager to get up.
Though her ankle should have healed by now, she let out a little ‘ouch’ and glanced at me.
“Aren’t you still there? I can’t hear anything at all.”
“Yes, I’m here. At least until you get up to leave, I intend to stay.”
Maybe reassured by my gentle voice, Adrian smiled briefly and gazed at me intently.
Her face was illuminated by the faint remaining light, and for a moment, the dust on her cheek became noticeable.
It had probably been there for a while, but it seemed the children didn’t mention it.
Naturally, Adrian was unaware of this fact.
She just went on about how good the children were in great detail, then began to explain all about the exhausted kids who had plopped down in front of her.
Hans, Kato, Louis, Ellyn… as Adrian described each of their names, she took a breath and continued.
“The children seem to really like Lord Taylor. It’s probably their first time having a noble help them.”
“Well, now that you mention it, isn’t there also the Saintess? Although she might not know.”
“I don’t like the Saintess.”
In that moment, night took over, snuffing out the last bit of light.
Instead of the sunset, a pale moon appeared, and stars took the place of the crimson clouds, brilliantly shining in the night.
Her once sparkling hair darkened a bit, but for a moment, my eyes narrowed at the fleeting glimmer.
I realized around that time that she was awake.
Her eyes, a blurred gray, gazed up at the sky with nothing reflected in them.
With a somewhat sad look, she continued speaking.
“I’d prefer if the children remembered me not as a Saintess but more like a close sister or an older friend. It makes things uncomfortable, you know? Calling me a Saintess would only complicate things, as too many people have done that.”
“Friend…”
“Miragen is my friend, but still, because we’re a Saintess and a Princess, we can’t meet often. We only saw each other last time on my birthday a whole year ago.”
The glimmer that had dazzled my eyes faded away as her eyes closed again.
Her expression seemed a bit dark.
As if she felt guilt for saying such things.
“Sometimes… just sometimes, I think about how it would have been if I weren’t a Saintess—it would be nice to have been able to just live like a regular girl, hanging out with my friends. I wonder how that would have been.”
I had no answer to give her.
I could only silently listen until she poured out everything she wanted to say; what could I possibly do for a woman called by the name of Saintess?
I didn’t know her well.
We had just met in this cycle; it was nothing more than a coincidence.
However… I could understand her feelings.
Had I not reincarnated, before that moment.
Haven’t I imagined what it would be like if I could ensure all my actions pointed in the right direction?
“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t imagine it?”
“It might seem a bit pitiful, right? A Saintess acting like this…”
“I didn’t think so.”
That was a firm tone. There were others who could truly be called pitiful.
Compared to me, who couldn’t let go of my lingering feelings and was endlessly repeating my eternal reincarnation, it’s fair to say that this Adrian person is quite admirable.
I wanted to add something, but nothing specific came to mind.
To ensure he knew I was approaching, I made noise as I walked toward Adrian.
Realizing I was by his side, Adrian turned his head.
“Lord Taylor?”
“…Let’s go, isn’t it time to return?”
“Huh?”
As I grasped his still hand, for a moment, Adrian flinched and lightly held onto mine.
I pulled his hand, helping him stand up.
Once upright, she immediately withdrew her hand and bowed her head toward me. It seemed she realized it was time to go now.
“Right. We should go now.”
The laughter of the children had faded away by then.
Her tone had a tone of regret, which made me involuntarily smile.
“You smiled again, didn’t you?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“I just saw you smiling a little.”
Am I that sensitive to these things?
It was a bit surprising that she noticed my smile, but I shook my head and looked in the direction of the kids.
“I think I need to go now, but shouldn’t the Saintess say goodbye to the children too? You should go first. I’ll head back as is.”
“The children will feel sad.”
“…It’s probably hard to see them often. I have my own things to take care of.”
“I’ll feel sad too.”
For a moment, I didn’t grasp what she meant.
When I realized the meaning of ‘feeling sad,’ my expression turned awkward, and Adrian began to step back with an indifferent look.
As she backed away, she waved her hand at me in farewell.
“I’ll see you again next time. I don’t know where that will be, but I have a feeling about it.”
Her tone sounded as if she was certain we would meet again.
Since we met this time, the next time was a given. I didn’t respond.
I nodded slightly, but she probably didn’t see my movement.
Opportunities to meet a Saint are rare. I can’t be sure she’d come here again next time.
Access to the Order and the Moon Tower is limited. I could join, but it would probably take a long time.
I thought it would be hard to meet her again unless this was truly destiny.
I just blankly watched as Adrian moved toward the children.
In the place where light had vanished, only silence remained.
The moon, which had been so bright just a moment ago, was now obscured by clouds, leaving only cold shadows behind.
Isn’t it strange?
Just one person disappearing can make the surroundings feel so empty.
All that was left was a strange impression of her.
Instead of the pure and noble Saintess I held in regard, Adrian had transformed into quite a mysterious woman in my mind.
“…Should I go?”
After standing there for a moment, I slowly began to walk home.
Erasing the lingering thoughts of that woman in my head.
The dust that remained on her cheek felt particularly bothersome to me.
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