Taming the Evil Saintess

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Recently, Cecilia had been reminding herself time and again that the world isn’t as simple as it seems.

The reason, of course, was the guests that had come to the Ice Palace.

Day after day, dozens of reports reached Cecilia’s ears, stories that left even someone seasoned like her feeling dizzy.

For instance,

“…You’re telling me the Saintess broke the fireplace in her room?”

“Yes.”

“Why on earth would she do that?”

“She was practicing magic…”

“But there’s a training ground specifically for mages. It’s protected with spells that would withstand even considerable high-level magic.”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“Didn’t she mention it?”

“No, I did. I suggested she practice in the training area instead…”

The subordinate standing before Cecilia hung his head as if he had committed a crime.

Then, almost reluctantly, he continued to speak.

“But, the Saintess said… the training ground is on the lower floor… and that she didn’t want to bother going down the stairs…”

“Seriously….”

She barely managed to suppress a curse that was about to slip out.

She had to endure. She couldn’t afford to fall out with the hero party simply for the sake of a broken fireplace, especially when the esteemed Ophelia Meredein was involved, a woman with a name that carried weight.

Of course, that wasn’t the end of it. There was also a report that Elf Chieftain Erwin had slipped while trying to catch a whale in a lake.

“Why on earth would someone hunting whales go to a lake? Whales are not freshwater fish!”

“I’m not sure either.”

Then there was Archmage Emily Barried, who requested all sorts of expensive herbs to concoct a love potion.

“So, did she finish it?”

“There was a fire in the lab.”

“…”

These reports were enough to leave Cecilia feeling exasperated.

At least the remaining party members, Sword Saint Albrecht and Golden Lion Azar, were upright warriors, so it was a relief that only good news came from them.

However, today Cecilia was hearing something shockingly outrageous that overshadowed all those reports.

“…What, what did you say?”

Thud.

As she halted the paperwork she was doing, a stack of papers tumbled to the floor.

Without a thought to pick them up, Cecilia stared at her subordinate.

“Are you saying that the hero, that is… the Warrior of God, declared he would team up with the Purification Church?”

“Y-yes…”

“Is that certain?”

“It seems so…”

Cecilia leapt to her feet.

The hero was planning to team up with the Purification Church to increase the number of victims?

Is this some kind of sick joke?

“Yes, I understand the rampant abuses thus far. But this? This is unacceptable.”

Right. This clearly crossed a line.

Being a hero doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want. This was a threat to the stability of the Ice Palace and the peace of the world. Heroes aren’t villains!

Cecilia hurried to Sir Elliot’s quarters, but it was empty.

“…”

Reflecting on her experiences, she remembered that in occasions like this, Elliot often spent time with Ophelia.

Deciding on her course of action, Cecilia rushed to the building next door and knocked on the Saintess’s door.

“Knight Elliot!”

As expected, inside were Elliot and Ophelia snugly entwined.

It was an embarrassing sight that she had already witnessed multiple times before. But that wasn’t important. Leaning on the door frame, Cecilia, out of breath, spoke up.

“Is this true, Sir Elliot?”

“…Um.”

“Is it true that you’ve decided to align with the Purification Church? The hero of the continent?”

“….”

Elliot remained silent.

Silence was a response. Meaning he was affirming it.

Cecilia gritted her teeth and shouted.

“Why are you silent! Could it be that you’re genuinely planning to hunt possessors? Is the hero I know actually such a vile person?”

“….”

“What a nice weather we’re having.”

“Please answer me!”

Under Cecilia’s pressing interrogation, Elliot let out a deep sigh and dragged a chair closer, sitting down.

“Shall we have a talk?” he suggested.

“What I need is not a chat. I need you to retract your decision immediately. The Purification Church is definitely not a benevolent organization. The Tsar tolerates them for societal stability, but if their power grows even slightly, he will strike down upon them. Please, don’t act recklessly.”

“I do intend to explain, so could you please… have a seat.”

With that much forcefulness in his tone, Cecilia had nothing more to say.

Reluctantly, she crossed her arms and sat down roughly in the chair.

Though she begrudged him slightly, she had to comply with Elliot’s request.

“Hmph.”

“Your reaction is quite adorable.”

“…What did you say?”

“Nothing.”

Elliot checked on Ophelia, who looked like she was about to shoot daggers at him, and cleared his throat.

“First of all, I want to clarify that nothing like what you’re concerned about will take place.”

“What on Earth are you talking about? You’ve already shaken hands with a High Priest! Do you truly see me as such a foolish woman?”

There was no answer.

Cecilia slammed her gloved hand onto the table.

“Answer me.”

“Of course not. You’re quite the intelligent and marvelous knight, Lady Cecilia. However, I have a valid reason, but I worry if you will be okay with me disclosing it.”

“Okay? What do you mean by that?”

“I was concerned you might faint…”

“….”

What on earth does this man think of me?

Of course, I, as a knight, must endure both disregard and humiliation.

Hadn’t she seen that at the training grounds recently? The hero possessed overwhelming talent to match his reputation.

However, she absolutely did not want to hear any insults to her character from this scoundrel.

Even Cecilia had her limits.

“Sir Elliot, if you mock me just once more, I may very well throw off my gloves in this very moment.”

“That was not my intention.”

You would be sorely mistaken if you thought I would fall for such easy bait. No matter what you say…

“I am a possessor.”

“…What?”

Cecilia blinked repeatedly, slowly raising her head.

What exactly did she just hear?

“…Huh?”

With that vacant sound escaping her lips, Cecilia looked at Elliot, who maintained a calm expression.

“You heard me correctly. I am a possessor. I came from a world called Earth, and I have been here for about nine years.”

“…”

“The reason I decided to cooperate with the Purification Church was to extract information about possessors. I have no intention of taking the lead in hunting them.”

“Uh, uh?”

“Lady Cecilia?”

The Ice Warrior and captain of the Imperial Guards, Cecilia Ethelgarand, stared into Elliot’s eyes, her head dropping low.

“…Oh, no.”

She had crossed a line.

*

“How are things progressing with the Cathedral?”

“Hmph. You seem to be curious.”

In one corner of the Demon King’s Castle, Hell Duke Derabilice chuckled at the question from Chimera Sorcerer Idmien.

Though the two rarely had one-on-one conversations, among the officers with different personalities, they got along quite well.

Of course, Elgore was the exception. That guy was a madman who called everyone brother and sister.

Derabilice straightened his outfit as he replied.

“It’s going well. I plan to send demons to the Cathedral beneath the Saint this year.”

“Fascinating. Demons entering the Cathedral, the domain of God.”

“That just shows how desperate the situation is.”

The Cathedral’s standing on the continent was wavering now.

In a state that could hardly be called standing, the once high church authority had fallen to the ground, and the funding from tithes had mostly cut off.

They attempted to borrow funds under the guise of reconstructing the Cathedral, yet even that wasn’t going well.

Newly emerging sects were appearing all over the continent, dividing the total faith among the believers.

This chaos was the very playground that Hell Duke Derabilice relished.

“God may be great, but humans who serve him are weak. If I exploit their frail gaps, I can sell sand from the desert and ice from the north.”

“You ought to be called the Merchant instead of the Duke.”

“Don’t compare it to commerce. This is politics.”

“Indeed, I suppose.”

Chuckling, Idmien toyed with a carcass of a chimera.

Behind him lay dozens of chimera bodies, most of which were cut in half.

“Was it Geldmier’s doing? Such an artistic taste.”

“No, it’s a dragon.”

“…A dragon?”

Derabilice frowned.

Idmien, smiling bitterly, raised his head.

“He probably didn’t know because of recent events at the Cathedral. Recently, a dragon has appeared near the Demon King’s Castle. It’s been tearing everything in sight to shreds. Quite the nuisance.”

“…Can’t you just kill it?”

The One-Eyed Knight Geldmier resided within the Demon King’s Castle.

And if limited to sheer strength, he could possibly surpass even Elgore.

So surely, he should be able to deal with a dragon.

“Ah, well… it’s not just any dragon.”

“Not just any dragon?”

“…A Black Dragon.”

Idmien intoned, and Derabilice’s eyes widened.

A Black Dragon. A divine being that traverses the outer and inner world at will.

“Are you saying a Black Dragon is near the Demon King’s Castle?”

“Yes. It’s extremely irate.”

“Why is it angry?”

“It seems it lost its offspring. It’s taking its anger out on us.”

“…”

Hearing that, Derabilice recalled a conversation he had recently.

Indeed, Black Water Elgore had come to the castle to relay a message.

Before he met the hero party, Elgore had mentioned…

“Dragon’s egg… hatchling…”

“Yeah. Looks like it lost an egg or a hatchling. Whether it’s dead or kidnapped, who knows? But can a Black Dragon even die? Regardless, that’s why the supplies meant to be sent to Vermina are currently held up.”

“…”

Derabilice staggered as if a wave of dizziness hit him.

“What’s the matter? Do you have an idea about this?”

“…”

In that moment, Derabilice was filled with a desire to crush Elgore’s skull.