Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Roan felt bewildered looking at Yushina, who was grinning in front of him.

‘…I wonder if she is human.’

A setting of suffocating beauty, an appearance sculpted by God.

Frankly, when looking at the illustration, she was just on the level of being pretty, but facing her in reality, those words were not a lie.

The sunlight entering the restaurant seemed to exist only for her at this moment.

Only after swallowing slightly did Roan’s sense of reality finally return.

Yushina pouted her lips for a moment.

“I’m disappointed. We were close when we were kids. Do you really not remember me?”

“…”

Roan tensed up completely.

Since he didn’t know the settings regarding Roan Darc properly, all sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind.

‘Surely it’s not a childhood friend or something like that?’

Was a common, cliché trope appearing here?

If so, he would become the worst jerk under heaven…

However, he soon changed his mind calmly.

He wondered if they had met at the Holy Emperor’s Palace, but Yushina was of commoner origin.

After being selected as a saintess candidate and staying in her hometown, she received the holy name ‘Fanelia’ as a saintess and entered Acherandir.

Even if they had met, it would have been at most a brief encounter when he visited the Holy Emperor’s Palace a few times.

‘But seeing her talk like that, it seems they did meet.’

If it were really a joke, she would have let it go, saying, ‘You didn’t fall for it~’

In that case, he had to acknowledge it right away.

“Yushina Le Fanelia.”

When Roan spoke Yushina’s full name, she smiled even more deeply.

“What~ You did know after all.”

“But this is the first I’ve heard of us knowing each other.”

Roan pointed it out as coldly as possible.

Yushina was far more mature with a talent stat not inferior to Sion’s.

Even if she was a clear good character, Roan was a black mage of the opposing camp.

There was no harm in being careful.

“Hmm, but we saw each other quite a lot?”

The persuasiveness of an appearance that would disarm any human in an instant.

Roan had an inkling of something at that moment.

‘She seems to know that I have no choice but to not know.’

That must be why she kept talking so vaguely.

“…How old was I?”

Sure enough, Yushina giggled and replied.

“Heehee, caught. When you were two. I was five. Still, I watched you since you were a baby.”

‘Thank goodness.’

Roan inwardly sighed in relief.

It was only natural not to remember at two years old.

If he had been just a little older, he would have aroused suspicion.

‘Wait, but how does this girl remember things from when she was five?’

Was that also natural if one was a saintess?

Yushina, unaware of Roan’s thoughts, continued to chatter.

“Still, seeing that you even know my holy name, you weren’t completely uninterested, were you? Why? Are you shy about speaking honestly to your big sister?”

Shy, my foot.

If Yushina wouldn’t report him, he could rattle off everything from her birthday to her favorite foods, the names of the cows and dogs raised in her hometown, and even her parents’ names.

…He only knew it because it was a setting.

‘But the problem is that despite that, I don’t know my own parents’ names.’

Knowing all other characters’ parents by heart while not knowing his own.

Roan felt a bit bitter and chose silence.

Yushina let out a soft sigh.

“Sigh. You were really cute when you were a baby. Now you have full dark circles, slanted eyes… What is that, you’re not even a black mage~ Roan, the corners of your mouth only go up if you keep smiling?”

She then began to describe Roan’s impression for a while.

Saying things like if he walked around frowning he wouldn’t make friends, or that she would run away if she met him at night.

‘I did make friends, though.’

Just not many normal ones.

After Yushina finished speaking, Roan asked sharply for no reason.

“…Are you picking a fight?”

No matter if she was a saintess, teasing someone about their looks was uncalled for!

However, she naturally changed the subject without much of a reply.

“Hmph~ But you managed to find this place? And ordering the Ainsbury Set Meal. You know how to eat, don’t you?”

Coincidentally, the old woman carrying a tray for her portion came.

“Enjoy your meal, Saintess.”

“Yes~ Thank you!”

Yushina smiled brightly, took the tray herself, and placed it on the table.

“Really, no matter how busy I am, I have to come here once a week. It’s so delicious, the first time I ate it, I felt like my holy power was fluctuating?”

‘That wasn’t just a feeling, though.’

It was because her stats actually increased.

At the thought that a character in the game couldn’t possibly know, Roan ended up letting out a smirk unconsciously.

“Oh~ You smiled, Roan?”

Yushina dug in, not missing that gap.

“See, isn’t it so good when you smile?”

This was Yushina’s characteristic.

If Lafia attracted people in a form of caring for others.

Yushina made people laugh with her overwhelming appearance and playfulness.

To Roan, it was a sight so vivid it brought tears to his eyes, but for now, he had to distance himself.

“…I have finished eating, so I will go.”

Roan stood up from his seat, carried the tray, and walked toward the counter.

Yushina, who had stuffed a mouthful of food, hurriedly looked back and spoke.

“Roahng! See you negxt time!”

“If opportunity permits.”

Mumble, mumble— gulp!

“Still, I am your senior, so use polite speech from now on!”

Ah.

He had gotten too familiar and done it naturally.

“…It was you who said we were close as kids, Senior.”

“Heehee. Fine. Do whatever you want.”

Roan paid for the meal and left the restaurant just like that.

The price was 5 talents.

‘Origin stat by 1 for just 5 talents, it’s amazing no matter how much I think about it.’

Acherandir’s minor happiness was sufficiently satisfying.

Meanwhile, Yushina, left alone in the restaurant, smirked and thought.

‘I was curious how that kid would grow up, and he has become quite mature.’

He was completely different from the baby held in Cardinal-Designate Sicrito’s arms long ago.

Nevertheless, the reason she recognized him at first glance was due to the saintess’s talent to see through the essence to some degree.

‘Well, it was unavoidable that his impression grew dark. But to say it’s only due to his impression…’

Yushina tilted her head.

Though she couldn’t be sure, it was because she felt a sense of incongruity within Roan.

It certainly felt like holy power, but.

‘But even so, a kid is just a kid~’

However, to Yushina, Roan was ultimately just a young child she had met in her childhood.

“Ah, I heard he stays close to Sion. I should use that to talk to him next time.”

Giggle as she spoke, she was a total mischief-maker.

“No! Should I just go find Sion and ask?”

***

Meanwhile, a restaurant in the commercial district.

Inside, bustling with students, a suffocating silence flowed uniquely at only one table.

” ” “…” ” “

In order: Demona, Hector, Riel, and Lafia.

‘I miss Roan.’

‘I wish Roan were here.’

‘Roan.’

‘Roan has to be here…’

Even the fact that the four of them were thinking of Roan side by side was identical.

“Fa-Fanatic! Why on earth are you in that state?!”

“…What do you mean, heretic.”

“…Never mind.”

Demona tried to pick a fight with Hector on purpose, but he didn’t feel much enthusiasm.

“Ah, Hector! Come to think of it, in your estate, the Holy War Club—”

“…Sob.”

Even when Lafia tried to cheerily bring up the Holy War to converse, she couldn’t proceed any further because Hector instead grew depressed.

Ultimately, the four of them quietly moved only their utensils in the awkward silence.

Creak—

“…Huh?”

Just then, Demona recognized someone walking in through the door.

The heads of the other three snapped in motion at the same time.

They had wondered if it might be Roan.

And the four of them at the same time.

“…”

Ended up making eye contact with Sion, who was just entering the restaurant.

” ” “…” ” “

A situation awkward to readily speak to or ignore.

Hector nudged Demona’s arm for no reason.

“Why did you do that, heretic.”

“…Sorry.”

Demona apologized reluctantly.

Meanwhile, Sion, having received her food, scanned the interior briefly and sat next to Demona.

Sion also didn’t particularly want to do so, but that was the only seat left!

Consequently, Sion, Demona, Hector, Riel, and Lafia sat side by side.

‘…Where on earth is Roan?’

The five of them focused solely on eating without a word.

***

The afternoon class was ‘The World of Prayer.’

One might wonder what they would do, but in reality, it was a class where they did nothing in particular.

Since, as a player, he had even relieved accumulated fatigue while taking this class.

‘That won’t change much.’

Roan arrived at the location where the class took place, thinking that.

The very center of Acherandir’s vast grounds.

The ‘Great Temple of Nerchiora’ was located there.

Despite being just a school’s main temple, it was a colossal temple that easily ranked in the top five in terms of both history and scale within the empire.

“Have you come to take ‘The World of Prayer’ class?”

“Yes.”

“Please maintain silence within the temple.”

The entrance, as massive as the building’s size, looked capable of letting three carriages pass through at the same time.

The paladin on guard requested Roan.

Roan nodded and walked inside.

Oh— ooh— wooaah—

There was no choir or recording device, but a faint, holy singing voice flowed inside the temple.

It was a characteristic of the Great Temple of Nerchiora, a kind of divine phenomenon.

‘A heavenly voice produced by the collision of the auras of the holy relics inside.’

Naturally, it was a phenomenon impossible with just one or two holy relics.

In the basement of this place lay a holy relic storehouse comparable to the Holy Emperor’s Palace, the Vatican, and the Imperial Central Paladin Headquarters, the three major power institutions of the empire.

And.

‘I should drop by sometime soon.’

It was also a place Roan had his eyes on.

In any case, entering the Small Prayer Room inside the temple, students who had already come for the class were sitting in groups of two or three, chatting quietly.

Though called a small prayer room, it was a large space double the size of an average lecture hall.

“Huh?”

However, Roan’s friends, including Demona, did not seem to have arrived yet.

‘If they left right after class ended, they should have arrived by now?’

The distance from the commercial district to the Great Temple was not very far.

There was absolutely no reason for them to be later than Roan, who had lost time to Vulcan.

Roan sat in a vacant seat at random and waited for his friends.

Once a short while passed, Demona’s party entered the prayer room.

‘Why is she squeezed in there?’

Sion, an unexpected figure, was also with them.

However, the appearance of the five of them was slightly bizarre.

The way their joints clicked and moved separately like wooden dolls was awkwardness itself.

” ” “Ro-Roan!” ” “

The moment the four of them saw Roan’s face, they started running over with tearful faces.

At least Sion stood in place to save face, but the tip of her nose grew slightly red.

There was no way she would act like that?

‘Just what on earth happened?’

Roan was bewildered.

Had they perhaps been attacked by black mages in the middle of Acherandir?

‘No, that probability is low. Since a living evil black mage shouldn’t be able to enter.’

Of course, he and Belec were exceptions.

At any rate, if they had been attacked, it was more likely to be by a lich, a deceased black mage.

And rather than that, someone like Kaina or Vulcan…

‘There are too many suspects, though.’

Demona, who had approached Roan’s nose before he knew it, grabbed his hand and whined.

“Roan, where on earth have you been until now! Leaving me all alone!”

“It was you guys who arrived just now, though…”

And I was the one who was alone.

Lafia also stuck to the other side and spoke with teary eyes.

“Thanks always, it was a time where I could feel how precious you are.”

Even Lafia?

Roan couldn’t even guess just what had happened to them.

After that, Hector and Riel also expressed their gratitude in turn.

Sion even sat in a seat much closer to Roan than usual.

“I’ll do better in the future, Roan. Sniff.”

“…Right. I’d appreciate it if you did.”

Demona refused to separate from Roan at all.

He didn’t know whose standard the ‘doing better’ was based on, but Roan nodded for now.

At that moment, a group of priests entered the prayer room and shouted.

— The prayer class will begin shortly! Students, please take your seats and prepare!

The standing students quickly found empty seats, and the chattering students also shut their mouths.

In addition to the simple announcement, the priests even singled out students who hadn’t focused yet and warned them severely.

“Student! If you keep talking, we will fine you 20 talents!”

“So, Ro— Heek.”

Like rascals such as Demona, who talked without caring about what the priest said.

At the mention of a fine, Demona immediately grew terrified.

The memory in the ‘Forest of the Holy Spirit’ seemed to have left quite an impression.

Around the time the atmosphere inside the prayer room had become somewhat quiet.

Woo— oooh— wioooo—!

The resonance of the holy relics creating the atmosphere inside the temple began to grow louder little by little.

It meant a high-ranking cleric capable of controlling those numerous holy relics was drawing near.

Even the students who didn’t know the situation properly had no choice but to be instantly overwhelmed by the holy atmosphere.

‘It certainly is understandable.’

Roan also nodded, feeling the weight pressing down on his body.

To think there was this much pressure even for a normal entrance, not an act of hostility.

Creak—

The door connecting the front of the prayer room to the temple’s interior opened, and an old professor wearing a luxurious yet clean ceremonial robe appeared, supported by a paladin.

But that appearance was exactly like…

“Heek, isn’t that person a lich?”

Demona spoke to Roan, looking startled.

A lich professor following a black mage!

He seemed excited for some reason.

And although he tried to speak quietly in his own way, it was so quiet that a nearby priest heard his words and grew angry.

“He is His Holiness former Pope Vicius de Zolantio XXIV! Mind your words!”

Just as he said, the ‘World of Prayer’ professor was Vicius.

A person who had stepped down from the papacy and been appointed as a professor at Acherandir.

146 years old this year.

Among the currently living clerics, he was easily the highest-ranking in the empire.

Since he had babbled about a lich to such a person, the serving priest had no choice but to be furious.

“What is the student’s name? We will charge a 20-talent fine when the class ends.”

“Ah, no, it’s completely understandable to mistake him…”

Demona felt considerably wronged.

And for good reason, because although they didn’t utter it aloud, the other students also harbored thoughts like, ‘Is that person alive?’

With his extreme old age, there was not a bit of flesh, and looking at his white, dried skin and hollow eyes, they couldn’t help it.

He had just been a bit Demona-like, but…

Demona, who was pleading to spare him from the fine while looking back and forth at the priest and Vicius, asked in wonder.

“Then what, what is that? Something like a soul is slipping out of him…?”

“A cleric who has reached the state originally often has their spirit become larger than the body— Aaaah, Your Holiness!”