Chapter 25 – Saintess Adria

– You have completed the linked quest ‘Protect the Saintess Candidate’.

– You have obtained ‘Mana +1’ as a reward.

Although it seemed everything had ended with Lion’s death,

it was not yet over. There were things left to clean up.

Rashid quietly looked down at Lion, whose body was growing cold.

‘You must always be honorable. The same goes even in death.’

Preserving his honor.

That was not for him, but for Rashid himself.

Rashid, from beginning to end.

He went to find the candidate who had watched everything.

“It is all over. You can rest assured now.”

The candidate’s voice was still trembling.

“Is it really all over?”

“Yes, the people here were the culprits. Killing the Basilica clerics, including several candidates, and threatening the sanctuary with the blue flower were all their doing. So you can rest assured now.”

Peace finally crossed her face as she thought it was a relief.

Her fingertips, which had been frozen in tension, also relaxed now.

“After today, you will be appointed as the Saintess. This will also be the last time I dare to converse with you like this.”

“But I am not the Saintess yet.”

Rashid spoke in a confident tone.

“You will become one. You must, and if you do not, I will make it happen.”

The candidate stared fixedly at Rashid.

It was to find the reason.

“Because that is also good for me.”

“Ah…”

As if devoid of emotion,

Rashid continued speaking with an expressionless face.

“You do not have to worry about the stigma of being the only survivor among the candidates.”

Rashid said, pointing at the corpses of the clerics scattered around.

“If they dig deep into them, they will find various pieces of evidence related to this incident and anti-vampire sentiments. Since they even had the Arcane Flower, they will not be able to wriggle out of it.”

The candidate clenched her slender fist tightly.

She must have felt anger rising, thinking that one of them was the one who had kidnapped her.

“However, the culprits must be limited to them.”

Rashid pointed to the six clerics who had fallen first.

Lion was not among them.

“Yes? What do you mean by that?”

“Simply put, that Honorary Cleric over there must remain a noble victim who was completely unrelated to this matter, and rather sacrificed himself trying to protect you.”

The candidate shook her head, wearing an expression of incomprehension.

“Why? He clearly tried to kill me, and you know that too, Cleric? That man tried to kill us. Sincerely.”

“Because that is good for me. I will become an Honorary Cleric through this incident. To me, a story of the predecessor Honorary Cleric dying dishonorably is not good. Protecting his honor is not for him, but solely for me.”

The candidate’s eyes wavered complexly as she looked at Rashid.

This man.

He was someone who remained faithful to his own goals from start to finish.

Protecting her, and making her the Saintess.

And even turning the Honorary Cleric who tried to kill her into a victim rather than a criminal.

It was all for himself.

Unlike before, the candidate became firm.

“If it is such a request, I will politely decline. I might understand the reason, but must I tell a lie even by abandoning my conscience?”

“Hmm…”

He thought she would easily accept and move on, but

as expected, she was someone of upright character.

That was probably why she would not get caught up in any particular gossip even after becoming the Saintess later.

“Then, it cannot be helped.”

When Rashid put his hand inside his chest pocket, the startled candidate took a step back in spite of herself.

But what Rashid pulled out was a familiar notebook.

“That is…”

He had never expected to pull this out here.

Although it felt a bit early,

there was no choice but to do so to persuade her of upright character.

“I found it by chance while searching your room to find you. For your information, I have absolutely no idea what is written inside.”

She snatched the notebook handed over by Rashid with trembling hands.

Her eyes shook, and Rashid still wore an indifferent expression.

“However, this much is certain. With that, you will become a perfect Saintess without a single blemish.”

“Do you really… know nothing?”

“Yes, I know nothing. I am not interested. Lest you misunderstand, let me tell you in advance. I had no intention of blackmailing you with that from the beginning. Simply,”

Rashid showed a light smile.

“it is a small token of my sincerity.”

* * *

The Holy Blood Chapel located in the Papal Court.

The funeral of the Honorary Cleric, who departed after defending the sanctuary and the candidate who might become the next Saintess, was grandly held.

Once the choir’s song ended, priests dressed in white uniforms burned incense.

Atop the coffin engraved with a splendid coat of arms, a blood-red cross descended.

Even if it was an honorable death, the eyes of those sending him off were cold. He who returned to God was no longer human.

In the place where countless members of the order sent him off in silence,

Rashid’s expression was heavily sunken as he watched the end of the predecessor Honorary Cleric.

Standing beside him was the vice-commander, Akard.

“To think the subordinates who were with the Honorary Cleric… were the culprits. It was truly surprising. Did you know?”

Watching the Holy Blood Funeral silently,

Rashid replied, keeping his voice as low as possible.

“I was also truly surprised when I learned of that fact.”

“I heard you were also at the scene?”

“Yes, when I arrived at the scene of the incident, the Honorary Cleric was already being overrun by the culprits in a surprise attack. Even the Honorary Cleric would not have known. Who would have guessed that the subordinates he brought along were the culprits?”

“I suppose so. It was hard for me to believe at first as well.”

“Although I jumped in late, if it were not for him desperately protecting the candidate, no one knows what would have happened to the situation there, including the candidate.”

The circumstantial evidence was manipulated by Rashid, and the culprits were specified solely as the six subordinates whom the Honorary Cleric had brought along.

This was possible thanks to the consistent testimony of the candidate who was with him.

“Still, it is a relief. If it were not for him, the next Saintess would also have been killed by those shameless bastards. And the Papal Court would have been blown away too. By the Arcane Flower they had.”

“I think it is truly a relief that it did not turn out that way.”

“I heard two bombs were found? According to intelligence sent by the Internal Inspectorate, the total number of bombs handed over to the culprits was four. One exploded, two were secured. What happened to the remaining one?”

“The intelligence might have been wrong, or it might be hidden in some place known to the deceased culprit. At least, since there was an extensive search, it is certain that it is not inside this Basilica.”

That bomb.

It currently rested quietly in Rashid’s inventory.

‘You never know. It might be useful someday.’

At the end of the Holy Blood Funeral,

as the prayers stopped, clerics wearing black habits slowly stepped forward.

In their hands, they held the coffin where the deceased slept.

In the heavy silence, each step echoed like a prayer.

Along the cloister where candlelight flickered, the coffin moved slowly.

The candle wax that flowed onto the red carpet had hardened, and the smoke of incense enveloped their shoulders.

Someone held the cross high, and someone bowed their head while holding a rosary.

What rang out instead of a hymn was the funeral toll of the holy bell hanging in the bell tower.

“By the way, the coronation is soon. Although it will not be held immediately due to the mourning period, it will be scheduled in a week at the latest.”

The coronation of the next Saintess.

He would participate as a matter of formality, but it was not that important to Rashid.

“But was there no competition? Normally, shouldn’t they go through a competition?”

“It has no meaning. Only one candidate is left. And since their filthy plan to make us vampires the masterminds of that incident has been exposed to the whole world, there is nothing to find fault with, so the Sacred Affairs Selection Committee seems to have decided to just ignore the competition this time. Besides, there are no other candidates to compare with.”

“I see.”

Rashid suddenly asked what he was curious about.

“More than that, was there no mention of me? The talk related to the Honorary Cleric, I mean.”

“Ah, I forgot to mention this. The next Saintess personally invited you to the coronation.”

“Me?”

“It is natural since you have merit. At any rate, you will also find out about what is related to the Honorary Cleric on that day. If you are free, please make sure to attend.”

“Yes, I will.”

* * *

A week later.

Rashid participated in the next Saintess’s coronation as invited in advance.

It was not a formal participation, but a very special occasion where he could meet the Saintess in advance before the coronation.

Several high-ranking officials of the order were present there, and among them was someone who was not very welcome.

It was the Director of Palace Affairs.

“Saintess. Congratulations in advance.”

The next Saintess,

Adria Knightbloom.

She wore a thorn laurel crown and covered her eyes with a veil attached to her red holy robes, showing only the lower half of her face.

The Director of Palace Affairs, who approached slyly, lifted her gloved hand and lightly kissed the Holy Blood Ring.

“I am the Director of Palace Affairs who oversees the administration of the Papal Court. I look forward to seeing you often in the future.”

Even to the spot where the Director of Palace Affairs had stepped back,

Rashid did not dare to approach.

Even though he was invited, and even if he became an Honorary Cleric,

the place near her was just that difficult to stand in.

‘But why did she call me?’

As he was only harboring doubts due to that,

someone whose mouth was hooked all the way to his ears approached Rashid.

It was Commander Kain.

“You are here. I was waiting.”

Even if he had no desire to see the Saintess,

the same could not be said for the commander.

As expected, without failing Rashid’s expectations,

he handed over the commendation and medal prepared in advance.

“Take it. And congratulations. On becoming an Honorary Cleric. You are next after Lion.”

Rashid’s expression, which had been stiff the entire time, brightened for the first time.

Yes, this was it.

“What a relief. I was worried because there was no news despite waiting.”

“What is there to worry about? The Saintess is with us from now on.”

More precisely, she is with you.

“The fact that you became an Honorary Cleric after twists and turns was largely due to the Saintess’s influence. It was the Saintess herself who blocked the Director of Palace Affairs from strongly rejecting it.”

“So that happened. No wonder it felt like it was taking a long time.”

There was a reason why it had been so sluggish.

Rashid’s gaze implicitly turned toward the Director of Palace Affairs, who was facing other high-ranking officials of the order.

‘Once I become an inquisitor, I will cling to you like a remora and harass you relentlessly. It is soon.’

Suddenly remembering something, the commander continued.

“I promised you. The magic armor and the Cross Sword. Do not worry about that. Come visit the knighthood headquarters later when contact is made. I will deliver them as prepared.”

“Thank you.”

“Ah, and although I do not know the reason, the Saintess insisted on delivering these words.”

The figure of the Saintess preparing for the coronation was captured in the space where the commander had stepped aside.

“That vampires return favors in kind. I do not know the details, but you should understand well enough.”

A favor…

The Saintess, whose gaze met Rashid’s just in time, greeted him with a nod and a faint smile.

Rashid also responded by bowing his head slightly.

Waaaaaa!

With the sound of cheering from outside, the coronation began, and the surroundings became chaotic.

Rashid, who was about to leave, happened to see the Director of the Heresy Inquisition Bureau who came to visit this place.

Such an opportunity would not come often.

Rashid moved.