"Uncle, Uncle! I bought roasted sweet potatoes at the market! Do you want so?"
"Aslan! I bought too many chicken skewers... um, do you want so?"
"...."
Charlotte and Yuria returned from their trip around the city, arms loaded with things.
Thinking about it, the market would probably be buzzing with festive energy right about now.
This world also has holidays with strong religious overtones, much like Christmas, around the end of the year.
Last year, Vermont Territory didn’t even have any festive atmosphere; they just lightly celebrated surviving the year.
But now, walking around the city with lights flashing both day and night, it’s almost impossible to imagine what last year’s end-of-year scene was like.
"Oh! Right! There was a HUGE statue of Uncle in the square!"
"It was made out of ice, and it was so well done! I couldn’t help but admire it when I saw it! ...Yo!"
"...."
As soon as I heard that, a headache imdiately hit .
There had been attempts to make statues of before, and I had warned them that anyone trying such a thing would face severe punishnt.
But to think they actually made it out of ice...
Of course, if I go over there, I’ll destroy it before I see it and cover up all the evidence.
And as soon as I leave, they’ll rebuild it, carving it again in secret.
"Ugh..."
"At this point, why don’t you just enjoy it, Master?"
"With the religious holiday approaching, we should be cautious. If that ice sculpture of is just sitting there, it would look like people are worshiping ."
"Ah, they are worshiping you. There’s a growing religion among the citizens that sees you as a god. Didn’t you know about it?"
"..."
I was speechless after hearing Sylvia’s response.
There’s actually a religion worshiping as a god...
If the Pope finds out, I could be charged with sacrilege.
"Imdiately ban that religious activity, and disband all the organizations that have been ford."
"Yes, Master. But you seem rather pleased about this."
"Of course not."
Hearing that such a dangerous thing was happening in our territory, how could I possibly be happy about it?
I wasn’t the kind of person who would get smug or feel satisfaction just because people were treating as a god.
Suppressing the corners of my mouth from twitching with a smile, I let out a deep sigh, utterly bewildered.
"Mm? It seems like there’s a letter for !"
"...?"
At that mont, Charlotte perked up her ears and quickly dashed outside.
A letter? The post office should have been closed by now, so that couldn’t be right.
Tilting my head in confusion, I looked out the window and saw a delivery person leaving a package.
From the uniform, it wasn’t a regular mailman; it looked like a courier from a special delivery service.
If it was sent via special delivery, it must have been urgent.
Soon, Charlotte grabbed the letter so quickly I could hardly see it and rushed back to the mansion.
With a loud crash, she opened the office door, holding the letter in her mouth.
"Ugh!"
"...Why are you bringing it like that in your mouth?"
"Hehe! It was faster to run on all fours up the stairs! It seed urgent, so I brought it to you quickly!"
"Alright. Thanks."
I took the letter and ruffled Charlotte’s hair.
Charlotte leaned into my hand with a happy expression, lting into my touch.
She liked running on all fours and being petted... she was practically like a dog...
'By the way, special delivery...'
Still not stopping the motion of petting Charlotte, I used one hand to break the seal of the letter and unfolded the contents.
It was a letter from none other than Yuria.
And it was addressed to the dark man.
'Why is Yuria...?'
Usually, Yuria would send regular letters, but now she was sending a special delivery.
It didn’t feel right, and I felt a sense of unease.
I started reading the letter, already on edge.
To the dark man,
This is my first letter after the break.
The thing is, I might not be able to send letters for a while, so I’m leaving this note for you.
People from the Pope’s office said that I’m the chosen one to be the saint... Ah, I have to go now. I’ll tell you more after I return.
That’s it?
Yuria, who usually filled letters with pages of writing, only wrote a few lines this ti?
Though the letter didn’t explicitly say it, it seed like she had to stop writing due to external pressure.
'And Yuria is the saint’s candidate...?'
[The evil god, 'Cali,' is furious, claiming that our healer can’t be a puppet of the saint-like god!]
Even more troubling was the fact that people from the Pope’s office had co to take Yuria as the saint’s candidate...
The mory of Charlotte being hastily nominated as the hero flashed through my mind, and my teeth clenched.
If she were officially declared the saint, there would be no complaints.
But to think they would just nominate her as the saint after she failed to beco the hero...
The urgency of the special delivery, and the statent that she wouldn’t be able to send letters for a while, made it clear.
The Pope’s office probably wanted to appoint Yuria as the saint and severely restrict her freedom.
'Is fate really a thing? Is the world trying to drive Yuria into misery...?'
At this point, it almost seed like so external force was trying to control things.
If she avoided the hero role, they would force her into the saint role to bring about her unhappiness.
Perhaps, becoming the saint was the right path for Yuria.
Becoming the saint could awaken new powers within her.
Soon, a final boss or a crisis of similar magnitude could arise, and Yuria could play a key role.
Then becoming the saint would be the right choice, but...
"Charlotte, Yuria. It looks like Yuria has been taken by the Pope’s office."
"What!? She’s been taken? Why?"
"Did Yuria do sothing wrong...?"
"They took her because they said she’s the saint’s candidate. If Yuria becos the saint, it will be difficult to et or play with her freely in the future."
"I really don’t want that! I hope Yuria doesn’t beco the saint...!"
"She might be forced into it."
"We can’t let that happen! We have to stop it! ...Right now!"
After seeing their intense reactions, I realized how foolish my earlier thoughts were.
Who was I to talk about fate or the world’s coercion?
I had already shattered the original story and torn it apart, so now to talk about destiny...
It was laughable.
"Alright. Let’s go right now."
My thoughts were brief, and my decision was swift.
Yuria would not be forced to beco the saint.
Because we would stop it, no matter what.
...
"Ha..."
Inside the carriage belonging to the Pope’s office.
Yuria let out a deep sigh as she rested her chin on her hand.
Looking out the window, she saw the green fields that seed hard to believe were in winter.
She realized they had traveled far south, beyond Vermont Territory.
'I had to leave in such a rush that I couldn’t even write a proper letter...'
A faint laugh escaped her lips.
She had to send the letter by special delivery because she had to leave quickly, but she hadn’t been able to finish writing it.
How surprised would the dark man be?
But if she hadn’t sent it, they wouldn’t have heard from her for days, so he would’ve worried even more.
"Ha..."
"Do you have so worry, Saint?"
"Do you think I wouldn’t sigh after being dragged all the way to such a distant place?"
"Dragged? If soone heard that, they might think we’re threatening you and forcing you to co with us..."
"The Pope is critically ill, and he urgently needed my help. He was in such a rush that I couldn’t even leave proper news with my acquaintances."
"I’m truly sorry for that..."
She hadn’t realized it at the ti,
But after sending the letter, she thought again and realized it might have sounded like she was being forced into this saint role.
It almost seed like she would be restricted in the future and unable to send letters freely.
In reality, she had only been asked to use her abilities to heal the Pope, and that was the reason she was going.
Though she was being called the saint,
If she didn’t want to, they wouldn’t force her into that role.
'I have to go back quickly and ease the dark man’s worries.'
She didn’t care about anything else.
She just wanted to heal the Pope and return as soon as possible.
Yuria was filled with this thought, and at that mont,
The bright sunlight outside the carriage suddenly disappeared as a giant shadow lood over them.
"Uh...?"
At first, she thought it might be a cloud, but it wasn’t.
A huge sphere was falling from the sky, heading towards the carriage at an incredible speed.
The Pope’s guard troops turned pale in fear.
[Kyaaa! This body is here!]
"...!?"
Boom!
A giant, brown-colored figure crashed onto the road, blocking the path ahead of the carriage.
[Kwaaack! I’m here too!]
Soon after, a blue-colored giant figure collided with the ground, blocking the path behind the carriage.
In that instant, the carriage and the guards were separated.
The dark-clad man’s hand suddenly reached out, opening the carriage door.
"Yuria. I’ve co to rescue you. Take my hand."
"Yes...?"
Ah, Aslan Vermont?
Why is he here...?
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