Chapter 28: The Fake Saint of the True Witch (1)

“Hey, I did say you could come a little closer, but not all the way back there…”

Sunlight spilled onto the windowsill, and the slightly dazzling light made Hailey groggily open her eyes.

The moment she woke up, she felt the heavy weight on her body and the warmth against her chest.

“But you can’t hug me all night without letting go, can you? Am I some kind of body pillow?!”

Idrila was sweetly leaning in Hailey’s arms, her head affectionately buried against her chest, both hands tightly wrapped around her waist.

Last night, it was hard to tell whether she had cried herself to exhaustion or simply run out of magic power, but she had collapsed onto her and fallen asleep in a daze.

Even though their body sizes weren’t very different, it seemed that her magic had been drained without her noticing, and she couldn’t push her away.

In the end, she could only treat this girl like a soft, fluffy blanket in her arms.

As long as she didn’t cause trouble, it actually wasn’t too bad.

But in the daytime, that soft and obedient appearance from the night suddenly became so troublesome.

Of course, a large part of it was because it was colder at night, so holding her felt comfortable and warm.

Now that the sun was up, the blanket was already warm, and the Idrila clinging to her had turned into a heat source.

“Hey, wake up, it’s too hot………………”

“Mmm……………… Hailey? Hehe, good morning, dear……”

It was hard to say whether last night’s events had made Idrila open her heart, but even during the day she no longer hid her teasing.

The first thing she saw after waking up was the most precious treasure.

Fortunately, I wouldn’t trade Hailey for winter’s red roses.

Whether it was because she had just woken up or simply a sudden whim, she looked at the flustered Hailey, then quickly pecked her lips.

As Hailey’s face changed from shock to deep blush—

“Uwah……………… good morning, Hailey. Yawn.”

After doing all that, Idrila yawned, grabbed Hailey’s hand as if it were nothing unusual, and lazily lay back down.

“Y-you you……………… I-I…… ah, that’s too unfair!!”

Who starts the morning with a forced kiss like that?

At least wait until I’m a bit more awake.

No, wait… she looks like she’s fallen asleep again.

Who exactly hasn’t woken up yet?

Why does she still remember to kiss me even when she’s half asleep…

It was pretty sweet though.

By the time the warm sunlight had spread across the soft blanket, Idrila stretched lazily, savoring the lingering taste on her lips.

Smack, smack… I think I dreamed that Hailey got mad at me again.

Good thing I was one step ahead.

Rubbing her eyes, Idrila changed into her everyday clothes and walked out of the room.

Today seemed to be the day Hailey had to go to church for prayers.

When she reached the dining table, all that was left was a basket of golden bread, a cup of still-warm milk, and a note.

“The bread was delivered by Miss Luna. When I get back from the church, I’ll settle the score with you!”

Hmm, Hailey is still so thoughtful.

But what does “settle the score” mean?

Did I secretly break something of hers again?

Or did I sneak away her limited-edition sweets?

Meanwhile, inside the church, even after calming down for quite a while, Hailey still couldn’t lower her temperature.

Whenever she thought about this morning, her mind would start wandering uncontrollably.

“Um, Saintess… your complexion doesn’t look very good. Do you need to rest for a while? We’re fine.”

“Ah, I’m fine! I’m just a bit dizzy. My face is red because… right, the wind is too strong today, I think I’ve caught a cold!”

The one who came to pray today was still the old woman whose son had become a soldier.

The worried look on her face showed how much she cared about Hailey.

Precisely because of that, she couldn’t tell the truth.

It was too embarrassing…

“It’s fine, madam. I know my body well. Please, let’s continue today’s prayer.”

At that moment, the church doors were kicked open again with a discordant noise.

Everyone turned toward the entrance.

The elderly high priest walked in with a group of imposing, fierce temple knights.

“Long time no see, Saintess Idrila. But today, you seem a bit different, don’t you?”

That voice—stiff and somewhat cunning—sounded like glass scraping against dry wood.

High Priest Hydra.

That old man who just wouldn’t go away.

Ever since she first met him, nothing good had happened.

Although the people in the church were displeased with this uninvited intrusion, they fell silent before the silver-white spears and swords.

Hydra didn’t seem to intend to drive them out.

He simply ordered the knights to surround the entire hall, then slowly walked toward Hailey, who stood before the goddess statue, examining the “saintess” with suspicious eyes.

Hailey noticed something was off, but she still forced herself to stay calm, gently stroking the statue.

“Doll, I’ll let everyone see how you and your foolish saintess will be exposed to the public…”

As Hydra passed by her, he left behind a threatening whisper.

“Saintess Idrila, I have suddenly fallen ill these past few days and feel unwell. Could you treat me?”

Smiling, Hydra pulled open his robe, revealing a horrifying bloodstain.

The wound looked as if it had been torn open by a beast, bright red flesh exposed and still dripping with blood.

“This happened while I was dealing with some who disrespected the church. One of them injured me while resisting.”

Though the wound looked terrifying, his tone was strangely casual, as if it were nothing unusual.

Compared to that, everyone seemed more curious about the somewhat flustered “saintess” before them.

After all, in their eyes, the saintess could heal anything.

And that was exactly what Hydra wanted.

“Then, in the name of the goddess, I ask Saintess Idrila to heal me. Or… perhaps the one before me is not the saintess at all?”

A fake who survives by deceit… and your reckless true master…

I will expose you all, one by one.

“I’m sorry, Priest. I cannot heal you right now. Please forgive me…”

Calm down, Hailey.

Right now, you must not let anyone see that you’re a fake.

Think of something…

For some reason, at the most dangerous moment, her mind once again thought of that person.

But soon, a spark of inspiration flashed through her eyes, and she looked calmly at the calculating Hydra.

“What insolence! Priest Hydra, the goddess’s blessing is ineffective on you because—your faith is impure!”