“Madame, please do not worry. I have received your prayers. Your child who is out on a campaign will surely be protected by the Goddess.”
“Thank you, Lady Saintess! Thank you, Lady Saintess!”
The distressed old woman held the Saintess’s hand, thanking her repeatedly with great emotion.
The Saintess gave a faint smile and gently helped her up, then watched the old woman depart.
The woman’s son was a soldier of the Empire.
Not long ago, he had followed the General’s orders to go outside the city to suppress rioting Magic Creatures.
The only thing the old woman could do was pray.
As usual, the beautiful Saintess Idledra continued to listen gently to the wishes of everyone who came to the Church.
The crowd sat piously in their seats.
“Young lady, are you also here to pray to the Saintess? You look like a new face.”
A believer curiously sized up the silver-haired girl sitting in the corner.
She wore a thin eye patch and didn’t seem to be waiting for the Saintess’s blessing like the others.
The girl was momentarily stunned by the sudden address.
After thinking for a moment, she offered a calm smile but did not respond.
Instead, she simply stared quietly at the front through her eye patch.
This made the follower even more curious.
People who came here were either seeking a blessing from the Saintess or seeking forgiveness before the Goddess.
Yet this frail young girl made no move at all.
She just stayed quietly in the corner, and even the Saintess would glance curiously in this direction from time to time.
“Miss, do you have some kind of relationship with the Saintess —”
“Sir, you are being a bit too noisy. Please do not disturb my appreciation of the Saintess.”
Before the follower could finish, his mouth was suddenly forced shut by an unknown power.
He had no choice but to return to his seat in disappointment.
Idledra also quietly withdrew the Dark Little Snake from her fingertips.
It was better not to let too many people know that she possessed Black Magic, especially in the Church.
‘It’s all because of this person whose face I can’t even see. Now I can’t see Hailey’s appearance clearly. Calm down, calm down. Hailey is still here.’
Although she did not have clear vision, she could still find Hailey’s direction by feel.
If only the annoying voices nearby weren’t so loud.
Idledra’s perception could sense the people and objects around her from subtle sounds and Mana fluctuations, but it was also easily affected by surrounding disturbances.
Therefore, when she was quietly gazing at Hailey, any movement around her would affect her ability to appreciate Hailey’s adorable appearance in her mind. It was very noisy.
It was like a flock of chirping sparrows landing on a branch while one was admiring carefully cultivated flowers, making one wish they could strike them all down…
“Cough, cough, cough…”
Hailey, who was still praying for the people, somehow suddenly felt a faint sense of killing intent.
She instinctively looked in that direction.
But every time she looked over suspiciously, she only saw the blindfolded girl sitting quietly with her hands folded neatly on her lap, smiling at her.
‘Was it an illusion? I felt a killing intent just now, as if she wanted to kill everyone in the Church…’
‘That was close. I almost lost control of myself… Hailey’s intuition is getting sharper and sharper. I should find a time to “kiss” the Little Light Dot back from Hailey.’
Hailey, who was focusing on her prayers, was inexplicably startled by a greedy gaze.
Was this person really just here to accompany her to work?
How strange. She felt that after that day, Idledra had become even more mysterious and a bit scary…
‘It couldn’t be that I’ve offended her again, could it?’
“Lady Saintess, what is wrong? You do not look very well.”
“I feel a bit dizzy. Perhaps the Goddess’s Mana is too pure. Please, everyone, head back for today!”
Having received the Saintess’s order, although there were still some who were dissatisfied because they had not received a blessing, they had no choice but to leave due to the Saintess’s authority and the eviction by the Church guards.
Hailey thought she could finally catch her breath.
She was preparing to leave quietly, even if just to rest behind the scenes for a while.
‘Returning to work after a break is truly torture…’
“Please wait, Saintess! Please listen to my plea first!”
From the crowd that was about to leave, a disheveled man suddenly rushed out.
He lunged toward Hailey’s direction but was tripped.
This fellow seemed to be a rogue from some underground black market, and he looked quite familiar.
The moment he saw the Saintess, he suddenly looked as if he had seen a ghost.
“Ah, ah — Witch! This is no Saintess! This is clearly the Witch who killed our brothers!”
These words should have been like a giant boulder crashing into a calm lake.
Of course, the result was exactly that — the entire crowd erupted.
Fists slammed hard into the face of the rogue who had just been screaming.
The people who came here to worship had all received the Saintess’s favor to some extent; how could they allow him to be so insolent?
“Where did this drunkard come from, daring to slander the Lady Saintess in the holy Church?! You even dare to malign the great Saintess as a Witch? Beat him to death!”
The crowd in the Church smashed everything they could get their hands on onto the rogue’s head.
Even the old woman who was about to leave used her walking stick to strike him hard several times.
Looking at this chaotic scene, Hailey was at a loss.
Why did they all swarm in to beat him just because he shouted once?
Should she go over?
‘Hailey… cough, the Saintess is indeed popular with everyone.’
The Holy See’s authority in the Empire had long since integrated into the faith of the people.
Their reverence for the Goddess naturally transferred to the Goddess’s spokesperson.
To shamelessly slander the holy Saintess as a Witch in front of the people — naturally, no one would believe him.
Instead, his words only made them easier to provoke.
Idledra, who had been lowering her presence to the side, breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, the only one who had been scared just now was her.
She had not expected that fellow to be alive.
‘I should have quietly strangled him and his accomplices in the tavern that night. A bunch of… to think he could dodge my Black Magic…’
“Silence! Silence!”
While the people were still beating the fallen rogue with righteous indignation, an aged voice broke this atmosphere.
Temple Knights equipped in silver-white armor pushed the crowd back.
An old man with the appearance of a robed priest walked slowly into the Church.
With just a glance, two knights seized the already battered rogue and dragged him out of the Church.
The old man then walked past the crowd toward the two girls in the back.
The fierce knights drove everyone else out, leaving only a few people in the large, silent Church.
Finally, the old man bowed slowly — toward Idledra.
“God loves the world, respected Saintess Idledra.”
“At ease, Grand Priest Hydra.”