“Alright, just kidding.” Lintis chuckled lightly and spread her hands.
Under Marcus’s gaze, she slowly walked over to the sofa and sat down, then leaned on the table, supporting her chin with one hand as she looked at him.
“Anyway, Mr. Marcus, could you please start by explaining where you got that information… Was it Shilo?”
As soon as she said that, Marcus found he could finally see the young woman’s face clearly.
Or rather, he had always been able to see it before, but his brain automatically dissociated her from the Saintess he had only met once.
But he wasn’t surprised—he had already suspected as much.
—Common Magic: [Cognitive Barrier]
‘After casting this spell, as long as the caster is unwilling or does not actively reveal themselves, beings with a far lower life level than the caster—even people they know—will later be unable to associate them with the person in their memory.’
Marcus breathed a quiet sigh of relief, but when the Saintess mentioned Shilo, he quickly waved his hand to explain.
“No, it’s not that, Saintess. It’s just that the commotion you’ve caused recently in the city has been so big that the clergy have been confused about you, an unfamiliar priest.”
“Although there are rumors that this strange priest came with Lady Ifreya, because you’ve been interacting so closely with Shilo, I specifically looked into the matter. Then I discovered that in your group that came to Isol City, there was no priest at all.”
“The only person who could be related to a priest… is the Saintess who came to the church first—that is, you.”
“But until just now, that was only my speculation. Please forgive me for testing your identity in that way.”
After saying this, Marcus lowered his head deeply, adopting an extremely humble posture.
“Hmm…”
After listening, Lintis tapped her fingertips lightly on the table and hummed in thought, as if pondering something.
After a long moment, she looked at Marcus, who was still in the same posture, and sighed weakly.
“Alright… get up. I forgive you. As things stand, I can only blame myself for not being careful enough.”
Hearing this, Marcus was delighted and raised his head, only to meet those narrowed eyes. His knight’s instinct warned him of danger, and he stiffened, his hair standing on end.
“But… to deliberately reveal my identity at a time like this, and in a private room—aren’t you afraid I might really hurt you? What are you up to, cunning Mr. Marcus?”
Feeling cold sweat trickle down his forehead, Marcus swallowed his saliva, mustered the courage to stand up, and tried to appear less tense. He smiled wryly.
“Saintess, please believe that I have no ill intentions. Nor do I think you would harm me. Unlike that brat Shilo, I’ve learned from Thor how wonderful the outside world truly is, and I understand what the clergy outside are like.”
“So… you don’t need to test me anymore. I really have no malicious intent.”
Hearing this, Lintis blinked in surprise, but her aura softened considerably, reverting to her harmless appearance.
Feeling the invisible pressure lift, Marcus wiped the sweat from his forehead, adjusted his breathing, and continued.
“Saintess, I don’t actually have any ulterior motive. I was just worried because a strange priest suddenly appeared beside Shilo.”
“You know his nasty personality—normally, no one would get that close to him.”
“Now it seems that some of his recent changes and improvements in strength must be thanks to your guidance.”
“But… I still have one doubt. How did you meet Shilo? Logically, that kid should be just like me—only having met you once at the church, right?”
A gleam flashed in Marcus’s eyes, and Lintis caught it precisely, making her twitch the corner of her mouth slightly.
‘Am I being too easygoing?’
‘But… Mr. Marcus really does care about Shilo, doesn’t he… Even though their relationship looks terrible no matter how you see it…’
Seeing Marcus still waiting for a reply, she thought for a moment and answered, “It’s not really any special reason. Mr. Shilo provided me with lodging, and I simply gave him something in return.”
That answer did not dispel Marcus’s concerns. Instead, he looked at Lintis with a somewhat strange expression. After hesitating, he said.
“…Saintess, are you currently living with Shilo?”
“……”
Lintis fell silent.
She recognized that look. Having learned her lesson before, she chose to explain preemptively. “Mr. Marcus, please don’t misunderstand. Mr. Shilo and I are not in that kind of relationship.”
“Our meeting was purely coincidental. I left the church temporarily for some matters, and when I had nowhere to stay, I asked Mr. Shilo to provide me lodging. That’s all. Please don’t overthink it.”
“Ah… sorry, that was my fault.”
Realizing his mistake, Marcus quickly apologized.
‘Come to think of it, if she were just an ordinary priest, it would be one thing, but this is the Saintess…’
‘A top-tier figure in the entire Aresia. Someone like that wouldn’t possibly fancy that rotten brat of ours.’
Lintis smiled and waved her hand, stopping Marcus’s apology.
“Alright… you don’t need to apologize. After all, that kind of phrasing is indeed easy to misunderstand, so it’s partly my fault.”
“Speaking of which, Mr. Marcus, have you recently had some conflict with Mr. Shilo?”
“…Why do you say that?” Marcus raised an eyebrow.
“Because your relationship seems even worse now… Well, no, I should say Shilo’s attitude toward you has gotten worse.”
“Come to think of it, I haven’t seen this side of Mr. Shilo in a while. That rebellious look is actually kind of amusing~”
As she spoke, Lintis recalled the first few days she spent with Shilo—how he had been cold and sarcastic every day, often taking jabs at her.
Compared to how they got along now, whether he had just given up trying or something else, he seemed much more docile~
Thinking this, she suddenly covered her mouth and snickered twice.
Marcus, who was right in front of her, caught that expression completely, making him doubt his earlier thoughts.
‘Are they really not involved at all?’
‘Speaking of which, didn’t they come out of the Black Forest holding hands before?’
‘Very suspicious… I’ll have to find a chance to knock some sense into that brat.’
‘Wait, Saintess just said…’
“Saintess! Does that brat Shilo know your identity?” Marcus suddenly became agitated.
Lintis, still lost in her memories, was startled.
“Whoa, you scared me. Why so loud all of a sudden?”
“…Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” Lintis placed a small hand on her chest to calm her startled heart, recalling his earlier question.
“Mr. Shilo… He knew from the start.”
Marcus clenched his fists, veins bulging on his temples, throbbing visibly.
“So, you mean that brat knew exactly who you were and still treated you that way?”
Hearing this, Lintis blinked, sensing that something entertaining was about to happen.
“That’s right, that’s right.”
The moment she said that, Marcus took a deep breath, and his holy power began to seethe. Then he gave a slight bow to Lintis.
“Saintess, I have something to discuss with Shilo, so I’ll be going now.”
With that, he left the room with heavy steps.
A few seconds later, Shilo’s angry voice and Marcus’s shouting suddenly came from outside.
The next moment, Lintis saw Shilo’s figure fly past the doorway, apparently hitting a wall, producing a loud crash.
She couldn’t help but exclaim.
“Whoa~”
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