𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏: 𝐄𝐱𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡
In the discussion room of the royal palace. Crown Prince Lewis, his silver hair and turquoise eyes contorted in a grimace, uttered coldly.
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“I will annul my engagement with you, former leading saint Charlene Hiraes.”
“. . . . . .As you wish, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
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Quietly, I bow my head. My straightened golden hair slides over my shoulders. Wearing the white attire of the leading saint will probably end today.
Just the other day, I was dismissed as the leading saint by the Saint Council due to false credentials and allegations of misconduct.
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“I never thought you were a woman with a tainted past and character.”
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The Crown Prince glares at me, who is bowing her head, with disdainful eyes.
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“You came to the church claiming to be a [Saint summoned from another world]. I believed in you. . . . . .Hence, I believed your ignorance of the world, your skinny and ragged appearance when you were [summoned], all of it. It was all because you were a lowly girl.”
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I stay silent. It’s an undeniable fact that I was hailed as a poor girl from another world and eventually became the leading saint.
Next to the Crown Prince, Saint Lulumia interrupts.
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“I was also surprised. That a [Saint who is favored by God] and who possesses a divine ability not seen since the first Saint is. . . . . .a daughter of a prostitute.”
“. . . . . .”
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Lulumia is a saccharine sweet Saint with hair like milk tea and pink eyes.
Her abilities as a Saint are mediocre, her ambition even less so. Yet, using her ambition and her position as the Prime Minister’s illegitimate daughter, she climbed up to the second highest-ranking priestess at the age of 17.
With her power, it would have been easy to uncover my origins.
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“The decision regarding your treatment after the annulment will be issued later. Until then, continue to serve your suspension at the saint’s dormitory.”
“I understand.”
“I don’t ever want to see your face again.”
“That’s only fair.”
“I will be engaged to Lulumia.”
“Congratulations.”
“The leading saint will be her.”
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“Huh? That’s impossible.”
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The atmosphere freezes. Oops, a slip of the tongue.
I reflexively cover my mouth, but both the Crown Prince and Lulumia are in shock.
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“. . . . . .Hoho. My apologies. I was just surprised that Lulumia could become the leading saint. It’s absurd.”
“You’ve shown your true colors, you vixen! Your Highness, this is how she has been pretending to be a Saint, all along!”
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Next to Lulumia, who is raving as if she has captured a great criminal, the Crown Prince is stunned.
Lulumia’s rant doesn’t stop.
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“The daughter of a prostitute in some rundown town. . . . . .Oh, how shameful. I wonder what kind of trick you used to deceive people and climb up to the position of leading saint. It won’t end with just your dismissal, we need to execute the most severe punishment. It’s fair to say the church is completely rotten due to Charlene. I will reform the church’s discipline with my father. It would be better to get rid of such a corrupted Saint.”
“. . . . . ..”
“What’s the matter? With those eyes. It’s disrespectful for you, the superficial saint, to raise your head and sit here, isn’t it?”
“. . . . . . . . .”
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Ugh, she’s so annoying. Well, it doesn’t matter anymore.
I’ve done enough pretending.
With a sigh, I leaned back deeply into the sofa.
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“Let it go, Lulumia. You’ll only make His Highness recoil.”
“What. . . . . .?!”
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As I crossed my legs and grinned, I brushed my golden hair under the veil.
There’s no way that action could be mistaken for that of a chaste Saint.
Looking at the stunned Crown Prince, I narrowed my eyes.
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“Since I’ve been found out, there’s no point in hiding. Yes, I am a low-born woman, born and raised in this world, the daughter of a prostitute and an apothecary.”
“Charlene. . . . . .”
“Your Highness, we won’t ever meet again, will we? If that’s the case, may I ask you one last thing, as my true self?”
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Naturally, Lulumia stands up in anger at my attitude.
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“Ha, how disrespectful! You. . . . . .!”
“It’s fine, Lulumia.”
“Your Highness, .”
“. . . . . .I want to see the true form of the Saint who has been deceiving me all this time, at least in the end.”
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Reluctantly, Lulumia sits back down, glaring at me.
The Crown Prince signals to the guards to stand down, then turns back to me.
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“. . . . . .So, what is it you want to ask?”
“Yes, where did my suspicion of indecent relationships come from? Truly, I am a woman from the outskirts, born of a harlot mother and a vagabond father. A woman shrouded in lies. But the purity of my chastity is the only truth.”
“That’s a lie.”
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Ignoring the shrill-voiced Lulumia, I continue looking into the Crown Prince’s eyes.
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“Even with my fiancé, Your Highness, I was only able to meet once a month. There’s no way for a Saint belonging to the Saint’ Dormitory to personally interact with the opposite sex, even if he’s a fiancé.”
“. . . . . .That’s true.”
“If I were not chaste, wouldn’t the god not continue to bestow me the power of the Saint? If you believe in the doctrine.”
“I. . . . . .have heard stories of you returning from outside with wet hair in the night, and voices of a man talking in your room.”
“That’s right, I reported it to Your Highness.”
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Lulumia smiles maliciously.
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“. . . . . .Fufu.”
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I couldn’t help but laugh.
Startled, probably because she didn’t expect me to laugh, Lulumia stiffens. The Crown Prince’s expression hardens even further.
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“What’s so funny?”
“Excuse me. . . . . .I just thought Your Highness is quite adorable.”
“What. . . . . .!”
“What exactly did you imagine when you saw me returning to my room with wet hair at night?”
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The Crown Prince’s cheeks blush slightly. Before Lulumia can intervene, I continue speaking.
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“Our country benefits from the spiritual spring bestowed by Land God Kai. As a duty of the leading saint, I bathe in the spiritual spring in the innermost sanctuary of the temple of Land God Kai.”
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Land God Kai.
The so-called god located in the spiritual spring in the innermost sanctuary of the head temple next to the royal palace. It is said that he was originally a god of the entire continent, but became a protective god for the Kingdom of Saitishiga by contracting with the first Saint.
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“The leading saint is the wife of the god, and the bath is, in a way, a couple’s time.”
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Deliberately phrasing it in a suggestive way, the Crown Prince’s gaze wanders.
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“And the story about me talking to a man in the saint’s dormitory, where did that come from? Me, who has no free time except for 24 hours of bath time? . . . . . .Ha, I did talk to a snake that snuck into my room, but there’s no way I could talk to a human man.”
“It’s a lie. You were hanging out with some guy, weren’t you?”
“Hah. I am a god’s wife by vow. Not like someone who snuck out of the saint’s dormitory as a vice-Saint and covertly attacked the Crown Prince. I wonder who guided her?”
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Seeing Lulumia visibly flustered, the Crown Prince watches with a rigid face.
It’s too late to realize who the vixen is now.
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“Your Highness. The spiritual spring bath is the duty of the leading saint alone, so it’s only natural that the vice-saint wouldn’t know. . . . . .It’s a duty that lasts till late at night, so it’s not Lulumia herself who saw it, she probably had someone spying, right?”
“. . . . . . That’s . . . . . .”
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In front of the flabbergasted Crown Prince, I finally burst out laughing.
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“Well, it’s true that I deceived the Prince with a fake background. Of course, I didn’t enjoy deceiving him. But. . . Such things can only be judged in hindsight.”
“You didn’t enjoy deceiving him. . .You, huh?!”
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Hiding her own flaws, Lulumia raises her voice.
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“Oh my, don’t you understand if you’ve properly investigated me, Lulumia?”
“What?”
“How I was made a Saint, that’s it.”
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Lulumia, who for a moment showed irritation, quickly switches back to flattering the Prince.
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“Your Highness, you mustn’t listen to this. This woman has been swaying men like this.”
“Ha ha, the only one I love is God. Of course, I had sincerely wanted to love the Prince as a husband… but now that it has come to this, all of it is null and void.”
“Charlene… you…”
“I have no intention of making excuses or clarifying. I just wanted to tell the truth to the Prince, my former fiancé, at least in the end.”
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I stand up and take a deep bow. It was not the bow of a harlot’s daughter from a rundown place, but of the leading saint.
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“I am deeply grateful for the annulment of the engagement. I have always felt it presumptuous for a woman like me to become the Prince’s wife.”
“Charlene. . .”
“A position like this doesn’t suit me. See you, Your Highness.”
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With a squinted smile, I am ushered out by the guards. From the reflection in the mirror, the semblance of Charlene, the leading saint, had completely disappeared.
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The moment when I returned to just being a stray cat, Charlene.
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🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸
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Afterwards, I was taken to my room in the saint’s dormitory.
From the moment it was revealed that I was a harlot’s daughter, the attitude of the knights and priests changed dramatically. I was looked at as if to lick the thinly veiled body, or attempted to touch me.
The men already had an attitude as if they were sizing me up as a harlot.
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Entering the room, I collapsed.
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“Ha. . . . . . . . . . . .tired. . . . . .”
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Sighing, I swept back my forcibly straightened blonde hair. My real hair is tightly curled. Paired with my orange eyes, my flashy appearance was obviously not suitable for a Saint.
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I awakened as a Saint with special abilities at the age of 8.
As soon as I awakened, the Church, who had noticed my potential, forcibly kidnapped me.
The image of the Saint who had been transported to a different world was just a sham created by the Church’s upper echelons to puppeteer me. I had no choice but to comply when they held my father, whom I left behind, as a hostage.
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“. . . . . .so, where do I go from here? To the monastery, or to hell. Ha ha.”
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The figure reflected in the large mirror was exactly like my mother, who had died young as a prostitute.
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“. . . . . .there’s no time to wallow in sentiment. The body is the capital, I should rest while I can.”
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I threw off my veil and flopped onto the bed.
This life is almost over. Until I’m woken up, let’s enjoy a peaceful sleep― ―
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🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸
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However, my tranquility ended much sooner than expected.
I was suddenly gagged while sleeping, and stabbed deeply in the stomach with a sword.
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“~~~!!!”
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A severe pain that turns everything in front of me red. My reflexively flailing limbs are held down by cold, large hands, and I can’t even move.
My screams are crushed, and I am stabbed with a sword over and over again.
As I’m stabbed, I remember being told by a passing knight, “What a waste.” They had intended to kill me. From that time.
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It’s unbearable how frustrating it is. I don’t want to be killed here like this.
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(Please, help me, Kami-sama (God). . . . . . . . .)
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Every night, I would converse with the invisible Kami-sama—my husband, in the sanctuary where the spiritual spring bubbles up.
In the church where I had to abandon the real me, the only place I could be myself was in front of Kami-sama.
Submerging my body in the warm spiritual spring, I prayed to my beloved Kami-sama every night.
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(Am I not your wife. . . . . .? Help me, I don’t want to die. . . . . .!)
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That’s when I saw it.
The knights were being entangled by something white.
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(Is that. . . . . .a snake?)
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At that moment, I lost consciousness and everything went dark.
I don’t know how much time had passed, but when I became aware, the room had become silent.
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“I’m sorry.”
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The feeling of being gently embraced. Cool fingers stroked my cheek, and a deep, soft voice reached my ear.
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“. . . . . .It took time to take form after hundreds of years.”
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It was a kind man’s voice.
When I opened my eyes, a man with black hair was looking down at me as I lay in bed in the darkness of the night.
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“Who. . . . . .are you. . . . . .?”
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At my words, he looked as if he was about to cry for some reason.
There was a clot of blood around his mouth. He licked his lips and told me in a serious tone.
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“I won’t let you be killed… I won’t let you experience this again. Not ever.”
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Again, my consciousness was falling into darkness. I felt as if my body was floating. Was I being carried?
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As my consciousness faded, I was reminiscing about my nostalgic life in the pleasure district.
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