After returning to Atlerina, a few days had passed.
It’s about time. The nuns, that is.
I want to meet Siriana from the Rivelt family, but before the high priest arrives, I need to deal with the nuns.
By now, they should have arrived at the Holy Kingdom.
“Miss.”
“Hm?”
Claire, who was keeping pace with me, cautiously approached.
She handed me a newspaper.
“Lily and her mother have passed away.”
“Really?”
The story of Lily and her mother was featured on the front page.
The public sympathy for Ashtar was stirred to make Ashtar look like the victim.
“Yes. It’s strange. Neither of them was a succubus.”
“Maybe Lily, affected by Nora, awakened by sheer luck and managed to survive. Then she fled to Moran, clinging to her mother, but her mother tried to abandon her, so they both decided to ruin each other and got infected by the succubus, ending up killing each other until an adventurer finally put an end to them.”
The assassination guild might predict this much.
“‘Decided to ruin each other’?”
“‘Ruin each other’?”
“Why?”
“Where did you pick up such vulgar language? Do I need to teach you some manners, young lady?”
“I’ll be careful.”
I lowered my head, thinking it might be a little scary.
Still, hearing about the mother and daughter’s deaths does make me feel a bit sad.
“It’s not like I killed them.”
“I just fanned the flames a little, and they ended up killing each other, while the Empire’s brave adventurers only came to hunt the monsters.”
‘Revenge doesn’t end with killing.’
“Even if Lily and her mother are dead, their names will remain tarnished. The world will remember those two women as villains, unable to rest peacefully even in death. For a while, people will curse Lily and her mother—maybe they’ll even turn into undead.”
“It would be good if they became undead.”
“Then I could kill them again.”
“It’d be fun to watch the undead mother and daughter fight each other.”
“Your reasoning does make sense, Miss.”
“Lily managed the succubus’s abilities surprisingly well. Even Nora was astonished, so the succubus transformation must have already been in progress.”
Given that, the transformation may have naturally led her to instinctively charm the nobles to protect herself.
“But could she really do that without interacting with a man?”
“It’s rare, but there are cases of succubus transformations like that.”
“Usually, it’s when someone willingly contracts with a succubus.”
“Cases where it happens automatically, like with Lily, are rare.”
“Which means Lily had already perfected that aspect of herself.”
“You know an awful lot about this, Miss.”
“I know enough.”
“Will Atlerina be alright?”
“Well.”
***
Siriana and that prince of Rivelt are a bit of an issue.
Plus, Claire is aware of what happened between me and Siriana.
In other words, she knows about the rivalry regarding our shared affection for Noah.
Not that I’m involved at all, of course.
“Yes, I understand. But what’s all this?”
Claire asked, eyeing the weapons I had stacked in front of me.
“Swords, guns, spears, bows, the basics? Oh, there are blunt weapons too.”
“Don’t tell me…”
“The church knights are strong enough now. These are for the nuns.”
“I need to turn the nuns into church-knight-level warriors.”
“Wait, are you saying you’ll train them here?”
“Is it too sudden? That’s why I had you gather these things. I’m going to train them.”
“I’ll train them to perfection.”
“You mean you’ll do it personally, Miss?”
“Using only the assassination guild might leave traces.”
The assassination guild is a favorite even of the Emperor.
If the church starts relying heavily on the guild, it might be exposed.
“Since I’m training them anyway, I might as well arm them, don’t you think? Gather the nuns in the sanctuary.”
The nuns gathered in the sanctuary.
Young, fresh-faced girls.
They might become the target of that pig of a high priest.
The nuns in the sanctuary murmured anxiously.
“I heard the high priest is a fat pig.”
“They say he messes around with women, too.”
“What are we going to do? If he’s like that, then all of us…”
“Don’t worry. The Saintess is here! She’ll protect us.”
‘It’s nice to see them trust me.’
‘But why would I protect them?’
‘They need to acquire the power to protect themselves from that pig.’
‘Though I can control him, I kept him around for this very reason.’
I clapped my hands in front of the nuns.
“Alright, everyone. It’s a beautiful morning. Starting today, I’m going to teach you something useful.”
The nuns stared at me intently.
They probably think of me as merely the Saintess.
To these young girls, a Saintess is an ideal figure.
Unlike a princess born with the blood of Armeria, anyone with ability can become a Saintess.
“Now, pick up a weapon from in front of you. Even if it’s not to your liking, choose something you’re at least somewhat comfortable with.”
The nuns looked at me in confusion.
It must be strange for a Saintess to tell them to pick up weapons.
I led them to the back of the church.
This was usually where the church knights trained, but I brought the nuns here.
“Is there a reason we need to hold these weapons?”
“The Goddess Church of the Empire has just gained a foothold, so we need to eliminate evil. Nuns need to be strong, too.”
They’re going to be combat nuns.
A new type of force, different from the inquisitors.
“We… will be doing this?”
“Based on your performance, I’ll take responsibility for your families in the name of this Saintess.”
At my words, the nuns began to pick up weapons.
Easy enough.
After all, money is the one thing I have plenty of.
‘The high priest doesn’t know where his money is flowing, does he?’
***
“Saintess, what are we going to do with these weapons?”
“On a day as nice as this, the birds are chirping.”
Outside, some large sparrows chirped away.
“Chirp! Chirp chirp cheeeep!”
“The weather’s good.”
“Chirp! Chirp!”
That bird looks like the one from before.
Acting like a second Lily.
But there seem to be a lot of them.
‘Could they be some kind of monster?’
Angered, I went outside and threw a knife at the bird.
Thud!
The bird let out a final squawk and fell to the ground.
“Alright, did you see that? Today, let’s catch some sparrows. They’re harmful birds.”
“How are we supposed to catch them?”
‘Are they really that clueless?’
‘At least they should be on Lily’s level—no, they should be better than that.’
‘Following my instructions means they’re at least smarter than Lily.’
“Alright, let’s make it simple.”
“Shoot them with arrows.”
“But we’re women, and this is our first time using a bow.”
The women of the kingdom, who had to live under the constant threat of the Demon King, inevitably developed combat skills.
But in the Empire, with its peace, the girls have grown complacent.
“Do you think death will differentiate between men and women? Don’t you know women are at even greater risk? Some monsters even assault human women. For the Empire’s Goddess Church to expand further, we need the strength of the sisters. Don’t speak of weakness.”
It’s essential to be strict when teaching.
A girl raised her hand with a question.
“Uh… I have a club.”
“Hmm, a club instead of a bow.”
“Why should that be an issue?”
“Throw it and hit them.”
Throwing it will suffice.
“Uh… I have a mace!”
“All of you instinctively chose the weapons that you felt were best suited for you. You picked up that mace because you believed it was ideal for you.”
Earlier, I commanded the nuns to choose their weapons.
Even under mild coercion, people tend to make optimal choices in such situations.
“Those who thought a sword suited them chose a sword; the same goes for the club.”
“Just because it’s a mace doesn’t mean it’s useless.”
“The mace may be a challenging weapon to wield, but if handled well, it can be more brutal than others.”
“Was this all that was left? I didn’t have much choice.”
How unfortunate.
But that’s just the way things are.
Having only the mace left is part of fate.
“That too is destiny. Throw the mace and hit the target.”
“There’s no way that’s possible.”
“There’s no such thing as impossible in this world.”
‘Eventually, they’ll get it done.’
‘I managed it myself, so why shouldn’t they?’
“If you try, you’ll succeed eventually. Perhaps before you become grandmothers?”
“Do I have to keep catching sparrows with this until I’m a grandmother?”
“Come now, surely you won’t need that long.”
“Usually, it only takes a little practice.”
“No, normally, it’s impossible!”
“Instead of making excuses, let’s get started, everyone.”
‘Kids these days are so full of excuses.’
‘I could catch some random bandits and make them do this.’
“If you succeed, you’ll be handsomely paid.”
“Um, I have a question.”
A nun raised her hand to ask.
“Go ahead.”
“Do we have to wear this uniform?”
“Aren’t you normally supposed to wear the nun’s habit, Saintess?”
She has a point.
Right now, I’m wearing Atlerina’s school uniform.
It’s certainly not fitting for a nun.
“The role of the Saintess isn’t bound to any particular clothing, as long as she has faith in God.”
“So, we can wear whatever we want?”
‘That would be problematic.’
‘If we allowed freedom in attire, the church would become nothing more than a haven for commoners.’
‘If they’re wearing the title of a nun, adding armor on top, for example, might be fine, wouldn’t it?’
“Actually, that would just make them more stifling.”
“If you’re dissatisfied, train hard to become a Saintess.”
The nuns seemed discontented but kept quiet.
‘If they’re unhappy, they’ll have to become Saintesses themselves. What else can they do?’
“Let’s start by clearing out the birds in the church.”
Amidst the nuns’ distressed voices, I turned away.
I’m curious to see how many will survive.
“Um… Miss.”
Claire whispered in my ear.
“Hmm?”
“It’s just… is there really a need to kill the birds? Shouldn’t they start with basic skills, like swordsmanship or spear techniques? It seems more logical to start with the basics.”
‘Usually, that would be the case. Usually.’
‘But things like that are just bothersome.’
“Everyone should find what works best for them.”
“Even with just this, they’ll figure it out on their own.”
“Excuse me?”
“Throwing a sword to catch a bird inherently means they’ve learned the basics that work for them, and they can hone those skills while catching birds. The same applies to maces and other weapons.”
‘That’s how I started, too.’
‘Eugene, that crazy guy, handed me a sword, saying I should start taking over his duties, and that’s how I first captured a general from the Demon King’s army.’
“Um… normally, that’s impossible.”
What’s she talking about?
“Isn’t it usually possible?”
“Miss, you’re strong, but it’s unfair to compare yourself to commoners who lack noble blood. Leave the birds be for now.”
Claire seems oddly fixated on the birds.
Ah, I get it.
Claire must really like birds.
I clapped my hands, smiling.
“Do you like birds, Claire?”
Claire’s mouth dropped open before she answered cautiously.
“Uh… yes, I like them.”
“Alright, I’ll make fake birds.”
If I use sparrow replicas for training, it should suffice.
I clasped my hands together and conjured hundreds of birds made of mana, releasing them throughout the church.
“The training is more of an issue than the birds.”
‘What could be wrong with my flawless training method?’
When I glanced at the nuns, they all sighed.
Honestly, what’s so difficult about this?