Chapter 212
Kraush began walking through the corridor of the Grand Temple after leaving the Pope's garden.
[ Relax your face. You look like you're about to devour everything in sight. ]
Then, a scolding from Crimson Garden came his way.
As she said, Kraush's inner self was seething with considerable anger.
The reason for Kraush's anger was simple.
'Not a single ounce of Austria's will was included in this matter.'
She had been born and raised as a Saintess by Freeman.
Growing up as a Saintess, she acted according to the role assigned to her.
But now.
The life she had lived was being dismissed as fake, and she was facing the possibility of losing her title as Saintess.
'Austria has always lived at the whims of Freeman.'
Still, she had done her best as a Saintess in her own way.
But lo and behold.
Even until the very end of her time as a Saintess, her decisions were entirely excluded.
The country was trying to make decisions on its own.
Kraush could not accept that fact.
Therefore, he intended to act in accordance with what he could not accept.
He was going to meet Austria right now.
'Holy Royal Family or whatever.'
Anything that bothered him had to be overturned to satisfy him.
"......Mr. Kraush Balheim."
At that moment, Kraush stopped in his tracks upon hearing a voice call out to him.
When he turned his head, he saw the same blue hair he had seen earlier with Tersada.
However, the face beneath that blue hair was different from before.
A much younger girl than Tersada, known as the Youngest Cardinal.
Mirey Beakis.
She was there.
Although she didn't know, Kraush, who had met her once at the Women's Society, opened his lips.
"Ms. Mirey Beakis, do you have any business here?"
Mirey opened and closed her lips repeatedly.
Kraush noticed that she had something difficult to say.
Moreover, he could tell that it was related to Austria.
When it came to matters like this, Kraush had an uncanny sense of intuition.
"Coincidentally, I was on my way to see the Saintess."
Kraush pointed behind him and smiled faintly.
"Would you like to join me?"
Perhaps she held the key to changing Austria's life herself.
* * *
Astria Stigma Freeman.
The Saintess born by Freeman in the Holy Kingdom.
What was the Saintess, said to be born loved by the gods, doing now?
"You said that he liked pierogi?"
"Yes, it's one of Kraush's favorite foods. He often buys it for lunch."
She was currently investigating the person she had feelings for.
And she was doing so through the words of his closest friend, Aslan.
Austria mulled over Aslan's story several times.
Although she had never cooked in her life, she thought it might be time to learn.
Just imagining Kraush enjoying the food she made filled her with happiness.
Aslan quietly observed Austria, who was absentmindedly contemplating how to make pierogi.
Next to him, Serang, who had been listening intently, crossed her arms and silently watched Austria.
Aslan and Serang's eyes quietly met.
Then, Aslan gave a slight nod.
"Saintess, how did you come to have feelings for Kraush?"
"Ack, hack!"
Startled by the blunt question, Austria choked on her tea and coughed.
Austria, who barely escaped the coughing fit by patting her chest, turned to look at Aslan.
Next to her, Serang nodded in satisfaction.
It was because her frustration had been alleviated.
Seeing the reactions of the two, Austria looked flustered.
Her face turned as red as a tomato.
She shook her head vehemently.
"No! Ugh! I never did anything like that!"
She bit her tongue as she strongly denied it.
But seeing her reaction, Serang let out a sigh.
"Austria, is there any point in denying it so vehemently?"
"At this point, isn't it silly to hide it? Especially for someone who has been asking so much about Kraush."
"Th-that's because I have connections with him here and there. I was just curious, just......."
Flustered and rambling, Austria eventually lowered her head, her voice trailing off.
"......Am I that obvious?"
"Let's just say we're quick-witted."
Austria bit her lip pitifully.
Not only Serang but even Aslan, whom she spoke to for the first time today, had figured it out.
There was no way quick-witted Kraush wouldn't notice her feelings.
"Come on, tell us. What exactly do you like about him?"
To be honest, Serang found Kraush a little scary.
That was because he knew about the erotic novels she had written and published as a hobby.
He was like a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment.
So, from Serang's perspective, she had no choice but to tread carefully around Kraush.
But that was a separate matter from her friend's romance.
Beyond the veil, her eyes sparkled with interest in her friend's love life.
Even with the veil on, Austria felt the intensity of their gazes and slowly lowered her head in embarrassment.
"......At first, it was just his looks that caught my eye."
In the end, Austria decided to confess honestly.
As much as Serang was Serang.
She thought she might get some good advice from Aslan, who was Kraush's friend.
"Somehow, it just became that way because it was him......."
As she spoke, she grew embarrassed and lowered her head deeply.
"Well, Kraush does have a habit of drawing people in without realizing it."
Aslan agreed with that point.
Austria, in turn, showed a slightly emotional expression.
"That's exactly it. Even though his personality is subtly mean, he sometimes shows unexpected kindness, which keeps making me think about him. If he's going to be mean, he should just stay mean."
Every time Kraush looked at her kindly, Austria felt like she was losing her mind.
Even though he often acted curtly, Kraush would promise or treat her kindly whenever she insisted.
While he seemed unaware, Austria had to endure her heart almost breaking several times because of him.
"And yet, he always looks as if he's carrying the weight of the world, making people worry."
Seeing him never seem to consider resting even once always pained Austria.
At the very least, she wished she could help him a little, but Kraush always tried to handle everything on his own.
"Wow, Austria, you really like him a lot."
Serang looked at her with astonished eyes.
It was the first time Serang had seen Austria like someone so much.
Austria also became embarrassed after speaking and could not meet the eyes of the two people.
Still, she felt slightly grateful to the two people who did not question the fact that a Saintess like her liked someone.
The image of a Saintess is that of a clergyperson who spends their entire life working for people.
That image was far from that of an ordinary person.
However, the two people treated Austria without prejudice.
'Well, that's just like Serang.'
Aslan maintaining such an attitude might be because he is Kraush's friend.
Kraush was also that kind of person.
Aslan, who met Austria's gaze, slightly smiled.
"That's exactly right. Kraush is that kind of guy."
Aslan agreed, as he also knew the side of Kraush that Austria described.
Kraush indeed lived as if he were being chased by something.
"But that doesn't mean that appearance always seems unsettling."
Moreover, Aslan did not view that side of Kraush entirely negatively.
"At least when Kraush lives that way, it looks like he finds his own life."
Austria, who hadn't considered that aspect, looked at Aslan with surprised eyes.
Certainly, what is seen from a friend's position appears different.
"We just occasionally support him, and that's enough. Kraush always brings something incredible."
"That is......."
As Aslan said, Kraush had a knack for attracting incidents.
To be precise, Kraush was always the one sticking his head into incidents when they happened.
Clatter!
At that moment, the door of the room where Austria and Aslan were talking suddenly opened.
Speak of the devil, Kraush appeared, accompanied by the youngest Cardinal, Mirey Beakis.
Entering the room confidently, Kraush spoke to Austria.
"Austria, let's overturn Freeman."
And once again, absurd and ridiculous words came out of his mouth.
Austria, as well as Serang, looked dumbfounded, while Aslan, who was sipping tea nearby, gave a bitter smile.
"Right?"
Once again, Kraush had brought something incredible.
"......What on earth are you suddenly talking about?"
Hearing Kraush's words, Austria looked utterly perplexed.
Moreover, the fact that he brought along the youngest Cardinal, Mirey Beakis, and said such a thing was even more astonishing.
"The Opposition Faction is currently planning to abolish the Saintess' title."
However, Kraush continued speaking without any concern.
Perhaps because she had already heard some of it through Diona, Austria was not overly surprised.
However, her face also hardened.
"Then I......."
"If things go wrong, they might want to erase the very existence of the Saintess."
The Opposition Faction's intention to abolish the Saintess' title was tantamount to erasing her existence.
"At the very least, they would want to remove the Saintess' position from Freeman."
"......How utterly selfish."
Austria slightly furrowed her eyebrows.
After all, they had eagerly used her when it suited them, and now they wanted to discard her, which was, of course, infuriating.
"So this time, let's act according to your will."
"Is that what you mean by overturning Freeman?"
"Yes."
Austria looked as if she couldn't understand why it had come to such a conclusion.
"While it's nice to settle things peacefully, sometimes you need to properly express your anger."
"And how does that lead to the idea of overturning Freeman?"
"Because I intend for you to destroy the Holy Grail with your own hands."
What Kraush said next was something Austria had never imagined.
She looked at Kraush with a face that asked if she had heard him correctly.
However, Kraush nodded as if to confirm that she had heard correctly.
"W-Wait, the Holy Grail?"
"Yes, the Holy Grail."
The Opposition Faction wants to abolish the outdated practice of the Saintess.
In that case, they would undoubtedly try to destroy the Holy Grail as well.
So Kraush intended to preempt them.
"If the Saintess herself destroys the Holy Grail and reveals the stories of the Saintess over the years to the world, Austria, you can remain as the Saintess who broke the Holy Grail."
A Saintess who does nothing can be easily erased.
However, a Saintess who moves directly to break free from her chains becomes etched in people's memories.
"If you do that, the Opposition Faction won't be able to recklessly touch you."
Of course, for the Opposition Faction, who would want a perfect Religious Revolution, losing their initiative would be infuriating.
'So what.'
They were more infuriated on this side, so it didn't matter.
From the start, just as the Opposition Faction failed in Kraush's world, this Opposition Faction could also fail.
If that happened, only Austria, one of their targets, would suffer unnecessary harm.
Even the Holy Royal Family would not look kindly upon a Saintess whose reputation had been tarnished.
"......Is that something that can be done so easily?"
When Austria asked with concern, Kraush pointed at himself.
"You have me, don't you?"
Where his confidence came from was a mystery.
Austria looked at Kraush with a face drained of strength.
But why was it?
She felt a tickling sensation deep in her chest.
Not understanding that feeling well, she pressed her chest with her hand as Kraush continued speaking.
"Of course, this is entirely up to your will, Austria."
And at that moment, when she heard those words, Austria realized the meaning of the emotions stirring in her heart.
"If you don't want to, we won't do it. I'll come up with another way."
Kraush was doing all this solely for her.
He prioritized her will above all else and devised a plan to prevent Austria from being placed in a difficult situation by Freeman.
From beginning to end.
He was acting out of a desire for her safety.
The moment she realized this, Austria's eyes began to tremble violently.
At the same time, the tips of her ears turned bright red.
Unable to meet Kraush's gaze, Austria slowly turned her head to the side.
As she remained silent and avoided his eyes, Kraush stopped speaking.
"You don't like it?"
Kraush looked calmly at Austria, as if he would stop if she found it unsatisfactory.
That gaze only made Austria's heart ache more, and she repeatedly cleared her throat.
Whether he was aware of it or not.
He truly was an insufferable man.