No, How Can an Atheist Become a Saintess!? – 83
EP.83 Boundaries and Barriers (1)
No matter how many times I thought about it, this still felt ridiculous.
Or maybe… had I just lived in the church for too long? Was I so used to its rules that this felt off to me?
…No, even after reconsidering, it was still weird.
We’re nuns, aren’t we? Shouldn’t we be the kind of people who don’t freely roam outside the church?
Even if I had more freedom than the others, this was pushing it.
“Hey, Ria.”
I followed after Ria, unable to ignore the nagging feeling of unease any longer.
“Hm?”
She turned her head slightly, her red hair shifting under the loosely placed veil on her head. Right, Ria had never been one to fully conform to the church’s ways.
Sharing a room with her meant seeing all her little rebellious streaks firsthand—shortening her nun’s habit, cinching a belt under her chest, even streaking her hair with highlights. At this point, it was inevitable that some of that had rubbed off on me.
But maybe Ria had always been a step ahead.
Even in the original story, whenever Ria did something that was definitely not nun-appropriate, the Saintess was always there to rein her in.
“……”
“Why?”
She tilted her head at me, puzzled by my silence.
I stared at her, deep in thought.
…Am I supposed to be the one hitting the brakes now? Me?
“Ria, let me just ask you one thing.”
People on the street were casting occasional glances our way, but no one outright stared.
I was a somewhat recognizable figure, but it wasn’t like I was some celebrity. Most of the people who had seen me glow back then were church personnel or knights.
That said, there was always a chance that someone could overhear us. Not intentionally, but just in the way people sometimes picked up random conversations while passing by. Like in a subway—where you don’t mean to eavesdrop, but you end up hearing things anyway. And I definitely wasn’t about to discuss nuns buying swimsuits in the middle of a busy street.
I grabbed Ria’s wrist and pulled her aside, away from the main road. Surprisingly, she let me. If she had resisted, there was no way I would’ve been able to overpower her.
Once we were in a quieter spot, I lowered my voice.
“Isn’t it a bit weird for nuns to buy swimsuits? Or even just… going to the beach for fun?”
I felt like I was making a pretty reasonable argument here.
Sure, I was a bit of a rebellious nun, but even I had always operated within the church’s rules. I still wore my habit, still kept my veil on.
…Okay, technically I dyed my hair, but I had at least done it discreetly.
“……”
For some reason, Ria looked genuinely shocked by what I had said.
“Wait… do you not want to go to the beach?” she asked, sounding almost hurt.
“N-No, that’s not it!” I hurriedly corrected her.
I hadn’t meant to sound like I was rejecting the idea entirely.
“I just mean… do we really need swimsuits? It’s not like we’re going to a pool. We could just go in wearing normal clothes.”
At my words, Ria’s expression turned… strange.
“…You’re saying we should just wear our nun’s habits into the ocean? Just… get them all wet?”
“Isn’t that what most people do? I mean, sure, some people wear swimsuits, but a lot of them just go in with their clothes on, right?”
I had never actually been to the beach in this world, but I had seen it on TV before.
Ria stared at me for a moment, then slowly raised a hand to her forehead.
“…Anna, do you even hear yourself right now?”
“…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…Do you really not know?”
When I blinked in confusion, Ria let out a deep sigh and placed both hands firmly on my shoulders, her expression unusually serious.
“Anna. A nun’s habit is, well… let’s just say there’s a demand for it.”
“…Huh?”
“I mean, it’s kind of a fetish thing.”
I stared at her, completely blank.
Then, very slowly, my mouth fell open.
A faint heat crept up my face.
“W-What the hell are you even talking about?”
“Knew it. You really had no clue.”
Ria sighed dramatically, removing her hands from my shoulders and rubbing her face.
“No, I’m the one who should be shocked right now!”
I instinctively raised my voice—then immediately flinched, realizing we were still in public.
A few passersby turned their heads to glance at us.
Right. We already stood out enough as it was. Throwing a fit in the middle of the street wasn’t helping.
I quickly started walking ahead, and Ria fell into step beside me.
“…So, what? You’re saying that because a nun’s habit gets wet, it’s suddenly a fetish?”
“Let me put it this way—any uniform can become a fetish.”
“That’s way too broad.”
I mean, yeah, I knew that certain outfits could be fetishized. Actually, scratch that. Anything could be a fetish. People had ridiculously varied tastes, to the point where it was almost harder to find clothing that didn’t fit into someone’s specific preference.
“It is broad, but nun’s habits are still pretty high on the list. You know there are actual idiots out there who think nuns are easy, right?”
“…That’s the first I’m hearing of it.”
“It’s simple. Some people assume that because nuns have never dated, they’ll just fall for the first person who talks to them.”
“…And how exactly do you know all this?”
“Anna. I’ve worked with hunters a lot, okay? I also have connections in the church. You hear things.”
“……”
In my old world, the idea of a “beautiful nun” was pure fantasy. It was practically impossible to find a young, attractive nun in real life. The ones who were out and about were usually middle-aged at the very least.
I never really looked into how Catholic nuns joined the order, but I knew one thing for sure—those skimpy nun outfits you saw in anime and comics? Total fiction.
Reality was never that convenient.
The same went for nurse uniforms, police uniforms… most of them were just practical work attire, nothing more.
And yet—
“…Oh.”
“See? Even you mentioned stalkers before.”
Ria smirked.
Right.
I had.
Back in my old world, being a nun was just a profession. But this world… this was a web novel world.
Even if it wasn’t explicitly an R-rated novel, there was no doubt that at some point in the later chapters, things would take a turn. And let’s be real—why else would the author include a Saintess character, then conveniently strip her of her habit, if not for that kind of scene?
I mean, was it not painfully obvious why the Saintess was one of the heroines?
“……”
The realization left me feeling deeply, deeply wronged.
Unfortunately, my frustration didn’t change the fact that this world operated on rules that were wildly irrational and absurd by my standards.
“If you go into the water wearing a nun’s habit, I guarantee some guys will try to hit on you.”
“…And wearing a swimsuit magically prevents that?”
“It’ll at least be less of a hassle. You’ll blend in with everyone else.”
That… was annoying. Because I couldn’t logically refute it, and that really pissed me off.
“And besides,” Ria continued, delivering the final blow,
“…It’s a little rich coming from someone who wears their habit all cropped and belted like that.”
I flinched.
Because, well. She had a point.
With the way I styled my uniform—shortened habit, waist belt cinched below my chest—I wasn’t exactly in a position to argue. My whole body tensed as I trembled in silent protest.
“…Unless,” Ria added, tilting her head, “you just really don’t want to go to the beach with me?”
At that, I instinctively looked at her—
—and immediately fought the urge to let my gaze dip downward.
Even though we were both girls, I knew instinctively that staring would be… weird.
“……”
My mouth opened and closed a few times before I finally muttered, barely above a whisper.
“…No, that’s not it.”
Ria’s lips curled into a satisfied smile, like she had just won some kind of game.
To be fair, I was a nun. A nun who had spent her entire life in a convent. The only times I’d ever been outside were for volunteer work. So yeah. She had every reason to assume I’d never been to a beach before.
Fine.
I’d just take the real reason to my grave.
*
Two nuns walking into a swimsuit shop together was, in hindsight, incredibly out of place.
I hadn’t really thought about it at first. But now that we were inside the store, the sheer absurdity of the situation hit me all at once.
…Actually, come to think of it, I hadn’t even known dedicated swimsuit shops existed.
Back in my old world, I’d only ever bought clothes from regular brand stores, usually whatever was on sale. I’d never really cared much about fashion.
Weren’t swimsuits usually just a seasonal thing? Like, a tiny section of a store that popped up during summer, only to disappear just as quickly?
But this place?
This was, unmistakably, a swimsuit shop.
…Well, technically, they sold other things too—surfboards, fishing gear, that sort of stuff. But make no mistake—swimsuits took up most of the store.
"Welcome!"
A store employee greeted us with a bright smile as we approached.
"Ah, hello," I replied awkwardly.
Swimsuits were technically clothing, but if you really thought about it, they didn’t cover much more than underwear.
The mannequins, the posters—everywhere I looked, the realization hit me again: This is absolutely not a place where nuns should be shopping.
I’d never even bought underwear in this world before. The church had always provided it.
"Oh, right. I forgot to mention," Ria said casually—way too casually, considering the situation.
"You don’t have to worry about other people staring. I rented out the whole store for a bit."
"……"
Oh. Right.
I kept forgetting.
Ria was the daughter of a hero.
Which, of course, meant she was rich.
Not just rich—stupidly, ridiculously, insanely rich. With connections all over the place.
…Honestly?
That was a little intimidating.