The sight of Rachel smiling brightly was enchanting enough to make one nod in agreement with any absurd request.
However, Christian was not swayed by her beauty; instead, he pondered deeply when she asked him to join her.
In his past life, both he and his master would have joined without hesitation.
‘Back then and now, the circumstances are too different. Our own situations, the surroundings, everything…’
However, the current Christian had a family to be with.
He had his mother, father, and many people from Worden County who supported him. Additionally, there were many others with whom he had built relationships in this life.
“I’m sorry, but that seems difficult.”
Rachel was undoubtedly a good acquaintance. Meeting her alone brought joy, and having conversations with her was a delightful experience.
“As you know, I am the heir to Worden County. I cannot decide my future on a whim.”
Unlike in his past life, he did not have the freedom to make decisions on future matters by himself now.
That was an inconvenience of being a noble.
He had to put the family before himself, and the decisions of the family head held more weight than his own will.
‘These tiresome nobles… I need to pass the heir position to Aira as soon as possible.’
Until the heir structure was decided, everyone would continue to be exhausted.
Even if Christian wanted to refuse, he was not in a position to give up as he pleased, and Aira currently lacked the ability to overthrow Christian for the position.
‘Wait, what if I leave the family?’
Christian, who sighed out of regret, suddenly paused as if a brilliant idea had come to him.
“Rachel, do you truly believe I could become someone like a Saint?”
“Yes.”
“Even though it was purely by chance that I came to possess an item imbued with holy energy?”
“Of course.”
Christian gave a wry smile at Rachel’s immediate and resolute response.
“The Goddess would not have taken the holy energy from Latima’s Chalice without reason and bestowed a new cup full of holy energy to Young master Christian without purpose.”
“For a reason, you say?”
“While people like us cannot fully understand the Goddess’s intentions, surely, as you said, there is a reason.”
Indeed, those within a religious order would not doubt the words of God. Christian well understood that their faith bordered on blind devotion.
“Then, wouldn’t there be any opposition within the church?”
“What do you mean?”
Christian let out a small sigh as he looked at Rachel, puzzled.
“As you said, having the holy relic would make me a Saint.”
“Not ‘make you a Saint’; you are the Saint.”
“Yes, well. Would it be fine within the church to suddenly declare someone a Saint and treat them as such? Particularly…”
Christian glanced at Rachel cautiously and asked,
“Wouldn’t Lady Rachel, as the Saintess, find it uncomfortable?”
It was almost unheard of for a church to have both a Saint and a Saintess appear simultaneously.
Typically, common sense dictated that there was only one agent of God.
Christian thought that surely there would be those disinclined to accept the sudden introduction of him as a Saint in the Latima church where the Saintess already existed.
Understanding Christian’s implication, Rachel smiled warmly and said,
“Are you concerned there might be discord within the church? ”
“Well, not exactly…”
“The church is also a place where people live. No matter how much they serve God, do you think only light exists in their hearts? Yes, there will definitely be those reluctant to accept a new Saint and immediately skeptical.”
Rachel seemed well aware that those who serve God were not always pure, and with them being humans, their hearts could not always be united.
“But they are also people of the church, servants of the Goddess. Even if it takes time, they will accept the new Saint. I was accepted in the same way.”
“You, too, lady Rachel?”
“Yes, our Latima Order hadn’t seen a Saint or a Saintess appear for over a hundred years. Just three years ago, I was chosen as the Saintess.”
For over a century, no Saint or Saintess appeared in the Latima Order.
Yet, unexpectedly, an outsider like Rachel was chosen by the Goddess and joined Latima Order, facing much suspicion and jealousy.
It was only natural, as she was not chosen from within the church.
However, over time, as holy energy imbued her body, and her conduct as a Saintess and her answer to the Goddess’s faith convinced them, eventually, she was recognized as the Saintess, and no one doubted her now.
In a place where people live, initially accepting someone may be difficult and met with skepticism, but as servants of God, if one answers their faith, the church will eventually accept them.
“Thus, there is no need to worry. Honestly, they might believe in you more readily than they did with me.”
“Why do you think so?”
“As long as the Saint possesses the holy relic, doubting him would mean doubting the Goddess, wouldn’t it?”
The holy relic, Latima’s Chalice.
Indeed, one who questioned its authenticity would not truly be a follower of the Goddess Latima.
“What if I refuse to be recognized as the Saint? Would you then retrieve the holy relic?”
“…… Pardon?”
Rachel was stunned by the unexpected question, and even Ail, who had maintained a subdued presence until now, stared wide-eyed at Christian.
“Uh, that…”
“As I said earlier, if my parents oppose my departure, it can’t be helped.”
“Then it sounds like Young master Christian would be amenable if your parents permitted it?”
“Yes, well. I don’t view the Latima Order negatively.”
Indeed, he had no reason to oppose it; rather, he welcomed it.
Christian’s reason was simple. At the age of sixteen, a noble of the Rondel Kingdom, and presumed heir, he was shackled by those very obligations.
But now an alternative identity offered a chance to shed all those burdens.
A justified reason to travel far and an assured status.
Only a member of the church, with affiliation beyond national borders, could possess such freedom.
‘I need to go outside.’
August Varian was already in action.
Moreover, given that she targeted Nemea Roblan, it’s possible the dragonkin might be tied to the Duran Duke family.
Thus, to understand the continent’s political landscape, Christian needed a solid reason to step out of the Rondel Kingdom.
And that reason was Rachel standing right in front of him.
‘A Saint, you say…’
Even Christian, who rarely paid heed to titles, felt the weight of representing a church as a Saint daunting.
However, it wasn’t bad to use it temporarily, given his current lack of suitable positions.
‘Or perhaps a Saint is more bothersome than a noble? Not that I intend to seriously become one.’
To be honest, he harbored no ambition to become a Saint.
Furthermore, he intended to return Latima’s Chalice to the church eventually, having no lingering attachment to it.
For now, it was a time to utilize whatever was available, by all means necessary.
‘If things go well, the heir positioning might also change.’
This was an event with divine interference, something his father and mother couldn’t take lightly.
Furthermore, since it was related to a foreign church, it only added to the gravity of the situation.
‘Rejecting the will of a god could lead to significant problems.’
Even though the national religion of the Rondel Kingdom was the Aries Order, defying divine interference wouldn’t be taken lightly by the Worden family.
Thus, rejecting a Saint or Saintess appointed by God for house security, despite the circumstances, could escalate into sacrilege, possibly inviting scrutiny from numerous inquisitors across the continent.
Rachel assumed that the Worden family would inevitably allow Christian to join the church.
After all, he wasn’t the only heir, and they wouldn’t risk turning all the church factions into enemies.
“Could you possibly arrange for me to meet Young master Christian’s parents and Count Worden?”
“That isn’t too difficult, but as you know, the Worden territory is far from here and quite dangerous.”
“It’s all right. Sir Ail is with me, and I can take care of myself.”
Holy energy is indeed a valuable power.
Having a knight like Ail, capable of handling numerous monsters alone, made him extremely reliable.
“Very well. Then I shall leave this matter to the Saintess. If my father grants permission, I see no reason to oppose it.”
With Christian not rejecting the idea, Rachel’s expression brightened.
Honestly, he hadn’t been confident in persuading either his father or his mother.
But since they intended to handle it on their own, Christian was relieved to relinquish the issue.
If things went smoothly, he would attain a way to free himself from all constraints and leave, which was more than ideal.
‘If not, I can step in and lend a hand myself.’
Even if it was difficult alone, with Rachel’s presence, persuasion shouldn’t be impossible.
Without necessarily becoming a Saint, citing the return of the holy relic as a reason, he could still leave the kingdom.
That level of compromise meant neither his father had to push himself to object, nor would his mother find it unacceptable.
‘It seems the dragonkin’s invasion was a plan simmering under the surface for ages. Well, those sinister beings must have appeared now because they deemed it suitable.’
At this moment, auguste Varian hadn’t succumbed to becoming one of the dragonkin. By tracking her, he hoped to locate traces of the dragonkin.
Moreover, considering the northern Empire of Granier’s Duke Duran family was connected to August Varian, it might directly or indirectly relate to the dragonkin.
Therefore, he intended to use this opportunity efficiently to unravel these mysteries.