Chapter 197
In winter, the sun sets early.
Before the sun had completely gone down, Clael escorted Reina to the Grand Shrine.
"Lord Clael, would you like to stay here as well? I'm sure everyone would welcome you."
Reina said to Clael, who was about to leave.
Clael was recognized as a Saint. Not as highly as a Saintess, but... he was still respected by the clergy.
If Clael said he wanted to stay, they would surely prepare a meal and a room for him right away.
"No, I'll pass."
However, Clael shook his head.
"I have to prepare for class. For today, I'll return to the staff dormitory."
"I see..."
Reina drooped her shoulders in disappointment.
Then, she looked resentfully at the setting sun in the west.
"I wanted to relax a bit more... what a shame."
"The martial arts tournament is still ahead. How about we go out again during the next break?"
"Really!?"
"Wah!"
Reina rushed up to him.
Her eyes sparkled like jewels as she looked up at Clael's face from below.
"You promised, okay!? Don't go saying later that you were just joking!"
"Uh... ah, yeah."
"Yes! Got your word!"
What did she mean by 'got your word'?
He had just said it casually in the flow of conversation... but her reaction was more intense than he expected, which left him confused.
"Well, I don't really mind though."
Clael gave a wry smile.
Playing with Reina could be tiring, but it was fun. He felt comfortable with her too.
(Although I'd like to avoid the weird stuff that happens sometimes...)
"Well then, see you again. At school next week."
"Yes, take care."
Turning his back to Reina, who bowed her head, Clael began his walk back to the staff dormitory.
While he was walking down the street, the sun had completely set, but the royal capital had many shops open even at night, and there were magical streetlights too.
Since it was festival season, there were still many people out at night, and the bars were buzzing with noise.
"Hm...?"
In the midst of that, Clael suddenly noticed something.
In the shadow of a streetlight near one of the buildings along the street, there was a human crouched down.
Their face was down so he couldn't see it, but from the faintly visible clothing, he could tell it was a young woman.
"...Ma'am, are you all right?"
Clael called out to the crouching woman.
As a priest, he couldn't just ignore it.
Even though this area was relatively safe, there were still dangers in the city at night.
"Ugh..."
"Are you feeling sick? It's okay, I'm a priest."
"A priest... sir...?"
The woman looked up.
Just as he expected, she was a young woman. She seemed to be around the same age as Clael.
Chestnut-colored hair. Her features were fairly well-formed, but... even in the dark, her face clearly looked unwell.
"Are you ill? I'll use Healing Magic right away..."
"Uweh..."
"Casting it—whoa!?"
The woman suddenly vomited.
It wasn't blood, but partially digested stomach contents.
"Ugh... my coat..."
"I-I drank too much..."
"Drunk, huh..."
Clael grimaced.
Given the nearby bars, it wasn't hard to guess.
"Fresh."
When Clael cast Healing Magic, the color returned to the woman's face.
"Ah, thank you, priest! You saved me!"
"No... don't worry about it."
"Got it, I won't worry about it!"
The woman said cheerfully.
Clael thought, at least worry a little.
"Just kidding. Sorry for messing up your coat."
The woman rummaged through her pocket and pulled out a wallet.
"I'll pay for the clothes. Um, let's see, the money is..."
She peeked into her wallet... and then froze.
When she turned it upside down and shook it, only a single copper coin fell out with a plop.
"...That's strange. I should've had five gold coins before going into the bar."
"Isn't the answer obvious...? Wait, did you seriously spend five gold coins on alcohol?"
One gold coin was worth about 100,000 yen in Japanese currency.
To spend 500,000 yen in one night on drinks—just what kind of alcohol and how much did she have?
"Um... I'm really sorry. I'll pay you once I get my paycheck."
"...It's really fine. Honestly."
Clael sighed as he wiped his soiled clothes with a handkerchief.
It was careless of him to approach a drunk person without caution.
Shame on the road is fleeting. The same goes for shame during a festival.
He decided to just go home with a vomit-covered coat.
"I'm really sorry. Next time we meet, I'll make it up to you."
"Yeah, that's fine... please be careful not to drink too much."
"Got it. I swear to the priest."
The woman laughed cheerfully as she walked away.
Clael, fed up with the alcohol-stained coat, walked quickly through the night streets to get home as soon as possible.