CH 79

“… Does we cut ties?”

What, who got cut ties?

Looking back, it was Fabian with his shoulders drooping.

When the confident face that was shown a little while ago disappeared, I was startled by the look of a puppy drenched in the rain.

“As Ria-nim said, we may not be friends or anything….”

No, I will correct it. That was not a puppy, his face was white, just like a ghost.

In the meantime, you were also adding the word ‘nim’ to my name. He really always kept his professionalism.

“Then I’m a total stranger to Aina now….”

No, why are you so gloomy? What am I supposed to do with this atmosphere?

I patted Fabian on the shoulder at his pessimistic energy that was enough to dye this holy temple in darkness.

“No way, cut ties? It was just a brief quarrel with Aina, right?”

“It was the first time I had ever seen Aina so angry.”

“Why did you fight?”

“I told her that I couldn’t send her to a dangerous place alone, how long will I see her as a target for protection.… I ask her to quietly remain in the Great Temple and be protected by Aaron-nim….”

Oh, I see. Aina was tired of Fabian’s overprotection.

In fact, Fabian was overprotective. It wasn’t because Aina was a Saintess, it was a habit that had been passed down since childhood.

However, from Aina’s point of view, she felt incompetent as she only wrapped herself around him every day, so she must have started to distance herself from Fabian at some point.

“As Ria-nim said, it may end forever.”

“Don’t be discouraged by my little joke. After all, Aina’s first friend is sir Fabian.”

“Is that so?”

I didn’t feel any strength in the answer. I took a deep breath and shouted at that self-helpful voice.

“Hey, why are you so insecure? A person called the vice-commander of the Holy Knights!”

I slapped Fabian on the waist until it made a loud noise.

“Come on, straighten your back! Spread your shoulders! Eyes straight ahead!”

Fabian, who stretched out his crouching body as I told him, blinked.

I clenched my fist in front of him and shouted.

“Love is about winning. So, go find Aina right now!”

“Pardon…?”

“And stop being overprotective. Aina is not a baby placed on the water, just give her a compliment that she’s doing well at that time.”

“Ah….”

“What are you looking at? Go quickly. Roger that!”

“Ro, roger that!”

Fabian, who greeted Aaron with a bright expression, ran out as if his head had cleared.

I waved a big hand at Fabian’s back who was getting smaller and smaller.

“By the way, Ria. Does he know where he is going?”

I shrugged at Nathan’s question.

“He will figure it out, right?”

It is also his responsibility to get his path.

“God, it’s going to be hard to see Fabian’s face.”

“I guess so?”

Haha, Aaron let out a cool laugh.

“Did you purposely kick out Fabian?”

“Am I? I just opened a new path for the poor sheep.”

It wasn’t because I didn’t want to see Fabian who argues with me every time I come to the temple.

Absolutely not.

I returned the bibliography to Aaron and ignored it until the end.

***

Returning home, Nathan looked at Ria with her chin on the window sill.

Her face, which was dyed red from the sunset, was full of worry.

‘How long do I have to keep my mouth shut?’

He had already noticed that Ria had found her memory. He also knew that she was confused.

So he waited for Ria to accept it on her own.

That’s the fourth day. Ria’s mouth was closed like a clam, and she didn’t want to open it.

‘I guess it’s not sorted out yet.’

Rather, there was a sense of impatience that he wanted to sort out Ria’s worries.

“Ria, when are you going to ask?”

“Asking what?”

Nathan laughed silently. Ria’s face softened at that smile.

“… Okay. Not everything, but roughly. So now my head is very complicated.”

Ria clasped her hands and interlaced her fingers.

“I had a dream one day, and it didn’t seem like my dream, but it seemed like my dream.”

“What kind of dream was it?”

“The dream of sealing the Darkness and letting the lover leave. And I met God and heard about the test.”

As she recalled that scene, her heart pounded again.

“I am the reincarnation of the first Saintess, right?”

“Yeah.”

Ria burst into laughter, saying that she expected it to be the case in response to a quick reply that could not be seen as hesitation.

“Nathan, this time you’re bad. Knowing everything and not saying anything. Could you give me a hint?”

Ria grunted as Nathan flew in and slapped her face on the cheek.

“Didn’t you say it with your mouth? This is a test, I cannot intervene. The same goes for others.”

“God is so mean. How can He give me such a difficult test?”

“It was what you wanted.”

“It must be me from the past.”

Ria replied sternly.

To be honest, she still couldn’t believe it. Even if the first Saintess was her previous life, it felt like a separate existence.

“Nathan, did you know that the Darkness is Koma?”

“It’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time.”

He thought it was a name he would never hear again, but he is finally hearing it.

“I vaguely expected it to appear, but I didn’t know it would be such a name.”

If he hadn’t heard from Mikha that the exam had begun, he wouldn’t have known about that guy until he came to the capital.

“Koma has been erased from the world. It’s not the guy you loved.”

Not her, but the first Saintess in her previous life.

There was no such feeling. Because it wasn’t her feelings in the first place.

“Nathan. The test I have to take is to completely extinguish the Darkness, right?”

“Yeah.”

If she killed the Darkness, she could erase the curse from that person’s soul.

So, taking out his soul from hell and making him reborn.

‘Everything is for that person.’

That was the reason she was reborn, and it was her mission to keep.

“You know, you taught me how to use the divine power and how to use the bow, was all that for the test?”

“Yeah.”

“What if I didn’t know until the end?”

If she hadn’t remembered her past life, it would have been all in vain, wouldn’t he be worried?

“It can’t be.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, because everything is going according to the flow.”

Going according to the flow. It is an easy yet difficult word.

“Am I going in the right direction?”

“Yeah, you’ve been walking straight since the beginning.”

Of course, there were dangers along the way but she managed to avoid it with Dillian.

It wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for Dillian, but at the same time, because of him, she was able to find her place.

“No worries. Go as you please.”

Wherever you go, there will be a road soon.

“Nathan, what was the relationship between you and me?”

“What kind of relationship? We were family, just like now. One and only family.”

Ria was his first contractor.

Nathan, for him the first human he loved, and the one who allowed him to settle within the confines of a family beyond a mere contractual relationship.

“At first I thought it was ridiculous. To be honest, I just wanted to ignore it.”

Ria, who was showing her emotions at the time, as she traced her memory, pulled the corners of her lips.

“But now, I think I’m lucky to be reborn again.”

“Why?”

“If I hadn’t been reborn, you would have been alone forever waiting for me.”

Nathan, who was gently stroking Ria’s hair, stopped. His golden eyes trembled slightly.

“And I must have been alone and lonely, right?”

Ria looked at Nathan and smiled broadly.

“Thank you for being family with me again.”

“… I’m the one who feels grateful.”

Nathan smiled happily as he looked at Ria, who was smiling broadly.

No matter what form Ria is, no matter how many times she is born, Nathan will stay with her.

Because he will be fascinated over and over again by the flawless clear light, the endless white light.

The capital, which was shaken by the Darkness, has been maintaining peace since its founding.

It seems that the wounds inflicted on him have not yet healed.

“Is my power that strong?”

At my muttering words, Nathan ate strawberries and spoke casually.

“You underestimate your strength.”

“I can’t help it. I thought I was ordinary.”

Now I know that I am the reincarnation of the first Saintess and the child loved by God.

The years of living as an ordinary small citizen were longer than that.

“Then you should know now. You are a great person Ria.”

“… I know.”

I know it too well, so that’s the problem.

Nathan, who swallowed the last strawberry, continued, saying it was a pity.

“It would be nice to press it for sure at this time when it became weak, but it’s a pity that it disappeared.”

“He is being chased by the temple, so we’ll find it soon.”

Harris and Aina are leading the way, and Fabian, who followed later, will also be joining soon, so don’t worry.

“Righ. Leave the search for the Darkness to them, and Ria, you just need to prepare well. Are you training hard?”

“That’s what I always do.”

Nathan and Aaron joined in to teach me.

“Then let’s go eat.”

“Didn’t you just eat the snacks, can you eat rice?”

“Ria, you were the one who told me that the belly for snacks and rice are separate. Come on, let’s go!”

It was at that time on the way to the restaurant at Nathan’s torch. I saw Dillian at the end of the hallway.

“Sir Dillian, where are you going?”

“Miss Ria, I have work to do now. Let’s have dinner together.”

He seemed to be busy with work, so he went out for lunch.

“Yes, go ahead.”

“I will be back.”

A smile appeared on Dillian’s face as if he was in a good mood as I went out through the main hall to see him off to the front door.

Neison, who took a step back and was looking at him, came closer and whispered.

“Madam, can you come out to meet him when he comes back?”

“…? Of course.”

It’s not that hard. As I nodded, Neison held his hands together and closed his eyes as if praying.

“Madam is clearly an angel.”

“Yees….”

And Dillian, who reacted promptly to my trembling voice, grabbed Neison’s neck.

“Get away. Do you want to go around the training ground for 30 laps?”

“Your Grace, you know how low my stamina is. I am a limp jellyfish that just spins around.”

“Bragging, huh? Walk on your feet.”

Neison, who was dragged along, gave strength to his waist at Dillian’s cold eyes.

“Miss Ria, I will go.”

I waved my hand at Dillian, who was walking away.

Sera approached me and lowered her voice.

“Ria-nim, the jeweler has contacted you.”

“What did they say?”

“It is said that the product arrives at the store in about an hour. If they leave as soon as they receive the goods, they will probably arrive at the duchy around two o’clock.”

“It took longer than I thought.”

On the day May and Schumann came to see me, the gift was definitely decided.

The problem was that there was no product. The product I picked was a limited edition, so it was really hard to find.

If I give them Sinaize’s name, I can get it right away, but it’s a surprise gift, so it can’t be.

In the end, I had no choice but to wait for it to arrive on time.

‘To this extent, this was also because I borrowed Schumann’s name, otherwise, I would never have been able to find it in time.’

Fyuh, I sighed and turned to the dining room.

“Tell them I’m going to go get it myself.”

Rather than waiting anxiously, I will go to pick it up myself.

Dillian has gone out too. I just need to be back soon, right?