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Chapter 13
“…You? You mean you’re not sick of it?”
“Yes! Yes, I am sick of it! How can a person do nothing but play all the time? You have to work and live!”
That was a lie.
After living warmly fed and comfortably in Zendal, I realized it. I am a born unemployed person.
If I had been born the youngest child of a chaebol family, there probably wouldn’t be anyone better than me at living as a carefree loafer.
“Those who do not work shall not eat!”
“Is work really that good? If you want, I can let you live without working for the rest of your life.”
“Wow.”
Oops, it slipped out.
I closed my wide-open mouth with my left hand and stretched my right hand toward His Majesty. Time out.
‘Calm down. This is a test. A test.’
I had no choice but to refuse, but it was undeniably an insanely tempting offer.
Swallowing back tears internally, I offered His Majesty some advice.
“Your Majesty, when you someday find someone you want to marry, you should absolutely use that as your proposal line. I guarantee it—one hundred out of one hundred will fall for it.”
“The Saintess won’t fall for it?”
“I—”
Of course I would…
Am I crazy? Seriously. With that face, if you say you’ll let someone live without working, who wouldn’t fall for you? Who?
But there’s no way something like that would ever happen.
So whatever scheme he’s planning this time, I’m not getting involved.
“I won’t fall for it.”
“Why?”
“Because I… am already married to my work.”
Even I felt embarrassed saying it.
It sounded like something a ten-year veteran would say, and I’d barely worked half a day.
‘I didn’t expect him to ask why. Even if he was flustered, why did that line come out of my mouth right then?’
I could practically hear His Majesty’s inner scoff all the way over here.
Whatever. Let’s just be shameless.
“Married? I didn’t know the Saintess married chapel cleaning.”
“…You’re teasing me right now, aren’t you?”
“Not at all. Doesn’t it just mean you take your duties that seriously? I think that’s admirable.”
The sudden compliment stabbed my conscience.
“But it would be troublesome if you forgot your main duty.”
“My main duty?”
“The reason you were summoned here.”
The reason I was summoned to Zendal?
That would be…
“The god Seikan’s mistake?”
“Hmm.”
At the words “the god’s mistake,” His Majesty fell silent.
This mouth of mine. Stop saying whatever comes to mind.
“Ah, right! Because I’m the Saintess, right? Even if it’s just in name.”
“…It’s fine that the Saintess’s faith is free-spirited, but in this world, you shouldn’t speak lightly about insulting the gods.”
Unlike usual, His Majesty gently cautioned me.
I knew.
The reason people bow to an ordinary person like me, the reason no one complains even when I live like an unemployed bum—
It’s all because they believe the god Seikan stands behind me.
Seikan, the god this world reveres. The one and only god.
‘Golden hands Seikan.’
Even though he didn’t give me any divine power, I was, in my own way, grateful to Seikan for sending me here.
Even that slightly furrowed brow—he was a perfect creation that made my heart flutter.
Perhaps he was the greatest masterpiece the god Seikan ever created.
“Anyway.”
“Y-Yes?”
His Majesty rested his left elbow on the table and propped his chin on his hand.
“It’s a relief you know what your main duty is.”
“A relief…?”
Is this kindness, or is it another scheme?
While I was hesitating, His Majesty launched another appearance-based attack.
He only smiled slightly, and all the flowers in the greenhouse garden died.
Ah, I know this. I know. He’s the dangerous type.
And I’m right on the verge of getting entangled.
‘Don’t look. Don’t look! Eyelids, are you unemployed by nature too?!’
But I fully understood my lazy eyelids’ feelings.
‘How can you not look? Ugh. It’s a shame this world doesn’t have the technology to preserve that beauty forever.’
Meeting my vacant stare, His Majesty asked:
If this were a dating sim and His Majesty were the player,
I’d definitely be the type to get captured in a single choice.
“So, will you work just as hard at your main duty as you do at cleaning?”
“……”
“Since you’re married to your work.”
“Of course.” My mouth answered on its own. My head even nodded on its own.
‘You… shallow human who only cares about faces…!’
Feeling my body completely betray my will, I renewed my previous resolution.
From now on, no approaching within a 2-meter radius of His Majesty.
***
Clank.
“Wow. This is heavier than I expected.”
Clank.
“But still, with this, you really wouldn’t be able to see much shape at all.”
Sitting on the sofa in my room, I looked around, checking my field of vision.
The curves of the bedpost, the edge of the table, half of the window’s decorative pattern, a couple of the smallest chandelier crystals.
A very satisfactory viewing angle.
“Hehehe. Perfect.”
“…Saintess?”
I turned my head toward the voice and saw familiar reddish-brown hair.
I greeted her warmly.
“Oh, Siana. You’re here?”
“Saintess, I heard you’re going to the Niseporiel Temple with His Majesty today…”
“Yeah. He said we’re leaving before lunch.”
“And you’re going like that?”
There was rare bewilderment in Siana’s voice.
“Yeah. Is it weird?”
“…Where did you get that?”
“This? I borrowed it from the knight armor in the chapel hallway.”
I removed the helmet I was wearing.
Even though I’d only worn it briefly, my hair was a mess.
Seeing this, Siana looked horrified and started fixing my hair.
“My goodness. Why are you wearing this?”
“Because I’m riding in the same carriage as His Majesty.”
What could someone who’s only a Saintess in appearance even do?
When he said he wanted me to work hard at my main duty, it meant he wanted me to act like a Saintess at some temple.
It was good that it didn’t involve dancing, but the problem was that there was only one carriage.
I suggested using two, but one carriage meant fewer attendants, lower basic security costs, lower accompanying expenses…
I shut my mouth. We were broke. That was all there was to it.
“So?”
“That means I have to be in the same space as His Majesty, right? Sitting face to face! I overheard someone say it takes half a day to reach the Niseporiel Temple.”
“That’s right. It’s on the outskirts of the capital.”
This was not something I could just ignore.
Three hours? Impossible.
“So I’m trying to block my view a little.”
“…Your view?”
Siana asked with an awkward expression.
It might look strange, but I was only going to use it inside the carriage.
Besides, I quite liked the helmet’s extremely narrow field of vision.
“Yeah. Because it’s dangerous.”
“…I think walking around wearing a helmet is more dangerous. But anyway, I understand what you mean.”
“Huh? You agree with me?”
It’s always nice when someone supports your opinion.
As I beamed, Siana smiled like a capable maid.
Then she placed both hands on the helmet I was holding.
“In other words, you just need to block your vision, right?”
***
“Saintess, we’ve come to escort y—”
“Captain, I know, okay? Please don’t say the rest.”
Please.
In the reception room of Prodinta Palace.
Captain Henkel stopped mid-sentence when he saw me enter.
I was walking toward him with Siana supporting me.
Showing him this appearance was so embarrassing that words just kept spilling out.
“There’s a reason for this. Originally, I prepared something you would admire too, Captain, but things just turned out like this, so my taste isn’t actually like th—”
“Doesn’t she look great?”
“She looks extremely well-suited.”
“Ugh.”
Goosebumps rose at Siana’s and Captain Henkel’s back-to-back praise.
“The helmet was absolutely not allowed.”
Contrary to Siana’s firm opposition, I was now fully dressed from head to toe.
At first, it wasn’t this extreme.
When I hesitated over the ribbon Siana offered as a blindfold substitute, the maids came in.
“You’re going out with His Majesty the Emperor?”
They surrounded me, discussing outfits and accessories, and eventually even brought out the Saintess’s ceremonial dress, supposedly a national treasure.
“…Why is a national treasure in my wardrobe?”
“It belongs to the Saintess, so it’s managed here at Prodinta Palace.”
The garment, said to have been crafted by an artisan for the Saintess who would one day be summoned, was a white dress with off-shoulder sleeves that fell long below the elbows.
The front was accented with darker fabric so it wouldn’t look plain, and the embroidery and jewels were subtle and elegant rather than flashy.
With my black hair neatly combed over the white fabric, the reflection in the mirror looked like a truly noble Saintess of some holy empire.
But the helmet was better.
‘This looks like I tried way too hard.’
The blindfold ribbon was white lace layered with white fabric.
Perfectly matched with the outfit.
‘I just wanted to block my vision a little—!’
I resisted, saying I absolutely hated the ribbon, but when the maids saw me in the helmet, they cried.
Seeing that, I was shocked too. In the end, I had no choice but to surrender my body like a doll.
Protect His Majesty’s eyesight. …But this level of dressing up is just humiliating.
“Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”
“You mean the ride? It’s perfect.”
After checking on me seated in the carriage, Captain Henkel closed the door.
“Then we’ll depart.”
The carriage rocked once, then the wheels began to roll smoothly.
The biggest ordeal was still ahead.
***
“…You’re going to go like that?”
His Majesty stopped when he saw my state as he boarded the carriage.
I thought if I just sat naturally, it might pass naturally.
As expected, not a chance.
“Yes.”
So I changed strategies: be shameless.
Showing His Majesty—who shines even without effort—myself all dressed up and looking like someone with strange tastes was far too embarrassing.
“Hm.”
The gaze made my profile sting, but I chose to ignore it.
Front. Only look forward.
His Majesty sat across from me. The door closed, and the carriage started moving.
Thankfully, the blindfold’s effect was proportional to the shame.
‘This is actually okay?’
I smiled inwardly at the world now blurred in white.
Now His Majesty looked like nothing but light.
“Looks like a new kind of game?”
His tone changed now that we were alone.
That didn’t really matter.
“Is that the Saintess’s attire from Zendal? I didn’t expect you to take it this seriously. I suppose the Saintess truly is married to her work.”
“……”
Without replying, I subtly shifted my body and pressed as close as possible to the carriage door.
This wasn’t about pride or dignity.
“Your Majesty.”
Being alone in a confined space with my favorite (body).
What greater reward could there be for a fangirl?
My idea of just blocking my vision was naïve.
Even without sight, I still had hearing. And hearing.
Every sound of His Majesty’s breathing became painfully noticeable.
“Hm?”
“Please… be… quiet…”
The “no approaching within 2 meters” rule wasn’t for me.
It was for His Majesty.
Because I—
I feel like I might turn into a dangerous beast.
