FSFSLU 7

Chapter 7

Two more days had passed since I became Isabel’s Guardian Angel.

It had only been three days since I became an angel, but it already felt like several days. Maybe it was because I was exhausted.

Isabel didn’t spend much time alone. After returning, she grew very close to Lina, Graham, and Susanna, and also hung out with old monastery friends like Jeremy, Otam, and Sherry.

All of them had been killed in the Undead Parade that occurred before the regression.

“Shouldn’t I keep it secret from my friends, too?”

“You can tell them about me, but never about the regression.”

As long as Isabel kept the secret, I had no reason to interfere with her spending time with old friends. Fortunately, after a few reminders, she guarded the secret well.

Her friends were puzzled by Isabel’s changed demeanor, but since she had always been unpredictable, they accepted it. One friend in particular, Lina, even got teary-eyed congratulating Isabel when she said she’d become a Delegate.

“I’m so happy for you, Isabel…”

“Huh? About what?”

“You silly fool…”

Anyway, Isabel was making the most of her time before setting out on the Holy Pilgrimage.

But something else was troubling her.

[Fill out documents to depart on the Holy Pilgrimage: 14/20]

“You’re supposed to write the year you were ordained there, not the year you left the monastery.”

“You’re amazing at writing, Lord Sumiel!”

“This isn’t writing—it’s just filling in blanks…”

Isabel always struggled with paperwork. It made me wonder how she had ever passed the priesthood exams.

“Wasn’t studying theology hard?”

“No, not at all! I loved it, so it never felt hard.”

She said that with a bright smile, then added sheepishly:

“I think the sisters who taught me had a harder time than I did.”

“Of course they did.”

“I never thought you’d make jokes, Lord Sumiel!”

“That wasn’t a joke.”

After some time, I stopped using that exaggerated, angelic tone when speaking to her.

There was no need to keep up a solemn act. Besides, Isabel was the only one who could hear me.

As long as I could convince Isabel, there was no need to worry about appearances.

The more time I spent with her, the more I learned how to handle her—just as she was learning about me.

“Isabel, who do you most want to see right now?”

“Sir Marcel the Hero, Sister Erica, and Mr. Keizo!”

“Then you’d better finish up quickly. They said as soon as you hand in the paperwork, you’ll be cleared to leave.”

“You’re right!”

Fired up, Isabel continued filling out forms. Sometimes she looked like she wanted to burn the papers altogether, but at least she didn’t act on it.

Had I not been watching, she might really have set them on fire.

Even facing the Demon Lord, it would’ve been hard to summon that much hostility.

Two more days later—

[Fill out documents to depart on the Holy Pilgrimage: 20/20]

“All done!”

Isabel had finally completed all 20 forms for the examination.

Granted, she had mostly just copied down what I dictated, but still, she deserved praise.

I displayed the message [Quest Complete] in her vision. She always looked so proud seeing it, and that made it satisfying for me to show it.

But this time, she hesitated.

“What’s wrong?”

“Um… Lord Sumiel.”

Why did she sound so nervous?

“Sometimes you give me instructions as ‘quests,’ right?”

“Hm? Yes, that’s right.”

“But… do I just follow them as they are? I mean, not that I don’t see the reason for them! Just… is that all there is?”

Hmm. That stung a bit.

She was struggling to phrase it, but the point was clear:

It’s called a quest, so… isn’t there supposed to be a reward? It looks like it should come with one, doesn’t it?

Fair enough. I’d ask the same thing.

I wanted to give her something. But how? I couldn’t interfere physically with the mortal world—I was confined to my sanctuary.

Wait. Hold on.

In The Old Tales, angels were said to grant their priests divine power. That power was called Holy Energy.

But the immense holy power Isabel wielded wasn’t mine—it was the power of the Stigmata bestowed by Sunya when she regressed Isabel.

I hadn’t actually given Isabel anything yet.

So, there must be something I could give her.

But what?

If priests drew their holy power from angels, then shouldn’t I also have some kind of power to grant Isabel?

Yet I didn’t feel like I had holy power. All I noticed was that my body here felt lighter, and I didn’t need food or drink.

Unlike Isabel, I couldn’t project beams of light or create barriers.

So how could I possibly give her something of value?

“Lord Sumiel?”

“Ah, yes. You’re doing well. Trust me—someday, your reward will come.”

In the end, I had to cover it up with a clumsy excuse, using that old angelic tone I’d already dropped.

Luckily, Isabel seemed to believe me.

“Thank goodness! I’ll go submit the documents now!”

She ran off.

Oh, Isabel… how many times have you been told not to run in church?

Anyway, I had some serious thinking to do.

I lay down on the slide in my sanctuary playground.

The sky was high above.

The place looked exactly like the playground I’d played at as a child. I used to spend hours there, dragged along by a neighborhood friend.

Until the kids from that neighborhood complained that outsiders shouldn’t be in their playground, and we got chased out.

Thinking about it now made me a little gloomy. I forced myself back on track.

“Okay, then…”

What could I do?

Sunya had only told me to help Isabel, never explaining how to act as an angel.

But I didn’t think she had made a mistake. More likely, she believed I’d figure it out myself.

After all, I’d managed to change my sanctuary from a hospital room to this playground, and even found ways to reach Isabel through the window. All of that was possible because angelic power worked so intuitively.

So the way I could reward Isabel should be intuitive, too.

Did I, perhaps, have my own status window?

No—I had checked on my first day as an angel. I didn’t.

So how would I grant Isabel anything?

I paced the playground, pondering. Still, no answer came.

So I imagined something new: a brick path around the playground.

This space seemed able to create anything, as long as it kept the form of a playground.

I walked the brick path slowly, then tried jogging.

After so much time bedridden, even jogging felt exhilarating.

But then—

“Huh?”

Something felt strange.

I was getting tired.

But I wasn’t supposed to feel fatigue in this form.

Yet my muscles ached, my lungs expanded and contracted, my mouth went dry, sweat trickled down my skin.

It startled me. This was my sanctuary. My body wasn’t supposed to be real. Why did I feel so vividly physical?

Still, it wasn’t unpleasant, so I ran a few more laps.

That’s when it happened.

“…What’s this?”

From my chest, a dazzling light poured out.

Was this holy power? No, it felt different.

I pressed my hand against my chest. Shockingly, my hand sank inside as though my chest were hollow.

“Ah!”

I panicked. My hand went in so deep it brushed against where lungs and spine should be.

But there was nothing—no resistance, no pain.

When I pulled my hand out, my hand itself glowed faintly.

And it felt as though something soft, like cotton or jelly, was wrapped around it.

Then—I understood.

This was the result of the exercise I had just done.

And I felt instinctively—I could pass it to Isabel through the window.

Not just running. Would other exercises work, too?

I conjured a bar along the brick path and gripped it with both hands.

I started doing push-ups.

In life, I’d spent too long bedridden to be familiar with exercise.

Even now, I was weak. At most, I managed ten push-ups before collapsing.

But when I stood, my chest glowed again. I reached in, pulled my hand out—again, the glow transferred into my hand.

And I felt it again. I could give this to Isabel.

This… this could be it.

Yes. This could be Isabel’s reward.

I swallowed hard.

Being alone in this sanctuary wasn’t unbearable. But just watching Isabel’s journey passively—that I didn’t want.

Now I had a way to help her directly.

The only question was—could I endure the pain and exhaustion myself?

Well, every long journey starts with a single step.

I might as well try.

The next morning.

Today Isabel was leaving for her Holy Pilgrimage.

She felt strangely light on her feet.

Then, a blue message appeared in the corner of her vision:

[Pending rewards from past quests will now be granted.]
[Reward: Results of 100 push-ups, 2 hours jogging, 10 minutes sprinting]

Isabel didn’t know what it meant. She tilted her head, then realized.

She immediately began to pray. Soon, an answer came.

“…You called me, Isabel?”

“Lord Sumiel!”

Her eyes sparkled.

“You really gave me a reward!”

“Yes. It’s the result of completing your quests.”

Sumiel’s voice was warm and kind—but also a little breathless.

“The Goddess already gave you a Stigmata. So instead of holy power, I’ll give you stamina and strength for your journey ahead. These are things you would normally have to build through your own exercise. So continue fulfilling the quests.”

“…Wait. Did you do the exercise yourself, Lord Sumiel?”

After a short silence, the reply came:

“If you’re up, wash up and eat breakfast.”

“Ah—yes, sir!”

Isabel didn’t know how much time Kim Sumin—who hadn’t run properly since elementary school—had invested in his sanctuary, sweating and straining, just to deliver these rewards.

Sumin had realized that when he exercised in his sanctuary, he could transfer only the results to Isabel.

Her body wouldn’t change in appearance—just like a priest’s body doesn’t bulk up when granted a blessing of strength. But her health and stamina would steadily increase, day by day.

And so, thanks to Sumin, Isabel would truly grow stronger.

For Sumin—who had only ever done light rehabilitation exercises—the sweat he shed in his sanctuary that night was both foreign and joyful.

That day, Isabel set out on her Holy Pilgrimage.

After finishing her morning duties, Susanna personally packed Isabel’s supplies:

Paper-wrapped bread and a water bottle, a small cross in case she lost her artifacts, an emergency dagger, medicine and bandages, a map, and a pouch containing 40 sonacs.

Normally, the items provided to a priest embarking on pilgrimage were standardized, but the bishop or auxiliary bishop could add a few extras at their discretion.

Susanna hesitated, then pulled out her own purse.

Two sonacs could buy a simple meal. Ten could pay for a night at an inn. Isabel’s assigned route was short—just to the neighboring parish of Tetina.

It wasn’t far. Once Isabel arrived and carried out her duties, she’d earn more money. So 40 sonacs should be enough…

‘But Isabel’s sense of money…’

After a moment’s hesitation, Susanna opened her purse.

But—

“You can’t do that, Auxiliary Bishop.”

A voice stopped her.

Susanna looked up with an awkward smile. Standing there with hands clasped behind his back was the bishop of Zeroprime, Patrick Hanemas.

“Did your trip go well?”

“Thanks to you. Susanna, it’s one thing to add items useful for the pilgrimage, but you know we can’t just hand out extra money.”

“…Forgive me. I was only worried.”

“Worried? About which priest?”

“Sister Isabel.”

Patrick nodded.

“Understandable. But how did Sister Isabel even pass the examination?”

“Her Guardian Angel descended. Passing was inevitable.”

“Amazing…”

Patrick rubbed his mouth, as if impressed.

But in truth, he was hiding a sly smile he couldn’t quite suppress.

Susanna failed to notice it.