HRMF 20

Chapter 20

How to Replace a Father

San Miguel Castle

Today, Charlie recounted the absurd event to the members of the order, letting out a nervous laugh.

“I’m telling you! They took an old blacksmith man, calling him a saint!”

“Did you just drink and see things?”

“How could I drink while accompanying the lady? I’m serious.”

Antoniozo tilted his head as if he had just heard someone claim they saw a ghost in broad daylight.

Clearly unable to believe it, he asked me as well.

“Is that true?”

“They really did call the blacksmith a saint and took him away.”

I answered and fell into thought.

But was the blacksmith really a saint?

Did they misinterpret the prophecy and mistakenly label a man as a saint because they assumed it had to be a woman?

Even though he was already 68, the title had been fixed as “Saint”…

Hmm. That’s strange.

Even in the game’s opening, they boldly drew a female silhouette behind the prophecy.

I knew players expecting a holy maiden would be shocked—but there’s no way they would pull something like that deliberately.

It was the 3rd of last month, when the holy wave had occurred.

And the person would be a cleric.

Meeting all the conditions…

I squeezed my eyes shut.

No matter how I think about it, it has to be me.

On the 3rd of last month, I had countered the curse of the sect leader.

And that day, I saw this message:

Second Class Job Advancement Successful!
[Purifier]

※This system has been reconstructed using a familiar interface for user convenience.

The pre-advancement class of the Purifier is a Cleric.

I may not have the title, but I fulfilled the conditions to be a saint.

So that’s why saints never appeared in the game.

I must have been killed by the protagonist and lost my organs before I could become a saint.

In other words, it was a hidden route I could only see because I survived.

I had unexpectedly leveled up from extra to rival, but I wasn’t happy at all.

Considering how this game funnels all luck, love, and joy to the protagonist, the ending was obvious.

I’ll just be used as a rival and then die.

Ha. What a crazy game.

I smiled with a calm, enlightened expression.

But then I clenched my skirt tightly.

Still, I’m not going to die quietly.

I had a bunny-like mother to protect on my side.

I would survive.

Good news comes with bad news.

Finally, the recruitment letter from the office of appointments arrived.

The person delivering the letter was unexpected.

Huh?

Charlie and I looked at each other.

The man carrying the recruitment letter was the middle-aged man I had seen at the blacksmith shop.

“Yustea of the San Miguel territory will serve with me and the Duke’s territory,” the man declared.

I stepped forward and bowed deeply.

It wasn’t that I lacked authority, but it was proper etiquette when receiving an official document stamped by a Duke.

The man read the letter.

After the usual formalities, it finally reached the crucial passage for the appointment.

“I hereby appoint Yustea of San Miguel to assist the royal family; perform this duty sincerely and wholeheartedly.”

I lowered my head.

“Yustea, daughter of San Miguel, I accept the order.”

Although I was in front of Escarlotte’s administrators, I wanted to jump for joy inside.

I wasn’t the only one thrilled.

The vice-sect leader, who had been worried if I could truly become the apprentice, also had a look of deep relief.

Yet something was odd.

The administrator didn’t hand the recruitment letter directly to me.

I had to receive it to stand, but he was deliberately stalling.

I glanced at the administrator.

His expression was utterly arrogant.

He’s doing this on purpose.

I wasn’t the only one who sensed something strange.

The vice-sect leader, who had been smiling widely, now looked tense.

“How long do you intend to keep the lady kneeling?”

Unable to bear it, the vice-sect leader finally spoke.

Only then did the administrator hand me the recruitment letter with a simple, “Ah.”

As I stood to receive it, the administrator stroked his beard and said:

“The people of San Miguel are excessively loyal.”

Antoniozo puffed up, thinking his loyalty had been praised.

But the vice-sect leader’s expression froze.

Yes. That wasn’t a compliment.

It was a subtle reprimand for merely making a foster daughter kneel.

He had openly insulted me.

The administrator, working at the center of a great family like Escarlotte, wasn’t a fool unaware of what he said.

Yet he carried himself shamelessly.

“Escort us and Saint Yustea to her chambers. Hold a banquet to ease the fatigue of my men. Oh, and the wine must be aged at least 30 years.”

He came to deliver the letter and demanded extravagant hospitality.

Even Antonio’s face flared.

“Thirty years aged wine…!”

As he shouted, the vice-sect leader’s members clung to him.

They had barely secured an audience with the Duke of Escarlotte.

Now was not the time for chaos.

The vice-sect leader sighed as he suppressed his anger.

“And guide them to the rooms for now.”

“Yes.”

The butler led the middle-aged man, the administrators, and even the knights away.

Only then did Antonio, released by the vice-sect leader’s order, huff in frustration.

“Why give a room to that arrogant man?”

“Right now, hosting a banquet and quietly sending them off is the best strategy.”

I spoke to the vice-sect leader, who was giving orders.

“I don’t think that’s what you really want, is it?”

“Eh?”

Of course, the middle-aged man could wield authority.

San Miguel was a territory unable to survive independently.

If the Irregular hadn’t madly funneled the mission funds here, it would have collapsed long ago.

So it was necessary to please the administrator controlling the budget.

But he’s too rude.

It was as if he wanted to show he could act however he pleased.

There’s only one way to impress in a territory as insignificant as San Miguel.

“You want the money. This is a common form of bribery.”

Antonio’s face twisted.

“Even a back-alley thug would take it cleaner. Do we really have to give money to that fat man?”

“If we don’t, it will get worse.”

“Should I just secretly kill him?”

Antoniozo’s men pulled out their weapons with sinister expressions.

I quickly waved my hand.

“Absolutely not! If the administrator is killed, the main estate will intervene.”

Otherwise, San Miguel would be exposed as an Irregular haven.

Antonio sulked.

“So we just have to give it?”

“That’s not the solution.”

“Huh?”

I looked at the vice-sect leader.

“Will you leave this matter to me?”

“That’s fine, but….”

The vice-sect leader’s expression said, ‘How do you expect to resolve this without paying?’

The Escarlotte administrator, known to Yustea as the middle-aged man, was named Godin.

Leaning back in a bubble-filled bathtub with a drink, Godin let out a sigh.

“Drinking with someone else’s money is the best, as always.”

Especially when it comes from pathetic creatures too weak to even respond—it’s the sweetest.

Godin’s subordinate asked while serving him.

“Should we waste time here? Prince Gaspar will rage that the saint arrived late.”

Godin smirked and shook his drink.

“What does it matter? She isn’t the real saint anyway.”

Godin, a 68-year-old, did not believe she was the true saint.

He merely pretended to follow the prince’s order.

Prince Gaspar had issued two conditions:

1. Find the source of the holy wave.

2. Bring someone with holy power who was near the source on the 3rd of last month.

“Why worry? We brought someone who meets the requirements.”

“But if the prince is angered and the duke disapproves….”

“The duke never cared about saints to begin with.”

Escarlotte was a powerful family, independent of the palace or temple.

Instead, the palace and temple were desperate to sway Escarlotte under their influence.

“Even if that’s true for Escarlotte, we are mere administrators. Angering the prince could be disastrous.”

“Then we must bring a fake even more.”

“What do you mean?”

“If we hand over the real saint to Prince Gaspar, Teressa and the other princes would resent us.”

Finally, the subordinate nodded vigorously.

“Indeed, Lord Godin.”

This man had reached his position solely through political acumen.

The subordinate laughed and asked Godin to teach him more, then offered another drink.

“No, we must prepare for the banquet. Let’s see how grand it will be.”

They chuckled as they left the bathroom.

The corridor was packed with Godin’s other subordinates, all excited for the banquet.

A knight approached Godin as he donned his jacket.

“Thanks to you, Lord Godin, I’ll get some good food in my belly after a long time.”

“Haha. Enjoy it while you can.”

“The castle is quiet. You didn’t, by any chance, fail to hire dancers, right?”

“To be that foolish? One must always enjoy drink with spectacle.”

Even serving a difficult superior like Godin had its perks.

He shared the spoils of the display with his subordinates.

After resting leisurely in San Miguel, they headed to the banquet hall.

A hall filled with beautiful dancers, expensive wine, and lavish food.

Yet what they saw upon entering was…

“What’s this?”

“Why is there no food?”

Not a drop of wine or a dish in sight.

Godin’s eyebrow twitched.

A voice called from outside the door.

“You’ve arrived first.”

It was the girl appointed as the apprentice by the prince: Yustea.

Godin turned sharply toward her.

No dancers followed her.

Nor did the lord rush after her.

She was only accompanied by the two men from before: the knight commander and Antonio.

Godin asked,

“What about the banquet?”

“Oh, there must have been a misunderstanding. There is no banquet.”

Godin’s eyebrow twitched at her reply.

“I told you to prepare a banquet.”

“I heard, but it was never permitted on this side.”

See that? Utter arrogance.

Godin chuckled.

“It seems the lady has mistaken her position.”

At that moment, the smooth-faced knight called Antonio tried to step forward.

But Yustea blocked him with her arm.

She still smiled.

“Me?”

“What has made you so arrogant? Being the eldest daughter of Andres?”

“….”

“Ah, do not be surprised. Surely you investigated the person to be sent to Escarlotte’s estate.”

“….”

“However,” Godin stepped closer.

“You are no longer the daughter of Andres, but a dependent of San Miguel.”

“I am officially registered as the daughter of the Lord of San Miguel.”

Godin chuckled.

“Yes. The lord of San Miguel must have been impatient. Even though you were needed as an apprentice, of all times….”

This time, not only Antonio, but the vice-sect leader also clenched his fists.

Godin continued regardless.

“The lord must have assumed you had great ties with the princes as the daughter of Andres.”

“….”

“Are you mistaken about that too?”

“….”

“This is advice. Don’t assign too much meaning to being made an apprentice by the princes.”

Even at Escarlotte, people were surprised that the princes wanted Yustea as an apprentice.

But no one thought it reflected genuine affection.

“If the princes truly cared for you, would they have let you roam the kitchens doing chores?”

Indeed. They merely enjoyed watching someone fall to the bottom.

Like a circus monkey.

“When the princes moved to Escarlotte, you visited them, only to make food in the kitchen, right?”

“….”

“See? If they truly cared, would they have let a noblewoman get her hands dirty?”

Yes. They calculated that there would be no problem even if she acted boldly.

Yustea, silent for a moment, slowly spoke.

“Please, step aside for a moment…”

Godin smirked.

“Finally, she understands her position.”

Surely she intends to calm him down, thinking she’ll hand over a bag of money.

Godin’s subordinates also grinned knowingly.

Godin smiled at them, then approached Yustea.

Then…

“Ah!”

She kicked his knee with a loud thwack.

As Godin bent down to hold his leg, Yustea struck the back of his neck with her elbow.

“Ugh!”

As his center collapsed and another shock hit, Godin fell forward.

Yustea stepped on the back of his head as he fell.

With empty hands, she grabbed a vase from a nearby cabinet.

“Lord Godin! What are you doing?!”

His subordinate shouted, and the knights hesitated, reaching for their sheaths.

Yustea said,

“Don’t move. Unless you want this man’s head smashed.”

“…!”

“…!!”

The knights froze.

Godin croaked, “What is the meaning of this?!”

“Self-defense.”

That’s not what we’re asking…!

Godin trembled.

“Release me at once! If the estate learns of this, San Miguel will suffer, not just you, miss!”

“Then you may report it.”

“You crazy…!”

“But can you report alone?”

What?

Yustea lifted Godin by the hair.

Her golden eyes glinted sharply, like a predator.

Godin was momentarily stunned into silence.

Regaining composure, he glared at her.

“What nonsense….”

“Asson Territory, Kanya Territory, and the Rolhaizer Guild and Skashi Hospital Director.”

“…!”

Godin froze.

Even more than when threatened with smashing the vase on his head.

Because the names she listed were all the places Godin had bribed!

Some weren’t even connected to Escarlotte.

Even places his family may not have known received bribes!

But how…!

Godin turned pale, only able to move his lips.

Watching him with a smile, Yustea thought:

Of course, I saw it in the game.

Soon, his corruption would be exposed.

He would be dismissed and await punishment in the underground cell.

Bending her knees to meet his gaze, Yustea smiled sweetly.

“Now, who truly needs to understand their position?”

“…P-please… spare me… spare me… spare me!”

Godin pleaded, rubbing his hands together.

Everyone else watched in stunned silence.

Godin’s subordinates were shocked by this unfamiliar display.

And Antonio and the vice-sect leader…

“Damn impressive.”

Antonio said this, and the vice-sect leader, who normally would have smacked him on the back of the head, quietly nodded.