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Chapter 9
Seiri frowned and spoke sharply, and the child, as if in defiance, cried even louder.
When the child’s wailing showed no sign of stopping, Seiri made a troubled face.
After a moment of uncertainty, she spread her fingers, ready to use magic that children liked. But nothing happened. Her hands quickly folded back.
“Ah, this won’t work… huh…”
Whenever flames burst from her palms, any crying child would instantly stop. She had forgotten that her current situation was different from before.
Seiri glanced around. Seeing the floor scattered with purple flowers, an idea struck her. She snapped off a long stem, looped it, and tied it together.
Snap.
The child’s black eyes, once full of tears, now sparkled with curiosity. Seiri placed the flower necklace around the child’s neck.
The child seemed to like the purple flowers and smiled brightly. Seiri’s heart melted at the warm smile, and she didn’t even notice Raiden approaching nearby as she smiled back.
“You seem unharmed.”
“The child is fine.”
“I meant you.”
Seiri narrowed her brows for a moment and flinched at Raiden’s face. They had only ever fought to take each other’s lives and never worried about one another. Now, he was asking about her condition with that expression—it was almost laughable.
“I’m fine. It’s just a scratch…”
“You’re hurt.”
“W-what are you doing?!”
Raiden, examining Seiri’s arm, grabbed it and lifted it. Seiri hadn’t noticed, but a little blood was seeping from below her elbow.
“You claim to be the Great Saint, yet you can’t even take care of your own body?”
“And what do you want me to do about it?”
Seiri glared at Raiden and tried to pull her arm free—but he held on firmly.
“Since the Saint cannot properly care for herself, perhaps the Emperor should do it personally.”
“Let go! It’s nothing, I’ll be fine.”
Seiri pulled her arm free again. She had never experienced anyone worrying about her injuries or actually treating them. Experiencing it now felt strangely awkward and unsettling.
“If you get hurt, it’s normal to treat it. Why put up unnecessary resistance? Is receiving my attention really that overwhelming for you?”
“Hah! Overwhelming? I’m not doing it!”
Seiri was frustrated that she couldn’t push the Emperor away or use her powers on him.
“What does he think gives him the audacity to act so shamelessly? Even in the demon world, he’d be infamous for being slick. And of course, this idiot got caught…”
Just then, Leno hurriedly ran up and sat down beside Seiri.
“Saint! I didn’t even realize you had dismounted! Even though you’re not well, you’re handling this…”
Hearing Leno speak, Seiri suddenly realized something.
Her body? She had felt suffocated while riding the horse, but now she was fine.
“Why is this happening? Is it because of that blessing thing earlier?”
“You’re truly amazing. I deeply respect you, Saint.”
“W-what…”
Frozen respect? For what?
Yet she had no retort.
“Thanks to you, we were able to save the child. You wanted to perform good deeds, and even in this situation, you succeeded.”
“Saving the child counts as a good deed?”
“Yes, of course.”
Seiri glanced at her wrist. The dark red that had filled her veins was gone. She clicked her tongue.
“Children, whether human or demon, must always be protected. What kind of ‘good deed’ is this? Ridiculous…”
“Oh, divine heavens…”
She muttered to Ferdinando, but Leno, wearing the same expression as the three foolish brothers, made the sign of the cross on his forehead and murmured a prayer.
“What a mess they make.”
It was no wonder that the unusual power the Saint had used earlier had no effect on Seiri—thanks to Ferdinando, she was practically immune.
Even so, rescuing the girl under the horse had been somewhat dangerous.
Not to mention that she couldn’t fly, but she hadn’t accounted for how much slower her body moved than before.
She had escaped by sheer luck. If she didn’t adapt to this weakened body, she might not survive another year.
As Seiri pondered this, Raiden stepped forward, seemingly pleased.
“I’ve heard troubling events occurred in nearby villages. If you know anything, tell us.”
But the child did not answer. Instead, she closed her eyes and smiled mysteriously, behaving in a way that puzzled everyone.
She sat on the grass, gently rubbing her protruding lower belly, resembling a heavily pregnant woman.
Raiden, Leno, and Verdi didn’t understand, but Seiri’s expression changed—she knew exactly what it meant.
“No way…”
Seiri quickly laid the child on the ground and lifted her shirt. Everyone was horrified—not because of Seiri’s sudden action, but because of the child’s abdomen.
The lower belly was bulging with a dark, mysterious mass, wriggling as if it were about to burst out.
“Damn them!”
Leno shouted in panic.
“W-what is this? I’ve never seen anything like it!”
“This is the work of demons.”
“Demons?”
“…!”
Seiri gritted her teeth.
This cruel, abnormal practice primarily targeted children and had once been common in the demon world. Seiri, who cared deeply for children, utterly despised it.
After becoming a Saint herself, she had managed to ban it entirely with the Demon King’s approval. Since then, the power had disappeared completely.
“What is inside the child’s belly?”
“A demon seed. It parasitizes the body, using it as a host for a soulless demon. Children, whose bodies are more compatible, are often chosen as hosts.”
“H-how does the demon benefit from this?”
“The demon hatches fully grown from the child’s body. It has adult abilities and a fully developed body, but its mind is blank. It can be controlled entirely by whoever raises it.”
The demon emerging from the child’s body causes immense pain and death to the host. Seiri’s forehead twitched in fury.
“Who dares bring a power I banned into the human world?”
“What should we do? I’ve never encountered anything like this…”
Leno was understandably flustered by this unprecedented situation. Seiri pointed toward Verdi, who had been observing from a few steps back.
“You there, girl. Come here.”
“Me…?”
“Yes. You.”
Verdi, destined to be the Empire’s second-ranking Saint and a young lady from a prestigious family, was being treated like a servant by a stranger of uncertain status. Her pride was utterly crushed. But having recently been scolded by Raiden, she couldn’t act on impulse.
Reluctantly, she trudged over to Seiri.
“You can purify the abnormally mutated demonic energy, right?”
“Yes, but if the Great Saint does it, wouldn’t you prove your power here without even going to the village?”
“I don’t know how. So you do it.”
“What? You’re saying an advanced Saint can do it, but you can’t? Do you know what that means—ghyaa!?”
Before Verdi could finish, Seiri grabbed her by the collar, cutting her off.
“I can’t do it, so you will! The seed inside the host lasts a maximum of three days. We don’t know when it’ll tear out of the body. Every second counts, so do it now!”
“H-huh?!”
Seiri yanked Verdi close, shouting. Verdi was shocked and panicked.
She had never been overpowered like this, nor shouted at so loudly face-to-face. Not even the Emperor had done this.
Fear and shock consumed her. The woman in front of her glared with red eyes, as if ready to devour her, and Verdi felt an overwhelming urge to collapse and cry.
“…Hngh.”
Verdi suppressed the tears and extended her trembling hands forward.
“Now… purify.”
Paaaah! The white light from Seiri’s hands poured into the child’s belly. The swelling gradually shrank, returning to normal.
As soon as the black seed fell out, Seiri crushed it with her fist.
“Phew… done.”
With the child now peacefully asleep, Seiri exhaled in relief. Verdi, utterly drained, collapsed to the ground.
“W-what just… huh.”
No one had ever dared treat the only child of a noble countess this way.
Saints, school instructors, even high-ranking officials usually bowed first. On birthdays, nobles vied to send gifts. A mere stain on her fine clothing would result in the maid responsible being punished.
Yet now, her collar was grabbed, someone had shouted at her until her ears rang, threatened her life, and overpowered her. This was all new.
Her heart raced violently.
Perhaps sensing her despair, the Great Saint called her.
“You, silver-haired human.”
Startled, Verdi responded instinctively, raising her voice.
“Y-yes?!!”
“Not bad for a human.”
“W-what do you mean?”
“Better than low-tier divine beings. You’re surprisingly capable for a human.”
“Huh?”
