The golden curtain split the earth, and dazzling holy light sealed off the sky.

From Notasia, looking out toward the place where that sacred aura spread, it was as if an enormous wall had risen from the heart of the plain, imprisoning every sin in the world within it completely—

and then devouring it.

“So it’s that sanctimonious, hypocritical routine again?”

Though it was no longer possible to know from the outside what was happening inside that golden curtain, the Witch of Repentance seemed able to picture the scene anyway. A mocking, sneering smile curled at her lips.

“So they’re going to erase this real history from the world all over again? Just what you’d expect from that false Church...”

Burying history, concealing truth, twisting evil, and preaching twisted doctrine.

That organization called the Life Church was like an enormous malignant tumor attached to the inside of the world, cruelly sucking away the world’s own flesh and blood and pushing everything toward an irreversible abyss.

They were the true sin.

They were the greatest evil.

And yet they were utterly unaware of it.

Instead, they were drunk on the illusion of their own “justice,” arrogantly dreaming of delivering divine punishment to people like them, the true “saviors”...

How laughable.

“Ah... what a beautiful sight, humanity dying miserably in original sin...”

The Witch of Repentance sighed regretfully as she clenched her hand.

“What a pity I can’t watch it in person.”

Of course, even more regrettable was the fact that the hundreds of thousands of humanoid killing beasts she had worked so hard to create had been completely crushed on the plain like this. They had caused no unrest, brought no destruction, and had not even made it into a single city.

It seemed that, after the last time, the Church had become much more practiced at dealing with this sort of thing. They had not given her even the slightest chance to spread this “gospel.”

“But it isn’t over yet.”

“This game is only just beginning.”

The Witch of Repentance began to dance again—leaping, spinning, her skirts flying. Her toes touched down as her blood-red jade feet, stained crimson with blood, skipped among heaps of piled corpses and shattered remains, eerie and beautiful all at once.

When the dance ended, she lightly lifted the hem of her skirt beneath her black robe and gave a graceful curtsy toward the distant, uninvited guests.

“This was only an appetizer to begin with, and its purpose has already been served. So in the second round, I will wait for all of you honored guests in that ancient royal city, where we may witness together... the grand opening before the arrival of the new world.”

...

...

“The wound has already been treated.”

The warm holy light faded, and Liya revealed the kind of gentle smile that set people at ease.

“As long as you rest properly after this, it won’t be anything serious.”

“M-My hands...”

Old Bear stared in shock at his hands. The scorch marks on his palms from the overheated magic cannon, along with the splits at the webbing between his thumb and forefinger from the recoil of the spear, had healed in an instant. There was not even the slightest trace left behind.

“Th-Thank you, Your Holiness!”

As a gang boss from Belrand’s Lower District, Old Bear was suddenly so overwhelmed he could barely speak. For the people at the bottom of the Lower District, his position already seemed impossibly lofty—but when had someone like him ever seen a real figure of such stature as the Saintess from this close?

And not only seen her.

He had personally received treatment from her.

Old Bear could not help tearing up with gratitude. He silently thanked himself for making the right choice earlier. Sure, he had almost kicked the bucket for real, but being healed in person by the Saintess? Once he got back, that was enough bragging material to last him eight lifetimes.

“All right, get some rest first.”

Liya rose from beside the stretcher.

“A little later, one of the sister ladies will come have a chat with you. Until then, get your spirits back up first. Otherwise, it might be a bit much for you.”

“A bit... much?”

Old Bear looked blank.

“Why would it be a burden?”

Could it be one of those sister ladies with huge breasts who liked wearing black garter stockings?

Yeah, that really would be a lot to handle.

“Please don’t let your imagination run wild.”

Liya said, “It’s only a little psychological counseling.”

“Huh? Psychological counseling?”

Old Bear, still feeling pretty good, had not even figured out what sort of counseling that was supposed to be before he saw the man with the mohawk—the one who had spoken to him earlier—go into a little tent with a nun.

Not long after, the man came back out. His face looked healthy and flushed, and his spirits were high. He looked as though he had just spent a pleasant stretch of time with exactly the kind of long-legged, large-chested nun in black garter stockings that Old Bear had imagined.

There was just one problem—

“Brother, where’s your hair?”

Old Bear asked in shock.

“My hair? What hair?”

“Your mohawk! Without that, how am I supposed to tell it’s you?”

“Oh, that.”

The man raised a hand and smoothly combed back his now neat, utterly ordinary center-parted hair. With a look of solemn resolve, he said:

“I am now an upright man purified by holy light. My heart is full of truth, goodness, and beauty. I would never again keep an evil, frivolous hairstyle like a mohawk.”

“Huh?”

Truth... goodness... beauty?

Brother, you were in there ten minutes. You already turned over a new leaf?

Old Bear was so stunned his mouth hung open wide enough to fit an egg.

But before he could recover, he saw the nun who had just finished “counseling” the man look toward him as well, slowly sizing him up.

“You can’t sleep, can you? Would you like to cut in line and get your counseling early?”

“N-No, no... I can sleep. I can sleep just fine...”

Old Bear immediately shrank back onto the stretcher, squeezed his eyes shut, and pretended to be asleep.

But unlike his outward effort at calm, his mind was in complete turmoil.

I have to find a chance to slip away. I have to find a chance to slip away. I have to find a chance to slip away. Important things had to be repeated three times.

He was Old Bear, a Lower District gang boss whose name alone could scare children into tears. How could he possibly turn into some nerd with a center part?

He, Old Bear, had dominated the Lower District without ever reading more than a handful of books. How could he wind up turning into... into...

“No... I don’t want to become a nerd... huff... huff...”

“Hm. Looks like this wide-range hypnosis spell is working quite well.”

Watching Old Bear fall asleep like a dead pig in the blink of an eye, the nun nodded in satisfaction.

Then she immediately straightened herself and gave a slight bow toward Liya, who was standing nearby.

“We’ve troubled Your Holiness far too much. We’re short-handed, and yet we still had to ask Your Holiness to personally heal the wounded.”

“No, this is my duty to begin with.”

Liya gave a small nod, her hands naturally folded at her lower abdomen. Holy light swirled around her, making her appear sacred and noble.

“How is the large-scale dream-suggestion array coming along?”

“It’s more than halfway complete. Once everyone is asleep, we can begin the ‘psychological counseling,’” the nun replied respectfully.

“Do you need my help?”

“No, no. It’s already far too shameful on our part to have made Your Holiness handle the treatment personally. We truly cannot trouble you any further.”

The nun hurried to add:

“Please leave the rest to us.”

“Is that so?”

Liya’s lips curved with natural elegance.

“Don’t overexert yourselves. If you need help with anything, you can call for me at any time.”

“Please rest assured, we will complete the task perfectly.”

“Mhm, how capable.”

Liya praised her sincerely and turned to leave, while the nun watched her back and, recalling the exchange, practically had stars in her eyes from admiration.

“As expected of Her Holiness... She doesn’t blame even dull people like us in the slightest. She’s so kind...”

...

“Your Holiness!”

“Mhm.”

“Good evening, Your Holiness.”

“Good evening.”

“Your Holiness is as perfect as ever today.”

“Thank you.”

“Ah, when will I ever reach Your Holiness’s level?”

“You definitely can. Keep trying.”

Liya walked on, smiling and acknowledging each nun and clergyperson who bowed to her.

After being the Saintess for so long, she had finally grown somewhat accustomed to the worshipful and respectful looks of the people around her. She had also finally grown used to bearing the burden called the Saintess.

In the eyes of outsiders, she was ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ sacred, noble, flawless, pure—the sum of everything beautiful, the Goddess’s agent in the mortal world. And she fulfilled the duties of the Saintess perfectly, guiding countless lost believers.

But in private, in the places outsiders could not see... she still selfishly kept one small part of her truest self hidden away.

“Does Your Holiness have something important to do next?”

“There is something I need to handle personally. Would you guard the outside of the carriage for me and make sure no one disturbs me?”

“Yes!”

The few young nuns who had just been assigned there flushed red with excitement that the Saintess herself had entrusted them with a task.

“We’ll guard it properly!”

“Thank you.”

Liya’s perfect smile spread once more together with the holy radiance around her, as if brightening the whole world.

When she bent down and disappeared through the curtain of the carriage, one of the young nuns could not help pressing a hand to her burning cheek, utterly entranced.

“As expected of the Saintess. She’s so noble and holy. I really want to know what she’s like in private...”

“Dummy!”

Another young nun beside her knocked her lightly on the head.

“Her Holiness is obviously the same inside and out. Whatever she’s like now, she’s the same in private too. Otherwise why would she be the Saintess?”

“That’s true...”

The young nun drifted in admiration for a while longer, then added, “Then what is this thing Her Holiness has to handle personally?”

“That, I don’t know.”

The other young nun stared curiously at the carriage and said with conviction:

“But if it’s something the Saintess has to handle in person... it must be something incredibly important!”

...

...

Inside the carriage.

The Saintess, who was believed to be the same inside and out, had barely sat down before she crossed her lush, long legs in a manner that was extremely unladylike, her toes teasing the girl on the opposite side.

“Oh my.”

“Oh my, oh my...”

Resting the back of her hand against her chin, Liya lifted her lovely head and let out a three-part little devil laugh she had apparently learned from some unknown older schoolmate.

“Why, if it isn’t Miss An—the one who prides herself on being the perfect maid, so poised and graceful, never showing the slightest flaw in her daily life. And yet right now, you look so pitiful. Why, it almost seems...”

Liya’s playful foot rubbed back and forth along An’s thigh.

“...you don’t even have the strength to sit up anymore.”

“...What are you here for?”

An’s face remained expressionless. Forcing herself to hold on by sheer stubbornness, she slapped away that meddling foot, which had absolutely nothing to do with elegance or refinement.

“Shouldn’t you be outside acting like your perfect Saintess self?”

“Heehee. I can be the Saintess whenever I want.”

Liya covered her mouth and laughed softly, then tilted her head with an innocent look that fooled absolutely no one.

“But chances to have a nice, deep talk with Miss An in this condition... don’t come around very often.”