Chapter 40

Saint Aki lost her life in the battle with the dragon.

The dragon, which had been barely slain by the hero Alec, turned into an undead, nearly disrupting the world's peace once again.

However, Alec's fiancée, driven by her desire to save him, awakened to the sacred power. With this newfound strength, the hero Alec defeated the undead dragon.

This marked the birth of the new saint, Rane.

The marriage of the hero and the saint would symbolize peace.

"This is the script to be announced tomorrow."

Rane nodded beside Alec as Clarence explained.

"I understand."

Beside Clarence, Noah, who would continue to assist the crown prince, was busy working.

The second prince and the king of the neighboring country would be tried for attempting to assassinate the hero Alec and the crown prince Clarence by taking advantage of the chaos during the dragon's defeat.

Of course, it couldn't be publicly announced that the second prince used forbidden dark magic to curse the saint and turn the dragon's corpse into an undead.

Tomorrow would be the funeral of Saint Aki and the debut of the new saint, Rane.

Initially, it was planned to only debut Rane, as Aki had been a fallen saint. However, Rane proposed to bury Aki as a formal saint.

She had indeed participated in the party that defeated the demon king and had made significant contributions.

Moreover, Aki's soul, bound by dark magic, still harbored strong delusions. A purification ritual was necessary.

After the funeral, the country would observe a year of mourning for the saint.

The marriage of the crown prince and Rine, and Alec and Rane, would also be postponed for a year, as it would take that long to prepare.

Due to Aki's funeral, Rane's debut would not be as grand.

Clarence apologized for this, but given that the neighboring country had lost many lives to the dragon, it was better not to have a grand event.

"Rane, are you okay?"

Alec, looking worried, peered into her face as she was lost in thought.

"Yes, of course."

Rane smiled and replied.

Alec was a very affectionate person, and now that his sister Rine had left the nest, all his affection was directed towards his fiancée, Rane.

There was no longer any doubt about his affection.

"It's fine. I'll be with you all the time tomorrow."

He said this, perhaps thinking she was anxious.

"...Okay."

Rane's dress for tomorrow was, of course, the light purple one she had made earlier. She was finally able to show it to Alec.

Her parents would also attend the debut. They had tailored formal attire at Mary's shop and seemed well-prepared, so she had spent the morning relaxing.

"It's you who's amazing, not us."

"Yes, we'll just be there to see our daughter's big day."

Her parents were even laughing about it.

It made her happy to see her mother, who had cried so much when she was jilted by Eider, now smiling.

Her parents, who had initially been bewildered by the large house, had now become accustomed to it.

Her mother, who had initially hesitated to live together before marriage, had changed her mind, thinking that such a large house wouldn't be a problem. She was busily making the house more livable, planting flowers and vegetables in the large garden, and taking care of the household in place of Sally, who had become Rine's maid and moved to the castle.

Her father had apparently found a job in the capital and was working for a large trading company. Although he was keeping his identity as the father of a saint and future father-in-law of a hero a secret, he seemed to enjoy his work.

Thinking about all this, Clarence's voice rang out.

"That's the end of the meeting. Rine wants to see you, so if you have time, please visit her."

"Of course."

Rane readily accepted Clarence's offer and headed to Rine's room. Alec, who still had some things to discuss, would come to Rine's room later.

"Rane, welcome. I'm glad you came."

Rine, who used to hug Rane as soon as she entered the room, now greeted her with a refined smile.

"You seem to be doing well."

When Rane said this, Rine nodded with a slightly exasperated look.

"Yes. I have to fit in with people who have lived this way since birth. I'm a little regretful that I took Clarence's hand."

Even as she said this, Rine wasn't truly regretful. Rane smiled, knowing this.

"What about those young ladies?"

"They're the same. They say nasty things, but it's not like they're trying to kill me. If it gets worse, I'll tell my brother, so it's fine."

"Clarence, not your fiancé?"

Rine, who had been asked this lightly, shook her head with a troubled look.

"Even as a royal family, we can't complain to other nobles just because a fiancé is being harassed. Especially now that the queen is under house arrest, Clarence's position is complicated."

The queen, Clarence's birth mother, had been removed from the castle due to her involvement in the second prince's crimes.

If she were no longer queen, the next queen would be the mother of the third prince, making him the heir.

"The third prince, Cron, admires his brother and wants to become a knight, so I'm not worried."

"Is that so?"

Being a royal fiancé seemed to come with many worries.

Still, Rine would continue to work hard on the path she had chosen.

"Hey, Rine, when did you start liking Clarence?"

When Rane asked this, Rine's white cheeks turned a light pink, and she said shyly,

"Since the first time I met him. It was love at first sight. My parents apparently fell in love at first sight too, so it must run in the family."

Perhaps they were passionate.

Rane, who had taken a long time to realize her own feelings, tilted her head.

"My brother is the same. He apparently fell in love with you at first sight."

"R-really?"

She placed her hands on her cheeks, which were surely as red as Rine's.

She had been told that he had been attracted to her since he proposed, but she hadn't expected it to be love at first sight.

The next day,

Saint Aki's funeral was held solemnly.

Only the commoners, who had no direct connection to Aki, mourned her death. For those who knew her character and the cause of her death, it was a purification ritual to prevent her soul from becoming a malevolent spirit.

Rane, dressed in black, had been casting purification magic since the start of the ceremony. Alec was by her side, assisting her with the purification magic.

Alec, who possessed extraordinary magical power but was not particularly skilled at magic, could only cast basic spells. However, by transferring his excess magical power to Rane, she was able to maintain the purification magic for a long time.

This must have freed Aki's soul from the curse.

Eider did not attend his wife's funeral.

Although his wounds had been healed by healing magic, his hands, which had been eaten by the dragon, could not be regenerated, and he was reportedly in a daze upon realizing he could no longer wield a sword. She prayed for his recovery, but they would likely never meet again.

After the funeral, it was time for Rane's debut as the new saint.

With Sally's help, sent by Rine, Rane put on her new dress.

(Finally, I can show it to Alec...)

She put on the light purple dress made by Mary, fixed her hair, and applied light makeup.

When she was ready and stood before Alec, he squinted and looked at her.

"It suits you. You look very beautiful."

"Thank you."

The maids who had helped her, including Sally, had also told her she looked beautiful many times.

But Alec's words were special.

"Finally, I can see you in that dress."

"I'm happy you can see it too."

Rane's finger wore the engagement ring Alec had given her. The gemstone set in it was a sapphire as blue as Alec's eyes. Their engagement would be officially announced today.

Thus, with Clarence and Rine, and her parents watching, Rane was officially recognized as the new saint by the king.

Since the country was in mourning for Saint Aki, no grand ball was held for the debut. Rane and Alec appeared before the gathered people and greeted them.

Among them were several familiar faces.

People from her village.

They all looked as if they wanted to say something, but there was no chance for them to speak with Rane from a distance.

Rane also had nothing to say to them.

She only wished for the peace of the village where she had grown up.

After the funeral and debut, Rane returned to the mansion with her parents.

"Are you tired?"

After changing, Rane headed to the living room, where Alec was waiting. She took his outstretched hand without hesitation.

"No, I'm fine."

Because it was also a funeral for a saint, the debut had been kept simple. The country would observe a year of mourning for the saint.

They sat side by side on the sofa.

"It seems the daughter of the former king of the neighboring country has ascended the throne."

"The queen?"

"Yes. Previously, women were not allowed to ascend, so that man became king. But with no other heirs, they changed the law."

"I see..."

The former king of the neighboring country, who had been handed over, was executed without trial due to the severity of his crimes and the overwhelming evidence.

An apology, compensation, and a reward for the dragon's defeat had been sent by the new queen, but this would not be made public.

In any case, it was all over.

Rane wanted to take a break and let Alec rest after the intense battle with the dragon.

However, early the next morning, a messenger from the king arrived.

"Alec?"

"It seems a Fenrir has appeared in the northern country. We need to go and defeat it."

"I'm coming too!"

She stopped Alec, who seemed ready to leave immediately, and said this. She had become a saint to help Alec in such times.

He looked a bit surprised but soon nodded.

"Yes, that's right. Let's go together."

Rane quickly prepared for the journey and left the capital in the afternoon. She left the mansion in the care of her parents and didn't even inform Rine and Clarence, thinking they would know.

As a hero and a saint, it was their duty to fulfill their roles.

They crossed into the northern country and defeated the Fenrir. The only thing that confused them was the unfamiliar climate of the northern country; the monster hunting was quickly over.

After returning, the next destination was the desert country.

They formed hunting parties in each country and traveled around, defeating monsters that could not be defeated by the locals.

Despite this, spending time with Alec made Rane happy. If she hadn't awakened to the power of the saint, they would have been separated for a long time.

Before she knew it, a year had passed, and the mourning period for Saint Aki was almost over.