Chapter 74

EP.74 Adult-1

After a time of sobbing and tears, everyone gradually calmed down.

"Um... Excuse me..."

Leo, who had been calmly observing, slowly opened his mouth.

"...Ah... Yes. Rely on me as much as you want."

Though grateful, that wasn't the intention behind his words.

"I wanted to ask about the sword Aria held at the end..."

Only then did everyone wipe away their tears and shift the topic of conversation. It was a stark reminder that these crybabies were indeed the descendants of the hero Reinhardt.

"That... As you might guess... it's a holy sword."

As expected. A ceremonial sword that possessed such powerful and sacred energy could only be a holy sword.

[But you mean a holy sword flew over during the duel? Has that happened before?]

<No way.>

In his previous life, Aria's method of drawing the holy sword was extremely orthodox, like the previous hero.

Exactly at the age of twenty, after receiving a revelation from the temple, a priest and a holy knight appointed Aria as a hero.

After a year of training at the temple, Aria drew the holy sword from its resting place in Reinhardt.

[Ending the temple training in just a year doesn't sound orthodox at all, does it?]

<It's Aria, after all.>

[Ah, then I'll accept that.]

It was an explanation that made sense because Aria was Aria.

However, the current situation was actually an unexpected variable for Leonardo.

Receiving the holy sword's choice five years earlier than expected, and without any training, was hard to understand.

Especially since the holy sword didn't just appear; it flew to her hand on its own, which felt even more peculiar.

[It's Aria, so you should understand.]

<That's right. It's Aria.>

In this all-encompassing way, Leo and the sage seemed to understand each other.

Most importantly, it was Aria.

"Then... did a divine revelation or oracle come down?"

In response to Leo's question, the head of the family, Gladio, nodded.

"The temple has also been in contact. To be precise, they contacted us right after the holy sword was drawn."

[...Right after it was drawn? It seems even the gods are playing catch-up now.]

An invisible ghost muttered something impious, but since it was just the ramblings of a nearly dead ghost, there was no need to react.

"Then, will a priest from the temple come?"

"...Yes. They've already sent someone from the temple."

There was only one person from the temple who could receive the holy sword's revelation.

"Holy person..."

"Yes, to be precise, the holy person candidate, Lumen Angelus, is coming."

Lumen Angelus

The current holy person candidate and, in his previous life, a priest who truly became a holy person.

"Do you know him? Leo?"

"Yes, I've heard rumors."

Rumors, perhaps, but in reality, he was the person who provided the most assistance after Aria's death.

[You know him well, don't you?]

<After Aria's death, during the great crisis, he was the only one who directly helped me.>

Despite being injured, he treated me without a word, kept my location and information confidential, and even came to dangerous areas at times.

[Didn't you get help from the family?]

<Not exactly.>

In that situation, getting help from the Reinhardt family was impossible.

[Why? Because of guilt again...]

<Because I wiped out the entire council.>

[...Eh...?]

Seeing Aria's death, Leo almost went mad with anger and started killing those involved one by one.

The old men of the council were among them.

<...I don't think I did a good thing, and I paid a heavy price for it.>

Not only could he not receive help from the Reinhardt family, but a nationwide manhunt was issued, and Leo was pursued by knights and bounty hunters.

[...You kneel and pour water for the people you killed?]

<If I did that, I'd have to do it for everyone I passed on the street... And seeing the council members, I don't feel that sorry.>

Honestly, if anyone should feel sorry, it's the family members. The old men in the back room were better off dead.

[Scary kid...!]

<When have I ever been so obedient? >

[That's true, but...]

He had no intention of forgetting his sins, but he also didn't want to be bound by the past. Forgetting sins binds you, and being bound by the past makes you ignore fear.

"...What kind of person is this holy person...?"

Ariasfel, who seemed a bit curious, asked cautiously. The sage also seemed curious and listened intently.

"...Hmm... They say he's like an angel? In many ways."

"...Like an angel?"

"Indeed, a very accurate summary. When I first met him, I thought an angel had descended."

"Ah, I remember my aunt going to the temple and throwing a tantrum because she couldn't use the holy sword..."

Crack

The price for speaking lightly was a quick chance to have his airway crushed. I'll have to express my condolences to Rios later.

"...An angel... So, he must be... handsome, right?"

Ariasfel mumbled "angel" a few times and then asked about the holy person's appearance. Perhaps, as a woman, she was interested in such things?

"Yes, I saw him in a newspaper once... He was really handsome."

"Truly like an angel. I heard he has a very kind and excellent character."

"...I see. So, he's really handsome and kind...?"

What is this cold feeling?

Aria's smile seemed to carry a subtle sense of malice and hatred.

[Jealousy.]

<...What? Why?>

Why are you suddenly jealous? And of Lumen?

[If you knew, this whole mess wouldn't have happened. In many ways.]

I don't understand what he's saying.

I don't see any reason to be jealous, and especially, why be jealous of a holy person?

<You'll change your mind when you meet him. Lumen is a really good person.>

[Yeah, as long as he doesn't start swinging the holy sword.]

It was a sarcastic remark. How could you kill a holy person with a holy sword?

'Nah... It can't be...'

But why do I feel uneasy?

I want to think it's just fatigue from my injuries. I have to think that.

***

Time passed, and we received word that the holy person had arrived.

Unlike the family members who always show up suddenly, giving us time to prepare seemed to be a sign of his considerate nature.

As guests, we waited in the front garden of the mansion to receive him.

[But is he really that good? Priests and those justice types are always hypocrites, right?]

The sage, unable to manifest a spirit, tried to communicate telepathically.

It would have been nice if he always talked like this, but I decided to answer his question first.

<To be honest, I thought the same at first.>

To Leo, who had become bitter from his mercenary life and hardships, typical ethical and moral talk sounded like meaningless noise.

<But when I met him, he turned out to be a good person.>

I realized this when we had dinner at a restaurant not long after our first meeting.

<When a waiter accidentally spilled a hot soup bowl on Lumen, breaking it.>

Lumen suffered minor burns from the hot soup and cuts from the broken shards.

Even if he wasn't a short-tempered person, it would have been understandable to get angry, but Lumen,

<First, he wiped his eyes with a napkin and cleaned the spilled soup.>

That was common sense, but what followed was beyond kindness, it was astonishing.

<He then treated the waiter's injuries and helped clean up the mess.>

All this with a serene expression, without a single frown.

[Kindness that gives me the creeps?]

<But it had a somewhat human ending.>

After the meal, on our way back, the waiter and his group were still making noise and showing no signs of remorse.

-That woman got us in trouble with the manager. We even got our pay cut...

-Yeah, that's what happens with a priest. A few kind words and they're treated like gods.

-She's rich but didn't even leave a tip... Damn...

-But she looked so easy. I should ask her out sometime...

-'Oh, you're right. What a damn good point.'

And they were very right.

While Leo personally gave them a makeover with his fists as payment for their noise, Lumen followed the commotion into an alley.

[Did he say something like a holy person's lecture?]

<No, he helped with the beating.>

[...What...?]

More precisely, the treatment after the beating. He understood the anger and the desire to punish, so he let Leo go all out.

Since the injuries would be healed, there was no way to report it, so it was an added bonus.

[...Oh, a decent human being for a priest.]

<We both grew up as orphans, so we understood each other well. His only flaw might be that he talks to himself a lot.>

But that's part of his religious life, so I understood. He even said he sometimes received revelations that way.

[Extremes meet, I guess?]

It was clearly a sarcastic comment, but it didn't feel too bad. Leo actually agreed with it.

If etiquette and dignity were learned from Alfred, then character and ethics were learned from Lumen.

[...Do you like him so much that you're cold to Aria?]

<...What? I like her, but...>

I like him as a person, but I can't like him in a romantic way. I'm not sure if it's even possible with a professional priest.

[...Is he a man?]

The sage, who had misunderstood based on the previous description, was now confused.

<Yes, he is.>

Lumen Angelus is often mistaken for a woman due to his title and appearance, but he is definitely a man.

[...What? Isn't it usually a holy woman?]

<Over the past 300 years, saints have occasionally appeared, so the title was unified. It's also less discriminatory.>

Of course, Lumen is exceptional even among them.

<What about the holy women in your time, Sage? >

Come to think of it, there must have been holy women and saints in the sage's time, so there might be some connection. If there was, it could be an interesting story...

[A crazy woman.]

Yeah, I didn't expect much.

[Not just cursing, but a real crazy woman. A fanatic and a masochist...]

At that moment, a trumpet sounded. The sound of the trumpet was followed by the opening of the mansion's main gate, and a simple carriage entered.

<He's here.>

Everyone's guard slightly relaxed as the simple carriage arrived, and then a holy knight got out and opened the carriage door.

"...Wings?"

One of the knights muttered, seeing the wings extending from the carriage. They were clearly wings, white and feathered, not arms.

Soon, the owner of the wings fully emerged from the carriage.

"Have you arrived, Holy Person Lumen Angelus?"

Long blonde hair that reached below his neck, emerald green eyes like jewels, and most notably, wings that seemed to belong naturally to his back.

"Ah, hello. Head of the Gladio family. Since I'm still a candidate, you don't have to use such a heavy title."

Lumen greeted the head of the Reinhardt family and the knights with a composed smile, ignoring the gazes directed at his wings.

"Really... an angel...?"

Even Ariasfel, who was usually composed, looked surprised as she alternated her gaze between Lumen and his wings.

"He must be a bird therianthrope."

"Bird... like a bird therianthrope?"

"Yes, similar to the case of Brother Dean."

Therianthropes like Brother Dean, who are wolf-human hybrids, are well-known, but rare therianthropes like lizardmen or harpies, which are reptilian or avian, also exist.

Lumen was a case of a therianthrope born through a genetic mutation.

[...What... Why...]

The sage looked shocked, as if he had seen an impossible contradiction.

<To be honest, I thought he was a woman at first.>

Leo was also shocked to learn he was a man when they went to the bathroom together.

[Why is that kid here...!]

<...What?>

Leo looked around. There was no one the sage hadn't seen in the mansion, so the person who surprised him must be one of the outsiders.

<Is it that holy knight?>

Lumen seemed unrelated, so the only one left was the holy knight. If I had to guess, it was the holy knight...

[No, the winged woman!!]

<...You know Lumen? How...>

[Not Lumen, the other one...!! The one with the bombed personality!!]

How do you identify someone by their bombed personality? Besides, the only person with wings was Lumen.

<No, I mean, is there another person with wings...>

[Close your eyes. I'll show you if you can't see.]

<...What? Okay... I can do that...>

Leo closed his eyes and waited for the sage to tell him to open them.

[Open them.]

<Okay. How...>

Thud

What he saw were the fingers of a ghost.

A spirit that usually couldn't be touched was now clearly visible. Pain and a sensation of his eyes being pushed in followed.

"AAAAH!! My eyes...!! My eyes...!! Ahh...!!"

That crazy old man, the sage...!!

"Leo?!"

"Are you okay?! Did the aftereffects worsen?!"

The family members rushed to Leo's scream, and Lumen, being a priest, also ran over.

"Are you okay? Is there a problem with your eyes?"

Lumen asked, opening Leo's eyelids with his fingers.

"...No... It was... sudden..."

At that moment, Leo, who was in pain, saw another pair of wings.

Not just wings, but a floating figure with a golden halo, like...

[...A holy woman. One who met me over 300 years ago.]

<...A holy woman?>

A holy woman who had been dead for hundreds of years was here?

[Angela Lucifer, the crazy woman I mentioned earlier.]

By Lumen's side was a holy woman who had become an angel.

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