Chapter 6

"Indeed, it's a story that even a maiden can't bear to hear."

Gurdo said gently. No, I can bear it, though? Makoto raised her chin.

"You are the first saint who has endured, Maki."

"I often move my body, so I'm used to injuries. But Chiharu is cautious and always steady, so I think she couldn't bear it, ah."

A gem fell from Makoto's forehead.

"What should we do with this?"

"This is a much better magic stone than those from the dungeon. Some saints were reluctant to sell something that came from their bodies, so I won't force you, but it would help if you could sell it."

"Hmm."

Makoto's eyes sparkled.

"Chiharu, Chiharu!"

"Umm, no."

Maki shook Chiharu, who was leaning on Airis on the sofa for some reason.

"It can be sold, this!"

"Maki, don't be so rough."

Airis scolded her. What's with this person? Is she in charge of Chiharu? But, there's no choice. If I don't wake her up now, I'll be the one to get scolded later.

"Chiharu!"

"…It can be sold?"

Chiharu's eyes widened.

"I thought I heard it can be sold."

"It can be sold."

Chiharu looked at the gem in Makoto's palm and frowned a little. Still, she looked at the king and said:

"How much is it worth?"

"…!"

The king was speechless with surprise.

"Ah, do you not understand? Well, this, money, sell, how much?"

"Chiharu, I understand. I was just a bit surprised, that's all."

The king rubbed his forehead.

"Just one of these can power a magic stone train for a month. With this size, it's worth about a million gil."

"How much is a million gil?"

"You use en in your country, right? Chancellor!"

The chancellor stepped forward.

"If you have a place to live, a family of four can live comfortably with 200,000 a month."

"I see, so it's about the same as yen, right?"

Chiharu nodded.

"That's great. We should be fine for a while."

"I'm relieved, Chiharu."

"Wait, wait, what are you talking about?"

The king said hurriedly. Chiharu and Makoto looked puzzled and said:

"Because we need to earn a living."

"We also want to travel."

The king sighed and rubbed his forehead again. Gurdo had been laughing all along.

"Listen well. You are saints summoned by the gods. You are purifying the world with your lives. All the territories of the Day World are grateful and praise you."

"Is that so?"

"Is that so, Maki? Well, never mind. First, you have a place to live."

"Really, with a house! Yes!"

The king stood Chiharu and Makoto up and led them to the window.

"Look, that palace over there, can you see it?"

"Wow, it's cute with white walls."

"An orchard, a field? And a garden too."

"That's the Saint Palace, where you will live."

The two looked puzzled, then smiled and high-fived.

"What's that?"

Gurdo asked.

"It's a pose we do when we're happy or having fun, to share with our friends."

Makoto explained.

"Hmm, can you do it with me?"

"Sure, here."

*Clap!*

"This is fun."

"Chiharu, with me too."

"Airis, sir? Here."

*Clap!*

"Ah, this is good."

"Chiharu, with me too."

"Sure, Edwy."

"Edwy and…"

"…Edwy."

*Clap!* Edwy smiled happily.

"The king?"

"I'm fine."

Makoto looked at Zainus.

"Alright."

*Clap!* Zainus high-fived but his tail was wagging. Makoto and Zainus smiled at each other.

"Are you calm now?"

"\"Yes\""

"Your food, clothing, and shelter are guaranteed. In addition, you will receive a monthly allowance. It's a million a month, Sera."

"That's correct. However, most of the previous saints didn't use much and left a large fortune."

"You can use it freely as long as it doesn't harm the people. Do you understand now?"

The two nodded.

"There are other things to talk about, but let's stop here for today. When you're ready to listen, please let me know. It would help if you could do it sooner."

"\"Understood\""

"Chiharu, Maki."

"\"Yes?\""

"I can't apologize, but I truly appreciate you coming to our world."

The king bowed deeply. The others followed suit.

We can't say it's fine or that we don't mind. Because what we lost can't be replaced. The two were silent, just nodding. That's enough for now.

For some reason, Airis, Zainus, and the prince accompanied Makoto and Chiharu back to their room. Makoto suddenly stopped.

"Chiharu, it's not a good idea to go to the room now."

"You're right. Sera?"

"What is it?"

"We want to have lunch outside. Can you prepare it for us?"

"Of course. The Saint Palace is well-maintained, but would you like to go there?"

"No, please prepare it nearby. Is it okay to go there now?"

Sera immediately gave instructions to another person.

"Then we will take our leave here."

"Goodbye."

"Eh, together?"

"Prince."

Airis and Zainus quietly left with the prince, who wanted to come along.

"It was a good opportunity to talk closely. I know some good places too."

To the disappointed prince, Airis said quietly:

"Edwy, don't be misled by their apparent cheerfulness. It took at least a month for previous saints to talk about the mark on their foreheads. They did it in one day."

"But the mark of the saint is beautiful."

"Even you, if a gem suddenly grew on your palm, how would you feel?"

"That's…"

The prince looked at his palm.

"I wouldn't like it."

"Especially for women. It's not something they can accept."

"But they have enough energy to go outside."

Airis sighed.

"They must feel stifled in the room."

"Stifled…"

"They might think too much about unnecessary things. The best thing to do in such times is to go out into the sunlight. Maki and Chiharu have a mindset similar to elves."

"In such times, they probably don't want unfamiliar people around."

"Zainus, is that so?"

"That's so. Don't rush, Edwy. Maki and Chiharu will eventually find a way to cope."

"Yes."

Edwy smiled slightly, though a bit discontentedly.

"Still, 'How much is it?' I've never seen Father speechless before."

"Indeed. It was quite a sight."

Zainus chuckled. The worries of the Day World were cleared. Looking out the window, Maki and Chiharu were slowly heading to the garden. May the worries of the saints also be cleared. He prayed softly.

The story returned to the forehead.