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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: A Golden Revelation
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“Do you have any idea why there’s talk of stripping the Saintess of her title and putting Cardinal Bael on trial if she can’t use her divine power by her fifth birthday?”
And that Saintess’s fifth birthday was less than a month away.
For a divine revelation to happen with such timing…
The High Priest thought the situation was all too obvious.
“The Master of the Magic Tower is close with Cardinal Bael, so he must have had the Saintess fake a revelation.”
‘Or maybe he caught wind of something and is using the Saintess to snoop around.’
Either way, it was unwelcome.
The High Priest stared at the firmly shut door of the prayer room and swallowed hard.
If the Saintess had come with anyone else, he could have made up a plausible excuse to send her away.
But the Master of the Magic Tower was not a man to be trifled with, so a clumsy approach was out of the question.
“…I’ll have to handle this myself.”
* * *
The priest who had left returned and guided Axel and me to the great temple.
It was where all the temple’s official events, including worship services, were held.
As we entered, a middle-aged priest stood before the altar to greet us.
“Master of the Magic Tower. Saintess.”
The middle-aged priest bowed his head respectfully.
“I am the High Priest of this temple. It is an infinite honor to have such esteemed individuals visit our humble abode.”
Axel and I secretly exchanged disgusted looks.
Unlike the priest at the entrance, who had been wary but seemed naive, this High Priest looked vile at first glance.
He rubbed his hands together incessantly like a mosquito, a clear sign he was adept at groveling to get on people’s good side.
‘Yikes. He’s going to rub his fingerprints off at this rate.’
But there was no need to refuse someone so willing to grovel.
Axel stood with his arms crossed, looking down at the High Priest.
“The priest at the entrance said we couldn’t come inside.”
“Yes. A certain individual has rented the temple for a week. He requested a blessing ceremony for his sick son.”
“A blessing ceremony for a sick son? Does the temple close its doors for such private matters?”
“The story was so heartbreaking that all the priests decided to lend their hearts to the cause. We locked the doors out of concern that the blessing ceremony might be disturbed…”
The High Priest, who had been looking only at Axel, turned to me with a broad smile.
“But when we heard the Saintess had received a revelation, how could we, as men of the cloth, stand idly by?”
The High Priest bent down to match my short stature, meeting my eyes.
A benevolent-looking smile was plastered on his face, but his eyes were cold.
He was treating me with respect for now, calling me ‘Saintess,’ but it was obvious he was thinking, ‘A revelation? You?’
‘He was so cautious when he looked at Axel.’
He probably thought he didn't need to be so careful with a child.
“Saintess. This is the great temple, a place said to be closest to God. To speak a falsehood before this altar is to invite divine punishment.”
“Okay.”
“What revelation did you receive from Heaven? If you truly received one, you would surely be willing to tell us, would you not?”
The High Priest pressed me, giving me no time to answer.
There was no better way to attack a slow-witted child.
“If, however, no such thing occurred, and you are using God’s name in vain to speak of a revelation…”
The High Priest gestured to the priest who had been guarding the entrance, who then hurriedly opened the great temple’s doors.
A group of holy knights in white uniforms poured through the opening.
There were well over ten of them.
“A lying Saintess must be punished. We will seize you at once… and put you on trial before the divine court of Kidsha!”
The High Priest’s eyes glared fiercely as he made a “Roar!” sound, feigning to be a beast about to devour me.
‘Oh no, so scary!’
Is that what he thought I’d think?
Well… Lesia, without memories of her past life, would have probably been terrified.
Seeing me stand there with my lips sealed, the High Priest smirked, thinking his threat had worked.
“Are you trying to intimidate the Saintess?”
Axel, who had been watching silently, asked threateningly with his arms still crossed, but the sly High Priest simply chuckled and bowed his head.
“Of course not. A revelation from Heaven is a matter of great importance, so I am merely being cautious. If the Saintess is not lying, then there should be no problem, correct?”
The High Priest’s eyes flashed as he spoke to me.
“Now then. Please tell us. What revelation did you receive? God is watching, so do not even think of lying.”
The High Priest pointed a finger toward the sky.
It wasn't a grand revelation, but I certainly had a message from up there.
“He told me to donate to the temple. So I brought lots of gold coins here.”
I held out the piggy bank I had been clutching in my arms toward the High Priest.
“Aha. A call for donations.”
The High Priest stood crookedly, as if about to burst into laughter, and tilted his head.
“Rather modest for a revelation, isn’t it? Are you saying Heaven sent such a message? Do you have proof?”
“Proof…”
“Yes. A sign of the revelation. God always leaves a sign when he bestows a revelation.”
“The sign is…”
The High Priest arrogantly tilted his head, as if telling me to go on.
His eyes held the conviction that he had his opponent completely cornered.
I suppressed a laugh and summoned the message window only I could see into the air.
The conviction and forgiveness of Hanna.
Two message windows that had appeared after I completed the two quests.
‘I still haven’t claimed the rewards from back then!’
Which meant that if I chose ‘Yes’ right here and now to claim the rewards…
*Clatter-clatter-clatter-clatter-clatter!*
Gold coins would pour from the sky like a torrential downpour!
And right on top of that sly High Priest’s head.
‘Here, take this!’
230,000, all in gold coins!
“Aargh! Wh-what is this! Whoa!”
The High Priest flailed in surprise under the sudden assault of gold coins.
‘Heh. When I completely buried Noah, it was 50,000 coins that rained down.’
This was a far greater amount than back then.
“Ack! Oof! Ugh!”
As the High Priest flailed helplessly under the bombardment of gold, I smiled with childlike innocence.
“Wow! It’s proof! Gold coins with holy marks!”
You asked for proof, didn’t you?
As I threw my hands up in a cheer, the High Priest’s face went pale.
“Ugh! Help… someone…! Stop, I’ve seen enough proof…!”
The High Priest frantically cried for help, but his faint voice was completely drowned out by the clattering of the falling gold coins.
The ordinary priests and holy knights, far from helping him, could only stand and watch the astonishing sight of gold coins pouring from thin air.
Even Axel, who was usually unfazed by anything, seemed somewhat surprised by the spectacle.
See? ‘Punishment by money (physical attack)’ is the best.
* * *
“Oh, my legs…”
“H-here, please sit here!”
“I think I’m thirsty, too…”
“I’ll bring you something right away!”
After the High Priest was taken away, thoroughly pummeled by gold coins, the priest who had first greeted us at the entrance was now on high alert, moving with brisk efficiency.
The gold coins that had buried the High Priest had all been eaten by my piggy bank, leaving no trace, but the incredible sight of gold falling from the sky would surely be etched in the priest’s mind forever.
Just in case he tried to change his story later, I had the priest and the holy knights confirm the holy marks on the Heaven Coins, properly securing my witnesses.
‘But how do I donate the Heaven Coins?’
I tilted my head, looking at the piggy bank now full of gold coins.
I came here because the message told me to donate to the temple, thinking I’d find some information.
As if on cue, a message window appeared before my eyes.
