Inside the shrine, I took one of the seats arranged for visiting believers and sat down.
This was not a shrine built on the school grounds for students, but rather a shrine located in the city.
The reason I came here wasn’t to seek some sort of inner peace or anything like that—it was merely because I thought I might as well stop by and take a look at the Holy Sword while passing through.
To begin with, I wasn’t a devout follower, so the only times I had visited the shrine on my own accord were during the early part of the first semester and this time when I came to view the Holy Sword.
Otherwise, I only came here half-compulsorily due to the mandatory religious education courses at the Academy.
Though my viewing of the Holy Sword was finished, I figured since I’d come all this way, I could at least attempt to offer a prayer, so I clasped my hands together, bowed my head, and closed my eyes.
…But how exactly are you supposed to pray? What should I wish for?
Hmm, if I just wish for something generic, will it come true? Or will it be too obvious and instead bring down divine punishment?
Oh no, I’m supposed to be praying, and here I am just filling my mind with pointless thoughts.
Trying to reflect and pray properly after realizing my mistakes, I was interrupted by some rustling from the side.
It seemed like someone had sat next to me and was about to pray as well.
Again unable to focus, I consciously ignored the presence beside me.
…Would saying something like, “Praises to the Goddess” suffice?
After finishing what might have caused a seizure in any shrine staff due to its haphazardness, I opened my eyes.
“Wow! You gave me a fright!”
“Shh.”
The moment I opened my eyes, I realized that the presence I’d been trying to ignore was much closer than expected. A girl had seated herself right next to me, almost pressing against my side.
Unperturbed by my loud voice, the girl placed her finger on her lips, signaling me to be quiet.
I looked around, wondering if all the other seats in the shrine were full, forcing her to sit so close, but there was not a single soul—or even a bug—to be found around us.
In fact, the priests who had been praying earlier had already vacated their spots.
“Wh-who…”
“Shhhh. That’s not important now.”
The girl quickly placed the same finger she’d used to signal silence over my lips, cutting off my inquiry.
“Do you need holy water by any chance?”
Clinging to the seat, she glanced around nervously as if worried about the gaze of those around, then whispered.
Her demeanor resembled that of a black-market merchant conducting a shady deal.
“Excuse me?”
Confused by the situation, I questioned her, at which point she reached into her robes and pulled out a vial containing a transparent liquid.
“Superior quality holy water! Normally, even with a donation of several dozen gold coins, you wouldn’t be able to obtain it, but I’ll sell it to you specially at a low price of 10 gold. What do you say?”
At this moment, I noticed her attire.
It was a nun’s habit, a common sight in shrines.
Unless the girl before me was fraudulently pretending to be a nun, this nun was actually engaged in selling holy water.
“Buy it now, and I’ll specially lower the price to 8 gold per vial. How’s that?”
“Setting the price aside, is this something a nun is allowed to do?”
In all my life, I had never heard of selling holy water for money right in the shrine.
While it’s true that holy water is distributed as a gift upon donation, it’s an entirely different matter to openly sell it.
“Pfft. Don’t be so picky. I’m sure Goddess Serena won’t have anything to say about it.”
At that moment, the large holy sword hanging on the wall behind the goddess statue began to tremble.
Hearing the noise, the girl quickly glanced at the holy sword.
“It’s probably just loose. Do we need to refasten it?”
…And just like that, the tremors of the holy sword ceased as if nothing had happened.
“Anyway, what do you say? Isn’t it a deal at this price?”
“Um… something seems to be flowing from the corner of Goddess Serena’s statue’s eyes.”
While the holy sword had trembled earlier, now there was something flowing from the eyes of the large central goddess statue.
Putting aside the flow for now, the reddish hue of the liquid was something that perhaps we should pretend not to see.
“…Wait a second!”
Without another word, the girl dashed towards the statue that was shedding bloody tears, leaving me seated.
She knelt down, clasped her hands together, and bowed her head.
At this very moment, she exuded the image of an unquestionably devoted nun.
“This time only… an honest price… please grant us… your permission…”
Had I not known the context of the situation, had I not heard the words slipping through her lips, her appearance would surely have seemed sacred.
After concluding what appeared to be a prayer, the girl returned to her seat beside me with a smile.
“Yes! The Goddess has granted her permission!”
Just to double-check, I looked back at the statue and saw that the face of Goddess Serena, who had been shedding bloody tears earlier, now showed no trace of moisture.
I sincerely hoped that what I had seen earlier was just my imagination.
“The Goddess herself told me to generously take care of you, so as a special offer, I’ll give you one free for every two you buy!”
Is this the kind of deal-selling you’d see at a flea market? Who’s even selling holy water this way?
“What do you think? At this price, not buying would be foolish, right? Hmm? Hmm? Are you going to buy?”
“I’m starting to fear that buying this thing might bring a curse.”
“Don’t worry! This is top-grade holy water personally made by the current Saint. If you’re still scared, I’ll specially bestow the Saint’s blessing upon you! Isn’t it amazing? It’s top-grade! It’ll definitely banish nightmares and even the dreaded nightmare spirits!”
“Excuse me… the Saint?”
Surprised by what sounded to be a familiar word, I questioned her. The girl made an “oops!” expression, covering her mouth with both hands and anxiously rolling her eyes left and right.
After a while, after confirming that there was nobody around but me, she lowered her hands with a bashful smile.
“Hehe… will you keep this a secret?”
Because she usually hides herself in the shrine within the Academy and rarely shows her face, very few people know what the Saint looks like, despite her mysterious nature.
That’s why even though I had seen her face-to-face now, I had no idea who she was.
“Well, I wouldn’t believe you anyway.”
Even if the mysterious Saint openly proclaimed she was selling premium holy water for money within the shrine, would anyone believe her?
Worse still, it’d be lucky if she wasn’t arrested and punished for sacrilege.
“Hehe. In exchange for keeping this a secret, I’ll specially sell each vial to you for 6 gold! If I cut the price any lower, I’ll really lose out.”
And through all this, the Saint remained a consummate merchant.
“…Then I’ll take three bottles, including the service.”
At this point, it seemed foolish to leave without purchasing anything, so I decided to buy exactly three bottles. The cost was a mere 12 gold for a 2+1 special deal.
“Thank you for your purchase!”
The transparent liquid inside the handed-over vials looked like plain water.
Even though it’s hard to fully trust a Saint who pressures the holy sword and negotiates with the deity herself, surely she wouldn’t lie under her own title, right?
If you break it down logically, getting three top-grade holy water bottles for a mere 12 gold is practically the same as getting them for free.
I’ll think about how to use them later.
“By the way, what do you plan to do with the money you earn?”
Priests and nuns are provided basic support from the Shire.
According to their doctrines and beliefs, they avoid extravagance but lead quite comfortable lives.
Even more so for someone of Saintly rank—her support must be anything but ordinary. To my knowledge, even small luxuries are allowed.
And yet, here the Saint is, doing something that merchants do. It was only reasonable for me to harbor this question.
The Saint hesitated momentarily upon hearing my question before winking and replying,
“Secret! I’ll tell you when we get closer.”
It was clear she didn’t plan to tell me. After all, what were the chances that a mere student like me could ever grow close to such a high-ranking Saint?
The only plausible way might have been through Selian when she becomes a hero, but even then, it might be disrespectful to both Selian and the Saint to aim for familiarity, so I’ll keep my distance and admire from afar.
I stood up, tucking the small vials of holy water into my robes.
My purpose for coming to the shrine had already been fulfilled long ago. Staying any longer risked being pushed into buying something else by this merchant Saint.
“Well, I’ll be going now, Saint.”
“Yes, take care! I’ll give extra service next time, so do come again!”
Is she really the Saint?
I almost blurted out the question but swallowed it and asked instead:
“By the way, what is your name, Saint?”
Everyone refers to her as ‘Saint,’ but I’ve never heard anyone mention her name.
Considering she had hinted at getting closer, I thought she might divulge this much.
Of course, even if she didn’t, it wouldn’t be a loss, so I wasn’t expecting much.
“Hehe… I’m Mariel. Call me Mariel next time we meet!”
“My name—”
“I already know your name from Goddess. See you, Prentz.”
There’s no way she’d remember the name of just any one student at the Academy, let alone a junior’s, but it felt oddly pleasant for her to have addressed me by name.
I bowed to her one last time before leaving the shrine.
