I Became a Fortune Teller in the Game My Little Sister Made – Chapter 21

Whack!

“What a pitiful person you are.”

“………”

The Saint dusted off his hands after jamming a mace into the middle of the table covered in a purple tablecloth.

The table, which was already half-split, wobbled precariously but still stood.

“Repent.”

“……What a bad taste, Saint.”

No, this isn’t bad taste or intimidation.

I could genuinely feel that the Saint before me could actually kill me. The fear I felt at the moment the mace lodged into the table was chilling.

…Could it be that the reason no fortunetellers showed up in the game is that this fanatic smashed all their heads?

Straightening my posture unconsciously, I looked at Namgoong Min, who stared back at the Saint.

“Was it really necessary to demonstrate your power?”

“This is not a display of power. I am merely following the Lord’s will.”

“………”

What nonsense is this?

…Though, I can’t deny it entirely.

“Is it because I hate fortune-telling… that I’m facing this?”

“Correct. A fortuneteller who abhors fortune-telling. That’s God’s punishment, not the wickedness of a heretic.”

The Saint spoke with eyes that seemed utterly devoid of guilt. In fact, there glimmered an expression of pity towards Namgoong Min.

In truth, whether it’s suspicion, weakness, or violence…

I clearly realized that a zealot lost in religion is the real madness.

“Did you know? Everyone in the world sins. I can’t escape that either.”

Well, that seems certain.

“But humans cannot judge all of that. We live under the definitions of law and morality. We can only judge when one breaks those definitions.”

“…Are you suggesting there’s something else?”

“Of course. There are sins from past lives.”

Oh dear.

This fanatic…

“Who can know sins from a past life? What law defines the past life, and what morality judges it? It’s impossible. It is beyond human reach.”

“………….”

“But the great Lord who exists in the heavens is different.”

The Saint continued to radiate bright light from his entire being.

As if his thoughts were undeniably correct and that his existence itself was infinitely right.

He had been a <Saint> since birth.

“You are being punished. You sinned in a past life, being reborn as a <Fortuneteller> but walking a destiny of despising your own fortune-telling. You are receiving a severe punishment.”

“……Is this punishment?”

“Indeed. You are already under God’s punishment, and a mere human like me cannot judge you.”

Honestly speaking, what this fanatic is saying… I understand it but it makes my head hurt.

So, my current situation is a punishment from God, and since I’m already punished, the Saint himself will not interfere?

Namgoong Min frowned.

“I do not believe in God.”

“Yet God exists.”

“I do not believe in fate either.”

“Yet fate exists.”

“My life is not some sort of divine punishment.”

“It is punishment.”

There’s absolutely no communication happening.

The Saint’s brain is firmly rooted in his beliefs, definitions, and worldview, following them unflinchingly. No ordinary attempt could scratch that steadfast mentality.

No matter how much I speak of atheism or skepticism, the Saint remains composed.

Maybe it’s because his religion has transcended being part of life to become his very life.

“………….”

No matter what your thoughts may be, discussing with a zealot who makes definitive statements is more unpleasant than I expected.

…He’s self-assuredly concluding my entire past and stating that I’m destined to continue facing punishment; does this sound like the words of that cultist?

That bastard sounds awfully similar to what he said to his parents.

‘…Damn it.’

But this was also an opportunity.

Understanding that this fanatic really could kill me, my top priority was to survive in the Saint’s clutches.

And if this conversation ended here, the Saint wouldn’t touch Namgoong Min anymore, believing he’s already under God’s punishment.

Thinking so…

“But, Saint, this seems a bit strange.”

“What do you mean?”

…Let’s touch upon the precarious line with the Saint.

You labeled my life as divine punishment.

But what about yours?

“I don’t just do tarot readings. I can also read fortunes, Dojeong’s divination, Bagua, and even physiognomy.”

“You despise all that yet have studied it. What a severe punishment that must be.”

“I’ve seen the Saint’s physiognomy.”

“Oh, what does it say? A typical fortuneteller wouldn’t bother listening, but for a suffering sinner, it might be worth hearing.”

“You do not believe in fate.”

“……….”

With eyes unchanged from before, the Saint looked down at Namgoong Min.

Could that behavior be perceived as a manifestation of patience on my part?

“I can see where the Saint was born. In the shining city’s shadows, a baby born in the filth.”

“………….”

< Saint > Raphael Martina.

You claim to know and understand everything about me, but I know you too.

To what extent could you tolerate the “fortune” that probes into your past you’d prefer to forget?

“The baby born in filth shines. I see it. I see those bedecked in ornate decorations approaching to take you away. I also see the woman who gave birth to you, screaming and then fainting.”

“…………….”

“The baby is revered as the one and only Saint in the world, destined to grow up in reverence. Five years after the baby’s birth, I see the child being pushed into a pilgrimage by people’s hands.”

“………….”

“The child cries. Suddenly cast down from a life of worship, this child sobs bitterly. The feet are blistered, the body is covered in wounds, and even the voice is hoarse, yet the child continues to wail.”

“…………….”

“The child knows that when they cry, people will come running. But right now, no one is coming. The child spends a whole day on the street like this.”

“……Stop.”

“Eventually, after five days, the child is forcibly taken on the pilgrim path. And at the first city—”

Boom!!

“—Stop it.”

This time, the table shattered completely.

The Saint, mace in hand, looked like he would break my skull at any moment.

However, unlike before, I no longer found him frightening.

“Why do you want me to stop? I’m merely reading your fortune.”

“Stop lying. I understand physiognomy. I know that’s not enough to make such detailed statements.”

“What does physiognomy matter?”

“……Huh?”

“No matter how I knew that, in the end, the truth of what I’ve spoken is what really matters.”

< Saint > is not a flawless human.

He is merely a human who happened to be born with the profession of <Saint>.

Speaking this was part of the Saint’s character event, a hidden event unique to the Romance Academy.

“Saint, do you believe in fate?”

“………”

“You indeed stated earlier, ‘Yet fate exists.'”

“……I did say that.”

“While the Saint believes in the existence of fate, do you not also try to defy that fate?”

“…………Ha, haha.”

The Saint laughed. And upon hearing that, Namgoong Min could intuitively tell.

That was not the laughter of a <Saint> but simply the laughter of a human known as ‘Raphael Martina.’

“Such a piercing statement. Truly.”

“You’re too kind.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve heard tales of the past…”

Raphael Martina sat down in the chair opposite.

With the broken table between us, the fortuneteller and Raphael faced each other.

Honestly, I didn’t expect the Saint to react like this… I felt a bit embarrassed for being overly emotional.

“I apologize for my earlier words. Those memories from that city are exceedingly unpleasant and disgusting.”

“Not at all.”

“You were displeased by my words.”

“……….”

“I’m not a fool. If one concludes that a person’s life is God’s punishment, how could they not be displeased?”

Raphael smirked, having been rotating the mace.

More unlike before, he now presented a rather indiscreet demeanor.

Yet Raphael, seeming unconcerned, continued speaking.

“Even so, I believe you are under God’s punishment.”

“…Why is that?”

“Because I have experienced it.”

That was closer to confession than mere storytelling.

A confession of sins from the human known as Raphael Martina.

“Did you know? A mere chunk of this steel caused the deaths of 538 people.”

“They were heretics, con artists, criminals, and scum… but they were also human.”

“I mentioned earlier that everyone sins. I too am among them.”

“Then.”

Raphael clenched his hands and lowered his head forward.

That was prayer-like, filled with solemnity.

“Who will judge me for the sin of murder?”

“…Does that imply that it’s not a human?”

“Haha. You already know the answer. It’s been a while since I’ve witnessed someone punished similarly, so I may have talked too much.”

The solemnity of moments ago vanished, and Raphael smiled once more as he rose from his seat.

He now looked down at Namgoong Min with those initial eyes once again.

“Still, this confirms something for me.”

“…Confirm? What do you mean?”

“Do not approach Eileen Teddy Bear.”

The Saint murmured quietly.

It felt like our entire previous conversation was being rendered null, returning us to the initial conclusion.

But his words didn’t end there.

“This is meant more for your sake than hers.”

“For my sake?”

“God is flawless, yet humans serving Him are not. Shouldn’t it be those who take the children from their parents?”

Raphael, fiddling with the cross hanging around his neck, gripped the mace tightly again.

Crunch.

This time without it crashing down, he merely distorted the iron mace little by little with sheer grip strength.

“To someone who is receiving God’s punishment… someone who may even be closer to God than those who truly are, I wouldn’t want to display the Church’s blemishes.”

“The blemishes of the Church.”

“It’s also a fate I wish to resist.”

…Namgoong Min recalled the character event with the Saint.

The event that had taken place in the Papacy was indeed a remarkably special event, claimed as a hidden event.

It was even an alternate route that could lead straight to the ‘ending.’

“I will inform Instructor Charles Teddy Bear, so please leave for today.”

The Saint pulled the blackout curtain aside.

As if he had known how to exit all along.

“Ah, one last thing.”

“……What is it?”

“Please, keep that distaste for fortune-telling close to your heart.”

“Or else?”

“I may have to come personally to kill you. Fellow sinner.”

Whoosh.

“………….”

Leaving behind nothing but a lingering remark, the Saint vanished beyond the curtain.

By now, he was probably protecting Eileen Teddy Bear.

“The blemishes of the Church.”

…The ‘illness’ that plagues Eileen Teddy Bear is determined randomly in every playthrough.

Sometimes it was just a simple cold, other times it required jamming all sorts of rare items; occasionally it would be an incurable disease that couldn’t be healed.

And among those, there is a peculiar case where the <Saint> character becomes involved.

In this case, Eileen is not suffering from an illness.

It’s her ‘job.’

The suffering of Eileen entangled with the Saint is primarily due to her profession.

“I had a bad feeling when the Saint was in Eileen’s room…”

Unlike the case of merely falling ill, if the Saint is involved, a considerably long event must unfold for Eileen to be rescued.

Since this is an early event, collaborating with the Saint shouldn’t be overly difficult.

“What should I do now?”

“…First.”

I need an ally.

Someone who can help me while never siding with the Saint. A person with exceptional skills and good at fighting would be preferable, someone who wouldn’t pry too much into the relationship between the Saint and me.

…There was only one person who met all the conditions.

*

“…Huh?”

“Please help me, Rain.”

“………Hick!”

Suddenly visiting the infirmary and commanding ‘the strong’ Namgoong Min with a serious look in his eyes and voice, Rain began to hiccup.