Chapter 38: That Which Is Never Inherited (4)

“Damn magic, I can’t see inside…”

No matter how I thought about it, my actions were ridiculous.

Both hands clung to a thick tree branch while my legs trembled, barely maintaining balance, terrified of falling at any moment.

Yet, I kept climbing higher, as if determined to look even more foolish.

Anyone who saw me would think I was a suspicious person, not a Saint.

Actually, they’d be right—I was acting suspiciously.

“Please… let me figure out what that Hero is up to!”

No matter how high I climbed, I couldn’t see inside the annex.

It must have been protected by a special barrier, making entry impossible.

And yet, here I was, doing something this absurd.

Why? Because I couldn’t shake off my unease about the Hero.

Especially since last night, when that annoying whispering wouldn’t stop.

The Hero and Laura had shared a room before—it wasn’t anything new.

So why was I so on edge this time?

After hours of reflecting on my emotions, I came to a conclusion: the Hero must be plotting something suspicious.

He had a history of betraying me, after all.

It was likely there were magic stones in Edirne, the Dragon’s homeland, and that demons were secretly active here.

In other words, my surveillance of the Hero and Laura at the annex wasn’t strange.

If anything, it was my duty as a Saint.

This time, I swore I wouldn’t fall for his schemes again.

Just watching the Hero and Laura’s marriage proceed passively felt unbearable.

Still, I needed to climb down soon.

Morning had long since arrived, and if the Hero or palace staff spotted me, I wouldn’t even have an excuse.

“Huh, so this is the kind of hobby the Saint has?”

“Ah, no, I—”

Startled by the sudden voice, I tried to explain myself, but I lost my balance and fell from the tree.

“Ha! What a fool! Wow, Saint, you’re really something!”

It hurt.

And it was humiliating.

Caught in the act of spying on the annex, I felt like digging a hole and hiding in it.

Looking up from where I lay, I saw a small girl with bright blue hair and sharp blue eyes, smiling mischievously.

“I’m Fran,” she introduced herself, her tone brimming with life.

She had horns and slit pupils that marked her as a Dragonkin.

Was she perhaps a palace guard?

“… Fran?”

“Not Fran, it’s Fran! Can’t even remember a simple name, huh? Though I admit, it’s a bit unique.”

Unlike Laura, this brat had a cocky air about her.

I began to wonder if the Dragonkin had a genetic disposition for difficult personalities.

“So, what were you doing, Saint?”

“… Just some morning exercise.”

“Hmm, morning exercise? Like spying on the annex where the Hero and Laura are? What a perverted workout!”

“In the Holy Kingdom, this is considered cultural!”

A flawless capture, and my excuse was absolutely absurd.

If peeking at a couple’s marriage were a Holy Kingdom tradition, it would entirely change the meaning of being a Saint.

“Ha-ha-ha! That’s your excuse? Oh, my stomach hurts, ha-ha!”

Fran clutched her sides, trying to hold back her laughter, though she clearly didn’t intend to stop.

Might as well laugh as much as you want—it was less mortifying that way.

“I-I had no choice! The staff won’t give me straight answers, no one will tell me what the Hero is doing, and I’m going insane with worry!”

Sometimes—just sometimes—the Hero seemed sweet.

But if he absorbed another magic stone and strengthened his mesmerizing gaze, it would be the end.

I’d no longer be a Saint or a servant of God but reduced to a reproductive tool under the Hero’s massive blade… Just the thought sent shivers down my spine.

“Huh, I guess I teased you too much. But wow, you’re really blunt about all this. Heh!”

“N-no, you’re misunderstanding something here…”

Even to me, my explanation sounded like the jealous rambling of a girl with a crush.

But the reality was the opposite.

I didn’t have even a speck of affection for the Hero.

As I tried to clarify, Fran pressed her finger to my lips.

“Shh! The palace staff will be patrolling soon.

And forget about trying to get info out of Dragonkin.

They don’t like humans.”

At some point, a staff had appeared in Fran’s hand.

The flow of mana began to shift as she chanted a teleportation spell.

“Dragonkin dislike humans.”

She rolled her dice.

Whatever number came up, I knew I couldn’t win against this brat.

“Heh, Fran wins again!”

“Yeah, yeah, congratulations.”

I gave her a halfhearted congratulations while she celebrated her victory.

Why was I even doing this?

After an abrupt teleportation, I found myself in a room full of toys.

Fran grinned and declared, “Let’s play!”

The game’s rule was simple: the winner could ask any question, and the loser had to answer truthfully.

Fran seemed to know a lot, and since I had no other way of learning about the marriage ceremony, I played along.

“Okay, next, let’s fly kites!”

“… So, the winner cuts the string, right?”

“Oh, you know how to fly kites?”

Fran had mentioned that Dragonkin didn’t like conversing with humans.

Spying on the annex was impossible because of the barrier, and I had yet to win a single game.

Flying kites was at least something I could enjoy.

“Heh, laugh at me while you can.”

“Hah, so confident now, huh?”

Though I had spent my life holed up playing games, I was still a proud Korean.

Back in elementary school, I had entered kite-flying competitions every year.

The Hero had once claimed he spent his time barbecuing, playing soccer or volleyball, or studying with friends in his original world.

Ha! As if such a person existed.

He must have been lying to seem like a local.

“Ugh, that really annoys me.”

“Hey, Saint, I love flying kites!”

“What a coincidence. So do I.”

Flying kites was my only talent.

When I let the string stretch out and started running with the wind, the kite would soar high into the sky.

I wasn’t good at studying, sports, or even socializing.

For a timid person like me, kite-flying was my one and only skill.

If only I had a visible talent like others, maybe I wouldn’t have spent my days holed up in a room.

I thought about it sometimes, but nothing changed.

No, here I was using even that small talent just to beat a little brat… what a hopeless life.

“Flying freely in the sky—that’s the privilege of a race at the pinnacle, isn’t it?”

As I flew my kite, Fran followed with her own black kite, striking up a conversation with her usual cryptic remarks.

“I’ve traveled to many countries, you know? But since the Demon King’s descent 300 years ago, I’ve never heard of the gods interfering in this world.”

Three hundred years ago, the Demon King’s arrival spread demonic energy across the world, plunging all races into despair.

It’s said that the gods bestowed their divine blessing, granting extraordinary powers to the chosen.

A gift that allowed humans to reach an otherwise unattainable realm.

Even now, this blessing remains in the world, summoning Heroes, Saints, and other divinely chosen champions whenever the Demon King threatens to return.

As one of those chosen myself, I don’t exactly see it as a reliable gift.

“A god who doesn’t interfere in this world—can you even call that a god?”

“What, silent now? They say gods once appeared in this world directly, but now they’re like they’re bored. No gifts, no messages—why would anyone still believe in them?”

Fran’s words, accompanied by her relentless attacks on my kite, raised a question that had plagued many priests:

If the gods were good and omnipotent, why don’t they intervene in this world?

It was a question that could land someone in serious trouble in the Holy Kingdom, but I couldn’t fault her for asking it here.

Still, doubting the gods? I felt like scolding her like an old priest smacking a student upside the head.

But instead, I held back and continued the conversation—perhaps I could use her distraction to cut her kite string.

Even lions hunt rabbits seriously.

“The gods are always watching over us. Isn’t that enough?”

“…What does that mean?”

Fran’s playful grin vanished as she turned serious, her attention entirely on my response.

Got you, you annoying little brat.

“For example, Fran, if you did a good deed, wouldn’t you want others to know about it?

But the moment you boast about it, people might start doubting your intentions.”

“Yeah.”

“But since the gods see every good deed, our will remains pure.

Even if others don’t notice or we don’t brag about it, the gods acknowledge everything.”

“The same goes for wrongdoings.

Could someone steal an object if they knew someone was watching them?

The gods watch over us, guiding us so we don’t stray, trusting in our free will.”

Whether gods exist or not, whether something is good or evil, what matters is whether it brings peace to one’s mind.

That’s what religion is for.

Grand Inquisitor Malleus, who taught me how to light the holy flames, had explained it more eloquently.

But with my simple brain, this was the best I could manage.

“Heh, so they just watch and do nothing? How useless!”

“That’s enough. A world where everything is dictated by the gods would be boring, wouldn’t it?”

Pretending to have a serious conversation while cutting Fran’s kite string would’ve been perfect…

But I messed up.

“Ah, I cut the string! I win!”

Fran’s mischievous grin returned as she celebrated her victory.

My kite, my one and only talent, drifted away into the sky.

It felt like my entire life had just been invalidated by this brat.

“Princess! Where are you?”

Damn brat.

You distracted me and won? Let’s have another match—

Before I could finish, palace staff appeared in the distance.

Hearing them, Fran suddenly grabbed her staff.

“P-Princess? Don’t tell me…”

“Ah, you caught me. Hehe. I’m Fran, first princess of the Dragonkin and Laura’s older sister. Ta-da!”

The Dragonkin princess.

This high and mighty brat had seen all my embarrassing moments—from climbing trees to spying on the annex, to sulking over a lost kite battle.

Everything I’d built as a Saint… gone.

Now, in Fran’s mind, I was nothing but a jealous, talentless, pervy girl.

Exactly the kind of image the damn Hero would want.

If this became a rumor…

“Humans are all beneath me, but I’ll make an exception for you, Saint.”

As the palace staff approached, Fran prepared another teleportation spell.

Her smile was brighter—and more wicked—than anything I’d seen that day.

Humans beneath her? Arrogant brat.

Still, it was fitting for a princess.

But for the record, I’m the god’s chosen too!

“Hehe, let’s be friends, Sera!”

Fran’s form vanished as the space collapsed into a point.

“Friends,” huh?

I wouldn’t know—I’ve never had one.

Besides, aren’t Dragonkin older than me?

Crazy brat…