"I failed to protect the safety of the Grand Temple. Please punish me. I will accept any punishment you deem fit."
Seth, solemnly confessing his guilt, looked devout—like a clergyman receiving divine grace.
But it was hard to be fooled by his appearance… not after seeing how ruthlessly he had punished the spies they had uncovered.
The scenes from the original work, where the merciless male leads executed Ordell without hesitation, kept flashing before my eyes, making my heart pound uncontrollably.
"This is an unforgivable crime. If you command it, I will step down from my position as Holy Knight Commander at once."
But that can't happen! You can't go anywhere!
"Please don't say that. If you're not the Holy Knight Commander, who can I trust? Let's pretend I didn't hear that."
"But I failed to protect the Grand Temple…"
"If we're going by that logic, isn't it all my fault? The spies were planted by Count Kiris. If I had paid a little more attention, I might have realized it sooner."
Honestly, the reason the spies could act so freely was because I had subtly helped Ordell siphon off money.
So how could Seth have noticed anything?
Besides, he was often sent out like a mercenary for the impoverished Grand Temple, making it even harder for him to notice.
"You've done nothing wrong, Saint!"
Our painfully innocent paladin shouted, his face turning pale.
"If I'm not at fault, then neither are you. And in these unstable times, having the strongest Holy Knight Commander step down would only make things more dangerous. So please, don't go anywhere and keep protecting this place."
Exactly. Where would you even go?
In this harsh world, a weakling with only 5% divine power like me desperately needs someone like him—a swordmaster and a potential male lead.
"…Understood. I swear on my life that I will protect you and the Grand Temple with everything I have."
I don't need your life or anything… but judging by that solemn face, he won't listen anyway. Might as well leave him be.
"This isn't the time to assign blame. We need to prepare for what's ahead. Once contact is lost with the spies, Count Kiris will immediately realize what's happened. There's a high chance he'll try to use the donations as leverage to threaten us."
Right now, the Solar Deity Grand Temple is barely operating on the meager donations from Count Kiris.
If that support disappears, the Grand Temple will surely collapse.
"We have no source of income, so we can't afford to make an enemy of the Count right now. That means we can't even formally protest about the spies."
"Then what do you intend to do?"
"The Grand Temple will stay quiet. I'll face Count Kiris on my own."
"But—!"
As the two tried to object, I shook my head firmly.
"When someone from the Count's side comes, you both need to make it clear that I can't be left alone with them—but then reluctantly back off, like you had no choice."
We'll have to put on a bit of a show, and if the two of them are there, that'll never work.
Don't worry. Just trust me. I'll take care of everything!
A dark room, thick with smoke.
A man with a solid build slouched deeply into a large chair, his entire body practically sinking into it.
His hair was tied loosely, half falling out, and his glasses hung carelessly on his nose—clear signs of his boredom. But his face was twisted into a fierce scowl, completely contradicting that image.
Each time he took a drag from his cigarette and exhaled deeply, the furrow between his brows slowly eased.
The acrid smell from the cigarette's tip was revolting, but the man couldn't bring himself to quit.
It was the only thing that helped him stay sane.
"Master!"
Just then, someone burst through the door.
The uninvited guest, now drenched in heavy smoke, coughed violently.
"Ugh, I'll never get used to this smell."
"…Shut up. My head hurts. Speak quietly."
The man grew irritated at the loud noise, and the uninvited guest quickly stopped coughing.
"I've found the whereabouts of the item you've been desperately searching for!"
At those words, the man, who had been slumped heavily in his chair, sprang to his feet.
"No way…"
"Yes! We've discovered where the Sacred Relic of Light is!"
"Where is it?"
"It's in a temple located in the northwestern region of the Empire."
"The northwest? Was there even a temple there?"
The man asked urgently. The uninvited guest—his subordinate—rushed to answer without even taking a breath.
"It's a nearly ruined place, so it's not well known. We don't even know which god it's dedicated to. I only learned of its existence while digging through recent reports."
Damn it. No wonder it never turned up no matter how hard we searched. Hidden away in a place like that, it was impossible to find.
"Get ready. We're leaving immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
After the subordinate left, the man let out a deep sigh and ran a hand over his face.
This was his last hope. If he failed this time, there would be nothing left for him.
So no matter what it took, no matter the price, he would get his hands on the Sacred Relic of Light.
He was sick to death of these cigarettes now.
"Haa, huff! When is this damned body going to gain some stamina?!"
7 a.m.
After finishing my morning walk, I collapsed onto the bench that had unofficially become mine, drenched in sweat once again.
Back in my previous life, exercise was never this torturous. In fact, the more I sweated, the happier I felt!
Now, all I could think about was the dizziness clouding my vision and how much I just wanted to give up.
"The day I can run 50 meters without a problem… I might actually cry."
"Well done, Saint."
Just then, a female knight with her red hair tied neatly in a ponytail handed me a water flask.
I gratefully accepted it with trembling arms.
"Thank you, Dame Victoria. I somehow survived again today without dying…"
"Your stamina has improved a bit. When I first saw you a week ago, I thought it was seriously bad."
That should've been encouraging—and I was a little proud that even a professional noticed some improvement—but the brutal honesty in her words nearly brought me to tears.
"If I keep at it… it'll get better, right? I just don't see any light at the end of the tunnel."
"…You'll probably need more effort than most people."
Damn it! I swallowed my tears along with the water.
Victoria Lawrence.
Her vivid red hair gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight. She was a holy knight assigned to me by Seth himself.
After a holy knight was exposed as a spy during the investigation, Seth felt responsible and carried out a major reorganization of the Holy Order.
As a result, a new unit was created—the 2nd Division, exclusively assigned to the protection of the Saint.
Victoria was handpicked by Seth through rigorous vetting and was appointed as the commander of the 2nd Division.
In short, she was my personal guard.
Because of my infamous reputation, Victoria treated me in a strictly professional manner at first.
Actually, it was more than that.
"...You're saying you'll exercise every morning?"
You?
She didn't laugh outright, but her eyes spoke volumes.
Instead of explaining myself endlessly, I quietly exercised every single day for a week.
I ate my meals together with everyone daily and made an effort to be friendlier than usual with people like Eirik and Seth for a few days.
"...Take it easy, or you're going to drop dead."
I wasn't sure if she was joking or serious, but at the very least, our relationship had become more relaxed.
It was a huge step forward—I nearly shed a tear that day.
...Though everyone else still flinches and avoids me like the plague whenever they see me.
Clearly, I still have a long way to go.
"Someone is approaching."
At Victoria's words, as she handed me a towel, I turned my head.
A maid, her face pale with fear, was running toward us.
"S-Saint! I'm so sorry to disturb you."
And the moment she arrived, she threw herself flat on the ground in a bow.
Wow. The road ahead really is endless, huh...
"Please stand up and tell me what's going on—there's no need to rush."
I asked as gently as I could, so as not to frighten her further.
Victoria swiftly helped the maid to her feet and dusted off the dirt from her knees.
The maid turned even paler but managed to speak, albeit shakily.
"S-someone is here to see you outside, Saint. He says he brings a message from Count Kiris."
Ah—so he's finally here.
"Are you sure it's safe to meet him alone?"
Victoria seemed concerned, probably because she'd been briefed by Seth on the overall situation.
Sorry, Victoria. You don't need to worry about me.
It's him you should be concerned for.
Because starting now, I'm planning to scam the hell out of that bastard.