Chapter 5 : Chapter 5
Chapter 5: Back Then, You Were Very Small
Under the commander’s explanation, Fia roughly understood what had happened.
Church knights traditionally took in orphans. Depending on their circumstances, they would either send them to specialized training institutions or raise them personally, carefully educating them so they could inherit their profession. Just like the relationship between the Pontiff and Fia, Yuna was also an orphan adopted by the former deputy commander of the Saintess’s personal guard.
The deputy commander passed away due to illness. His dying wish was for Yuna to join the Church and find a stable job. However, the little cat girl was stubborn. She wanted to follow in her adoptive father’s footsteps and become a personal guard knight.
「Yuna, Apprentice Knight LV6, Shadow Walker LV8」
The information displayed before Fia’s eyes clearly explained why the commander refused to allow Yuna into the unit.
Simply put, she was far too weak.
Even though she possessed two classes, her extremely low level made her as fragile within the team as a porcelain cup mixed among a pile of iron cans. She was too delicate. She probably could not even endure the daily training.
Fia sat on a raised seat that had been specially brought for her and looked at the group of Holy Knights respectfully waiting for her to speak. In her mind, however, there was another consideration.
They posed no threat.
If this squad had existed during the early and middle stages of the game, many of the enemies she encountered starting from the summoning ceremony would have become completely harmless.
If Yuna truly remained at this level, it would be impossible for her to stab Fia with a dozen transparent holes in the future.
This was exactly why unexpected background settings like this were so annoying.
“Let us set her matter aside for now. Commander, please report the basic status of the guard unit to me.”
She decided to first assess the forces currently at her disposal.
“Please call me Arius, Your Holiness.” The commander removed his silver helmet, revealing a resolute face. “The Saintess Personal Guard currently has fifty registered members and twenty full-time logistics personnel. All of them were personally selected by His Holiness the Pontiff.”
“Among the members, twenty-five are intermediate knights and two are advanced knights. Ah, after Peris passed away, only one advanced knight remains—myself.”
「Arius, Holy Knight, Radiant Knight LV64」
Fia nodded.
The assassin who would infiltrate the courtyard behind the hero and abduct her was also a high-level professional. If she could gain the assistance of the personal guards, perhaps the original plan of merely hiding could be slightly adjusted.
“Have you recently received any orders from the Church?”
Fia asked.
No matter how one looked at it, the repeated absence of the personal guard unit during the Saintess’s most dangerous moments in the game was extremely strange. After all, once she left the Church in the storyline, even a Level 1 slime could unlock her CG scenes.
“We have not. We are directly assigned as Your Holiness’s personal guards. Other than Your Holiness and His Holiness the Pontiff, no one else has the authority to mobilize us.”
Arius’s answer not only failed to resolve the mystery but deepened the fog in Fia’s mind.
Unfortunately, she had been too focused on collecting CG scenes back then and had not paid much attention to the background settings. As a result, she could talk endlessly about romanceable characters, but the moment the topic shifted elsewhere, she became completely clueless.
“The Central Council! Someone contacted my father and told him to—”
A young voice suddenly spoke.
Fia turned toward Yuna, whom she had deliberately ignored until now. The CG image of the cat girl stabbing her full of holes had been so vivid that it remained one of the most brutal illustrations of the Saintess’s death. Just thinking about it made Fia feel phantom pain across her body.
“What did you say?!”
Arius reacted even more strongly than Fia. His furious roar made Fia’s ears ring. His sharp gaze swept across every knight present before landing on Yuna, frightening the cat girl into collapsing back onto the ground.
However, remembering her purpose, Yuna trembled and pushed herself upright again, looking toward Fia.
“Saintess… Your Holiness… if I tell you this, will you let me join the personal guard unit?”
“Yuna!!”
Fia patted Arius’s shoulder armor, signaling him to stop shouting. After discreetly rubbing her ears, she looked directly into Yuna’s eyes.
The ferocious beast-girl who once stabbed her to death and threw her body into a volcano to destroy the evidence had now turned into a soft cat girl kneeling on the ground and speaking timidly.
Fia’s feelings about this were… complicated.
“Your future position will be decided by me. Please tell me what you know first, alright?”
A Stabilization Spell from intermediate divine magic activated. Waves of soothing energy spread through the spiritual hall.
On second thought, was it slightly disrespectful to use a mourning hall as a meeting room?
【Morality -3】
【Morality +2】
【Low-Level Ability Fragment +3】
【Evaluation: Please do not dance on the heads of the dead, even if it grants rewards.】
Well… surely he would forgive his Saintess.
The knights’ anxious expressions gradually calmed. Arius’s expression softened as well, and he looked at Yuna.
“I apologize for earlier. I became too agitated. Now that Her Holiness the Saintess is here, tell us everything you know. Her Holiness will make the final decision regarding your matter.”
“…A few days before my father passed away, someone responsible for supply deliveries came to see him. That person said there were bandits north of the Church and asked him to lead some knights to help eliminate them. That person claimed it was a request from the Central Council. He also said that the Saintess had already approved it.”
As she spoke, Yuna glanced at Fia. Instead of suspicion, she met Fia’s encouraging and reassuring gaze.
Just like her father had said, the Saintess was truly beautiful. And kind.
“After my father refused, that person produced proof… this.”
The cat girl pulled a silk cloth from her clothing and tried to hand it to Fia. However, Arius intercepted it midway, following the procedures written in the safety protocols.
“This… it truly bears the Saintess’s seal.”
After examining it carefully, Arius respectfully handed the cloth to Fia.
The material was a common fabric used in the inner palace. It was the same type worn by the maids as their working uniforms. More importantly, the cloth bore a flower pattern embroidered with gold thread using a special magical technique.
Fia compared it with the pattern on her own shoes.
They were identical.
So the culprit is me? Just joking.
There was indeed only one Saintess in the Church, but there was more than one person capable of using items bearing the Saintess’s seal.
Lorinna. Or rather, the group behind her.
Fia stored the silk cloth away and looked at Yuna, who was waiting expectantly. She extended her hand—only to touch a fluffy head.
Fia had originally been stretching her arm lazily, while Yuna had instinctively leaned her head forward.
Both of them froze in place.
After a brief silence, Fia withdrew her hand and turned toward Arius, who was silently glaring at his subordinates.
“This cloth does not belong to me. I will personally investigate the Central Council regarding this matter. As for her… let her remain in the unit temporarily as a reserve member. She can also act as my sparring partner. I have recently mastered some new abilities.”
【Morality -1】
【Evaluation: Employing child labor.】
Yuna’s face immediately lit up with a bright smile.
Some knights wanted to protest, but considering that the girl’s attack power was essentially harmless, they eventually agreed. However, they insisted that someone would supervise her training.
After settling the meeting location, Arius requested thirty minutes of time.
First, he thoroughly questioned every knight present. Then he recorded the names of those who were absent and prepared to investigate them later. He intended to determine whether anyone had secretly contacted outsiders.
Even the training officer who had guided Fia—his old friend—was not spared.
Arius interrogated him as thoroughly as if conducting a household registration inspection, practically uncovering even the color of the man’s underwear.