Taming the Evil Saintess

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Ding.

The swing door swung open.

Innkeeper Olton just spotted the two new guests entering the inn and silently celebrated inside.

‘A mark!’

It was an unavoidable thought given the combination of a visibly noble beauty and a grumpy-looking man.

They were trying hard to blend in with their ordinary-looking shabby robes, but the white hair and the sparkling emerald eyes were giving away the undeniable air of nobility. Moreover, the clinking of gold coins could be heard from the pouch the woman was holding.

Olton couldn’t help but smirk.

Surely, a noble lady lacking knowledge of the world had ventured out with just one attendant. In that case, both of them were likely clueless about the current market prices in the Empire.

In other words, it was an ideal setup for Olton to make a profit.

“Ah! What brings such distinguished guests to this humble place? Please, come in~.”

Olton greeted the two with a customer service smile.

The woman’s response came first.

“Hmph. You know it’s shabby, at least.”

“…Ophelia, you shouldn’t speak like that.”

“What? That guy just called his own place shabby.”

“That’s merely a greeting and a polite statement. It would be problematic if you took it seriously. Just like I’m not serious when I call you a beautiful woman.”

“What did you just call me?”

“I said Ophelia is very beautiful.”

‘What the…?’

Olton frowned.

From their appearances, he had taken them for a noble lady and her attendant, but listening to their conversation made it evident that wasn’t the case.

Firstly, the woman’s mouth was as foul as any third-rate mercenary’s. The man seemed to be her attendant, but he lacked any sense of loyalty.

And the name the man mentioned, Ophelia. That sounded familiar. Definitely…

“Enough. Just give us a room.”

“Ah, yes!”

At the woman’s remark, Olton shelved his doubts and maintained his broad smile.

Whatever it’s about, it was a golden opportunity that rarely came by.

“Well then~ What kind of room would you like?”

“Just any.”

“Will one room be enough?”

“Do I look like I trust this guy to not pull any sneaky tricks?”

“I apologize, but unlike Ophelia, I can tell the difference between poop and miso without having to taste them.”

“Shut up.”

“Uh, um…? So about the room…”

“Ah, two of the biggest ones, please.”

With those words, the woman opened her pouch.

Inside was a treasure trove Olton had never seen in his lifetime. He gasped.

This was more than he had anticipated.

Alright. He had to tread carefully while speaking. The more he could get, the better. But not too much; moderation is key. Olton was rather seasoned in that regard.

“Um, let’s start with this much…”

Olton grinned as he held up two fingers.

Two gold coins.

To a commoner, that would be jaw-droppingly exorbitant. However, the woman rummaged through the pouch without showing any particular hesitation. Watching her, Olton couldn’t help but smile in victory.

But the reaction from the attendant next to her was quite different. He squinted and leaned closer to the woman’s ear.

“Hmm. So that’s how it is.”

It seemed he was whispering something, and the woman scoffed.

She then pulled out a gold coin from the pouch.

No, what she pulled out was her straightened middle finger.

“Where do you think you’re going to screw people over? You should eat shit, you pig.”

“Y-yes…?”

Caught?

Then he could just deny any such intentions. Olton planned to say his two fingers meant two rooms as he thought of a way to wriggle free.

Until the woman took out a dagger and slammed it into his wrist on the table.

Thunk!

“AAAH!”

“Didn’t you learn that when you get caught cheating, you lose a hand? Oh right, they say in the Empire, you lose your head for scheming!”

“N-no, that’s not it, really!”

“Is this guy trying to squirm out like a slippery snake? Should I give you time to say goodbye to your piggy hands?”

The woman grimaced and twisted the dagger embedded in the table. Blood started gushing from the wound. Olton couldn’t hold back and screamed. The other guests in the inn couldn’t believe their eyes at the sudden uproar.

The man beside her sighed and placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder.

“Ophelia, didn’t I tell you? It’s better to avoid unnecessary commotion. You’ve been doing well until now.”

“But he’s really pissing me off!”

“If we were to stab someone when angry, I’d already be a hedgehog by now.”

“…”

Only then did Olton remember the name Ophelia.

He had seen it in a newspaper left behind by a mercenary weeks ago.

[Saintess of the Saint, Ophelia Meredein. Setting off on a pilgrimage to seek the Hero.]

‘Damn it! Why couldn’t I remember that!’

Olton cursed his poor memory.

But there was also a part of him that felt wronged.

How could someone who spoke so crudely be thought of as a saintess?

The woman, no, Ophelia sighed deeply and rested her chin on the table.

“Hey.”

“Yes, yes.”

“How much for the two best rooms?”

“Well, that’s…”

“If you spout any more nonsense, I’ll stick a knife in your mouth.”

“…”

The standard price was four gold coins.

Olton cautiously said so, but Ophelia pressed down on the dagger stuck in the table. Biting her lip, she tried to stifle a scream. Her wrist and the back of her hand were nearing a nasty meeting. If this continued, she might never be able to use her hand again.

“I’ll ask you again. How much?”

“Th-the price I mentioned is the standard. I swear. Please believe me…”

“No, I understand that’s the standard price, but how much for us?”

What kind of nonsense is this?

Feeling wronged, Olton looked at the man, but he wasn’t going to interfere any further. In fact, he seemed to be staring at Ophelia with a sense of pride.

“…F-free. As much as you want… feel free to rest….”

“You should have said that sooner, punk.”

Only after Olton begrudgingly said that did Ophelia give a small smile as she pulled out the dagger from the table. Olton quickly wrapped his wrist in a cloth. The yellow rag turned bright red. No matter how much he tried to stop the bleeding, it wouldn’t halt. Olton’s complexion was turning pale.

Seeing him, Ophelia placed her hand on his wrist.

A golden aura gathered, and Olton’s bleeding finally stopped.

“…Whoa.”

Olton’s eyes widened in amazement at the sight of the holy magic.

Looking at Ophelia, she revealed her other hand.

Completely confused, he tilted his head, and Ophelia spoke.

“Treatment fee. Two gold coins should suffice, right? What a steal!”

“…Ah.”

A demon.

Olton swallowed the words that almost made it out of his throat.

*

“The best room, huh? This is just trash.”

“Well, this is the outskirts of the Empire, isn’t it? You should consider yourself lucky to have even this much.”

In fact, compared to the Saint’s chamber where Ophelia usually stayed, it felt like heaven and hell.

Ophelia wrapped herself in a separate blanket to avoid the rough blanket bed.

However, this was an adequate lodging for the outskirts of the Empire.

The place that Ophelia and I decided to stay for a day was about a week’s travel from the Saint’s border. If we had taken a road connecting nearby imperial towns, we might have stayed in a slightly better environment, but I chose to stick to the outskirts.

I feared Ophelia might cause a scene if we went to a crowded place.

Just like earlier. She had just stabbed the innkeeper.

“Well, thinking of it as staying for just two gold coins isn’t so bad.”

“Did you really have to go that far?”

I had expected that for the crime of screwing him over, we would get to stay for free, but I never thought she would stab him, then steal money in the name of a treatment fee.

Two gold coins at that.

“One gold coin is enough for a family of four commoners to live without worrying about hunger for half a year.”

“So which bastard was it that thought he could con that kind of money out of us?”

“I won’t deny that.”

I had anticipated some overcharging, but I never expected the price to be this steep.

After a long career as a mercenary, I had encountered countless scams, but it had been a while since I last met someone with such guts. It seemed our combination was perceived as that of a clueless noble and her attendant.

“Anyway, I plan to keep this as my future fund.”

Ophelia gingerly tucked the gold coins into the hidden pocket of her holy garment instead of her pouch.

“Money is overflowing anyway. You don’t have to act like a miser about it.”

“This is the saint’s property. Once I’m no longer a saintess, it will be money I can no longer use.”

She had a point.

Ophelia intended to flee from the position of saintess after defeating the Demon King.

She unfolded the blanket she had rolled up and looked at me.

“By the way, what are you going to do once I’m free?”

To defeat the Demon King, and liberate Ophelia.

What would come after that?

After the end of the game. An era of peace would follow.

Honestly, I had never thought about it.

“….”

Seeing me at a loss for words, Ophelia shrugged her shoulders.

Then she cautiously opened her mouth.

“…You could always come work as my attendant, you know?”

“Ugh. I’d rather eat shit than do that.”

“…”

An instantaneous reply without any hesitation.

Ophelia’s expression soured.

“…When the time comes, I won’t give you a single penny. I won’t even bat an eye if you’re clinging to my skirt, crying and snotting.”

“I don’t even want that.”

“Damn it.”

Muttering to herself, Ophelia suddenly turned and lay on her side.

I watched her and let out a chuckle.

It was then.

“…”

I sensed a presence outside the inn.

Metal clinking.

A group of armed individuals entered the building.

“…Ophelia.”

“Hmm~. Even if you apologize now, I won’t accept it.”

“That’s not what I meant. Right now inside…”

Before I could finish my sentence, a loud bang resounded as the door to the room we were in swung open.

A group of rough-looking men each wielding different kinds of weapons.

They had no intention of hiding their murderous intent.

“Are you the ones who put a knife in Olton?”

The leader of the group growled, placing a flat sword on his shoulder.

Layered leather armor with iron plates. Several daggers dangling from his belt. The group behind him held axes and bludgeons instead. By their appearance, they seemed to be third-rate mercenaries.

They probably came after hearing that the innkeeper had suffered a misfortune.

Third-rate mercenary groups like these existed to protect the village in exchange for tribute. The innkeeper must have been paying them protection money, so this was somewhat expected.

“…Ophelia, didn’t I tell you? Excessive greed brings trouble.”

“Why the hell is that bastard throwing a fit because he cheated first?”

Ophelia, bewildered, spoke, but the leader of the mercenary group showed no signs of listening.

Eventually, I took the initiative to speak.

“Didn’t you bother hearing the whole story from the innkeeper downstairs?”

“Is that necessary? You’ve touched our merchant and robbed him. That’s all there is to it.”

What kind of hypocrisy is this?

What a twisted fantasy world.

Sure, it might have made some sense back in the Cathedral, but step a little outside, and it becomes like this.

These guys acted on impulse, moving before the innkeeper had a chance to warn them.

I doubted they ever thought about Ophelia being an esteemed noble beyond the princess of the Empire. Had I failed by deliberately selecting shabby clothing to hide her identity?

“Well, this is troublesome.”

At my mutter, Ophelia grinned.

“Elijah, what’s our plan? It seems those brutish beasts are eyeing this beautiful, delicate angel. I remember reading about this in a cheap novel.”

“Where on earth did you read something like that? Could it be that the Cathedral has shops like that?”

“There are some. A cheap kiosk down an alley. I read it when I was out with Emily. I went back to check it out from time to time. The gallant knight in that one swung his sword and saved the heroine. In the end, they got married and had five kids and lived happily ever after.”

So she slipped away during training time to read this nonsense.

“You aren’t so weak as to need saving, are you?”

“Anyway.”

Ophelia gazed at me with an expectant stare.

“Are you going to save me or what?”

“I don’t think it’s necessary.”

I sighed quietly and lowered my hand that was resting on the sword’s hilt. There’s no need to spill blood. What I wanted in this situation was to glide through as quietly as possible.

The leader of the mercenary group frowned at my demeanor.

It was at that moment.

Swoosh.

A fist shot out faster than recognition and struck the guy at his temple.