Chapter 155

The convent dormitory room is quite small.

It’s just big enough for two people to move around awkwardly, with each having their own two beds, desks, and bookshelves. Right next to the bookshelf is a small wardrobe, which is more than adequate since the nuns don’t have much clothing to store.

There’s also a combined bathroom and shower room attached, but it’s not spacious either, so we took turns bathing.

It may seem sparse to the point of feeling empty, but I actually found comfort in being here. This was my home in this world.

The reason I kept pondering leaving the convent was probably due to that feeling.

Getting rich and moving to a bigger place would be great, but leaving a familiar neighborhood was much harder than I thought.

Even though I don’t typically keep in touch with friendly neighbors, I had already grown quite accustomed to the priests in the church and the Sister Warden, and the thought of having to build new relationships from scratch with strangers was a bit daunting.

Besides, here I am in this position.

Many people would approach me for purely innocent reasons or perhaps less innocent ones.

Having to re-establish all those relationships on my own. Having to prepare everything I need to thrive by myself.

I had managed to do various things in my past life, but honestly, doing it all over again would be a headache.

“……”

I glanced over to Ria’s now-empty bed.

Yeah.

The comfort I felt here was partly thanks to Ria.

I never expected we would develop this kind of relationship when we first met.

Ria truly goes all out to protect me. It’s not just about keeping my body safe from harm, but whenever suspicious people come around, or if I find myself in a disadvantageous situation, she jumps in to somehow fix it.

Even though I keep doing things she tells me not to, she’s always here looking out for me.

This relationship, for now, stems from the position of being a Saint Candidate and her guard.

…… So, what will happen to us if I decide to leave the church? I suppose Ria would keep it as a close friend kind of relationship.

But sharing the same room wouldn’t be possible anymore. We probably wouldn’t have personal discussions in such a cramped space.

There would be boys coming after Ria too.

She’s not of marrying age yet, but at twenty, it wouldn’t be strange for her to have a boyfriend. Especially with her looks; she could easily snag a guy if they weren’t an odd case like Lee Si-yoon.

Could I bear to see Ria in such a situation? What if I receive a wedding invitation in a few years? Could I go and at least congratulate her?

I really don’t know.

Sighing as I rubbed my face, I let out a deep breath.

Ever since my visit to the Beastman country, I’ve been like this. The worries consuming my mind were focused solely on Ria and nothing related to the original story or this world.

I’ve never felt such emotions in my past life. I simply thought they were emotions too distant from me.

…..

No, well, it is still a story very far from where I am now. We’re both women, and on top of that, nuns. The likelihood of Ria developing any romantic feelings for me is extremely low.

So, all my worries might very well be futile thoughts in the end.

Click.

The shower room door swung open.

“Phew.”

A bit of hot and humid air rushed from the shower room into the dorm, as Ria stepped out with a towel draped over her neck.

Her short hair was slightly damp, sticking to her face with a few strands hanging down.

As usual, Ria sat at her desk drying her hair. I found myself staring dumbly at her back yet again.

Though not very thin, her clothes were for herself… well, I’ve explained that enough before, so do I really need to do it again?

Seriously, I’m such a pervert. If someone knew, they might seriously consider moving me to another room.

Usually, after washing up, we’d head straight to bed. There wasn’t much else to do anyway. Since we were always together, there really wasn’t any real conversation left for the night.

“Anna.”

Suddenly, Ria called my name, catching me off guard, and I quickly turned to look at the ceiling as I lay down.

“What?”

I responded, trying not to appear too flustered. Thankfully, it seemed like Ria didn’t notice my gaze.

“Do you want to watch a movie?”

Ria’s suggestion was out of the blue in many ways. We hadn’t talked about anything like that in the last few days.

Thinking about it, it’s not easy to even watch movie trailers in here. There’s a TV in the dining area, but it’s usually playing church announcements.

“What movie?”

I sat up a bit, curious about her offer.

“Are you planning to go out?”

“Huh? No. There’s no need to go outside to watch a movie.”

I felt like Ria could suggest going out right this moment. She’d probably leap over the church wall with me stuck to her side.

……Maybe I was thinking too far?

Ria tidied up her desk, moved over to the bed, and rummaged through her bag.

She pulled out a tablet.

“When did you get that?”

“When I went to the association.”

Now it wouldn’t be something to ban. Ria and I are full-fledged nuns now. Just like how priests are allowed to drink and many find solace in doing so, the church doesn’t prohibit all ordinary pleasures. It would be troublesome if too few people chose that path going forward.

Of course, if she were to watch something that strayed too far from the church’s philosophy… that could be problematic. Well, I suppose that’s more of a matter of personal ethics.

Ria sat on the bed, fiddling with the tablet before looking at me.

“What are you doing?”

“Huh?”

“You can’t watch a movie if you just sit there?”

“……Huh?”

“Huh? I mean, aren’t you thinking too little about this?”

“No, it’s just that isn’t it kind of ridiculous what you’re suggesting?”

“Huh? Ridiculous?”

“Our bed is meant for one person.”

That’s right. It’s not a double; it’s at just the right size for one person to sleep comfortably. It’s not so cramped that you’d fall off while sleeping, but still.

“It’s not even big enough for two people to lie on it!”

“You could just squish in close and sit together.”

“Squishing close?”

I rubbed my face in frustration. Where do I even start explaining this? No, would Ria even understand if I did?

“Come on.”

While I was mulling it over, Ria interrupted my thoughts.

“Hey, is this really the time for us to be worrying about that?”

Her words made my heart race. Of course, I knew that wasn’t what she meant. We were just friends, the relationship of a saint candidate and her guard.

Since we’re close, there’s no harm in holding hands or linking arms. Such skinship can occur among girls of our age.

I could manage a hug too.

……Still, I’m not sure if there are cases where you can take pictures together in a bikini swimsuit with your sides almost touching, but if Ria is doing it so casually, it seems that it’s accepted in ‘this world’ at least.

So, I can’t deny that. It has already happened in reality.

“How many times have we slept cuddling?”

“……”

Oh right. That did happen.

“Besides—”

Ria started to say something but suddenly fell silent. I cocked my head at the now quiet Ria.

“Besides?”

“Uh, never mind. That’s not what I meant.”

She brushed it off quickly without answering me.

As I furrowed my brows and was about to ask again, Ria sat herself against the wall of the bed and patted the space next to her.

“So, just come over and sit. It’s a bit weird to watch a movie sitting on separate beds. It’s awkward to drag a chair over too. Or…”

Ria looked at me and grinned.

“Or are you shy? Our saintess seems to have more modesty than I thought? You’re so conscious of such things.”

“……”

Hearing that, surprisingly, I felt more angry and irritated than guilty.

Here I was taking this seriously… why would she say something like that?

Would she really say something like that?!

Alright, since it’s come to this, how about I just lean in close to her and make it clear that I’m okay with it? Since she was the one who suggested it, she won’t have anything to say about it.

……

Well, the truth is, I’m too much of a coward to actually go that far.

But still, since I was really irritated, I sprung up and purposefully stomped on the narrow floor between the beds, climbing onto Ria’s bed.