Chapter 175

“How far did you go with Sister Maria?”

The reason I was flabbergasted was that Anna, the Saintess, asked me that question with a completely innocent look on her face.

I hadn’t shared my feelings with anyone. Naturally, it never crossed my mind to do so. Even if I had a lesbian friend or a gay friend by my side, I wouldn’t have told them. This is my heart, not theirs.

So,

“Whaaat!?”

It was already spilled milk, so there was nothing I could do about my surprise, but I at least tried to act calm.

“M-m-m-m,”

I tried to act calm. Failed spectacularly.

“I don’t quite understand what you mean. Um, um, how far we’ve gone? Well, if we look at the ranks, I’m not really a Saintess yet, and Ria isn’t an official knight yet, so we probably haven’t gone very high.”

After answering that, my heart settled down a little. Yeah. Anna and I are different people. We might share the same name and end up in similar positions for some reason, but we’re in different worlds, after all.

Our personalities are also a bit different. Anna seemed a bit more… composed than me. If I had to put it, she reminded me of the original Saintess.

…..

Does that mean there were Siyoon or Yuri over there? I doubt Glaria was around. I think it was the first time Mari saw an Elf. I had only known “another world” as a term associated with the Demon Race and monsters.

A thought crossed my mind: Maybe this Anna had a crush on the person who was the Siyoon of that world—

But that thought shattered completely with the next words.

“No?”

Anna tilted her head as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“I mean, I’m asking how valuable Sister Maria is to Sister Anna, who shares a room with her.”

She blushed a bit when she mentioned “valuable person.” So, this isn’t just a question of how close they are as friends.

When Anna first spoke to me, I was surprised by such a question, but listening quietly made me feel a little deflated.

Even if I misunderstood it that way, Ria and I weren’t that close in the first place.

“We’re very good friends.”

I moved my broom again. Following my lead, Anna started to move her broom, too.

“But nothing more than that.”

“Huh? But that ring…….”

“It’s a friendship ring, obviously.”

Anna stared at my face and my right hand, slightly agape.

Then she made a somewhat perplexed expression.

Before I could interpret that expression accurately, Anna asked me again.

“Did Anna give you that ring herself?”

It felt a little strange hearing her call me Anna. But, I guess, I’d do the same for her if I called her Anna… Wait, I don’t even know what I’m saying.

“No.”

I shook my head.

“I asked for the rings to be made, and they made two of the same.”

“So I put one on the same finger.”

“In Gnome society, the right-ring finger signifies friendship. It seems like it would be uncomfortable to wear it on the index finger.”

As I said that, I felt a bit gloomy.

“Is that so? Um, I haven’t met many from other races.”

“You can only meet Gnomes in another world, but I can introduce you to a Dwarf princess.”

“A Dwarf princess…….”

Anna’s expression morphed into something akin to staring blankly into the distance. While the world had magic and Saint Power, she had probably never encountered anything more fantastical than demons and monsters, so she was likely struggling to comprehend it all.

“Yes, I’d like to meet her someday. Oh, but.”

Anna directed the conversation back to its original topic.

“So, does that ring just mean friendship? Does it have no deeper meaning?”

“…Yeah, that’s right.”

I barely held back a sigh.

I’ve thought many times that this is enough. Still, as long as I have feelings for her, the desire to become something more really can’t be helped.

Maybe later, once everything with the Demon Race and all is resolved, I could reveal my feelings a bit more.

“……”

Anna fell silent for a moment. Naturally, the atmosphere around us quieted down, too.

Ever since I suddenly “prophesied” during cleaning last time, the nuns had tried to keep their distance from me. While they didn’t have much hesitation when it came to everyday interactions, they tended to avoid me as much as possible when in the presence of someone “holy.”

They seemed cautious about suddenly becoming witnesses of the prophecy themselves, which was a wise choice. If they weren’t careful, the church might very well send someone to take testimonials from them.

In the distance, I could see Ria and Mari conversing. I couldn’t catch the details of their exchange. Mari wore a serious expression, while Ria didn’t seem overly serious, so it likely wasn’t anything too grave.

“Sister Anna.”

Anna spoke to me again. Now feeling much more relaxed than before, I turned my gaze back to Anna.

“This is a question because you’re in a similar position to me.”

At her cautious words, I halted my broom, bringing our conversation to a stop.

“…I don’t know how to speak to someone who has endured for years just to protect a world that I couldn’t protect.”

Hadn’t I been doing alright?

Like other guests here, Anna and Mari had started living together. I figured the atmosphere in their shared room would at least carry a hint of pink, maybe not as much as Paina and Pertia’s, but still.

…..

Uh, no, I wasn’t projecting my relationship with Ria onto them. At least, I didn’t think so. It was just how their narratives went.

“Life is somehow going on. We casually talk about what happened today, and we share what we want to eat. But… when it comes to what happened over there, I still can’t bring myself to say anything.”

Anna’s grip on her broom tightened.

“Not long before I found myself in this state, I lashed out at Mari.”

“……”

Uh-oh.

I didn’t know how to comfort her.

A person who wanted to save the world. But inevitably, someone who couldn’t do it.

While Mari had at least a few years to calmly accept that world,

“Well, I too.”

…Huh?

“I just couldn’t move—”

“Ah, hold on a sec.”

I raised my hand, cutting off Anna’s words.

Anna looked at me with a bit of surprise. I shook my hand vigorously, saying,

“That story… I don’t think it’s one I should be hearing. Ah, maybe I’ll hear it later, but not right now.”

That’s right.

I at least believed that Mari had feelings for Anna. The image of Mari staying by Anna’s side transcended mere nobility; it was a kind of devotion in a different realm.

It wasn’t merely about standing guard; she did everything she could to keep the remaining space tidy while taking care of Anna, cleaning around her continuously. Such earnestness honestly didn’t seem like it stemmed purely from “friendship.”

Well, it could also be guilt. After all, they were the last two left in that world.

…But because of that, I thought this story should be heard directly by Mari.

Anna was probably trying to convey, “Even in that state, I was still conscious.”

If Mari had feelings for Anna and had conveyed a confession to Anna while she was unconscious, and Anna had actually been listening to that,

whether agreeing with those feelings or not, or whether Anna was mistaken, the person who should hear that story first shouldn’t be me.

Is this too idealistic? People sometimes seek romantic advice from those around them, so shouldn’t I be listening to that story?

But… why was I repeatedly projecting myself onto Anna? Our personalities were different, and our appearances were even oddly different, but I thought that situation was similar.

If I were to spill my feelings to someone, I would want it to be Ria who hears it first.

So, I hoped that this Anna’s candid words would be heard first by Mari.

…That’s selfish.

It’s no different from pushing someone onto a battleground, just because I can’t do it myself, without knowing whether it would end in success or failure.

But at the same time, I thought this was a promising story. To put it bluntly, even if I heard Anna’s story, I wouldn’t have much advice to give, given my lack of romantic experience.

“How about you tell that story directly to Mari?”

“…To Mari.”

“Yes. Mari… has been waiting. All along.”

At my words, Anna closed her eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, Anna nodded and opened her eyes.

“You’re right, Mari. She has always been that way. Yes, then it’s best to share this story with Mari first.”

I nodded vigorously, sighing in relief.

“Thank you, Sister Anna.”

“Huh? I didn’t really say anything special.”

Suddenly hearing such words, I felt a bit flustered.

After all, without hearing the story, I didn’t really have a reason to thank her.

“No, it was a huge help. At least I now know what I need to do. And—”

Anna quietly gazed at my hand, then smiled slightly as she said,

“And I can also decide what to get for Christmas gifts.”