Chapter 187

“After everything was over, I ended up piggybacking on Ria as we made our way out of the building.”

Maria must have been in pain and struggling here and there, but Ria insisted that it had to be her helping me, even with blood flowing from one hand.

There was no way to argue with that stubbornness, so eventually, I ended up on Ria’s back.

It felt a bit sticky. When I had climbed the stairs, Ria’s back had been damp with sweat, mixed with blood.

While I had treated most of her wounds, that didn’t mean the blood was all gone.

But I didn’t mind being on Ria’s back.

Because it was Ria.

Every time I pulled Ria close in the same bed every night, it felt nice. Waking up in the morning with our bodies stuck together and soaked in sweat didn’t bother me at all.

So, even now, I didn’t mind. I only felt sorry.

There was a faint smell of sweat coming from the back of Ria’s neck.

Just as I was about to tell Ria I was sorry for her struggle, I changed my mind.

“…Thank you.”

As I whispered, Ria smiled slightly without saying a word. That smile brought me a bit of relief.

I pressed my chest against Ria’s back and hugged her shoulders with my arms. When my face brushed against her nape, Ria flinched slightly but didn’t push me away.

Today, Ria had interrupted my prayer and used that power to take down a half-demon.

She looked like a knight straight out of a fairy tale.

I found myself pondering what Ria was thinking. She probably thought I looked dangerous and stepped in to face that danger instead.

“……”

My head was spinning.

What I thought I should do was colliding with what I wanted, and I didn’t know what was what.

Just a moment ago, I felt like I had some sort of revelation, but seeing Ria stand in for me—

How should I put it?

It made me a little fluttery.

To be honest, I still didn’t want to climb to the position of Saintess. I was thinking about the necessity of it, yet I still didn’t believe in God, so I was afraid of ascending to that place.

What Ria showed me today felt like saving me from such a position.

My heart raced.

Would that racing be conveyed through my chest pressed tightly against Ria?

I wasn’t sure.

I hoped it would.

＊

When we got down, I noticed the way people looked at us had slightly changed.

Maybe because of the bright light we had witnessed. The light that split the storm.

Even though I had called it forth, it was Ria who had wielded that power to repel our foes.

What would happen from now on?

Would both Ria and I become Saintesses? I didn’t want that.

“Are you going to head back to the church right away?”

One of the knights asked.

“There’s another church nearby. If you need a place to stay, we can arrange that.”

Because of our state, the knight made such an offer as we boarded the bus.

I glanced at Ria.

Seated next to me, Ria stole a glance at my face and shook her head at the knight.

“I want to go straight back to our church.”

“Understood.”

The knight, being cautious as usual, answered and stepped back.

I let out a light sigh and rested my head on Ria’s shoulder. Ria didn’t try to avoid or reject that.

“…Ria.”

I called out softly to Ria.

“…Yeah?”

Ria answered quietly.

What should I say?

I couldn’t say not to do that again. That wasn’t what Ria wanted.

Ria had taken it upon herself to guard me, so she was always by my side, but—just because she was, I would never think of Ria as someone beneath me.

Even if, in terms of status, we weren’t equal, Ria was my friend. Always by my side.

…And, someone I had feelings for.

Reaching out with trembling fingers, I found Ria’s hand. I slipped my fingers between hers resting on her thigh and intertwined them tightly.

Ria returned the gesture, holding my hand as if she would never let go.

“Ria.”

“Anna.”

At my call, Ria answered with my name.

It felt entirely different from before.

Instead of thinking of what to say, I thought maybe it was okay to just remain silent like this.

I could feel Ria leaning ever so slightly on top of my head against her shoulder.

I closed my eyes. Maria probably didn’t close her eyes either.

We were resting against each other, sound asleep, all the way to the church.

＊

When I opened my eyes again, we were at the church.

Not just any church, but Ria’s and my room. The bed was naturally the same bed, and even the clothes I was wearing were completely different. Loose clothing that I often wore to sleep.

Did she change me?

Of course, it had to be Ria. She would never allow someone else to take care of unconscious me. There’s a strange possessiveness about her.

…Thinking of that made my face grow warm for no reason.

Carefully moving, I felt around my chest without touching Ria’s. Naturally, there were no undergarments. At least I still had my panties on.

Putting an unconscious person in the bath would be very dangerous, and Ria herself must have been exhausted, so she probably wouldn’t go that far, but I imagined she might have wiped my body with a wet towel.

Ria had her arms wrapped around my waist.

Grrr…

“Ah.”

I felt my stomach rumble and was startled.

Grrr…

My face, already red, felt even hotter. I tried to pull my stomach away as much as possible.

It was so close that I thought Ria could tell just from the vibration, not just the sound.

But with her arms wrapped around me so tightly, I couldn’t pull my stomach back at all.

Grrr…

“Kuh.”

“……”

Once again, my stomach rumbled, and hearing Ria’s response, I froze in place.

I slowly raised my head to look at Ria’s face.

Faintly, through the darkness, Ria’s face looked peaceful in sleep, but somehow, it didn’t look like she was just sleeping.

“…Ria?”

Ria didn’t say a word.

I reached out and touched Ria’s face.

“Huh…”

Ria made that noise again.

“…You’re awake, aren’t you?”

“……”

“Ria?”

I pulled at Ria’s soft cheeks.

“…If you keep doing that, anyone would wake up.”

Ria opened her eyes, looking dumbfounded.

Even in the dark, I could see Ria’s eyes shining.

“Since when were you awake?”

“Since I felt the vibrations in my stomach.”

I bit my lip.

I was trying to curl up as best as I could, but obviously, since Ria was holding me tightly, it didn’t work out well. Ria’s strength truly made her a bodyguard. It’s like I couldn’t move even if the guarded subject was struggling.

Grrr…

Eventually, I had no choice but to resent my stomach that was rumbling once more.

“Kuh…”

“Don’t laugh.”

I glared at Ria.

“Mmm.”

Ria made that sound and suddenly sat up, pulling me up with her. Naturally, I had to follow suit.

We were pressed against each other, lying face to face, so as Ria sat up on the bed, I ended up in a position where I was pretty much cuddling her thigh.

“W-What!?”

“Huh? What? Are you going to run out all of a sudden into some dangerous place?”

Hearing Ria say that made me stop struggling.

“Why? No one else would be able to do that.”

“…That’s not it.”

But Ria had hit the nail on the head. My denial didn’t really mean much.

Grrr…

“Can you… let go of me?”

With my chin resting on Ria’s shoulder, I asked, half-sobbing.

“If you promise, I’ll let you go.”

“A promise?”

“Yeah. Trust me a little more.”

“……”

“You said you trust me, right? I’m saying to trust me a little more. In dangerous moments, leave it to me and step back. You said you could put your life in my hands, so why do you always step forward?”

The story I had heard from Anna, Ria was now saying it back to me.

“…Fine.”

“Really?”

“…Yeah, really.”

“Hmm.”

Ria seemed a bit skeptical as she said that.

As I felt like my stomach was about to rumble again, I started getting anxious. No matter what, I didn’t want all of that exposed to someone I liked.

No, when it came to image, it was already like I had crossed the Jordan River.

“And one more thing.”

“O-One more thing?”

“Yeah. If you promise me this one more thing, let’s go eat ramen.”

Ria said that, oddly patting my back.

“From now on, a lot is going to change. You showed that side of yourself in front of everyone, right?”

“That’s true.”

“You’re going to have to deal with higher-ups.”

“Yeah, that will definitely happen.”

Answering in a slightly low voice, Ria spoke in a strangely bright tone.

“You said you trust me, right? Then leave it all to me in that situation.”

“……”

I thought for a moment before letting out a sigh.

Well, if I said I wouldn’t do it now, she wouldn’t let me go anyway.

“Yeah, I’ll leave it to you.”

“Good.”

Ria gently hugged me once before releasing me.

Grrr…

At that inconvenient timing, my stomach rumbled again.

Ria laughed out loud and said,

“Then let’s go eat something.”

She said that, and I could only nod my head, my face burning.