CHAPTER 176
A few days after returning from the Imperial Palace.
My head was still full of thoughts about the Imperial Family.

The 1st Prince, Pelion, had already joined hands with Black Dawn beforehand.
As such, there wouldn't even be a trace left at the place where he contacted them.

'Chasing this lead is impossible.'

If Perasis had any information on this, she would have provided it already.
Since she couldn't find any hard evidence either, I had no expectations of finding it myself.

'If only I could figure out the location of those Black Dawn bastards.'

The Sinner of Wrath's group was still in hiding in the 2nd World.
Those bastards hadn't been able to cross over to the 1st World, Astrape, yet.
However, there were remnants operating separately from them.
Just looking at this recent incident proved it.
There was definitely a Black Dawn cell that had executed the 1st Prince's plan.
Ultimately, I needed to catch those remnants, but nothing had been revealed so far.

'What's most needed right now is for Aigis to safely bring back the Lord of Souls.'

I could only hope that the Lord of Souls could track the souls and find Black Dawn.
So, the most I could do right now was train.

"You're about to enter the next stage soon."
"Really?"

At Rapiel's words, I clenched both my fists tightly.
After the Regular Army's Commander-in-Chief Rapha Hastel returned, Rapiel was currently staying with me at Iox's mansion.
Perasis had smoothly resolved the matter of her banishment from Gladion.
Thanks to that, Rapiel no longer had to leave Gladion and could stay.

As a result, she naturally joined in on my Holy Magic training.
Currently, my Seed of Light was in the 3rd stage, the Blooming Stage.
Now, it was on the verge of surpassing that and reaching the 4th stage, the Establishment Stage.

"The quantity and quality of your Holy Magic are high, and you possess a large amount of Divine Power, so it seems your Seed's growth is much faster."

The experiences I had gone through had piled up and acted as fertilizer.
Beside my head, the Unnamed Spirit flew up and danced with joy.
Our little spirit must be happy about its master's growth too.
Grow well, little one.

"Just one more stage and you'll be on the same level as me."

Ah, that's right.
Rapiel's Seed was at the 4th stage, the Establishment Stage.
Which meant that, before I knew it, I was catching up to Rapiel's level.
When did that happen?
Even I was surprised by my own growth.

"How is it? Do you feel anxious now that your disciple is catching up to you?"

When I acted a little smug, Rapiel covered her mouth and let out a laugh.

"Thanks to you, Harua, I realized that seeing a disciple make rapid progress is a wonderful thing."

Our Master was incredibly broad-minded.

"Well, I still have a long way to go, though."
"The results of your efforts are showing every day, so there's no need to rush. Besides, Holy Magic isn't the only thing you have, right, Harua?"

She was right; Holy Magic wasn't the only thing I had.
There was no need to obsess over it too much.

"And since there are kids waiting for you over there, shall we call it a day here?"

Hearing that, I turned my head to follow Rapiel's gaze.
Standing there were Aranseol and Babiyen.

"I'll get going."
"Alright, have a good date."

A date, huh.
Lately, I've been having meals with Aranseol and Babiyen every day.
When Babiyen finishes her magic classes and Aranseol returns from her training, we eat together.
There was no special reason for it.
It just became a routine.

"To think my disciple is a playboy."

Rapiel's gaze poked at the back of my head, but I didn't care.
I just walked confidently and stood beside the two of them.
What could I do?
My charm was just overflowing.

"What's with that expression? It's making me feel bad for no reason."
"You shouldn't say things like that while looking at someone's face."

I retorted at Babiyen's sour expression and turned my body.

"Where's Lululio?"

With Aranseol having grown strong enough to rival a Lord, the frequency of Lululio exclusively escorting me had decreased.
Instead, she was regularly attending the Regular Army and training.

"She said she'd be late today. Told us to eat first."
"She's busy over there too, huh."
"You know how the situation with the Regular Army is lately."

Since the Commander-in-Chief election had fizzled out, there must be a lot of internal clashes and friction.

'It's about time the results of the Commander-in-Chief election came out, though.'

With Lieutenant General Kandelhar's downfall, it was practically decided that Anastasia would become the Commander-in-Chief.
However, I was worried about the conflict between the Central faction and the Frontline faction because of it.
It seemed like I'd need to figure out a way to resolve the tension between the two.

'Should I start thinking about making a move?'

I did have a plan in mind. It would be a huge pain in the ass to pull off, but it couldn’t be helped.

"Harua, your face is a mess. Bend down a little," Babiyen pointed out.

I guess I was covered in dust from training. As I lowered my head at her prompting, she took out a handkerchief and started wiping my face here and there.

"Why do you always go around ruining such a handsome face?"
"Harua, give me your arm."

Meanwhile, Aranseol took my arm. She smoothed out my messy sleeve and folded it neatly.

"If you walk around like this, people will think you don't have anyone taking care of you."

Well, what about having two people taking care of me? I thought. But Babiyen and Aranseol always fussed over me like this whenever they saw me. Is this just how women are? Being born a guy, there were times when I'd get taken care of in areas I didn't pay any attention to.

Whenever I was looked after like this, I felt a strange flutter in my chest. It wasn't that I felt treated like a child, but rather that affection was practically dripping from the two of them. Making sure I never looked lacking wherever I went—that was affection, and that was love.

What was I actually doing for these two in return? Ironically, there were no ulterior motives in their affection for me. They just did it naturally because they wanted to, without expecting anything back.

In a way, love really was a deeply selfless emotion. It made people so devoted. And constantly striving to return the affection you've received... that, too, must be a form of love.

As for me...

What could I, someone without even a beating physical heart, possibly give back to them? It was a crucial task I agonized over every single day.

Just then, both of my cheeks were pulled.

"What are you thinking so hard about again?"
"Are you just going to stand there thinking when we need to go eat? We agreed to eat out for the first time in a while."
"If we're any later, there won't be any seats left."

Aranseol and Babiyen were pulling one cheek each from either side. My cheeks aren't toys; I wish they wouldn't do this. Still, it was true that I had been lost in thought, so I agreed.

"Let's go grab some food first."

Gotta fill the belly.

By the time we finished eating and came out, the sun was already starting to set.

In the distance, I could see people heading home after finishing their day's work. Children ran around laughing happily, and several people were preparing for the late-night trade.

It was a peaceful sunset scene. The crimson hue dyeing the streets was beautiful enough to linger in my mind. If nothing else, the scenery in Gladion was quite a sight to behold.

"When I asked last time, they gladly let me borrow the kitchen," Aranseol said.
"Well, even this girl knows how to bake at least a few cookies," Babiyen chimed in.

Babiyen and Aranseol walked a step ahead of me, chatting quietly. Whenever I glanced at them, they would often look back and smile at me, glowing amidst the sunset. Wherever we went, their looks drew attention. I, too, had the status of the "Saint." That's why the three of us wore robes whenever we went out to eat.

As we walked, I happened to spot a street vendor. They were selling inexpensive accessories. I stared at the stall as I walked, then looked at the two walking ahead.

"Hold on a second, you two."
"Hm?"
"Is something wrong?"

At my call, Aranseol and Babiyen stopped simultaneously. Leaving them for a moment, I picked up two of the accessories displayed on the vendor's stand. One was a pendant engraved with a pure white swan and an unknown flower. The other was a hairpin depicting a moon rising amidst crimson flowers.

"How much are these?"
"Um, aren't you the Saint?"

The vendor recognized my face peeking through the robe. I guess I really had become quite famous.

"Haha, please, take them for free."
"You have to accept the money."
"It's fine. During the Great Earthquake, I barely survived thanks to you, Saint. If this is how I repay that debt, I'm getting off cheap. If I take money from the Saint, my wife will scold me."

The vendor vehemently refused and wouldn't take my money. It was a bit awkward, but his expression was completely sincere. In the end, I thanked him and returned to the two women.

"Why did you buy those?" Babiyen asked, completely clueless.

On the other hand, Aranseol smiled softly, having already caught on.

"You're going to give them to us, right?"

As expected, Aranseol was quick on the uptake.

"O-oh, r-really?" Babiyen asked belatedly, looking surprised.

For someone who works in the Imperial Court, her lack of tact was worrying in many ways.

"Yeah, that's right. I saw them as we were passing by, and they looked really well-made."

I handed the pendant and the hairpin to them respectively. They each took one.

"W-wow... I never thought I'd receive something like this from Harua."

Babiyen's shoulders trembled with a deeply moved expression. Her lips were curled all the way up, and she looked thrilled, which was a relief. She seemed to like the gift.

Meanwhile, Aranseol approached me slightly with a pleasant laugh.

"Harua, put it on me from behind."

Aranseol slightly brushed aside her robe and hair, revealing the pure white back of her neck. Then, holding the pendant to her neck, she asked me to clasp it for her.

"Ah, that's not fair!" Babiyen cried out sharply and stepped closer, but Aranseol calmly shrugged.

"It's hard to put a pendant on by yourself. It can't be helped."
"Then, this girl wants it too! Put mine on too!"
"You can put a hairpin on by yourself, can't you?"

The two of them sure know how to bicker over the most useless things. Still, it seemed they both liked their gifts.

After I carefully clasped Aranseol's pendant from behind, she let her hair fall with a soft rustle and showed me the front where the pendant rested.

"How is it? Does it look good on me?"

It looked great. Is there anything that wouldn't look good on Aranseol? I wondered, but it felt rewarding to have picked it out specifically for her.

"It's pretty."
"I know."

Aranseol gloated, showing off her beauty. Seeing her quietly humming a tune, she seemed to be in a very good mood.

"How about this girl?" Babiyen put on her hairpin and quickly demanded an evaluation.

Looking at her sparkling eyes, I felt a sudden urge to tease her, but I decided to hold back.

"It's cute. I picked well."
"Is there anything that wouldn't look good on this girl!"

Babiyen's self-esteem was as high as ever. Both Babiyen and Aranseol had a noticeably excited bounce in their steps. If I had known they'd like it this much, maybe I should have bought them things more often. I felt a little guilty.

"Next time, I'll buy you something even better."
"It's fine. It's from you, Harua. The value doesn't really matter."
"If you give this girl something better, this girl will love it even more."

Contrasting answers, but they both looked incredibly happy. I guess this is why people give gifts. Watching the two of them, I returned safely to the mansion with a proud smile on my face.

Just as I was thinking I should get some evening training in...

Tap-tap-tap-tap!

I heard urgent footsteps and shifted my gaze. I saw Lululio running toward me.

I thought she went to train, but here she is. The moment I looked at her questioningly, she shouted out.

"Harua-nim! Lieutenant General Anastasia has finally been chosen as the Commander-in-Chief-ssumda!"

The results were finally out. With the 1st Prince's faction collapsing entirely, Anastasia's victory had been set in stone. However, given the situation, there would undoubtedly be some who thought Anastasia was chosen out of sheer luck rather than ability. Even though they had no choice but to trust Anastasia now.

Still, there was a way I could give her strength. A way to make this world as stable as possible until Aigis returned.

"Babiyen, Lululio."

I called their names and quietly raised my head.

"I need to start acting as the Saint. So, gather information for me."
"Information?" Babiyen looked puzzled by my sudden declaration of Saintly activities.

The information they needed to find was simple.

"Babiyen, you find nobles outside the 1st Princess's faction who have lost someone precious to them. Lululio, you find people within the Regular Army's central faction who have lost loved ones."

What was Resurrection magic? It was the strongest card in the world, capable of turning enemies into allies through negotiation. Humans are beings that live together. Lovers, spouses, children, friends. There isn't a single person in the world free from these connections. The ability to reattach the severed threads among those countless connections—that was Resurrection magic.

"It's the Saint's political warfare."

To unite everyone with a single mind and purpose in order to crush Black Dawn.
I'll show them the political power of Resurrection magic.