Two days later. Aldis, Sorte and the mercenaries hired to carry the luggage - the bodyguard - and their escort leave the royal capital.
　Their destination is three newly created villages in the northern frontier region.

　This area had originally been a dangerous land overrun by wild beasts.
　However, as a result of Ardis' defeat of the demon called the "bell-neighbor" and the large number of mercenaries and soldiers who hunted in the mountains for settlement and mine development, the danger has been completely reduced now.
　Even though the danger wasn't completely gone, it had calmed down to the point where a mercenary with the skill there could travel without danger.

　From what Aldis could see, the mercenaries hired to escort them had terrible skills, but they could still fight to the extent that they could reliably drive back the occasional beast that attacked them.

''Don't worry, Sister, we'll protect you well.

　The swordsman's smile to Sorte looks like he has a double heart, but for now, the mercenaries are doing their job as guards without a hitch.

　So, it's been about seven days since they went around the villages.

''Finally, this is the last time.

Yes. I'm glad it's all going to be okay.

　Solte, who had finished her duties in the last village, smiled at Ardis.
　It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to have to worry about it.

　Even if I say work, it doesn't mean I was doing something special.
　She presided over services, consulted with the villagers, preached in her spare time and took care of the children's studies. It's all very mundane things.

　Aldis is unhappy with the church's worship of the goddess, but he has a different impression of Sorte's dedication to serving the people.

'You were not busy while you were in the village, were you?　You should have been able to attend the service.

　''No offense to the tone of the girl who is rumored to be a 'sure saint eventually'.

　But it was one word that was enough to take the emotion out of Aldis' face.

'Pray?　Me?　For that woman?　That's a bad joke.

Again, you say something like that: ......

　Sorte slumped her shoulders and sighed.

'What makes you so stubborn, Aldis-san?　Perhaps something hard in the past?

　The face, still with a faint hint of infancy, changes to that of a clergyman.

It is true that the trials that the Goddess gives us sometimes involve suffering. But the Goddess does not send trials to make us suffer. The Goddess wants us to overcome our predicament.

　The words flowed easily out of the little mouth as if they were a prayer.
　Each word turned Aldis's emotions into something flat and cold.

'There are those who grieve over the fact that the Goddess doesn't give us salvation, but we must overcome hardship by ourselves. She will watch over you, but she is in no way trying to make you suffer, Ardis-san.

　As a sorte, he is probably saying this with good intentions to ease Aldis' worries.
　But those words do not resonate with Ardis.

　To Ardis, rather, the goddess is the source of everything.

I don't want to talk about it anymore. It is of no benefit to either of us.

　It was an exchange that had been repeated many times between them since their first visit to the village.
　The first time he hesitantly approached Aldis, who was dozing off in the shade of a tree, instead of attending the service.

　Since then, every time he tries to talk to her, they are always at odds, but of course they are always at odds. There was no success for Solte.
　Aldis, who does not have a bad impression of Sorte personally, also avoids talking about this matter, deeming it useless.
　He has resigned himself to the fact that it's natural that he can't communicate with someone who has blind faith in the goddess.

''But--''

'Hey!　Sister!　The village chief wants to talk to you about tomorrow's departure time!

　A distant voice called out for Solte.

'Ah, yes!　I understand!　I'll be there in a minute!

　The girl turns around and responds hurriedly. She doesn't look frightened there.

'Mr. Aldis. I'll talk to you later.

　The words made no sense to Aldis, and then Sorte moved away.
　Her cherry-blossom hair danced in a twirl, and she approached the mercenaries of the guards with her nun's clothes in tow.

　Days have passed since their departure, and no small change has come to the relationship between Aldis and the others.
　Aldis had originally agreed to accompany Solte, but the difference in values towards the goddess still created an awkward atmosphere between the two.

　On the contrary, the relationship between Sorte and the mercenaries seems to have improved considerably.
　Although Solte was frightened at first, she seems to have become less wary of the mercenaries who are quietly guarding her.
　Now, he even leaves Aldis in this way and works with them.

　Is it because of his youthful inexperience, or is it because he is a clergyman ....... I'm not sure if it's 'habituation' or 'carelessness', Aldis doesn't know.
　But at least Aldis hasn't let his guard down, and he's determined to protect Sorte if anything happens to him.

"The only request we've received is 'Sister's Guard'. I don't have the right to protect a baggage carrier.

　It was impossible to ask the mercenaries who had said flatly to Ardis out of Solte's sight to relax their guard in the first place.

''Oh well. If nothing happens, it's better than that.''





　The church in the royal city of Gran.
　The priest, with his distinctive blessed ears, was puzzled.

''What do you mean?''

I have no idea what you mean by that either: ......

　Father Blessed Sacrament is being harassed by five mercenaries.

''We came with a formal request. What do you mean that the target of the escort has already left?

　A young man who seems to be the leader of the group puts the request form in front of the priest.

'Certainly ......, there is no doubt in my mind that it is the request form we submitted. But if you do, you'll have to go to .......

　The mercenaries showed me a request for work to escort Sister Sorte to the northern frontier.
　And it was definitely a legitimate one issued by the church.

''It says the departure date is today, right?　Am I saying something wrong?

　The young man asks in an indignant tone.
　His fellow mercenaries are waiting behind him, but they all don't even try to hide their annoyance from their expressions.

　It's only natural.
　They must feel that the church has reneged on their request.

"Wait a minute, please. I'll go check it out. I'm sorry, but please wait here.

　Father Fukumimi hurriedly pushed the mercenary aside and rushed into a certain priest's room with the request form in his hand.

''Priest Dorette!''

　The priest, known as Dourette, was sitting at his office desk in a private room where he was assigned to do his clerical work.
　When he looked up, he rolled his eyes in surprise and asked Father Fukumimi, "What is it, all of a sudden?

He rolls his eyes in surprise and asks Father Blessed Sacrament, "What is it, all of a sudden?　Is the congregation begging for an extended service time again?

'No, I'm not talking about that. Anyway, look at this!

　When he presented the request form in his hand to Dorette, Father Blessed Ear began to explain the situation.

　After hearing what happened, Dorette gets up from her seat and pulls out a bundle of documents from the stack set on the wall.
　He spread the papers out on his office desk and searched for one of them, and then, with a wrinkle between his eyebrows, he asked Father Blessed Sacrament to confirm the question.

''Hm. ....... Sister Sorte has already left with her escort mercenaries, right?

Yes, I'm sure of it.

This request you brought me, it's definitely the right one, with the stamp of the church. But this--

　He turned his attention to the documents he took from the archives.

''--The request form that was brought by another mercenary the other day doesn't appear to have been forged either.

　Dorette was right, the request form brought by the mercenaries who left with Sister Sorte was also a legitimate one with the seal of the church on it.

'I'll have to ask the friar who asked me to arrange the request, but perhaps there was some kind of mistake.

　Contrary to Dawlett's optimistic judgement, Father Blessed Ear looks divine.

'Priest Dorette. I don't think it's possible, but isn't it possible that it's the work of someone who wants to do Sister Sorte harm?

　Sorte was a mere nun, but at the same time she was a gifted woman who was rumored to be a future saint.
　Although she was often looked at with envy, she could also be the target of envy and jealousy.

Isn't that a bit much to ask?　I don't see how anyone could want to do harm to the Goddess' beloved child.

Perhaps. But I've heard some bad things about it.

A bad rumor, sir?

''Yes. Yes. Unbelievers who do not fear the majesty of the Goddess. I'm talking about those who delight in the fullness of chaos and evil in the world.

　It was rumored by the followers of the evil gods whom the Goddess had destroyed during the Divine World War.
　The rumors of beings who worshipped the evil gods, even if they were unreliable, were unbearable to the Goddess' pious servant, Father Fukumimi.

　Looking back, the first mercenaries who arrived were not very good.
　There was not a single woman among the members despite the fact that they were escorting the sisters, and even without that, their frivolous attitude was a bit tricky.
　He was aware that Sorte was feeling uneasy, and that's why he had given permission to take additional personnel with him in the name of being a luggage carrier.

　But even for that additional baggage bearer they hired, there was something suspicious about it now that I think about it.
　Not only was there no sign of reverence for the goddess, there was even a hint of hostility.
　It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to get through to them, as I try to keep my bad feelings to myself, but this attitude of neglecting the goddess is not something I would ever tolerate.

　The luggage carrier was said to be the person Solte herself had appointed.
　But if you ask, it seems that they have only met once, and even that encounter was just like the scenario the other party had set up.

I've heard that rumor too, but it's still overthinking it. It's natural to think that there was simply a mistake in submitting the request. To the mercenaries who came today - well, yes. If I apologize and then give them half of the success fee as an apology, I'm sure they'll understand.

　As he comes to a conclusion, Dawlett calls people over and starts giving them instructions.

'Yes, that would be good ......, but ......'

　Muttering this in a voice that only he could hear, Father Blessed Ear couldn't shake the doubt that had been born in his mind.
　I really hope it was just a mistake. All he could do was pray to the goddess for Solte's safety.