This Wasn’t an Erotic Game?

Chapter 46 - No More Trouble, Right?

『 Translator – Divinity 』

For several days, I was caught in a whirlwind of investigations and whatnot, going back and forth between the Pantheon and the Black Fortress, the Emperor's intelligence agency.

To be honest, it wasn't much of an investigation; they were mostly checking if I had any injuries or hidden wounds.

And when I was finally set free, the world outside was in complete chaos.

[Breaking News! The Evil God's chosen one was hiding within the Imperial Palace! Shocking!!]

[Healing Saint Amael! Saves the Empire!!]

[Saintess of Annihilation! Newly Born! High Priest Miromel of the White Church pledges loyalty and obedience to the new Saintess!!]

[Iomene, the Saintess of Annihilation and the hidden princess! Vanquishes the Evil God's chosen one!!]

Every newspaper in the Empire was plastered with headlines about the incident at the Imperial Palace.

On top of that, every citizen in the capital had witnessed the moment the brilliant burst of light, released as the Evil God's fragment shattered, healed the people.

The Imperial family, seeing the public's reaction, decided to reveal everything that had happened transparently, and the world's response was explosive.

"Saint! Aaaaagh!!"

"Saint!! Saint!! Please, just one glance!!"

"He saw me!! He saw me!! The Saint looked at me!!"

People started fainting or bursting into tears of gratitude if I even made eye contact with them on the street.

And there was one more side effect.

"Just one word, please!!"

"Saint! Saint! This is Arcal Daily! A quick interview, would that be alright?"

"How did you manage to capture the Evil God's chosen one who infiltrated the Imperial Palace? I heard he was using an incredibly powerful miracle called the Miracle of Concealment, which even high-ranking priests couldn't detect... or rather, it was said to be practically impossible to detect!!"

Reporters started swarming me.

The incident at the Imperial Palace was so shocking that journalists, smelling a huge scoop, were now clinging to me like bees.

People crying.

People fainting.

People begging to just hold my hand.

Reporters desperately trying to get an interview, pushing through the crowd and shouting questions.

Oh, for fuck's sake!!

Leave me alone!!

In the short distance between the Black Fortress and the Magic Tower Temple, I felt like my soul was about to leave my body because of the people swarming me.

"Master Yodel. I need some rest."

"As you wish!!"

I returned to the Magic Tower Temple and told Grandpa Yodel not to let anyone in unless it was absolutely necessary, then collapsed onto the bed in my room.

Now what?

The plan to use the cheat code and go to Korea has failed.

So I have to go back to the original plan of getting forgiveness from the Goddess...

As I said, this method has a high chance of failure.

On top of that, I'm being wrongly labeled as some miracle worker, so if I disappear, even more people will try to find me.

What the hell is this misfortune?

I don't want to go to hell!

"Saint?"

While I was gloomily pounding the pillow on my bed...

Grandpa Yodel was already knocking on the door, not long after I entered the room.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but the knights from the Royal Guard are here."

Ah.

The Emperor must have sent them.

I sighed and told them to come in.

Royal Guards in splendid attire, with long swords at their waists, marched into my room in an orderly fashion.

"Saint, His Majesty requests your presence."

Yeah.

I knew he would.

I expected to be summoned after everything was settled.

I got up from my seat.

For the original escape plan, I needed three things.

1. A way to disable the tracking methods, like the Miracle of Tracking or whatever, used to find me. I can ask the Church members about this.

2. A way to enhance my Time Stop ability, which is crucial for escaping. I need to inquire about this at the Magic Tower.

3. Enough money to live on after escaping.

This.

This third one is the biggest problem.

You might ask, can't I just embezzle money from the Grace Church, which is famous for being wealthy, or from the Karma Company, which is raking in tons of cash?

No, I can't.

The Goddess is already pissed enough to send me to hell, and if I even touch a penny of the Church's money?

She might just shout, "Result! Only the result matters!! King Crimson!!" and erase the entire process, sending me straight to hell to become an eternally roasted pig on a hellfire barbecue.

Then where can I get that kind of money? Money that's hidden, untraceable, and difficult to track?

His Majesty the Emperor.

Wouldn't the Emperor have that kind of money?

He's probably going to ask me what I want as a reward.

I'm going to ask for gold.

The untraceable kind.

This is a fantasy world, right?

There should be something like a subspace pocket with a weight-reducing enchantment, shouldn't there?

I'll fill that with gold and then run away.

And I'll go somewhere where it's hard to find people and live quietly like a mouse.

Praying that no one will ever find me.

"Please lead the way."

At my words, the Royal Guards politely escorted me out.

Their eyes were filled with such deep respect that I wondered if they would even look at the Emperor himself with that expression.

It's uncomfortable.

To receive those gazes when I'm planning to take the Emperor's gold and run.

This is why people should live lives that suit their station.

What kind of saint am I?

It's so damn uncomfortable, really.

Let's get out of here quickly.

And then, for real, quietly...

Let's live like a dead mouse and end it there.

Hopefully, that will be enough for the Goddess to forgive me...

***

The extravagant and spacious reception room was filled with objects that looked like they could bankrupt three generations of my family if I even scratched them.

"Your Majesty. We have brought him."

"Good work. You are dismissed."

The Royal Guards saluted and left the reception room.

The Emperor and Empress. Iomene and Almene.

And behind Princess Iomene, the priests and paladins of the White Church stood in a neat line, their faces grim.

Even High Priest Miromel of the White Church was standing at the forefront.

It seemed certain that Iomene had become a Saintess.

"Welcome, Saint."

The Emperor, seeing me, approached me personally, took my hand, and kissed the back of it.

From his words to his actions...

It was excessively polite for the ruler of a nation.

But no one in the room seemed to find that strange.

I felt like I was going to have a hole in my head from the sheer awkwardness.

"That's too much, Your Majesty. I'm just a mere citizen of the Empi…”

"You are the savior of the Empire. The savior of an incompetent father and his unfortunate daughter. No matter what kind of courtesy I show you, it will never be enough."

After saying that, the Emperor himself led me to the sofa in the reception room. As soon as I sat down, Iomene, who had been sitting next to the Empress, came running over and clung to me.

"Like!"

Her speech was still impaired.

But...

I hadn't noticed when she was wearing shabby clothes and had black wings on her back, but now that she was dressed up and had light makeup on, Iomene... was truly beautiful.

"Iomene was so eager to see you, Saint. She was pouting all day."

The Empress said with a gentle smile. Princess Almene was also smiling. Even the Emperor.

No.

Is that really the right reaction when your daughter is rubbing her face against a strange man?!

...Whatever.

Let's just get the gold and get out of here.

"Saint, I called you here today for a favor."

A favor?

Didn't you call me here to give me a reward?

Please give me gold.

Just 10kg of gold bars, and I'll quietly live my life with that.

"I would like you and the Grace Church to take charge of my daughter Iomene's treatment."

Treatment?

Was Iomene injured?

I clearly healed her body completely back then, didn't I?

"What kind of treatment are you talking about?"

At my question, Princess Almene pointed at the magic circle engraved on her left eye. The magic circle that was forcibly keeping her eye closed. The magic that severed the connection between them, right?

"Now that the fragment of the Evil God is gone from Iomene's body, we need to remove the magic that blocks the connection between us. By doing so, we can help Iomene's weakened mind recover."

"Is that possible?"

"It's possible because we are twin souls. Since we share the same soul, if one of us is mentally injured, the other can help them recover. However, Iomene and I have been apart for nineteen years, and her mental state isn't good, so we need to use powerful divine magic for mental protection."

Princess Almene smiled faintly.

"The only place with both powerful divine magic and the equipment to dispel powerful blocking magic is the Magic Tower Temple of the Grace Church. Besides, we need you there, Saint, for Iomene's emotional stability during the mental recovery process."

So that's why it had to be the Lilia Church.

Even I had to admit, the only place I could think of with both priests and top-level mages was the Magic Tower Temple.

But I have to escape soon, you know?

I'll get the gold from the Emperor today, find a way to avoid the Miracle of Tracking and use Time Stop more efficiently, and then I'm out of here.

"It won't take long. We can start the procedure as soon as everything is ready in two days. I want to help Iomene recover quickly. Saint, please."

Princess Almene bowed her head.

Two days...

Well, two days is fine.

Even after getting everything I need, I can't just disappear right away.

Wouldn't that be enough time?

Besides, I want to see Iomene recover properly.

After a brief moment of contemplation, I nodded.

"I'll do as you wish. Please send the two of you to the temple. I'll help with the treatment there."

"Thank you, Saint."

Everyone looked at me with respect.

I'm telling you, stop doing that.

I'm going to have a hole in my head, really.

"I'm so sorry to ask you for another favor, Saint. We can never repay you for everything you've done for the Empire, no matter what reward we offer. What is it that you wish for?"

Finally! The Emperor said the words I wanted to hear!

Yes! It's not right to make someone work without compensation!

Gold!

Just as I was about to say, "Give me 10kg of gold,"

Suddenly...

I remembered the people crying and screaming in front of the burning factory.

"I have two requests."

I looked directly at the Emperor and stated my demands.

"Please create a law that makes it mandatory for all factories to install fire safety equipment. People were burning to death in the fire. I want to prevent that from happening again."

The Emperor smiled at my words.

"You are truly noble. Unfortunately, I cannot grant you that request. The Senate has already passed a new fire safety law. It will probably be implemented nationwide starting next month."

Ah, that's good to hear.

"That's truly wonderful news. And next..."

It feels a bit off to say this right after being praised for being noble.

"I need 10kg of gold. Could you perhaps prepare 100 gold bars, each weighing 100g? And put them in a weight-reducing subspace pocket."

I feel a bit nervous.

But let's be as confident as possible!

Maintain a shameless expression, as if I'm going to use it for something saintly!

"How humble of you. To ask for only that much after saving the entire Empire. Of course, I'll grant you that. But I cannot simply give 10kg of gold to the one who saved the Empire and end it there. The Arcal Empire has its prestige to uphold."

What... what else are you going to give me?

"I will exempt Karma Company from all taxes for the next ten years."

The Emperor said with a grin.

"This is my small offering, Saint. Please take good care of Iomene. If possible, could you stay with Iomene for the next two days during the preparation period? I heard that emotional stability is crucial for the mental recovery procedure."

I looked down at Iomene, who was still clinging to me with a childlike smile on her face, rubbing her cheek against mine.

He's giving me 10kg of gold and even exempting Karma Company from taxes for ten years.

I guess I have to provide some after-sales service.

"Gladly."

Two days, is it?

I'll quickly find a way to avoid the Miracle of Tracking and learn how to use Time Stop efficiently, then get the hell out of here!!

"Like!"

...Let's start by fixing Iomene's habit of clinging to people.

─ 𓆩♱𓆪 ─

Princess Almene was bewildered, feeling her heart pounding intensely.

'This is serious.'

Even though the magic that blocked the connection between them hadn't been dispelled yet, Iomene's strong emotions were breaking through and reaching Almene.

Love.

She could feel Iomene's insanely passionate love.

'No more trouble, right?'

Almene was slightly worried.