Hard Carried by My Sword-Chapter 130

Saintess. The very title that referred to one born as the Goddess’s staff upon this land.

Few truly understood the weight of that name. Most only pretended to respect the Saintess—either to bolster the authority of the Holy Church or out of wariness toward her power and influence. Before the Church’s eyes, they would bow politely, but behind closed doors, they would mutter about how a mere woman couldn’t possibly understand anything serious.

However, the few who did know, understood well—that the Saintess was the most dangerous and powerful figure in the Church, the one who could embody the power of the Goddess more perfectly than anyone else.

Her silver hair and golden eyes were proof of that. Hair turned white by divine power, eyes dyed gold—both were as good as possessing the Goddess’ Stigmata right from birth.

Of these traits, the golden eyes could see something special.

Ah... the Hero...

Elahan gazed at him with a dazed expression. It wasn’t that she had fallen for Leon’s looks. Clergy were not swayed by physical beauty or ugliness, and none more so than Elahan.

Was it because she’d been raised in the temple from childhood? No. Because she’d been strictly trained as a Saintess? Not that either.

From birth, Elahan had possessed “eyes”—eyes that could see not the outer form, but the inner heart, the truths that should have been hidden beneath skin and flesh. And what she saw in Leon, the Hero, was...

A small sun.

A light still faint, but one that never ceased to burn. A flame that paid no mind to burning itself away, a light that could rise again even after sinking into the deepest darkness. Unyielding and indomitable, a fire of resolve so beautiful it left her eyes dazzled.

He’s the Hero I’m meant to serve!

Focus returned to her once-clouded gaze, and at last, she saw Leon’s face clearly—the surprise still on his features. Dark brown hair, brown eyes. Ordinary, yet with a certain pleasantness.

If there was one flaw, it was his stiff expression. Not yet twenty, and yet whatever storms he’d weathered had left him with almost no trace of youthful softness from brow to lips.

To Elahan, however, it was something else entirely.

He’s so cool.

That stiffness spoke to a man who faced life seriously, and his plain attire apart from the black armor looked like the frugality of someone who lived modestly, though in truth, it was just that he found choosing clothes a hassle and preferred comfortable ones more than anything.

They said there was no cure when one saw through rose-colored lenses. Elahan, in this moment, was proof of that. Without hesitation, she stepped forward.

“It’s an honor to meet you, my Hero. I am Elahan, the Eighth Saintess, and the Goddess’ eighth staff. Please forgive me for approaching you so abruptly.”

Leon was briefly flustered by her humility before offering his hand and replying, “And an honor to meet you as well. I’m Leon, Hero of this era.”

At the sight of his outstretched hand, Elahan’s eyes lit up.

“Oh, are you offering me a handshake?”

“Yes...?”

“Thank you!”

Seizing the opportunity, she clasped his right hand with both of hers before he could react, then began fidgeting with her fingers. She pressed his palm firmly with her thumbs, brushed along his knuckles with her index fingers, but did so so openly that Leon’s face flushed red.

His mind spun as he felt Elahan’s warmth and texture through his hand, with her face so close, screaming inwardly, Where am I? Who am I?

Karen came to his rescue.

“Hey! What the hell are you doing, popping out of nowhere in the morning like this?!”

She pulled them apart and barked at Elahan, who turned to her with a blank expression.

“And you are?”

“I’m Karen, the Hero’s first companion.”

“Ah, you’re the Karen? I’ve heard about you.”

Only now did Elahan look at Karen, taking her eyes off Leon. This was the woman who had met the Hero first, before herself, and fought evil beside him time and again. A flicker of faint jealousy passed through her eyes.

Then, her face stiffened.

Strong. And yet... I can hardly sense her presence. An assassin?

Assassins were killers, moving for money or grudges. Unlike mercenaries or adventurers, they were hard to trust—people bound to the underworld’s mire. Her golden eyes flashed as if piercing through Karen.

And Elahan saw—

A... a tattered girl, drenched in blood. A lotus blooming in the heart of a corpse-filled swamp.

Her heart ached just to witness it, and her round eyes grew moist. That was one of the golden eyes’ flaws. Looking too deeply, the more hardship the other had endured, the more easily one was swept away by it. Had she not grown up in the Church’s main temple from childhood, Elahan’s mind might have broken from seeing the darkness of humanity so often.

Karen, meeting her gaze, floundered in confusion, “I didn’t say anything that bad...”

She never got to finish her sentence. Before she knew it, Elahan had stepped in and embraced her. Not a polite hug, but a full one—arms wrapped around her waist, hands clasped behind her back. Through the holy robes, Karen could feel that the body beneath was solid and well-trained.

Frozen in surprise, she heard Elahan’s gentle murmur, “You’ve had it rough, haven’t you?”

“Uh...?”

“It’s all right. You’re doing well. Sunlight finds its way into the shade, and even the longest night comes to an end. The Goddess is always watching over us.”

Words spoken with true sincerity could move a heart without elaborate speeches. Because she could understand others’ lives better than anyone, the Saintess’ voice reached straight to the heart.

Karen, still bewildered, closed her eyes for a moment at the warmth of those words, then gently pushed Elahan away. She was not weak.

“Thanks for that. It’s the first time I’ve heard something like that from anyone. I’m... a little touched. A little.”

She wasn’t the type to spill her past, get drunk, and seek comfort or sympathy. Dwelling on what was gone only deepened the pain.

Still, Elahan’s words had undeniably lightened an old scar. Now Karen understood—at least a little—why she was the Saintess.

“But.”

Two years ago, she might have shouted if this was pity, might have drawn her blade and declared that someone born as a Saintess could never understand a woman born and raised in the gutter. That, however, wasn’t her anymore.

By chance, she had met Leon, and traveling with him had shown her a way to live in the world of light.

“I don’t need anyone to repay me for my life or my suffering,” Karen said in a voice that was steady, unwavering. “If there’s a reward to be had, I want to seize it with my own hands.”

“Is that so?” Elahan asked with a smile.

“Yeah.” Karen glanced over her shoulder and whispered teasingly, “And I might have half of a grip on it already.”

“Aha.”

Following Karen’s gaze, Elahan smiled, but this time there was a faint chill in it. The compassionate Saintess from a moment ago was nowhere to be seen.

The two women naturally put some space between them—only to reach out and clasp hands. They then smiled in unison.

“I think we’ll get along just fine,” Elahan said to Karen.

“Yeah? What a coincidence. I was just thinking the same thing.”

For some reason, a chill ran down Leon’s spine.

What was that?

Glancing aside, he saw Irexana smirking as he patted his shoulder.

When he looked at the Cardinal, silently asking why, he only said, “You’ll understand soon enough.”

It made no sense to him, but whatever the reason, the two seemed to be getting along well. Even now, they were still holding hands and chatting away.

“By the way, I’m getting a feeling that you’re treating me like an elderly. Do you know how old I am?”

“Because I’m obviously younger. One should respect their elders.”

“Haha... I see. So, Saintess, how old are you? Can’t be over thirty.”

“Hahaha, my coming-of-age ceremony was just this year.”

“Really...? You seem more mature than I thought. I’m pretty good at judging age, too.”

“...”

“...”

The exchange made Leon, completely uninvolved, feel like he was walking around on eggshells. He swallowed drily as he wondered whether they were really getting along.

El-Cid snickered in his head, —Well, looks like that’s entertainment secured for the next while.

It should have been reassuring to have a reliable new ally, yet Leon shivered with an inexplicable sense of foreboding. Whether they knew his feelings or not, Karen and Elahan’s hands remained tightly clasped.

***

From there, things moved quickly and smoothly. Through Irexana, word was sent to the Church headquarters about Saintess Elahan’s joining them, and the party, in turn, heard from her the full details of wiping out the remaining forces of Chaos.

The cursed swords that had been produced from the tainted lode could be considered all but gone. Chaos stockpiling them actually turned out to work in their favor.

“But why do you need a false identity?” Elahan asked Leon, blinking her wide eyes.

The three of them had just left the church and were heading toward a guild on the outskirts of Area 1. They had two things on the agenda—one was picking up Leon’s gold plaque, and the other was registering their new party member, Elahan, as an adventurer.

“Because I don’t think it’s time to reveal that I’m the Hero yet,” Leon said in a more comfortable tone, having relented to her earnest request to address her casually. “This incident only made me more certain of it. If the Evil Order had known about me, it wouldn’t have stopped at a single bishop. They would have set a much more elaborate and dangerous trap.”

“That may be true...”

“From my side, I can detect the schemes they’re plotting while they don’t even know I exist. I don’t want to throw away that advantage.”

Karen nodded in agreement and said, “A reasonable call. We know, they don’t. There’s no better setup than that.”

“I see, so it’s a kind of guerrilla tactic?” Elahan remarked.

“You know the term?”

“Si vis pacem, para bellum. Strategy and tactics made up nearly thirty percent of the Saintess training curriculum. The Saintess is also the vice-commander of the Holy Iron Inquisitors, after all.”

Elahan gave a proud little “ahem” as she said it. Without her full plate or Holy Iron Breaker, she looked like nothing more than a girl her age. Who would believe this pure-looking young lady was the living embodiment of a human weapon?

Leon himself wouldn’t have guessed it without having gauged her martial skill through her Vision and Law.

I’d lose ten times out of ten.

Compared to Irexana’s overwhelming presence, she was a step behind, but in terms of sheer output, the Saintess was even more dominant.

Karen was one thing, and Elahan another. Leon couldn’t help feeling a touch of self-reproach about his own standing.

Sensing that insecurity, El-Cid took full advantage.

—Well, well, look at the scrub who hasn’t even reached Master.

Is that something a teacher should say to their developing student?

—What? Sorry, I don’t speak the same language as some pleb who hasn’t even reached Master.

Aaaaargh!

Swallowing the scream that he couldn’t voice aloud, Leon took a few deep breaths to cool himself. If he reacted too strongly, El-Cid would only have more fun mocking him.

While he was busy with his inner battle, Karen pointed out a problem none of them had considered.

“Wait—are clerics even allowed to join a guild?”

“Eh...?”

Leon turned to Elahan, taken aback.

It was fine if someone just happened to know some Holy Law, but clergy formally attached to the Church headquarters were under much stricter rules.

Fortunately, Elahan nodded right away and eased their concern,

“Yes, it’s fine.”

“I thought clergy couldn’t belong to another organization?” Karen said.

“Guilds aren’t tied to any nation’s borders. We can refuse location-specific requests, and the penalties for declining work are acceptable—so there’s no real problem.”

Since she wasn’t registering to make it big as an adventurer anyway, her reasoning made sense.

“I’m pretty sure there’s even a cardinal registered as an adventurer,” she added.

“A cardinal?!” Leon asked in shock.

“Yes, that’s what I’ve heard,” Elahan affirmed.

She added that they were called the “Drifter” for a good reason, with a laugh, shoulders shaking.

It was the first Leon and Karen had heard of it, but before they could dwell on it, the Guild building of Area 1 came into view. Now they were three, and the real journey was beginning.

As they pondered their next destination, Leon threw open the Guild doors of Area 1 with purpose.