“When I was younger, I couldn’t ease their suffering. And even if the King were replaced, the enormous consumption of the Vermont Kingdom left nothing to aid people’s suffering. I even considered merging it with another nation, but for an isolated island country without capital, there was no hope.”
Alois’s voice was steady as he worked beside me. I nodded, acknowledging his words.
He was a man of deep thoughts, and it’s not like I didn’t understand his struggles.
“Stirring up several kingdoms to save the people here would create its own set of problems.”
Many people had come to me because they were unable to see me reaching out to the people. Of course, Alois intercepted them all.
Some shouted from a distance, offering their help, while others asked if they could be forgiven just this once.
But seeing these people adorned in luxury at the expense of someone else, I couldn’t accept any of it. It felt disgustingly hypocritical.
Alois’s manpower was enough to handle the distribution of food and clothing.
Despite the throngs of people trying to bother me, the king himself never showed up.
“But now, I am here.”
Perhaps he was afraid that if he came, he might die by my own hands.
“Saintess Emilone. God’s blessing.”
A gift bestowed by the heavens that no one could refute.
Even an emperor ruling a vast continent had knelt before me.
How could a mere king hope to defy me?
“That is who I am.”
Though the situation was far from humorous, a smile crept to my lips.
I looked tenderly at the trembling woman standing before me.
“You chose me, Alois.”
I watched the woman’s face closely as new flesh grew and her pain began to fade.
“Unlike you, I have no regrets and can save these people. Use me.”
I rarely lingered on the faces of those I healed.
As soon as I infused them with divine energy, I turned to the next person, and then the next.
“You chose me as the Saintess. If you intend to use my position, do it properly,”
“…If that is your wish.”
Alois, who had been assisting me, straightened his posture.
“As of now, the people who have completed treatment are gathered in temporary shelters. Supplies and food are being funded through the jewelry shop I operate in Vermont.”
His voice grew fainter as he walked away, but I nodded in understanding.
“All you need to do, Lady Emilone, is focus on healing the people before you…”
Tilting my head slightly, I caught his gaze. Alois lowered his eyes, looking at me steadily.
“Leave everything else to me.”
“Those words are truly reassuring.”
“I admit, I doubted you and questioned your resolve unnecessarily…but you can trust me.”
As Alois walked away, the long, grueling task seemed to be nearing its end.
The moment finally came when this wretched space held no more innocent victims.
Exhausted, I collapsed to the ground beside Reneben.
I wanted nothing more than to strip off my bloodstained priestly robes, wash my hair, and lie down in a warm bed.
“Reneben, go back to the carriage and rest.”
“…Excuse me, then.”
Reneben staggered as he left.
Under normal circumstances, he would have refused, but it seems even he couldn’t endure any longer.
As I forced him to leave, my body grew heavier.
I was exhausted—not just a little, but overwhelmingly so.
Regret…
If I hadn’t helped after seeing such suffering, I knew I would have regretted it for the rest of my life.
“…I need to tell Alois.”
But Alois was different.
He had found a way to save them on his own.
He hadn’t stood by helplessly.
He had done enough.
As I stared absentmindedly at my crimson-stained fingernails, a group of white-clad figures came into view.
“Ah…”
Not entirely white, I realized. Their robes were stained red, bearing marks of labor.
“Priests of Vermont.”
“…We greet God’s blessing.”
“Greetings, huh… I can’t say I am pleased to see you.”
Straightening my weary back, I noticed their faces falter, unsettled.
“…F-Forgive us—.”
“Enough. I don’t want to hear apologies.”
Their once-pristine white robes were stained with grime.
While I didn’t want to waste any energy on emotions in my already exhausted state, the reason they ignored the suffering of the people still mattered.
“We’re truly…sorry. We’ll explain everything later.”
The faces of the priests were pale and twisted as if something was stuck in their throats.
Waving my hand dismissively, I pointed in the direction of the tents Alois had set up.
“There’s a temporary shelter nearby. Rest there for now. You won’t make it to the temple in your current state.”
These priests and paladins, though flawed, shared the same divine power I did. They couldn’t have intentionally ignored the suffering of the people. That much, I was certain.
One by one, I sent them away until I was left alone.
I rubbed my freezing hands together and exhaled deeply.
“Ugh…this is driving me nuts.”
It hurt. It was painful. It was unbearable.
I never wanted to experience something like this again.
And yet, I didn’t regret it.
If I hadn’t experienced this, I would’ve lived my life unaware of the pain these people endured.
For that, the price was worth it.
“Maybe I should have gone with Reneben when he went back to the carriage…”
Lying on the filthy ground, my breaths came in short, shallow gasps. It felt strange, so I wiggled my fingers.
To be honest, after standing for so long, my legs had gone numb, and I could barely move.
“Well, I’ll recover soon enough.”
Thinking this, I closed my eyes for a moment, but soon I heard footsteps approaching.
They were unhurried, yet distinct, and I could guess who it was.
“What took you so long?”
What felt like an eternity to me must have been mere moments.
I remained still with my eyes closed, and soon, warmth enveloped my neck and thighs.
Opening my eyes slightly, I saw Alois’s soft brown hair disheveled by the wind as he met my gaze.
“I used Your Holiness’ name to handle some matters.”
“Haha, what does that mean? Did you do something bad in my name?”
“Of course not.”
I narrowed my eyes at him and leaned my head against his shoulder.
“Then tell me what you did.”
He let out a soft laugh.
His distinct scent surrounded me, making it hard to tell where his smell ended and mine began.
“To be honest, I considered killing the King of Vermont.”
“By poison, I assume?”
He placed me in a separate carriage from Reneben’s and sat across from me. The thought of finally leaving this place brought a sense of relief.
“If it were me, I’d have killed him long ago.”
“You only say that, Lady Emilone. You wouldn’t actually do it.”
“…”
“Unlike me.”
He handed me a glass of water, which I accepted and raised to my lips. Alois informed me that Reneben, thanks to his efforts, was already en route to the temple.
“We’re headed to the temple as well.”
“…Alois.”
“Yes?”
“Priests are foolishly kind.”
He tilted his head, not fully understanding, then turned away to rummage through the carriage cabinet for something.
As the carriage began moving and picking up speed, Alois eventually responded.
“I’m well aware that the paladins and priests are overly kind, to the point of foolishness.”
“Yes, unlike me, they think sacrificing themselves to save others is only natural.”
He glanced at me with a meaningful smile at my words.
“Well… true. Those in the temple often act beyond my calculations.”
“That is why I’m curious.”
“Curious about what?”
“Why would the priests here turn a blind eye to the people suffering under such cruel conditions?”
Alois sighed and pulled out a stack of white papers from the cabinet. As he casually flipped through them, he answered without much concern.
“The Kingdom of Vermont isn’t particularly large, but it’s not small either.”
“I know that.”
“At one point, the population was so large it became a problem.”
“Hm… and?”
“Put simply, in the two months you’ve worked tirelessly to save lives, you’ve freed less than half of Vermont’s population from suffering.”
I sat up straight, startled.
Taking the stack of papers Alois handed to me, I bit down on the soft flesh inside my cheek.
“And the remaining half?”
“You don’t need to worry about them.”
The papers were neatly filled with text, bearing signs of age and dirt, indicating they were old documents.
“They are under the protection of the temple.”
The thick stack detailed every atrocity committed by the Kingdom of Vermont.
“Well… that’s somewhat reassuring.”
This was no longer a matter of using the title of Saint to suppress wrongdoing. As a representative of divine judgment, I had every reason to bring down the root of such evil.
“Originally, the entire population was sacrificed to sustain the slightly better lives of the king and nobles. However, the temple, in an attempt to save as many as possible, chose to protect one half of the population while leaving the other half beyond their reach.”
In short, this was an act of evil so heinous that it warranted a trial under the authority of the Saint.
- Emilone’s Temptation Labyrinth [Chapters 83 – 86] - March 16, 2025
- Emilone’s Temptation Labyrinth – Chapter 82 - March 4, 2025
- Emilone’s Temptation Labyrinth – Chapter 81 - March 4, 2025