Chapter 14: The unveiling of the Fake Saint

Ten days later, in the morning.

Having been dressed by the maids and wearing heavy makeup, Mary was smiling in front of the mirror.

She selected a dress from her collection, a simple white dress, and had the seamstress rework it.

Of course, the design was different from the vestments that Evelyn wore. But when a woman as beautiful as Mary wears them, she looks like a graceful saint.

With a staff in one hand, painted white from the one used by her father, she looked like anything but a Saint.

(It took this long because of the slow work of the seamstress……)

But thanks to that, she was able to rest well and practice her performance as a Saint. 

The servants who received the white clothes that she had made for them also changed and put on shawls that looked like those.

“I’m off then, Mama, Papa.”

“Have a good day, Mary.”

“Go for it.”

They sent her on her way, and Mary climbed into the carriage with great enthusiasm.

After reaching the center of the capital, Mary quickly made her way to the square with her four male servants.

Some people looked at her, wondering what was going on, but they didn’t pay much attention to her yet.

A sooty looking minstrel was sitting on the edge of the fountain playing something.

There’s a good crowd of people around.

Perfectly, Mary laughed, but the minstrel’s voice penetrated Mary’s ears.

“Oh, Evelyn, protector of the Holy Land of Snazil, Saint of fertility…… her prayers dispel the ever-present darkness …… and become the hope that lights up the world.”

(Evelyn’s song, of all places?)

“Get rid of it.”

Mary gives a low command, and the servants rush round the minstrel.

In the meantime— Mary looked around the square with her back to the fountain as she took over the minstrel’s position.

“Quiet. Please be quiet.”

She called out, but the disturbed onlookers gave her an annoyed look.

Mary clicked her tongue and tapped the ground with her staff.

“Quiet!”

Clang! The cobblestones clacked, attracting more than a few eyes to the scene.

Gradually, the voices of the nearby stalls calling for customers became quieter and quieter……. Satisfied with the silence she had created, Mary coughed softly.

“Nice to meet you all. My name is Mary, Mary of the Safka family.”

She takes a bow on the spot.

Then Mary said in a high-pitched voice to the people who were staring at her with fixed eyes.

“This may come as a surprise to you, but…… I’ve been chosen as the new Saint!”

(……Fufufu, You look surprised.)

No surprise there. They had no idea what was going on, and they hadn’t even heard about it.

Even the police had stopped moving, staring at the commotion of the place. Mary took advantage of this and continued.

“Today, I would like to show you my power as a Saint. This is a rare honor, so please imprint it on your eyes. —will now begin the prayer ceremony to dispel the miasma.”

After declaring this and leaving her staff in the hands of a servant dressed as a priest, she kneels down on the cobblestones.

Folding her hands and closing her eyes…… rapidly, the Plaza became quiet.

Everyone in the room was staring at Mary, and she could feel the air in the background.

(Fufufu, It feels good. I wonder if they’re fawning over me……)

She covers her mouth with her hands, which almost makes her giggle.

Mary’s sincere efforts to pray to the Mother Goddess must have been very divine in their eyes.

—Then, a few minutes elapsed in the experience.

Mary stood up slowly, disconsolately.

Perhaps she should imitate Evelyn and put on a wobbly act, but that might make her seem like an unreliable saint.

She didn’t want to do that, so she took her time getting up.

……The area around the plaza was buzzing with activity.

As they whispered to their friends and neighbors, it was as if they had no respect for the new Saint.

(Something doesn’t feel right.)

“……How was everyone’s experience?”

Still, Mary smiled and looked around.

Then Mary heard the voice of a man who was listening to the minstrel’s performance in the back row.

“That face…… looks just like the statue of Evelyn-sama that was built in the Safka household, doesn’t it?”

Mary was a little impatient, but then she realized that she would not need to be and nodded like a hawk.

“……I am the younger sister of the previous Saint Evelyn.”

“But didn’t Evelyn-sama’s mother die right after she gave birth to Evelyn?”

“That’s right……. I heard that shortly thereafter, the Saint’s Father got married to someone else.”

The murmurs spread.

There was no respect in their eyes for Mary anymore, only intense suspicion.

No matter how many times Mary called out, no matter how many times she hit the ground with her cane as she had done earlier, no one would stop opening their mouths.

“Look at that staff. The color’s peeling off the tip!”

To top it all off, the kids point at her and say things like that.

At last, Mary’s face turned bright red with anger.

“—Who the hell are you people!”

People looked at Mary as if she were some kind of strange animal.

“I told you I’m the new Saint! And all you’ve done is complain about it!”

The servants tried to stop her, but she brushed them off and continued.

“Evelyn, she’s gone!　Alex-sama has grown tired of her, and her power has weakened, so she’s been kicked out of the Great Temple!”

—A moment of silence followed.

A huge commotion spread among the people, like a wave.

Mary lifted the corner of her mouth at the unexpectedly good response.

(How about that? I told you! Now everyone knows that Evelyn is no longer a Saint—.)

However, Mary’s thoughts were far off.

The buzz about the banished Evelyn soon stopped. And people stared sharply at Mary, as if they were looking at their parent’s enemy.

Mary stepped back involuntarily, overwhelmed by the intensity.

“W-Why are you staring at me—?”

It was because of this that she stepped back.

She caught the edge of the fountain and her body floated away.

By the time she realized what had happened, it was too late — Mary had fallen head first into the fountain.

She falls into the cold water with a loud splash.

It wasn’t very deep, so she got out quickly, but…

“Gobo ~tsu! Goho~tsu (Coughing)”

Mary coughs violently, as if she has inhaled water through her nose.

Her beautifully coiffed hair was a mess and her makeup was peeling off.

“There she is! Seize the great sinner who pretends to be a Saint!”

And to make matters worse, voices like that could be heard.

“No! I-I’m the real Saint!”

Mary screams and tries to escape from the fountain, but her water-soaked dress is too heavy for her to move freely.

There the knight’s hands pushed her away and forced her hands behind her back…… but Mary continued to scream.

“I’m the real Saint!”

Mary was captured by the knights led by the second prince, Igna, without knowing that Alex was staring at her from afar with eyes so wide they looked like they were about to spill out.