Chapter 4: At the Abandoned Village

　In the evening, the brigade arrived at the encampment point.

　The plan was to use an abandoned village a day away from the royal capital.

(It looks like the scene of a vanished village. There’s no miasma. The air is …… not so good, huh? I think I’ve become more sensitive to miasma since I became a Great Saint. Oh, there are traces of campfires from people camping along the road.)

　Hirune got off the carriage and looked around.

　A crumbling wooden house stood deserted.

　The village used to be bustling with tourists, but it rapidly fell into despair when demons began to appear. The entire village moved to live in the royal capital.

“Hirune-sama,” “Good day, Great Saint,” “Blessings of the Goddess Sophia–“

　The people in the brigade called out to Hirune as she walked.

　The people here are the lucky ones who have passed through considerable examination to join the Southern Brigade.

　They want to travel with Hirune. They want to go to the south.

　There are still many people in the capital who want to do so.

“Is Jeanne’s village still far away?”

　Shaking her Great Saint robe, Hirune turned around.

“My village was located deep in Ixendahl.”

　Jeanne replied with a smile.

Hirune’s chest tightened at the past tense ‘was.’

“I see. I’m sorry for asking that question so suddenly. ……”

“What? That’s okay. It’s fine, it was a long time ago and I’ve managed to get over it. Besides, I don’t feel lonely because  Hirune-sama is always with me.”

　Jeanne said in a cheerful voice.

　Jeanne, who was from the south, was looking forward to this trip.

　She was hoping that Hirune would lead the southern region in the right direction. It was a vague hope.

“Jeanne, let’s hold hands. Come on, come on.”

“Huh, um, Hirune-sama.”

　Jeanne was bewildered when Hirune held her hand.

It would’ve been nice if it was in their own room, but she didn’t think it was very complimentary to have a great saint and a maid walking hand in hand in front of people like this, and Jeanne turned red.

　Holly, who was right behind them, came around to stand next to Hirune, her light blue hair swinging.

“Hirune, Jeanne is troubled. You should take your hands off her and be more dignified. You’re too unaware of your role as a Great Saint. The other day at the ceremony, you yawned so loudly that the Pope was surprised. Besides…”

“It’s not good to be left out. Let’s add Holly together.”

“What? Why me too?”

　Hirune used holy magic to pull Holly closer and held her hand.

“I didn’t mean you should hold my hand too, but ……”

　Holly tried to pull her hand away, but she couldn’t pull her right hand back because she imagined the sad expression on Hirune’s face.

　The saint, the great saint, and the maid walked hand in hand to the center of the village.

　The soldiers and civilian participants who were preparing for the encampment laughed at how close they were.

“Yes, we are. We’re always together.”

(It’s thanks to you two that the world looks so sparkling.)

　Hirune said happily, and Jeanne and Holly’s desire to let go of her hand disappeared.

　As they walked to the center of the village, they saw a large white rock sitting on the ground.

“Did they use it as a guardian deity oy the village?”

　Hirune looked up at the pure white rock. It was about three meters high.

“It might have been.”

　Jeanne said.

　Holly also looked up at the white rock and held up her hand over it. She recited a scripture and nodded.

“It looks like it’s a purifying rock, though its power is much weakened.”

“I see.”

　Hirune took her hands away from them, put her hands on the white rock, and closed her eyes.

(Holy magic–magic detection…… what kind of power does this rock have…… hmm…… hmm …… I see, there used to be a lot of people here and it was fun. After the demons came, the villagers disappeared and the power of purification weakened. ……)

　As if the rock was speaking to her, images of the past flowed into  Hirune’s brain.

　It seems that when the village was bustling with activity, an annual festival was held around the rock. She could see the villagers dancing happily.

(I see. …… Then let’s use this rock as a starting point to build a ward for the encampment. I’ll make it last as long as possible. ……)

　Jeanne became worried when she saw that Hirune had fallen silent with her hands on the rock.

“Hirune-sama?”

“Jeanne, she’s using holy magic. Let’s wait until it’s done.”

　Holly gently put her hand on Jeanne’s shoulder.

　The leader of the group, Jeremy, who was preparing for the encampment, came over to them, probably looking for Hirune.

　He wanted to talk about the ward.

　But he stopped when he saw Hirune with her hands on the white rock and her eyes closed.

“Great Saint-sama, ……?”

　He noticed that everyone’s attention was on Hirune.

Some were chopping firewood, others were assembling tents, Phi Phi was baking strawberry bread, and Thomas, the manager of the Valhalla bedding store, was at the tail end of the brigade. Everyone stopped their work and looked at Hirune.

(If I want to make the warding magic …… last longer, should I carve a scripture inside of the white rock? Then I’ll put all my magic power into it. Okay, ……)

　The sooner she decides on a plan, the better.

Hirune kneads the magic power and activates the holy magic with the image of writing the scripture inside the rock.

“Ah–“

“Hirune!”

“The magic circle is ……!”

　An oversized magic circle appeared at Hirune’s feet, and stardust flew out with a pleasant shuffling sound.

The stardust bounced up and down, left and right, as if happy to be called by Hirune, then gathered around her as if dancing in a dance hall.

(Stardust, please protect this village…)

　When Hirune asked, the stardust glittered and entered the white rock.

“Wow, the stardust is being sucked in!”

“That’s some serious holy magic, …….”

　Jeanne and Holly raise their voices as they look at the shining magic circle.

“I’ve never seen holy magic quite like this ……!”

　Jeremy, the leader of the group, who saw Hirune’s holy magic up close for the first time, was so impressed by the sparkle that he repeatedly made the holy seal in front of his chest.

　Before nightfall. Under the pale night sky, the stardust bounces, twinkles, and leaps mesmerizing the people of the brigade. It felt as if they were being told that this journey was safe, and all the people watching Hirune looked full and relieved.

　When all the stardust was sucked into the white rock, a hemispherical ward appeared and slowly grew larger.

(If I want it to last longer, I should extend the ward to …… the area of the river that the village seems to be using……. Good……. If I make it any wider, it won’t hold well. I believe so. Stop, Ward.)

“The ward is up! The Great Saint has created a ward!”

 “We can camp in peace!”

　When the ward appeared and a translucent glow was visible, everyone cheered in unison.

　The encampment was next to the threat of demons.

　Even though they had excellent soldiers, everyone was worried.

　When the ward was complete, Hirune let out a breath, removed her hand from the rock, and turned around.

“That should be alright.”

(I used a lot of magic power, I might want to eat something.)

　After all the work she’d done, she was getting hungry.

“Jeanne, do we have any food yet?”

Hirune said while Jeanne’s mouth hung open.

Holly gently patted Hirune on the shoulder and let out a sigh.

“Hey, explain it to everyone. They won’t understand what’s going on if you suddenly use warding magic right? They don’t know how long it’ll last or how it works.” 

“Yes, that’s true.”

　Jeremy, the Commander who was nearby, knelt down as if he had heard Holly.*

“As Saint Holly said, please explain to everyone.”

“Yes, sir.”

　Hirune stepped forward.

“─ Don’t worry, everyone. Please rest assured, this ward will last a long time. I’ve made it so that it rejects miasma and demons and when touched by malicious people, will send them flying to the ends of the earth. You can sleep in peace today.”

　Hirune said with a smile, and everyone cheered, “That’s great!” Everyone shouted with delight.

　Jeremy, the leader of the group, was skeptical, but when he saw a small miasma fly by and disappear within a second of touching the ward, he hung his head as a soldier rushed over to report that a man who looked like a bandit had been blown away and disappeared.

“Thank you very much Hirune-sama. This will make your journey safer.”

“Yes.  Jeremy-san, you can do your best to stay alert during the journey.”

“Ha!”

　Jeremy stood up, saluted Hirune, and made the holy seal.

　It’s a great advantage on a long journey to be safe at night.

“I’m glad. Jeremy, you must go to bed at ten o’clock. That’s a promise.”

(Serious people like him don’t rest properly. It was the same at the company. ……)

　Hirune was reminded of a senior employee who had been forced to work like a carriage horse in her previous life. He seemed to have voluntarily jumped into the fire. She had been surprised when she heard that the senior employee had retired due to overwork.

“Ha! In the name of the Great Saint Hirune, I’m going to bed at ten o’clock!”

　Jeremy, the leader of the group, saluted again with a serious face.

　Go to bed early.

　It was like an exchange between mother and son.

　Jeanne and Holly noticed and glanced at each other, unsure whether to laugh or not.

“I apologize for taking so long. Please return to your work.”

　Hirune said, and everyone resumed their work, more energetic than before.

　Jeremy, the Commander, bowed and returned to his post.

　He said to the passing soldiers, “The Great Saint wants us to go to bed at ten! Hurry up and check the supplies!”

“Now I can sleep peacefully.”

　Hirune blinked her big eyes and said satisfied.

“You’re amazing, Hirune-sama.”

“You’re a big deal ……”

　Jeanne marveled and Holly praised her in disbelief.

“How so? Oh, look at that. Phi Phi is calling us. Maybe the strawberry bread is ready!”

　Hirune said.

“It’s true!”

“Thanks for the ward Hirune. Now let’s get going.”

　Jeanne and Holly smiled and started walking.

“Holly is surprisingly gluttonous isn’t she?” 

　Holly raised her eyebrows in embarrassment as Hirune spoke from behind her.

“It’s not that I’m gluttonous, it’s just that Phi Phi’s invited us over, and we need to get going quickly, don’t we? As a saint, you shouldn’t indulge your appetite.”

“Fufufu, yes, that’s right.”

　Hirune smiled and Holly looked forward with a pout.

“It’s a disgrace to be gluttonous.”

　Holly said and walked quickly ahead of them. The pure white saint’s dress she was wearing swayed from side to side.

　Hirune and Jeanne grinned and chased after Holly.

　The encampment was filled with sweet smells and the sound of everyone’s laughter.

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