Watching Laeticia pretend to be fine made Baiyi pause. “You looked fatigued, Laeticia. I think you need good sleep first before we discuss anything.”
“Well…” Laeticia lowered her head in acceptance. The respite she could gain from a good rest was enticing, but she remembered her position as Vice-Principal of the faculty. It would be unfitting for someone of her position to sleep in the middle of the day, a time when the day’s operations were still underway.
“Here, lemme help you,” Baiyi said, using his mana to make a hammock. He pointed at it, indicating that she lay down on it. “I’ll cast a sleep spell on you so you can sleep quickly. It will be a power nap that’ll last for two hours at most.”
“I-is that so?” She breathed, her eyes gliding over the hammock longingly. The temptation grew stronger until she relented and nodded.
Her dandy fingers worked quickly, unbinding her Saintess headdress that had doubled as her forehead-protector. Then, right in front of Baiyi, she lifted the armor off her body and exposed her homely, white blouse underneath hugging the curves of a well-nurtured body.
Curiously, the girl was hardly repulsive to the idea that she was, indeed, changing in front of him. Maybe it was because she trusted him as a gentlemanly, upright adult who would definitely not overstep any ethical boundary?
It did not take too long before all there was left on her was her white blouse, a pair of hot pants, and a pair of black over-knee pantyhose. It was then when she finally took the braids on her head down, letting her golden locks flutter behind her head like a glimmering waterfall.
She laid down on the hammock, adjusting herself to make it comfortable.
“Don’t you feel cold wearing so few clothes like that?’ Baiyi asked dryly while sticking a hand into his storage pouch. From it, he fished out a comforter with prints of cartoony hammerhead shark and spread it across her body — putting deliberate effort so that it covered her legs — and wrapped her like a burrito.
“A saintess fears no cold,” Laeticia whispered under her breath, her eyes squinting into two fine lines before she suddenly changed the subject, “Do you always bring these things with you wherever you go, Mr. Hope? It’s quite handy… Still, I don’t think you’ve ever tuck me with a blanket like this before, have you?”
“That’s because you put me at so much ease, it just never seemed that you’ll ever need it. Really… You’re an easy girl to mind, Laeticia,” He replied while the part of his consciousness that was still trapped in the Void gave a good roundhouse kick to a wailing Cleric Walker
That poor excuse of a clergyman had been hysterical since the moment Laeticia took off her armor in front of Baiyi. He had been charging at Baiyi’s consciousness like a mad dog, chanting “You son of a b****! I’ll cut you down!” in rage as if Baiyi was going to do something despicable to the girl and the Cleric Walker was the only one who could stop him.
Judging from how hysterical he was, whatever the man was imagining must be pretty sick. Still, he was quickly defeated with only one well-timed kick, in which the Cleric Walker’s voice steeped into a shrill, pleading croak, “S-she’s my only true student, Sir! My protégé! She’s only a child…. P-please do not do anything to her!”
‘Yep. He obviously got some screws loose,’ Baiyi thought to himself. The irony that a renowned pervert like the Cleric Walker — whose hobbies included yammering about making girls put on suggestive outfits — suddenly showing decency and the desire to protect Laeticia was not lost on Baiyi. In fact, now that he mused more about it, the Fifth Walker recalled that this pervert’s admiration for Laeticia had always been restricted to atypically bashful and indirect behavior, such as watching her from far. Even when he did have a chance to do something, he never once crossed any line. It was just too noteworthy for the Fifth Walker to ignore because, given Laeticia’s meek and submissive personality, she should have been an easy picking…
It seemed that his love and care for Laeticia was genuine, after all, albeit his useless attempt to protect his protégé was completely unneeded. Unlike the Cleric Waker, Baiyi was never scum, to begin with.
“Are you ready? I’m about to cast the spell now!” Baiyi announced while rousing the Incubus in the Void with a poke. If there was any time for this infrequently online Walker to make any contribution, it would be now.
“I got it! You can count on me. After ten years of perfecting my skills, I’m pleased to tell you my dreams are now of supreme quality!” The Incubus beamed proudly.
“Uh, if you think that’s gonna boost my confidence in you, I’ve got bad news…” Baiyi said hesitantly. “But maybe if you describe the dream you’re planning to create for her first…”
“Ah, well, here’s the spoiler: She will be in Romania to participate in an epic war. There, she will meet a goodie-good young man made out of 100% idiot fiber, and then build pretty solid chemistry with him. Then, there will be another beautiful man thrown into the mix, too, just to give some competition for this high-stakes, heart-racing love stor—hey, w-wait up. Don’t… Don’t banish me out there! I’ll die! I will* seriously* die—help!!!”
Soon, all the Incubus let out was a series of faint wails and whimpers.
How many brain cells does this guy even own? Baiyi remarked tiredly in his head before bringing the poor Walker back from the raging Void outside. Regardless of how powerful its dream-weaving skills may be, the Incubus was quite possibly one of the weakest Walkers among them, such that exposing it to the chaotic storm outside of Baiyi’s protective territory for more than a few seconds could probably kill it for real.
‘My mistake for thinking I should enlist this fella’s help in this, Baiyi told himself. Maybe the best kind of sleep for Laeticia is a dreamless one.’
He started chanting while the girl eagerly closed her eyes, her beautiful, long eyelashes fluttering downwards with a graceful flick as her face beamed with the anticipation for a good, long-awaited sleep.
He finished his incantation and looked down, his eyes locked on the girl’s slumbering face. It was so tranquil that Baiyi could not help but sighed, “Who knew you’d look so unexpectedly cute when you’re asleep?”
He extended his finger and inched it closer to her cheek for a light poke—
Laeticia’s eyes suddenly bolted open, her blue irises linking with Baiyi’s glance intently before asking pointedly, “You don’t think I’m cute when I’m awake, Mr. Hope?”
Baiyi almost jumped. “Y-you’re not asleep yet?”
She shook her head in dejection.
‘Did I make a slip in my incantation, or did I expend too little mana or— No, that can’t be true at all.‘ Baiyi combed through his last few actions, frowning in mild annoyance. A magical savant like himself could not possibly make a mistake on something as rudimentary as a Sleep spell!
Skeptical, he tried to cast the same spell again even more carefully. Yet, at the end of his spell, he found Laeticia still gawking at him, her eyes as wide as ever, without any sign of drowsiness.
“Uh-hem. It seems that your resistance to magic is a bit higher than I have expected,” Baiyi finally said, embarrassed.
‘The Lord favors the most faithful; He makes His love known through His blessings. The favored ones are protected from evil, maladies, and calamities…’
It was one of the oft-cited proverbs in the Scripture that was, quite amazingly, not actually a lie to make their god sounded perfect. Indeed, the most devoted followers were divinely granted with a wide range of helpful boosts and boons as the proverb had claimed. This, in turn, became a solid proof for the One True God’s claim that he had always watched over his followers.
The reason why the Cleric Walker was able to travel alone in the ever-precarious Abyss precisely because he was divinely endowed with various boosts. Even the Paladin Walker, Hantai, boasted superhuman strength and endurance because of their god’s divine blessing when he was alive.
Appropriately, the more devoted a person was, the more blessings they received. Normal devotees may just be protected from catching the flu every now and then, but those who were obvious favorites like the Cleric Walker could be given access to advanced theurgical powers that he used them as the backbone to formulate his personal, powerful techniques.
Following this line of logic, one should not be surprised to see a Saintess like Laeticia to be given their god’s personal blessing then, right?
However, Baiyi thought there was more to it. First, the girl’s tutor in religion was the Cleric Walker, who had become so disillusioned from the teachings in the Scripture that he had degenerated into a scum way worse than other irreligious Walkers were. Baiyi may not know what was really being passed down during their one-on-one classes, but he was sure that it was definitely not the original teachings the Church had advocated.
Secondly, Laeticia’s faith in her religion was less than one would normally qualify as “undoubtful devotion. If she were as ardent as a Saintess ought to be, then she would not even need to struggle in choosing a side at all. Her allegiance would not even be a question.
Thus, the conundrum formed: why was she still eligible for their god’s blessings, given the god’s reputation for being unaccommodating to what was at odds with his teachings?
In fact, the powerful nature of the blessings she received—an above-average resistance to magic, for example—raised even more questions. Coupled with the fact that she was able to feel nary a discomfort from wearing so few on a frigid day, Baiyi suspected that her god gave more than just one blessing, too.
This whole situation became ridiculous and unfathomable. Why would their god still bestow a sign of his personal love on a Saintess who learned not from his approved authority, the Church, but from a Saint who had long forsaken his faith? Was this god fella blind, stupid, or both?
Regardless of the Big Guy’s reasons, his blessing effectively complicated Laeticia’s problem. The girl knew very well that she was not a doubtless believer, and knowing how much of a surveillance-freak these gods were, there was little doubt that her god knew that too. He still blessed her and watched over her.
Without these blessings, it would have been much easier for Laeticia to choose sides. She was one of Baiyi’s staunchest supporter and a member of his family, and she had opted to stay with the “filthy” Voidwalkers even after knowing the real identity behind the not-at-all-upright Cleric Walker. Moreover, she had ten years of fortified relationships with her family, the Voidwalkers, and Baiyi himself to give her the emotional reason to choose Baiyi’s side.
The more one thought about it, the more these divine blessings seemed to look like a backhanded punishment than an affirmation of affection. Their existence had brought only heartaches to the young, kind-hearted girl who received them.
What a cruel way of toying with his followers! Was the God’s Grace’s god really as malicious as the Voidwalkers had suspected?
As Baiyi conjured more and more conspiracies about the god’s true intention, Laeticia studied him quietly, seemingly reading his mind. She wriggled and moved herself so that her face could met Baiyi’s and pipped very quietly, “Mr. Hope?”
He snapped back from his thoughts. “So, this is why you’re in such a dilemma, huh?”
She nodded wordlessly.
“Damn it. This is just cruel…” Baiyi murmured regrettably to himself while extending his hand over the girl’s forehead. If there were only the Voidwalkers on one side of the scale and the Church on the other, she should have been able to make a decision by now. But when the god she had always believed in and devoted to was also added into her scale, how could the Saintess even choose?
Even Baiyi had to admit that he would be just as confused and helpless if he were in her shoes.
How was he supposed to console this poor girl? What should he say so that the girl would ultimately pick the action that could benefit him the most?
Baiyi thought hard, turning every option he could come up within his head. Should he just tell the girl that the One True God’s blessing was really just a petty, passive-aggressive punishment to drive a wedge between the Fifth Walker and his Second Elect? –No, that would sound too despicable; Too assumptive.
Maybe Baiyi could try to persuade her by reminding her of their bonds, not just the one between himself and her but also the one she had made with all the others? –Well, that would sound a little hollow, and it might not even work. After all, even after all they had been through, Baiyi could still espy the silver Scripture necklace hanging around Laeticia’s neck…
Honestly, he was reluctant to put the bond between himself and Laeticia to the test because he knew that he had never been exactly close to her, especially not the way he was with the First Elect, Mia. Maybe it was her association with the Church or the Cleric Walker, or maybe it was the fact that she was tall and normal in size. This was just how an average, healthy woman of her age should be, while not prone to act out little cutesy, coquettish actions.
He was just never that close to her. Then, the distance between them was further exacerbated by fewer and fewer interactions between themselves as their work intercepted very seldomly.
While musing over the state of their relationship, Baiyi’s hand started rubbing her forehead absent-mindedly, the same way he usually did to Little Mia and Little Attie. It was only when he heard a very faint series of snores when he yanked himself out of his thoughts.
Laeticia was already fast asleep. Judging from how peaceful her expression was, it seemed that it was a peaceful one, too.
In the end, no spells can beat a simple head massage, huh? Amused, Baiyi stared at the gauntlet doubling as his hand. If there was another thing he could never find answers to through academic research, it would be how he always managed to coax someone to sleep with such a silly act…
He was in no rush to leave, so he sat by her side while she slept, his head buried in the topic of faith and loyalty. It may be an honest oversight, or him being a bit deadset in his perspective, or maybe it was a deliberate act of avoidance, but Baiyi never gave thoughts for a very critical question:
When did Laeticia start receiving her god’s divine blessings?
The timing of that blessing was important because it might distinguish the One True God’s stance towards the Voidwalkers at different times. What if he was much more relaxed about them at some point in time, which was when he decided that it was fine to bless a Saintess with doubts?
Either way, Baiyi just instinctively thought that it must have happened only very recently.
