As soon as I concluded that Celesta had likely realized that I was the Saintess, my mind began to work rapidly.

If she indeed believed I was the Saintess, many of the issues I had been hesitant to address suddenly became much simpler. It meant that I no longer had to carefully gauge her reactions before bringing up the topic.

‘In any case, considering the plan to eliminate McHart, it was something I would have had to discuss before then.’

It was just that now, knowing it wasn’t just my secret, made it easier to talk about. I wasn’t sure how Celesta had figured out that I was the Saintess, but as a high priestess, she likely had numerous ways to discover the truth.

Fortunately, finding an opportunity to speak with her alone wasn’t difficult. She was responsible for my treatment after the evaluation duel, and even now, she was in my room, using divine power to heal my body.

“…May the blessings of the sun and the goddess watch over this small life….”

Until now, sharing a room with Agnes had meant that there were few chances to be alone with Celesta, but today, Agnes had already been discharged in the morning. Celesta had come at her usual time to continue my healing, making this the perfect opportunity to talk.

If I could also involve Gyeonmwa Joshekigwat, the conversation would flow even more smoothly, but hoping for that much might be asking too much.

“…Today’s treatment is complete, Lady Lillis.”

“Thank you, Lady Celesta.”

“I’ll come by at the same time tomorrow. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way….”

“Oh, Lady Celesta, could I ask you something before you go?”

“……”

Celesta froze in place, her reaction making it clear she was hiding something. My suspicions were becoming more of a certainty.

“…W-What would you like to ask?”

“I’m not sure if this is appropriate to mention, but…”

“Yes?”

“Lately, whenever I receive treatment from you, I feel something divine welling up inside me. Could you check if it’s some kind of illness or just a natural part of the healing process?”

“…Uh, well….”

Celesta’s stiff expression and stammering response were as good as an answer. She had almost certainly figured out that I was the Saintess, but she likely hadn’t expected me to bring it up so directly.

Of course, I couldn’t have known on my own that I was the Saintess; the feeling of divine energy welling up inside me was just something I made up on the spot.

But even a question as vague as this was enough to get Celesta, who was already suspicious, to confirm my identity.

Unlike most who believed her to be the true Saintess, Celesta was one of the few who knew she was a “false Saintess.”

And finally, given her self-sacrificing nature, Celesta would surely acknowledge me as the true Saintess….

“S-Such a thing, is it…?”

“Yes, Lady Celesta.”

“That’s… quite… interesting….”

“…What?”

“On second thought, I have a lot of patients to see today…! P-Please excuse me!”

“W-Wait! Lady Celesta…!”

-Click, thud!

“…Lady!”

Contrary to my expectations, as soon as I hinted that I might be the true Saintess, Celesta fled the room, leaving me alone, stunned.

…This could complicate things.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

After Celesta bolted from my room, I sat quietly, pondering what had just happened.

‘Did I approach this the wrong way?’

Maybe I hadn’t been considerate enough. I should have thought more about how terrifying it must be for her to confront the reality of a true Saintess appearing before her.

‘Perhaps I should have reassured her about her safety first….’

Of course, I would need Gyeonmwa Joshekigwat’s cooperation for that, but in any case, revealing my identity as the Saintess while we were alone might have been too hasty.

Not to mention, the situation was indeed urgent, with the threat of McHart looming close. We needed to harness the power of the Saintess before the noble exchange event.

My plan had been to gently bring up the topic of the Saintess with Celesta and eventually offer to pass on the Saintess’s power to her after everything was over. But I hadn’t anticipated that revealing my identity would cause such a problem.

‘If I can’t convince her today, I’ll only have about a day left to sort this out. This is bad.’

As I sat there, clutching my head in thought, I heard the sound of the door opening. This time, it wasn’t Celesta who entered, but a man.

-Click.

“Yo, Lilgalchang.”

…Here he goes again. I told him not to call me that.

“…Keep your voice down, you idiot.”

“There’s no one in the hallway. Almost everyone but you has been discharged.”

“Still, be careful. Unlike you, I can’t afford to be found out as a reincarnator.”

“Oh, right. Sorry, sorry.”

I sighed internally as Gyeonmwa Joshekigwat sauntered into the room with a completely unapologetic look on his face.

This guy had seemed serious enough when discussing the game’s storyline or when I first revealed that I was a reincarnator, but since then, his attitude had become endlessly relaxed.

“You weren’t like this before, were you? When I saw you at Seraphine’s after-party last year, you seemed more… normal.”

“Well, I was keeping it together in front of the others. I don’t loosen up like this with anyone but you.”

“Then maybe you should keep it together in front of me, too. Every time you open your mouth, it’s ‘Lilgalchang, Lilgalchang….’”

“Yeah, sorry about that. But it’s hard not to let my guard down when there’s someone from my hometown right in front of me after all these years. Celesta and Sillena are close, but I still have to pretend to be the ‘Hero’ around them. But with you, I don’t have to worry about that, so….”

“…Fine, do whatever you want around me, but please be careful in front of others. I’m still nervous thinking about what almost slipped out of your mouth during the last meeting.”

“What can I do? I’ve seen your nickname ‘Lilgalchang’ on the boards more times than I’ve seen you in person. It’s hard to stop it from slipping out.”

…Well, I guess that’s understandable.

I had also seen his nickname countless times before realizing who he was in this world.

Of course, after being reincarnated and spending several years just trying to survive, I had mostly forgotten those memories.

“By the way, where’s Ethan? Why are you here alone?”

“Ethan? He’s in the student council room, of course.”

“…Oh, right. There’s still student council business to take care of.”

“Speaking of which, I heard you and Ethan are planning to quit the student council after one year. Is that true?”

“…Yeah, something like that. It’s a bit complicated.”

I didn’t bother mentioning that the complications were mostly because of him and Seraphine. No need to make him feel guilty about how his actions had affected Ethan and Seraphine’s relationship.

Wait a minute, if he’s here before Ethan, maybe I don’t need to worry about Celesta after all.

“Actually, this is perfect.”

“Huh?”

“Since you’re here, help me out with convincing Celesta. Just hint to her that I might be the Saintess.”

“Huh? Why? Are you trying to join the Hero’s party?”

“Are you crazy? Why would I do that? I spent years grinding my way through that in the game. I don’t need to go through it again here.”

“I mean… yeah, it was a grind….”

He understood, at least, that being in the Hero’s party was a long and difficult journey, especially since he had nearly completed the game following my strategy.

“I only need one thing: to receive Celesta’s blessing and awaken as the Saintess.”

“Awaken as the Saintess… wait, what?!”

“What? Is there a problem?”

“Not a problem, but… is that even possible?”

“What do you mean?”

“Aren’t you and Ethan already… you know? How can you awaken as the Saintess if you’re not a virgin…?”

-Thud!

“Ugh, cough…!”

My fist flew reflexively, landing squarely in Gyeonmwa Joshekigwat’s solar plexus. He doubled over, clutching his chest in pain.

“You’re completely insane, aren’t you?!”