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I was once a hollow saint – chapter 2

Three days have passed since then. There are always guards stationed outside my room, eliminating any possibility of me escaping.

(The day has finally come. …… No matter how much I begged them to reconsider, they would only beat me up, and no one would listen to me.)

I desperately fought back my tears, feeling crushed by fear and grief.

And so, as I waited alone in my room after cleaning, I heard a knock on my door.

「Tiana-sama, The preparations are complete.」

.「…..Yes.」

I thank the little room where I spent fifteen years in my heart.

Then, with a tiny bag containing all of my stuff and an old rod, I left the room and made my way to the gate.

I was originally born into a viscount house and my parents are still alive and well.

But after they found out that I was incompetent as a saint, they called me a “disgrace” and wouldn’t allow me to go home.

When I went outside the temple, no one came to see me off, and even the man who seemed to be a messenger from the empire looked puzzled.

He was also taken aback by how tiny my luggage was.

(I am sure he is wondering if I am really a saint.)

Normally, a saint, who is more valuable than gold, would not be treated in this manner.

「May we depart?」

「Ha, yes. Please」

Surprised by the comfort of the luxurious carriage I was sitting in for the first time, I turned my attention to the woman sitting in front of me.

I’d given her a brief greeting before; her name was Marielle-san, my lady-in-waiting.

Marielle-san is very polite and gentle, and her lovely manners imply that she is of noble family.

(A noble lady-in-waiting for the likes of me…it’s gonna be bad if they find out I can’t do anything after being treated so well…)

I felt dizzy when I heard that there were more than ten knights outside to protect me.

Just thinking about the future makes my stomach churn with dread. Marielle-san spoke to me in a worried tone as I was hanging my head with my stomach clutched in my hands.

「Tiana-sama, are you all right?」

「Oh, yes. …… I was thinking about something. …… I’m sorry…」

「Please don’t apologize. And you don’t have to use honorifics with me.」

I looked up and apologized as I always do, and Marielle-san gave me a worried smile. I knew she was far too sweet and nice for someone like me.

「It must be unbearably lonely and scary for you to leave your country alone. I will do my best to make your stay as comfortable and pleasant as possible, so please feel free to ask me anything.」

「…Thank you very much.」

I am not a person who deserves to be treated with such care, and I felt my heart ache with guilt.

Then Marielle-san gave me a detailed explanation of the empire and what was to come.

「We will take two days by carriage to reach the Kingdom of Kulikov, and from there we will travel by gate to the Kingdom of Trosin and finally again by carriage to the Empire of Reavis, for a total of four days.」

It is said that by using a transfer magic circle called a gate, travel time can be considerably shortened. I had read about it in books, but this was the first time I had actually seen it or witnessed it being used.

When I peered out the window, the scenery had already shifted to something I had never seen before.

「Wow. ……!」

My eyes were drawn to the beautiful fields of flowers and buildings spread out all around me.

As a saint who could do nothing, I never traveled around the country to work, so I rarely went outside the temple.

There wasn’t anything that I could do as a saint, so I was never given the opportunity to travel around the country to work, so I rarely, if ever, left the temple.

Everything was new and sparkly, and my pulse was racing with anticipation.

(…..I wonder if I’m allowed to have some fun one last time before we get to the Reavis empire… .)

I will no longer be able to relax like this or enjoy the scenery after arriving at the empire.

There is a possibility that I will soon be sent back to the Kingdom of Fallon. And I knew that things would get even worse for me if that happened.

「Tiana, you love nature, don’t you?」

「…… yes, very much.」

Telling myself that I only had a few days left, I tried my best to burn the drifting scenery into my mind.

◇◇◇

I’ve been out of the country for two days now. We have been traveling by carriage all day long, but Marielle-san and the knights have been taking frequent breaks out of concern for my health.

The inn where we stayed was a very lovely place, and the food was so good that my cheeks almost fell off.

I was only served what looked like leftovers at the temple.

「Tiana-sama, please have some of these fruits. They say it is a specialty of this area.」

「Oh, thank you. Wow, they are delicious! Very, very delicious.」

「Oh, I’m glad to hear that. There are more to come.」

Every time we took a break , I got off the carriage and had a great time looking at and eating various things with Marielle-san.

(The likes of me shouldn’t be having such a good time, but yet here I am.)

Marielle-san, who has been so kind to me, would have scorned me if she knew that I had almost no magic power. I felt terrible, deceiving all of you kind people.

We got back into the carriage and drove through the forest. When we were almost at the gate to the kingdom of Kulikov, Marielle-san stared at me, put one hand on my cheek, and let out a sigh.

「You’re really beautiful, you know? I have never seen such a beautiful person before.」

「Oh? Really? I am not that…」

Even when I denied it, thinking she was just flattering me, Marielle-san firmly said, “No, you are” and would not budge.

「Fufu, I think our citizens will be very happy if you become our empress.」

「…… Empress?」

「Yes. you are coming to our country as the bride of our Emperor, Felix-sama, right?」

My mind went numb as I heard the shocking words.