No, How Can an Atheist Become a Saintess!? – 99
EP.99 Stubbornness and Arrogance (11)
"What’s your plan?"
Ria asked as I packed up my things in the room.
"For now, the Dwarf Kingdom isn’t going to collapse all at once."
I pulled out my suitcase as I replied.
"The key is the princess."
"Does she have that much magic?"
"Magic, yes—but more importantly, her knowledge. This is the Dwarf Kingdom that tried to create a Gate, remember?"
And if they had a little more time, they might have actually succeeded.
"Let’s go over this again."
I unzipped my bag and checked my weapons. My gun was always well-maintained, and I had brought plenty of bullets.
I switched to a slightly smaller shield—it was impractical to keep lugging around a riot shield that covered almost my entire body. It was just too big and heavy.
"The magic up there alone is enough to create a magic core that could wreak havoc. If someone wanted to wipe out the Dwarves, they could simply generate a massive number of magic cores and launch an all-out invasion."
"So… that means they want something more."
"Exactly. They want the princess’s knowledge."
They believed they could do something with it.
…It might sound a bit self-important to say this, but one of those things could very well be targeting me. The power to neutralize magic. A force that—no matter how you looked at it—seemed to be connected to whatever was up there. To them, it was both dangerous and enticing.
"……Are you saying they can extract knowledge? The ones you’re talking about?"
"It’s just a theory."
In the novel, it was described that the princess was fused with the magic orb. I wasn’t entirely skeptical about the existence of souls. After all, I had memories of a past life, and—more than anything—there was a being up above who had sent me here and was still watching me.
Denying the existence of souls in a situation like that would be ridiculous. Even if it wasn’t a soul, there had to be some method of transferring equivalent information. Still, separate from the soul, a person’s mind is bound to their body. A person thinks with their brain. The heart pumps blood to the brain. Every other organ in the body exists to provide the brain with the energy it needs. If that brain is damaged, the rest of the body fails. If the nerves connecting the brain to the body are severed, the body is left broken and unable to move. That means—if a technology existed that could scan the brain, extracting the information stored inside wouldn’t be impossible.
I don’t know how information is recorded in a soul. I don’t know what happens to a soul after it leaves the body. But I can make an educated guess. Or, if what they’re using is something beyond science—something purely magical—maybe they can extract knowledge directly from a soul.
"So what you’re saying is, as long as we protect the princess, we’ll be fine?"
"That’s right. No matter what they have up their sleeve, they can’t wipe out tens of thousands of people in an instant."
If they could, Earth wouldn’t have survived.
The Gate crisis threw society into chaos, sure—but in the end, we handled it.
A society that had already researched countermeasures and built a system for dealing with Gates would be even harder to take down.
That’s why the Dwarf princess’s abduction and modification was such a pivotal moment.
Because it led to tens of thousands of undead Dwarves flooding into our world.
"……."
Click.
After checking my gun one last time, I got up and looked at Ria.
Her job was to guard me whenever she wasn’t sleeping. Unlike me, she didn’t need to check her weapons separately—she always had them on her.
She stood not far from me, silently watching my movements with a somewhat complicated expression.
"Yeah, it’s dangerous. No doubt about it."
I spoke honestly before she could even ask.
"Maybe even more dangerous than what happened at the lake."
Besides, my plan wasn’t just to sit next to the princess and keep her company. I didn’t have time to argue, so I had come back to the dorm to prepare, but in just a few minutes, I’d have to meet the princess again and convince her of something. Even if she wasn’t particularly religious, there were still practical reasons she might oppose it. And even if she accepted it, I had no idea how the other Dwarves would react.
"But you’re going to do it anyway."
"Yeah, I am."
I nodded.
"Then I guess I’m coming too."
Ria shrugged.
"……."
"What?"
"Nothing. Just…"
My thoughts were a mess.
Ria was my friend.
I had met all the characters from the original story since coming to this world, and I had grown close to some of them, but no one as much as Ria.
Of course, that didn’t mean I didn’t care about the others. I still wanted Lee Si-yoon and Han Yu-ri to end up together. I still wanted this story to somehow reach a happy ending.
But even so…
If I had to fight, who would I want by my side?
Logically, rationally, the best choice was someone who could fight well. Someone who would listen to my requests.
Thinking about human lives in terms of numbers was never a pleasant thing. With how much the story had changed, how could I be sure those characters would be safe? I didn’t even know how strong the ones who had kidnapped the princess really were. Was it really right for me to ask the people who trusted me to risk their lives for this?
"Anna."
Noticing something in my expression, Ria placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Don’t even think about going alone."
She leaned in closer.
"Because even if you do tell me no, I’m going anyway. Whatever happens out there—whether you like it or not—has nothing to do with your permission."
"……."
It was a contradictory statement in many ways, especially compared to the things Ria had said to me before.
But at the same time, it was exactly the kind of thing she would say.
"Alright."
I nodded and met her gaze before speaking softly.
"Thank you."
"……."
Ria's face flushed slightly as she pulled her hand away from my shoulder.
*
In the end, I managed to convince the princess. Though, calling it "convincing" felt like an overstatement—she nodded far too easily.
"Honestly, this might be a better option than me officially converting," she said.
I hesitated for a moment before replying.
"……You must really trust me."
"If you're willing to take risks, then so should I."
The princess spoke with quiet resolve, then tilted her head up slightly to gaze at the ceiling.
"Dwarves have their own principles. Humans do too, of course, but for dwarves, the way we treat others is of utmost importance. Unfortunately, many nobles and those in power have long forgotten that, but at the very least, I want to uphold it. Half of my blood may be that of a gnome, but I was raised here, in the Dwarven Kingdom."
Her gaze lowered again, meeting mine directly.
"My father believed in that principle as well. And if I weren’t willing to take even the smallest risk for you all, he’d probably call me an ungrateful child."
"Uh… well."
I struggled for a response.
"Speaking of which, we shared a drink earlier, didn’t we?"
"……‘May alcohol make us forget rudeness,’ right?"
"Then I hope you’ll forget my rudeness just now as well."
I shrugged.
*
There was just one problem. I didn’t know the exact date of the incident. All I knew was that it would happen sometime around late July. But honestly, that wasn’t a huge issue. Ria and I had plenty of time. It wasn’t like we had immediate plans to enter university, nor were we in a situation where taking a break from hunting would put us at any risk.
Most of the people who had followed me were either devoted believers of that entity or my trusted allies. And staying here wouldn’t seriously impact anyone’s career as a Hunter either.
Besides, I already knew how to solve that one problem. I wasn’t exactly thrilled about the method, but… well, if I wanted to follow through on what I had promised the princess, this was something I had to do first.
I prayed. Kneeling on the floor, hands clasped together. The truth was, I didn’t really know how to pray. I had always refused to learn any kind of structured method for it. But every time I tried to heal or protect someone—that entity had always lent me power.
So, this time as well…
A radiant light filled the room.
There was a massive mountain looming above this place, and yet the light passed through all of it effortlessly, shining directly onto my face. It was the same light that appeared whenever that entity looked upon me.
"……."
And then—I heard it.
This time, it wasn’t a lie.
This time, it was the real voice of a god.
…Though, whether it was a prophecy or not, I couldn’t say.
All I knew was that the event would take place in exactly three days.
Well, I suppose that’s to be expected from someone that people call a god.
It would be absurd if they didn’t know about the enemy’s plans in advance.
Not that I had any intention of calling them that.
…And from what I could tell, they didn’t particularly care for the title either.
Just as I muttered that last thought, feeling a little petty about it—
A soft chuckle brushed against my ear, fleeting and light.
They really did seem completely unbothered.
Which, honestly, only made me more annoyed.