Chapter 57
"Mmm... Clael-sama... you're so cruel, sharing a bed with a woman other than me."
Reina pouted slightly and pressed Clael's head against her chest.
Because of the sleep magic cast on him, Clael was breathing peacefully in Reina's embrace.
Even though he was eight years older, his sleeping face looked just a little bit childish.
"Nngah..."
"Ahhn!"
Clael stirred, moving his head as if in discomfort.
Reina flinched slightly and blushed.
"...Do things like that while you're awake once in a while. I can handle being attacked anytime, you know."
Reina effortlessly lifted Clael's body and laid him down on the bed.
As if it were the most natural thing, she lay down next to him and clung to his waist.
"Suu... suu..."
"Haaah..."
She nuzzled her cheek against Clael's chest and took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the scent of a freshly bathed body.
It was the same soap scent she used. Mixed within was the faint aroma of sweat.
She even felt like stripping off his top and licking him, but she restrained herself.
"Chu..."
Instead, she pressed her lips to the side of his neck.
A small red mark. It gave her the feeling of marking him as hers, and Reina bashfully shook her head and squirmed.
A maiden's heart exploding. It was a reckless act only possible because she knew the magic would keep him asleep.
"Haa... Clael-sama, I love you..."
Rubbing her body against him sweetly, Reina whispered in a dreamy tone.
Just when did she fall in love with him?
She didn't know.
At first, it felt like admiration and dependence.
After losing her beloved mother and being abused by her adoptive parents.
The benefactor who saved her from that. The person who became her family—she never wanted to lose him again.
But... that feeling quickly turned into love.
She didn't think it took very long.
Probably within half a year of meeting him, she had already decided in her heart: "He's the one."
(I'm surely not Clael-sama's destined one...)
There must be someone more suitable for Clael.
If Clael were to walk together with Reina, the Saint, he would surely face many hardships.
For Clael, who had gone out of his way to transfer to a shrine in a rural town for a peaceful life, it would surely be a heavy burden.
(Clael-sama doesn't wish for something like that...)
Knowing that, Reina made her choice.
Clael. A future living together with Clael.
If he were to become the husband of the 'Saint', there might have been more suitable partners.
For example, a man with power like a crown prince from somewhere.
For example, a man with martial prowess like the son of a knight captain from somewhere.
For example, a man with intelligence and cunning like the son of a prime minister from somewhere.
For example, a shameless man like a boy from somewhere who didn't care about the gazes of others.
There were other people more fitting to be the Saint's partner.
Even so, Reina chose Clael.
Even if it wasn't what Clael wanted, she chose to make the one she loved suffer. She resolved to impose herself on him.
"Suyaa... suyaa..."
"I'm sorry, Clael-sama..."
Clinging to Clael, Reina apologized.
Even though they were only apart for a few months because she had to attend the academy... she became even more certain that Clael was the only one for her.
Because of her, Clael would go through a lot.
Knowing that, Reina decided to walk alongside Clael.
(This isn't for Clael-sama... this is surely my ego...)
There's no way her heart wouldn't ache at repaying the one who loved and raised her with betrayal.
That's why Reina resolved to devote everything to Clael's happiness.
Even if that meant she couldn't fulfill her mission as the Saint... she would prioritize Clael over the world's lasting peace.
(God made a mistake. Someone like me should never have been chosen as the Saint...)
Still, it couldn't be helped. That was God's fault.
If she hadn't become the Saint... she wouldn't have enrolled in the academy and been separated from Clael.
Even if something were to happen, she'd make God take responsibility for the poor choice in personnel.
"Just a little... it's okay, right, Clael-sama?"
Reina released her embrace and reached for her nightwear.
She pulled up her negligee-style nightwear in one swift motion, getting completely naked.
Reina's rampage didn't stop. She stripped Clael down to just his underwear and grinned.
"Alright."
What exactly was 'alright'...? Naked, Reina clung to Clael and closed her eyes.
"Kukaa... kukaa..."
(If morning came like this... yes, for example, if I pricked my finger and let a drop of blood fall on the sheets, and we were found sleeping together in the same bed... how would Clael-sama react?)
A mischievous feeling tickled her chest... but she held back on that.
Reina had chosen the path of forcing her ego onto Clael, but it wasn't because she wanted to trouble him.
Just before the spell she cast on Clael wore off... an hour before dawn, Reina slept naked in his arms, then fixed her clothes and quietly left the room of the man she loved.