A Saint Who Was Adopted by the Grand Duke

Chapter 165: The End Is Where It Begins (IV)

“So you mean we have to leave Esther alone?”

“Right now. Meanwhile, we will keep looking for a way.”

“If anything goes wrong with Esther, I will not leave the temple alone.”

Deheen was well aware that this was not the temple’s fault.

However, if it was the goddess who called Esther here, the only place that resentment could go was to the temple.

Frowning, he put his hand on his orb. And repeatedly called Esther’s name.

“Esther, don’t you want to go home? You promised to return before your birthday.”

Hoping for his voice to reach the sleeping Esther.

★★★

“Mmm.”

Esther sniffed the sweet scent that continued to flow from somewhere, then came to her senses and opened her eyes.

Before her eyes was a scene of a garden full of colorful and pretty flowers.

“Where am I?”

Esther looked around blankly and realized she was sitting at a table.

“What happened?”

She remembered destroying the crystal ball in the basement of the Saint’s Palace, but she had no memory of escaping the collapsing building.

“…Am I dead?”

Esther looked down at her hands, unable to hide her dejected expression.

“Tweet, tweet!”

Several birds chirped clearly and flew past Esther.

Seeing such a peaceful sight, somehow her pulse went numb.

“Is this really over? I couldn’t even say goodbye to everyone…”

It was unfair and empty, so she wanted to cry. The tip of her nose twitched as she was about to burst into tears.

However, the voice of someone who suddenly appeared from behind halted those tears.

“Welcome. It took me a long time to bring you here.”

The person who spoke out of nowhere sat across from Esther.

Esther’s eyes began to shake as she checked the person’s face.

“Are you Espitos?”

Unlike the last time where she could barely see her shape, this time she could see her so well that she could even make out her expression.

Her face was different from the one she saw every day as a stone statue, but as soon as she saw her, she realized that she was the goddess, Espitos.

It felt so sacred that the word ‘beautiful’ couldn’t express it.

The eyes of Goddess Espitos looking at Esther were warm and friendly.

“Yes. I am Espitos.”

“Where am I? Am I dead?”

Esther had already wondered if she was really dead, so she asked in resignation, glancing at Espitos.

Espitos, who saw that, laughed like a little girl.

“No way. You’re definitely alive and well. I put you to sleep for a while to have a conversation.”

“Really?”

“Of course. You barely made it this far, I can’t just let you die, can I?”

Esther’s eyes, which had been bloodshot red, turned round.

And the corner of her mouth, which had been drooping the whole time after waking up, went up.

“The Saint’s Palace collapsed and I couldn’t get out of it…”

“Don’t worry. I kept you safe and brought you here. Well, I was a little surprised to see a child intervening.”

“There’s someone who intervened?”

“Let’s talk about that a little later. We have a lot of time.”

As could be seen from the smiley face, Espitos was very happy to meet Esther.

“If I’m alive, I want to go back quickly. Dad will be worried.”

However, unlike Espitos, who wanted to pass the time slowly, Esther wanted to go back as soon as possible.

When Esther jumped up from her seat, Espitos appeared hurt and shocked.

“Wait, are you going right away? Do you know how long I’ve waited for this moment where I can talk to you like this?”

Esther, on the other hand, was very bewildered by Espitos, who pretended to be close.

“You waited? Even when I called for help, you never responded.”

It was blurry now, but the 14 painful lives couldn’t be something that never happened. Wasn’t she the one who ignored her?

“Was it very difficult to respond?”

When Esther spoke in a resentful tone, the atmosphere surrounding Espitos changed.

“I know you resent me. The hatred and anger towards me, all the feelings you have are transmitted.”

“Yes. I will never forgive you.”

Esther’s eyes were cold.

“I’ve always been sorry towards you. Because I made you go through a lot of painful things. It may sound like an excuse, but since I can’t directly get involved in your world, all I can do is bring you back to life.”

Esther’s head tilted slightly when Espitos said that she couldn’t get involved.

“You are a god.”

“It’s because of the contract. I can’t reach you except in the barrier. In addition, my power was weakened by the contamination of crystal balls over hundreds of years.”

“Still, didn’t the high priests give you an oath? If only you had transmitted your will through them…”

“That, too, has limitations. Even inside the temple, one can only reach me with divine power. But your divine power in the past was very weak, and you never tried it, right?”

Espitos let out a deep sigh, saying she couldn’t describe how hard it was, and continued.

“How difficult it was to enter that priestess for a short time.”

“Priestess?”

Esther, puzzled for a moment, realized something and gently bit her lips.

Now she knew the reason why her voice only reached the priestess, Annie, right before her death every time.

‘Then what I felt before was really…’

Whenever she fell asleep exhausted from crying alone in prison, there were times when she felt like someone was there.

She thought it was an illusion since there was no one there, but perhaps it was the energy of Espitos.

“I always wanted to tell you this. Thank you for holding out. I’m sorry to have burdened you so much.”

All of a sudden, the demeanor of Espitos’ that seemed like an immature child disappeared, and her voice felt deep and heavy.

Esther felt that she would start to cry, so she strained her eyes wide.

“…Why did you keep bringing me back to life like that?”

“Because you are my only hope.”

Espitos’ eyes were so pure and transparent that Esther felt her anger was foolish.

“If left as it is, the empire would perish. I have seen that future 14 times already.”

“Is it that black smoke from before?”

“That’s right. It’s the beginning of the darkness that grows by feeding on people’s desires. If left as it is, it will pollute the barrier and plunge the entire empire into darkness.”

Having never imagined such a terrible future, Esther embraced her arms in shock.

“Is it okay now?”

“Yes. You broke the crystal ball. You changed the future with your own hands.”

“But… As a result, the barrier is broken, so it’s still dangerous.”

“That’s also right. So, we should create a new barrier before it is too late.”

As Espitos raised her arms, the birds that had been chirping in the garden swarmed around her.

The scene, which was so beautiful that it was hard to believe it was a part of the garden, was so phenomenal that it was mesmerizing for a moment.

“This is the place where the empire was founded. It’s where I first made a pact with Rayleigh. Rayleigh was sitting right where you were.”

Esther looked around in surprise.

“I’ve been watching the empire here for a very long time.”

In an instant, the things Espitos had seen so far flashed quickly through Esther’s mind.

The vast land, beautiful nature, and even the daily lives of people, which was more precious because they were ordinary.

“Will you help me defend this empire once more?”

“Me?”

Esther, who looked at the scene as if bewitched, was startled at the request for help. She pointed at herself with her finger.

“Yes. I want you to make a new pact with me.”

When Esther kept her mouth shut instead of answering, Espitos chuckled.

“You’re thinking that I am putting a heavy burden on you again?”

“Yes. There is no end. You revived me several times and asked me to break the crystal ball, and now, a promise.”

Thinking it was unfair, Esther pouted and grunted. Espitos smiled happily in response.

“Because you are special. You are a blessed child.”

“Blessed? I thought I was cursed.”

“No way. There has never been a child who was born with more love from me than you.”

Espitos’ voice was so sweet and kind that Esther wanted to believe it even if it was all lies.

After staring at her for a moment, Esther let out a thin sigh and sat down at the round table again.

“…How is it done?”

Espitos walked in front of Esther, and said with her eyes shining.

“Reach your hand out.”

“Like this?”

“Yes. Palm against palm, like this.”

Espitos’s palm and Esther’s palm lightly touched.

Then, with a slight trembling, a bright light burst out around the hands held together.

Espitos moved their hands slowly, placing it on the round table.

The light, which had begun to grow larger, now completely enveloped the two and spread out, illuminating the entire space.

For some reason, everything around had disappeared.

Esther was alone with Espitos in the white light.

“After signing this contract, most of your powers as a saint will disappear.”

“It’s what I wished for. I will live as Esther rather than a saint.”

“Still, no new saints will appear until you die.”

Esther agreed, and innumerable golden threads stretched from the held hands.

The long, thin threads of light filled this space, stretching far and wide and spreading all over the place.

It was a beautiful sight.

Esther stared blankly at the mysterious sight of stretched golden threads that looked like pillars of light.

“Now my power will only pass on to you and your offspring.”

“What? Isn’t that a curse?”

“Can’t you say it’s a blessing?”

“…….”

Esther asked to leave, saying it was nonsense, but Espitos blocked her ears, saying that an oath made could not be revoked.

“What kind of god is this selfish?”

“It’s because I care for you.”

Esther glared at Espitos as she sighed. Then tilted her head, her ears perking up.

“But it’s been bothering me since earlier, I think someone is calling me.”

Espitos shrugged at Esther’s words.

“You can hear that now? My ears have been hurting from before. It was too loud to talk.”

Espitos, who had become child-like once more, stretched out her hand in front of her with a bright smile.

“I’d like to talk more, but I should let you go now.”

Then, a long, single road appeared in front of the two of them. It was bathed in a golden light.

“If you walk straight, you can return to your world.”

“Goodbye then.”

As soon as the path was created, Esther grinned and, without hesitation, set her foot on it.

“I knew you wouldn’t regret it, but I’m still sad.”

Esther turned away without looking back, and Espitos watched with lonely eyes.

It was then.

Instead of walking straight ahead, Esther stopped and straightened up.

Then she turned around and strode back toward Espitos.

“…Why, why, what, you don’t want to leave? Do you want to hit me? I am still a god.”

Espitos, taken aback by Esther’s hardened face, quickly blinked and backed away.

Ame: Well, I guess, if we look at it in another way… without Espitos, Rabienne would have her way T^T ….but a punch or two wouldn’t hurt

And, I don’t know about how all future saint’s will be from Esther’s bloodline. Like, the first head of Brions is definitely a good guy and look what happened. But whatever, it’s not my world xD #don’t_wanna_think_anymore

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