Ch. 108

"Eek...!"

The sharp blade pressed against the high priest's neck, close enough to cut him if he even twitched.

He looked at Grandmother with wide open eyes widened.

"M-Madam Helena, what are you doing?!"

The priest seated beside him was so shocked he leapt to his feet and shouted at her. He hurried over to her, and flitted his hands nervously near her to calm her down.

"Pl-please, Madam Helena, put the sword down!"

The priest pleaded again, but Helena didn't waver at all. Her cold, piercing gaze---the gaze of a Sword Master who had once dominated battlefields---bored into the high priest.

The only person in the room who seemed at peace was Max. He stood upright, his posture suggesting he knew what grandmother would do.

-Child, your grandmother has quite the strong will.

'She really does. When I first met her, I couldn't even imagine what she might have been like in her prime, but seeing her now, I can easily picture her as a Sword Master.'

-That's right. She must have caused quite the stir on the battlefield.

As I watched her closely, I found myself silently admiring her along with Kyros.

This wasn't the grandmother I knew from her serious but kind demeanor during training. Her appearance now was unlike any other time.

Now, Helena Holden stood like a sword personified.

I felt like even breathing too loudly could invite her blade.

'Grandma...'

I was moved, knowing that her fierce behavior was born out of love for me and my family.

"M-Madam Helena! What are you...?!"

The high priest's voice was barely a whisper, trembling as he tried to avoid moving, because he was scared the blade might nick his skin. The corner of my grandmother's mouth lifted into a small smile.

It wasn't a warm smile. Her eyes remained cold, and the eerie look on her face sent a visible tremor through the high priest.

Her voice, icy and devoid of pitch, cut through the air.

"It wasn't for your sake that I let your rudeness slide until now."

Even the tone of her voice was unlike anything I'd ever heard from her before---low, raspy, and heavy with a sense of intimidation to it.

"It was for the sake of my cute grandchildren, who are staying in this house."

Her cold demeanor and the lovely words she spoke didn't match at all, but her ruthless appearance and voice made her seem intimidating as hell.

Because of that, the high priest trembled even more, and his legs threatened to give out beneath him.

'Of course, I don't think Grandma would actually kill him.'

I knew that because of the "reason" she mentioned---me and Sevenus.

"I don't want my grandchildren to witness such a filthy sight."

She said that as she ran her free hand through her hair.

That's my grandma.

"I'm sorry...! I misspoke, Madam H-Helena!"

The high priest stammered out an apology. Still with a cold look on her face, her gaze lingered on him for a moment longer before she finally lowered her sword.

"My position remains unchanged. Do not come back here. Now leave."

With the blade no longer at his throat, the high priest and the other priest scrambled to their feet and left.

'Damn it!'

Not wanting to be caught eavesdropping, I moved as quietly as possible.

Luckily, there was a large statue nearby. I quickly hid behind it. It wasn't that long, but it gave enough cover if I stayed low.

-Child, you look like a thief hiding like that.

'I feel like one too.'

As I sighed, the door to the library opened. Max was the first to step out.

"Come this way."

"Yes, yes, okay."

As Max showed them the way, the high priest and his priests walked through the hallway with pale faces, their breaths unsteady.

Once their figures vanished down the corridor, I stepped out from behind the statue. I glanced through the slightly open library door and saw my grandmother.

'Grandma...'

She was calmly drinking tea, her sword already sheathed, as if nothing had happened.

While I debated how to approach her, her voice called me out from within.

"Come in, Levi."

My heart sank.

'Oh no.'

-Amazing! Your grandmother knew all along! She truly is a Sword Master!

My heart started pounding. Kyros's praise of Grandma echoed in my head, but I could barely process it over the rush of being caught eavesdropping.

I couldn't just turn back and pretend I wasn't there anymore. I sighed inwardly, as I pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"I'm sorry, Grandma."

I bowed my head in apology. To my surprise, my grandmother laughed softly.

"It's all right, Levi. My little puppy. Come here and make yourself comfortable."

Her voice was a world away from the icy tone she had used with the high priest. When I raised my head, her usual warm smile greeted me.

"Oh, I didn't realize you already knew."

I sat down across from my grandmother, feeling embarrassed as I awkwardly rubbed the back of my neck. Her laughter rang out again.

"It's not easy for someone like me to not notice these things. Maybe try harder to conceal your presence in the future."

She advised me as she smiled gently.

"Yes, Grandma. I'm sorry again."

I apologized again to my grandmother, swallowing back the words that I should try to hide my presence as much as possible.

'She really isn't a Sword Master for nothing.'

In the original story, the protagonist, Terdius, only achieved the rank of Sword Master in the latter half of the story. So Grandma must've been even stronger than him in her younger days.

That made me respect her even more.

Knock, knock.

Max had returned.

"Ah, the Young Master is here."

"Yes, Max. Could you prepare some soothing tea for Levi?"

"Of course."

Max left the room to fetch the tea. A moment of quiet settled between us.

"Why are you still up at this hour?"

"Oh, I was just reading a book..."

"I see. But it's better to go to bed early, Levi... It helps you relieve the day's fatigue and ensures you can train properly tomorrow. You need to take care of your body."

I nodded at her words.

"Yes, Grandma. I'll keep that in mind."

As we continued chatting, Max returned, setting the fragrant tea before me. My grandmother turned to him.

"Thank you for your hard work, Max. Go ahead and rest now. I'll talk with Levi a little longer before heading to bed myself."

"Have a good evening, Master,"

Max said as he left.

I took a sip from the steaming tea. I couldn't pinpoint its exact taste, but it was definitely a spicy and herbal flavor.

"It's a tea that calms the mind and helps you sleep well."

"Ah, I see."

I replied, and then swallowed the warm tea. Setting the teacup down, I hesitated for a moment before looking at her.

"Um, Grandma."

"Yes, Levi?"

" I have a question"

"Feel free to ask."

She put down the cup of tea and focused on me as I asked carefully.

"The people who visited earlier...they were priests from the Diego Church, weren't they?"

"...Yes, that's right."

Her eyes narrowed briefly before returning to her usual calm expression.

"When did they start coming to see you?"

"You know about my Mana Burn, don't you?"

"Yes, Sevenus told me."

She continued with a bitter smile.

"It started not long after I was affected by Mana Burn. Word spreads fast, so I expected as much, but not quite this quickly."

She sighed again.

"They claimed they could cure me, but they had a proposal: I would have to join their Church as the Commander of the Holy Knights Order and train their knights."

"I see."

"It was about a week after the Mana Burn affected me that they first approached me."

I had a hunch, but I didn't expect Diego Church to be this quick. Their timing coincided almost exactly with when I first entered this world.

'I've never really thought much about the variables of hidden routes until now...'

The story always followed the general plot of the original until now, but this world's difficulty seemed to have increased in unexpected ways.

'...Even the matters of the extra characters that didn't previously appear in the original.'

If this world had followed the original storyline, my grandmother wouldn't have been afflicted with Mana Burn in the first place.

Of course, that's only if this is the reason. After all, though the original story mentioned her existence, there was no mention of her incurable illness after all.

'So a hidden route might have caused it.'

If I'd learnt about this right after I possessed this character, I might not have been that affected by it. After all, she's just one of the characters that appear in the game. Yet, after spending almost a year in this world, this no longer felt like a game. So I felt a sense of guilt for them.

It had only been a few days since I had met Helena Holden. But in that short time, my concern for her had grown to the point where I felt a real sense of kinship. Before I knew it, my heart was completely occupied by the feeling of wanting to make my grandmother better.

'To do that, it's even more important that I...'

So I had to make my grandmother a believer in the Kyros Church. Only then would she receive the holy power of Kyros and regain her health.

But seeing how firmly she rejected Diego Church's offer, it made this even more difficult.

I saw her take a sip of her tea and picked up my teacup as well.

'My grandmother...is a person of strong convictions.'

If she had valued her health above her principles, she would've accepted Diego Church's offer. But that wasn't who she was.

"Levi."

My eyes suddenly met hers. She smiled gently again.

"You don't have to worry about me."

She looked at me affectionately as she said that as if she had read my mind.

"But, Grandma... I can't help but worry. If I were in your position, I think I might've accepted Diego Church's offer."

"Let me be honest with you."

She said that with a smile.

"At first, I did think about accepting it. But then I realized---I've lived a long, full life without regrets. I decided I wanted to keep living without regrets."

When she spoke, it left me speechless. That's because the look on her face was completely free of regrets.

Even my efforts to save her suddenly felt intrusive, like I was imposing my will on her life.

'...Damn it.'

What should I do? I felt completely lost on what I should do going forward.

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