Vol 3: Chapter 7: Saintly Woman
The Atonement of the Guilty
Saintly Woman
"How can you apologise to Aleph with such a look on your face? What you did... you're long past the stage where an apology would be enough to earn you forgiveness."
The normally gentle Chris turned to Aria with anger in her eyes and said this.
"Huh?! Ch-Chris...?"
Aria is shaken by Chris' sudden anger... She thought Chris had forgiven her, so she is shocked when she suddenly blames her.
But if you think about it, it makes sense. Six months... in reality it was a little less, but for a long period of time, she had assaulted Aleph, verbally abused him, and sometimes even spat on him.
To top it off, she had been making love to the hero in front of her lover, Aleph, as if to show it off. Why did she think she would be forgiven with just a verbal apology?
"Ch-Chris... I'm sorry. I... thought you were dead, but when I met Aleph, I was so happy! I thought that if we just kept talking like this, we'd be able to go back to the way we were before... I was just thinking stupid things... I really got carried away."
Aria apologizes to Chris with a trembling voice. If even Chris abandons her now, then she will have no place in the world anymore.
At the same time, Aria felt strongly about the meaning of life.
"Nee-san. I asked you if you remember what you did to Aleph, right?"
"Y-yes. I said I remember."
"Then do you remember when the three of you took Aleph to a back alley in one town and subjected him to a ?"
".... The back alleys? Ah!"
Aria remember something… no, she remembered doing it. It happened the day after Aleph came into the room yelling at the hero after they'd first had sex.
Her precious time with her beloved hero Hayato had been so rudely interrupted by some garbage... Aria's thoughts were filled with such thoughts at the time.
So they summoned Aleph to a deserted alley in the town where they were staying... and the three of them beat him up. Aleph hadn't done anything wrong.
"It seems you remember. In fact, Aleph broke his arm at the time."
"Eh?! Th-that kind of serious injury? I-I! I'm so...sorry...sorry..."
"Aleph came back to the inn in a bad condition... I was worried so I went to check on him, and he had a high fever..."
"...Uh, I remember... the three of us brutally assaulting him."
Aria lowered her head and muttered dejectedly. She didn't want to believe it, but she had a memory she couldn't help but acknowledge.
"If I had left him like that, he would have certainly died. So I treated Aleph's arm, and then, without Nee-san noticing, I gave him some medicine to bring down his fever."
When Chris said that, Aleph looked at her in surprise. It had been a long time since he had seen her with such surprise since becoming the hero.
"Chris? My injury that time... were you the one who healed it...?"
Aleph asked Chris, who answered with her head down.
“Yes, that’s true… But, at the time, I turned a blind eye even when you were being assaulted… I was a terrible saint. There’s no way I could say that I helped you or do something that would make me look like I expecting your gratitude.…”
Chris spoke as if she regretted her actions, but Aleph felt a sense of relief in his heart.
...Ah, Chris has always been protecting him. Aleph's heart was full with love for Chris. No, it was overflowing.
"...Thank you, Chris. I've been saved by you all this time."
Aleph whispered thanks, but Chris couldn't hear, so that was fine.
If Chris didn't want gratitude, then he couldn't force it. Aleph thought of Chris's feelings first.
Chris turns to Aria again and gives her a sad look.
"So ... you almost killed Aleph... twice."
"Is that so? I..."
"The first time, a group of you hurt Aleph, inflicting serious injuries on him... The second time, you pushed him into the depths of the abyss... Nee-san, I'll ask you again. Can you really say that to Aleph so he can forgive you for all this with a mere verbal apology?"
"...I can't say it... Ah ha ha... I've only done terrible things..."
There was no way Aria could argue with what Chris said. All she could do was accept Chris's condemnation with a dry, self-deprecating smile.
Aria already knew that if she was to be abandoned here and now... she might even be as well as dead.
Being a devoted saint, Chris would likely not resort to force, but considering what Aria had done, it wasn't impossible.
"So, you will not be forgiven."
"……Yeah."
"You must pay for your sins."
"……I agree."
The charges against her are laid out, and she feel like a criminal about to be sentenced.
"Words alone will not erase Nee-san sins."
"...I know."
"So, Nee-san. Nee-san――"
Realizing that the words of farewell were about to be spoken at last, Aria closed her eyes and quietly prepared to accept Chris' punishment.
At this time, Aria had resolved that if Chris and the others had given up on her, she would follow Lily. If she couldn't apologize in words, she thought the only way to make amends was with her death.
But the words uttered by Chris were:
"You must join us on this journey to save the world."
"......Eh......?"
Not a breakup or anything like that.
"Sis, let's go together?"
--It was a gentle embrace of salvation.
With each volume, the number of people increases...
Author's Note
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