"...What?"

I couldn’t believe my ears.

I stuck a finger into my ear to check if there was something wrong.

No, my hearing was perfectly normal.

Which means, the strange thing was the words coming out of the Pope’s mouth.

"W-why would something like that happen?"

"Hmm, where should I begin?"

The former Saintess, Maria Volakia.

Officially, she was declared missing after being deposed by Swarm.

But within Célie, it seems to be an open secret that she’s alive.

Her presence within Célie has been causing unnecessary issues.

"For example, there’s a faction that doesn’t think highly of the current Saintess, Aries. She’s not particularly diplomatic, and her skills and achievements still fall short of what’s expected of a Saintess. So, the anti-Aries faction contemplates whether they can replace her with someone else."

In such a case, the one they’d rally around would be the tragic former Saintess Maria, who was unjustly deposed by Swarm.

Setting aside Maria’s feelings, the truth is that she lost her position as Saintess without any substantial reason.

Maria remains highly popular domestically, even now.

She’d fly to regions plagued by disease, using her healing magic to suppress outbreaks. She’d spend her personal wealth to rescue the impoverished.

It’s not just her noble actions—her power, too, is said to rival the greatest among all past Saintesses.

The Pope believes that the people would support the former Saintess Maria over the current one, Aries.

But from the Pope’s perspective, he wants Aries to continue as the Saintess.

However, if the opposing factions were to act recklessly and split the national sentiment in two, the consequences would be disastrous. It could lead to civil war, or even to something as drastic as invoking the Jet-Black Codex for a trial by force to determine the true Saintess.

Thanks to Swarm, the country is already teetering on the brink. As the religious state of Célie, they cannot afford further chaos.

"So, to prevent that, you think it’s better to send Maria abroad?"

"Yes. And ideally, she’d find a husband while she’s away and live a happy life under a new name."

If Maria stays in the country, it wouldn’t just be her in danger—Célie itself could face peril.

So, it’s more convenient if she leaves.

That much I understood.

But what I didn’t understand was why the Pope decided to reach out to us instead of Katya.

After all, this is a matter involving the Saintess.

It’s a serious issue, so significant that even the Kingdom can’t remain uninvolved.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to go through Katya and involve Marquis Endlord directly?

"I would like Maria to lead an ordinary life if possible. Your kingdom has its own Saintess, so there will be challenges. And I believe the ones capable of resolving those challenges are you, Bruno, and Ivy."

"Mmmph!!"

Ivy, who had been silent until now, suddenly cried out.

When I looked at her, she was glaring at the Pope.

It didn’t take long to figure out what had upset Ivy.

She couldn’t stand the fact that the Pope was trying to disrupt our daily lives by dragging us into the mess surrounding Maria.

The Pope, seeing Ivy’s reaction, bowed his head deeply.

And then, he went so far as to lower himself onto his knees to prostrate before us.

"Wait, please!"

I couldn’t let the Pope grovel like that!

I grabbed his arms and somehow managed to pull him back up.

"I deeply apologize... But if things continue as they are, misfortune will soon befall Maria..."

Indeed, if Maria were to remain in Célie, problems would surely arise.

If she were in the Kingdom, everyone would be happier.

But bringing her to the Kingdom would also bring its own complications.

"Ivy."

"Mii."

"Let’s take Maria to Akoup."

"Mii?"

Ivy tilted her head, as if to ask, "Are you sure about this?"

Yeah.

Because—we can’t just abandon someone in need.

Even if that person is from a neighboring country.

"Mii~…"

With a sigh that seemed to say "there’s no helping you," Ivy relented.

Her expression was like that of a mother resigned to looking after her hopeless child, filled with gentle maternal care.

It’s true that problems might arise.

But we’re no longer the same as when we first arrived in Akoup with nothing.

Now, we don’t have to solve everything entirely on our own.

There’s Katya, Marquis Endlord, and... though we’ve been avoiding them so far, there’s also Rey and Logan.

Not to mention the Ten Fingers of the Demon Lord. And me—a rare Griffin Rider in all of history.

At this point, one or two more problems won’t make much of a difference.

Of course, we’ll discuss things thoroughly with Katya and the Marquis first.

But for now, let’s look at this positively.

We’ll be fine. Ivy and I can handle anything together.

"Mii!"

Ivy nodded firmly.

The Pope, seeing our exchange, let out a relieved sigh.

The party continued without incident and concluded peacefully.

After discussing it with Katya, we decided to arrange a meeting with Maria.

I just hope nothing goes wrong.