WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Natty

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◈ The Regressor and the Blind Saintess ◈

Chapter 19: The End of the White Night

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“Then I’ll be going.”

“Yes. Have a peaceful night.”

At the end of Vera’s gaze, Rene gave him a small bow and entered the red-roofed house.

Vera did not turn away until Rene had disappeared completely inside. Only then did he set out beyond the village.

...Starting today.

Night would return.

The long seven days of daylight had finally ended.

It also meant that the various groups that had been stirring up the continent would gradually begin tightening their net.

He was not afraid of that. Nor was he worried.

They might be tightening their net, but one week was not enough time for them to identify Rene.

They did not possess the Authority of Guidance.

In other words, they had no means of identifying her at once.

The only way to identify her quickly would be to keep watch on the Holy Kingdom’s movements, but even that was impossible in this case.

Because I moved.

Vera had come to meet her. He had never once left the Holy Kingdom, and no matter how much they gathered information, he did not exist in their networks. They could not identify the Saintess through him.

Of course, that did not promise him endless time.

There was magic on the continent. Sorcery. Mysteries.

If they made active use of such things, they would eventually be able to identify the Saintess.

As Vera continued his thoughts and reached the village entrance, he found Norn waiting there and gave a small bow.

“You’re here.”

“Yes.”

“What did you learn?”

“The Empire is still focused on the central region. It seems they intend to search within their own borders first.”

“And the Mage Tower?”

“The same. They are concentrating on the central region and seem to have expanded their search into the south. The Alliance has not moved from the west. It appears there is discord within its ranks.”

Vera nodded at the report.

The first thing he had done after realizing Rene did not wish to go to the Holy Kingdom was this.

He had sent Norn, who had followed him, to learn of the movements across the continent.

Even if there was time to spare, they still needed to make the bare minimum preparations.

“What about the other groups?”

“It is said that Dragonians moving in small groups have been spotted throughout the continent. As you know, the Followers of the Night could not move during the White Night.”

“I understand. You have worked hard.”

“It is my duty.”

Norn bowed.

There is still room to breathe.

Comparing the knowledge of his previous life with their current situation, Vera calculated the routes they would take.

The Dragonians will likely arrive first.

Dragon-blooded people. They sought the Saintess in hopes of obtaining the Authority of their dragon parents.

With their individual mobility and independent information network, they would likely be the first to identify the Saintess.

Next are the Followers of the Night.

They sought the Saintess to erase the curse engraved in their blood.

They could not move during the day, but once night fell, they could move faster than anyone else.

Moreover, their bodies instinctively rejected divine power. The moment they saw Rene, they would realize at once that she was the Saintess.

Then the paths those groups had taken in his previous life came to Vera’s mind.

The Empire never identified the Saintess in the end. The Mage Tower headed north due to conflict with the Dragonians, and the Alliance of Kingdoms won’t matter once we cross the border, so I can set them aside for now.

It was not mere speculation. The situation had unfolded exactly this way in his previous life, so unless something extraordinary happened, it would remain the same.

That was why Vera could still afford to be so calm.

If it was only the Dragonians and the Followers of the Night, Vera alone had more than enough strength to sweep them aside.

...Not bad.

There was still time.

In the worst case, he would have to carry Rene to the Holy Kingdom by force, but not yet.

Vera did not want to force his opinion upon Rene. He wanted to give her enough time to stand on her own and make up her own mind.

How could he not?

Had she not been the light that had shone upon him in his previous life?

She had not forced him. She had not ignored his wishes. She had simply remained by his side, and that alone had moved his heart so deeply. It was only right that he respect her wishes as well.

...Not yet.

He wanted to wait for her a little longer.

As Vera continued his thoughts, Norn, who had been watching him, carefully spoke.

“Um... so, what happened with the Saintess?”

“It seems she has not made up her mind yet.”

“Ah, yes.”

As Norn watched Vera answer so casually, Vera’s face before Norn had left to investigate came to mind.

He had looked impossibly foolish.

The image overlapped with the Vera standing before Norn now.

How startled Norn had been. Vera, who had shown nothing but sharpness since the day they first met, had come trudging over with a face as foolish as the twins’. Norn had thought some terrible disaster must have occurred.

After hearing Vera say that he wanted to respect the Saintess’s wishes, Norn had realized there was no disaster, but...

The question remained.

Has he fallen for the Saintess?

Norn narrowed his eyes.

It was a plausible conclusion. The Saintess Norn had caught a glimpse of before leaving had been so beautiful that she drew admiration without effort.

And besides...

He is at that age.

Vera had only just turned eighteen. He was a young man at the age when one’s heart fluttered over the opposite sex.

Norn could understand that feeling well enough.

Norn was married now and had children, but what had he been like at that age? Whenever he saw someone in a skirt, his eyes were drawn to them, and he spent the whole day grinning foolishly.

Norn gave a small nod. A fond parental smile appeared without his noticing.

I should support him.

Of course, love was not an emotion that could be fulfilled by one person alone, but Norn believed in Vera, who had always worked hard.

Vera took everything seriously. Surely his sincerity would reach her.

“...Why are you looking at me like that?”

“It’s nothing.”

Vera frowned slightly. Norn smiled gently at him.

They were each in their own world.

* * *

The next day, Vera once again followed behind Rene and matched her pace.

He simply walked after her in silence.

They occasionally exchanged small talk, but for the most part, they walked quietly together.

It might have seemed stifling at a glance, but Vera was satisfied nonetheless.

Simply following behind her like this allowed him to confirm that she was safe.

The spark he followed was still burning steadily in its place.

Just being able to see that with his own eyes filled Vera with a deep sense of peace.

They continued walking. The land, which had looked the same throughout the Seven Days and Nights of White Night, gradually began to change color as time passed.

The noon sun shone down upon the ground, and the shadows that had shrunk beneath it slowly lengthened. The sky gradually took on a reddish hue, and before long, the sun began to set, adding red tones to the green landscape.

It was after that time came that Rene spoke.

“...You don’t ask anything, Sir Knight.”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t you think it’s ridiculous? A blind person like me walking around all day. I can’t even see, yet I’m only making things more dangerous for myself.”

Vera studied Rene at those words. As always, his answer was unadorned.

“I do not find it ridiculous in the slightest.”

“Really? You’re strange.”

Silence followed again. After the tap of her cane came the thud of footsteps.

Rene spoke again after they had walked for some time.

“...I’m trying to learn the roads by heart. Since I can’t see. I’m preparing in advance so that if I ever need to go somewhere, I can find my way more easily.”

“That is admirable.”

“It’s foolish.”

Rene stopped walking. Vera stopped as well.

At the end of Vera’s gaze, Rene stared blankly into empty space and continued as if muttering to herself.

Weak, breathless laughs slipped from Rene’s lips.

“Actually, I know too. I know there will never be a time when I need to go somewhere in the village alone. If something serious enough happened in the village that I had to do that, there would really be nothing I could do then.”

Sadness. A little anger and helplessness.

Those feelings clung to Rene’s words.

“Even if I really am the Saintess you’re looking for, I won’t be the person you expect. I can’t do anything on my own... I’m a blind person who can’t even see.”

There was pessimism in her voice. Despair as well.

Only then did Vera feel as if he could see this fourteen-year-old Rene a little more clearly.

And he could understand exactly where those feelings came from.

Helplessness. The feeling that had relentlessly tormented Vera in his childhood was tormenting fourteen-year-old Rene now.

He still did not know what it felt like to be unable to see. But Vera could understand such helplessness.

The fear of being unable to do anything, of living like this until one eventually died. A parasite-like feeling that ate away at the heart and one’s life.

That was helplessness.

What should he say? What could he say to comfort her?

As Vera continued to think, he remembered words she had often spoken in his previous life, words she had used to hold onto him and help him rise again.

“No one can know.”

Her reply was filled with bitter mockery.

“What? Are you saying that perhaps I’ll be able to see again?”

Rene turned toward Vera. Looking at her tightly suppressed, furrowed expression, Vera spoke again.

“No one can know. Not even the gods in heaven can know whether the Saintess truly is someone who can do nothing, or whether she will become truly great.”

“That’s not even funny. And I’m not the Saintess.”

“My apologies.”

Rene bit down on her lip. Her expression twisted sharply.

Lowering her head with that expression, Rene let out a heavy breath and continued.

“I’m sorry. I was too irritable. It isn’t your fault...”

Rene said that, turned around again, and began walking.

Tap. Her cane touched the ground.

Watching her retreating figure, Vera spoke with all his sincerity.

“Many people fall. Many people tremble in fear as well.”

Stop.

Rene’s steps came to a halt. She still faced forward, so Vera could not see her expression.

“But I know there are few who do not give up even in such circumstances.”

Watching Rene, who had turned her back on him, Vera continued steadily.

His words were those he spoke while remembering her from long ago.

“Saint... Miss Rene, though you speak with such despair, you have not yet stopped. You are still moving forward.”

She was different from him. Unlike Vera, who had only lain fallen in the Gutter, resenting the world, she was still walking.

“You are still striving today for an uncertain tomorrow.”

And so, she had become the light that had ultimately brought even this vile creature to its knees.

“Therefore, no one knows what future Miss Rene will become.”

She was not helpless in the slightest.

With those feelings in his heart, Vera spoke and lowered his head.

Silence settled between them. The wind rose. Her shadow, lengthened by the setting sun, fell before the bowed Vera.

Tap.

The sound of her cane striking the ground rose.

Without offering any answer, she began walking again.

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