WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Natty

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◈ The Regressor and the Blind Saintess ◈

Chapter 24: The Chase

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At the entrance to the village.

Holding the reins as he waited for Vera and Rene, Norn brightened upon seeing the figures approaching from afar.

“You've arrived.”

“Yes, sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Not at all. Ah, this must be...”

As he spoke, Norn finally noticed Rene, who had been hiding behind Vera. A quiet exclamation escaped.

So there was a reason Lord Vera had looked so dazed.

Up close, Rene was more beautiful than anyone Norn had ever seen. Though she was still a young girl, her beauty was unmistakable.

Norn briefly imagined that, in a few years, Rene's name might be spoken of as the most beautiful person on the continent. Then, composing themself, Norn greeted Rene with a smile.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Saintess. I am Norn, Lord Vera's adjutant.”

“Ah, yes... Please take care of me.”

As Rene slightly bowed toward the voice, she realized something new from Norn's introduction.

Lord Vera's adjutant.

She did not know much about it, but even Rene knew that a knight with an adjutant held a higher position than an ordinary knight.

Sir Vera is more remarkable than I thought...

It did not quite feel real.

The Vera Rene knew was rigid and steadfast, like the knight from a story. He did not seem like someone who commanded others.

For a moment, Rene became awkwardly conscious of the hand she was holding with Vera. Then Vera, who had remained silent until now, spoke to her.

“Sir Norn and I will escort you to the Holy Kingdom. The pursuers are beginning to close in, so I ask that you forgive us for not being able to travel at a leisurely pace.”

“Yes.”

“We will travel on horseback. You will ride with me, Saintess.”

At those words, Rene flinched.

“Um... I've never ridden one before. Will I be all right?”

“Yes. Handling the horse is my responsibility, so you need only rely on me.”

“O-okay...”

“Then this way.”

Guided by Vera, Rene climbed onto a horse for the first time in her life and felt her entire body tense.

Her body swayed up and down with the horse's movements. With nothing secure to hold onto, her muscles stiffened. All of it combined to make her nervous.

“I, I won't fall off, right?”

“You need not worry. Even if the horse rears and you fall, I will catch you.”

After answering, Vera climbed up behind Rene, adjusted his position, and drew her back against his chest.

“Will you hold on tightly? We need to move quickly.”

“Ah, yes.”

Rene reached out, wrapped her arms around Vera's waist, and rested her head against his chest.

Then...

Thump. Thump.

She could hear a heartbeat. She could feel heated warmth.

Rene could not tell whose warmth and heartbeat they were.

* * *

Three days had passed since Vera began traveling with Rene.

They should have reached the Holy Kingdom by now, but Rene's stamina and the pursuers behind them had delayed their journey. They had only just reached the vicinity of the border.

As the exhausted horses rested after their relentless run, Vera lifted his head to judge the time by the sky.

Evening.

The setting sun dyed the sky deep blue.

Half a day, and we will arrive.

They did not even need to reach the Holy Kingdom. Once they crossed the border, the pursuers would not be able to follow any farther.

Vera wanted to leave again as soon as the horses had rested, but...

The Saintess will not be able to endure it.

Vera looked at Rene.

She was leaning against a tree, her face heavy with fatigue.

Even if she had been leaning against Vera, simply riding a horse took tremendous endurance. These three days of forced travel must have been too much for Rene.

After reaching his decision, Vera approached her.

“I believe we should rest here tonight.”

“Ah, is that so?”

“Yes. If we leave early tomorrow morning, we should enter the city by afternoon.”

Rene nodded at Vera's words, then apologized with an embarrassed look.

“I am sorry. This is because of me, right?”

“You have nothing to apologize for. This escort is for the Saintess, so naturally we must accommodate you.”

At his words, Rene felt that strange tingling, which had clung to her constantly for the past three days, scratch at her insides once more.

It came over her while she rode in Vera's arms, while they spoke after dismounting, and even before she went to sleep.

Feeling her face grow slightly hot at the inexplicable sensation, Rene lowered her head and answered awkwardly.

“U-um! Please take care of me for the rest of the journey too!”

Her voice was full of tension. A low reply followed.

“Yes. We are about to eat. Is there anything you would like?”

“No!”

Squeak. Her voice cracked. Feeling her face burn at the unexpected high pitch, Rene clenched her fist and continued.

“Ah, anything is fine.”

“Yes. Then, excuse me for a moment.”

Rustle. Rustle. Vera's footsteps moved away from Rene.

Unable to understand why she had been acting so foolishly ever since leaving the village, Rene let out a deep sigh and continued thinking.

Am I nervous...?

Was she nervous because she had left the place where she had lived her whole life to go somewhere unfamiliar?

It was a rather plausible guess.

It was difficult to blame Vera. She had been able to speak to him perfectly normally in the village.

Nor had Vera's attitude changed after they left. If there was a problem, it was right to look for it within herself.

After arriving at that conclusion while failing to calm herself for three days, Rene tapped her leg before suddenly feeling something that made her blush again.

It was a sensation that surfaced in her mind. No, in her body.

The warmth, scent, and heartbeat that had reached her ears when she had held Vera tightly while they rode together.

They were warm and solid sensations, the kind best described as reassuring.

Feeling that strange tingling begin again, Rene thought to herself.

Adults really are different!

Yes! I am only relying on him because I am nervous!

She did not know Vera's exact age, but judging by his voice and the size of the body she had touched, he was certainly much more grown-up than she was.

An unfamiliar environment. An unfamiliar situation.

The anxiety she felt in it must have made her unconsciously rely on Vera. That was why she felt so strange whenever he came near.

At least, that was what Rene thought.

As she continued those thoughts that bordered endlessly on self-justification, Rene heard rustling nearby.

The sound gradually drew closer. It was likely someone's footsteps.

Thinking Vera had returned, Rene tensed.

“Saintess, are you feeling well?”

Upon hearing the deep voice, Rene realized it was Norn and relaxed.

“Ah, yes. Thanks to your consideration.”

“Hmm, we will enter the city tomorrow, so please hold on a little longer.”

“Yes, please take care of me.”

After their brief exchange, silence followed. Then a thought suddenly crossed Rene's mind, and she moved her lips.

“Um, Sir Norn?”

“Yes, please speak.”

“Is Sir Vera an important person? Um... since you are his adjutant...”

For some reason, her words came out in a jumble.

Norn let out a quiet chuckle before replying.

“I suppose so. As an Apostle who has been granted the Stigmata of Covenants, Lord Vera holds a very high position even in the Holy Kingdom. Ah, though he is still below you, Saintess. You are regarded as holding the same rank as His Holiness.”

“An, an Apostle?”

“Hmm? Yes, he is an Apostle.”

Rene felt surprise fill her at those words.

I didn't know.

In a way, it was only natural. Vera had never told Rene anything about it, so there was no way she could have known.

Well...

It would have been strange if someone coming to fetch the Saintess and facing such danger held a low position.

It was merely an incident born of the fact that she still did not truly recognize herself as the Saintess.

As Rene nodded faintly in understanding, Norn continued.

“He is an extraordinary person. He does not shy away from hardship despite being so young.”

Young.

For some reason, that word seized Rene's attention.

“Um, when you say young...”

“Ah, did he not tell you? Lord Vera turned eighteen this year.”

Eighteen. A difference of four years.

Rene's thoughts stopped at those words. So did her body.

The words whirling through her mind were to blame.

Rene herself did not know why she was reacting this way. All she could do was feel flustered by her body's strange response.

“Lord Vera came to the Holy Kingdom to become an Apostle four years ago, so he was exactly your age now, Saintess. I still remember him from then. Despite his youth, his swordsmanship was already exceptional.”

Norn continued speaking at length, but Rene could not focus on the words.

Young. Eighteen. Four years apart.

Those three words were all that remained in her mind.

“T-that is amazing...”

All she could say was something commonplace.

Thump. Thump.

Rene suddenly felt her heart pounding hard.

It was a strange reaction she could not understand, one she had never experienced in her life.

It made her feel vaguely restless, causing her to fidget with her fingertips for no reason.

As Rene's expression began to grow increasingly strange.

“Saintess, it is ready.”

Vera's voice rang through the clearing.

Rustle.

Vera's footsteps came closer.

Thump. Thump.

As those approaching footsteps grew louder, Rene felt her heartbeat grow louder as well.

She still did not know why.

* * *

Late that night, Vera looked at the sleeping Rene before shifting his gaze to the campfire.

She is very nervous.

The signs that had grown stronger since they left the village were now obvious at a glance.

Squeeze.

Vera clenched his fist tightly.

He thought Rene's nervousness was due to his own inadequacy.

I should have been more attentive...

Perhaps he had been too impatient.

There was a reason for it. The pursuers were steadily drawing closer.

Had they lost too much time? The pursuers who had been gradually approaching were now close behind them.

Fortunately, they had not yet encountered them, but for safety's sake, it seemed best to leave early at dawn.

As Vera continued his thoughts,

“Lord Vera.”

Norn approached from beyond the bushes.

Vera glanced at Norn and spoke.

“What did you find?”

“There were no traces of Dragonian. However...”

“Followers of the Night. Is that correct?”

“...Yes.”

Vera clicked his tongue and frowned at the answer.

“We must leave at once.”

The Followers of the Night were troublesome.

Not because of their combat ability, but because it was nighttime.

Vera stood at the thought and spoke to Norn.

“I will wake the Saintess. Prepare to leave.”

“Yes.”

Vera watched Norn move away, then scattered dirt over the campfire to put it out and steadied his breathing.

It seemed they would get through this easily, but something troublesome had caught up with them at the end.

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