She Became the Wicked Sister-In-Law of the Heroine

“That's not it...”

What? Why did you have such a grand name without any special benefits? I felt a bit uneasy about it. My thoughts must have been read, as the God hastily added with a flustered tone.

“However, you can be appointed as a saint in the temple. Then, you can use the temple's budget and even manipulate capable priests as you please. If you want, you can move secretly without revealing it to the world. There is that much flexibility.”

“Okay, fine,” I called out without thinking. In fact, I wondered if it would be more annoying if I put on the grandiose title of 'saint,' but it would be nice if I could secretly receive help from priests without disclosing it to the outside world.

Even if I wanted to move secretly without others knowing, I knew very little about this world and the only person I could rely on is Samantha.

Although the Count's family was wealthy, the amount of money I could spend without my parents or older brother knowing were limited.

“Yeah. To be honest, you didn't really have a choice. The moment I called you here, the priests must have already noticed that the oracle had been handed down.”

“...Excuse me?”

If that was true, then I never had a choice from the beginning, did I? This God was truly an artist in training and manipulating people.

“Well then, I'll entrust you with this, Lucia Chase. While I can't completely eliminate those who make vows of holy marriage in my temple and then go off and do other things, I can at least make it so they can't walk around with their heads held high.”

The God flapped its small wings and perched on my forehead. Then, I felt a warm light spreading from my forehead.

“Oh, and about Jerome, he's a good boy, so take good care of him. Don't be too suspicious. That child will be of great help to you in carrying out your mission.”

As the dazzling light made it impossible to see anything around me, the God's singing and chirping could be heard in my ears.

***

“Jerome, this is...?”

Solheim, a young priest of the Great Temple, opened his mouth in surprise as he looked at Lucia Chase floating in mid-air, surrounded by a bright light.

In his eyes directed at Lucia, there was not only confusion, but also awe.

The scene before the priests was a sight they had never seen before, at least among the living.

Something that hadn't happened in at least a hundred years. Something that could only be found in the historical records of the Terenus religion.

They witnessed the moment when divine trust was being bestowed.

“We still have to wait. What kind of divine message was given and until the young lady wakes up, no one can know.”

Unlike the other priests who were greatly surprised, Jerome showed little sign of surprise. Judging from how quickly he had looked around when Lucia suddenly collapsed, it seemed that he had expected something like this to happen.

When Solheim had received Jerome's order to close the curtains of the room, he couldn't understand it, but after following the order in a hurry, it seemed he had feared that Lucia would emit a dazzling light and rise up into the air as she had.

Solheim couldn't help but be amazed.

It was not only from witnessing the scene of the oracle that occurred a hundred years ago, but also surprise directed towards Jerome, who had moved astutely as if he had anticipated all of this.

“Yes, Jerome.”

Solheim glanced briefly at Jerome's profile as he gave orders in a playful voice.

Based on his usual demeanor, it was hard to believe that this young elite had been promoted so rapidly at his age. He was restless, unkempt, insincere, lazy, and complacent... just listing the flaws that came to mind would take too long. Solheim had thought of him as nothing more than a delinquent who relied solely on his innate talent and regularly neglected his training.

This evaluation was too rude to make about one's superior, but Solheim couldn't help but think that way because Jerome was younger than him. Although they were only a few years apart, in terms of graduation class from theological school, Solheim was Jerome's senior.

Even now, he couldn't seem serious, despite witnessing a sight that would have made anyone gasp in amazement. To think he was sitting in his chair backwards, chin resting on the backrest, tapping his fingers leisurely.

However, the process of predicting the situation and clearing the surrounding area was perfect in itself. Despite experiencing this situation for the first time in his life, Jerome followed the manual prescribed in the temple law without deviation. Moreover, while Solheim was still in shock and unable to come to his senses at the sight in front of him, Jerome had a nonchalant attitude as if he already knew everything.

Of course, he chuckled as if he found something interesting. Still, there was something distinctly different from his usual absent-mindedness, and it felt like seeing him in a new light.

However, as the recipient of such scathing criticism, Jerome seemed to have no interest in what Solheim might be thinking about him.

All of his attention was focused on Lucia Chase.

In fact, Jerome was thinking back to the first time he met Lucia in the temple garden.

He was born with tremendous divine power, which often allowed him to see what others could not see and feel what others could not feel. To him, Lucia was a truly fascinating opponent.

A powerful divine aura that no one else could feel. It was a trace of divinity different from the innate power that he couldn't quite put into words.

Looking back, he thought it might have been a sign of being chosen by a deity. However, there was also an inexplicable sense of discomfort in Lucia that no one else in this world could feel.

The intense trace of divinity and the indescribable sense of discomfort he felt for the first time in his life were already very interesting. But compared to the pleasure he felt after talking to her, they were nothing.

He, too, had not always lived receiving love and respect from everyone. Still, being treated as a mere peddler was a first for him.

In any case, he was a relatively well-known priest. It was a new experience for someone to show raw suspicion in front of him.

‘Are you trying to sell me something? I'm not buying it.’

Whenever he recalled that moment, he couldn’t help but laugh. She really wasn't an ordinary person.

From the moment they first met, there was something about her that wasn't quite ordinary.

He didn’t know why, but it felt like she was a woman who would cause him trouble and get herself entangled. And maybe Jerome himself was hoping for that. Perhaps he had hoped that the connection with this woman who had made him so happy since their first meeting would continue.

And wasn’t that exactly what was happening?

A saint who appeared after 120 years. The representative of God, chosen by God. If he was a priest of the Terenus religion, he gladly and wholeheartedly had to follow the saint. So no matter what God's intentions were for her, he was going to be connected to Lucia somehow.

What an exciting situation this was.

Jerome was watching Lucia with a pounding heart, like a boy about to open a huge present. And there was only one thought in his head: ‘I hope Lucia comes back from her conversation with God as soon as possible.’

***

“...Young Lady.”

As soon as I opened my eyes, the face of the priest, who seemed to be the happiest person in the world, appeared before me with a bright smile.

“Did your meeting with Him go well?” Jerome asked in an excited voice.

I was already confused about whether I was a sparrow or a red-eyed bird, whether meeting God was a dream or reality, but there was no need for him to hammer the nail in like this.

It seemed that receiving that 'trust' was genuine.

I felt awkward and complexed, but why was this man so happy? It was a situation where I couldn't even try to see him kindly.

“Well, um...”

I felt like I had to say something, but I didn't know what to say.

Although I had experienced all kinds of battles and even transmigrated into the body of a character from a novel I was reading before I died, I had never received a “trust” like this before.

Feeling flustered, I couldn't easily open my mouth, and then Jerome knelt in front of me and spoke.

“From now on, I will follow you, the saint who has been entrusted to me, until the end. You can tell me the contents of the trust or keep it hidden, and even if you don't speak, I will devote myself to serving you with my life.”

He had been excited like a boy who just got an interesting toy a moment ago, but now he had a serious expression as if that moment of excitement had never happened. Lowering his gaze slightly and kissing the back of my hand was just a bonus. His gentle and cautious movement made it seem like my hand could easily break.

I could hear the voice of God telling me to live well because I was a good kid, but I didn't like Jerome’s actions at all. It was as if he was calculating how to act to make women’s hearts flutter for him.

But it was all in vain for me.

I felt my mood instantly cool down. Thanks to that, it felt like my confused thoughts were calmly organized.

“What will you do? If you wish, we can spread the word that trust has been placed in you. Or, if you find it troublesome, you can keep it a secret.”

“Then please keep it a secret. It's more comfortable to move discreetly,” I answered without hesitation at Jerome's question.

Things were getting more complicated here. It already seemed to have gotten complicated enough, yet it had worsened.

“If you wish, let's keep it a secret for a while.” Jerome nodded obediently at my words.