The Saint

The Church of the Sun God United Nations.

Once, that land had been home to a string of small countries, too weak and too poor to call themselves proper nations.

The Church of the Sun God had originated in one of them and swept through the rest in the blink of an eye.

After driving out every other religion, the small nations united under the faith and formed a single confederate state, steadily expanding its reach.

Today, it rivaled both the Kingdom and the Empire in scale, projecting considerable influence across the continent.

As if to embody that power, a colossal cathedral sat squarely in the center of the capital city.

It was the headquarters of the Church of the Sun God, the most authoritative place in the entire nation.

Inside, in the chapel, a lone woman knelt before a statue of the god in prayer.

Her attire was rather unusual.

While all priests of the Church of the Sun God wore red robes, she was dressed entirely in white vestments, with a blindfold covering both eyes.

As though to signify her sanctity.

Her long hair was black, which only made the whiteness of her garments stand out more.

She had been praying without so much as a twitch when the door opened and a man entered the chapel.

His footsteps were hasty, as though he were a bit on edge.

He stopped just short of the praying woman.

"Saint-sama, forgive me for interrupting your prayers. There is an urgent matter I must report."

The woman addressed as the Saint did not react to his voice.

She simply continued praying.

Just as the anxious man was about to call out again, the Saint rose and pressed her right index finger to her lips in a gesture of silence.

Feeling as though his agitation had been seen right through, the man fell quiet and waited.

A faint smile crossed the Saint's lips.

"You mustn't be so hasty, Kevin. God sees all. The scripture teaches us to conduct ourselves with discipline at all times."

"My apologies. But I felt this had to be conveyed immediately—"

"I appreciate the sentiment. So, what is it?"

"The Sacred Beast we sent to deliver divine punishment upon the Kingdom has returned grievously wounded. As expected, they are heathens who cannot understand the teachings. They should have simply accepted their divine punishment, yet they dared to injure the Sacred Beast!"

Kevin spat the word "damn them" as he finished.

"Such coarse language isn't becoming," the Saint chided.

The Sky Whale that had attacked the Kingdom was revered within the Church of the Sun God as a Sacred Beast.

"Even the Sacred Beast couldn't wield its full power so soon after awakening. With some rest, its wounds should heal. Do we know how the Sacred Beast was repelled?"

"According to reports from the field, an elf and a girl imbued with the power of spirits were observed fighting it together. This girl has killed several of our elite operatives on multiple occasions and has been flagged as a person of interest. And to think there were still surviving elves…"

"That loser race, back on the stage again."

The Saint's muttering didn't seem to reach Kevin's ears.

"Surely the Temple Knight Order must be deployed? The enemy forces are steadily advancing on our territory. We cannot leave this to the militia and vigilante corps any longer."

"How eager you are. I admire the spirit."

Kevin blushed at the praise.

That being commended by the Saint was the most important thing in the world to him was plain for all to see.

"But there's no point telling me. I'm nothing more than a single believer. Everyone calls me the Saint, but the ones who make the important decisions are the Pope and the Cardinals."

"What are you saying?! You are the most devout follower in the entire Church. If the Saint decrees it, everyone will agree! Besides, the Cardinals have barely shown their faces recently…"

"I appreciate the kind words, but that sort of talk isn't proper. You're dismissing those above you in rank."

"It's what everyone is saying."

"Even so. Kevin, I understand how you feel, so I'll bring it up with them. I'm worried about the people suffering from the invasion, too."

Kevin's eyes lit up, triumphant that his suggestion had been accepted.

"Don't get your hopes up, though. Like I said, I'm just a believer."

Kevin nodded enthusiastically, but he clearly wasn't listening anymore.

Mumbling something about not wanting to disturb her prayers any further, he practically skipped out of the chapel.

Once he was gone, the Saint turned back toward the statue of the god.

"Changing the status quo by force really doesn't go smoothly, does it? Resistance always pops up from somewhere. Maybe it would've been easier to just keep brainwashing people through religion after all? We were so close with both the Kingdom and the Empire."

She spoke to the empty chapel.

No answer came.

Yet she received a voice from someone.

"You won't rest until every last descendant of that woman is eradicated, hm? And you say the quality of souls gained that way is better, too. I don't really understand 'soul quality,' but… fine, fine. I'll do as you say, Sun God-sama."

The Church of the Sun God. At its heart stood a single woman.

She had tirelessly spread the Church's teachings to the people.

Strangely, anyone who spoke with her, no matter how opposed they had been, would find their heart swayed and instead become a fervent believer.

More than a few wealthy individuals had donated their entire fortunes.

When debates couldn't be settled, a single word from her resolved them instantly.

It hadn't taken long for the faithful to begin calling her the Saint of the Church of the Sun God.

No matter how fervently they urged her, she refused the positions of Pope and Cardinal, and continued spreading the faith herself.

After the founding of the Solar Union, her overwhelming influence led to her being confined within the cathedral.

Strangely, the woman called the Saint had not changed in appearance for a very, very long time.

And no one ever thought to question it.