After my rebirth, Miss Saint turned evil

People's voices seemed to burst through the space, and joy and happiness were everywhere.

However, in stark contrast to this is Murphy standing on the stage.

Murphy lowered her head, her eyes wide, and her cheeks trembled slightly.

Wait, Mattia, I don't remember ever hearing about this, or understanding it.

Murphy couldn't help but feel endless doubts in his heart about this special situation that happened beyond his plan.

——The truth of this world lies in exploration, as the emblem indicates.

This sentence is one of the common phrases used by heralds.

The Cult of Heraldry's fanatical obsession with knowledge and writing stems from the heraldry said to be left by God.

It is said that there once existed a god named Field who gave people the emblem of truth.

People gained wisdom, cultivated rationality, and established various cultures through heraldry.

Everyone worships the coat of arms given by God and respects the knowledge and words bestowed by the coat of arms.

However, as time passed, knowledge was lost and culture died out, so the worship eventually died out.

As time passed, the meaning of the emblem, which was supposed to be bestowed by God, was no longer understood by anyone.

They, the Heralds said, were the reason why people were constantly fighting and living only to satisfy their own desires.

The goal of the Heraldry Cult seems to be to once again bring the truth revealed by the heraldry bestowed by God back into the hands of mankind and thereby restore order to the world.

Perhaps it is because of such experiences that the coat of arms has irreplaceable meaning to them.

Even long ago, there were rumors of people being executed for stepping on heraldic patterns.

Although that was just a rumor, from this point of view, it was indeed true that they attached great importance to coats of arms.

Therefore, for heraldsmen, being endowed with their own emblem can be said to be the supreme honor.

The coat of arms should be awarded to those who have made rare achievements in the church and those who have achieved the status of saints like Madia.

So, what's going on? They're saying they're going to give me something like that, but after all, I'm not even a Herald.

For his part, Murphy was not even clear about the form of the coat of arms worshipped by the heraldry.

If such a thing were really given to him, it was foreseeable that some of the Heraldry Cultists would be dissatisfied.

And about today's ceremony, all Murphy had heard before was: I hope you can accept the title of hero. As for the coat of arms, he had never heard of it at all.

Murphy blinked as a wavering feeling welled up in her heart, then raised her head slightly and looked at Madia, as if to ask, "Did you make a mistake?" She cast a questioning glance at her.

Mattia must have noticed Murphy's gaze, but after receiving the gaze, she just nodded with a calm smile on her face, looking relieved as if everything was going well.

As soon as she saw that expression, a question welled up in Murphy's heart.

——Is this guy plotting against me?

The moment he thought of this, Murphy realized that something cold was crawling on his back.

In order to seek help, this time he turned his gaze to Lalga An who was standing next to Madia.

After all, in the Church of Heraldry, An is a member of the conservative faction in every way.

Precisely because she is the kind of person who puts coordination between people first, she should take some action against Mattia's actions this time, which may even cause a stir in the entire Heraldry Church, right?

Yes, Murphy did think so, however——

"Hero Murphy, the Saint will give you a new name. Please extend your left hand."

However, as soon as Murphy looked over, Ann raised her lips, a smile appeared on her face, and said so to him, and then showed an expression as if she had no doubts at all.

—I see. Are you also an accomplice?

The ceremony was still going on solemnly, but Murphy's heart had fallen into irreparable chaos.

He was thinking about what he should do. In this situation, should he refuse in the name of awe?

No, that wasn't possible, was it? With the citizens, the soldiers, the merchants, everyone watching, could he really allow what he wanted to happen?

Ultimately, this ceremony is meant to demonstrate the unity of the Church of Heraldry and Gasalia to the people within and outside the Alliance.

In other words, if he didn't proceed according to plan on this occasion, it's really hard to imagine how much impact it would have.

What's more, if the saint's ceremony is messed up, it wouldn't be surprising if he was attacked on the spot by some strange fanatical believers in the audience, right?

While Murphy was hesitating, the voices of the crowd began to gradually become weaker. His lips trembled slightly, and then, according to Ann's instructions, he slowly extended his left hand towards the saint in front of him, Matthias.

Mattia took Murphy's hand very solemnly, and then put a ring engraved with some kind of emblem on his finger.

Mattia's actions were as if she was treating some fragile treasure, and her behavior was very solemn.

Then, once again, the voice of Saint Matthias echoed around.

"Hero Mephi, the emblem that gave you your nickname is—gold. I, Saint Madia, believe that you possess the worth commensurate with this name, and possess a noble will worthy of it."

Gold...really, there should be a limit to mistakes.

If it weren't for the audience's gaze, Murphy really wanted to sigh out loud on the spot.

What you should give yourself should be fake gold or gold-plated, right? Gold or something like that is totally wrong.

The person who truly suits this name and this emblem should be someone like Aimee Castina, a hero as dazzling as the sun.

Perhaps because he had such thoughts in his mind, Murphy certainly didn't know how to deal with Mattia's words, and he didn't know whether he could accept it frankly.

His thoughts were now a tangled mess in his mind.

Well, if it was someone else, no matter how many people there were, they would be able to deceive them, right?

Say sweet words to make people feel good and then stir up their emotions. After all, I used to do that kind of thing often.

However, for me, this is not so easy to do.

After all, humans will never lie to themselves.

No matter how much you lie to yourself, no matter how much you hide your true thoughts, before you know it, the devil or the fingers of some unknown thing will quietly open its lid.

Just like that, when Murphy's thoughts were in a mess, a voice came from above his head.

"—Murphy, please raise your head."

This was different from the previous one. It was not the voice of Saint Matthias that was meant for people around to hear, but the usual voice of Matthias.

Attracted by the voice, Murphy couldn't help but raise her head.

A kind smile still appeared on Mattia's face, and her lips slowly opened.

"I can roughly understand what you're thinking. Whether the title is appropriate for you or not, you're definitely not the only one thinking that. Everyone probably thinks the same way, even me."

It was as if Murphy had described exactly what she was thinking, which made Murphy forget to reply and just stare into Mattia's eyes.

"Of course, it's not a bad thing to talk to yourself, but not all the truths are there, right? Occasionally, it's good to look outside."

"Okay." Having said that, Mattia took Murphy's hand and guided him to stand up.

Murphy wore the ring given to him by Mattia on his left hand. The emblem engraved there was slightly different from the emblem they worshipped, because it was an emblem that represented gold.

At Madea's urging, Murphy stood up and turned to the crowd.

——There, there is a sound, a sound that shakes the world.

Murphy's skin couldn't help but tense up. People's gazes and voices seemed to have substance and were all directed at him.

It was indeed the first time he had experienced such a scene, but Murphy was incredibly impressed by this scene.

Yes, he had indeed seen it.

He had never been given such a look and voice in his previous journey, but he gave it to them who were on the journey with him.

And then, that's what he longed for from the bottom of his heart.

In Murphy's vision, the heroes and the people shouting "heroes" were indeed there.

"Sometimes a person's eyes can tell the truth better than their lips. How about it, Murphy? Look into your eyes."

Mattia, who was beside her, spoke these words while gently caressing her earlobe, leaving Murphy at a loss as to how to respond.

Incredibly, the suspicion that had been so solidified deep in his heart had quietly disappeared without him noticing.

Now all that's left is an inexplicable throbbing that makes the whole body tremble.

Chapter 17: Eyes of the Elf

"——Is this alright, Master Eltis?"

Eldis listened to her maid Valette's words with her long ears and slowly sat down on the prepared bed.

The bed was so soft that it felt strange. If you buried your body in it, you would sink right in.

The Church of Heraldry seemed to have put a lot of effort into welcoming the state guest. Altis narrowed his eyes.

What was once the official residence of the highest-ranking officials in the Free City of Crossmaria has now become a guesthouse for Queen Fen Eltis of Gasalia.

"What do you mean by good or bad? Valette."

Eldis said as he looked out the window at the night view of Crossmaria.

The voice sounded more like someone talking to a friend than to his subordinates.

The ceremony to show the friendly relationship between Gasalia and the Church of Heraldry ended long ago, but the streets of Crossmaria are still brightly lit.

Just like no one wants to forget this wonderful time today, I am worried that the day is coming to an end, so I haven't turned off the lights yet.

Eltis didn't hate humans' emotional behavior; rather, he envied it.

For the long-lived elves, regret for the passing of time is an extremely weak emotion.

If Eldis hadn't spent those hours with him in the confinement tower in Gasalia, perhaps she wouldn't even be aware of the existence of such feelings.

Eltis's blue eyes seemed to be moistened, and she was fascinated by the scenery of Crossmaria until Valette's voice knocked on her earlobe again.

"Of course it's Murphy-sama's business! Wouldn't that be like declaring Murphy-sama's a member of the Church of Heraldry? If Eltis-sama had declared Murphy-sama a Gassarian in that situation—"

Seeing the maid whose voice was shaking with anger, Eltis couldn't help but smile.

The girl named Valette would get angry about other people's affairs from time to time, even if it was something that had nothing to do with her, which would make her mouth twist to one side. It seemed that this problem had occurred again today.

Do you think I won't be angry? Eldis sat on the bed, the scene of the day appearing in his eyes.

——The scene where his knight was recognized as a hero of the Church of Heraldry and was even given the title of Gold.

On the other hand, Gasalia almost accepted that behavior. If you only saw this part, you wouldn't be able to understand the maid's anger and staring blankly.

However, not many elves dared to suggest what actions should be taken by Queen Eltis.

It was precisely because of this pleasing side of Valette that Eldis gave this kind-hearted elf the duty of serving as her maid.

"Honestly, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thinking about anything."

That was a matter of course, without Valette even having to tell her.

During the daytime ceremony, how many times had ugly emotions surfaced in his heart, and how many times had the expressions he created been on the verge of collapse.

To be honest - even if I had to tear off the title "Fin" on the spot, I would still want to hug Murphy and make him my own.

However, as the Queen of Gasalia, it was impossible for her to take such an action in front of an audience.

And what I really want is not fame, but reality.

Not the flower itself, but the roots lurking underground.

It can be said that today's ceremony is like gorgeous blooming petals. Although it is a pity, let them be. After all, what we want are the fruits and roots.

Elves are creatures like this.

Carefully and slowly, he took his time to hold the prey he had targeted in his hands.

For this reason, even if it is somewhat bitter and sad, we can endure it because we believe that it is a necessary behavior.

That's why Eltis has forgiven Murphy's willful behavior until now, and turned a blind eye to behavior like today.

Ah, of course, it would be wonderful to have the roots, the fruit, the petals, and the name all in my hands if I could, and the seeds for that have now been sown.

Eldis twitched his lips slightly, and Valette raised her eyebrows and turned around.

"I don't get along with the slow pace of elves. If I stand by and watch for too long, someone might snatch what I want, or my prey might escape."

Really, Valette's words never sound like an elf at all.

Eltis couldn't help but smile, narrowed his green eyes, and spoke.