Chapter 10: Social Studies Tour
Translator: Tseirp
Luna passed the Saint’s Aptitude Test and returned to the Saint Academy dormitory.
She was currently,
“Ah, paradise…”
Soaked up to her shoulders in the bathtub, washing away the fatigue of the day.
“The bath at the Spedio family was nice, but this one might be nice enough…”
As Luna was melting in the bath, she heard Rho’s voice from outside the bathroom.
“–Luna-sama, how is the hot water?”
“It’s perfect, I’m about to melt in bliss.”
“That’s good to hear.”
After saying that, she left the changing room.
“All things considered, it looks like technology has advanced with time.”
While soaking in the warm water, Luna felt impressed by the conveniences of civilization.
The ‘Washer’, a cylindrical stick filled with magic stones of fire and water. If you pass magical power through it, warm water will gush out from the tip of the stick, allowing you to wash your hair and body whenever you like.
The ‘heater’ is a circular iron ring filled with fire magic stones, and if you pass magical power through it at the bottom of the bathtub, you can freely raise the temperature of the bath and enjoy a warm bath.
Three hundred years ago, there was nothing that convenient.
To wash her hair and body, she had to draw water from outside, stack firewood, and light a fire to warm the bath.
“Phew, we live in a convenient era now…”
Luna muttered those words as she enjoyed the warm bath.
After a while, Luna got out of the bathtub, wiped her body dry with a fluffy towel, changed into loungewear for sleeping, and then asked Rho to dry her hair.
Immediately after she was reincarnated, she refused, saying, “I can dry my own hair!’’ but… “Hair care is a maid’s job’’ said Rho, stubbornly adamant about it, so she had no choice but to ask her to comb her hair once, and it felt surprisingly good, so she decided to let her do it.
Rho used a soft towel to gently absorb the moisture from Luna’s hair and then used a wooden comb to carefully comb it.
“–It’s done.”
“Thank you as always.”
“No need, it’s only natural.”
After finishing her bath, Luna took out a glass bottle of fruit juice from a large rectangular box containing ice magic stones called a ‘Fridge’.
“Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm.”
Humming in a good mood, she used her nails to crisply remove the lid of the bottle and gulped down the chilled liquid in one gulp.
“Pheww. A bottle after taking a bath is something special after all!”
“Waf!”
Tama barked cheerfully in response to the voice of his master.
“Okay, Tama, let’s play together!”
“Wan!”
After playing with Tama with a small toy ball, she ate dinner with Rho.
By the way… cooking and cleaning up were rostered.
Rho said, “I’ll be in charge of everything” but Luna tried to convince her, “Since we’re living together, I have to help with the housework!” and Rho reluctantly replied, “If that’s what Luna-sama wants…” and gave in.
Meanwhile, the clock’s hands were moving forward, and it was almost midnight.
“Yawn… good night, Rho.”
“Good night, Luna-sama.”
The two moved to their respective beds and were able to get some rest in preparation for tomorrow.
■
After the Saint’s Aptitude Test was over, the Saint Academy temporarily only had morning classes.
That was a measure to take into consideration the student’s physical condition and usually applied for about a week.
And on this day, they were given a reward in terms of a fun ‘Social Studies Field Trip’ having overcome the tough exams.
The destination was the Elgia Royal Museum, located on the outskirts of the royal capital.
It is one of the leading tourist spots in the Kingdom of Elgia, where rare and valuable items such as historical relics, cultural artifacts, and works of art by famous painters are exhibited.
The museum has a super centerpiece that attracts people from all over the world.
The name of the exhibit is ‘Sacred Relics’, the ultimate treasures in human history left behind by the legendary Saint Party.
And currently, the students of Saint Academy who had gathered in front of the museum were sitting next to the main entrance — separated into groups so as not to disturb the general visitors.
“Hehe, I’m looking forward to visiting the museum!”
When Luna said that with her heart pounding, Rho and Sarco on either side of her smiled softly.
“That’s right─. Luna was so excited that she couldn’t sleep at all last night─.”
“Oh, Luna is still a child.”
“Wait, Rho, I said it was a secret!? Sarco-san, please don’t laugh!”
Luna formed a squad with her familiar and cherished maid Rho and her new friend Sarco.
By the way… the reason Rho wasn’t using honorific language was because Sarco was nearby.
As Luna, Rho, and Sarco were having a chat, a group of people clutching holy crosses began to gather in front of the museum’s main gate.
“–Now, everyone, let’s pray to the Saint again today!”
As soon as the man who seemed to be the leader said that, all the people gathered there let out screams that seemed to burst into tears.
“Saint-sama…! Saint-sama…! Saint-sama…!”
They just kept shouting “Saint-sama’’ with incredible enthusiasm.
Such an enthusiastic group.
“H-hey, what on earth are those people doing…?”
The person who answered Luna’s question was Sarco, who was familiar with the circumstances surrounding the royal capital.
“Ah… that is the Saint Church.”
“Saint Church?”
“It’s a gathering of fanatics based in the royal capital who believe in the Saint. Every day at a set time, they offer prayers to the Saint.”
“Th-that amount of energy every day!?”
“Yeah… I won’t say it out loud, but it’s better not to get involved with the Saint Church. Their forceful propagation is terrifying.”
“I-I see, I understand (The Saint Church is a dangerous group with strong ideology…)”
Luna became more wary of the Saint Church.
Meanwhile, Jural, the leader, who had finished checking the students’ attendance, cleared his throat and attracted attention.
“Students, today we will be taking a social studies field trip as an extracurricular lesson. In the Elgia Royal Museum, there are naturally many citizens of our country, but also many tourists from the surrounding Empire, Sacred Country, and Spirit Country. In order not to degrade the dignity of the Elgia Kingdom, please adhere to strict self-control during the tour – understood?”
“““Yes”””
“Then, you’ll have two hours of free time ─ disperse.”
At the same time as Jural clapped his hands, all the students headed towards the museum’s entrance gate.
“Rho, Sarco-san, let’s go too!”
“Ah, hey, you’re pulling too hard.”
“Hehe, I’m glad you’re excited.”
Luna took Rho and Sarco’s hands and went inside the museum.
“Oh… I don’t know much about them, but there are a lot of things that seem to be of value.”
Luna looked around and headed toward the first exhibit.
“Wow, that’s a beautiful picture…”
As she looked up at the beautiful landscape paintings hanging on the wall, Sarco added an explanation from beside her.
“This is the landscape painting ─ ‘On the shores of Lake Raunes’ painted by the fifth king of the Elgia Kingdom, Dahoud Rowe Elgia. On his sickbed, he drew this masterpiece with just a barely moving index finger while reminiscing about Lake Raunes. The shining and beautiful lake surface, lush grasslands, cloudless blue skies, and a rough yet delicate touch move the hearts of those who see it.’’
She explained the exhibit smoothly without any pauses.
“Sarco-san, you’re pretty knowledgeable on this?”
“It feels like you are repeating something you heard before?”
Sarco nodded in response to Luna and Rho’s comment.
“Yes. When I was little, I often begged my father to bring me to this museum many times, so I know about almost all the exhibits.”
“That’s amazing!”
“Then, that introductory thing you said earlier, do you feel like you can do more?”
“Oh, of course, that’s a piece of cake.”
Sarco said and turned her attention to the exhibit that was just nearby.
“This is a jet-black robe that is said to have been worn by the Great Demon King in the past. This robe still contains the Great Demon King’s magical power, so it has been enchanted with multiple layers of powerful sealing magic before being kept on display here.”
“Oh, that’s nostalgic (come to think of it, the Great Demon King wore something like this).”
At the same time as Luna casually expressed her thoughts,
““Nostalgic?””
Rho and Sarco’s voices overlapped perfectly.
“Eh, ah, no…”
Luna, having realized that she had made a huge mistake, worked her excellent Saint brain to think of ways to escape from her predicament.
The result,
“Wow, that’s nostalgic! Black robes like this were popular a long time ago, right? Right!?”
She couldn’t think of a particularly good way, so she tried to forcibly break through head-on.
“Eh, was something so lame a trend?”
“I don’t recall seeing anything like that around me.”
“Re-really…? That’s strange~ Maybe I’m remembering it wrong?”
The two of them observed Luna’s apparently suspicious behavior and,
“Well, Luna is always weird.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
They moved on to the next exhibit without feeling any discomfort.
Luna safely escaped from the predicament, but…
(Wait, am I… am I that weird…?)
Her feelings were quite complicated.
Afterward, while looking around at the various exhibits, she noticed a large crowd of people in a certain large hall.
“That’s an amazing crowd over there. What are they all looking at?”
“Hmm? Ah, it looks like it’s the Sacred Relics.”
“It’s one of the highlights here, let’s go.”
When the three of them walked straight ahead, they saw three large glass cases lined up, with items that appeared to be the Sacred Relics displayed inside.
Perhaps because they were the centerpieces of the museum, there were security guards all around, keeping keen eyes on them.
Also, a sign placed near the exhibit had detailed information about the Sacred Relics, and a woman who appeared to be a guide staff member was explaining.
“This is a dagger said to have been used by the great swordsman Zell-sama, a member of the legendary Saint’s party. It is said that he used this small dagger to cut down many demons.”
While listening to her fluent explanation, Luna let out a voice of admiration in her heart.
(He did, he did! He often used it to cut vegetables and meat! Hehe… it reminds me so much of Zell’s cooking.)
There were also various other Sacred Relics on display, such as the Great Wizard Shasha’s blanket and Great Monk Fiona’s hat.
When Luna saw them, she was reminded of memories from 300 years ago.
(The legendary Saint’s party, huh… They’re all dead already, aren’t they?)
The Saint Party was humanity’s strongest mercenary force gathered from all over the world to defeat the Great Demon King.
A gathering of people with scars in their hearts who had all experienced various hardships because they each possessed too much power.
It was a unique party, and even though they were active for less than a year, the time spent with them was precious and Luna could honestly say that it was ‘fun’.
Swordsman Zell, Witch Shasha, and Monk Fiona — Luna noticed something strange as she listened to the guide staff’s explanations while looking at the belongings of her former companions.
(… No mention)
Zell, Shasha, and Fiona, everyone’s names were written properly on the notice board, and while the phrase ‘Saint’ appeared a lot, her name was nowhere to be found.
Even more unnaturally, the proper noun ‘Luna’ had been erased.
(Hmm… I wonder why?)
Luna became suspicious and asked Rho and Sarco.
“Now that I think about it… what is the name of the Saint?”
It was Sarco who answered.
“That’s… unfortunately, no one knows.”
“Eh, what do you mean?”
“Almost all of the Saint’s name and deeds have been erased. A stain that remains on human history… all caused by that horrible ‘Saint Elimination Crusade’…”
“Saint Elimination Crusade…?”
As Luna tilted her head slightly as she heard the words for the first time, Sarco carefully explained to her.
“The Saint Elimination Crusade is the nastiest and worst incident that occurred after the Saint was executed. The foolish humans who placed all the responsibility on the Saint decided that everything about her was ‘evil’, and they attacked the places where she had been to erase all traces of her life, her old home, and connections, and erased them from history.”
“S-so that’s what happened…”
“More importantly, Luna… I’m surprised you passed the written exam without even knowing about this. The Saint Execution and subsequent Saint Elimination Crusade, that’s like kindergarten syllabus?”
“Eh!? Um…”
While Luna was at a loss as to how to explain, a rescue boat came from next to her.
“Actually, this girl. She was run over by a carriage a while ago and her head has not been the same ever since.”
“Oh my, no wonder. Now that you say it… when she saw the Great Demon King’s robe, she said some strange things, and even in everyday life she sometimes says things that make me think ‘Huh?’.”
“I think she’ll probably get better after a while, so please kindly overlook it.”
“Yeah, I understand.”
Rho, who successfully rescued her master from the predicament, secretly gave Luna a thumbs up.
(Luna-sama, I backed you up perfectly.)
(Sheesh, Rho you meanie…!)
After looking at the relics of the legendary Saint’s party, the three of them went to the shop attached to the hall.
“Ah, this is cute!”
Luna said as she picked up a small piggy cushion.
“Eh, uh… isn’t it ugly?”
“That… is quite cute!”
“Right!?”
“Seriously?”
The three of them enjoyed shopping like any normal girl you could find anywhere.
Luna had been smiling a lot lately.
Someone who doesn’t know about her past might wonder, ‘Why does she seem to be having so much fun when she’s just living a normal life?’
However, for Luna, who had been forced to carry the burden of being the Saint for many years and continued to fight on the front lines, these peaceful and normal days were irresistibly enjoyable.
Going to school with her friends and taking classes, having fun talking about trivial things during recess, and going out to play on the occasional day off ─ these ordinary pages of everyday life made her inexplicably happy.
After that, the three of them finished a little shopping and resumed their tour of the museum – finally heading to the final exhibit.
It was the ‘national treasure’ of the Elgia Kingdom and one of the most famous books in the world.
The Saint’s Book of Prophecies, commonly known as the ‘Red Book’.
All the tourists there came to this museum to get a glimpse of the Saint’s Book of Prophecies.
“What is on display over there is one of the ‘Seven Prophecies’ left behind by the Saint – the ‘Red Book’.”
There was a huge crowd of people where Sarco was pointing.
(Saint’s Book of Prophecies… I’ve been hearing those words on and off…)
Luna, the person in question, had no memory of writing anything like that.
“The Saint’s Book of Prophecies is a national treasure among national treasures. Naturally, what is on display here is a replica. The original text is kept in the deepest part of the Kingdom, and is still being deciphered.”
“It’s treated as the Kingdom’s most important secret, you know? The copies made available to the public are only a portion of the deciphered original text.”
“Ohh, is that so?”
She waited in line for the Red Book while listening to trivial conversations between Sarco and Rho.
Due to the large number of applicants who wish to see the Red Book, it was placed in a special hall and to enter, they must stand in a waiting line and wait their turn.
Every ten minutes, a group of about 100 people enter the hall, look at the Red Book, and listen to commentary from the guide staff ─ a process that repeats many times a day.
Luna, Rho, and Sarco stood in the waiting line and waited for a while while chatting with each other ─ finally, it was their turn.
“–If you are in the next group, please come here.”
Hearing the guide staff’s voice, the group to which Luna and her friends belong began to move all at once.
The Red Book was housed in a triple glass case in the middle of a large, private hall.
It was more like a piece of ‘paper’ than a ‘book’, with a total of 18 disassembled pages arranged neatly in two rows.
The original was in the form of a book, but since that was a reproduction, the pages had been purposely separated to make it easier for visitors to view.
“Oh, this is that famous Red Book…!”
“The book of hope for humanity left behind by the Saint…!”
“Ah, my dream has come true… I wanted to see it with my own eyes, even just once before I die…!”
While other spectators were getting excited,
“…No, way…”
Only Luna stood dumbfounded.
She trembled with shock.
She couldn’t believe my eyes.
There were no words to describe.
That’s only natural…
(M-my black history… exposed to the world…!?)
What was on display was her personal novel written by Luna 300 years ago.
It features herself as the main character, the Saint, adored by a prince on a white horse, a bittersweet and slightly naughty love story.
The Red Book on display had a dedicated guide staff who began to explain in a clear voice that was easy to understand.
“First of all, please take a look at the third line on page 5 of the Red Book. ‘You can’t, Your Highness…’. This is the scene where the Saint in the palace is courted by the third prince, Birth Century. Third prince means ‘three’, Century means ‘one hundred years’, and Birth means ‘resurrection’. If we connect these words, we get the prophecy that ‘the Saint will resurrect in 300 years’. Next, take a look at page 8, line 12–”
(Please, stop it already…)
Luna’s ears were dyed bright red and she covered them with both hands.
Her hit points had already been reduced to zero a long time ago…
The guide staff didn’t care about such things and lively and ruthlessly continued her explanation (attack).
It was an overkill situation.
(T-this kind of vile act is not something that can be done normally… Humanity is the crystallization of evil after all. There’s no way creatures so past redemption can be saved…)
Luna strongly realized that her previous decision to abandon humanity was correct.
(…No matter what methods I use, I will thoroughly destroy this dark history…)
Luna firmly swore to herself to destroy the national treasure of the Elgia Kingdom ─ her dark history exposed to the world.
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R2D2TS
Thanks for the chapter.