I ignored the strange looks people were giving me and glanced around the kitchen.
"It's my first time in the kitchen, and there are so many curious things. Are all these cooking tools?"
I tapped the kitchen knife that was stabbed ominously into the cutting board and casually poked around at utensils I'd never seen before.
Perhaps displeased with how carelessly I was handling the kitchen tools, Head Chef Kento began grumbling under his breath.
He didn't dare say anything outright—probably because of my notorious reputation.
"Saintess, the knives are dangerous."
Dietrich, who couldn't stand watching any longer, stepped in to stop me.
He must also think I'm just picking a fight for no reason.
"Y-yes, Saintess. If you're curious about the kitchen, please come at night. I can give you a proper tour then."
"Oh, I didn't think of that. Alright, I'll come back at night like you said—make sure you give me a good tour then."
I turned with a cheerful smile at Kento's brave suggestion.
Everyone seemed to think I was finally leaving the kitchen—I could hear their collective sighs of relief.
But my real reason for coming to the kitchen started now.
I activated the map system, which included all the secret passages.
My destination: right next to the food storage.
Just as I'd read in the novel, I tapped the wall in a specific rhythm.
Tok, todok, tok, tok, tododok.
"W-what are you doing?! Stop that!"
Kento shouted from behind me.
When I turned around, he was glaring at me, his face pale as a sheet.
Wow, he's being way too obvious that he knows about the secret passage.
Click!
"Gasp! Wh-what is that?!"
"There's… a place like that in the kitchen?!"
The wall I had tapped opened to reveal a hidden passageway.
The kitchen staff all jumped in surprise.
But the meaning of that surprise quickly changed.
"Uh, but… there's something inside, isn't there?"
Inside the secret passage, several pouches were tucked away.
Dietrich, looking flustered, glanced between me and Eirik before stepping into the passage to check the pouches.
Clink.
As soon as he untied the strings, what spilled out was none other than money.
And not just a little—but a sum unthinkable for this poor temple.
"Oh my! There's so much money! I just had a strange urge to tap on the wall, and I didn't expect to find this!"
Isn't that amazing?
I let out a delighted laugh, as if I had been waiting for this very moment.
"It even looks like someone deliberately hid it. Embezzlement, perhaps?"
At my words, Dietrich's face instantly hardened.
He was quick-witted, so he must have put the pieces together right away.
A secret passage no one was supposed to know about, stacks of money hidden inside, and Kento trying to stop its discovery.
No matter how you looked at it, it reeked of embezzlement.
"…Chef."
Eirik, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke up.
His chilling gaze made even me shiver as he stared down Kento.
Well, it makes sense. The head chef, who was trusted enough to be in charge of everyone's meals, had been embezzling funds from an already poor temple. The sense of betrayal must be overwhelming.
"Would you care to explain this situation?"
Wow. I didn't know polite language could sound this terrifying.
"I-I don't… I have no id—"
"I doubt you're going to say you didn't know anything. Your reaction when the Saintess opened the secret passage wasn't that of someone clueless."
Exactly.
After shouting "Stop!" in a panic like a thief caught red-handed, Kento now trying to deny everything was just absurd.
"I—I'll explain! I can explain everything!"
"Yes. You'd better explain it properly."
Eirik stepped forward, approaching the pale-faced Kento.
Towering over him, Eirik looked down at the shrunken chef with calm intensity.
"If a chef with no divine power can't properly explain how he knows about a secret passage, I, as the High Priest responsible for maintaining order in the Grand Temple, will have to interrogate you myself."
"I-I…"
"And I assure you, that won't be a pleasant process."
With his elegant but firm threat, Eirik delivered the final blow.
"There's also the option of handing you over to the Holy Templar Captain."
That was definitely more frightening than dealing with a priest—since the Captain was the temple's strongest in terms of physical power.
The threat worked. Kento's face turned a ghostly blue.
"S-So, uh, this is… what happened was…"
Kento, trying to look cooperative, slowly approached the open passage.
But just as he neared, our eyes met—his dazed ones locking with mine.
"You—you! If it weren't for you!"
Suddenly, he raised both hands like he was about to strangle me and charged forward in a frenzy.
Toward me.
"Saintess!"
Eirik and Dietrich shouted and reached toward me in alarm, clearly trying to protect me…
But while my divine power may be weaker than theirs, I'm more than capable of handling an ordinary person.
Because I have the system.
[Activating skill: Body Enhancement.]
What a blessing it was to have this.
"Oh my, were you that desperate for my attention? I guess I have no choice. Since the chef insists, I'll reward you now."
With a smile, I reached out my right hand.
I gathered 5% of my divine power into my middle finger—and gave him a good flick to the forehead.
Where to?
Right in the center of Kento's forehead.
Smack!
A sound like a walnut cracking echoed through the kitchen.
"Ugh… guh…"
The shock must have rattled his brain. Kento didn't even have the strength to scream—he just wobbled on his feet.
Still glaring at me with bloodshot eyes, he finally rolled his eyes back and collapsed backward with a thud.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Silence descended.
Everyone stared blankly between the unconscious Kento—foaming at the mouth—and me.
"Hiiiii!"
Eventually, the kitchen staff huddled close together in terror, staring at the growing lump on Kento's forehead.
Hmm. If I leave things like this, my reputation might take an even bigger hit.
I reached out both hands toward the unconscious chef with a reverent expression—
As if bestowing a blessing.
"I give thanks to the chef for all the delicious meals he has prepared. But now, it's time for you to rest."
Perhaps moved by my heartfelt blessing, one of the kitchen staff, huddled among the others, quietly slumped to the floor.
"High Priest, rejoice! We've received such a large sum—it must be divine mercy granted to the Grand Temple!"
"...Right."
"Now we can feed the acolytes better. Isn't that wonderful?"
I beamed brightly at Eirik.
In return, I was met with a wave of extremely displeased gazes.
While Dietrich sorted through the embezzled funds, Eirik led the kitchen staff to the temple knights.
To investigate whether anyone had assisted Kento.
Seeing the anxious looks on the departing servants' faces, I made a request to the temple knights.
"They could all be innocent, so please don't be too harsh in your investigation. Until the truth is revealed, remember—they're still part of our family."
The servants widened their eyes, clearly not expecting me to take their side.
Even the knights looked surprised.
Well, this is all part of my image-rebuilding campaign.
"Saintess."
Once everyone had left and only Dietrich and I remained, Eirik quietly called out to me.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
I thought he'd start by questioning how I knew everything, but—
He asked about my well-being first.
"I think I hurt my finger a little."
"There's no need for you to go this far next time."
It was a joke, but…
Eirik gently infused divine power into my right hand.
It was the kind of healing I couldn't do myself due to my lack of divine power.
Golden light wrapped around my finger.
It was warm and soft—just like Eirik's personality. But…
Unfortunately, since he was focusing on my middle finger, only that finger was glowing in gold.
Unable to bear the sight of my gloriously glowing middle finger anymore, I quickly pulled my hand back and told him I was fine.
"Could you explain the situation now? How did you know all of this?"
The location of the secret passage, the tapping pattern to open it, even the embezzled funds Kento had hidden.
Since I was a fake Saintess, and Eirik never told me about the passage, he must've found it all the more baffling.
So I proudly shouted the excuse I had prepared:
"It was a coincidence!"
I couldn't exactly say I knew because I'd read the novel.
And it's not like Eirik can really interrogate me anyway—so let's just shamelessly deny it!
"…Excuse me?"
"I have really good instincts. Sometimes I just get a feeling, you know?"
Sure, I could've come up with a more believable lie, but…
My plan isn't over yet.
So for now, I'll leave it at that.
Leaving a flustered Eirik behind, I walked over to Dietrich.
"How much was it in total?"
"Ah, 9 gold and 87 silver."
He also seemed baffled by my explanation, but still answered earnestly.
Since 100 silver equals 1 gold, that's just about 10 gold in total.
So, if I offer 10 gold to the system, how much divine power will I gain?
Surely at least 1%, right?
[Divine Power +0.01%]
"…?"
Are you serious?