"We will now begin the Holy Knight examination. All aspiring Holy Knights, swear to the Goddess that you will undertake this exam without a single dishonest act."
After sharing many conversations with Sister Stella and finally coming of age, I had arrived to take the exam to become a Holy Knight.
The Holy Knight exam evaluates three things.
Faith.
Physical ability.
Character.
The first to be tested was faith.
Faith... I had worried my past might cause issues, but fortunately, I scored perfectly and passed.
It must have been thanks to my daily routine of memorizing scripture with the sisters and suppressing my desires.
The second was physical ability.
This was measured first with a run to test stamina, followed by sparring.
"Is, running: A."
Fortunately, my stamina cleared without issue, leaving only the sparring match.
"Please go easy on me."
"Eh... sure."
"...?"
For some reason, my opponent looked utterly annoyed.
"The Goddess chose me anyway, so why do I have to go through all this...?"
At first puzzled, I quickly recalled the original story upon hearing his words.
'The Slothful Holy Knight, Valss Venus.'
The Saintess's direct Holy Knight in the game.
His faith was middling at best, and his character left much to be desired, but his overwhelming holy power and strength earned him the position.
At this point in time, the upper echelons of the Papal Court were rotten to the core, so they assigned him directly to the Saintess based purely on skill.
And... he dies to a demon later on.
He let his guard down, trusting only in his own power, and got ambushed and killed easily.
The problem? The Saintess was with him.
She ends up fleeing alone through the forest, enduring hardship until the protagonist Hero finally rescues her.
And that leaves her with trauma as a lingering effect.
"Both sides, ready!"
The officiating Holy Knight raises his right arm.
'I have to win.'
If Valss had been a decent guy, I might have turned down the Saintess's offer despite everything.
The direct Holy Knight position was his, after all.
Providing backup from afar would have covered most things with his skill alone.
But he never fixed that slothful attitude until his dying breath, so I won't let him remain the Saintess's direct guard.
Knowing all about Valss was why I accepted her proposal.
"Begin!"
"Hah!"
The duel starts, and I charge forward immediately.
The weapon in my hand right now is a shotel.
A sword curved into a half-moon shape.
Holy Knights in this world don't have fixed weapons, so I chose the one I handled best.
To be precise, back then it was just a curved blade, but afterward, this hooked style suited me perfectly.
"Yawn..."
Even as I sprint at full speed, Valss yawns lazily and slowly raises his sword.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡Holy Light
Holy power surges through Valss's blade
"!!"
Valss's sword gleams, infused with holy power.
"Holy Light."
His blade comes down slowly but menacingly.
A sword swung by someone of Valss's caliber—probably no one else taking this exam could block it.
Anyone except me, that is.
-Clang!!
"...What?"
I block it with my shotel, and Valss visibly panics.
"You're not the only one who can awaken holy power."
Sorry, but I've awakened mine too.
Not giving him a moment to recover, I swing my shotel.
Now finally seeing me as a real opponent, Valss hurriedly raises his shield, but shotels are easiest against shields.
"Hah!"
Using the hook-like curve, I snag the edge behind the shield and yank.
"What?!"
Valss lets out a near-scream as his shield slips away effortlessly.
"You should've exercised more."
Unlike Valss, who relies 99% on holy power, I haven't skipped a single day of training since fighting those goblins.
Every morning at 7 AM, I ran the slum streets for an hour, then did push-ups, sit-ups, and lifted heavy rocks after breakfast.
It was only two years, but the existence of holy power helped forge my sturdy body.
Enough to easily handle foes without defenses.
I thrust the shotel toward the neck of the flustered, shieldless guy.
"U-Uwaaah...!"
"That's your loss."
The shotel's tip just barely touches Valss's neck.
That alone breaks his will to fight, and he collapses to the ground.
"W-Winner, Is!"
The officiating Holy Knight stammers, clearly thrown by our duel.
Makes sense—Holy Knight selection exams don't usually feature holy power-fueled combat like this.
"Feels right in my hands, as expected."
My first weapon, and the one I used right up to my death—it fits like no other.
I return the sparring shotel and head to the waiting room to await results.
And the results are...
"Is. With top overall score, you qualify for the honor of becoming the Saintess's 'direct Holy Knight' at her side. Congratulations."
"Thank you!"
A resounding success.
From here on, I'll live as the Saintess's direct Holy Knight, guarding her side.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Sisters! I did it! I really did it!"
Unable to contain my excitement, I burst through the cathedral doors shouting.
The sisters, mid-cleaning with brooms in hand, freeze in confusion before tossing them aside and rushing toward me.
"Oh, our Is! I knew you could do it!"
"You're the pride of our cathedral!"
"Ahh, thank you, Goddess!"
Surrounded by the sisters, I basked in their congratulations for a good while until, like Moses's miracle, they parted to either side, allowing someone to approach through the middle.
"Sister Stella!"
It was the precious woman who had taken me in—Sister Stella.
Proudly, I pulled the direct Holy Knight insignia from my bosom and showed it to her, and Sister Stella...
"Congratulations, Is!!"
...dove straight into my arms.
"Hahaha! This is all thanks to you, Sister Stella!"
In my joy, I hugged her tightly back.
Today was truly...
a happy day.
And a few days later.
"Then, Direct Holy Knight to the Saintess, Is—off I go!"
"Take care! Show your face here now and then!"
"Our Is will succeed at anything!"
"If you miss our cathedral, come back anytime!"
Before departing, everyone at the cathedral saw me off.
A carriage sent to fetch me had been waiting out front for quite some time.
We were running a bit late, but as fellow clergy, their gazes held only warmth—no annoyance or impatience.
"Hahaha..."
I exchanged laughing farewells with everyone, leaving just one person.
"Is..."
My teacher, mother, and big sister—Sister Stella.
She smiled happily, but a hint of bitterness lingered beneath.
"Is, you've finally become a proper adult and are setting out on your own."
"Yes, Sister Stella."
She gazed up at me with complex eyes for a long moment, then beckoned me to lean down.
I immediately crouched to match her eye level, and in that instant...
*Smack.*
Just like the night before my coming-of-age, she kissed my forehead.
"Our Is, it's really time to send you off. At the Saintess's side, spread your brilliant wings for all to see."
"Sister..."
"I know. How remarkable you are, Is. You're the hero of our entire cathedral, and now you'll be the Saintess's sword and shield. I'll always pray for you."
"Stella sis!"
Overwhelmed with emotion, I couldn't hold back—I hugged Stella sis and cried.
"I'll visit as often as I can! And I'll become someone you're proud of! You'll miss me!"
"...Hehe, on days you miss me, look at the moon. On days I miss you, I'll gaze at it too."
"Sis..."
Sis hugged me tight and whispered in my ear.
"You're like the moon. Not because of your silver hair, but because you shine so gently."
"...You're my moon too, sis. The beautiful light that illuminated my path through the dark night of the slums."
"What are you saying..."
Sis smiled playfully, pulled away, and patted my head.
"Now go. You have to serve the Saintess."
I quickly wiped my tears and nodded.
"Yes!"
"And don't go being overly nice to random girls. It's dangerous."
"Pardon?"
Her final advice was a bit odd, but Stella sis remained beautiful to the end.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
After two weeks in the carriage, at last.
"I pay respects to the Goddess's most radiant child, Saintess Ariana Astraea."
I reunited with the Saintess.
"I've been waiting, Is."
Not as a normal boy and the Saintess, but as her direct Holy Knight and Saintess.
'I'll help make your love with the protagonist come true.'
Now that I have this power, I'll prevent the tragedies from the game.