It's Troublesome That My Doting Dad Became A Villain

Who could it be?
I tilted my head slightly in confusion and called out toward the door.

“Come in.”
…
Even after my voice rang out, the door didn’t open right away.

A brief silence followed.
Just as I furrowed my brows, the door finally began to creak open.
The moment I saw who entered, my eyes widened slightly.

My heart suddenly started pounding.
“…Ah, Meteor.”
Now that I thought about it, he had been there earlier when my divine power had been measured.

How stunned must he have been to see me officially recognized as Atetamas?
Just imagining it made me feel awkward.
Meteor shut the door behind him and turned toward me.

He took a few steps forward, but I remained rooted in place.
Maybe it was because I had just seen Prima moments ago.
Seeing Meteor right after him made everything feel… strange.

Aside from the few years of age difference, they looked exactly the same.
Neither of them were particularly welcome company.
Prima was a demon, and Meteor… well, spending time with him was just uncomfortable.

Why were these two, who looked identical, showing up back-to-back?
Wait.
What had Prima said earlier?
"Well, Crescent, looks like I’m quite popular."

“Popular”… with me?
My eyes widened.
Could it be that he had known Meteor would visit me?

If that was the case, then… was he implying that Meteor was himself?
No way…
At that moment—

“Why are you making that face?”
“Huh?”
Meteor narrowed his eyes slightly, studying me with suspicion.

I quickly wiped the surprise off my face.
“It’s nothing. Anyway, you must have been shocked. I didn’t expect that outcome either.”
I let out a light sigh, trying to downplay the situation.

From Meteor’s perspective, it was bad enough that the Demon King’s daughter had infiltrated the knight order.
And now, that very same daughter had taken over a singular and unprecedented position in the Holy Palace.
Thinking about how he must be feeling, I figured I should at least pretend to be a little reluctant about it.

“Hah.”
A faint chuckle escaped Meteor’s lips.
I blinked.

Did he just… laugh?
I stared at him, but as expected, it wasn’t a genuine laugh.
It was more of a bitter, incredulous scoff.

This translation is the intellectual property of .
“How many more surprises do you have in store for me?”
His eyes still held traces of amusement.

Unlike earlier, it wasn’t a cold, cutting laugh.
Now, it seemed like he had gone so far past disbelief that he could do nothing but laugh.
Feeling a little awkward, I shrugged.

“Well, I didn’t expect this either. I nearly killed myself trying to slay demons, and the next thing I knew, I awakened and ended up as a saint.”
Tsk.
This was just how things turned out—what did he expect me to do about it?

If he was about to start berating me, he might as well save his breath!
I was just about to adopt a shameless attitude when—
“The Demon King’s daughter becoming a holy knight was already strange enough, but now she’s a saint…”

Meteor muttered to himself.
I frowned slightly.
Then, his voice rang out again.

“How far do you plan on deceiving the humans? Can you handle the weight of this charade?”
The amusement had vanished from his face.
I parted my lips, then closed them.

I had nothing to say.
Rising to a high position in the Holy Palace only meant that the burden of my sins had grown heavier.
There was no helping it.

But as long as I killed the Demon King, wouldn’t that be enough?
Even if humans found out the truth later, they wouldn’t stone me to death… right?
…Would they?

Even if the Demon King’s daughter killed him, humans might still see it as nothing more than internal strife between demons.
In their eyes, a Demon King and his daughter were one and the same.
“I just need to get my dad back.”

“Yeah. At this point, what else does any of it matter?”
“…Huh?”
Meteor’s voice sounded oddly detached.

It was a reaction I had never seen from him before.
He took a deep breath and continued.
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re the Demon King’s daughter or a saint. Just don’t get caught before you finish the job, Crescent.”

His voice was firm.
Hearing those words, I momentarily forgot how to respond.
His jewel-like blue eyes stared at me, unwavering.

"Don’t get caught before you finish the job, Crescent."
If I interpreted it the wrong way…
…Was he saying he was on my side?

For a long moment, I couldn’t look away from Meteor’s gaze.
***
Morning arrived.

At the crack of dawn, the Holy Palace’s attendants barged into my room.
The moment I saw their luxurious robes, I knew who they were.
The attendants of the Holy Palace weren’t just ordinary servants—they were exceptional at everything they did.

Even their laundry was done flawlessly.
Since they served in the closest proximity to the deity, only a select few could hold such positions.
They lined up in perfect formation and bowed to me.

“Good morning, Lady Crescent. Starting today, we will be serving the Saint.”
“Oh… I see. Nice to meet you.”
I, who had been sitting on the bed, straightened up slightly.

It seemed they had been sent to provide me with treatment appropriate for a saint.
Honestly, having personal attendants felt a little cumbersome.
“I appreciate you coming all this way, but I’d prefer to live as a holy knight as I always have. If possible, I’d like to handle my preparations myself.”

After all, I had always done everything alone.
It was easier that way.
The attendants exchanged surprised glances before one of them carefully spoke up.

“If that is your wish, then we will assist you only for today. Your ceremonial attire may be difficult to put on by yourself. If you ever need anything in the future, please don’t hesitate to call for us. We will come immediately.”
They smiled gently.
I returned a somewhat awkward smile.

“Alright. Thank you.”
To be honest, since my dad was the Demon King, being treated as a saint made me feel guilty.
Becoming a saint was inevitable, but having attendants serve me on top of that?

That was unnecessary.
The attendants began unpacking the belongings they had brought.
“Today, you will be wearing this ceremonial robe. It was custom-made to reflect the latest [N O V E L I G H T] trends. Since it has been over three hundred years since the last saint, there were no recent records to reference. As for your battle attire, we designed it with your activities in mind—it’s a skirt layered over trousers.”

“If it ever gets in the way during combat, you can tear it off immediately! But you should keep it on—it has defensive properties.”
“Oh, really?”
Hearing something useful, my interest piqued.

“Thank you. I didn’t expect such attention to detail, but I truly appreciate it.”
“Of course we had to be thorough!”
One of the attendants blurted out suddenly.

Then, as if realizing her mistake, she covered her mouth, her face flushing red.
“I-I just really respect you, Lady Crescent. I’m honored to see you in person, and now I even get to serve you—it feels like a dream.”
“Me too! I never imagined a saint would appear in our lifetime. Everyone is so happy!”

“You should see how many people have gathered outside! They’re all waiting for you!”
“!”
I was stunned.

Were people really this excited?
Thinking about it, it made sense.
In a world where death loomed over them at all times, a saint had appeared.

To them, it must have felt like salvation itself had descended upon the earth.
At last, they had hope that they would no longer be powerless against demons.
“…Ahem. I should hurry and get ready, then.”

I cleared my throat unnecessarily.
Led by the attendants’ careful hands, I washed, had my hair styled, and finally put on the ceremonial robe.
And then—

As I faced the mirror, my eyes widened.
…Is this really me?