The Gloomy Saintess Obsessively Clings to Death

Dust had accumulated on the floor, leaving small footprints with every step I took.

The situation was no different for the table and chairs placed in the center of the room.

When I casually wiped the table with my finger, a good amount of dust stuck to it.

“…How on earth did anyone live in a place like this?”

Looking up at the ceiling, spiderwebs were spun in every nook and cranny.

But perhaps because I had seen the room I was staying in, this amount didn’t seem too bad to me.

After all, the spiderwebs there were so dense they could pass as mosquito nets with a little exaggeration.

“…It’s such a mess, I don’t even know where to start.”

While sighing and looking around, something out of place caught my eye.

“…What is that?”

It was a small table where potato peels had been left.

Despite clearly being covered in dust everywhere else,

this small area around the table in the kitchen was now spotless, not a speck of dust in sight.

Moreover, the teacup and kettle on top of it glistened as if brand new.

‘Why does this one spot shine so brightly when everything else is in disarray?’

Even at a glance, the scene was strange, and upon closer inspection, I realized the reason.

These were the tea utensils the Saint had used to serve me tea.

I wasn’t sure whether to be glad for the tidy treatment of the items meant for me,

or complain that if she was going to clean, why not clean everything.

In the end, an absent-minded smile came to my face.

“Seriously, she’s so unpredictable.”

Shaking my head, I looked around the kitchen again.

Fortunately, it seemed that if I just cleaned up the dust, it would be fine.

There was hardly any trash or clutter, probably because of the lack of use.

‘Let’s start with the sink, I suppose.’

Approaching the sink, I surveyed the area to clean.

Perhaps because water flowed through here, it was much cleaner than the other places.

It seemed like a quick wipe with a cloth would suffice. I reached for the faucet.

At that moment, I remembered how the Saint had summoned water with magic.

It could be due to convenience, but I wondered if the faucet was broken.

‘Should I… use holy water instead since I can’t use magic?’

I carefully turned the faucet.

A clear stream of water poured out, and I let out a sigh of relief.

But it must be winter, since the water was unbearably cold.

The icy chill made my whole body shrink back even after just briefly touching it.

I tried turning the faucet left and right, but the water remained just as cold.

“…Well, can’t be helped.”

Still, I could handle this with what I had.

I opened the pocket dimension and took out the red stone.

It was a gift from none other than Mr. Chunsam, a mysterious stone with the power to manipulate elements of fire.

‘…We only use it to boil water for instant noodles, but…’

I placed the stone inside the sink.

The water, which had been as cold as ice, began to bubble up in no time, and soon steam began to rise.

“Could today be the most practical use of this thing since I received it?”

I muttered to myself, looking at the steaming sink.

When Mr. Chunsam handed it to me, he casually said, “Use it if you need to.”

But when I mentioned using it to boil water for instant noodles, he gave me a long lecture.

‘If he finds out I’m heating water for cleaning with it, I wonder what he’d say.’

Finishing this silly train of thought, the water had already come to a boil.

I took a piece of cloth out of the pocket dimension and soaked it in the water.

Starting with the dust and stains around the sink, I slowly began the cleanup.

– Creak—

Startled by the sudden sound, my body automatically turned to look behind me.

But there was nothing there.

‘…Did I just imagine it?’

I tilted my head and turned back to the sink.

At that moment, I sensed something move behind me.

‘It was no mistake.’

I quickly detected a faint sound, something tiny and nearly imperceptible—definitely not human.

‘Animal? Monster? Or…’

I marked the spot where the sound originated.

In one swift movement, I arrived there to find several rotten potatoes with bite marks and the dead bodies of some mice that appeared to have been dead for a few days.

Nearby, from beneath the cabinet, came a faint noise and a presence I could sense.

Carefully surveying under the cabinet, I saw a vague silhouette.

There was a single rat, its fur patchy and its form emaciated.

“What is this? A rat?”

Somehow, it made me feel deflated.

I glared at the rat and muttered to myself with dissatisfaction.

“You scared me. You can’t eat this. It’s the Saint’s food.”

Though I wasn’t sure if it was right to call this stuff “food” since it was either rotten or sprouting.

The storage container revealed half-rotten potatoes, moldy grains, and fruit that smelled rancid.

“Leaving it to rot like this, what were you thinking? You should have eaten it earlier….”

Though I said it aloud, another thought crept into my mind.

Is the situation so dire that even such spoiled things need to be cherished?

This realization weighed heavily on me.

Now that I thought about it, earlier, the Saint had talked about hoping for death.

She had readily accepted having her cheeks pinched but never let go of the idea of wanting to die.

‘Now that she knows it’s not her fault, I thought things would get better…’

Does she not trust my words?

Or is there something even deeper than that?

Then again…

Living while feeding off rotten food,

caring for people who couldn’t die nor live properly all by herself,

and perhaps even thinking that her suffering might never end but continue forever…

‘It’s understandable for anyone in her situation to wish for death, isn’t it?’

I know this well.

Because I remember the vivid longing I once had to escape an endless pain.

“Someone like me preaching about the sanctity of life… how absurd.”

With a bitter smile, I took out a biscuit from the pocket dimension and bent down, offering it to the rat under the cabinet.

“Come out and eat this. It’s tastier than the rotten potatoes.”

As if it understood my words, the rat slowly emerged from the shadows.

The moment I saw it, I froze.

I had thought it was emaciated from lack of food, but in fact, most of the rat’s belly was missing.

The rat, oblivious to the absence of its innards, was busily munching on the biscuit.

Its strange appearance was both eerie and pitiful.

‘Are all beings in this world like this?’

Living on in this endless suffering, writhing in agony without the means to die.

Though I had seen countless worlds broken and corrupted, a world without death was a first.

Definitely, this was the most terrible and cruel world I had ever encountered.

The more I watched the rat nibbling on the biscuit, the more complex emotions welled up within me.

Someone else overlapped with the image of the rat in my mind.

“Miss Saint.”

Suddenly, I remembered the first time I met the Saint.

When she handed me a dagger and said, “Please, kill me,” her expression was incredibly relieved.

‘…Did you too wish to end this suffering in a world where death was forbidden?’

– Snap

A sound from beside startled me, and I turned my gaze.

The rat had finished the biscuit, crumbs that should have been inside its belly now scattered on the floor.

“Did you like it?”

Was it answering me? Slowly, the rat looked up and stared at me silently.

I quietly extended my hand, preparing to stop the rat’s movements.

“…Sorry.”

Unwilling to release too much power again and risk collapsing, I cautiously opened my dominion over death.

The air grew heavy and oppressive.

The breath of death swirling from my fingertips gently enveloped the small body of the rat.

The rat offered no resistance.

If anything, it seemed aware that it could finally rest, and slowly closed its eyes.

With one last, faint breath, the rat lay still, as if falling into a deep sleep. It looked peaceful, freed from its long suffering.

“Thank you. I’m glad I could end your suffering. Rest well.”

A pang of sadness crept up, realizing this was all I could do for this world.

I took out a box from the pocket dimension and placed the newly deceased rat along with the other rat corpses inside.

The levels of decay in the rats suggested they all died around the same time.

They must have fallen to the influence of my powers when I first arrived here.

Now I understood why I had collapsed.

The Saint had said that in this world, death had disappeared for about a hundred years.

Over such a long time, the lifeforms in this area that couldn’t die would have been affected by my presence, draining my power.

‘Even though I’ve lost strength, there’s no way I’d collapse from handling just fifteen…’

Considering the magnitude of my power,

it was more likely that my dominion didn’t extend to the entire world but only to this vicinity.

‘I guess it’s around this radius…’

I’ll need to carefully suppress my powers from now on.

It’s probably safe to use them here, but using them elsewhere could cause me to collapse again.

In the worst case,

excessive power expenditure might completely drain my divine energy.

If that happens, my divinity would cease function and I’d be unable to produce more divine energy.

It’s the absolute end that all gods dread—

the total erasure of existence, memory, self, and essence.

The end of a god.

I slowly gazed at my hands.

Although I once longed for this end, it is something I can no longer afford.

I am the only death in this world.

The link between this world and the afterlife.

If I were gone, this world would once again be trapped in endless suffering.

‘…I must find a way to restore the link between worlds. I have to.’

It’s the only way to save this world,

and the Saint.

“But where do I even start…?”

No solution came to mind as I thought about everything.

Cleaning first, I should bury these creatures before finishing up.

*

There wasn’t a speck of dust left in the kitchen.

“Ah, I’m exhausted.”

I stretched my stiff body, releasing a long sigh. Moving every muscle after so long was harder than expected.

‘…Is it because I’ve been inactive? This is tougher than even when I was training intensively.’

Still, the sense of accomplishment felt similar to clearing a high difficulty game.

The kitchen, once covered in dust, now sparkled like brand new.

But this joy was short-lived,

as I remembered the mess that was the other room.

“I might just camp in here.”

It occurred to me that staying in the kitchen might not be such a bad idea.

Cleaner than the other room and still indoors, there shouldn’t be any problem.

Living like a housekeeper,

staying in the kitchen all day to provide morning, noon, and evening meals to the Saint.

‘…Not such a bad idea, really?’

As I idly thought this, I remembered that I needed to prepare lunch for the Saint.

Checking the time, it was nearly the end of lunch hour.

“Uh oh, where is the Saint?”

I hurried my steps, sensing her presence.

Quietly hoping she wouldn’t be in there, thankfully I could feel her nearby.

Relieved, I quickened my pace.

And where I stopped,

was the room I was supposed to stay in.

Inside, the Saint was busily cleaning the dust-covered room.

Coughing repeatedly as she cleared away the spider webs,

she paused momentarily upon seeing me but then broke into a bright smile.

“Mr. Death!”

The clear voice reached me.

Why is she cleaning alone?

Is she hungry?

What would she like for lunch?

Questions flooded my mind,

but strangely, no words came out.

Instead, my body reacted.

With a smile, I pulled the approaching Saint into a sudden embrace.

“H-Huh?”

“…Didn’t you find it tiring?”

“Ah, not at all… Well… umm… eee…”

Bumbling, the Saint slowly placed her hand on my back.

The cautious yet warm gesture brought a strange sense of relief.

But at the same time, my heart ached.

How could she possibly endure such heavy burdens alone with such a fragile body?

Thinking of this, I unconsciously tightened my embrace even further.

Right now,

if I could only share even a fraction of that burden.

And someday, I earnestly wished to put an end to her pain.

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