The Human Saint is Bored, so I was Summoned to Another World

Kuro here! It’s been a while…

Well, I guess I’m able to pass a season in this world.

“…”

Why, you ask? Maybe because I’ve noticed a change in the atmosphere of the people here at the Holy Palatial Gardens. If I may describe the general mood, I’d say they were restless and excited. From the windows of the guest house where I was staying, I could see the maids and guards scurrying here and there with their respective loads, be it weapons, laundry, food, or other stuff. Also, I saw a lot of nuns walking around and important-looking people coming along with them as well. They were not here before, or at least, they seldom appear, especially near this place.

That was because, in the Holy Palatial Gardens, allowing this great number of people—and even males, tells me that something big was about to happen. I wonder what are they doing here?

“Oh, those pretty ladies wearing white are the nun-templars. They usually assist in the conduct of the holy services, Mister Defender—”

“I told you it’s Kuro!” I was getting pissed being called names by this stupid paladin, the Marquise of Monfort, “Would you like it if I call you a ‘Lunatic Paladin’?”

“Ooh…a ‘Lunatic Paladin,’ huh? That sounds cool.”

“A lunatic is a crazy, or weird, person, just to mind you.”

The Marquise of Monfort laughed, “Yep, I know. But I like the sound of that word.”

I was so surprised by her answer that I could only stare back in silence. From that moment, I realized there was something weird about this girl. Oh, and yeah, I almost forgot that I’m stuck in this world of idiots…

“Haaa…”

“That’s quite a long sigh you got there, Mister Kuro,” the Marquise of Monfort patted my back, “It’s not good, you know.”

Well, I’m getting exhausted by the weird standards of this place…if only I could tell her that.

“Ah, anyway, where are you going?” I asked since I noticed she was dressed in her full uniform as a paladin of the Saint, “Off to some war or something?”

“Oh, this? Well, I’m off to do some patrol check today,” the Marquise showed me her armor and equipment, “This will be the third Seasonal Mass service, and I need to make sure that the security is in proper working order.”

“I see…a ‘seasonal mass,’ huh? Is that the church service at the start of every season here?”

“Yep, you’re right. It’s a pretty popular event, so we from the Paladin Corps have to double our efforts to secure this place. I also asked the Arles militia for their cooperation this time.”

“Hmm…looks like you’re quite short-handed?”

“Terribly so.” To be honest, this was the first time I saw the Marquise of Monfort in her professional ‘mode’; all the times I was with her, she was always joking around. “Anyway, Mister Kuro, want to come with me? Did you already attend your seasonal mass?”

“No, not yet,” I shook my head. Honestly, as I was raised in a different religion, I was kind of uncomfortable with this kind of situation. But well, since I was in another world, I guess I could try to experience how they do church services here…

“Well, you wouldn’t want to miss this one!” the Marquise of Monfort grabbed my hand and pulled it towards the direction of the Saint’s Cathedral, “The Ducal House of Braunhauer will come, so I need to make sure you’ll meet them. Eris would be glad as well!”

“Err…uh, what are you saying?” I had to make sure that there would be no terrible misunderstanding of what my intentions were in connection to coming along with her, “No one’s marrying anyone!”

“Come now, no need to be shy! I only said that you’ll meet them, nothing else!” In the end, the paladin persuaded me, partly because I wanted to check out Chersea’s religious customs myself.

----------

Now I understood why the Marquise of Monfort was serious this time.

“…”

“Yes, this happens every time there is a change of season,” the Marquise of Monfort said once we came to the ramparts surrounding the Holy Palatial Gardens. All I could see was a vast sea of…humans, as far as my eyes could reach. The only empty place was the interior of the palatial gardens; virtually, all space that could be occupied was filled with people.

Some had already pitched their tents right outside the grounds below the fortifications, and there were more coming in from the horizon: most were on foot with their families, some were riding carts, others were in fancy carriages.

Think of it as a concert of an insanely popular band back on Earth…then multiply it by at least ten times.

“Well, the ‘Seasonal Mass’ was a pilgrimage that happens every start of the new season,” the Marquise explained while silently counting the carriages, “Those who are religious and have the means to do it always strive to undertake the journey to come here, and those who can’t try, attend at least once in their lifetime.”

Oh…I can remember a religion back from Earth that has the same tenet. Anyway, this ‘Seasonal Mass’ piqued my interest, so I continued asking questions, “You say ‘Seasonal Mass’; do you mean Her Holiness would be the one to celebrate it?”

“Well, sort of,” the paladin replied, “Actually, it’s the highly respected GMTS of the Saint’s Cathedral who would administer the sermons, rituals, and blessings. Her Holiness would be there, but only her presence was required.”

“Huh? GMTS?”

“Yeah, the Grand Mother Templar Superior. I call her ‘GMTS,’ for short. Their naming styles are terrible here.”

Oh, that’s fresh coming from you. Well, anyway, for a second, I thought that watching Her Holiness deliver a sermon was something interesting. However, the Marquise of Monfort’s words quickly crushed my excitement.

“Haa…and because of the change of season, we at the Holy Paladin Corps are busy once again. I mean, this is one of those times that we can’t let our guards down…there’ll be a lot of trespassing incidents once again.”

The Marquise of Monfort was shaking her head in disbelief, but it was not like it was something that she had control over to begin with. People come to this place out of their religious zeal. And considering that, according to the Marquise, this was the only time that males were allowed free entry into the Holy Palatial Gardens. I was pretty sure the crooks would take this as an opportunity to strike. One couldn’t help that someone from the dangerous side of society would mingle with the religious adherents and do some nasty things while there.

That panty-thief incident is still fresh in my mind…

“Ah, anyway…” I tried to change the topic, “Lady Monfort, you said it’s the new season. May I know what season it is this time?”

“Well…” the Marquise looked up into the sky as if to confirm her answer, “If I’m not mistaken, these clear drops of rain show that we just entered the ‘Season of Crystals’.”

----------

The ‘Season of Crystals’. If you remember, there were six types of seasons in Chersea; this was one of those. Last time, the season was called the ‘Season of Sleep’—which was an ‘All Saints’ Day’-like time in this place. And so, the second one to come after I arrived here was the ‘Season of Crystals’. The name itself was pretty simple: it was because the rainwater drops were crystal-clear; that’s why it’s called that.

However, this season still reminds me I’m not in my old world.

I mean, look, it defied Earth physics. The rain was indeed pouring gently, but if you noticed in our conversation, it’s as if we didn’t feel the water at all. Indeed, the only time I saw it was raining was when the Marquise said, ‘Clear drops of rain.’

“…”

Now that she mentioned it, the entire place was soaking wet, but everyone else—including us, was as dry as a fresh paper.

“Why is that?” I tried asking the Marquise.

“Hmm? Isn’t it the way it used to be?” she had a puzzled look on her face, “Ever since I was young, rain during this season won’t get us wet. But if it falls to the soil, it would soak thoroughly, and it becomes ideal for planting new crops.”

I kind of expected her answer; she grew up in this world, after all. However, it’s interesting. Maybe I should look into this strange phenomenon, provided I have the proper equipment for it.

Well, moving on, the ‘Seasonal Mass,’ according to the Marquise of Monfort, was something akin to our ‘Christmas’ back on Earth. It was a long festivity, taking place for at least several ‘long sleeps’ before ending with the ‘Saint’s Benediction’—the time when everyone would sing praises as ‘Her Holiness asked the heavens for their blessing.

Honestly, I don’t know what that last part means, but I seriously doubt that the Saint will go to heaven and meet with God…

Or I could be wrong. After all, this was another world…

----------

For someone like the Marquise of Monfort, I couldn’t believe that a person like her could be entrusted with this kind of work. I mean, ever since I came here, the only impression I had with her was that she’s an idiot.

Or you just can’t take her seriously, something along those lines.

“…”

However, watching how she did things put my views in the wrong perspective. The way she handled her soldiers and how they respected her already told a lot. But witnessing how she resolved some fights breaking out with relative ease proved to me that the Marquise was a person fit for her job. My respect for her just went up a notch.

We went around inspecting the entire eastern section of the ramparts, the walls facing the direction of the town of Arles. From what I saw, I think the ladies of the Paladin Corps were assigned to the perimeter surrounding the Saint’s Chambers and the Library, which was near the spot we checked. She made sure that her soldiers stood on guard in their proper places to prevent trespassers from coming into the ‘off-limits’ areas of the palatial gardens.

I remembered the Marquise of Monfort also asked the Arles militia for help, so I inquired about their whereabouts. She told me she assigned them to the grounds where the dignitaries and visitors were coming in, working together with some other royal guard corps from the nearby human kingdoms to keep order and beef up security. It’s one pretty tiring work, seriously.

Anyway, after confirming that every gear was in proper working condition, the Marquise then turned to me, “So, ready to attend your first seasonal mass, Mister Kuro?”

Honestly, I was halfway spent, but I guess I couldn’t turn her down since the Marquise seemed excited to have me come along. So, not wishing to disappoint her, I nodded, “Yeah, sure, just take me with you there!”

“Nice! Then let’s go on with it!” she pulled me like a child as we dove into the sea of humans.

----------

Even though she’s the captain of the Saint’s Paladin Corps, the Marquise of Monfort and I wasn’t spared from the pushing and shoving of the people who came to see and be blessed by Her Holiness. The lines were getting messed up the nearer we got to the colossal Saint’s Cathedral.

“Hey! Watch it!”

“Oof, don’t you have a pair of eyes, you dolt!?”

“Make way, you damned bastards!”

“My apologies, good sirs!” the Marquise would say that line from time to time, especially if she hit someone with her cumbersome armor.

Well, for these people who were here for holy service, those words were indeed ironic. Not that they could help it, but they should tone down their words since this was supposedly a holy place.

Chersea and Earth have a lot of things in common, I guess…even in hypocrites.

“Man, I didn’t expect that going to the mass would be this difficult!” I remarked, ostensibly to lighten the mood.

“Haha! Do you also have things like this in your land, Mister Kuro?”

“Yep, but not this chaotic. There are days where the church-goers’ attendance is low, you know,” I answered, half-shouting. The noise of the crowd was drowning our voices, so I had to keep up.

“Hah! Now that’s what I’d like to see!” she cheerfully replied, “Your place must have a lot of bad people, huh?”

I sure heard that, but I just kept my silence. I wanted to explain to her about the existence of ‘atheists’ and the ‘not-so-religious folks’ back on Earth, but I guess it would take a long time before she’s able to make sense of it. This world hadn’t got out from the connotation of ‘irreligious people = bad people’ just yet.

Seeing events like this is proof of the strong faith of the people of this land for their god.

----------

Anyway, we continued pushing forward. The Marquise was leading in front of me, so I couldn’t fully see the people ahead. The forest of bodies and hands kept on hitting us, but we carried on. I forced my way every time I felt that the armor of my paladin escort was getting too far from me; I dreaded I would get lost the moment we separated.

“Oof!”

“Sorry!”

“Hey!”

“!!!”

I stopped the moment I hit the armor of the Marquise; apparently, she also stopped walking.

“What happened, Lady Monfort? Why did we stop?” I asked, but she didn’t answer. Instead, the paladin was focused on the person in front of her, a middle-aged, balding man wearing a nice, dignified-looking dress. He had a stern look on his face, and his expression was rather scary.

Anyone can tell that he’s angry.

“What are you doing, lady? You’ve been pushing and shoving me!”

“My apologies, Your Excellency!” the Marquise bowed, “It wasn’t on purpose, I assure you!”

“Hmph!” the man glared at us, “Every change of season is getting worse than the previous one! Is this how the Paladin Corps conducts itself now? You are pathetic as a leader, Lady Monfort!”

“!!!”

My fists tightened; I could not hold my mouth any further, “Hey, look here, you—” but the Marquise of Monfort quickly stopped me from lashing out by pulling me aside. Well, you know I was not quick to fight. But I was tired and stressed out by this mob, so my guard was down. And when you hear someone talk down to your friend like that, especially when you just saw her efforts a few moments ago, I guess anyone would get pissed.

“And who’s this insolent young man?” the man turned to me with curious eyes, “Is he a commoner? This is the first time I met a commoner who doesn’t know his proper place! Why did you bring someone like him here?”

“What, you got a problem with me, old guy?” I snapped back; I was utterly pissed off right now. The Marquise was trying to push me back, away from him. However, I persisted, “Can’t you see everyone’s pushing and shoving around? The Paladin Corps are exerting their very best to keep the situation under control, and here you are expecting preferential treatment! Are you some kind of entitled yet senile senior citizen?”

“Wha—” his mouth was wide open the moment he heard that. The old man was silent at first, but then he ultimately got mad, thrashing wildly. Honestly, he looked like he was overreacting to me, “Why, this is preposterous! I’ve never seen such a display of utterly rude behavior!”

“Ah! Please forgive us, Your Excellency!” the Marquise said, panicking. She kept on bowing to appease the old guy.

“Lady Monfort, pray that you tell me who this rude fellow is,” the man insisted; his face was red, and his hands were shaking.

Rude? As if bad-mouthing the hard work of the Paladin Corps isn’t rud—

“Ah, he’s a good friend to Her Holiness, Your Excellency, and an ambassador from another place. That explains his simple clothes, for it is their custom there!” the Marquise of Monfort answered for me, covering my mouth for a while, “This is also his first time attending a seasonal mass, so I’m showing him around.”

“And where is such a place?”

“S-Somewhere in the land of the elves, Your Grace.”

“Hmph!” the man stared at me for a few moments, and it became awkward. I thought he’d get even angrier. But in the end, he only dismissively waved his hand to shoo us away, saying, “For someone who’s a diplomat from the land of the elvish barbarians, your uncivilized friend there doesn’t know to keep his tongue in check. Anyway, be thankful that we’re in no condition to make war. Take him away from me, lest I got infected with such barbarity.”

This guy is getting on my nerves…

“Thank you, Your Excellency,” the Marquise bowed once more and forced me to bow along as well, much to my surprise. I never enjoyed bowing my head to an arrogant person such as this guy, but well, I guess she didn’t want trouble while a holy service was going on…

----------

“Hahaha!” the Marquise laughed and sighed with relief the moment we reached a vast place to relax, just inside the cathedral. She used her connections with the nuns-templar inside so we could get the best place. This spot was so good that a nun-templar was also serving us tea and snacks.

“That’s a close one, don’t you think, Mister Kuro?”

“What did just happen?” I was pretty confused by what she said.

“Look here, you almost got your head lopped off, you know?” the Marquise of Monfort was serious as she explained, “If that person learns that you’re a foul-mouthed commoner mingling with the nobility, then you’re dead.”

“Huh? Mingling with the nobility? Aren’t those people around him commoners, too? I mean, all those pushing and shoving couldn’t be the work of a dignified aristocrat.”

The Marquise stared at me like I was some weird being, “What are you saying? Those are all nobles!”

“Ha? That crowd back there?”

The Marquise nodded, “And that guy we just met is one of the bigshots in all Chersea, you know? That’s the Duke of Rubinforth, the chief counselor of the king of Nerfes.”

“Oh?” I replied with disinterest.

“He’s a person who doesn’t like the idea of aristocrats being treated as equals of the commoners; he’s taken steps to make sure that the common folk would fear and respect him.”

I fell silent when I heard those words. Yep, that sounds like an arrogant bigshot right over there. To think that I almost crossed fists with him…

“And also, he’s the father of Her Holiness.”

I choked on the tea I was drinking. What the fuck—

“Ah, anyway, Mister Kuro, though you’re quite an asshole back there, I’d like to thank you for standing up for me and my girls,” the Marquise suddenly had a change of tone.

Honestly, that put a bit of a surprise on me.

“Heh, looks like I wasn’t wrong about my observations of you,” the paladin commented as she patted my back, “I’ll know that Eris will be in excellent hands if she marries a man like you.”

I spat another round of tea I was sipping, “No one’s talking about marriage here, milady.”

“Don’t mind my ramblings,” she smiled mischievously, “You may take me as your wife if it pleases you. I can lop heads off cleanly with my sword, so your security is assured with me around.”

What the fuck is this paladin saying? Well, her random statements aside, I always get annoyed when someone insults the work of others. They underestimate the result even though that person did their best to produce outstanding work. Ugh, even back in my workplace, it’s virtually the same! You’d even answer office memos on some obscure or fake issues being thrown at you.

If only I had the power of the gods, I’d obliterate such people. They’re pissing me off.

“…”

Hey, it’s not like I can help it. It also happened to me.

“Uhh, Mister Kuro?”

“Hm?”

“For a moment, I thought you look terrible.”

“It’s my face, deal with it.”

“No, I mean, just now, you had a scary expression on your face.”

Maybe my irritation leaked out unintentionally, and the Marquise saw it. Ah, anyway…I’ll just hope I don’t meet that old geezer again.

“Come on, since you are an ‘ambassador’ for now, I guess you should sit back, relax, and enjoy the church service for a while,” the Marquise then brought a bedsheet and a blanket out of nowhere.

“Hey, you’re the one who made me an ‘ambassador,’” I countered, “And uh, aren’t you enjoying this privilege too much? Don’t tell me you’re going to sleep in the entire service?”

“Oh, you’re right!” she laid down the bedsheets on the floor, “Well, this is the Dignitaries’ Box—meant for Chersea’s famous people, so it’s pretty spacious for this. Who wants to listen to sermons and watch rituals, anyway? They’re boring.”

If I remember earlier, she just asked me if there were a lot of bad people in my world because they didn’t regularly attend church services. And now this stupid paladin will sleep in the middle of a mass? Aren’t you the same, Lady Monfort?

“This, and that is different,” the Marquise defended her actions, “Technically, I’m still attending the church, though my mind is off to somewhere.”

What’s the difference?

“Don’t ask too much, alright? Just wake me up when the mass ends; let’s grab a snack after this,” the Marquise closed her eyes and dozed off to dreamland.

This is just unbelievable.