Seijo ni Narunode Nidoume no Jinsei wa Katte ni Sasetemoraimasu ~Outaihi wa, Zensei de Watashi wo Fu

     After breakfast, Liz headed to the hall. It’s time for the second selection of candidates. She just heard last night that the condition for the second selection is whether or not the sacred flower has bloomed. She was worried but luckily her flower has bloomed.

     When she entered the hall, she felt her emotions soar, she felt exhilarated. Priests and most of the candidates had already gathered.

     ‘Where’s Lloyd?’

     She tried to look for him but all priests have black hair and are dressed up with the same blue robe. It was hard to get sight of him.

     At the end of the hall, she found Lloyd speaking to another priest who seems to be of the same age. She was surprised, he suddenly burst out laughing with the priest. 

     ‘That man must have a patient character to be able to get along with Lloyd.’ She thought of such a rude thing. Then Lloyd noticed Liz and approached her.

     “Good morning, What’s with that surprised expression? When you saw me earlier talking to that priest, you must’ve thought that he has a good character.”

     “…I was thinking”

     “…You really don’t care about me at all.” 

     She ignored Lloyd, who was muttering to himself, “You should be more respectful since I’m a senior priest.”

     Liz looked at the sacred sprouts that were lined up. Before them are armed priests who stood to watch them with serious faces.

     ‘Though they don’t look like dangerous flowers.’

     All of them are ordinary flowers without any strange particular feeling. Except for Liz’s huge white flower and the magician’s daughter’s black flower. The size of her flower is three times the size of the other flowers. Even so, the two flowers are roughly classified as ordinary flowers.

     “It’s huge.” Lloyd said, standing beside her looking at her flower with an impressed look, “The plant grew big, as well as its flower. I was worried at first but it seems that I didn’t have to since the flower has come out all right.”

     Liz is surprised that he had been worried, “How rude.” she said.

     Lloyd frowned, “It was I who brought you here. But well, since the flowers have bloomed, you’ll pass this selection. Easy, effortless win.”

     They both looked at each other and casually laughed.

     Now, the chief priest entered the hall with his accompanying priest, “Good morning, we’ll now start the second selection.” 

     Liz’s flowers suddenly withered in front of everyone when he said those words.

     “…What?” Both Liz and Lloyd exclaimed at the same time, confused at what had happened.

     The white sheer petals of her flower turned brown and dirty. Everyone was dumbfounded, wondering on what’s going on. There was an ominous sound and what’s left of the flowers fell on the floor.

     “Eh!?” Both Liz and Lloyd unconsciously raised their voice.

     “Unbelievable! Are you kidding me?”

     “The flower suddenly withered and died!”

     “It was in full bloom a while ago! But wait, if the flowers are blooming, then that means a pass, right? Does that mean Liz has failed…?”

     At the center of the noisy candidates was Natalie, who anxiously bit the side of her cheeks, and Grace, who has her eyes shining while her eyebrows are raised.

     ‘Stop. This isn’t a joke. Why did it suddenly..?’ Liz turned pale. 

     Suddenly, the chief priest’s sharp voice echoed through the hall, “Everyone, evacuate now! Get out of the hall!”

     ‘Huh!?’

     The atmosphere is tense. In the midst of being escorted out of the hall, in the corner of Liz’s eye, she saw the priests had a stern expression surrounding her sacred tree.

     “What?”

     “What did he mean? Why should we get out?”

     “I’ll tell you later!” 

     The heavy door of the hall closed. The candidates gathered in the hallway, they were anxious and some weren’t convinced of the situation.

     The chief priest smiled as if nothing had happened, “I’m sorry for the sudden change, the venue has been moved. The second selection will commence as planned.” 

     ‘That’s not it!’ All of the candidates thought.

     “Chief priest!” It was Grace who called out to him, “before anything else, I would like an explanation as to why we had to leave the hall. No one had experienced anything like what you had said, where it’d eat or harm us. They were just ordinary flowers.”

     “It was a matter of  time to leave the hall. Besides, half of what I said, especially the flowers being dangerous, was a lie. I wanted to make sure that the saint holds no fear even when they are told that their life is in danger. They all bloomed without anyone running away. For the eleven candidates present today, all of you passed.” the priest laughed in satisfaction.

     Liz was relieved to hear that she had passed. But Grace’s slightly sharp voice rang out, “So, Liz also passed? Her flower bloomed once and now has died. I think the fact that her flower died indicates her nature and character.”

     Grace looked at Liz, her expression didn’t change. The two gaze at each other. Liz is a commoner and may not know how to act like a noble lady  but she remembered meeting Duke Igner and how uneasy and restless she felt.

     The priest watched them, he gently stroked his chin with one hand.

     “The fact that the flower has died means the fruit is gone. As I said earlier when I have given the sacred seed, ‘the buds would sprout, then flowers would bloom, then the fruits would come.’ What’s more dangerous and unpredictable is not the flower, but the fruit and its content. Due to that, I had lied and told in advance that the flower is dangerous to make sure that you are ready to face them or not. That’s why we gathered all the sacred plants in the hall to guard them since it’d be too late after the fruit has come.”

     The hall door slightly opened behind the candidates. The priest guard had come out and whispered something in the ear of the chief priest.

     “I see, thank you. Open the door.”

     The curious candidates looked into the hall and screamed in unison, “What’s that?!”

     By Liz’s sprout were priest guards surrounding it, her plant had grown a white fruit after the flower petals fell. Moreover, it has grown to the size of Liz’s face.

     In fact, it’s swaying even in the absence of wind as if it had its own will.

     “Liz Stefan” the priest called her name.

     Liz turned to him and answered, “Yes.” she saw the serious expression of the chief priest. 

     “This is the first time that a sacred plant has grown this far since the selection of saint in Astoria. It’s a big fruit. Perhaps, something tremendously huge would come out of it. Be careful.” The chief priest lightly patted her on the shoulder. 

     “…How should I be careful?”

     The priest smiled ambiguously without answering and patted her again on the shoulder. She doesn’t know how or what she should be careful of. 

     ‘What did he mean? What did he want me to do?’

     Behind Liz, Grace was staring hard at the swaying fruit on Liz’s plant, she tightly bit her lip.

　* * * * *

     After the selection, Natalie was called to Grace’s room.

     “What’s wrong?” 

     It was only now that Natalie, the third daughter of a baron, was chosen as a candidate for saint, and was able to speak more to Grace, a daughter of a duke. She has been very grateful from the bottom of her heart.

     Grace always smiled gracefully, she wore fine, gorgeous dresses, and the way she spoke and manner was smooth and glamorous. Grace was someone Natalie admired.

     “Well, Natalie, this is just between us. The priest said that Liz’s sacred fruit is too big and dangerous. But it is only possible for us to remove the fruit with holy power. I’ve heard these stories since I’m the daughter of Duke Igner. So, I want one of the candidates to take away Liz’s fruit and that is you, Natalie, the one who had first to bloom her sacred flower, is worthy of such.”