Chapter 212: “Disaster” Approaches

At first, Philomina was anxious, worried that Little Seven, seeing her in such a state, might report it to her grandfather, Pope August Lambert.

As the head of the family, he had nurtured Philomina since childhood to become the future Redeeming Saintess, repeatedly advising and urging her to maintain dignity and elegance at all times, so as not to tarnish the reputation of the Saintess and the divine lineage.

Because of this, even at a young age in her teens, Philomina displayed a noble demeanor full of charm, earning her the title of “Born Saintess.”

But there’s no such thing as a natural Saintess, and the expectations from others and her family naturally put a lot of pressure on her. Occasionally, when she relaxed in private, she would express her frustration with more laziness and disheartenment.

This was enough to make her usually gentle grandfather frown and lecture her for at least half an hour about her “ungraceful behavior.”

However, in reality, despite witnessing such behaviors multiple times by coincidence, Little Seven had never shown any unusual reaction and neither did her grandfather or the instructor responsible for teaching “Saintess Etiquette” ever come to confront her.

This can only mean that Little Seven kept all she had seen a secret and hadn’t told anyone else.

Due to this surprising discovery, and thinking of her true identity, Philomina began to try to relax more in front of this maid who took care of her, showing a more casual and easygoing attitude.

Little Seven didn’t disappoint her. Although she would occasionally throw in remarks like, “You look too disheartened; that’s not fitting for a Princess,” or “If you keep this up, it will make it hard for me to clean your room,” it felt more like casual banter between friends than pressure compared to her grandfather.

Being with Little Seven was enjoyable and relaxing.

This was someone who knew Philomina’s true self but still chose to accept her… her only friend.

Gradually, the Saintess began to share some girlhood secrets that were hard to discuss with others with Little Seven, who would just quietly listen, occasionally objecting with phrases like, “You shouldn’t say that to me; I’m just a maid,” yet still tolerated all of Philomina’s flaws with an expressionless face.

This made Philomina, who had been raised under strict education and requirements, feel a warm care that was somewhere between friendship and maternal love.

So much so that their relationship had developed to the point where the Saintess was willing to share significant secrets regarding the inherited artifacts with Little Seven.

Because in this world, Little Seven was the only one who would never betray her.

“Alright, alright, but you’re right; a little rest is fine. Thankfully, that crowd outside hasn’t contracted the plague; otherwise, it would be a hassle to deal with. We should prepare to set off again. We must reach Sacheno City before tomorrow morning to meet up with Yuna and the main force.”

The Redeeming Saintess sat up, as if to rally her spirits, and vigorously patted her rosy cheeks, producing a “slap, slap” sound; Little Seven, having long been in sync with her, nodded in agreement.

“Yes, then, Your Highness, I will relay your orders to the army to…?!”

Before she could finish, the girl dressed in a black-and-white maid outfit suddenly froze, her bioprinted pupils, which looked almost indistinguishable from humans, rapidly constricting as if a mechanism were spinning. Her delicate frame tensed up, and her posture…

Was like a wild animal instinctively taking a defensive stance against a natural enemy.

“…Little Seven?”

Although the maid’s face always bore an expressionless look, after nearly ten years of companionship, Philomina could sense when anything was off with her maid, even from the slightest movement, and inferred the corresponding information.

“Are there enemies?”

In a flash, the Saintess had grasped a strange short staff that was less than half a meter long, the golden gem at its top blooming like a flower, and her gaze turned serious and sharp.

“Detected high energy reaction; unable to determine value… Detected demon reaction, significant deviation from recorded data, race determination failed, combat power index assessment ongoing… Assessment failed, index exceeds standard limit.”

The gears-like pupils in Little Seven’s beautiful eyes spun rapidly. Although her face still showed no signs of emotion, from her tense reaction and hurried voice, the Saintess realized the severity of the situation.

This maid robot gifted by her grandfather, while looking as delicate as a regular human girl, was actually a super-strong guardian capable of protecting the Redeeming Saintess, albeit not very proficient in direct combat.

According to popular tales, she was considered equivalent to a legendary top-tier powerhouse and had saved Philomina from crisis multiple times. Even now, the Saintess was still unclear about the limits of her maid’s combat abilities.

But to hear Little Seven say… that the combat power index exceeded the upper limit?

“Crisis level determination: Disaster level, highest response plan – Princess Philomina, please retreat immediately; I will buy you time.”

Though her voice remained as flat as ever, Philomina almost seemed to hear a resolute resolve from Little Seven, as if she would risk her life to protect her.

This brought on a moment of intense panic at the thought of losing this close friend.

Consequently, the words of refusal almost slipped out of her mouth.

“No!”

Philomina jumped up, grabbing the hand of the maid who was about to turn and leave, feeling the warmth and delicacy that was no different from that of any ordinary girl in her fingertips, and she tried to argue firmly as if to convince herself.

“No matter what, let’s at least meet the enemy first! With the priest brigade and the temple knights for protection, even if it’s the disaster-level enemy you mentioned, it won’t necessarily end poorly; after all, I am the Redeeming Saintess.”

“…”

The mechanical eyes, spinning like gears, met with the pale golden eyes of the pink-haired girl in the air. Little Seven was silent for a moment, then nodded expressionlessly as Philomina had predicted.

“Misjudged both sides’ combat power levels; estimated survival rate post-conflict is below one percent. A foolish decision, but if it’s the command of Princess Philomina… I will comply.”

The gears representing some kind of emergency mode spun rapidly before gradually fading from the maid’s eyes, which returned to a normal humanoid form. She gently released the Saintess’s hand and seemed to blend into the environment like a chameleon, quickly disappearing from sight.

Though she couldn’t see with her eyes, Philomina knew this was just Little Seven’s way of hiding her figure. All along, she had been standing by her side quietly, serving as the last line of defense for the Redeeming Saintess.

“Phew…”

Taking a deep breath, the girl attempted to sweep away the cries for help and the urge to flee deep within her heart, once again becoming the capable Redeeming Saintess. After a simple adjustment to her appearance, she confidently stepped out of the carriage.

Outside, in the temporary camp set up by the army, at least several hundred fully armed temple knights and priests formed a wall, barring certain things that Philomina couldn’t see.

The sounds of commotion were constant, and while the energy state in the air indicated that there hadn’t yet been a real outbreak of violence, both sides—or rather, the guards of the Saintess—were already on high alert, golden light flowing between the holy staff and weapons, ready to engage at any moment.

Philomina felt a jolt of fear.

Had they really managed to slip past the outer troops and get this close?

Such explicitly targeted actions indicated that their objective could only be her, the Redeeming Saintess.

   

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