The Failure Marquis Is A Genius [EN]: Chapter 135

George was a commoner from the Holy Kingdom.

He felt fortunate to have been born in this country.

In the Empire, if you got hurt or sick, finding treatment was difficult.

Nobles could afford doctors or priests in their homes, but what money did a commoner like him have?

In contrast, in Bellanus [the Holy Kingdom], priests were always on standby, and even commoners like George could receive some medical benefits.

He lived gratefully, until he got married and had a child.

His son, Joel, was the apple of his eye.

But the child had a big problem.

Joel was crippled.

“Why… why… sob…”

Until then, he hadn’t given up hope.

He took his young son to the temple.

A priest should be able to heal him.

They were the best healers on the continent.

“Our divine power is not enough. Perhaps the Saintess could do it.”

The Saintess could do it.

Only the word ‘Saintess’ lingered in George’s mind.

From then on, he sold his possessions one by one.

He sold his house, his farmland, and his furniture.

He barely scraped together 500 gold, his entire fortune.

Finally, he was able to meet the Saintess.

“What a pitiful child. Bellanus will surely help you.”

Saintess Repli was so gentle, radiant, and warm.

George firmly believed that this beautiful woman would save Joel.

Fwoosh!!!

The divine power emitted filled the room.

Then, a miracle was about to happen.

Joel was trembling as he tried to stand up!!

“Joel! Hang in there! You can do it!”

He cried out desperately, but the miracle only went that far.

Joel, who had raised himself halfway, slumped back down.

And then he returned to being a cripple.

“It’s a pity. Joel was not chosen by Bellanus.”

“What are you talking about? Isn’t Bellanus a fair god to everyone?”

“Bellanus also has emotions like us. He tends to favor humans who show more sincerity.”

He couldn’t understand.

How could such a statement come from the mouth of the Saintess, who was called the incarnation of Bellanus?

“Then, please return the donation I made. That was my entire fortune.”

“Bellanus will be very pleased with your sincerity, brother.”

“Huh?”

“Brother, can’t you hear? Bellanus is pleased. So please go back now.”

He was dumbfounded and speechless.

She couldn’t even heal his son and just swallowed his fortune.

This was highway robbery.

George resisted fiercely, and as a result, he was beaten black and blue and kicked out of the temple with Joel.

After that, he spent his nights drinking.

He was so upset and angry that he couldn’t sleep.

His heart ached whenever he saw his son crawling on the ground.

‘I thought it was a blessing to be born in the Holy Kingdom, but it was actually a curse.’

George even had extreme thoughts.

He’d rather die with his son than live like this…

“Hey, have you heard the news?”

Small talk with a colleague he was close to at work.

“What news?”

“About the [Shadow Saintess].”

George shuddered at the mere mention of the word Saintess.

“I don’t know anything about it.”

“Haha! It’s a complete mess these days, haven’t you heard of it?”

“Do I have to know?”

“Of course. The Shadow Saintess is a priestess who works in the shadows, and there’s no disease she can’t cure.”

George scoffed.

No disease she can’t cure?

Even the Saintess couldn’t raise Joel.

From that day on, George had long abandoned his faith.

“It’s probably just a quack.”

“If she were a fraud, she wouldn’t have become famous. You know Luke, right? He fell from a high place while building a temple and became paralyzed.”

“I know him.”

“Luke has found a new life.”

“…What?”

“Luke, who had a broken spine, is living like a normal person! If you don’t believe me, go and see for yourself.”

Hesitant, George immediately threw down his shovel and went to see Luke.

Luke was running around actively, just like his colleague said.

“The Shadow Saintess is the light and hope of my life. When all the priests shook their heads, she was the only one who looked back at me.”

“Why do you call her a Saintess?”

“She says she’s the real Saintess and that Saintess Repli is a fake. At first, I dismissed it as a joke, but now I believe it. The Shadow Saintess is the real Saintess.”

A scene flashed through George’s mind.

Saintess Repli, who couldn’t heal his son Joel and only swallowed his donation.

The woman who even spouted the nonsense that God’s love is distributed differently depending on the amount of offering.

Could Repli really be a fake and the Shadow Saintess be the real one?

He had nothing to lose anyway, and it wouldn’t hurt to try.

“Luke, I want to meet the Shadow Saintess. How can I meet her?”

* * *

Swish!!

A holy light spread.

The broken arm was completely attached.

The patient, who had been complaining of severe pain until just now, touched his arm with a bewildered expression.

“What on earth…”

“It is the blessing of Bellanus.”

The patient, feeling completely recovered, shed tears of emotion.

“Thank you! I am a carpenter. When I injured my right arm, I was in despair, but the Shadow Saintess saved me.”

The masked girl sitting across from him replied.

“I am the Shadow Saintess, but I am the real Saintess. The Saintess under the sun is the fake Saintess.”

“Of course. I have witnessed a miracle, how can I deny it? From today on, the real Saintess in my heart is the Shadow Saintess.”

The patient repeatedly bowed his head and left.

The room became quiet for a moment.

Marian, who had taken off her mask, had an uneasy expression.

“Khan, is this really okay? If Saintess Repli finds out about my existence, she will send soldiers.”

After Marian decided to become the real Saintess, Khan instructed her to perform healing acts using divine power.

Originally, it was the Saintess’s duty to take care of patients.

However, until now, all the young women who demonstrated divine power were taken from the temple.

Marian had heard exactly what hardships the women who were dragged away suffered in the temple, so she gradually made her name known from the shadows.

After preparing a safe house, she healed those with uncomfortable bodies after blindfolding them if they wished.

At first, the patients were hesitant, but after experiencing Marian’s amazing divine power, they spread rumors throughout the neighborhood.

As a result, she quickly became famous as the Shadow Saintess.

Another reason Marian became famous was that she did not charge any treatment fees.

She treated everyone fairly, regardless of the severity of their injuries, and did not expect any compensation.

Except for the eggs or fruits that they left behind out of gratitude even after she repeatedly declined, it was virtually unpaid treatment.

For every patient she treated, Marian emphasized that she was the real Saintess and that Saintess Repli, who was currently in the Holonium Grand Temple, was a fake.

At first, the patients who received treatment showed hesitation because of their reverence for the existing Saintess, even though they had received great favor.

However, as the Shadow Saintess’s miracles continued day after day and even a fandom was formed, the atmosphere changed.

Followers who truly regarded Marian as the real Saintess appeared here and there.

“Nothing will be solved if you just sit still. Eventually, you will clash with Repli someday. Before that, you need to maximize your recognition.”

While Marian was talking, the door burst open.

“Khan.”

“What.”

“Holy Kingdom troops are approaching.”

“The safe house has been exposed.”

“That’s right.”

“Move to the next safe house.”

Safety is more important than any other factor.

Because if Marian is caught, it’s over.

Sion and Campbell were mobilized to focus all their efforts on her safety.

Sion, who had returned after a long time, was a great help here.

Originally an assassin and specialized in information warfare, she mocked the Holy Kingdom search party.

All the enemy’s movements were in her palm, and the Holy Kingdom soldiers repeatedly missed us in the empty space where we had disappeared.

We continued our treatment in the moved hideout.

The next patient was a sturdy man who came in carrying his son on his back.

His nose was red, and he seemed to be slightly addicted to alcohol.

“Welcome. Welcome in the name of Bellanus.”

“Are you the Shadow Saintess?”

“Yes. To be exact, I am the real Saintess.”

“If you are the real Saintess, please heal my son.”

The son was pitifully crippled.

The father’s eyes were full of distrust.

He seemed convinced that Marian could never heal his son.

Did he get burned badly somewhere?

“This child needs the care of Bellanus. I will give you a blessing.”

Swoosh!!!

A tremendous divine power raged.

After that, the crippled son stood up trembling.

There was no one to support him.

He leaned against the wall himself and walked slowly.

He himself did not seem to believe this situation.

“Father, I can walk! I can walk!”

“Joel! Is it real? Take your hand off the wall. It may be a temporary phenomenon.”

The child called Joel took his hand off the wall.

Even after that, Joel walked just fine.

Rather, he gradually adapted and even ran slightly.

George’s eyes gradually turned red.

“Hoo, hoo-hoo!! Thank you!! Saintess! Now I have no regrets even if I die.”

“I am just an agent of Bellanus. Give thanks to Bellanus. More than that, Joel’s life is just beginning. It’s not good for you to easily say that you’re going to die, Father.”

After rejoicing as if he could fly, a dark cloud hung over George’s face.

“Shadow Saintess, I’m sorry. In fact, I have no money at all. I donated all my property to the temple and entrusted my son’s treatment, but I was robbed of my property and my son was not treated.”

George expected a stern order to be issued immediately.

What he had done was no different from eating without paying.

He was worried that Joel’s legs would be broken again.

But what came back was a warm smile instead of a cold answer.

“It’s okay. Bellanus’s love is fair to everyone. It is enough reward for me to see Joel running to his heart’s content.”

George’s heart sank.

The Saintess Repli, whom he had met a while ago, said this.

‘God’s love is distributed differently depending on how much you offer to God.’

However, the words of the Shadow Saintess, who also served Bellanus, were completely different.

‘God’s love is fair to everyone.’

George instinctively felt like he knew who the real Saintess was.

“Saintess, you are our savior. Thank you for coming. Sob…”

Today, he gained another passionate believer.

The Shadow Saintess’s progress was smooth.

* * *

Bellanus Holy Kingdom.

Holonium Grand Temple.

A blonde woman in loose clothes was drinking wine straight from the bottle with her bare feet on the table.

The chapel was a mess.

Broken flowerpots and torn portraits were scattered all over the floor, and leftover food was rotting and stinking.

Knock knock

“It’s Crimson.”

A Holy Knight entered as the door opened.

The knight frowned at the messy interior, but soon straightened his posture.

“Did you call me?”

“Yeah. Clean up a bit.”

The Holy Knight belongs to the high-ranking personnel in the temple.

He is treated as the Sword of God and his salary is high.

But what’s the use?

It’s insignificant compared to the power the Saintess has.

Besides, he had an important reason to absolutely obey Repli.

“…I understand. Oh, Incarnation of Lust.”

Because he was a Holy Knight and a Twilight Cultist.

Crimson, holding a rag instead of a sword, began to clean.

Repli, who was kicking empty cans with her feet, opened her mouth.

“I heard there’s a cheeky girl impersonating me these days?”

“Are you talking about the Shadow Saintess?”

“Yeah. Of course you caught her, right?”

“Sorry… Cough!”

The glass ashtray that the Saintess threw hit Crimson’s forehead squarely.

Red blood ran down his forehead to his chin.

“Are you crazy? You still haven’t caught her?”

“I’m sorry. She’s so elusive that I can’t figure it out.”

“To think that such an incompetent guy is also a Twilight Cultist, nothing has worked out since Francis died.”

Crimson, who was silently cleaning the room while bleeding, replied.

“It seems that the Shadow Saintess is not a woman acting alone. There is definitely a backing force.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to avoid our eyes so surely. Someone is helping her.”

The chapel was almost clean.

Repli was annoyed throughout the cleaning.

It was then.

The voice of the Archbishop was heard from outside.

“Saintess, a letter has arrived.”

The Saintess receives hundreds of letters every day.

It’s that popular of a position.

99% of the letters have been burned in the fireplace under Repli’s orders.

Only 1% of the letters barely survive, and they are usually business letters from influential people such as nobles or wealthy merchants.

“Tell me who sent it.”

“It’s an adventurer named Khan.”

“Khan? Who is that?”

Crimson, who was next to her, supplemented the explanation.

“He is an unparalleled genius adventurer who recently caught the Keeper of the Beast Forest and was promoted to Orichalcon [a high adventurer rank]. He inherited the title of Demon Slayer instead of the missing Henon Lloyd.”

“These days, every dog and cow is called a Demon Slayer. Anyway, give it to me.”

The Incarnation of Lust’s face hardened as she tore open the envelope and read the letter.

“What does it say?”

“Why don’t you read it?”

Crimson, who received the letter, checked the contents.

It was written there.

[I know the backing of the Shadow Saintess. -Khan-]

The content of the letter was shocking itself.

Crimson was speechless.

A suffocating force emanated from the Incarnation of Lust.

“Did you say Khan? Bring him to me right now.”