"Urk!"
That was the first sound that I heard the moment I left Lilas's room. Rinne, who was covered in sweat, was standing right next to the door with an expression on her face that I had never seen before.
Was it confusion or disgust?
Rinne wore light clothing, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. Her legs trembled as if she could hardly stand with her own weight any longer. Her breathing was harsh, but she mostly kept it under control.
She looked behind me; small footsteps followed. I turned back to Lilas, who was already fully dressed in her priestly vestments. Even I couldn't help but mimic Rinne's expression as I wondered how and when she managed to change while I was in the room with her.
"You truly are a disgusting man," Rinne muttered behind my back.
"Good morning to you as well," I said, holding back a sigh. Explaining myself to her would be more trouble than it was worth.
"Good morning, Mother Lilas." She spoke in a completely different tone while addressing Lilas. "I hope you slept well." She forced a smile as she put her hands behind her back.
"Hmm…" Lilas leaned forward, catching Rinne off guard.
"W-what?" Rinne backed up, looking slightly embarrassed as she twisted the end of her golden hair.
Lilas bowed down. "Sorry for yesterday. I was a bit harsh."
"O-oh…t-that?" Rinne scratched her cheek. "I was the one in the wrong. I let my imagination run wild."
Lilas straightened herself back up, looking at me with an exasperated expression as if not knowing how to proceed. I patted her on the back as I walked away. She wanted to bring up that incident; she was on her own.
After all, Rinne was fully justified.
I took a short stroll through the courtyard, passing several chapel members at work. It was midday, given the lighting of the Middle Core, which was no surprise since we had returned to the chapel late.
Near the edge of the courtyard, bordering the hallway, stood a woman dressed neatly. Her long brown hair flowed down to her waist as the artificial wind that blew stroked its fingers through it. She was the only member of the church that I had met who was normal.
"Good morning, Sister Claire," I said while I approached her.
"Golden Steam," she said, turning around. There was a brass watering can in her hands. In front of her were small potted plants starting to sprout. "Though I wouldn't call it morning, you know." She chuckled. "Sara told me a little about what happened. She's surprisingly resilient."
"For better or for worse," I said with a shrug of my shoulders.
"How's Lilas?" She set down the watering can and leaned against a pillar supporting the roof over the hallway. "Mother Kili told me that you went into her room last night and never came out." Claire pouted a little as she looked me up and down. "It's rude to keep a woman waiting, you know. Mother Kili stayed up all night for you to return. She was so angry that Rinne had to run several laps around the halls until she calmed down."
"Things happened." I scratched my head. "I'll apologize to Mother Kili later."
"As you should. Despite her childlike appearance, she is quite the monster."
"And who is 'childlike'?"
Mother Kili walked around the corner with Saint Edmond and Sara at her side. The bags under her eyes were darker than usual. She held a mug in her left hand, steaming with the aroma of freshly ground coffee.
"Busted," Claire playfully said. "Oooh, you look so cute!" Claire clapped her hands together at the sight of Sara.
She wore the same vestments as Claire, tailored to her size. Sara blushed; she pinched the ends of her clothing. On her back was the weapon I had made for her, strapped on with a leather belt bearing the church's symbol.
"As of today," Saint Edmond spoke like a proud father. "Sara here will officially be named Sister Sara. We are going around introducing her to the other priests and priestesses right now."
"With Father Muller out on a mission, who will she be shadowing? Or will you have her in classes for the time being?" Claire said, tilting her head towards the saint.
"As of right now, she will continue to shadow Golden Steam as planned. Once Father Muller returns, you and he will be in charge of her education. As for Lilas," the saint turned to me, his old eyes narrowing, almost as if smiling in a way. "I will be assigning Lilas to your care, seeing as she looks a lot happier after one night with you—"
"Mind your manners." Kili kicked him in the shin.
"Yes, yes," Saint Edmond said. "But in all seriousness, after what happened yesterday, I believe it best for her to act as your shield in your battle with the cult. Now that they know your face, I believe investigating them will prove harder, no?"
"Well, the seventh has seen my face before, but I will not refuse the extra hands," I said. Both Kili and Claire smiled while the saint's eyes widened with genuine surprise.
"And here I thought you would protest about having to look after Mother Lilas."
"You claimed it to be a babysitting job," I said, looking straight at the saint with a firm eye. Kili and Claire stepped back so as not to get in the way. "Yet she proved herself more than capable, unlike some washed-up bag of dust I know."
Saint Edmond chuckled. "Well now, doesn't the broken soul still fight within him? You will always amuse me."
"Huff…huff…"
As we stared at each other in silence, the sound of heavy breathing approached us. There were no footsteps, just the sound of a tired breath. I turned to see Rinne, her eyes focused on one woman in particular.
Rinne reached into her clothes and pulled out one of the spiral daggers I made for her. She bit the bottom of her lip as she picked up speed. Kili handed Sara her coffee. The saint pulled Sara aside and watched, smiling.
I tried to shout, but something warm and soft covered my mouth. "Watch," Claire whispered in my ear, her breath a gentle tickle on my ear. I relaxed and stood next to Claire.
Rinne sprang forward, her silent steps bouncing off the ground as if she were lighter than air. Kili placed her hands into her pockets as Rinne stepped next to her, thrusting the dagger towards her chest. Kili pulled out a scalpel with her right hand to block the attack.
Rinne feinted her blow, a sharp whoosh of air trailing her movements as she spun a graceful, blurring dance. Her golden hair was like a silk ribbon drawing my eye. For a moment, I caught a glimpse of Rinara—those scarlet eyes, always hungry for a battle. Rinne carried them, but they were flawed. She looked around, looking for her next moment to strike—Kili's back. Kili pivoted hard, her boots scraping the ground. She moved to block the attack, but in the same instant, Rinne leaped high above. She flipped into an axe kick. Kili blocked her with her left forearm as she did; she threw the scalpel into the air. Kili grabbed her leg in the same swift moment with her right hand and threw Rinne towards me.
"I got you!" I said as Rinne slammed into my chest. She was breathing hard as she dropped the dagger onto the ground.
"65 points." Kili brushed off her sleeves. The scalpel she threw came back down, landing in her hands. She spun it around her fingers before putting it away. "Your breathing gave you away. You thought too hard about your next location, making you predictable. Turn off your brain, allow your heart to dictate your moves."
"Y-you are…huff…I-impossible," Rinne said with ragged breaths as she grabbed onto me. She stood up, using me for support as she moved behind me. She peeked out from behind, gripping my sides hard.
"Cute," Saint Edmond muttered faintly, with mocking eyes. I shot him a quick glare, and he responded with a mocking smile.
"Well," Kili said, "that will do for today. You still have a job to do." Kili waved her hand as she turned her back to us. Sara and the saint followed. Kili stopped, then looked over her shoulder. "Golden Steam, give me about an hour or so to finish with Sister Sara. I'll send her your way."
As they walked off, I felt a kick to the back of my leg. "Meanie," Rinne muttered. "Also, I'm sorry. It was childish of me to lash out at you…After what Lilas told me…I realized if I stayed, we all might have gotten killed because of my volatile actions."
I wonder if that would have actually happened? Maybe, or maybe not. Though I doubt it would have gotten to that point. If Rinne had been with us, maybe that would have saved us the trouble of Sara getting captured. Lilas might have even been able to help me sooner, since she wouldn't have to worry about Sara.
I smiled as I rubbed Rinne's head. "As Kili said, you think too much. Listen to your heart. If you are anything like your mother or grandfather, it will guide you."
"…" Rinne grabbed my hand and pushed it off. "Don't treat me like a child," she pouted.
"But you did well."
"Huh?" Rinne looked up.
"Your movements, they were like a mix of your mother's and grandfather's."
"Grandfather?" She tilted her head.
I guess I never told her that my Master is her grandfather. "Yeah, he's the one who took me in at your mother's request."
"He was quite the…interesting man." Claire, who had been watching with an amused look the entire time, spoke. Rinne seemed to have just realized she was there and pushed off of me with her face a deep red. "So, are you gonna take her in as your daughter, just like that man did for you?" Claire asked with a gentle smile.
Rinne looked at me with anticipation. She didn't seem to be completely opposed to the idea, even after the rough start to our relationship. But maybe she just wanted a place to stay.
The longer I stayed quiet, the deeper the frown on her face grew. I turned to Claire, whose smile had disappeared too.
"What? I didn't even say anything yet," I said.
Claire shook her head, gentle ripples being sent through her hair. "This was one of those moments where you were supposed to say 'of course' without wasting a moment to spare. You did it when defending Lilas."
"That was—" I stopped myself. "My intention was always to take in Rinne." I looked at her. "I don't know why you thought otherwise."
There was a warm smile that swept across Rinne's face. A smile that I wanted to cherish. A smile that would eventually end me—
"Oof!" I felt a blow to the back of the head.
"Maybe you should take pointers from Mother Kili's lesson and stop thinking," Claire said. "You seriously have one mean mug."
"Sorry for being born this way," I said, scratching the back of my head.
Maybe she was right. Things don't always go as planned, after all.