Violet Blooming in Patronage

"Oh my, pretty girl!"

Perhaps because of the work of the Viscountess Iskinder, the next day, Violet greeted the Countess Lysell with great tension. The beautiful Countess, with her sunlit milky hair and soft curvy eyes, smiled broadly at her. It was like a painting from a famous painting. Are all the nobles so pretty? Violet nervously grabbed the hem of her skirt and bowed her knees slightly to greet her, as she had learned from the Viscountess. Then the Countess' eyes widened.

"Uh, oh my."

"?"

Violet looked up with a question mark and the Countess had a really serious face. Is something wrong? I thought greeting is like this, was there something wrong? Violet was so nervous and stiff. But the Countess spoke completely unexpected.

"It looks like I have nothing to teach you. Do I really have something to teach you? I think you're better than my daughter."

When the Countess asked Anne who was next to Violet, Anne smiled and nodded. Anne seemed very proud that Violet had been praised.

"The Marquis wants education not only about etiquette but also about the whole country."

"Oh, that's right."

The Countess spoke to her and smiled warmly. But Violet thought that she didn't know when the Countess would end up like the Viscountess. With a firm expression on the face, Violet just prayed that she would not get hit by the whip again today. Perhaps the Countess was very strict because she was so high person. Her heart was pounding anxiously.

*

"That's not how you do it, the Saintess."

Sure enough. Violet lost her posture in three steps. The Countess approached and corrected her posture.

"Every time you walk, your face goes down. Your shoulders are shrugging. Stretch your back a little more and spread your shoulders a little wider back."

The Countess raised her hand and straightened Violet's waist. The Viscountess had said she didn't want to touch her, and she just gave her orders, but when the Countess held her with her hand, Violet had no idea what to do.

"Oh my, you are smart. You remember it right away. My daughter was a mess when I taught her."

Violet could not hear the Countess complain to ease her tension. It was simply because she was too tired to remember and applied what she had said. She then had lunch with the Countess. That fact was already worrying. In fact, eating was the culmination of all manners, and after she was pointed out many times by those who called it family, she always rolled her eyes anxiously and could not eat properly in front of others. Anne was always worried about that. And her prediction was not far off.

"It's the opposite direction, the Saintess."

At that, Violet was startled and dropped the knife that she was holding. It was said that the direction she cut the fish was different. Surprised by the criticism again, Violet even dropped the knife, making a clink on the plate. Violet came down from her chair. The Countess was seen puzzled, but Violet walked up to the Countess and rolled up her skirt.

"What kind of action is this, the Saintess?"

The Countess asked with a puzzled face. Violet had no choice but to speak in the hope that there would be less beating.

"I'll admit my mistake and be punished."

"......"

The Countess was silent for a moment. She wondered if this was what made her even more angry, then she glanced up at Violet's face who still knew nothing. Because Anne was out, the Countess could not ask anyone else properly, and she was compelled to seek answers from Violet, the subject of the act.

"Did the Viscountess Iskinder discipline you like this?"

At that question, Violet nodded her head. Once again, the Countess said nothing. Why don't you hit me? Are you angry? Violet closed her eyes tightly and cringed. Then she felt a warm embrace.

"Oh, the Saintess"

Violet was hugged and missed the hem of her rolled-up skirt. She lowered her hand to raise it again, and the Countess took Violet's hand.

"Relax, I'm not hitting the Saintess."

"......"

The Countess whispers saying so. Her sighing sigh felt a small breeze over Violet's head. The Countess smelled warm and nice. But Violet's body was hardened. Does she really, really doesn't hit me? Wouldn't I be punished in a different way?

"There will be no beating between us, I promise. Beating is a very savage way of discipline. Oh, my God, I've heard the story roughly, but I can't believe it......"

The Countess was sweet and kind. Fortunately, she didn't seem to want to hit Violet. Violet ate slowly, reading the Countess's countenance. Every time Violet did something, the Countess said, "Yes, that's right." and encouraged her. Thanks to this, the food problem, which she was always sensitive to, was solved better than Violet's worries. Violet was still frightened, but gradually half believed that the beautiful Countess would not hit her.

As time went by, Violet's demeanor became a little more relaxed, and the Countess's raucous compliments gave her some confidence. It must have been because she said that she was right, it was because she had such trust.

Daniel, who she met from time to time, also said that she was right. He even said that she really looked like a young lady. Aiden, whom she run into very occasionally, also wanted to argue with her, but his mouth twitched as if he could not do it.

But the problem was here.

"Uh..."

She couldn't read. Of course, the Viscountess taught her and Daniel helped her, but she was not perfectly versed in her writing. Furthermore, the Viscountess taught in a ruthless way without considering how far she understood and the extent of her understanding, so it was safe to say that Daniel was her teacher. When Violet looked at the Countess in embarrassment, the Countess immediately noticed what was wrong with Violet.

"It's okay, let's learn to write slowly. Now then, would you like to hear the story of how wonderful our Saintess is? Of course, even if you don't write... Oh, there's no point in talking about this."

Violet nodded at the gentle tone. It was similar to the story she knew.

In a world where evil invaded the world and was colored in darkness, no one believed in God and cried out calling out the name of God. Malum, the devil's servant, was so frightening that even the most talented knights could match it. And God's representative, Agrecia, the first saintess, announced the end of all darkness. However, evil did not disappear and came again, and the saintess also appeared and defeated evil. The country where the Saintess was born was here in Agrecia, where she defeated Malum. Thus, the name of the country was named Agrecia after the first saintess. It was just like in a fairy tale that her mother told her. In the fairy tale, there were boys, young people, and old people appeared, but the story told as historical facts was different. It was as if the Saintess in the fairy tale was treated as one of the great men of history. It was then that she first learned that the concept of a country called Agrecia had arisen. She always thought that Agrecia had existed from the old days.

"God has blessed us. God has made it possible for us to find you so quickly."

The Saintess is a symbol of God. God is the love of all the people, and it consists of 'benevolence'. The Saintess, the representative of the God, has the same status as the Pope who ascended to the highest position in the temple, and the King who is the most powerful in the country.

"That is the Saintess."

Like the positions of King and Pope, but higher than that. But was that really the case? No one thought so. The people here seemed to hate her. They respected her, but felt contempt for her. Wasn't it actually like the maid of the Marquis? Finn was the only kind maid, but she was kicked out. Fortunately, Anne was kind too...... but her face darkened.

"When the country is in crisis, a saintess who appears and saves the world. That's the Saintess."

Lina and Rose said they were waiting for the Saintess. What kind of being is the Saintess? There were times when she felt like a princess in the story her mother told her. What about the former Saintess Anastasia and the former Saintess Lucia? Unlike her, they must have looked like a real princess.

"Do I have to defeat Malum too?"

She asked. And the Countess nodded.

"When is Malum coming?"

"No one knows that. It could come right now, it could come tomorrow, or 10 years from now."

"......"

Violet was terrified. She was a penniless saintess who couldn't do anything right. But how am I supposed to defeat Malum? Violet thought God was mistaken, but she never thought of herself as a saintess.

"But don't worry. According to the records, the Malums appeared at least after the Saintess had grown up to a certain extent, after reaching adulthood. God is arranging for those things."

"......"

The age of adulthood was sixteen. It was said that it could be safe for at least the next six years. Unless God made a mistake.

"I can't do it."

How can she defeat Malum when she's scared just by looking at people in armor? How about that terrifying red-eyed monster that is said to be the size of a castle? When she realized that it was all she had to do, she wanted to run away right now. She had neither the strength nor the ability to do so. But how is she supposed to fight the monster as what has said by the Countess?

"You can do it. It's something all the saintesses of the past have done."

Violet felt a strange sense of incompatibility at the words. Apparently the Countess was encouraging her with warm words. But that was what everyone has been saying. So she had to do it too. It was like forcing. They said one day she suddenly became the Saintess. And they said she has to kill the terrifying monster she heard from her mother. This was said to be something that no one else could do and only she could do. But she was just a child who couldn't read yet and walk gracefully. At best, her ability to understand animals from time to time was all she could do. She couldn't ask the bird to kill Malum.

"The former Saintess Anastasia and the former Saintess Lucia could do it."

Both Anastasia and Lucia must be girls who were really different from her, like princesses from fairy tales. Violet had heard from the Viscountess that it was the first time that a humble person become a saintess. All the saintesses in the past were precious ladies of noble families. The Viscountess said that, and looked at her with suspicion from time to time whether she was a real saintess. When asked about her parents' jobs and said it was a butcher's house, the Viscountess frowned as if she had heard something dirty. But it was Violet herself who most doubted that she was a saintess.

Why should I do that? She had a fundamental question. Why me? But she realized intuitively. She knew that it was because of this that she can be here without being beaten up, eat delicious meals, wear pretty clothes and sleep comfortably. So she couldn't ask. No, she buried the underlying question in her chest. It was because the question itself felt like something that should never have happened.

Why should I do that?

But the question was, it was always been the question. And it was also a question that was engraved in the sky again after 100 years.