Chapter 64: The Saintess’s Mistake – Rain’s POV - The silver haired young man’s back was broad and confident as he walked away. It shouldn’t have bothered me. And yet, as he walked away after telling me — quite bluntly to fuck off, I couldn’t summon a single clever retort. My jaw stayed tight, my nails biting into my palms. How dare he? I was the Saintess, even if I was a push over in my past life, I had the power to destroy everything he held dear in an instant, even though I hadn’t gained my full power back, it should be enough to deal with a common man. [Well, I like his guts.] The voice wasn’t my own. It flowed into my mind like a ripple across still water — gentle, melodic, yet carrying a weight that made my chest tighten. The Goddess. Her voice had first come to me right after I regressed. Before I regressed I had only been able to pray to the goddess but now due to the blessing I received before I regressed, I could speak with her freely. I remembered that moment all too clearly — the aftertaste of ash, the sharp sting of betrayal, and the suffocating feeling of flames eating away my flesh. Yes... I had died. In my past life, I had reached the academy and joined Reinhardt — the so-called hero that the Church announced. Together with my comrades, we fought through the First, Second, and Third Calamities. We bled, we starved, we sacrificed. And then, right before the Fourth... The man I called my lover. The man I trusted with my life. The man I had once been foolish enough to give my maidenhood to — let them accuse me of heresy. And stood by while they burned me alive. He didn’t even try to save me. No. He watched and even cheered for them. He wasn’t even a good hero. Always relying on us, never standing at the front when it truly mattered. We sacrificed ourselves so he could keep breathing, and he repaid us with cowardice. I had screamed until the flames claimed my voice. And the last thing I heard was Reinhardt calling me "a danger to the cause." Pathetic. This time would be different. ’Flare... Eve... they’re all alive in this world,’ I thought with a quiet, bitter smile. ’I’ll save them this time. I won’t let us die for a fraud.’ A Saintess’s duty was to follow the hero. But if the "hero" was a fraud who led the world into ruin, why should I obey? No. In this life, I would find someone worthy. Someone I could shape into a true hero — one who would stand at the front when the sky burned and the ground split. Someone like... Azel Thorne, the son of the Sword saint. He wasn’t present in my past life but the moment I had healed my mother I knew this world was not going to be the same as the past but he was here now... ’Just one man,’ I told myself. ’I can tolerate at least one man. Even after everything Reinhardt did, even after every touch that felt like a chain around my neck, I can at least put my faith — just a sliver into someone else.’ We would face the calamities together. And we would win. [I still think your plan has a lot of flaws,] the Goddess’s voice hummed, carrying the faintest trace of amusement. I sighed. She could be infuriating at times — like a child who enjoyed poking holes in my carefully laid plans. Like it wasn’t the future you that said I should return to the past to find someone worthy? [Yes. But you’ve already flopped your plan, foolish girl.] That made me blink. What do you mean? Before she could answer, a familiar voice called out. "Elga?" I turned to see a market woman rushing toward me and Mother, her apron swinging as she moved. Her eyes were glinting, her face stretched into a grin that could only mean gossip. Elga was one of Mother’s oldest friends. I’d seen her around since childhood, always the first to know anything worth knowing in Rochel. "Hehe~ Guess what, Hilda?" she said, practically bouncing on her feet. Mother raised a brow. "What happened?" "The prodigy Azel showed up in Rochel today." My heart skipped. Azel. He’s here. I almost wanted to throw my fists into the air like some giddy child. This was perfect. I could finally put my plan into motion — I just needed to change into something less... well... distracting, and then I’d go find him. "They said he was going to the market," Elga continued, "and he just left now. So I wondered if he came to your stall." ’No...’ The word slipped through my mind like a stone sinking into dark water. [You’ve doomed both of us, idiot,] the Goddess’s tone was flat, but I could almost picture her covering her face in exasperation. Elga leaned forward conspiratorially. "He has silver hair too. You can’t miss him." Mother’s eyes flashed with sudden realization. "Yes, he bought something from me earlier. Said he’d be back later." She smiled faintly, then looked almost thoughtful. "So he wasn’t lying when he said he wasn’t a noble, huh?" Then her gaze shifted to me. "But you were rude to him..." Her words struck deeper than they should have. I hadn’t known... I couldn’t exactly tell her the truth — that he was supposed to be the cornerstone of my new future. That I needed him more than I’d needed anyone in either lifetime. I kept my expression carefully neutral. [You can still reconcile,] the Goddess offered gently. [But I could feel his disappointment the moment he saw you.] That made my stomach knot. Disappointment? Did he not like me? [I believe it was your dressing.] Oh. Right. I glanced down at myself. The top I wore clung too tightly, emphasizing my chest far more than was necessary. My skirt was short enough to earn stares. The outfit was — if I were being brutally honest a deliberate rebellion from my first life, where modesty had been a prison. I wanted to look different, not like a push over... But... Azel’s eyes hadn’t lingered on me with desire. No. If anything, they’d looked at me with the same weary exasperation you might give a spoiled child throwing a tantrum in the middle of the street. It made something cold settle in my chest. I could still fix this. I would fix this. He was my ticket to a brand new life!