Chapter 6: A Priest’s Return and a New Presence

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“How does it taste, Emil?”

“It’s truly delicious.”

The food tasted good. In truth, Lauren wasn’t particularly skilled at cooking. She had begun her married life at an early age and had been raised quite delicately.

When she had Emil, she was merely sixteen. At that tender age, she had married and borne a child.

However, the stew he was eating now was far more delicious than Emil remembered. Perhaps it was merely a stark contrast to the abysmal fare at the seminary, but regardless, Emil truly felt his appetite return for the first time in years.

He yearned to eat with decorum, yet his profound hunger made it utterly impossible. Lauren’s expression was alight with excitement as she watched Emil hastily spooning the stew into his mouth.

“That’s a relief. I worried you might have grown accustomed to the seminary food and wouldn’t eat well…”

“The food at school was so dreadful it can’t even compare to this.”

Emil briefly recalled the seminary’s meals and shuddered violently. He would often clutch his stomach at night, tormented by the gnawing pangs of hunger.

Those who graduated from the seminary to become priests were individuals who had surrendered their lives and souls to God. For them, money, honor, power, or any other superficial pursuits held no meaning whatsoever.

Therefore, the school consistently emphasized the cultivation of frugality.

Consequently, Emil’s diet consisted solely of coarse bread, stew with barely any ingredients, or small portions of vegetables. He didn’t know about the other students, but for Emil, it was never enough.

At the time, he was in the throes of adolescence, growing rapidly, and he was among the youngest students in the entire seminary.

The seminary had no age restrictions; anyone who chose the path of priesthood could enter, regardless of age. Similarly, those who heard the voice of God could enter irrespective of their age.

Unlike the other students who entered as adults, Emil always remained hungry, even when he cleverly managed to snag extra portions of food.

Lauren gazed at Emil with profound satisfaction as he readily helped himself to the food she had prepared. When she first saw Emil, dressed in his priestly robes, arriving home, he had seemed utterly unfamiliar.

Yet, seeing him eat with such fervent enthusiasm, his eyes sparkling, he was undeniably the beloved son she remembered.

“Oh, where are my manners?”

Lauren, who had been happily watching her son eat, startled, rose from her seat.

“I found some good wine because you were coming, but I completely forgot about it! Just a moment, dear.”

“Ah, Mother…”

Emil called out to his mother, intending to politely refuse, but Lauren had already stepped outside before he could stop her. Emil watched the doorway where his mother had disappeared for a long moment, then slowly turned his head.

He saw Yanis silently spooning stew. Here he was, alone with a strange man in the home that had always belonged solely to him and his mother.

A tension coiled in his spine. Feeling Emil’s gaze, Yanis looked up. Emil hastily lowered his head, but not before their gazes met for a fleeting instant.

Yanis smiled, his eyes crinkling gently at the corners, just as before.

“Does the meal suit your taste? If it’s not enough, I can bring you more.”

“Ah, no, I’m fine.”

The man asked politely. This was Lauren’s home, and Emil was Lauren’s son, yet Yanis attempted to assume the role of host. Emil felt an inexplicable awkwardness in this situation.

Emil glanced at his nearly empty bowl for a moment, swallowed hard, then opened his mouth.

“Um, that…”

“Please, feel free to call me by my name. Yanis will suffice.”

He was soon to be Emil’s stepfather. Emil felt it improper to call him by his first name, but he couldn’t find an appropriate title for him. Emil reluctantly nodded.

“Yanis, how did you… meet my mother?”

“Ah.”

As if recalling a distant memory, Yanis gazed into the air for a moment at Emil’s question.

“It was by chance.”

“By chance, you say.”

“Most encounters are by chance. I was on my way to Capella, you see.”

Capella was a bustling metropolis and the nation’s capital, located in the central part of the continent. It was a central hub for transportation, connecting all regions of the continent, and simultaneously the birthplace of all culture and trends.

Emil had come from Agria, a town situated to the west of Capella.

“I met Lauren on a day I was staying overnight. More precisely… Lauren had an episode on the day I was staying at the inn.”

“Ah.”

Though he hadn’t been there, the situation materialized vividly before his eyes. Emil himself had experienced similar incidents often in his childhood. His mother, who didn’t maintain a regular connection with a Guide, constantly suppressed herself.

However, whenever her physical or mental strength reached its limits, she would lose control of her abilities. Building their home in an isolated location, far from the village, was partly for this very reason.

“Jack seemed to have tried to help her, but his abilities made it difficult to assist Lauren.”

“I see…”

“Her ability affected even the inn where I was staying, so I ended up helping her.”

“Ah…”

The scene from that time unfolded before his eyes. Flames erupting from his mother’s fingertips, igniting various spots in their home, and the subsequent scramble to extinguish them, had been commonplace for young Emil.

However, he knew the villagers would not have reacted with such calm familiarity.

“It’s late, but thank you. I should have been there to help my mother.”

“Is there not a duty more important than family for one called by God?”

Yanis gently shook his head at the belated gratitude.

“How was your time at the seminary?”

At the man’s question, Emil recalled his school life. It had been an arduous experience.

Leaving behind a life with his mother that, while not abundant, was never truly lacking, his days at the seminary, where he knew no one, were profoundly lonely and arduous. Among the hundred-odd students, his peers could be counted on one hand, and his opportunities to send letters to his mother were limited.

However, there were just as many good memories. The ability to immerse himself in prayer for hours on end, undisturbed, reading scriptures and attending classes all day, was an invaluable experience impossible to find outside those walls.

When he shared his concerns or prayer requests with his fellow students, they all listened intently and prayed with him. For Emil, who had experienced God’s grace through a chance encounter, it was an immeasurably precious time.

“…It was a profoundly good time. I also had many experiences I wouldn’t have had if I’d stayed home.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. When I was home, I couldn’t attend Mass on Sundays. My village friends invited me a few times, but I was also rejected because my mother was an Esper.”

Typically, Espers and Guides manifested their abilities through generational succession. The people of the village church, however, could not conceal their astonishment when Emil, the son of an Esper, was admitted to the seminary.

The seminary’s admission requirements were stringent. One needed not only the resolve to dedicate their life and soul to God for the remainder of their days but also to pass examinations that spanned several days and nights.

Yet, after Emil’s admission to the seminary was confirmed, the entire village celebrated his acceptance with a feast, as if they had never once shunned him.

“Actually,”

Yanis quietly began.

“I was surprised. Not only that Lauren had a son, but also that her son had entered the seminary.”

“It’s certainly not a common occurrence, after all.”

Emil had sought out and questioned all his peers, seniors, and teachers at the seminary, but he was the only one with an Esper or Guide in his family.

A brief silence fell. Emil gazed at the door where his mother had exited for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth.

“I heard you’re engaged to my mother.”

“…Ah.”

The man, who had been slowly stirring his soup, blinked deliberately then nodded. He watched Emil with a subtle expression.

“That’s right. …I should have been the one to tell you, but you found out first.”

Emil, too, felt frustrated to learn such news from a third party rather than those directly involved. It was distasteful to have such a significant matter concerning his only family member bandied about like mere gossip.

The man, who had maintained a gentle smile in front of Lauren, now gazed at Emil with an unreadable expression.

“I also found out quite suddenly… It seems my mother couldn’t bring herself to tell me.”

Indeed, Lauren felt a great burden in conveying the news of her remarriage to Emil. It was evident from how she would glance nervously at Emil whenever Yanis showed a slight affection, or how her eyes would dart anxiously between them during their brief exchanges.

Having raised her son alone for so long after her husband’s death, it was natural for her to be concerned about Emil’s reaction.

“…Nevertheless, I’m truly relieved.”

Yanis tilted his head, his gaze silently urging Emil to continue.

“Relieved that… you’ve come to my mother. I prayed for quite a long time. If there was a reason for calling me, an Esper’s son, to His side, then likewise, send someone to stand by my mother’s side.”

“……”

“As you know, it’s incredibly difficult for an Esper to live without a Guide.”

At one point, Emil had even wished he were a Guide. Lauren, in Emil’s memory, had always struggled to control her abilities, and for his mother’s sake, he had wanted to be her Guide.

“If there is a reason the Lord called me to His side,”

Emil gazed into the distant space for a long moment, then slowly shifted his gaze to Yanis. The man was beautiful. His dark hair, endlessly blue eyes, and gently closed lips added to his aura of trustworthiness.

“Perhaps it was to send you to my mother’s side.”

“…Ah.”

The man stared blankly at the priest’s face, only belatedly opening his mouth.

“In that case—”

“Emil!”

Suddenly, Lauren’s voice rang out, and the door burst open. Lauren entered, her cheeks flushed a vibrant red, a radiant smile gracing her lips.

“I’m sorry. I’m sure I stored it well, but I couldn’t find it…”

“Oh, no. It’s fine.”

“Do you remember Gale? He gifted this when I told him you were coming.”

The long, narrow-necked glass bottle bore a beautifully written label bearing Gale’s name. Jack’s words about supplying it to the lord’s castle came to mind. Lauren hummed a tune as she searched for glasses.

The finely engraved glass goblets were ones Lauren only brought out for special, joyous occasions.

Bang!

A sudden explosion reverberated, sending shards of glass flying in every direction.

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