The Saintess Is Too Good at Lying - Chapter 2
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Saint Is Such a Good Liar! Episode 002
“Regardless, the Saint is simply… so incredibly kind.”
“Nora.”
“Yes?”
“Above your head.”
“Above my head? What’s there?”
Nora startled and lifted her head abruptly.
But her expression soon turned puzzled.
“There’s nothing there?”
I laughed awkwardly and shook my head.
“I must have been mistaken.”
Clearly, this status window was visible only to me. I recalled the moment I first encountered it.
* * *
[Justitia’s Memory Transfer Complete.]
[You have returned to before Justitia’s execution.]
[You have become the Saint Justitia.]
What is this? A dream?
Dazed, I looked around and caught my reflection in a large mirror.
Justitia’s reflection, that is.
“…This is real.”
I pinched my cheek and it hurt. This wasn’t a dream.
Was this possession like in web novels? I furrowed my brow.
Just yesterday, I’d received word of passing my civil service exam. It was my success after five attempts.
I’d secured a stable job, and all that remained was to enjoy work-life balance for the rest of my life.
Why did I have to live in a stranger’s body in this unfamiliar place? And Justitia dies within this year!
That’s when a new window appeared.
[Do you wish to return to your original world?]
Perhaps it noticed my displeasure, or perhaps it read my thoughts.
I couldn’t tell, but it seemed I could communicate with the status window.
I nodded immediately.
But then….
[To return to your original world, you must achieve 100% on the Lie Gauge.]
[The gauge increases each time you tell a lie. The more severe the lie, the higher the increase.]
[However, the gauge cannot increase by more than 1% per day.]
[Upon reaching 100%, you will be given the option to return to your original world.]
No, just send me home. Why set conditions when you dragged me here without permission?
It made no sense and was utterly absurd, but fortunately the condition wasn’t difficult.
‘So I just need to endure for about a hundred days, right?’
All I had to do was lie as casually as eating. There was nothing difficult about it.
Especially if, like Justitia, I were surrounded only by repugnant people.
* * *
Justitia rarely ventured out except when volunteering at the Poorhouse or in the Slums. Most of the time, she remained cloistered in the Temple, doing nothing but praying.
She occasionally attended social gatherings, but only those where the Saint’s presence held particular significance.
Today’s charity bazaar at the Royal Palace was one such occasion. The Archbishop had requested her attendance, reasoning that the Saint’s direct appeal for donations would boost participation.
Though technically a social event, I made a point of avoiding excessive ornamentation at such gatherings.
I appeared before the crowd in nothing more than a simple white dress and a shawl draped across my shoulders.
‘My face is striking enough on its own—any accessories would only be overshadowed anyway.’
Yes, I was quite pleased with my face. Even in such a plain dress, I looked sufficiently beautiful.
I took one final glance in the mirror before stepping outside.
As I approached the carriage waiting before the Temple, a large hand suddenly extended from beside me.
I turned reflexively and found myself facing a man of towering height with a remarkably small face.
Hair as black as pitch, skin pale as snow in contrast. Eyes and lips like crimson drops fallen upon white canvas.
Yet the strong jawline and intense gaze gave him an overwhelmingly masculine presence.
He was handsome.
“You’re so handso—”
I nearly let the thought slip from my lips before hastily correcting myself.
“I appreciate your assistance.”
He bowed his head in response.
Cassandro, a Holy Knight. He had been dispatched to fill the vacant position of Holy Knight Order Commander since last year. He was naturally taciturn and had exchanged only a few words with Justitia.
Normally he guarded the Temple, but he occasionally served as a personal escort when the Archbishop or the Saint ventured out.
“I thought you were accompanying the Archbishop on his outing.”
“He deemed escorting the Saint a more pressing duty and declined.”
“I see.”
I twisted my lips into a smile.
“How fortunate for me.”
[That is a lie.]
[Lie Gauge increased by 0.1%]
[Current Gauge: 0.2%]
“I wasn’t trying to poison the princess. I swear. Please believe me, Archbishop…!”
When I had pleaded thus at the end, what had that man said?
“Confess and seek forgiveness. If you do, I will do everything in my power to spare your life.”
Damn bastard. I told him it wasn’t true, yet he refused to believe me till the end?
‘Then again, my fiancé and my brother didn’t believe me either, so why would the Archbishop?’
Lumiel is suspicious. But unlike Justitia, I had no intention of revealing that fact.
Rather, if I were to shield Lumiel and raise the gauge, who knows what might happen.
For the same reason, I intended to treat the three men who abandoned me with kindness.
“We have arrived, Saint.”
As I pondered my next moves, the carriage came to a halt.
The carriage door swung open, and a large hand thrust inside once more.
I grasped that firm hand with practiced ease this time and stepped down before speaking.
“Please wait here.”
“That’s impossible.”
“This isn’t some grand state function—it’s a charity bazaar. If I parade around with Holy Knights at my side, it’ll look like I’m coercing people into donations.”
“But….”
“Nothing will happen. Don’t worry.”
I reassured him with bold confidence before heading toward the hall where the bazaar was being held.
“Oh my, the Saint has arrived!”
“Welcome, Saint. It’s been such a long time since we’ve seen you at the Royal Palace. You look absolutely radiant today.”
“How do you manage to shine so brightly even in such an unadorned dress? Is it the blessing of the divine?”
“Your presence at this meaningful gathering is what makes you appear so beautiful in my eyes, madam.”
“Oh my, your words are as lovely as you are.”
Fortunately, Justitia’s reputation hadn’t yet plummeted to rock bottom. I still had roughly half a year before the execution.
If I wanted to survive, I’d need to fill my lying gauge before then and escape.
“I do hope everyone here will contribute generously to such a worthy cause….”
“Saint!”
A clear, melodious voice cut through my words at that moment.
Lumiel approached with her silver hair tied back at the shoulders, her beautiful face radiant as she grasped my hand eagerly.
“You came! Meeting you here at the Royal Palace makes me even happier!”
A lovely woman with a charming aura, slightly shorter than me. Lumiel’s aquamarine eyes sparkled brilliantly as she feigned familiarity with an almost overwhelming intensity.
The reason people never suspected Lumiel’s true nature was precisely because of this demeanor.
As for Justitia—needless to say.
“I’m delighted to see you too, Lady Lumiel. And….”
My gaze shifted to the man standing behind Lumiel.
“Your brother came as well!”
The moment our eyes met—those same aquamarine eyes—I flinched. Yet Sergio’s expression remained utterly impassive.
Sergio Cassini. Justitia’s adoptive brother and Lumiel’s blood brother. And the first person to abandon Justitia.
In stark contrast to Lumiel’s warmth, his sharp features made his expressionless face seem perpetually angry.
But I paid no mind and smiled as I greeted him.
“Welcome, Duke Cassini. It’s been quite some time.”
At the formal title I used, not only Sergio but everyone nearby visibly stiffened in surprise.
Until now, Justitia had always called Sergio “brother.” Lumiel asked with a puzzled tone.
“Why so suddenly formal, Saint? That’s rather stiff.”
I smiled faintly and replied.
“I realize I’ve been far too casual with the Duke even at official gatherings. Now that I’ve come of age and you’ve returned, Lady Lumiel, I thought it proper to maintain more appropriate decorum.”
Seven years ago, when the true Saint Lumiel vanished, the Cassini Family fell into panic.
The Cassinis had risen from a marquessate to a dukedom because they produced a Saint, and that justification had suddenly disappeared.
But then, a new divine oracle came down.
“The Duke Cassini shall be able to find a new Saint similar to Lady Lumiel in every way.”
“….”
“That is what God has decreed.”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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