I’m an Old Man but Also a Saint?

ible from here at the temple, I want to exorcise the corruption on location.
No, I must exorcise it.”

“But if something happened to you!”

“Possibly, but could someone bring me an Appraisal paper?”

My overall level when I was Appraised in the village was in the triple digits, and both my physical strength and magic power were in the latter half of four digits.
At that time, I didn’t understand what these numbers meant as I had nothing to compare them to, but now with my inherited knowledge, I knew it was abnormal.
Past Saints had between one and two thousand magic power.
Their physical strength was also no different from an average person, so the places where magical beasts spawned were too dangerous for them.
It would be the end if they died right away.

But for me, I think I could probably go without a problem.
I’d never wielded a sword, but with a bow and spear, I could kill a bear.
I’d never come across a monster, but I hunted and ate creatures from the same forest where they lived.
Is it because I’ve been hunting my whole life that I’ve reached this level?

When I touched the Appraisal paper for the first time in a month, the letters slowly emerged.
I stared at it, watching the magic work, and tilted my head to the side in discomfort.
Somehow, I felt like my numbers had improved.
The magical power that was at four digits in the village had just reached five digits.

“Will my level go up without me doing anything?”

“It could be because you inherited the Saint’s power while in distress.”

Oh, come to think of it, that was probably the case.
It wasn’t just knowledge I’d inherited.
By having knowledge of how my power worked, my powers would work better.
The Elder Saint had given me some of her knowledge and power so I would survive without a mentor.
What a helpful system, right?

“With this power, is there even any danger? Well, even if it’s dangerous, I have to go.”

“Um, then, did you ask me to become the Saint so that the absence of Your Holiness wouldn’t come to light?”

“Yes.
When traveling as the Saint, wouldn’t you need a large entourage? And in that case, your movement would be slowed and you would have to be constantly worried about attacks.
It’s not a situation which would make it easy to purify the country… If I can’t count on Emilia, I would have no choice but to stay here.”

I couldn’t just ask anyone to take my place as Saint.
There was a dungeon full of people implicated in trying to control the throne of the Saint by creating a false one.
No matter what instructions I left behind for a substitute, if I chose someone bad, the entire country would be in danger.

In that respect, Emilia is a good choice.
Her interest is in being able to protect her mother and stay with her, and because of this she would keep her distance from the nobles who tricked her and from politics in general.
She was also much more pious than me, could look and act the part, so I knew she would do well.

“There were a number of Saints who almost never left the temple, so it’s fine if you only come out when absolutely necessary.
You can live with your mother and get married as you please.
I think you can live without inconvenience.
There is also a lot of precedence for using substitutes, it’s just not publicly known.”

I would be known as the sixth male Saint ever, but in truth there were many more.
The reason it wasn’t widely known was because many had appointed women as stand-ins.
It was also the name of the stand-ins which was recorded as history.
The existence of these men had been completely erased.
I don’t know precisely what happened to each of them, but I would assume they faced similar situations.
If it is declared a man is the Saint, many dreams would be broken.

As the knights expressed their surprise, Emilia who had lowered her eyes in thought, quietly raised her eyes.
Those eyes that looked straight at me were soft green like spring sprouts.
They shone brightly with determination.
Youth really is dazzling.
This tired old man felt burned by his own lost brilliance.

“I am a great sinner who has disobeyed God.
I want to atone.”

“Thank you for your help.”

Alright, that was one problem solved.
After that, I confirmed the priority of purification and dismissed them to rest… Oh right, I needed somewhere to sleep as well.
Right now, they seemed to be letting me use a room that looked like a guest room, but I couldn’t stay there indefinitely.
I didn’t want anything to seem unnatural about the Saint’s true identity.

“Also, is there an empty room somewhere? A storeroom or anything else is fine.”

“I can prepare it, but what kind of room would you like? What will it be used for?”

“I need somewhere to sleep.” Before I could say that I didn’t have any preferences, I noticed the frozen air and tilted my head.
Did I say something wrong?