Genius Wizard who sees Rainbows- Chapter 271

**#271. The Saintess and the Miracle (3)**

 

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**Guest Wing within the Main Church Grounds.**

**Top Floor, Veronica’s Room.**

“…Me, a saintess?”

Veronica lay curled up like a grub, tightly wrapped in a blanket.

She sounded weak, her eyes sunken and tired—likely from not sleeping properly for days.

“…Me, a saintess… that’s ridiculous.”

After mumbling to herself for a while, her eyes suddenly lit up with realization.

“Right! This is a dream!”

A hand slipped out from under the wriggling blanket and pinched her cheek hard.

“Ow!”

Veronica rolled left and right with a dramatic thud, her cheek now red and swollen.

Only when the stinging sensation subsided did she stop and let out a deep sigh.

“…Yeah, it’s definitely not a dream. I’ve checked too many times already.”

The artificial sun.

Even though she lost consciousness right after, the memory of infusing it with light was still vivid.

The energy draining from her entire body.

The artificial sun, gradually filling with light.

That had been her doing—no one else’s.

*“He said I’m the reincarnation of the sun.”*

Her grip on the blanket tightened.

It had already been several days since she’d last left the top floor.

Aside from Pieta in the adjacent room, she hadn’t spoken to anyone.

Not because she resented the world.

Nor because she’d become disillusioned with everything.

She was simply—unsettled.

Especially about one thing.

*“What would Ray think of this changed me?”*

Her face, height, and voice were the same—but her very identity had changed.

What would Ray say when they met face-to-face?

A shadowy, formless fear gripped her heart.

“……”

Veronica stared at the wallpaper pattern for a long while, then suddenly threw off the blanket and got up.

Right.

She couldn’t deny reality forever and stay trapped on this top floor.

*Creaaak—*

The hallway outside her door was eerily silent—too silent.

No, the entire building was like that.

All the defectors who had once stayed on each floor were now casualties of the war.

Veronica knocked on the next door over.

*Knock knock.*

—Yes!

As soon as she opened the door, Pieta leapt into her arms, startling her.

“I knew you were coming!”

“Uh, from my footsteps…?”

“No, from your mana! The mana flowing through you is unique, you know!”

Ah, right. That’s true.

Veronica was reminded of something she’d forgotten again.

Pieta, blind as she was, had developed a heightened sensitivity to mana.

Not quite at Ray’s level, but well beyond that of an ordinary mage.

Sometimes, she was even sharper than people with sight, which was astonishing.

Veronica, regaining her composure, joked with a smile.

“I asked to be moved to the room next to yours so I could look after you—but I guess that wasn’t necessary? You can sense people and objects just by mana. Maybe you didn’t need much help at all?”

She had worried a lot.

Everyone in the Order was too busy restoring the grand cathedral to pay her much attention.

There was a high chance Pieta would be left to fend for herself.

“No way! I still need your care! I wouldn’t survive this rough, harsh world without your help!”

“Pieta, what is that even supposed to mean.”

Pieta burrowed in tighter, adamantly rejecting the idea, and Veronica laughed as she patted her head.

Their matching hair color made them look like sisters.

“I’m thinking of going outside now.”

Hearing this, Pieta looked up.

“You’ve made up your mind?”

“Yeah. Staying locked up isn’t going to solve anything.”

“You made the right choice. Nothing in this world moves forward without facing it head-on. And I think it’s amazing. Not just anyone can become a saintess. You’re someone extraordinary—chosen.”

“Thanks… That really puts my heart at ease.”

Veronica calmly caught her breath and gently caressed Pieta’s cheek.

But unable to resist the softness, she ended up pulling it sideways.

“Oops, it just happened before I knew it.”

“Should I fatten my cheeks more? I’d even give my life for you, you know.”

“No need to go that far.”

“Please let me.”

As the two playfully quarreled, Pieta suddenly turned toward the door.

“Oppa’s coming.”

“Huh? Ray?”

Sure enough, a knock followed soon after.

*Knock knock.*

—Veronica, I came to give you something.

“He’s probably looking at your circle through the door!”

“Wha— I’m not even presentable!”

“Here, a comb! Comb!”

Frantically fixing her hair and outfit, Veronica took a deep breath and opened the door.

And—

*Creaaak.*

Her eyes widened at the sight of a large bouquet of flowers filling her vision.

“Happy birthday.”

“Flowers…? Birthday…? Oh…!”

Veronica belatedly realized it was her birthday today.

A surge of mixed emotions rose from deep inside, nearly choking her up.

She had forgotten—even about her own birthday.

But Ray remembered.

Frozen for a moment, Veronica accepted the bouquet with a voice on the verge of tears.

“Thank you… I love it so much.”

And she meant it.

They were sunflowers.

The yellow flowers, rich in meaning, captured her heart completely.

She still kept the very first sunflower he’d given her preserved with magic, even after it had wilted.

And now they had bloomed again—nearly ten of them this time.

“And also, this.”

“Huh…?”

He handed her a luxurious case containing a silver necklace with a red gemstone.

Veronica melted on the spot, turning to jelly.

“…It was a good life.”

“Unnie! You can’t die!”

Once things calmed down, Ray put the necklace on Veronica.

Then he used mana to draw images for Pieta—showing her the shape of the sunflowers and the necklace.

“I think I get it! This fluttery, excited feeling—that’s what yellow is, right?”

Then Ray turned to Veronica.

“Are you feeling a little better now?”

“Yeah… Sorry for making you worry.”

“Wanna go out and look around the city? See the atmosphere, and check out the artificial sun?”

“Sure.”

Ray nodded.

He was about to step out when—

“Ray.”

He turned to see Veronica fidgeting uncertainly.

“Yeah?”

“Um… What do you think?”

“Think about what?”

“Like… does it make you uncomfortable? That I’ve changed? Or that I seem weird…?”

Ray had no idea what she meant.

“Why would I?”

“…Because they say I’m the reincarnation of the sun. The priests call me ‘Saintess.’”

Ray paused before answering.

“You treated me like a normal person even when I couldn’t feel emotions, didn’t you?”

“…!”

“And more importantly, you’re still Veronica now.”

In that instant, all the frustration weighing down Veronica’s chest vanished.

Right. Nothing had changed.

Only her emotions had shifted.

*“I’m Ray’s sun!”*

That was an unchanging truth.

Veronica hugged Pieta and said,

“Get some rest. I’ll be back soon.”

“Happy birthday, unnie. I didn’t know, so I didn’t prepare anything. But maybe I can be your gift instead—”

“Enough of that. I’ll definitely find a way to heal your eyes, so don’t worry.”

Gently brushing Pieta’s eyes, Veronica left the room with Ray.

Soon after, their fading voices echoed down the hall.

—Ray, were all the gifts your idea?

—Equipment… Yeah, I thought of them myself.

—Equipment?

—It’s nothing.

Listening to their conversation, Pieta thought:

*“If not for the two of them…”*

I probably would’ve died a miserable, unfortunate orphan.

But meeting them saved my life—and taught me what happiness and hope are.

And now, I’ve grown greedy.

I want to see the world not just through the shapes and feelings of mana—but with my own eyes.

More than anything, I want to see Veronica unnie and Ray oppa’s faces.

*“If only I’d been born normal…”*

As she touched her eyes where her sister’s warmth still lingered—

“…?”

She felt something strange.

A coolness, like a refreshing breeze, brushed around her eyes.

And for the first time, Pieta began to lift her long-shut eyelids.

“Ah…”

Slowly, the world began to reveal its shape.

*
*
*

 

Once outside, Veronica pulled up her hood to cover her hair.

“Ray, this looks better, right?”

“Yeah, it suits you.”

“…No, not a canned answer. I’m asking if it’s better to cover my hair right now.”

“Yeah, it’s better to keep it covered.”

The fact that the Saintess had red hair was already known to the public.

Red hair wasn’t uncommon enough to immediately identify someone as the Saintess, but there was no reason to draw unnecessary attention by exposing it.

*Tap— Tap—*

Ray and Veronica walked in sync, their footsteps light.

People on the street glanced at the hooded boy and girl but didn’t pay them much attention.

“Ah!”

Veronica spotted the crippled beggar she had encountered before and hurried over.

“Saintess…!”

“Shh!”

Veronica quickly raised a finger to her lips.

The beggar nodded hastily and fell silent.

“I’m not the Saintess. I just helped with some medicine. Is your leg doing any better?”

“Yes…! I only use the medicine when absolutely necessary…! But even if just briefly, I’ve been able to move my legs…! It’s like a miracle…!”

As they spoke, Ray glanced over at the donation box.

It had a lot more money in it than last time—likely thanks to the hope that now floated through the streets like balloons.

“I’ll bring you more medicine as soon as I get the ingredients. Just make sure you’re taking care of—”

Veronica suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

Her eyes were fixed on her own hand, which was resting on the beggar’s leg.

A white glow was radiating from it.

Startled, her frightened gaze shot toward Ray.

*‘Ray, w-what is this? The circle’s mana is moving on its own…!’*

*‘That’s what I want to ask you.’*

Ray calmly observed her condition.

Above Veronica’s “vessel,” which was overflowing with concern for the beggar, a white sun had appeared.

And the white mana from the circle was flowing through her body, into her hands, and was forming elements in a pattern that didn’t follow any existing formula.

Ray arrived at a conclusion.

*‘Imagination.’*

*Wooooooong───!*

As the light intensified, it began to stir the air, whipping the awnings and banners across the shopping district into a frenzy.

And then—

“My god…!”

The beggar’s legs, once blackened like coal from the cursed rain, began to clear and heal.

Before long, the chaos subsided.

The silence that followed was shattered by the voices around them.

“It’s the Saintess!”

“The Saintess has descended!”

“Please save us!”

The people who had gathered nearby were now falling to their knees, bowing in reverence.

Seeing the scene unfold, Veronica muttered with a flushed face, looking like she might burst.

“This… this happened before, didn’t it?”

“No, this is different. Last time it was twelve people. This time it’s forty-seven—no, forty-eight. The number keeps going up.”

Veronica grabbed Ray around the neck and jumped.

“Run!”

Without hesitation, Ray scooped her up and bolted away like a bolt of lightning.

In a distant alley, Veronica calmed her racing heart and asked,

“What… just happened to me?”

“You used your imagination.”

“Imagination? Me? The kind you use when casting magic?”

That was when they sensed someone’s presence.

Turning her head, Veronica saw a man in a suit standing at the mouth of the alley.

He had three circles.

They retained their pure colors, so he wasn’t a remnant of the Dawn Society.

“Apologies if I startled you. I followed you because I have an earnest request to make.”

The man gave a deep, polite bow.

Then, using wind magic, he floated over a business card.

“My name is Gerard. I’ve come from the City of Mages.”

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