The fox girl, frightened by Emily, was running away with all her might.
The soles of her feet began to bleed from the various fragments and stones in the alley.
However, because her body was too weak, after running for a short while, her legs gave way and she sat down against the wall.
Emily took this opportunity to catch up to her.
Seeing Emily approach, the girl’s face was naturally filled with fear.
Even though Emily was beautiful and looked very gentle, to the girl who feared humans, Emily was no different from a “monster.”
Some Demon Race parents, to prevent their children from going out at night, would even scare them by saying they’d be captured by humans.
Panicked beyond measure, the girl saw Emily approaching and hastily picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at her.
Sensing the danger, Emily quickly covered her face with her hands.
“Really now…”
Just as she was about to be hit by the stone, Natalie suddenly appeared and caught the stone midair with her bare hand.
“Lady Natalie?”
Seeing Natalie appear out of nowhere, Emily felt a mix of relief and fear.
She had no idea whether Natalie might suddenly get a whim and tease or sexually harass her.
“It’s me. We were apart for just a moment, and you already miss me?”
Hearing Natalie’s words, Emily didn’t know how to respond.
The fox girl, collapsed on the ground, saw someone appear out of thin air, making her even more terrified.
She picked up another stone and threw it at the two of them.
But before the stone could hit them, it stopped midair.
“You’re getting in the way, you little brat.”
With Natalie’s intense glare, the fox girl instantly lost consciousness.
“!”
Seeing this, Emily rushed over to the girl’s side in a panic.
She had no idea what Natalie had done to her.
“Lady Natalie, what did you do to her?”
Given Natalie’s personality, the possibility that she might have killed someone who dared attack her was not low.
“Seriously? In your eyes, am I that bad? No matter what, I wouldn’t kill a little brat. I just put her to sleep. It’s too troublesome to keep a wild brat like this awake.”
Even though she wasn’t much taller herself.
Sensing Emily’s strange look, Natalie pressed with a hint of irritation, “Hey, did you just think something rude about me?”
“Um, no…”
While replying to Natalie, Emily checked the fox girl’s condition.
Only after confirming she was still breathing did she relax, realizing Natalie hadn’t lied—she really had just put her to sleep.
‘Tch… But am I really that untrustworthy? I’m actually pretty gentle with kids! Probably…’
“Lady Natalie, what do you plan to do with her?”
Emily could use magic to dispel the sleep spell, but considering how terrified the girl was of her, she thought it better not to wake her now.
“What to do? Just attacking me alone is a death sentence! But since she’s a child, I’ll spare her.”
No matter what, Natalie wouldn’t kill a little girl in front of Emily.
She absolutely had to avoid anything that would lower her approval rating.
Looking at the unconscious girl in her arms, Emily gathered her courage and asked, “…Um, can we take her back?”
Emily knew she was just a slave and had no right to make requests.
But she couldn’t abandon a girl who looked so pitiful.
“If I remember correctly, aren’t you the human Saintess? Why do you care so much about a Demon Race girl? Doesn’t your Church see us as mortal enemies? You even vowed to exterminate every last one of us.”
Seeing Emily’s concern for the fox girl, Natalie asked out of curiosity.
After all, Emily had risked angering her to say that.
Given how timid Emily usually was, she wouldn’t make such a request unless she truly wanted to protect her.
If the child in Emily’s arms were human, Natalie could understand.
But it was a Demon Race girl.
“Extermination and all that… it’s not something I decided.”
As a reincarnator, Emily’s values were completely different from the natives of this world.
Honestly, if God hadn’t forced her, she wouldn’t even oppose the Demon Race.
In her eyes, there was no essential difference between demons and humans.
‘But… caring for a Demon Race girl like this shouldn’t earn me divine punishment, right? No, it shouldn’t. Caring for an innocent child’s safety is exactly what a Saintess should do…’
Even as she comforted herself, Emily couldn’t be one hundred percent sure she wouldn’t face divine punishment.
After all, God had defined the Demon Race as humanity’s mortal enemy.
As Emily worried, a dark cloud suddenly appeared in the sky.
“Odd? Clear sky, but where did this cloud come from?”
Natalie muttered, looking at the strange cloud.
“…No way!”
‘That stingy God! I just showed concern for an innocent little girl, and now I’m getting divine punishment!’
Of course, Emily’s concern was almost instinctive.
She hadn’t considered whether it would incur God’s wrath.
Then, right before Emily’s eyes, a bolt of lightning struck directly at her from the cloud.
The lightning was too fast; Emily didn’t even have time to react.
But in the next instant, Natalie suddenly stood in front of Emily and deflected the lightning strike.
“This disgusting magic power is?”
Looking at her slightly numb hands, Natalie realized it was God’s doing.
There were very few people in this world capable of shocking her.
‘I really did get divine punishment!’ If Natalie hadn’t protected her, Emily would have definitely been struck.
“Judging by the power, it’s just a warning?”
‘Just a warning?! How can being struck by lightning be just a warning! If I had been hit, I’d be in terrible shape!’
“Ah, really… You’d rather take divine punishment than abandon that girl? You’re definitely not normal, Emily.”
‘No, I never imagined God would be so stingy! If I’d known, I wouldn’t have dared!’
“Luckily, she only intended to paralyze you this time, not kill you. Otherwise, I might not have been able to block it.”
‘Lady Natalie, is being struck by lightning really just paralysis?! I’m not Ash Ketchum; I can’t tank 100,000 volts!’