Wouldn't I be so much worse than a fake Saintess if I let you do that? I'd be some kind of dark maiden heralding the end of everything. I'm sure they'd come up with a clever name for it.

... But...

[ Her voice had been a little coy but suddenly it softens as her fingers still, lingering in his hair. ]

Even if there's ugly things there... There's still some beautiful things I wanted to protect. Even if I could never see them again... I just wanted them to be safe. So I came here.

[ Back to combing her fingers through his hair, a little gentler now, somehow. ]

To be honest... protecting those things is the only reason I decided to stay as the Saintess in the first place. I could've run away from it all, but... so long as they're safe, I can stand up to anything, no matter how scared I am.