Chapter 36: Giving (4)
“Dear… people of Eisenburg…”
Her voice echoed across the plaza through the speakers, trembling noticeably from the start.
The dense crowd below waited silently, thousands of eyes fixed on her.
Mili opened her mouth, but the words wouldn’t come.
Those grandiose phrases—“holy mission,” “radiant grace,” “supreme glory”…
She couldn’t say them.
What was the point?
Whispers rippled through the crowd. Evelyn’s face darkened.
“Ahem—!” Kaya coughed loudly from below, nudging her chin toward Mili, pointing at herself, then Mili, then the expectant faces, waggling her brows.
—Just.
—Talk.
Mili read her lips.
She looked at the crowd again.
These people…
They were waiting for her.
She closed the script on the podium:
“Phew… I… I’m not good with fancy words.”
The crowd quieted again, even Evelyn looking stunned.
“I’m just… an ordinary person, like you.”
Mili’s voice steadied, her gaze sweeping over countless blurred faces.
“If… you think I’m some Saintess, I’ll say—I’m not that great.”
Scattered chuckles rose from below.
“But… I want to help everyone…”
“Like… like the kids I met at the clinic beyond the wall.”
She paused, their eager eyes flashing in her mind.
“Every family has its struggles, but we never give up on each other… that’s real.”
“When one’s in need, others step up—it’s not just talk, it’s here, around us.”
“Countless unsung people keep going, helping others, even strangers…”
“I’ve seen someone, barely scraping by, still share a bowl of porridge with a starving neighbor…”
“I’ve seen someone risk being torn apart by mutants to save a stranger they just met…”
“You’re those people too.”
Mili exhaled, lips pursed:
“Working hard every day, not for glory, but to make life a little better for your families.”
“Exhausted, but still lending a hand when someone needs it…”
“I know… life’s tough. Food, medicine, kids, school—every coin feels like it’s split in two…”
“But you never give up, always trying to make this world better. That’s true greatness, and I genuinely admire you all…”
“So…”
“If I can help, it’s not because I have some special power.”
“—It’s because… I want to learn from you, to face life bravely, to protect those I care about.”
“We all want… kids to grow up healthy, families to be safe, tomorrow to be better than today… and we fight for it.”
“I can’t promise to change everything, but I’ll try.”
“So, your needs—I’ll do my best to meet them.”
“That’s… all. Thank you for being here today…”
Some in the crowd nodded.
“I heard we’re distributing supplies today…” Mili glanced at the piled goods by the stage:
“But before that, I want to ask…”
“—What do you need most?”
The question caught everyone off guard.
The crowd stirred.
“Food!” someone shouted.
“Medicine!”
“Jobs!”
“School for our kids!”
Voices overlapped. Mili strained to catch each one.
Evelyn frowned below. This wasn’t in the plan…
“Okay, I’ve heard you.” Mili spoke again as the noise settled.
“I can’t solve everything right away…”
“But I’ll work with you… step by step, pushing forward, showing real results, building a true… peaceful life…”
Mili took a deep breath, turning to the supplies: “These may not be much, but I hope they help a little.”
She bowed deeply.
The speech ended.
A strange silence fell.
Mili straightened, gripping the podium, staring at the packed, silent crowd, her heart pounding.
She’d…
Messed up…
Seraphina would be furious…
As she braced for the queen’s wrath, a child’s voice pierced the quiet:
“Saintess-sister!”
Clear and bright.
“Huh?” Mili froze.
That shout was like a switch, igniting the crowd.
Thunderous applause and cheers erupted, “Bountiful Saintess! Bountiful Saintess!” shaking her eardrums.
The crowd’s eyes shifted from awe to fervent joy, as if seeing a savior…
“Long live the Saintess!”
“Thanks for her grace!”
“Bless our children!”
Waves of cheers grew louder, the plaza trembling.
Mili, stunned, stood frozen, unsure what had happened.
“Little Saintess, get down!” Kaya rushed onstage, wrapping her shawl around Mili, half-protecting, half-dragging her off.
“They’re too excited! Let them cool off!” Kaya’s voice was nearly drowned out:
“Stay longer, and they’ll eat you alive!”
“Here, drink, rest.” She handed Mili a small spray-bottle-sized canteen:
“Stand there any longer, and I swear your legs would’ve given out.”
Mili leaned against a metal frame backstage, legs shaking, mind blank.
Why did this happen?
“Did I… do something wrong?”
“Wrong? You nailed it!” Kaya’s eyes gleamed, clapping excitedly.
“Oh no… I’m starting to think you’re a Saintess too.”
“…”
The cheers roared on, a girl’s voice cutting through: “Saintess-sister’s words were so nice!”
Her words sparked warm laughter, easing the tense air.
“Yeah! Way better than those zealots!” someone shouted.
“She actually asked what we need…”
“Not like those pompous types spouting ‘divine will’ or ‘heavenly grace’!”
The tired middle-aged man’s eyes glistened, clapping hard with rough hands, muttering: “Real words… all true…”
The crowd surged toward the stage, wanting to see her closer.
Soldiers stepped in, forming a human wall with shields, holding them back.
“Maintain order! Maintain order!”
Evelyn barked commands to control the scene.
She’d seen this before.
Many times.
But never this frantic…
Frighteningly so.
“Adjutant!” a soldier reported, “They’re too excited! They’re pushing the barricades!”
“Send more men!”
Evelyn glanced at Mili, sipping water in the shadows, her expression complex.
She gritted her teeth, pulling out her communicator:
“Lock all safeties! No one fires! Repeat—no firing!”
“I don’t care how, hold them back!”
“Anyone who harms the crowd faces military law!”