FFF-Tier System, SSS-Rank Wife

"You've fulfilled your promise."

Four, arguably five words.

Just two seconds' worth of my voice. And yet, this had to be the heaviest sentence I've ever uttered.

Without any sort of system, separated from the rest of my class, dropped out into this world's death-zone – this was my reality.

The presence of the Saintess, the saving grace that allowed me to survive the initial stage of the ordeal, was merely a bug in the system, a lucky shot that was never supposed to happen.

And now, within the relative safety of civilization, it was time to do away with this arrangement where I held all the benefits while this Saintess gained nothing but bother.

Sure, I could try to cling to her thigh, try to beg for her to stay with me for a little longer, be as pathetic as I could before I would burn from the fierce fires of endless shame, but…

I gritted my teeth.

Even though I've met her only a few days ago and knew her for just those few days, I didn't want to appear like that in her eyes.

That, and I could tell that this kind of approach would only fill her mental mouth with disgust towards me.

I requested from the Saintess to bring me to the town, and now that she did, there was only one thing I could tell her.

"Thanks… No," I shook my head, averse to how low-effort this kind of gratitude sounded. "Thank you. For saving my life, for bringing me to the city, for slowing down to let me keep up," I lowered my entire upper body in a bow, "Thank you."

That was it.

The moment when, left stranded in this unfamiliar, dangerous world, I had to figure out a way to get by. And no matter how much I feared this moment now that it came, this was the reality I had no other choice but to face.

Still, I've expected to hear something back.

No biggie. You are welcome. Try not to die.

Anything.

Maybe what I craved right now was an acknowledgment of my will to stand up straight and face my perilous odds with my head held straight?

'I guess even that would be too much to ask from this world,' I thought, breathing out while raising my head, ready to grit my teeth and turn my words, my conviction into action.

'I've been dead from the moment I've dropped into that jungle… No, from the moment my system bugged out…'

A small smile appeared on my lips.

'No, I was dead from the moment I've received an FFF-rank system. Or even from the moment I transmigrated to this world.' I took a breath in, held it in for a second before breathing it out.

This small exercise, against all odds, helped me to calm down a little.

'I've been dead since I was summoned to this world. This world is just lagging when it comes to enforcing this fact.'

Not to claim stolen valor, it wasn't something I came up with myself. It was a philosophy that historically produced quite the insane results during war… At least, from those who adopted it and lived to tell the tale.

But in this dreadful world where I was permanently locked in the position of THE weakest, it was the most rational approach to take. One that, to a degree, would allow me to ignore constant threat to my life so that I could at least try to balance my odds.

Regardless of how futile those attempts could be.

With one more breath, I've calmed down enough to turn around and take my first solo step since the moment I encountered this lovely, helpful Saintess.

Ready to face this world, ready to take whatever it would throw at me next.

"Do you really think one meal will cut it?"

Right as I've finally managed to steel my balls and mentally prepare for the inevitable, Saintess' voice rang in my ears.

"Excuse me?" I stopped and turned around, trying not to accept even the slightest iota of hope into my mind and, even more importantly, into my voice.

There would be nothing worse than acting as if all of my determination was just a coldly calculated act of manipulating the Saintess into offering me even more help than she already did!

Yet, the very moment my eyes laid upon the sword Saintess' face, something clicked in my mind.

She looked at me with a tough face and cold eyes, all the while crossing her arms over her chest and tapping her foot against the ground.

By all means, it was the look of someone who was about to stir some trouble, a look of a Karen that was about to ask for a manager or a HOA representative waiting for the homeowner to appear so that they could fine them for having their grass grow a millimeter longer than the regulations allowed.

Her looks said it all, I was about to lose all of my otherworldly belongings; all of the stuff I could hope to sell to at least get some starting capital for starting my new life in this frontier town.

'It's just that…' even mentally, I hesitated, 'isn't this pose a bit too much?'

What Saintess lacked was the natural feeling to it, the innate sense of entitlement. She didn't strike me as someone who would abuse every little bit of authority she had over others either. And yet, she acted like someone who fulfilled both of those criteria.

Now that I've noticed it, her whole persona fell apart right before my eyes even though she managed to keep up her act without a single or smallest fault. And underneath it, I saw something that made me stop.

'Unease?'

"I will have you stick with me until you properly repay the favor I offered," the Saintess added only once my eyes were properly locked on her face.

Her form opened up a little. Her arms relaxed, her foot stopped tapping against the ground, and her leg even took half of a step towards me…

"Woah, she really is a tsundere…"

I froze.

Those words didn't come out from my mouth!

No, they came from one of the passersby, a middle-aged man with a sado-maso outfit and with an oversized battleaxe strapped to his back.

"I've told you so! Isn't she cute, acting all tough like that?" The pervert's companion, a young man roughly in his twenties and with every last bit of a "hero" look to him, happily joined in on the fun.

"Guys, stop being silly!" the last of their companions, a healer-looking girl with picturesque green hair and a troubled look on her face, added.

By all means, those three looked like the kind of party any RPG game would sport on its promotional materials!

The Saintess merely offered that group a glance, acting as if their words didn't get to her at all.

But with how closely I've been observing her, a must given how my life literally depended on her mood, I could see sparks of reluctance that produced enough heat of doubt to start thawing away the ice of her adopted persona.

That's why, when the Saintess suddenly shook her head and heaved a sigh, I wasn't surprised.

No, I was curious to see how she would react, eager to learn more about her.

"After all the pains to keep you alive and bring you here…" she shook her head again before reaching up with her arm and scratching the back of her scalp, "it wouldn't sit well with me if I were to leave you to just die to some bandits right next after getting you to the town."

She shook her head again.

"And I'm not going to deny it," Saintess raised her face and even offered a small, shy smile, "I'm quite curious what other kind of goods you are keeping in that bag of yours."