Chapter 62
“How many priests are here, yet you say there are too many sick people to heal?”
The High Priest lowered his head with a regretful look.
“It seems divine power cannot cure this illness. There has been no sign of recovery.”
Rayan frowned, feeling a strange familiarity.
“Did you find the cause of the illness?”
“It appears… those who used the water machine made by the magic tool maker became sick.”
“The magic tool maker? You mean… Melody?”
“You know her, Your Highness?”
“I met her when I visited the Duke’s estate. Anyway—are you saying her magic tool was the problem?”
“Actually, after she came here, her behavior became suspicious.”
The High Priest continued, watching Rayan’s darkening expression.
“She lured monsters, putting the knights in danger. Then she asked to go into the forest, saying she would take responsibility. Out of mercy, we allowed her to go. But before leaving, she must have tampered with the device in resentment.”
“You mean… you sent that tiny woman into the forest outside the barrier?”
“…Yes.”
“And you’re claiming she purposely harmed people with her tools.”
Rayan laughed coldly. Melody, wanting to hurt people? Impossible. She was the kind of girl who risked her life to save a poor child in the slums.
When Rayan glanced at his aide, the man looked just as shocked, his mouth half open in disbelief.
Something wasn’t right here. Ryan’s pale-blue eyes narrowed as he studied the High Priest.
“I want to see the sick myself.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Benedict brought forward a man said to be infected. His body was covered in red blotches, and his fingertips had grown stiff. The symptoms were exactly the same as the child Rayan had seen in the slums.
“…This illness. I’ve seen it before.”
The High Priest looked shocked, but Rayan ignored him and questioned the sick man.
“What did you do before falling ill?”
“I… drank water.”
“And before that?”
“Hhh… I fought monsters.”
The man’s pale face twisted with pain as he groaned.
“You were fine during the battle?”
“Y-yes…”
“Nothing unusual happened in the fight?”
“I was… scratched by a monster’s claw, but… ugh… the priest healed me.”
“I see.”
That was the same as what Melody had said—an illness with no clear cause.
Rayan straightened and spoke firmly.
“This must not spread panic. Keep this matter secret for now.”
“But we should isolate those who drank the contaminated water.”
“I know the cure for this sickness.”
Rayan’s eyes shone with confidence. The battle earlier had been rough, but now, here was his chance to shine.
When Melody had dragged him to that filthy slum, he’d nearly gone mad with disgust. But now, he thought maybe it had been divine will. Perhaps the goddess had sent Melody to him.
“There’s… a cure? For this plague?”
The High Priest’s voice shook in disbelief.
“Gather all those who are infected,” Ryan ordered.
* * *
After searching, the group returned to the ruins.
“Those damn things… they just keep coming!”
Dering wiped a nosebleed with his hand. There were too many monsters. The fighting was exhausting.
“My nose has never bled, even from practice fights. And now look at me.”
Even though they tried to move where fewer monsters were, it was impossible to avoid battles completely. If they were lucky, they could go an hour or two without fighting.
But then, to make matters worse, the trail they were following suddenly vanished.
“At this rate, we’ll be the ones to die first,” Talia muttered, her voice heavy with fatigue.
“Let’s stop for today,” Deonis said, glancing at Melody.
Though she was used to the forest, she was still the weakest of the five in stamina. Everyone was exhausted anyway, so no one objected.
“This place feels like home now. A filthy, cozy ruin,” Talia sighed.
Dering shook his head quickly.
“I don’t feel good about this. Do any of you feel strange?”
Awhin spoke quietly.
“I also feel… as if my stomach is twisting.”
“Oh, so it’s just the two holy knights feeling sick,” Talia said.
They had no better shelter, so the five entered the ruins again. As before, Deonis and Awhin chose places far apart, avoiding each other.
Melody checked Deonis’s wound first.
“It healed faster than I expected. By tomorrow, it might even start to close completely.”
The injury had improved a lot. Deonis only shrugged.
But Melody’s heart felt broken. Whenever she leaned close to wrap his bandages, her heart thumped so loudly she had to squeeze her eyes shut and wound the bandage carelessly.
Tap. His arm caught hers.
“That’s my neck,” Deonis said dryly.
Melody peeked and saw she had wrapped the bandage clumsily around his neck.
With a long sigh, Deonis asked,
“Are you still worried about the survivors?”
He thought her clumsy behavior came from worrying about the missing people.
“…Yes,” Melody admitted, shifting her eyes. It wasn’t a complete lie.
“Should I try making a magic tool to detect people?”
“Not a bad idea. How long will it take?”
“Not long. But… it can’t sense very far. People don’t give off energy as strong as monsters, so it consumes many magic cores. With the ones I have, the range will be small.”
Deonis thought for a moment.
“What if you used another source of power?”
“Another source?”
“Magic.”
His lips curved in a smile. Melody’s eyes wavered.
Deonis had enough magic to burn down a magic-nullifying device. With his power, the tool might cover a much larger area.
“…It could work.”
Melody quickly began building the device. She worked without noticing time until she dozed off. A touch woke her. She opened her eyes to find Deonis standing over her.
“Oh… Duke…”
Still half-asleep, Melody lifted her hand to his face.
“If this is a dream, why does it feel warm?”
Her hand slid from his lips to his jaw. Deonis let out a low sigh, as if holding something back.
“Do you… do this with other men too?”
“…Other men?”
“Never mind. Get up. We need to test the tool.”
Finally awake, Melody sat up—only to suddenly be lifted into Deonis’s arms.
“W-what are you doing!?”
“I don’t want to wake the others. Quiet is best.”
“You should’ve said that before picking me up!”
She whispered angrily, but Deonis only shrugged.
Since they were using magic, it was better to avoid others seeing. Melody glanced toward where Awhin had been, but he was gone. Probably scouting the area.
In the faint moonlight, she saw Dering sprawled asleep and Talia curled up tightly in a corner.
“Hold on.”
With that, Deonis leapt.
“Eek—!”
Melody nearly screamed. He had cleared the building in a single bound.
For a moment she was stunned, then whispered,
“…That was magic.”
