READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 5
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Demon Worshipers.
They’re the ones causing all sorts of strife, conflict, wars, and massacres in the human world.
These beings grow stronger by sacrificing human blood to their evil god.
Specialized in inciting endless conflicts and toppling society by disguising themselves as people of certain status due to the nature of the god they serve.
Even the capable ones among the Demon Worshipers are indistinguishable from divine magic, making it really hard to identify them. Because of this, there are still a lot of Demon Worshipers secretly active in society….
I had known all this, but of all people, the priest from the Sun Church who came to interrogate me turned out to be a Demon Worshiper?
What a coincidence!
I thought I was lucky to escape hanging just for a moment.
“It’s the Saint!! Without a doubt, it’s the Saint!!”
“Saint! Heal us!!”
“My daughter is sick!! Please heal her!!”
Listening to the unprecedented explosive cheers from the slum dwellers, I thought I might have made a mistake.
At this point, if I said I’m not a Saint, just a poor idiot struggling to prevent the end of the world with a silly game skill, nobody would believe me now.
“I need to rest for a moment. Please provide food and a place to lie down.”
Anyway, I was too tired.
It was even more so after the Sun Church folks came in all tense, and then their tension melted all at once.
I felt like I might die of exhaustion, and just five minutes after I asked for a bed, a surprisingly decent meal by slum standards was laid out before me.
I ate the meal that was set before me and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow on the cozy bed I had somehow found.
And when I opened my eyes again, I saw the priests from the Sun Church lining up before me, along with dozens of Knights and police forces armed with handguns and clubs, making me think I just wanted to sleep forever.
“Are you the Saint of Healing from the Lilia Church?”
A priest looking quite aged was looking down at me, quietly asking that.
I slowly sat up.
What could they want?
Were they here to expose the presence of a Demon Worshiper in our Sun Church and snatch away our potential clients?
This bastard came to ruin our business.
Is this going to be one of those “You’re a heretic, die!” endings?
I feel like I’m about to wet myself.
My legs are shaky, and I really feel like I might pee my pants.
What are they showing me right after I wake up?
“I am not affiliated with any specific church. I am merely one who looks after the lowly.”
I’m just pretending to be a Saint for a month and then I’m outta here. I won’t conduct business in your district, so please let me live….
“Thank you, Saint.”
Suddenly, the elderly priest before me bows his head respectfully. Not just bowing, he takes my hand and gently kisses the back of it.
…….What is this situation?
“Thanks to you, we were able to uncover a Demon Worshiper. Also, this has given us a chance to reflect on the mistakes our Sun Church has made.”
The old priest looks up at the sky.
The clear sky was brilliantly illuminated by the sun shining down on the land.
It was the same even in the slums.
“There are no eternal shadows, nor eternal light. I had long forgotten that the sun shines equally above everyone’s heads.”
As I blinked in surprise, deciding to remain very quiet, the old priest who kissed my hand turned around.
“Yesterday, we interrogated the Demon Worshiper who had infiltrated our church!! He confessed that he wanted to turn the Sun Church into a gathering of greedy men!! A church for the wealthy! A church that discriminates against the poor!”
The priest bows again toward the slum dwellers.
Other Knights and priests followed suit.
“Please forgive our foolishness. And also forgive the mistake of not recognizing the Saint and confronting you. The Demon Worshiper said! The moment the Saint reached out to him, he felt his heart stop!”
Yeah.
That’s because I accidentally used Time Stop on his heart instead of his legs.
“That sudden blow revealed the disguise of the Demon Worshiper, and thanks to that, the evil magic he was hiding was also undone! He was terrified of the Saint and was executed yesterday! It’s an undeniable miracle! How could anyone doubt someone who performed such a miracle?!”
The old priest approaches the heavily armed police.
“The Saint lying on that bed is definitely neither a heretic nor an unregistered illegal magic user, I swear by my name, Vice President Alois of the Sun Church. He is noble and virtuous. So protect him.”
“We will do that, Vice President.”
The old priest.
No.
Vice President Alois turns his gaze to me.
“The police and our church’s Knights will guard you. We have contacted the Lilia Church, and their priests and Knights will be on their way. Until they reach you, we will temporarily protect you. May the sun always shine on you. And may Lilia of Grace watch over you.”
After the Vice President bows politely and steps back, I could only stare at the scene, unable to respond.
Things are going too well?
No.
It was because of the words that they contacted the Lilia Church.
I’m not a follower of Lilia.
I haven’t even mentioned the word Lilia, so why has it turned out like this?!
Won’t they realize I’m not a follower of Lilia the moment they see me?
And accuse me of posing as the Saint sent by their god and brand me a heretic?
Won’t it be excruciatingly hot when I burn at the stake?!??!
No, hell, this is serious.
I’m totally screwed.
I’m completely and utterly screwed.
Where’s that witch?! I need her to heal me and flee quickly!
“Line up one by one!”
“Don’t push! If someone falls, it could cause a bigger accident!!”
“The Saint needs to eat and rest!! During this time of rest, I won’t be healing anyone!!”
“I’ll prioritize treating children and critically injured people! Those who can hold on a bit longer should wait a moment!!”
The police and Knights of the Sun Church created order.
There were no more incidents of people tripping over each other as they mobbed.
Seeing the slum dwellers lining up orderly to receive treatment made me want to cry.
I made a decision.
If this continued, I would be stuck meeting the people from the Lilia Church, getting caught that I’m not one of their followers, and being burned at the stake for impersonating a Saint.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too late yet.
Not long ago, the acknowledgment from the Sun Church had been given. This should mean I’ve gained some authority and fame.
Plus, I now have Knights and police I can boss around.
I need to use those people to quickly find that witch.
That’s my only way to live.
“Excuse me, Knight.”
I said I’d take a break from treatment, then called over the Knight standing guard from the Sun Church nearby.
“Do you know any magicians or witches well?”
“There is a Mage Tower in the capital. I know the location, but I don’t have personal connections to any witches or magicians.”
The Mage Tower, huh.
Yeah.
Since she’s a witch who uses magic, wouldn’t it be most likely to find her there?
“That’s fine. Could you check the Mage Tower to see if there’s a witch with four arms and half a face covered with a mask?”
If the prophecy I saw was correct, the witch would likely have a horrifically twisted left face.
Thus, it would make sense for her to cover it with a mask.
“Four arms. Half a face covered by a mask?…”
“Yes. She’s someone I absolutely need to meet. Can you hurry and check for me?”
“If that’s what the Saint desires, anything will be done.”
The Knight nodded and immediately dashed off somewhere.
Alright. Before the people from the Lilia Church arrive, let’s meet the witch quickly, treat myself, and call it a day.
That’s all I need.
A glimmer of hope appeared.
I began treatment again.
This dreadful role as a Saint where I could be hanged or burned at the stake at any moment.
I wanted it to end quickly.
***
Tydel could hardly stay in the Mage Tower, feeling suffocated.
She needed to make a new breakthrough.
Something far more impressive than that damn Erpa.
While walking through the first-floor lobby to take a break for research materials, she noticed a strangely dressed man who clearly didn’t belong to the Mage Tower standing in the lobby.
A man with a blazing fire emblem tattooed on his chest.
A Knight from the Sun Church.
“Are you searching for a witch?”
“Yes. Is there a witch with four arms and half her face covered with a mask here? The Saint of Healing is looking for her.”
Tydel, who was eavesdropping on the exchange between the lobby staff and the Knight, felt a surge of curiosity and interjected.
“Did the Saint of Healing say a witch is looking for her?”
“Yes, that’s correct. Do you happen to have anyone fitting that description in the Mage Tower?”
Tydel’s eyes narrowed.
“Why are you searching for such a person?”
“I don’t know. But it’s said she absolutely must meet the Saint.”
“Is that so?”
Tydel gazed at the Knight with a peculiar look before breaking into a grin.
“Just wait a moment. I’ll check it out.”
“Thank you, Witch.”
Tydel shot a discreet glance at the lobby staff, signaling her to say nothing, then turned around to head back up the Mage Tower.
Arriving at Erpa’s personal research lab, Tydel knocked on the door.
After a brief wait, Erpa opened the door, just as she always does, with her left face covered by a silver mask.
Her revealed right eye widened.
“Tydel? What brings you here?”
Her expression conveyed disbelief that Tydel would come to visit.
Tydel offered her a smile.
“There’s a Knight looking for you in the first-floor lobby.”
“A Knight?”
“He’s from the Sun Church.”
Erpa’s eyes narrowed.
Having had experiences visiting several churches for miracle research, Erpa had met Knights from the Sun Church before, but none had come personally to seek her out.
“Why would the Sun Church be looking for me?”
“The Saint of Healing is looking for you.”
Erpa momentarily wore a blank expression.
The Saint of Healing?
Why?
“Is it really me they’re looking for?”
“They said they’re looking for a witch with four arms and half her face covered with a mask. Are there any other witches like that besides you?”
“……Alright, I get it. I’ll go down and see.”
As Erpa was about to close the door, Tydel stopped it.
“Why is the Saint looking for you?”
“How would I know?”
“Does it have something to do with your covered left face?”
Erpa flinched for a moment.
It was just a split second, but Tydel didn’t miss that action.
“It’s nothing like that. I told you. This mask is just for decoration.”
“Hmm. Is that so? Still, it seems like you wear it rather obsessively.”
Erpa’s right face distorted with displeasure.
“Do I have any obligation to explain my fashion choices to you?”
“Not really.”
Witches and magicians are all quirky.
Some magicians only get results when researching in the nude, while other witches constantly cast spells on themselves to walk on the ceiling, and some have an absurd number of piercings on their tongue and ears.
Amidst such variants and oddballs, a witch covering half her face with a mask would be considered rather normal.
That’s why Tydel hadn’t given a second thought to Erpa’s masked left face until now.
But when she connected the words “Saint of Healing” and “left mask,” a thought struck her like lightning.
“I thought maybe your left face is seriously distorted and you didn’t want to show it, so you cover it.”
“It’s not that.”
“Aren’t you going to go down? Were you secretly planning to ask the Saint to fix your left face and got nervous when I found out? If you’re going, I’d love to go with you! Watching the healing scene might help my magical research!”
“It’s not like that! There’s a high probability that it’s a scam anyway! I was just about to refuse to go down, and it’s perfect now! You tell them!”
Erpa raises her voice, which was quite rare for her.
“Get out now. I still have research left to do.”
As Erpa slams the door shut, Tydel’s smile remained undeterred, even in the face of her cold response.
Tydel descended back to the first-floor lobby.
And there she encountered the Knight she had seen before.
“I found out directly that there’s no witch matching the description you provided in the Mage Tower. I think you may want to look for a Dark Magician instead.”
“Is that… so?”
The disappointment was evident on the Knight’s face.
“I’m sorry. Knight.”
Tydel replied with an overly innocent tone.
“Thank you for checking, Witch.”
The Knight maintained a polite demeanor as he took his leave.
Tydel stared at the back of the departing Knight for quite some time.
A twisted, ominous smile crept onto her lips.
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