47 – Scar-1

“Is it a headwind?”

It wasn’t easy for her to walk the paved road, but she couldn’t help it right now. ‘Cause he’s been down this road

Noble since birth, she is now mobilizing all her senses of smell just to smell a man.

It wasn’t a desirable situation, but she had no choice.

On the way, I could smell blood and flesh on my teeth. A pack of wild dogs appeared in the distance.

Although simply dogs, they are skilled hunters.

A well-armed party of adventurers could easily overcome a pack of stray dogs when intact, but it was not possible to maintain perfect conditions every time they moved.

After fighting against a formidable enemy, a group of adventurers who are tattered and enjoying the joy of victory will be attacked by packs of wild dogs and bite their necks.

“…Shall I kill him?”

Nerwen pondered for a moment. If it’s an enemy of that level, it’s not an enemy that puts Enerel in danger.

However, the wild dog did not have very good feelings.

Wouldn’t it be better if it was a wolf that lives the life of nature as it is, because those wild dogs were beings that combined human malice and beast cruelty.

And, we haven’t agreed with him yet on how much to deal with the enemy. If you ignore those wild dogs and run at them, you don’t know what kind of punishment you will receive from him.

“Hmm…”

After making his decision, Nerwen raised his bow. Her bow did not quiver, even though it was a distance that would be seen as a dot by an ordinary human.

As the arrow flew, one of the wild dogs fell. The other dogs were bewildered, but Nerwen knocked them down with a single shot at the dog’s neck.

The distance was not an inconvenience to her.

I’ve hit smaller objects in more urgent situations, at greater distances, and moving faster.

Rather, it was comfortable to be able to defeat the enemy with just a slight movement of the hand holding the arrow.

However, the faint smell of wild dog’s blood covered the smell of Enerel.

The work wasn’t hard, but it was mentally painful.

“I’m used to solitude, but this…”

On countless occasions she had rejected other allies, this was the first time Nerwen had been rejected.

Only occasionally did I feel the need to be an ally of others, but this was the first time I ever thought I wanted to be one.

There were mixed thoughts, but the arrow did not miss. A group of wild dogs, looking for an opportunity from afar, fell to the ground one after another.

It wasn’t a good thing to see a dead animal roaming the streets, but there weren’t really dangerous beasts or monsters nearby who would flock to see it.

“under.”

Nerwen, who last checked to see if anyone was moving, sighed once and took out an arrow for marking.

But as she fumbled for the half-empty quiver, she realized that her work was not over.

You must pick up the arrow.

Elves moving in the forest can cut down quality trees at any time to make arrows. However, considering the course of the party, you never know when the arrow will fall.

On the trip he left at the warrior party, he picked up an arrow.

“Well…”

It’s boring, but it’s not something you can’t do. No matter how noble you are, you cannot avoid dirty and boring work as long as you are a warrior.

Even so, it was disgusting and tedious to walk to the place where the wild dog was and pull out the bloody arrow by hand.

I felt stuffy, like I was out of breath. The destination was the same, but she was not with them.

It was better than being in prison. It was okay to be able to help him in some way, and to be able to smell his scent, even if only slightly.

Still, I was worried about whether I would be able to continue this job, whether I would be happy even if I lived as it was, and whether I would be able to carry out my work as a champion of the World Tree.

Setting aside anything else, I hated the headwind. His scent doesn’t float on the wind.

/////

“dissembler!”

“Cheaters!”

Celia was trembling. Even from inside her room, the shouts of the crowd could be heard.

“Did those who serve God make the warrior like that?”

It was something I had to endure. However, it was too heavy a responsibility for her to bear.

Celia, who had been meditating alone, opened the door with weary steps.

“It’s a surprise… Are you feeling better?”

“…I have to get out.”

A young nun, only a year or two older than Celia, was guarding the door. Celia expressed her determination with a hard face, but the nun gently pushed the saintess back into the room.

“No. The Sister-in-law even received permission directly from the Holy Father. You must be here.”

“By what right!”

Celia roughly shook the nun’s arm. She was small in stature and weak in body, but that was her before she left for an adventure.

Regardless of his size, he had the basic stamina to withstand hours of prayer.

During the journey, there were many times when she used her power to get rid of her divine power.

“It’s to protect you.”

“I’m sorry…”

“It’s not your responsibility. It’s all nonsense, everyone knows. Well, that porter who was following you was actually a hero, right? You haven’t done anything wrong.”

The saintess was trusted. The nun, a friend and colleague, sincerely believed in the saintess.

“no…”

The nun was one of those who had seen Celia longer than anyone else, but the Celia she saw was Celia at church after all.

Celia, who could always meet the goddess and move with the person who supported her, was all she knew.

Not Celia, who was endlessly criticized on the battlefield, despaired of encountering a reality that did not match her common sense, and eventually chose to become comfortable by blaming someone.

“It’s my fault… I have to apologize…”

“Aren’t you healed yet?”

“I’m sorry…”

The healing of priests is not infinite. Even priests who used to wield miraculous powers sometimes lost all their abilities at some point.

“You used your body.”

“…”

There were some people, like the princess, whose wounds were simply too deep and delayed to heal, but the saintess had a slightly different reason.

The wound he received from Enerel was not great. Rather, the wounds he had caused were even greater.

Like magic, divine spells can also use cost. However, unlike wizards who could use many valuable materials, the ‘price’ that priests could use was limited.

feelings of oneself or others, or the body.

There was no problem with normal movement, but the body was not able to properly use divine power. My eyes haven’t returned to normal yet.

“And, do you really think they’re going to judge you out of a sense of justice? They just need someone to be mad at.”

“eww…”

The nobles who resisted the emperor hired men and started demonstrating through them.

However, no matter how angry the citizens were at the situation, it was difficult to express their anger directly against the emperor.

The emperor’s popularity was sky-high, and insulting the imperial family was a serious sin. If they did something wrong, the atmosphere itself that condemned them could be ruined.

The magic tower is a closed space. If we hold a demonstration there, no one responds. Because the moral level of wizards is not trusted socially, there was great anxiety that angry wizards might curse them.

If you had to protest against the elves, you wouldn’t know who to do it to or where to shout at.

However, the cathedral was different.

Due to its nature, a large number of people flock to and leave the huge capital cathedral. No matter what corruption and greed the priests committed behind the scenes, they had to be faithful and good.

“You said there was someone shouting during worship today. If that continues to happen…”

“You can endure it.”

The only place where the crowd gathered one by one could protest was the place where the saintess was staying.

“It’s my fault.”

“Even if you did something wrong, at least apologize to the person in question!”

Celia could not bear to look straight at the face of the nun who was defending herself desperately. It wasn’t just because the white cloth was covering her eyes.

“…Okay. I’ll be patient.”

“Yeah. Good idea… uh, where are you going?”

“A prayer room.”

Seeing Celia walking one step at a time, leaning her exhausted body against the wall, the nun hurriedly lent her shoulder.

“It’s okay. I can walk alone.”

However, Celia sternly refused the help and moved to the prayer room in the basement.

When I closed the door, no sound was heard. She knew it was an escape.

It is to go in front of the goddess safely, away from the countless people who have gathered to find out and condemn her sins right now.

“Goddess…”

She fell to her knees in front of the goddess statue. The soft candles swayed in a dizzying light, illuminating the goddess statue and her.

“What should I do? How…”

I thought I would die. At least, he thought he couldn’t survive.

It would have been better if he had died. If he sacrificed his life for the last time, leaving him with ‘a place to be happy again’, and disappearing under his divine spell.

However, he is running away again because he is so ugly and repulsive that he survives.

“Please answer me…”

However, as it had been from the middle of the trip, the statue of Goddess didn’t say anything.

“please…”

Only the sound of Celia’s sobbing prayers echoed softly in the room.