Chapter 126
Chapter 126
The priest said it would soon be fine and left for another place.
Petra was still sleeping on the bed. Because of that, they spoke in small voices, saying it was a relief, and let out sighs of relief.
“What happened?”
“Well……”
At my question, Reyis began to explain the situation.
“When you and Sylvia went to the Sacred Lake, we also went out sightseeing as scheduled. While we were walking around, there was a circus performance on one side of the street, and that became the problem.”
They said they all took seats together and watched the flashy performance. Then, one clown approached Alice and handed her a single flower.
She naturally accepted it, and the clown exaggeratedly chanted a spell, saying he would show her something amazing.
“So the curse activated right after.”
At my words, Alice shook her head.
“The older sister next to me sensed something strange and drew her sword and cut it. But……”
From the severed flower, a pitch-black energy poured out and swept over them.
Because Petra, who had been the most vigilant, stepped forward and blocked it, the others were able to remain unharmed, but her own exposure was unavoidable.
“Still, they said it would be fine, so……”
Alice, who looked at Petra with slightly swollen eyes, placed a hand over her chest and murmured that it was a relief.
“…….”
In front of her, I could not bring myself to say that Petra’s curse had not yet been lifted.
But there was no problem. According to what was displayed in the Status Window, the curse would activate only after forty-eight hours. While they were away, I just needed to borrow the power of Excalibur and erase the curse.
Moreover, thanks to the Sacred Lake, Excalibur was in optimal condition. Although this curse called Laplace’s Regression was something I had never heard of before, it should be more than manageable with the power of the Holy Sword.
“…I heard there was a problem with one of your companions.”
At that moment, Sylvia, who had followed after me, appeared. She hurried over to us and asked what had happened.
“Ah, there was a bit of trouble when we went out to the street. The priest who examined her said it was fine, so……”
“…….”
Sylvia’s eyes narrowed as she saw Petra lying on the bed. Without even listening to all of Alice’s story, she strode forward and grabbed Petra’s hand.
“This is……”
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue at that. Something I had planned to deal with when no one was around had gotten slightly tangled.
“W-what is it?”
At Sylvia’s sudden action, not only Alice but everyone around looked at her with puzzled expressions. Sylvia opened her mouth with a serious face.
“It’s a type of curse I’ve never seen before. Judging by how subtly it’s been placed—so much so that even I have trouble recognizing it—it’s probably from a named demon……”
“Huh? But the priest just said it was fine……”
“He probably only saw the surface and thought the purification was complete. For a curse of this level, at the very least someone of cardinal rank or a paladin would be needed to recognize it.”
Alice hurriedly looked at me. When I slightly nodded, agreeing with Sylvia’s words, her expression collapsed.
“Don’t worry. Who do you think I am?”
But Sylvia beat her chest with a proud smile. Only then did Alice seem to recall who she was.
“Ah.”
Divinity itself purifies all manner of impure things. Sylvia was an existence called a Saintess even within the Holy Kingdom. The sacred power she possessed was immense, rivaling that of the Holy King.
Paaaat—!
Sylvia held Petra’s hand and closed her eyes. A dazzling light erupted and wrapped around their bodies.
“…Looks like it won’t even be my turn to step in.”
I said with a shrug. Well, if this helped improve their relationship along the way, that was good enough.
When the light subsided, Sylvia let out a light breath and opened her eyes. But confusion soon settled into her gaze.
“…Huh?”
The same was true for me.
Sylvia’s power was certainly immense. Its density was no less than the energy that permeated the Sacred Lake.
Yet the curse placed on Petra’s body had not disappeared.
“…Why.”
She seemed unable to understand it. She once again exerted her power and purified Petra’s body, but the curse did not vanish.
“W-what’s going on?”
At that behavior, Alice asked cautiously. Sylvia bit her thumbnail and spoke in a flustered voice.
“What is this curse? My power isn’t working.”
“Then……”
“Move aside.”
Just as Alice’s face was about to stiffen, I stepped in between them. Even if the Saintess’s sacred power did not work, I still had Excalibur.
Woooong—.
The Holy Sword summoned into my hand emitted a brilliant light. Perhaps because it had recovered its power at the Sacred Lake, its density was slightly deeper than the Saintess’s.
But even though it seeped evenly into Petra’s body, it could not erase the curse.
“…Even Excalibur’s power doesn’t work?”
Sylvia muttered with an expression of disbelief. At that, I called out to River, who would surely be watching this situation.
‘River.’
[Master, this is a curse, but it isn’t a curse.]
‘A curse, but not a curse?’
I quietly listened to her words. I, a former editor, only knew the future developments and settings, but she had lived in this world for hundreds of years. When it came to curses, she would be far more knowledgeable than I was.
[Normally, a curse refers to something that affects the physical body—weakening it, stealing strength, restricting mana, that kind of thing. But the curse placed on her right now is binding her very existence.]
‘So it’s a mental-type curse?’
[No, it’s different from mental-type curses. If I had to categorize it, you could say the curse is engraved directly onto her soul.]
‘…Then how do we remove it?’
[No matter who it is, even I can’t interfere with the soul itself. The same would apply to a Saintess or even a Holy King.]
‘What about an elixir? Wouldn’t that work?’
[No. Elixirs are also limited to the physical body. Even the Blessing of Invisibility you possess would probably be useless. That, too, only prevents instant death of the flesh.]
‘Then……’
At River’s firm declaration, my chest felt heavy.
I had only come to the Holy Kingdom to restore Excalibur and to root out the hidden Majin.
But what exactly was Laplace’s Regression, and what kind of beings had orchestrated this?
Even if events flowed according to the original story and Petra’s death became inevitable, that point in time was still far off.
I wondered if Absolute Plausibility might somehow prevent her death, but even so, I could not simply sit back and do nothing.
“If only we could at least find out the name of the curse……”
Sylvia said with a furrowed brow. At that, I spoke in a low voice, filled with hope.
“Laplace’s Regression. A curse that brings its target to death forty-eight hours later.”
“…Laplace’s Regression?”
At that, Sylvia looked at me. She sent a gaze asking if I had ever heard of it, but she let out a low hum and shook her head.
“I’ll tell Father first and see if there’s any method we can find. Since this happened in the Holy Kingdom, we can’t say we bear no responsibility either. I’ll help as much as I can.”
“I’m counting on you.”
After Sylvia left, I told the group to return to the lodgings for now.
Starting tomorrow, the Exchange Event would begin in earnest. It wasn’t something to be doing while Petra lay bedridden, but that didn’t mean we could simply remain idle like this.
“I’ll handle this somehow, so you all move as planned in my stead.”
Before coming here, each of them had been assigned their own roles. At my request to carry those out, they nodded with dark expressions.
Everyone except me left for their respective rooms to prepare for tomorrow. Alice, who was the last to remain, grabbed my hand just before returning to her room.
“What if she doesn’t wake up? Because of me……”
“Don’t think like that. Trust me like you always do. I’ll manage it somehow.”
I held both of her shoulders and met her gaze.
If Alice wavered here, my own resolve would weaken as well. What I said to her was also what I was saying to myself.
She soon nodded slightly. Then, with a resolute expression, she said she would take on the role Petra was supposed to handle and left.
I was glad she had regained her composure, but my heart felt heavy.
After that, countless people came and went from the sickroom. Starting with Carius, the Academy representative, then cardinals and paladins of the Holy Kingdom, and finally even the Holy King himself paid a visit.
“…This is a curse I’ve never seen before.”
With sunken eyes, he looked at Petra lying on the bed. If even someone as well-versed in curses as he was didn’t recognize it, there was a high chance that no one here would.
Then Sylvia, who had been silent beside him, murmured,
“…If it were the Goddess’s Mark.”
“Sylvia.”
The Holy King cut her off in a low voice. But I heard it clearly.
“The Goddess’s Mark?”
“It’s nothing. Just my daughter’s nonsense.”
The Holy King shook his head and changed the subject.
The Goddess’s Mark.
It could be considered an upper-tier counterpart to an elixir.
A pure concentration of sacred power that purified all impurities. Normally, at this point in time, no one should even know that name.
Because it was something the goddess bestowed upon the Hero through the Holy King in the storyline leading up to the decisive battle with the Demon King.
Yet that name had come from Sylvia’s mouth.
“Does the Holy Kingdom have the Goddess’s Mark?”
When I raised my head to look at her, Sylvia alternated her trembling gaze between me and her father. Then, as if she had made up her mind, she gave a small nod. Seeing his daughter like that, the Holy King’s face hardened.
“Holy King.”
“Denied.”
“Your Highness.”
“My daughter misspoke. I would like you to forget this. No—forget it. That is not something that should be revealed to the world yet.”
The Holy King shook his head, signaling that this was enough. He then tried to leave as is, but I reached and grabbed his shoulder.
“Holy King.”
I discarded honorifics and decorum. Sensing that I would not let this pass if he left like this, he narrowed his eyes.
“What do you think you’re doing right now?”
“There should be two drops of the Goddess’s Mark.”
“…….”
At those words, the Holy King’s expression visibly faltered.
“Leaving aside its existence, how do you even know that……”
“Just as you hold many things close, so do I.”
“Even so, I cannot hand it over.”
“The Goddess’s Mark will end up in the Hero’s hands anyway. Whether sooner or later makes no difference. So……”
“This is my final warning, Imperial Prince of the Empire. Remove your hand at once and erase this conversation from your memory. That is my last act of leniency.”
As if he would speak no further, the Holy King flared his presence and issued a warning. But I tilted my head at that and gave a twisted smile.
“Do you not know who is granting leniency here?”
Woom—.
The pressure erupting from my entire body pushed back his presence. Though I had defeated Paladin Aion, he clearly hadn’t imagined I could contend with him; the Holy King’s face stiffened.
“Just what are you?”
What his daughter had once asked, the father now asked me as well. I narrowed my eyes and opened my mouth.
“If I tell you, will you give me the Goddess’s Mark?”
“…Denied.”
At the low reply, I clenched my fist tightly.
There had to be something, some way…….
Then suddenly, something brushed past my mind. Letting out a short sigh, I closed my eyes and spoke.
“Then I’ll walk the Martyr’s Path.”
“Ostia!”
At that, Sylvia cried out. The Holy King let out another sigh, asking if I even knew about that.
“The Holy Kingdom cannot refuse one who is qualified to walk the Martyr’s Path. However, if you desire the Goddess’s Mark, you must stake something of equivalent value as the price.”
“I……”
I fell into brief contemplation.
The Saintess’s tears were truly a supreme treasure.
Among what I possessed, something that could match that value was…….
[No matter what decision you make, Master, I will gladly follow it.]
River, who had been watching everything through my eyes, spoke calmly in a low voice.
The Holy Sword Excalibur was also a treasure comparable to the Goddess’s Mark. The Holy King must have known that and mentioned a price.
But I shook my head.
‘I promised. I said I wouldn’t abandon you.’
[But……]
I reached into my Subspace Pouch.
“I’ll pay the price with this.”
“…….”
Transparent undergarments were drawn out by my hand and revealed themselves. Sylvia parted her lips slightly, and the Holy King, realizing this was no ordinary item, showed a glint of interest in his eyes.
“It’s the myth-grade artifact Blessing of Invisibility. No matter what instant-death damage the wearer suffers, it blocks it. It can even be recharged after a single use. I tested it earlier—seems that an amount of sacred power comparable to what filled the Sacred Lake is sufficient.”
The Blessing of Invisibility existed to save someone anyway. Using it like this was no different.
“What do you think? This should be sufficient value to walk the Martyr’s Path.”
Moreover, I had not the slightest intention of losing.