Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: 15. The Corruption Value Has Risen Too Much... (2)
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A spot not far from the cave. Isabel and I had reached a high vantage point where we could clearly see the cave entrance without drawing the goblins' attention. We hid there for a while, holding our breath as we waited tensely for someone to emerge from the entrance.
Swooooosh—
Ugh... It's cold...
A chilling night breeze swept over my entire body, cooled by the starry sky. I'd draped something like a robe over Isabel to keep her warm, but it did little to block the wind. It whistled through like there were holes in it, naturally making my body shiver uncontrollably.
They'll come out soon, right...?
We were waiting for Deaconess Rachel and Sylvia.
From what I'd heard, besides Isabel, two more people had come looking for me. The problem was they got separated when the path split midway, so no one knew what happened to them. But they'd agreed to meet here, so as Isabel said, they'd show up soon enough.
Still... why did Deaconess Rachel come all the way here...?
Sylvia made sense, but I couldn't understand why Deaconess Rachel would venture this far. She could barely protect herself, yet here she was, recklessly charging in...
I could tell with my own eyes that she'd followed out of worry for me. Sigh... Still, this was insane.
I'll give her an earful later.
"Someone's coming out."
As I mulled over these thoughts, two figures emerged from deep inside the cave, just as Isabel said. Squinting slightly, the blurry silhouettes came into clearer view.
That golden hair has to be Sylvia... and that habit with the bluish hair... Ah... Yeah, that's Deaconess Rachel.
They looked so tiny from here that I wasn't sure at first, but their distinctive features made it easy to recognize them.
Thankfully, they both seemed unharmed—probably thanks to Sylvia watching over them.
"That's those two, right?"
Isabel whispered right behind me. I nodded quickly, and she immediately stood, pulling a magic stone from her pocket and raising it high into the sky.
And then...
Fwoosh—
The magic stone glowed brightly as it absorbed Isabel's mana, shining like a beacon for the two standing at the cave entrance.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Waaaaaaaaah!"
The moment she spotted the light, Deaconess Rachel ran straight to me and threw herself into my arms. She hugged me so tightly that my body was pushed back, and I toppled over backward.
Thud—
"Huaaaang! Priest! Priest!"
"Haha... R-Rachel, the deaconess..."
Deaconess Rachel rubbed her tear- and snot-streaked face all over my chest. I'd planned to scold her the moment she arrived, but now I couldn't even muster the words, let alone anger.
I let out a deep sigh of relief and gently stroked her head.
Tsk... Yeah, it was my fault for getting captured by the goblins and making Deaconess Rachel worry. She was blameless.
"Huuuung... Priest... Are you really okay?"
She clung to me like she'd never let go, looking up with her face a mess of snot and tears. I assured her I was fine while trying to calm her down.
"Nothing happened. Come on, you're a grown woman—don't cry. There, there..."
She was a full twenty years old, yet it felt like I was raising a child. No wonder she was so shaken... She'd watched someone get dragged away and killed right in front of her. The trauma must have been unimaginable. It wouldn't have been strange if she'd fled back to the church, so coming all this way was impressive in its own right.
"Those guys didn't do anything weird to you, right? Right?"
"Nope, nothing. See? I'm perfectly fine."
I waved my arms to show her. My whole body ached like it had been sliced with knives, but I hid it so she wouldn't fret and make a fuss.
"Hic... Priest..."
"Alright, time to get up. You're getting heavy..."
I was at my limit holding on. My divine power was depleted, leaving my limbs and everything feeling limp and numb. With Deaconess Rachel— who weighed more than me— pressing down from above... I had no chance.
"Sniff... Sniff... Okay..."
Deaconess Rachel finally climbed off me, sniffling nonstop. I'd thought she'd stick to me all day, but luckily, she listened.
"Up we go! Priest, how's your body holding up?"
Sylvia arrived only after I'd endured Deaconess Rachel for a while. Seeing me sitting unscathed on the ground, her limp tail perked up with relief and began wagging side to side.
"Ah, yes, I'm fine. Thank you so much for coming all this way for me."
"Oh, no need. I'm just glad you're okay. We searched forever and thought something terrible had happened..."
"Haha... Luckily, Isabel here rescued me just in time."
I turned and thanked Isabel once more. Maybe it embarrassed her, because her face flushed slightly as she averted her gaze.
"Sigh... Deaconess, you were so worried about what might've happened to the priest... Uh... But Priest, your clothes..."
Sylvia's vertical pupils suddenly dilated wide as she trailed off. She whipped her head away and covered her eyes with her hands.
"Ah, uh... I didn't mean to look on purpose... I mean..."
She stammered incoherently. Wondering what was wrong, I glanced down and saw my bare body fully exposed beneath the thin robe.
"Ah..."
I let out a belated exclamation. With everything happening so frantically one after another, I'd forgotten to fix my clothes.
I fumbled with the robe's hem to cover myself, but with nothing underneath, my contours were still plainly visible.
Getting seen naked wasn't a big deal for me, but it would make them uncomfortable, so I had to show some consideration.
"Aha... S-Sorry. My clothes got torn..."
"N-No, it's my fault for looking."
Once I'd covered the important parts with the robe, Sylvia finally turned back. Even so, her face was still beet red.
"Ahem... Hey... So, did you wipe out all the goblins inside?"
Isabel spoke up to break the awkward atmosphere, turning to Sylvia. The flustered beastkin shifted her gaze and replied.
"Ah, we took out a few, but there are probably more left inside. They won't escape tonight anyway. We can report to the higher-ups, and they'll handle it."
"Yeah, fair enough... Anyway, let's head down. The priest might catch a cold if we linger."
With Isabel's words marking the end of that, everyone prepared to leave.
Sylvia unwound the bandages from her hands, and Isabel wiped the blood from her machete.
I borrowed Deaconess Rachel's shoulder to stand—and had barely taken a single step.
"Huh? Priest, your nose... blood..."
"Huh?"
N-Nosebleed?
Deaconess Rachel's eyes widened like saucers as her voice rose in shock. Wondering what she meant out of the blue, I wiped under my nose with the back of my hand.
Sure enough, a sticky, dark red substance smeared across my skin, just as she said.
What... Did I stress too much...? But even so, this is way too much...
Riiiiing—
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Corruption Value has risen excessively.] [The body has reached its unbearable limit.] [Current Corruption Value +35. For safety, it will temporarily drop to +10.] [Severe brain damage detected. Consciousness level significantly reduced.] ... "Puhah... Haa... Haa..."
Status windows flashed wildly in my vision as I spat up blood. A crushing pressure bore down from above, forcing me to my knees. I barely held myself up with my arms, but even that slipped away as my consciousness blurred, threatening to collapse entirely.
What... is this...?
A splitting headache and a floating mind.
Glancing sideways, I saw everyone around me shouting something frantically. But the ringing in my ears drowned it all out, leaving only the echo of my own ragged breathing in my head.
"Urp... Uweeeek!"
No. I'm going to die like this. I need to do something first, but in this state, I couldn't manage anything.
My eyelids grew heavier in my fading consciousness. My body finally gave out, and awareness sank into deep slumber.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ What... Did I die?
I had no idea how much time had passed. My consciousness, trapped in deep darkness, awoke after what felt like three or four hours.
Forcing my heavy eyelids open, I looked ahead. What filled my vision was an endlessly white room.
The floor, the ceiling—everything painted pure white, giving the illusion of heaven itself.
Or perhaps... it wasn't an illusion.
Ugh... What... My arms... Why...
Trying to sit up, they wouldn't budge—like they'd been glued down. The other arm and both legs were the same... It felt like I'd been petrified.
All I could move were my eyes.
Unable to twitch even slightly, I quickly scanned my surroundings with sidelong glances.
Nothing...
Truly nothing.
Just endless white stretching in every direction, devoid of anything else.
Squeak squeak—
As I stared blankly ahead with a vacant mind, a discordant sound utterly out of place with the backdrop reached my ears.
A mouse?
Glancing down, there it was—a white mouse, pure as snow except for its red eyes. It tilted its head, standing on hind legs and peering up at me.
Another mouse...
I wasn't even surprised by its presence anymore. After being dragged to this bizarre world, violated, and toyed with by monsters, questioning something this trivial felt exhausting. I just watched silently, waiting to see what it would do. No deeper thoughts.
Squeak squeak— Squeak—
The white mouse began circling the area. I tracked it with my eyes, and soon it climbed something that looked like human legs.
Human legs?
When did those get here? I hadn't heard a thing. Right before my eyes was what appeared to be a person's legs, and following the mouse's path upward, my gaze met a woman in pristine white— the very picture of a "pure white maiden"— staring down at me impassively.
"Hmm... I never imagined we'd meet like this... Isaiah..."
My eyes widened larger.
If I wasn't mistaken, she was the master of the Holy Faith Church... Saintess Amaness.