Chapter 46
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: Village Plague and Cursed Waters
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The carriage rattled noisily as it rolled along, nearly reaching the village.
All the villagers turned toward us, waving their arms frantically.
'What’s going on?'
It was far too desperate to be a simple welcome.
They were shouting something too, though it was hard to make out.
'This feels weird.'
So we slowed down even more, and their cries sharpened into clarity.
"Stop! Don’t... don’t come to the village!!"
Now that we were closer, their desperate pleas rang out loud and clear, a chaotic mix of men, women, and children that made my head spin.
"Should I stop?"
"Yeah. Pull over for now."
I nodded at Ekyon, who glanced back at me.
We needed to halt first to let things calm down.
Clunk. As the carriage stopped, the noisy shouts quieted.
Seemed like they were settling a bit.
"Why are you telling us to stop?"
Ekyon called out, her voice laced with a hint of strain in her throat.
It boomed like thunder thanks to her Unique Magic—my ears were ringing.
'What’s the deal?'
The villagers gawked at each other in wide-eyed shock and confusion.
"Want me to sneak over and check?"
Aktaion asked as she adjusted her panties.
She’d been masturbating the whole ride, leaving her soaked with arousal.
"Let’s wait a bit first. If they don’t explain after that, then we’ll go."
I shook my head after a moment’s thought.
They had some urgent issue, sure—but I had no rush.
"If the master says so, then that’s that. But what’s going on? Doesn’t look like bandits hit them."
Aktaion tilted her head, peering ahead.
If bandits had attacked, neither the people nor the village would look this intact.
"Not that kind of trouble, but they’re blocking us anyway. Plague maybe?"
"Plague? Then we should bail right now."
"If it’s a plague, we should go in. Avoiding it would be the real loss."
A soft white light bloomed over my hand, and Aktaion let out a startled gasp.
She’d forgotten about it, judging by her expression.
"I spaced on that. But can your Unique Magic handle a plague, master?"
"It’ll work."
Spraying it like disinfectant from a fumigation truck—plagues wouldn’t stand a chance.
No reason to run.
As I calmly assessed the situation, one man finally approached slowly.
A sturdy old fellow with streaks of gray in his hair.
He stopped midway between the village and us, then spoke deliberately.
"It’s the plague! Come any closer and you’ll catch it—turn back!"
The old man enunciated each word with force, just as I’d suspected.
'Gotta cure this.'
I leaned out toward the driver’s seat.
"Ekyon. Shout this for me."
"Got it. What should I say?"
"I can heal the plague. Let us in."
I pulled back, and her lips parted.
"We can cure the plague! Guide us into the village!"
I clamped my hands over my ears just in time.
The booming high note was bearable that way.
"Really?!"
The old man across from us bellowed, eyes bulging in shock, desperation, and disbelief.
"Yes!"
Ekyon shouted back, gauging their reaction.
In a plague-ridden village, letting in a healer was standard.
Refusing would make them scum.
The three women knew it too—they steadied their breaths, eyes gleaming, ready to charge on my order.
"Then please, come to the village and heal the plague!"
The old man cried urgently.
Good—his plea confirmed the plague was real.
"We’re heading out."
Ekyon whipped the carriage forward at his words.
As the wheels turned, the gap between us shrank.
Soon, we pulled up right in front of him.
His desperate gaze pierced me.
"Can you really heal the plague?"
"Lying about curing plagues for profit would be idiotic. Don’t worry."
I extended my hand, glowing with white light—an invitation to grasp it.
"Oh, heavens! Your Majesty...!"
He clutched my shining hand and bowed deeply, reverent as a devotee before a god.
'He’s fine.'
Touching a sick body with magic usually felt like popping bubbles of illness...
Nothing here.
Meaning he hadn’t caught it yet.
"M... Master. Should we take control of the villagers?"
Ekyon turned back to ask.
Cranking her neck like that had to hurt, but she seemed okay.
"Hmm... Nah."
Treating them one by one felt heartfelt but inefficient.
Better to sweep the whole village at once.
Or herd them all together.
"Elder. Go gather everyone in front of their houses right away. The square would be ideal, but that might be tough?"
"N-no! I’ll round them up in the square immediately!"
"Gather as many as you can, then. We’ll start with them."
The bowed old man snapped his head up, eyes blazing near-maniacal with hope.
"Hey! Gather everyone in the village square now! Healers have come!"
He bolted toward the village, shouting joyfully—light steps, powerful voice.
"Let’s go."
Ekyon drove us in as the villagers scattered urgently.
We took it slow; they were frantic.
Hope had descended, doubts be damned—they had no time for suspicion, just action and cries.
By the time we arrived...
A wide open space teemed with villagers.
'Everyone who could make it is here.'
As we stopped, the old man approached.
"About twenty are too sick to move—we’ve got everyone else."
"Understood. We’ll note those for later and disinfect the rest first."
"Disinfect? What’s..."
I hopped down from the carriage mid-sentence.
Showing beat explaining.
—Long talk: Boring, pretentious.
—Disinfect now: Quick, simple.
Thoughts sorted, I channeled mana and radiated white light from my body.
"Let there be light."
I strode through the crowd, quoting some grand line I’d heard somewhere, shining so bright it swallowed the sunlight.
The healthy grew healthier.
The pale and staggering regained their vigor.
'Normalization in action.'
I shut off the glow and stepped onto a perfect platform nearby.
Now everyone was in easy view.
"Your plague is cured. Your bodies prove it—check for yourselves, no worries."
"R-really?"
A young man blinked, still dazed with disbelief.
"Yes. Look around. Some were clearly ill before we arrived—how do they seem now?"
I spoke gently, and he turned, scanning about.
Others did the same.
—Waaah!!
Gawking, murmuring.
Confirming each other’s health over and over, cheering.
"It’s... it’s really gone!"
The old man rushed up breathlessly.
No need to explain—I’d shown proof.
"Guide me to the ones who couldn’t come. Time to check them."
"Y-yes...! This way!"
He led me house to house through the village.
I mapped its layout, population, demographics—quite informative.
'Near the viscount’s territory, right?'
After healing the last patient, a child, I pondered.
A bit farther lay Viscount Vuro’s domain.
Home to a noble faction rivaling the imperial side.
This village wasn’t directly his, but under his influence.
Perfect for currying favor...
But with a long road ahead, I didn’t want to waste time name-dropping.
"Thank you...! You’re the village’s savior!"
Treatment done, he bowed again, eyes misty—made me uncomfortable.
"No big deal. More importantly, are you the village head?"
"Yes, I am. How’d you know?"
"Lucky guess. Anyway, do you know why the plague hit? It didn’t come from nowhere."
I finally asked the root cause.
If it was random, fine—but otherwise, uproot it.
"Hmm... The cause. Truth is, nothing special. No outsiders before it started, no visitors. We’re a small village."
The head paused, then answered, squeezing out every detail.
'Hope his blood pressure doesn’t spike.'
Listening quietly, I pieced it together.
Especially the water.
Pulling from the source—bingo.
"Where’s the water source?"
"Shall I show you? It’s a bit of a walk, but not far."
"Please."
I followed him out, my escorts trailing naturally.
"Here it is."
About thirty minutes later, we reached it.
A broad, clear lake.
"Pretty big, huh?"
"Yes. And it’s not stagnant—fresh water flows in from below."
"You just draw from it?"
"We boil it once, but even raw it never made us sick. Has been that way forever."
Groundwater?
Or river/sea fed?
No expert, but potable long-term meant no salt.
"Hold on."
I crouched at the edge, peering in.
The clear surface revealed the muddy bottom.
Seemed pristine, no pollution.
Did I misread?
I’d checked assuming waterborne plague...
Maybe food then?
'Dunno.'
Dipping a hand in before standing—fresh inflow made it fine for a rinse.
Wipe with disinfection if grimy.
Zzt.
'Huh?'
The instant my fingers touched, they stung like buckshot.
Mana stirred on its own.
Mana reacting to the sting—suspicious as hell.
"Master."
Antiope crouched beside me, sharp-eyed—she’d noticed.
"Did your mana just react...?"
"Not on purpose."
Ekyon and Aktaion frowned suspiciously too.
All sensing the same thing confirmed it.
"Let me check."
While the old man blinked in confusion, I plunged my hand in and summoned light.
Bright enough to blind the depths.
'Something’s there.'
Mana surged, intensifying the sting; the surface rippled.
Resistance to my magic—clear sign.
"Wh-what?"
The old man’s eyes widened as the water trembled, blue sparks dancing on top.
'Almost.'
Poke more and it’d bite.
Confident, I poured in light—and the lake hit its limit first.
"Wha—?!"
Boom. The center erupted.
He stumbled back with a dazed yelp.
'Why is this real?'
I blinked at the towering spray.
Sinister mana writhed within the clear water.
Resistance to my light.
By my experience, not curse-like—a true curse.