The Uninvited Guest
“...Something feels strange.”
“Pardon?”
“For some reason, today of all days... the pain is lighter. It feels completely different from how I usually am, when I couldn’t even move a muscle in bed.”
Yulia suddenly brought up the topic. I broke into a cold sweat inside and forced an awkward smile. The truth was, the moment I stepped into her private hospital room, I had been continuously applying my power to her. I believed it was the right thing to do for Arie, who must be anxiously waiting back at the Academy. I had been secretly easing her pain little by little so it wouldn’t seem too sudden and suspicious if she recovered all at once… but it looked like Yulia had already noticed the change in her condition.
Like sister, like sister. Her perceptiveness was exactly like Arie’s.
“Th-that’s wonderful to hear. Would it be all right if I examined your condition once more?”
“...Yes. I’d appreciate it.”
Even as she spoke, Yulia subtly pulled the blanket closer to her chest. Her actions radiated a fierce determination that screamed, I won’t let you touch my body so casually!
Hold it in. Just hold it in. I wanted to glare at her with a frozen expression, but since she was a patient, I decided to keep a smiling face no matter how annoyed I felt.
“Give me your hand for a moment.”
“......Here.”
Yulia hesitated before extending one hand. I gently took it and, in the guise of checking her pulse, sent my mana flowing into her body. Perhaps sensing the intrusion of another’s energy by instinct, she flinched for a brief moment, but showed no other particular reaction. Once I confirmed there wasn’t a strong rejection response, I continued spreading my mana through her.
“It, it feels strange...”
“It’s just a simple examination, so please try to relax.”
“Ugh...”
Yulia twisted her entire body, unable to stay still. The unfamiliar energy seemed to tickle her in a peculiar way. Yet even then, she refused to let go of my hand, clinging to it like a child terrified of a shot who refuses to release their parent’s grip.
…Anyway, it was cute.
“All done.”
“......I’m sorry for showing you such an unseemly side of myself.”
“It was just adorable. What’s there to apologize for?”
“Wh-what do you mean by...”
“Oops, I said my inner thoughts out loud...!”
Yulia’s face turned slightly red as she fumbled with her lips, then finally lost the battle against her embarrassment and buried her face in the pillow.
…It seemed this woman was becoming more and more expressive with her emotions lately. It felt like only yesterday she was rivaling Hestia, the master of expressionlessness, with her own blank face. How truly fascinating.
Hm, now that I thought about it, even Hestia seemed to be showing a wider range of expressions these days…
While I was lost in these idle thoughts, the quietly composed Yulia spoke up.
“...Professor...?”
“Yes?”
“Um… H-how did the examination turn out…?”
Her voice, still muffled with her face pressed into the pillow, was so soft that an ordinary person with normal hearing would have caught less than half of it. But I understood her perfectly.
For a moment, the mischievous part of my personality screamed to tease her even more, but I decided to stop there. If I kept this up, it would never end.
“Hmm, I don’t see anything particularly wrong. Your body is quite healthy. Honestly, I’m starting to wonder if you’re even sick at all.”
“The other priests said something similar. That for someone in pain, my body was far too healthy...”
“I share the same opinion. …This makes it even more likely that it isn’t a disease.”
“...Are you saying that what I’m suffering from isn’t an illness…?”
By now Yulia had lifted her face and was looking at me. Countless question marks seemed to float across her expression.
If I could, I would have told her everything I knew without any annoying manipulation. But since I still hadn’t identified exactly what kind of curse was lodged in her body, I had no choice but to hesitate. Above all, carelessly speaking about matters related to the Outer Gods could cause serious problems. So I decided to only share what was safe to reveal.
“First of all, in my view, it doesn’t appear to be a disease. If anything, I suspect it’s closer to a curse.”
“A curse…?”
“Yes. Your body is simply too healthy for it to be a normal illness… There are more than a few odd aspects. It seems to be a powerful curse that even holy power cannot drive out.”
“...Does something like that exist?”
“I’m not entirely sure myself. From what I know, holy power is supposed to be strong against curses as well.”
Of course, that would be different if the curse originated from a god.
Whether it was the gods worshipped by the Church or the Outer Gods existing far beyond, they were fundamentally similar beings. One had simply reached the divine realm from within the divine realm or what was called the Transcendent Realm, while the other had reached it from outside that world. Both had attained a level that surpassed transcendence. That was precisely why an Outer God’s curse was so difficult to handle with holy power. There was simply no elemental compatibility between them.
“If nothing else, I can say with confidence that it isn’t the curse of an undead or anything from the black magic category. If it were, holy power would have cleanly removed it long ago.”
“......”
Yulia remained silent for a moment. It seemed she needed time to process the new information. I stayed quietly by her side without saying a word.
Soon, she let out a small sigh and murmured.
“Haa… I don’t know anymore.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.”
“Not at all. If not for you, Professor, I would have continued believing it was simply an illness until the end.”
Her voice carried genuine sincerity, so it didn’t sound like empty courtesy. Good. That was enough.
I hoped she would give me plenty of compliments in front of Arie. That woman’s expressions were always so hard to read that I could never tell what she truly thought of me…
Suddenly, my eyes caught Yulia gazing out the window. Unlike when she had been lying in bed, barely conscious from the pain, the significant reduction in her suffering seemed to have given her enough leeway to converse and even look outside. I immediately understood what she wanted and acted accordingly.
“Miss Yulia.”
“Yes, please speak.”
“The weather is nice. Would you like to take a short walk together?”
“...Would that really be all right?”
“Why wouldn’t it be?”
For a long time she had been in too much pain to even consider it, but now that she was feeling much better, it seemed she was craving fresh air. Other priests—or even the usual Yulia herself—would have insisted on rest and refused to go outside. But today, she was a little different.
…Should I call it having gained some composure?
Compared to the woman who had been wary of everything around her as the Saintess’s escort, the change was clear. This was definitely a positive development. It might even prove helpful to Arie someday…
Praying that Yulia would remain like this, I decided to grant her wish.
“Of course it’s fine. Sometimes you need to breathe fresh air to recover faster.”
“If that is what you believe, Professor… then I’ll ask for your guidance.”
“If that’s what you wish…”
I politely lifted Yulia’s body from the bed in one smooth motion, carrying her in a princess hold.
“M-my word… P-Professor…?”
Held in my arms, Yulia clasped both hands together over her chest as if in prayer and stared at me with a flustered expression. It felt oddly like holding a cat. I tried to explain my actions to her as logically as possible.
“You’re going outside, but we still shouldn’t overdo it.”
“Uuu...”
“This is...”
Unfortunately, it seemed my words weren’t registering with her at all right now. I really was thinking of her this time—my own selfish desires had only played a tiny part…
“I did come to the Holy Kingdom with the qualification of a healer. Please allow me to at least take care of my patient.”
“......”
“You’re a patient, Miss Yulia. I’ll push you in a wheelchair, so let’s take a comfortable stroll. How does that sound?”
When I persistently asked for an answer, a very small voice came from Yulia, who had completely covered her face with both hands.
“......Thank you...”
The trembling in her voice was even more intense than when she had been writhing in pain.
* * *
The place we headed to after leaving the hospital room was the flower garden tended by the Papal Palace. Yulia had recommended it as a spot worth seeing at least once. As we enjoyed the cool breeze and looked at the flowers, someone approached us.
“Oh, if it isn’t Yulia? You seem to have improved considerably since the new healer arrived.”
“...Greetings.”
Yulia bowed her head in greeting, but my expression only soured. An obvious uninvited guest… Faced with his appearance that I could in no way welcome, I finally couldn’t hold back and spat out a curse.
“Ah, damn it...”
“......?”
“......?”
It was autumn…