The Labyrinth Has Opened (5)
Priest Chillan was the type who loved to scatter his influence everywhere, seizing the reins of power and shaking them for all they were worth. Priest Ando, by contrast, had no particular interest in leading people. He excelled at building rules and systems that kept the temple running smoothly. Had the two men pooled their different strengths, they could have become an enormous asset to the Labyrinth Temple. Sadly, cooperation was the last thing on their minds. Instead, each used his own talents to undermine the other at every opportunity.
After this latest incident, Priest Ando drew a clear line in the sand. He openly supported the idea of senior healers sharing their knowledge with the rest of the staff and won a fair amount of goodwill that way. Of course, he only approved of my sharing knowledge—he had no intention of offering any of his own. Priest Chillan, arriving late to the situation, watched me carefully before reluctantly agreeing to let the priests be taught. Even so, he still opposed spreading knowledge too freely. Every time he saw our group huddled together, he shot us disapproving looks.
The only reason he tolerated the knowledge-sharing at all was because I wanted it. Priest Chillan made sure to remind me of this fact repeatedly, clearly hoping I would acknowledge his great sacrifice. Whenever he grumbled about enduring his displeasure for my sake, I had no choice but to thank him. It was the only way to keep the peace.
Once the two chief healers truly began involving themselves in temple operations, the entire atmosphere started to change. The most obvious improvement was the working environment. More hands on deck made a difference, but the priests they brought with them were far more capable than I had expected. The pair completely overhauled the brutal conditions I had been forcing everyone to endure, restoring a measure of human decency to our daily lives.
The fledgling healers who had once studied desperately between patients now hesitated to approach me with questions, wary of the senior priests’ watchful eyes. Since both chief healers had made their displeasure clear—even while tolerating my methods—it was only natural that the younger priests would restrain themselves. These changes were inevitable. After all, I was never meant to shoulder this place forever. Sooner or later, I would have to leave. I tried to console myself with the thought that things were simply returning to their proper order.
Then the incident happened.
“If you can’t treat me, at least call another priest! How long do I have to wait here? The priests who used to be here never acted like this! Why is everything such a mess now?!”
The man had come for treatment only to be told to wait indefinitely. His patience had finally snapped.
“You must not cause a disturbance,” the priest replied coldly.
“I’m not causing a disturbance—I’m asking for treatment! Treatment! I’m in so much pain I feel like I’m dying!”
“Please wait. The healer newly assigned to you will arrive soon.”
“That’s what you told me two hours ago! He still hasn’t shown up. At least tell me when he’s supposed to get here!”
“He will come.”
“When, exactly?!”
“Raise your voice once more and I will have you removed.”
“Godsdammit!”
In the temple, patients were utterly powerless. Even though they paid for treatment, they could not boldly demand their rights. One wrong word and they might be denied care entirely and thrown out. The Holy Empire showed no leniency toward complaints. Repeated warnings led to being placed on the blacklist, after which both the patient and their immediate family would be barred from every temple. Everyone knew to tread carefully.
It seems there really isn’t any priest available who can treat that man.
I understood exactly why no one had been assigned to him and why he had been left to languish. This kind of thing happened in every healing ward. The reason was simple: no priest was willing to step forward. When our numbers had been smaller and we worked as a tight-knit group, such patients never appeared. I would cover for them, or the fledgling healers would cluster together, pooling their knowledge until we found a solution.
So the moment things return to normal, this is what happens.
A chief healer might intervene in such cases, but in truly unlucky situations even they could fail. After all, not even chief healers could cure every illness. When no one stepped up, the patient was simply abandoned. Eventually they would grow exhausted, protest, and either be driven out or leave on their own in a tragic ending.
At first I couldn’t understand why the Sun God allowed such absurdity. If He simply issued an oracle commanding the sharing of knowledge, everything would change. But I supposed it was ridiculous to expect a deity to meddle in the trivial affairs of mortals.
This is something humanity must realize and change for itself. It’s not something to whine to Him about.
If the gods solved every problem, humanity would never progress. We had to change on our own…
But who could possibly break through this suffocating culture?
Nothing would change unless a saint stepped forward aggressively. It’s comfortable, but my heart feels heavy. The comfort I enjoyed was built on someone else’s sacrifice.
More precisely, on the patients’ sacrifice.
A system designed for the healers’ convenience had become a burden on those who sought care. It was heartbreaking, but not something I could change alone.
“The number of patient complaints has risen sharply.”
“These problems never occurred anywhere else. I don’t understand why they’re happening here.”
Priests Chillan and Ando could not comprehend why patients were suddenly voicing such fierce dissatisfaction. The situation had been stable before; now that it had changed, patients were struggling to adapt and complaints were growing frequent.
“Sigh… In any case, we have a rather troublesome matter on our hands. Among those who died after being neglected by the priests, there was a noble.”
“They say it happened because he came straight from the Labyrinth and his appearance was disheveled.”
“How could they fail to verify his identity? It’s one of the most important steps…”
The scion of a powerful family had died. Someone had to take responsibility. But the Labyrinth Temple currently had no official leader. Priests Ando and Chillan had split authority evenly and were running things between them.
One of them has to take the fall. But who would willingly sacrifice themselves? Neither of them would.
If they kept stalling, both might end up shouldering the blame. Even so, each tried to push the responsibility onto the other. Their feud eventually paralyzed temple operations so badly that the higher-ups had to intervene.
“This is unfair!”
“I understand your feelings. However, the situation is complicated. There is nothing we can do.”
People from many nations were watching the Labyrinth Temple. It had to operate flawlessly. The higher-ups wanted no unnecessary noise, so they removed both men from their positions.
The problem was that the sparks from their downfall flew straight at me.
What the—?!
I had thought I was merely watching someone else’s house burn, only to realize the fire had spread and was now consuming my own.
The root of the problem was that the Holy Empire had not sent anyone to replace the two priests.
“When Priest Arthur was in charge, there were far fewer people yet no unfortunate incidents occurred.”
“It was merely good luck.”
No. Don’t do this!
“It seems Priest Arthur will have to manage the temple until the bishop assigned to this post arrives. There is simply no one else suitable.”
“What about the bishop?”
“My apologies. It appears it will take more time than expected.”
How many people are fighting tooth and nail for this honey pot that they still can’t decide?
“Then what should we do here?”
“Priest Arthur can simply take charge again as before.”
“What difference could someone as inadequate as me possibly make?”
“At the very least, such problems never arose while you were running things. You also come highly recommended.”
“By whom?”
“Who do you think? The two chief healers. When we asked, they both said that leaving it to you would ensure smooth operation.”
“!!”
I whirled toward the two men in shock.
“Why are you looking at us like that?”
“I suggested first that we leave it to Priest Arthur.”
“Must you be so childish? What does it matter who spoke first? I also recommended Priest Arthur.”
“I don’t understand why you would recommend me. I am not suited for such a position.”
“You’re being excessively humble. We received a full handover report. We know exactly how capable you are.”
“In my view, there is no one but Priest Arthur. If there are areas where you feel lacking, we will assist you. Please don’t worry.”
The more I listened, the more it seemed their real purpose lay in the offer of “assistance” rather than any genuine belief in my managerial ability.
These two would rather prop me up as a figurehead than bring in outsiders so they can continue doing as they please.
I had never resisted or checked their power. Instead I had politely yielded my position. That meekness was now coming back to bite me.
The real issue was that I had no desire to accept this situation.
“I’m rather taken aback that you would inform me of this decision without even asking my opinion.”
“It may be difficult, but I hope our junior will take on the role. Sending someone from outside would only complicate matters further. If you manage the temple, the other priests will suffer less.”
I had barely kept things afloat, not run them well… Yet with both Priest Chillan and Priest Ando actively urging me to accept, it was hard to refuse. To make matters worse, the bureaucrat from the Holy Empire had already prepared an appointment letter in my name and practically shoved it into my hands.
“Are you truly certain I am acceptable?”
“If it is you, I can trust you completely.”
“I feel the same. You are not lacking in ability. As long as no one interferes, you will do well.”
When Priest Ando said this, his gaze slid pointedly toward Priest Chillan. Neither man lacked the ability to serve as leader. Had either managed the temple alone, this disaster would never have occurred. Their constant clashes and sabotage had twisted everything into this mess.
“If there is anything too difficult to handle alone, come ask me anytime. It is only natural for a senior to advise his junior. There is nothing I would not do for you.”
Priest Ando refused to be outdone. “If the workload becomes too heavy, feel free to delegate appropriate tasks to me. I will help whenever needed.”
These were probably the only two people in the world whose offers of help could sound so utterly unwelcome.
News that the person in charge had changed spread through the temple in no time. The fact that the replacement was none other than Priest Arthur caused quite a stir among the priests.
“Priest Arthur is taking charge again! I’m completely in favor!”
“This is wonderful!”
The only ones truly delighted to see me return to the leadership position were probably the fledglings.
“Why are you all so happy? I heard it was incredibly difficult when he was in charge.”
As expected, priests who had little connection to me asked out of curiosity.
“It was difficult. Extremely so!”
“But the sense of accomplishment was just as enormous.”
“Exactly. These days we don’t get to feel anything like that.”
“I know I shouldn’t say this, but I was genuinely happy to hear Priest Arthur was returning to management.”
What did I ever do to them?! That’s not gratitude—that’s repaying kindness with enmity!
“Is he really that amazing?”
“You’ve never worked a shift with Priest Arthur?”
“No.”
“You were unlucky. Once you work with him, you’ll understand.”
“He’s that special?”
“Of course.”
“You want to become a chief healer too, right?”
“Obviously.”
“Then you should treat Priest Arthur very well. He possesses incredible medical knowledge. Even more astonishing is that he shares it freely with everyone around him.”
“So those rumors were true?”
“Do you think we crowd around him for no reason? We’re trying to learn even one more thing from him.”
Despite their words, they had recently stopped asking questions because they feared the senior priests’ disapproval. Sure enough, that topic came up too.
“Priest Chillan got really angry about it, so we haven’t been able to ask much lately. But now that Priest Arthur is in charge again, it should be all right to ask questions, right?”
“Maybe he only teaches the priests who were here from the beginning? We arrived later and don’t have a close relationship. I’m worried I’ll just get scolded if I ask.”
“Not at all! The Priest Arthur I know would be pleased. Have courage and try!”
“Hmm… It’s not easy…”
“Then I’ll ask him casually. I’ll see if he can give guidance to the rest of us as well.”
It was admirable that they were so passionate about studying, but the conclusion was that the number of fledglings I had to teach was about to increase. The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth.
“Really? Thank you!”
After eavesdropping on the priests whispering among themselves, I let out a deep sigh and quietly slipped away. I felt a little guilty for overhearing their conversation, but since they had been talking about me, we could call it even.
I thought the priests who arrived later would dislike me taking charge again, but they seem surprisingly calm about it.
Was there really no way out? Did I have no choice but to accept the position? Did they not mind a country bumpkin ordering them around from above?
“Sigh.”
They should have been more moderate in their ambitions.
If things continued this way, returning to that seat was inevitable. It was time to stop resisting and start planning for the future.
I intended to throw out all the duty rosters the chief priests had created. I had no intention of struggling alone. Unlike before when there was no one to share the load, I now had capable people. I especially had no plans to let Priests Ando and Chillan sit idle.
I’ll distribute the work evenly between those two. That’s the only way I’ll get any rest.
Fortunately, neither man seemed to dislike being given responsibility. Although the higher-ups had temporarily stripped them of their positions, they would surely try to rebuild their influence over time and reclaim their authority. Giving them work would only help them, not harm them.
To be honest, Priest Chillan isn’t particularly helpful with treatment. But he is excellent at managing people.
Priest Ando, on the other hand, was astonishingly competent at both healing and paperwork. He did seem somewhat inexperienced with surgery, but that was understandable. When I had been alone, handling all the documents had been incredibly difficult. I would have to ask Priest Ando to take over that area.
And it makes sense to leave priest management to Priest Chillan. After all, many of them already follow him.
If Priest Chillan managed them, confusion among the priests would decrease. More of them were close to him than to me. Of course, since they were priests who served the divine will, I doubted their conflicts would become too severe. Still, one could never be certain when it came to people.
I trust Priest Chillan will handle that aspect well.
In the end, Priests Chillan and Ando stepped down from management, and I officially became the temple’s temporary leader once more. Suppressing the urge to flee from the returned responsibility, I spent time studying the new operational methods the two had implemented.
Once I had a reasonable grasp of the temple’s affairs, I gathered all the priests before beginning any work.
“I apologize for asking you to spare your precious time when you are all so busy.”
The healers’ bright, attentive eyes fixed on me.
“Somehow I find myself standing here again. I feel burdened by this undeserved position, but since there are people who believe in me and have given me their strength, I will take courage and try once more.”
The response was fortunately not negative.
“However, I cannot lead this place alone. I lack both experience and ability. Therefore, I hope you will think of this not as something I lead, but as something we lead together. I ask for your help.”
I bowed deeply to everyone.
Perhaps my sincerity had reached them. Thunderous applause erupted—clapclapclapclapclapclap—!!!