Hope (1)
Priests aren't always able to concentrate during prayer just because they're priests. Even when trying to focus, it's inevitable that concentration wanes as prayer time drags on. What to do then? It depends on the situation, but shortening it to a simplified version works. No one would fault you for that, and the gods wouldn't look upon it unfavorably either.
'It's not like they're listening to my prayers anyway.'
Since my real purpose lay elsewhere, I was about to finish with a quick prayer and stand up. If only something hadn't brushed against my hair.
“!!”
At first, I thought it was the wind. But then it happened again, confirming it wasn't my imagination. Startled, I opened my eyes and looked around.
“Is anyone there?”
I didn't expect an answer. I'd checked the surroundings before praying, so of course no one was there. As expected, only silence answered.
“……”
I could either resume praying or end it and try again later. After some thought, I decided to grab the torch set up for prayer and investigate the area.
“There's no one here…”
As expected, I sensed no other presence. Sister Melody had said she'd explore deeper, so she wouldn't be near the entrance.
“…Huh?”
Just as I was about to give up, something felt off. I moved the torch to illuminate a particular spot.
“It wasn't facing this way before.”
The statue's eyes, which had been looking toward the jar when I saw them in the afternoon, were now gazing in a different direction. The other statues were the same. Seeing them all looking different ways confirmed it wasn't my mistake.
“There's no way their eyes moved on their own.”
I walked straight in the direction they were facing to check, but it only led to a plain wall.
“Still, this is something.”
The change proved there were secrets in this temple we hadn't found yet. So I welcomed it.
'Should I try praying a bit more?'
When I'd checked earlier, the eyes had been normal, so time alone probably wasn't the cause. Maybe my prayer had triggered the change? I returned to the prayer spot and closed my eyes, pretending to pray.
“……”
Whether because I wasn't concentrating or my mind was elsewhere, or perhaps there were no more hints to give, the strange sensation from before didn't return. When I opened my eyes again to check the statues...
“What?”
They were back to facing the jar, just like before.
“When did they change back?”
The statues were made of marble, so the moving eyes were odd to begin with. Maybe I'd dozed off while praying and dreamed it. Who would believe a statue's eyes moved without proof? I thought of someone I could discuss this with.
'I wonder what Sister Melody is up to.'
I met her the next morning, after a fruitless night.
“Where did you go last night?”
In a low voice, away from prying ears, I asked. Since we hadn't met last night, we needed to exchange information now.
“I scouted the overall structure of the temple. Since there was a hidden space, there might be others.”
“Did you find anything?”
“There were a few suspicious spots, but I couldn't figure out how to enter them.”
“Actually, I saw something strange last night too.”
“Something strange?”
“Yes. The statues here.”
“I see.”
“When I prayed for a bit, their eyes moved.”
At the mention of moving eyes, Sister Melody tilted her head.
“Their eyes? Those stone ones?”
“Yes! Isn't it amazing? Now they're all looking at the murals, but back then it was different. They were each facing different directions. I noted it down—could you investigate it in detail?”
“Please tell me.”
I showed her the sketch I'd made before bed.
“This is it.”
It was a crude drawing with the statues' positions and lines indicating their lines of sight. But it was enough to convey the info.
“It seemed like there was an order to it. Following the gazes just led to ordinary walls.”
“I'll examine it carefully and dig into it. Good work.”
“I want to feel that strange presence again while praying. You'll go tonight too, right?”
“It's dangerous alone. I'll accompany you.”
“Then shall we meet at the statues' location at night?”
After setting a time with Sister Melody, we agreed to ponder the meaning of the gazes until then. If this riddle pointed to the holy relic's location, we'd finally get proper results.
'Last time it was a broken, corrupted relic, but this time it'll be the real thing.'
Since it was hidden in the temple, it was unlikely to be corrupted. Obtaining a proper relic rather than a stolen one would be better for the Holy Empire too. The thought that there might really be a relic, and that we were uncovering its secret to obtain it, made my heart race.
“But should we tell the princess and the leader about this?”
If we really found the relic, I wasn't sure we could hide it from the party. Last time, the massive amount of equipment wasn't noticeable, but this time it definitely would be. Regardless of the jar's size in the mural, we couldn't just carry it out casually.
'Plus, if it's a jar, we'd have to be careful not to break it.'
I was cautious because revealing a relic in the Labyrinth would have huge repercussions. Even though we were allies with Princess Reciel, sharing Church matters wasn't an easy decision.
“We don't know for certain if there's a relic yet. So perhaps we should wait and see until then.”
Sister Melody, like me, couldn't decide immediately and suggested postponing.
“True, it might not even appear. Still, if we can't figure it out on our own, asking for help wouldn't be bad.”
“Understood.”
Sister Melody nodded, agreeing it couldn't be helped in that case. But that would give the Deltrack Empire a stake in finding the relic, complicating things. So the best way was to find it ourselves, then share the situation with Princess Reciel later to safely extract it from the Labyrinth.
“There really don't seem to be any monsters here.”
“Yeah. It's a bit disappointing without any fights?”
“Hey now, don't say that. It's a good thing. I'm scared it might jinx us.”
“Oh, right, we can't have that.”
“We'll be able to fill our pockets nicely again this time. I feel bad, though—we didn't do much.”
We'd fought monsters on the way through the swamp, but that wasn't related to discovering this place. Finding it was solely thanks to me and Sister Melody. It was no wonder the team said such things when we'd found a pile of magic stones and various artifacts without much effort.
“Our team seems to have unusually good luck with money, doesn't it? If we keep hitting jackpots like last time, we'll all be rich.”
“But we can't split the finds here like last time.”
“Ah, I didn't expect that much. What you gave last time was special. Besides, the contract has separate compensation for Labyrinth finds anyway.”
But this time the finds were magic stones, a huge pile. Even with a smaller percentage than last time, the profit would be immense, surely matching last expedition's earnings. While everyone was excitedly chatting...
“What do you think? Does it look authentic?”
Princess Reciel, who had been touring the ruins, called me over discreetly. She showed me an item... I couldn't hide my shock upon examining it.
“It seems to be the genuine article.”
“Does it have the same effects as the known one?”
It was so famous that I recognized it immediately upon seeing it. There was a reason I hadn't thought to use it before. It was one of the items the Church had lost in the distant past. The moment I held it, I knew. The amount of divine power sleeping within confirmed it had to be real. We'd finally found something that might lift Canaby's curse.
“Yes. It's definitely genuine, so the effects should be the same.”
At my answer, Princess Reciel's eyes welled up.
“Finally…!”
Her voice was filled with suppressed joy, every emotion packed into it.
“We've finally found it!! We can save my sister!!”