The Taste of a Blessing
The thrill of killing—it’s always fresh, always exhilarating. Every time I cast what I thought was healing magic, I felt an incredible sense of release. “Heal—!”
The sense of accomplishment from treating the beastmen who were suffering was one thing, but since I started with the patients cursed the worst, the satisfaction was immense.
“My rotting, festering skin… it’s coming back… Thank you, God.”
It was satisfying to watch the melting flesh, the decaying skin, and the boils and rashes that had been so visible disappear as if I’d simply washed them away. It felt like a clogged pipe in my chest had been cleared. I didn’t need to go looking for healing videos on YouTube or anything.
“How can we ever repay this grace…!”
On top of that, seeing the people themselves so happy filled me with pride. Before I knew it, a natural smile had formed on my face.
“God smiled…!”
“Was he smiling at me?”
“No, he was smiling at me!”
I thought I’d grown somewhat used to life with the beastmen, but I still couldn’t get used to these kinds of over-the-top reactions. Even when I did something naturally, the thought that someone was watching me intently made me freeze up.
“God, I ask that you bestow your blessing upon this person as well.”
Yuho, who had been assisting me from the side, whispered carefully.
Blessing, huh…
According to Yuho, my ability directly blessed my subordinates. If I gave them strong confidence that they could become stronger, they grew as much as they believed. If I presented them with a goal, they would develop in order to achieve it.
Is that for real…?
Honestly, I couldn’t believe it. If that were true, then if I said “You can become a Sword Master!” wouldn’t that person actually become one? As if becoming a Sword Master was as easy as saying your neighbor’s name. There was no way…
Wait a second?
A memory suddenly surfaced. I was pretty sure I’d encouraged Emilia by telling her she could become a Sword Master too. So maybe that was…?
“God… I made the request as one of your followers, but please speak comfortably if that’s what you wish. I apologize for my presumptuous interference.”
Seeing me lost in thought, Yuho bowed her head in apology. She seemed to have misunderstood something again. I shook my head.
After thinking a little more, I opened my mouth.
“I hope you can find a healthy and happy life. Why don’t you look for something you can do for the people of your tribe? For example, making delicious food…?”
Yuho had said it didn’t have to be anything grand like a “blessing.” Just saying whatever came to mind in the moment would become the blessing.
Will they really like it?
Blessing someone to make food. I was just blurting out whatever came to mind following Yuho’s advice.
“Ooh… Food?! Yes! So that’s what it was…!”
The beastman who had just been treated in front of me cried out in surprise. Was she disappointed?!
“I will definitely complete this mission! O God…! I will present you with a dish so fantastic that even you will be satisfied.”
Contrary to my expectations, she left with a bright, beaming smile full of satisfaction. That confident look on her face gave me the feeling she was definitely going to cause some kind of incident.
Anyway, after repeating this kind of ritual several times, the sun began to set. I must have treated dozens of people. It had been a long time since I’d used this much magic at once.
“Thank you for the grace and blessings you have bestowed upon us. You truly are our salvation, God.”
Yuho, who had stayed by my side the entire time the treatments were taking place, expressed her gratitude once again.
“If it was helpful, then I’m glad too. And I really like using magic.”
“Hngh…! Even while you’re exhausted, you say such things out of concern for us…! Your heart is so incredibly kind, God.”
She was interpreting it however she wanted again. She never took things literally.
“That’s right! God, there is a beastman who recently awakened a new ability.”
“A new ability?”
What could it be? If Yuho was this excited to tell me about it, it probably wasn’t anything ordinary.
At my question, Yuho brought a girl over.
“Hello! I’m so happy to see you again!”
It was a familiar face. Of course it was—she was the girl I had healed first when I arrived here, the one I’d already run into several times. I think her name was Lily.
“You’ll be surprised too, God.”
Surprised enough to shock me? Now I was getting excited. I looked at Lily with a swelling heart.
Lily’s face turned slightly red. She glanced at Yuho, then spread both arms wide and shouted.
“I awakened healing magic!”
“Healing magic? Oh…!”
I was genuinely impressed. Hadn’t Yuho said just a few days ago that none of the beastmen could use healing magic?
“Look at this!”
Lily concentrated hard on her hand, and a familiar green light appeared. It was the light that appeared when healing magic was used.
“By your holy grace… I offer my gratitude for your boundless mercy, and ask that you heal this one. Heal—!”
She chanted a long prayer of praise toward me before casting the spell on another cursed beastman. The curse began to improve.
“Ooh…!”
Someone’s gasp of admiration could be heard. It really was astonishing. Even though it wasn’t a complete cure, considering that none of the beastmen had ever been able to use healing magic before, it was an incredible feat. The size of the curse tattoo had shrunk by about half. At this rate, it looked like it would disappear completely after just one or two more treatments.
“Haa… huff… How was that, God? Was it useful?”
Lily asked, breathing heavily. Her eyes sparkled as if she was begging for praise.
My head nodded immediately. I had no choice but to acknowledge it.
Is this the power of a blessing?
Only a few days had passed, and such a change had already occurred. I was almost scared that Sword Masters were going to start popping up everywhere soon.
“Could I see how the others who received blessings are doing as well?”
“Of course.”
I wanted to check on the few beastmen I had blessed. Especially the ones I’d given combat-related advice to.
“…However, something urgent has come up for me, so instead of me, Ria and Reina can show you around. Ria, may I ask you to guide him?”
“Yeah. Possible.”
Yuho said she had something urgent to take care of and disappeared. Following Ria’s guidance, we moved to a wide clearing. The beastmen were all immersed in their training.
“Hiyah—!”
Just then, one beastman slammed her fist into a massive boulder. In that instant, I saw it. Blue energy gathered in her hand and then exploded at a single point.
Boom—!
The boulder shattered into pieces with a tremendous roar.
Insane…
I recognized that beastman’s face. Wasn’t she the one who had been half-paralyzed and unable to move just the day before yesterday? Her body had only just recovered, and she had already turned into a human weapon.
Is this really okay?
At this rate, I was starting to get scared of my own power. And that wasn’t all. Those training with swords were naturally coating their blades with sword qi, and the arrows they fired shattered their targets. Those training in magic were casting at least two spells at the same time. Everyone was growing at an incredible speed. At this rate, they wouldn’t lose to the Demon King’s Army. They might even overwhelm them.
In this way, the beastmen had truly become the combat race their image suggested.
“Wow… Even in my beast form, I don’t think I could break something that big in one hit. Maybe I should just get healed too?”
“Whoa. Reina’s scared.”
“W-what are you saying! I was just admiring how amazing God’s blessing is!”
It was Ria teasing Reina, who had been marveling beside her.
“If you two want to be healed too, you’re welcome anytime.”
It wasn’t a difficult thing for me.
“Of course, receiving God’s healing would be an immense honor…! But if I lose the power of my beast transformation, my character as a cat monster would disappear!”
So that’s what she was worried about. How quirky.
“I don’t care. God, please heal me.”
Ria spoke calmly, as if denying Reina’s words.
“Hey! You traitor! Weren’t we supposed to stick to our principles together?”
“Yeah, we weren’t.”
In the end, I promised to cast healing magic on them soon. I had wanted to do it right then and there, but they said they had important business today and politely declined. What could that be?
That question lasted only a moment before another one rose in my mind.
There had been a rumor going around even before I came to the Goshura Great Forest. It was that the beastmen were kidnapping human men. But I had never once seen any of them.
Were they hiding them?
“There’s something I’m curious about. Can I ask?”
“Yes! God, ask me anything.”
I asked Reina, who happened to be standing next to me.
“Have you kidnapped any human men recently?”
I asked directly without beating around the bush. For some reason, I felt like Reina would tell me the truth if I asked her straight.
“Huh? Human men? No?!”
Reina shook her head.
“What about you, Ria?”
“Yeah. Never seen any.”
What was going on? Feeling something was off, I told them about the events that had happened before I came to the Goshura Great Forest. That the beastmen had been kidnapping human males, and in response, the Holy Church was preparing to attack.
Reina’s eyes widened, and she spoke as if she had been wronged.
“We’ve never done anything like that…? We haven’t kidnapped anyone. And no matter how much we might be in heat, humans are a bit…”
She shook her head violently. It was a strong denial.
She’s really saying it’s not them?
Then who was doing the kidnapping? The situation had fallen into an incomprehensible labyrinth.
“Lord Blood, this is the appointed meeting place.”
“I see. Understood.”
Blood, a Corps Commander of the Demon King’s Army, had arrived in the blue forest. The Goshura Great Forest was endlessly packed with grass and trees. She was scheduled to meet the chieftain of the beastmen here today.
“Lucifer always tries to make things unnecessarily complicated…”
“Indeed.”
Blood shook her head. She couldn’t understand why Lucifer was trying to incite war by slowly driving a wedge between humans and beastmen. Wouldn’t it be better to just crush both sides at once? That seemed far more efficient. How long did they have to wait for them to destroy themselves? Watching from the sidelines was incredibly frustrating.
If she had been the one in the commander-in-chief position, Blood was certain the war would already be on a completely different scale.
“First, I need to recruit the beastmen.”
Blood planned to present the chieftain with an irresistibly sweet offer today.
“So what is this about?”
The nine-tailed fox beastwoman she met was Yuho. Blood looked her in the eye.
“Hehe, aren’t we allies who share the same enemy called humanity? That’s why I’ve prepared a wonderful gift.”
“A gift?”
“A gift that may free you from the curse that has tormented you for your entire lives.”
For a brief moment, Blood caught Yuho’s ears twitching.
Just as expected.
Blood knew very well how much the beastmen had suffered because of that curse. The basics of negotiation were to understand what the other party wanted. Her intuition told her today would go well.
“I will tell you a way to truly be freed from the curse. And it’s very simple.”
Yuho remained lost in thought. After standing silently for a long time, she finally asked Blood.
“Then what is the price?”
Yuho was curious. Why was the Demon King’s Army suddenly making such an offer now? In the early days when the beastmen were suffering the most from the curse, the Demon King’s Army hadn’t even pretended to listen. Yet now they were changing their attitude? She had a bad feeling that there was a hidden motive.
“It’s simple. Just do one thing for me. Kill one human man.”
“A human man?”
“As far as I know, one has been loitering around this area. So, what do you think? It’s very simple, isn’t it?”
Blood was confident the beastmen wouldn’t refuse. The price for relieving their clan’s long-held grudge was nothing more than dealing with a single human man. They would surely accept.
“So who is this man? It would help if you could give me a specific name.”
Without hesitation, Blood spoke the name of the one who could surpass Lucifer if only he were eliminated.
“Sieg Barbary. He is the healer of the detestable Holy Church that you despise.”
The atmosphere froze instantly. A name that should never have been spoken had come out of a demon’s mouth.
Crack.
And at that moment, a dull sound came from Yuho’s clenched fist.