Chapter 81: As God Leads (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 81: As God Leads (1)
Aztera, a border city of the Duchy.
A priest in shabby attire was wandering aimlessly through the streets.
Her vestments were frayed and torn, her eyes hollow, and her greasy brown hair was a disheveled mess.
It was Krima from Mirei’s party.
Gurgle—
Despite the embarrassing sound erupting from her stomach, Krima was gripped by an anxiety far more intense than her extreme hunger.
Her bloodshot eyes scanned her surroundings, haunted by the pressure that Lukart adventurers might appear at any moment to seize her.
Unaware that her erratic behavior was drawing even more attention, the priest flinched and looked away every time she made eye contact with a passerby.
She wanted nothing more than to hide from people, but she feared that was exactly what her enemies wanted.
Trapped in a delusion that the moment she stepped into a deserted alley or an indoor space, a crowd would appear as if on cue to drag her away, Krima headed for the only place she felt safe.
The church in Aztera.
But did she know?
Even the Church Elders had already designated her a public enemy.
The Adventurer Guild headquarters was only holding off on a global manhunt because of Yarismal’s personal greed to capture Mirei’s party herself; it was only a matter of time.
Furthermore, the Duchy’s intelligence agents had long since gathered information on Mirei’s party for their betrayal of Alto Bertrand.
To be honest, the Duchy could have found out easily even without the agents’ efforts. Levantello himself had heard what Yarismal shouted at the border.
Regardless, Krima was heading toward the church in Aztera, seeking only divine mercy.
Still unaware that she was being tailed by the Duchy’s shadows, she wandered the streets of Aztera until, finally unable to endure the hunger, she crouched down in a corner of the main road.
Gurgle.
She was starving.
Strangely enough, at a moment like this, when her stomach felt like it was sticking to her spine, the person who came to mind wasn’t Gerend.
Gerend? Fuck no.
Krima felt a surge of rage just thinking about Gerend, who had treated her as nothing more than a walking purse.
Because of a single Archiyo luxury wallet, he had made her take out a loan from Alto, and now she was the one stuck with the debt.
Since she was a fugitive now, it shouldn’t have mattered, but the thought of the bank’s debt collectors finding her made her feel even more hopeless.
She had been abandoned by the man she gave her heart to.
The party she had belonged to was disbanded, and the Adventurer Guild was hunting her.
If things went wrong, she would be hounded by bank collectors as well.
Below the abyss, even deeper pits were waiting for her.
And all of this…
Stemmed from her own mistake in betraying Alto Bertrand.
“Fuck… I must have been crazy…”
What was she thinking?
She had joined that party knowing full well that Alto was there.
She had entered with the possibility—no, the determination—to serve him as her man.
Every member of Mirei’s party must have felt the same.
…Well, maybe Diane hadn’t thought about it at all.
Regardless, logically speaking, Krima had considered everything before joining.
Alto had been devoted.
He was meticulous, kind, and unlike most men of this era, he had taken care of them with genuine sincerity.
And she had betrayed him.
Simply because he was ugly, she had committed an irreversible sin.
“Ugh… hugh…”
Gurgle.
She was so hungry.
Cruelly, in the midst of this hunger, what came to mind was Alto and the food he used to make.
There had been warmth in it.
Rice balls or sandwiches made in bite-sized pieces, prepared specifically with her in mind.
“I made plenty, so let me know if you need more.”
Because of Diane’s massive appetite, Alto always prepared as much food as possible.
When she returned with an exhausted body after volunteering at the church, Alto would always welcome her with that warmth.
He was a man unlike Gerend.
Only now did she realize the preciousness of his selfless devotion.
And at the same time, she realized what a great hero he truly was.
“Alto… if only you had said just one word to me about being a Bertrand…”
Tears blurred her vision.
A dinner prepared by a hero.
Moreover, a meal a man prepared for a woman—she realized too late what a luxury that itself had been, and she wept tears of bitter regret.
“Ugh… hugh…!”
It was irreversible.
Everything was over.
She had done things she shouldn’t have with Gerend, and she had wounded Alto.
Forgiveness would be hard to come by.
But even so, Krima wanted to be forgiven, and she wanted to live.
What on earth was she supposed to do?
The priest who had committed such impurity only now truly sought God.
“Lord, please…”
Save me.
It was a selfish prayer, unbecoming of a cleric.
She simply clasped her hands tight and soaked them with her tears.
“Sister, the sun will be setting soon.”
As if in answer to that prayer, a hand was reached out to her.
Lifting her tear-stained face, Krima saw a priest of Aztera standing there with a gentle smile.
“Why is one of the Lord’s shepherds lost and weeping in a place like this?”
“I, I am…”
“Come. The sun is setting. The night air of the Duchy is dangerous. For now, come with me to the church.”
“Would that be alright…?”
Gurgle.
Another embarrassing sound erupted.
Krima’s face flushed red.
The priest of Aztera didn’t seem to mind.
“Give help in due time to those in need. For the Lord said, do not discriminate when helping those who require it.”
“Ephesians, Chapter 21…”
“It’s not far. Let’s go.”
A warm sensation spread through her chest.
Krima barely held back her sobs as she followed the priest.
The priest handed her a small but sweet loaf of bread.
“I happened to receive this as an experimental batch from my regular bakery today. It’s a pleasant coincidence that it can be used like this.”
“Thank you!”
Unable to even maintain the virtues of restraint or humility, Krima bit into the bread.
The first taste was sweet, and the slightly salty aftertaste melted away a bit of her sorrow and fatigue.
“Eat slowly and chew well, or you might get indigestion.”
‘Eat slowly and chew well.’
Ah, even these words were exactly like Alto’s.
Krima shed a stray tear.
Just as the priest said, the church was not far.
Being the church of the Duchy’s dungeon city, Aztera, it was quite large in scale.
Entering the church behind the priest, Krima flinched.
Someone had cleared away the pews and was sleeping on a bedroll.
It was hard to tell who it was, as they were buried deep under the blankets.
“At night, we provide a place to stay for those who have nowhere else to go. The night air of the Duchy is dangerous, after all.”
“I see.”
“Would you like more bread?”
“I’m alright.”
“Then I’ll bring you some stew. It’s not quite an inn, but the fire in our church’s hearth hasn’t gone out for a long time.”
The priest of Aztera was truly kind.
As a priest herself, she should have been the one spreading such warmth to others.
It was saddening to be in this position—a criminal receiving help without interrogation.
“It’s hot, so be careful as you eat.”
‘It’s hot, so blow on it and be careful.’
Even as she accepted the bowl of stew, Alto’s words overlapped.
She exhaled a heavy breath.
Her heart was being crushed by an incredibly heavy weight.
That weight was her own sin.
Perhaps because she was in a church, Krima wanted to lighten this burden even a little.
She felt as though this person would not blame her but would lead her onto the right path.
Foolishly, the priest chose to lean on a human rather than God.
Believing the woman to be a messenger sent by God, she committed a rash act.
“I betrayed someone who cherished me, who held me dear.”
A confession started out of nowhere.
The priest of Aztera was taken aback by the confession of a fellow priest but remained calm.
“I turned my eyes to another based on appearance alone. I did something I should never have done, and that person left, carrying the wounds I gave him.”
The priest of Aztera did not respond.
Gaining courage from that silence, Krima continued her story.
“As it turns out, he was a great man. A hero, literally. He never said a single word to us… even when he left, he didn’t say anything about himself.”
Krima lowered her head as if she were about to bury her face in the stew bowl.
“If only… he had said… just one word… if he had…”
She snapped back to her senses at the words that had slipped out.
She had said something she shouldn’t have, not just as a priest, but as a human being.
It was a statement blaming Alto.
Feeling a surge of shame, Krima hurriedly tried to fix her previous remark.
“N-no, he probably just wanted to show us his true self, not his status or influence.”
But the excuse felt so pathetic that she felt even greater regret.
Taking a deep breath, Krima spoke with a sense of desperation.
“As a servant of God, I looked only at appearances and wounded a precious person, causing him to leave. He was someone who should never have been treated that way by someone like me—someone the whole world should look after. The people of the Kingdom tried to hold me accountable, and I got scared and ran away.”
She then began to sob, her tears falling into the stew she hadn’t even tasted.
Waiting until the shaking of her shoulders subsided, the priest of Aztera spoke to her suggestively.
“In the Hus region of the Kingdom, there is a place called Dakuren City. It’s like the capital of Hus.”
“Dakuren, I’ve heard of it.”
“I hear there is a special salon there.”
“A salon?”
“It’s said that women abandoned by men gather there to work in the hospitality industry. At one point, it reached a dangerous state of catering to men’s whims, but they’ve since reformed and now welcome guests in a wholesome manner.”
“But why are you suddenly telling me about a salon in Hus Dakuren…?”
“I’m not sure. It just came to mind for some reason.”
The priest of Aztera shrugged and gave a good-natured smile.
To Krima, who already believed her to be a messenger sent by God, that smile only solidified her groundless faith.
“But I must beg his forgiveness… if I apologize, could I ever be forgiven?”
“Sister, you already know the answer. That one does not apologize simply to be forgiven.”
One apologizes because they have done wrong.
It was a famous passage from the scriptures. The word of God to a humanity that constantly repeats its sins.
Krima gained the courage to cast aside her fear and move.
“For some reason, just as I received bread from the bakery today, the salon in Dakuren City just occurred to me.”
The priest took some money from the offering box and tucked it into Krima’s hand.
“The Lord leads those in need through coincidence and brings them to their destiny.”
“Sister…”
“It is your choice where you go. I have merely suggested one of many paths.”
“No. I will follow it. Thank you! Thank you!”
“The night air of the Duchy is terrifying. Since the sun hasn’t completely set yet, why not hasten your way toward Hus? I just have a feeling about it.”
Taking the stew bowl back, the priest smiled brightly.
“I’ve found that things work out best when you move the moment you feel the urge.”
“Yes…!”
Krima did not hesitate.
She knew where the Aztera carriage station was from her wandering earlier that day.
Before leaving the church doors, Krima bowed deeply with all her heart.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“Sister, may the Lord’s grace be with you.”
And so, Krima departed.
As soon as she left and the door closed, the smile vanished from the Aztera priest’s face.
“Ha, she certainly walks around with her head held high.”
Setting the stew bowl down haphazardly, the priest approached the sleeping figure and carefully pulled back the blanket.
“Will this be enough, Lord Donovan?”
With the sturdy features of a middle-aged man, though his cheeks were hollow, Donovan—a veteran of the Central Command—slowly sat up.
“The Church Elders said not to forgive Krima. Letting her go like this is grounds for excommunication.”
“Don’t worry too much. Levantello and I just wanted to confirm something.”
“Confirm what?”
“What Count Dakuus said. That Hus would not abandon us. If that’s true, then it’s obvious how they will handle a woman who betrayed Alto Bertrand, the No. 1 National Merit Recipient.”
After saying only that, Donovan closed his eyes.
The quiet silence of the church allowed him to escape his panic for a brief moment.
“Good grief.”
As the priest stood up to move, Donovan asked out of concern, “Are you going to contact the Elders?”
“No, I’m going to sprinkle salt.”
The priest shook her head.
“This was no ordinary defilement.”
Krima the priest.
The important decisions of one’s life should be made by oneself, using one’s own thoughts.
In the end, her dependent nature had led her down a path intended by someone else.
Leaving only the ominous feeling that the future of each member of Mirei’s party—except for Diane, who had moved on her own—would be anything but smooth.