Raising the Paralytic (1)
A paralytic came forward, bowed, and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean."
Luke stretched out his hand, laid it on him, and said, "I am willing. Be clean."
And his paralysis was cleansed by the fire of the Holy Spirit.
Sluuuurp.
With no further appointments on our schedule, the four of us settled into a nearby café and started chatting.
Slurp, slurrrp. Straw slurp.
Sunny was next to me, sucking down her drink in long pulls. Her cheeks hollowed out, making her look incredibly cute.
"I never imagined a first-year could beat Dia! And so easily! Back at the academy entrance exam grounds, Dia was an unbreakable wall."
The entrance exam grounds, huh. Come to think of it, Amy was a commoner too, so she must've taken the test alongside Dia.
"Speaking of which, you're a Perseino who smashed Professor Cronia's golem too. To think my friends are such monsters!"
I was curious about Dia's entrance exam anyway.
In Deus ex Machina, they didn't show the entrance exam properly. I wondered what it was like and how Dia performed.
"That entrance exam—I'm curious, Amy. Mind telling me what happened there? And how Dia ended up as top scorer."
"Ooh? You're that interested in Dia's story? Dia, Prince Luke is dying to hear all about you~"
"No, Amy, don't!"
Thwack.
Dia's face flushed beet red again as she smacked Amy's back just like before.
"Gah, guh!"
Uh... Amy? You okay?
"Ugh... okay, okay, I'll stop, Dia. That was a bit much. Sorry."
To stay conscious after two hits like that—Amy's durability was no joke. In Deus ex Machina, she'd make a solid tank.
"The entrance exam. So, I first spotted Dia during the second round. We didn't actually meet until we got to the academy, though."
The academy entrance exam for commoners was held regionally in the first round, gathering top talents for the second round to select finalists.
Probably intellectual tests in round one, combat in round two, from what I recalled...
"The second round was sparring against a professor."
Sparring against a professor. Simple, yet brutally intense.
Made sense, though. Combat professors could handle swarms of newbies without breaking a sweat, perfect for round two.
Siren sis beating a bunch at once was the outlier; outside the academy, those profs had the skills for high nobility on raw power alone.
They needed that caliber to wrangle the academy's hotshots.
"Even against an academy prof, I didn't expect that level of monster. Forgot the name, but he faced all those examinees without a scratch."
Fair enough for a combat prof. Kallandra Academy emphasized martial prowess excessively compared to foreign schools. But seriously, forgetting the prof's name after sparring them? How'd she even pass round one?
"But Dia gained the upper hand against that prof."
A mere examinee—not even an academy student—dominating a combat prof?
"She lost in the end, unfortunately, but Dia was so cool! If she were a guy, I'd have fallen for her. Oh, but then I wouldn't meet the prince? Ow! Okay, okay, stopping!"
I'd sensed Dia's battle instincts and skill utilization were top-tier in our brief clash, but this level?
Then no other students would dare dismiss her just because I won. Nobles might be another story.
If Dia was that good, without my artifact, beating her would've taken ages.
"But I never thought you'd subdue Dia so easily. Without even using fire! I heard you used fire against Professor Cronia's golem? So what is your Gift, Luke? Mage?"
Ah... figures she'd peg me as a mage. I'm not, but denying it gets awkward without details.
Can't exactly say "artifact cheese."
"That's... no comment."
"Aww, c'mon. We're not close enough yet?"
"No, it's not that."
"Fair, we've only known each other a few days. Telling us your Gift now would be weird. But once we're closer, I'll pry it out!"
...Yeah... maybe if we get tight. But admitting I'm Giftless and rely on artifacts sounds embarrassing.
Pinch.
Suddenly, someone pinched my arm.
"Luke. Won't tell me either."
It was Sunny.
"Me Luke's friend. Why not tell? Didn't know Luke could use fire."
Well, I'd kept Ignis secret from those who knew me.
The only ones who'd seen my fire were thieves and monsters during secret outings.
"Sunny... well, it's..."
"Luke. Disappointed. Was I just playmate?"
Playmate? That phrasing's off!
"No, Sunny. You're my friend too. The fire thing... it's an awkward Gift to explain. I don't fully get it myself. When the time's right, I'll tell you for sure!"
"...Promise for real."
"Yeah, promise."
I hooked my pinky with her tiny one to seal it.
"Dia... better step it up. Competition's here."
"...Of course. With a guy like that. I was prepared."
* * *
Two days after hitching a ride near Galilee territory, Simon, Iaco, and I arrived in Caparnaum, the city in the neighboring Gennesaret domain under the Nova Empire.
Soldiers checked entrants at the gates, but I couldn't flash my Luke Perseino ID.
Not in front of Simon and Iaco, and I didn't want to reveal this avatar's identity anyway.
Bribing our way through looked tacky. I was going for dignified and cool—slipping cash screamed desperate.
So I used a temporary invisibility artifact.
"Whoa, those guards can't see us!"
"Of course... er, Teacher's power makes it possible. Incredible, Teacher! Hiding not just yourself, but us too!"
In Deus ex Machina, it was for skipping annoying random encounters, but in reality? Total cheat.
Invis for me and party members, even temporarily.
Optical only, though—no assassin stealth. Scent, heat, presence lingered, so experts would spot us easily.
If a knight guarded the gate, it'd fail... but Caparnaum was a minor town in Gennesaret. No spare semi-nobles for constant knight duty, especially peacetime.
You'd need a capital like Orias for that.
Anyway, with awestruck Iaco and admiring Simon, we slipped through quietly into the city.
Now, the issue: finding that guy.
I knew he was in Caparnaum now, working... but no map knowledge meant no clue where.
I kept walking to avoid looking lost in front of Simon and Iaco. But endless strolling would loop us out the other side.
"Aigoo..."
As we wandered, paralytics sitting roadside caught my eye.
Paralysis disease victims.
The continent's old terror, the Red Death Plague, was nearly eradicated a decade ago by a cure. Now paralysis reigned as the big killer.
In Deus ex Machina, just a "paralyze" debuff—common in games. Reality? Horrific.
Body stiffens gradually, movement defies will.
Needed prolonged warmth and sufficient holy power to cure. Only flame-holy casters in-game could fix it mid-battle.
Most couldn't afford it. Churches charged fortunes for holy heals—nobles or tycoons only. For commoners, lifelong curse.
Utter nightmare for the masses.
These folks before me awaited death as paralysis claimed their bodies.
No mass cure like Red Death, so what could I do...? Wait.
Warmth. Holy power.
Could Ignis's flames cure it?
"Summon, Ignis."
Ignis
Whoosh!
A dimensional rift opened beside me, spitting out a blazing holy woman.
"Gah! Fire from thin air!"
"Wh-what the—fire outta nowhere?!"
Simon and Iaco jumped in shock.
From their view, flames from nothing—fair reaction.
Couldn't let them see me talking to her, so mental link it was.
Ignis. Those slumped folks. Can you heal without harming them?
-Heal? Oh. Filthy toxins in their bodies? Hmm... lemme burn 'em out!
Fwoosh.
Sparks from Ignis flew onto the paralytic.
And then... the guy, who'd stared blankly even as flames roared around him...
"Ah, hot!"
Shot to his feet.
"Hot! ...Huh? Not hot anymore?"
"The paralytic... stood? Did Teacher...?"
"A paralysis case that takes even grand church priests hours—cured instantly? Teacher... how...?!"
Simon and Iaco saw my flames hit him.
"Impossible! Evra's standing! That Evra with paralysis!"
"It's him! He cured Evra's paralysis and raised him!"
Onlookers witnessed it all.
Well, it worked.
Just a hunch, tested on impulse... What had I just done?