The Start of the Journey (3)
Due to health issues with Saintess Silvia Sunshine (hereinafter referred to as the Saintess), the Saintess will be excluded from relief activities henceforth.
Those wishing to meet the Saintess should visit the temple directly.
In concern that large crowds may overburden the Saintess's poor health, the meeting fee is increased by 500%.
The nobles cheered.
They no longer had to wait for relief activity periods—now they could receive the Saintess's divine power anytime, as long as they paid up. It was only natural.
The common folk criticized it harshly.
The usual exorbitant fees had already made it hard for them to afford even the holy power from regular priests, let alone the Saintess's divine power. During relief periods, other priests took a little "offering" money as an excuse, but the Saintess provided her divine power for free. That's why even healthy people would line up for hours in front of her.
They condemned the Saintess for using her divine power on slum vagrants too, to the point she couldn't even take proper care of her own body.
The slums on the city's outskirts were plunged into worry.
They remembered that tiny Saintess using her divine power all day without ever leaving the line to tend to them. What if she'd overexerted herself for their sake? What if she'd caught their illnesses? They regretted only being able to say thanks back then.
That night.
"Nnghcha."
A small shadow was wriggling atop the temple's roughly one-meter fence. The shadow soon plummeted to the ground with a thud.
"Owww…."
Having struggled to land on her feet, Silvia ended up plopping down on her butt instead. Good thing the ground below the fence was soft dirt and grass—if it'd been stone, her rear would've been badly bruised for sure.
"Hmm… What if it's too late and everyone's asleep?"
It was 9 p.m. Late, sure, but not so late that most people would be asleep. But who was Silvia? A kid from a new world, trapped in the temple with nothing to do but sleep early and wake early. She felt a strange thrill of naughtiness just from being awake at this hour—and sneaking out, no less. Not that she knew the word for "naughtiness," of course.
Rubbing her sore butt, Silvia glanced around, then scurried toward a nearby dark alley.
In the shadows, her silhouette—backpack as big as her body—looked like a giant ball rolling along.
"Hey, kiddo. Wandering dark alleys alone at night? Scary grown-ups might gobble you up."
Silvia flinched at the voice from behind. Caught already? Would they drag her back to the temple like this? Would the seven-year-old giant Silvia's… um… breakout? Rebellion? End on day one?
"I-I'm not a kiddo!"
With her breakout at risk of crashing on the first day, Silvia deepened her voice and denied it fiercely. The backpack hid her from view anyway, so if she bluffed hard enough, he'd give up and leave. A perfectly rational, wise plan.
"Where's your house? I'll walk you."
"I don't have a house!"
"Haha, feisty little miss. Come on, let your uncle… Huh? That outfit—isn't that the Saintess's?"
Silvia looked down at her clothes. The pristine white priestess robes, symbolic of the Saintess. In the dark night, the pale fabric stood out glaringly. She'd been so focused on sneaking out that she forgot to change. Her perfect infiltration foiled by her own outfit.
Silvia racked her brains. Time for her natural quick thinking to… um… improvise or whatever.
"N-No, I'm just a regular priestess."
The man behind her stepped around front, squatting down to meet her face.
"Saintess, why are you doing this? Back alleys at night aren't places you can slip away from with clumsy improv like that. It's really dangerous—please head back."
"Uncle Jax?"
"Yes, it's Jax."
Recognizing the familiar face, Silvia relaxed.
"Uncle Jax, that kid from yesterday—if he doesn't get treated, he'll die. Hurry and take me to him."
"You snuck out for that kid? Without any guards?"
"N-No, it's not like that! I just couldn't stand by and watch a life I could save die pointlessly, so I got permission and came out!"
"And you're not well yourself…."
"That's a lie! Look how healthy I am!"
Silvia flexed her arm, showing off her slim, white limb with zero muscle to speak of. Jax swallowed back tears at the pitiful sight.
He'd seen her as just a kind kid before, but Silvia was the only one who treated slum-dwellers as fellow humans. A true Saintess.
"Just treat that kid and go straight back. And promise me you won't sneak out for us again."
"Yes! I promise!"
"So you did sneak out."
"Ehehe…."
After that, Silvia broke her promise and headed to the slums every night in secret.
It was the day Cluster and Lai met Alicia.
"Change jobs."
"I don't know how to do anything else…."
"You don't seem to know how to do what you're doing now, either."
"I-I can heal everything except my own body!"
Lai's face flushed red. He'd had low expectations, but not that she couldn't even heal herself. She could head to the cave right now and fix herself up, but that'd make Alicia suspicious of her identity. A total klutz at healing suddenly showing up fine after a cave trip? No way.
Looked like he'd have to delay the schedule.
"Show me the injured spot."
"I-I'm a girl, you know? Even if a succubus sucks my… v-vital energy, it won't do her any good."
"Not that. Give it here. I'll heal you."
"Y-You lewd succubus! Don't lie—owww!"
She said she'd heal her. Extend the arm. Instead of asking, he yanked Lai's arm out in front of Alicia. It was bent weirdly, but hey, not his arm.
"I hate you…."
"Meh. Whatever."
Look at her. A normal human couldn't even speak through the pain, but her mouth was still yapping away. Pretty face all teary-eyed—kinda guilty, sure. But no apology. Her usual annoying antics more than justified it with that looks.
"All done. No more pain?"
"Huh? For real. How'd you do that?"
"Just applied drain as a heal. Heal pumps energy in, drain pulls it out. In and out's a succubus specialty."
Alicia glanced his way expectantly, so he tossed her a casual "impressive." She let out a "Heung♡," punched Lai's arm—and broke it again. Lai's wail echoed as the night deepened.
"Get up."
"Just five more minutes…."
"Let's go, Alicia."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
Early morning. He glanced at the still-sleeping Lai, confirmed Alicia trailing eagerly, and set off. Delayed a day by all the nonsense, but with no fixed plans beyond the destination, it didn't matter. High demons farther off were still asleep anyway, per Alicia—no big deal to take it slow.
"You're pro-Demon King faction, right?"
"Yes! I'm Alicia of the Demon King. If it bothers you, feel free to smack me!"
"Why would I hit you…? The pro-Demon King demons are gathered in the continent's south—how many, just high demons?"
"Hiiing…."
Alicia pouted disappointingly, then started folding fingers one by one. Had a day with Lai turned her dumb too? Counting with fingers. Succubi were humanoid demons, so ten fingers total. As if ten could count all those demons.
"Just by rank? Total of three."
He'd thought that right up until—
"Th-Three?"
"Precisely, three high demon families. Six individuals, including me."
Borrowing the words of Silt, the goddess who'd sent him here: some condition needed fulfilling to return to Korea. Whatever it was, more innate power or supporter strength was better, obviously. But fewer than ten? His head spun.
"Are the anti-Demon King demons stronger than our side?"
"We used to be stronger, but now? Probably them."
"What? How?"
"I mentioned it yesterday? Boreas region's brimming with demonic mana."
He vaguely recalled Alicia mentioning it offhand while explaining demonic mana.
"We slept 500 years, but the ones left in Boreas didn't. Humans don't need demonic mana-rich land anyway—no point stealing it, but those idiots allied with them anyway. Lame."
Alicia scowled, full of resentment.
"If anti-Demon King side didn't sleep, odds they crossed south and killed our sleeping pro-Demon King… er, our guys?"
"Impossible. Crimson Desert's in the way. They're cowards—can't cross it."
He recalled Lai's continent info. One of Rokea Continent's four great demonic realms: the Crimson Desert.
"By that logic, our Fog Region's a demonic realm too."
"We're not cowards—we don't fear demonic realms. They're abandoned too, same boat as us betrayed ones, heung♡?"
"Hngh, hngh. G-Gotcha. L-Let's go t-together!"
The conversation broke off. He turned to see drooling Lai clutching Alicia's tail.
He'd totally forgotten her.
"C-Clusther. Hngh, haah. Big trouble. Haah, haah."
"What trouble? Catch your breath first."
Still panting, she sneaked glances at Alicia—like she had something Alicia couldn't hear.
"I'll go check that yummy smell up ahead~"
"Thanks, Alicia."
"Thanks? Then how 'bout a smack right here?"
Was she whining about yesterday? Even so, her exposing her bare lower belly like that was embarrassing. Succubus thing—no shame in exposure.
"Why would I hit you…? Sorry about yesterday."
"Tch. Not that."
He'd thought she wanted an apology for yesterday, but she pursed her lips and walked ahead. He'd have to apologize more sincerely later. He waited for Lai to calm.
About ten meters on.
"I… remembered."
Lai whispered in his ear, unusually grave.
"Creepy whispering out of nowhere…?"
"Demon King Cluster Versilver. Please save the Saintess. Avert the apocalypse."
"Huh?"
What nonsense was this?