The Saintess of Illyana

The continent's central region, far from the Luteria Empire where Lowell was staying...

This area was different from the rear lines, being close to the front lines, so monsters frequently appeared between villages and between cities.

Almost all kingdoms had sent their main forces to the front lines, so it fell to adventurers to handle these monsters...

But with the Demon King's army rampaging, adventurer requests had exploded, and the adventurer guild's bulletin board was always so packed that it was impossible to find empty space.

For adventurers, having a constant influx of work meant they could earn money regularly, and in cases of urgent requests, pay could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠skyrocket several times over, making it like a bonus day for them.

But,

Not everything was good...

There were also downsides to this...

Adventurers, blinded by money, would accept requests regardless of their rank.

Before the war with the Demon King's army broke out, guild receptionists would assess adventurers' abilities and refuse requests they couldn't complete or refer them to stronger parties.

But now that requests were overflowing, anyone who could take on a request was welcome, no matter their rank.

As a result...

"There's no one here!! Save some people!!"

Today, an adventurer party was fighting a monster beyond their rank and suffered casualties. The surviving members were screaming for help at the top of their lungs despite no one being around to hear them.

"Help here!! My... my colleague... my colleague is... dying!!"

No one responded to his repeated pleas for help, and no one came to assist.

"Marinne! Ralph and Raine??"

The party leader, Ascen, who had gone to look for help, had two injured party members and stood helplessly beside the healer, Marinne, who was just standing there quietly.

He had already guessed what happened, but he had no choice but to ask again.

"Sorry... Ascen... I did my best... it's already too late..."

"What...? What are you saying... Marinne? But... just in case, let's keep treating him? Huh?"

"Ralph and Raine are already dead... Ascen... how can you treat them when they're not even breathing!!"

Marinne, a healer for adventurer parties, had not officially studied divine magic at a temple but had learned it from a master who had quit as a priest and become a divine mage. Her skill was so high that even her master, a high-ranking priest, acknowledged it.

Thanks to that, she was famous in any party she joined for having no dead or disabled members.

But now, she had no choice.

Divine magic was only for saving those still breathing...

She had no ability to revive someone the gods had already taken.

Only a goddess or a saint with legendary divine power, among saints, could revive someone.

"Everyone... it's my fault... If I hadn't taken that request recklessly...."

The party leader, Ascen, was now regretting it too late, but it was already too late, and Marinne reached over to pat him while offering comfort ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for his self-blame.

"It's not your fault... You did your best..."

While comforting Ascen, Marinne used divine magic to treat the large wound on his abdomen.

The injury wasn't immediately life-threatening, but the bleeding was severe enough that he could collapse at any moment.

The problem was that Marinne didn't have enough divine power left to heal such a serious wound.

"Ascen... stop this and go back to the village quickly. You might die if you continue."

"What am I supposed to do with Ralph and Raine? How can I return with dignity without them? If I go, I have to take their bodies."

Ascen's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stubbornness, considering Marinne's thoughts, was nearly unreasonable...

Even moving two bodies that weren't alive was difficult, let alone carrying one still bleeding heavily from a wound.

In the midst of this despair, a woman appeared before the party...

"The Goddess has proclaimed: I am resurrection and life. Those who believe in me will live even in death, and even in life they will gain eternal life. Throughout their lives, they will receive blessings from the Goddess's power..."

Wearing clothes similar to the white priestly robes seen in temples, she appeared in the darkness and placed her hands on the bodies of Ralph and Raine, one of their party members who was now a cold corpse on the ground, and began praying.

Ascen and Marinne had not yet questioned her identity when light began to emanate from their colleagues' bodies, Ralph and Raine.

Marinne, who knew the nature of this light, was so shocked that she fell backward.

She had been born, learned from her master, and had even seen the saint from afar, but the divine power emanating from this mysterious woman was something she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had never felt before.

To express that feeling...

Her usual divine power felt like drinking water from a cup, but the divine power from this unknown woman felt like drowning in an endless sea.

Overwhelmed by this infinite divine power, Marinne could barely stand...

A moment later, she saw the situation unfold before her and could no longer hide her surprise.

Ralph and Raine's abdomens, which had clearly stopped breathing and grown cold, were now rising and falling as they breathed...

After finishing her prayer, she gently touched her index finger to their noses, smiled happily, and turned toward Ascen and Marinne.

With long, flowing silver hair down to her waist and skin whiter than white jade, her smiling face looked like an angel who had descended from the heavens.

"Don't worry about those two. Once you get a good night's sleep, you'll wake up. You were also injured, right?"

"What? Ah... yes... yes..."

The woman who had revived the two dead people looked at Ascen, still bleeding from his abdomen, and placed her hand on his stomach.

[Heal]

The divine magic used—Heal...

It was a plain divine magic with no real difference from Marinne's own Heal, but the wound that would have taken Marinne thirty minutes to heal was gone in just three seconds.

Without leaving even a scar....

"Y-you... who... are you..."

Ascen had thought it was just a great priest appearing, but Marinne, who knew a lot about divine magic, asked her identity in a mix of disbelief and fear.

"Hmm... This isn't the place, but... in a very distant land, they called me a saint. Just call me Illyana for simplicity."

"S-saint...?!!"

Marinne couldn't help but be shocked by the word saint.

If it was the saint she knew, there was only one on this continent... Saint Adelia...

She was currently with the hero's party and had recently been exploring the Kubera Dungeon.

So was this saint, Illyana, a fake?

It was impossible to say for sure...

It was because of the clothes she was wearing.

The clothes looked no different from normal priestly robes, but they had gold embroidery on the sleeves and the saint's emblem matched Adelia's.

"About my story... it's a long one... but could you believe I came from somewhere else on this continent?"

"Ah... yes.... But why is the saint here...?"

Marinne couldn't understand why...

Normally, a saint would stay in a castle or be with the hero's party, and even if traveling alone, she should have at least dozens of holy knights following her.

But now, she had appeared alone in this empty field full of monsters without a single follower....

In a situation where it was hard to tell what to believe, Saint Illyana looked around cautiously and opened her mouth.

"Um... may I ask you something?"

"What? W-well, ask away."

"Um... Is there a person named Lowell in this world?"

"Lo... Lowell?"

Is there anyone on this continent who doesn't know Lowell...

She was an elf who had been active as a hero's party member and, recently, had been called a hero for taking on the Four Heavenly Kings' deputy or the Demon King's army alone....

"H-huh... Are you perhaps referring to the hero's party member Lowell...?"

"Yes. That's right. They say high elf... haha. Is she really that beautiful?"

"Yes... I saw her once... She was incredibly beautiful... Maybe one of the most beautiful on this continent..."

"Oh? Really!? Haha ha!"

From her first appearance to now, maintaining a calm and composed demeanor and acting politely, Saint Illyana suddenly burst into laughter and roared.

"Hahaha! Those teeth... have such a relaxed appearance!! Haha ha!!"

It seemed like there was no ordinary relationship...

After barely stopping her laughter, she took a deep breath to calm herself and opened her mouth again.

"Then... where is he now?"

"L-lowell-nim?"

"Yes!"

"I... heard recently that he was heading toward the Luteria Empire."

"The Luteria Empire?"

Anyone living on the continent would know the Luteria Empire, regardless of race...

As if she had never heard of it, Saint Illyana asked again with a face as if it was completely new.

Ascen and Marinne found her suspicious, but they decided to help her with all their heart since she was a life savior they would never meet again in their lifetime.

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