To a New Place
To a New Place
When I woke from the dream, I felt a cold sweat soaking my entire body.
But I wasn't terrified or afraid.
I just felt tangled up inside.
I clutched the blanket tight.
Now all the puzzle pieces fell into place.
What it meant to die by the hands of those I loved.
What it meant to die at my happiest moment.
What it meant that Grace would, even after my death, seize me and send me to a place befitting my deeds.
And.......
What it meant that Grace would sow her will upon the world through him.
Now I understood it all.
Asmodeus of Lust, of all things.
Well.
It had been strange from the start.
No mana involved.
No holy power involved.
And yet, Time Stop, Body Modification, Sensitivity 3000x, even Absolute Hypnosis.
I had seriously wondered where these absurdly fraudulent abilities came from.
To think they were the powers of a Demon King.
Overcome with a fresh wave of emotion, I crawled under the covers and wept for a long while again.
Why did I have such bad luck?
Why was I so miserable?
The Harem King dream.
Was that so hard?
I really didn't want to leave.
I wanted to stay with Iomene, Almene, and Erpa and live happily ever after.
But for their sake, I had to leave.
If I stayed with them because of my own selfishness, I couldn't know what I would turn them into when the Demon King's Authority awakened.
I did absolutely nothing that day.
"Saint?"
Old Man Yodel came looking for me, worried, as did the holy knights and the priests.
And the people from the slums who came to see me every day worried about me too.
But I refused to see any of them; I just stayed in my room and wept.
And it seemed that news reached the ears of the Imperial Princesses and Erpa as well.
Evening.
When I was still lying in bed, crying, having skipped meals.
Three women came to me.
"Amael."
"Saint."
"We're here."
Faced with the worried expressions and voices of the three women, I sat up groggily.
I smiled at them.
"Come here and sit."
Whatever anyone else deserved, these women had the right to hear my story.
The three of them came to my side and sat down, worried.
I looked at each of them in turn before opening my mouth with a trembling voice.
"I have to leave. As soon as the Psychic Amplifier I left with the Magic Tower Master Oergen is finished, I'm going."
The three women's faces turned pale, but I clenched my fists and kept speaking.
"I won't come back. We may never see each other again. You can't follow me. I have to leave alone. So... please don't look for me."
Even as I spoke, tears came again.
The sound of my own wailing sobs began to fill the room.
None of the three of them.
Spoke a single word.
Then, after a long while.
I felt Iomene and Almene embrace me in their arms.
"This relationship. We were the ones who forced it on you first. Do you remember, Saint?"
Almene said so in a trembling voice.
"We started it by force. We never thought you would stay at our side for long to begin with. Because you have so much to do. We had been thinking that someday you would have to leave."
Four hands gently lifted my face.
When I raised my head, I saw Erpa on the verge of tears, forcing a smile.
"It was all our doing. We were the ones who forced it to happen... So leave without feeling burdened. We only hope that when you are struggling and in pain, the memories you shared with us can sustain you at least a little."
Their words shattered my heart even further.
I hugged them tightly.
"I'm sorry. Really... to do this and then leave irresponsibly, I'm so sorry... I'm sorry."
At my words, they smiled and hugged me back.
Why was it.
That their smiling faces looked even sadder.
"We were grateful that you went along with our forcing."
"Thank you for forgiving us even though we tried to force this."
"For accepting us... for making us happy, even for a short time, thank you so much. Saint. Don't worry about us. We'll carry on your will and tend to this place more splendidly and wonderfully. So you can leave with a peaceful heart."
In the end, the tears broke loose.
The four of us held each other tight and cried, and cried for a long time.
Now, when I returned to Korea, I would probably never see these women again.
The beginning certainly wasn't good, but still...
Still, they were women I had decided to love.
Letting them go like this made me unbearably sad.
But what could I do?
The Authority inside me was ugly and base.
Leaving was the right thing.
Even for the three of them.
Even for the sake of this world, my leaving was right.
The weeping continued for a long time.
Until late into the night.
The very next day.
Word came that the Magic Tower Master Oergen had finished tuning the Psychic Amplifier.
***
"Here it is, Saint. The fully tuned Psychic Amplifier. I can confidently call it my masterpiece."
Unaware of my feelings, the Magic Tower Master Oergen excitedly continued his explanation.
"The horn of a unicorn uniquely contains a separate neural circuit distinct from the brain. That neural circuit acts as a Psychic Amplifier. Its usage is also extremely simple! You only need to open the lid of this locket!"
"I see."
"The mana efficiency is also outstanding. It operates sufficiently on ambient mana in the air. That's because psychic amplification isn't a field that requires massive amounts of mana, but one where you compete with circuit precision."
"..."
"Its use isn't limited to Time Stop alone; it can be utilized for various other purposes as well... Are you alright?"
With a complicated expression, I stared at the locket-shaped (a type of necklace) Psychic Amplifier in the Magic Tower Master Oergen's hand.
If only this hadn't been completed.
I could have avoided leaving.
Regrets kept flooding in.
I really didn't want to go.
Even as I thought that, my hand was reaching out toward the Magic Tower Master Oergen.
"May I take it?"
"Yes, of course. Is something troubling you?"
I didn't answer.
I merely gave a bitter smile.
Seeing me put the necklace around my neck, the Magic Tower Master Oergen asked cautiously.
"Would it be acceptable for me to visit the temple today as well to observe your miracles, Saint? I started a new research project based on what I witnessed last time, and I would very much like to observe again today."
At those words, I shook my head.
"Even if you come, you won't be able to meet me."
"Pardon?"
"Thank you for everything thus far, Tower Master. May you continue in peace."
"Now, wait a moment..."
Seeing me bow respectfully, the Tower Master seemed flustered, but after seeing my expression on the verge of tears, he soon sighed and bowed his head.
"It seems you have received another revelation. Saints have always been that way, after all. Thank you for saving the Empire. May you find peace wherever you go and may all your endeavors prosper."
"Thank you."
When the Magic Tower Master Oergen bowed his head toward me, I bowed respectfully toward him in turn.
With those final greetings, I withdrew from the Tower Master's room.
After trudging dejectedly back to the lobby of the Magic Tower, I returned to the temple and there summoned High Priest Yodel and Jonathan Karma's family to my room.
"Please, continue to heal the sick and care for the poor and afflicted without ceasing."
"Of course, Saint. What on earth is the matter? Your expression hasn't looked well recently."
I only smiled at Yodel.
Then I looked at the Jonathan Karma family.
"Money is a good thing. But I hope you won't become a person consumed by that money. Please create a world where everyone can live well and prosper together. Mr. Jonathan, you are someone fully capable of that."
"Of course, Saint. Why... are you saying such things? So suddenly?"
"Are you feeling ill somewhere?"
As Jonathan and his wife Oliviera spoke to me worriedly.
Their daughter Cecilia, who had an uncannily sharp intuition, looked at me anxiously.
"Are you leaving for somewhere?"
At those words, everyone else stopped talking.
Old Man Yodel, looking aghast, stared at me urgently.
"Are you leaving, Saint?"
I didn't answer the question.
"Do not look for me. Absolutely."
I said only that.
"Saint! Please, do not leave!!"
Old Man Yodel shed tears unbecoming of his age.
"There are still so many sick and so many people that you must heal!! You are needed by all the people of the Order! Please continue to guide us!!"
In Old Man Yodel's tears, I saw danger.
For a man like the High Priest to be reduced to that state.
Then what of the others?
Wouldn't their sincere, fervent faith ultimately amplify the Authority inside me, resurrect the Demon King in the end, and turn the world into that horrific spectacle I had witnessed?
Therefore I couldn't grant that request.
"I must leave, High Priest Yodel. For the sake of everyone, I must. So I beg you. Please do not look for me."
At my words, Old Man Yodel shed tears.
But soon, he hung his head.
"I will try my utmost... try my utmost to prevent it. But I do not know whether all the priests and all the believers under my command will follow the Saint's words."
I knew.
There was no way that some priests, holy knights, or believers wouldn't act rashly.
Especially the people of the slums—there was no way they would stay still.
There would certainly be people who would try to find me, no matter what.
People would emerge who would desperately search for me even though I had told them not to.
That was exactly why I had found a method to evade Time Stop and the Tracking Miracle.
I had already thought of every place to flee to.
The 10kg of gold I received from the Emperor was also stored neatly in a tiny Subspace Pouch, tucked right into my pocket.
Now all I had to do was leave.
"I'm sorry. I believe without a doubt that all of you will continue to lead this place well, even without me."
At my words, Old Man Yodel wiped his tears and nodded.
"We will continue to carry on the will of the Saint. I swear it."
My will, he said.
As if a fraud like me ever had some grand will they imposed.
"Leave without hesitation, Saint. Following your will, I will continue to grow Karma Company. I will never forget that you saved our family. Saint."
Jonathan bowed his head respectfully and kissed the back of my hand.
Oliviera.
And Cecilia did the same.
I looked at all of them sorrowfully, then turned my back.
After leaving the room, I trudged down to the first-floor lobby of the temple.
"Saint!"
"It's the Saint!!"
"Saint!"
Everyone bowed respectfully toward me.
Several people from the slums were visible as well.
Perhaps from good clothes and good food, their skin had a healthy sheen.
Seeing that, a chuckle escaped me.
Right.
Leaving now was the correct choice.
I couldn't allow them to worship me any more than this.
If I did, they were all certain to become unhappy.
"May all of you continue to live in peace."
I looked at them all and slowly bowed my head.
Then I opened the lid of the locket hanging around my neck.
With a low hum, I felt the Psychic Amplifier activate.
And then I used Time Stop.
The time of the entire world halted.
And in that state, I slowly tried to move my feet.
It felt like switching from a manual transmission car that was terribly hard to drive to the latest model electric vehicle.
"Haha. It activates easily and releases easily."
With this, crossing the continent under Time Stop seemed possible.
At last, the efficiency of Time Stop, which had been a chronic problem, was achieved.
But I wasn't happy at all.
"It works disgustingly well. Fuck..."
I would probably never return to this place.
Not Erpa, not Iomene, not Almene.
Not Old Man Yodel.
Not Jonathan Karma.
Not the countless unfortunate people from the slums whose faces I'd come to know here.
I would never see any of them again.
That realization was too sad.
I wiped my tears and stood up.
Let's hurry.
There was no time to wallow in emotion any longer.
I trudged through the frozen time, walking far, far away.
In the meantime, I altered my face with Body Modification and took out the clothes I had stored in the Subspace Pouch to change.
After moving to the outskirts of the capital in that state, I released Time Stop there.
Even as I cautiously walked out from a back alley, no one recognized me.
Feeling relief inside, I headed for the train station.
When I tried to purchase a ticket, the station employee naturally asked my destination.
"Where are you going?"
Where was I going to go?
A place where the Order's influence was weak.
At the same time, a major city where priests wouldn't routinely come down and cast the Tracking Miracle.
A place far from the capital.
I considered many options, but in the end.
There was only one place I could go.
"I want to go to the Scrap Yard."
"That will be 400 Leon."
I took the money from my pocket, handed it to the employee, received my ticket, and boarded the train.
Before long, the distinctive sound of the mana engine spewing power echoed, and the train slowly began to move.
I closed the lid of the locket around my neck and slumped down in my seat.
In the end, I was back to square one.
I would go to the Scrap Yard, find a suitable house, and live quietly while going outside as little as possible.
While living quietly, I would gather information on black magicians or demon worshippers as a side task, and then hope for my soul to be destroyed by their hands.
As I hoped that I could return to Korea and live happily after that.
The train began to race forward, cleanly slicing through the air.
My new residence.
The Scrap Yard wasn't far off.
***
"O Chosen One. I have confirmed the news that the Healing Saint has vanished."
At those words, a smile formed on the lips of the Chosen of the Evil God.
"The Evil God has done exactly as He said. Now that the Saint is beyond the influence of the Pantheon and the Orders, he is far easier to eliminate. The Blood Drinker is indeed achieving His will."
While the Chosen One smiled, the pool of blood accepted upon the altar began to bubble.
At that sight, the Chosen One immediately approached the altar.
"The Evil God is granting a revelation!!"
The Chosen One stared at the pool of blood with an expression of anticipation.
Letters began to rise upon the surface of the bubbling pool.
The Chosen One stared fixedly at those letters before soon giggling and pulling away from the altar.
"The Healing Saint will soon meet his death."
"Has the Evil God spoken of His plan to eliminate him?"
"Yes. The Saint has departed for the Scrap Yard."
"To that den of atheists who blindly worship mines, machinery, and steam?"
"Yes. He has walked into hell of his own accord."
Use the Saint to instigate a war between the Pantheon and Hell.
Considering that purpose, there was no place more perfect than the Scrap Yard.
And for good reason.
"Since the followers of the Lord of Greed, Mammon, are there."
That place had long since become a location where one of the Demon Kings had established a foothold.
It was no exaggeration to say a clash between the Pantheon and Hell was a foregone conclusion.