Chapter 73

Chapter 73

Investing Through the Status Window.

Episode 73: Demonic Disease (1).

“I pray to the gods of heaven and earth, please grant love, faith, and also….”

“Love and faith, what bullshit—.”

The woman, skinny as a skeleton, fiercely growled as if she couldn’t stand listening anymore while glaring at the other party. The man, with his plump body, was startled by her ferociousness and stumbled back. However, he didn’t stop there but shook a bell-adorned stick more crazily, raising his voice even higher.

“I pray, I pray, to the gods of heaven and earth—!”

“Stop it, it’s useless, just get lost—!”

“With the power of love, faith, and also mercy, please vanquish this evil.”

Jingle jingle jingle.

As the bell rang, the woman began to sneer. Then, suddenly stopping her sneering, she sprang up and, in one leap, moved right in front of the other party. And with a bang, her foot kicked the wall.

“If you spout nonsense one more time, I’ll crush your mouth with this foot.”

——!!

Although she was nearly dying, she was still able to shut up the charlatan shaman. She glared at him fiercely once and then swiftly turned around, kicking the iron door with the tip of her foot.

“Open up.”

As soon as the thick iron door creaked open, the woman slipped out and climbed up the passage to the surface. “Ugh—.” The sight of sunlight immediately made her feel nauseous.

……She had been so confident, wondering if it might work this time, but as expected, the treatment failed again.

A middle-aged man standing nearby with his hands clasped behind his back murmured as if lamenting and closed his eyes.

“……Was it useless this time as well…….”

The maids quickly covered the woman’s head with a thick cloth and supported her, hurrying back into the mansion.

The shaman, groaning as he came up from the basement, prostrated himself before the Count. The middle-aged man coldly spoke while glaring at the back of the head of the one sprawled on the floor.

“…Didn’t you say for certain it would work?”

“I’m, I’m sorry… With my abilities, it’s just not possible…!”

The voice that had been so confident, claiming everything was possible just moments ago, was nowhere to be found. Only a coward’s trembling excuses remained. If only he hadn’t made such claims, there wouldn’t have been any expectations. How could one not be furious when he boasted about impossibilities?

“Get out. I can’t stand the sight of you. Leave my domain this instant. Right now—!”

As the Count pointed and shouted, the chubby shaman was startled and waddled away in haste. The Count sighed deeply and slowly followed the path his daughter had been helped along earlier.

In the deepest room of the mansion. Every window was boarded up, and the only light came from a couple of flickering candles.

The woman, thin as a skeleton, was sitting cross-legged on the floor and opened her eyes when she felt the Count enter.

Despite being in such a state, her eyes still shone brightly, unbroken… The Count thought she had a truly strong character. Beyond being his child, he genuinely admired her as a human being.

“What did I tell you?”

“…Still, we have to try everything we can.”

“You can tell at a glance…. Whether someone can save me or not.”

“Your father, I just wanted to grasp at straws.”

“I will overcome it with willpower.”

“There are things in the world that can’t be overcome with just willpower!”

“That’s because of a weak will. I, too, am still lacking. I must strive harder.”

‘That stubbornness!’

Of course, where would that stubbornness come from? The Count, too, never bent his will. He planned to continue adhering to his ways.

As he was about to leave the room, his daughter called out to her father gently.

“Even if I die, please let me die honorably.”

“…Who’s talking about dying!”

The Count scolded her sternly and left the room.

The woman closed her eyes again and immersed herself in meditation.

However, she was constantly tormented by terrible visions.

“Damn it…!”

‘……It’s because my will is weak. Willpower…, because my willpower is lacking……!’

···

The lord of the mid-sized city, Markas, Count Viya, tirelessly sought a healer for his daughter. He did not discriminate whether they were believers, shamans, or even charlatans, as long as they had a slight reputation for healing. …However, even after half a year had passed, not only was there no cure, but there was also no one who could even slightly improve her symptoms.

His second daughter, Natasha Gondor Viya, whom he would not hurt even if she were in his eye, became increasingly frail over time, and now she was so frail that she was difficult to look at.

If she had been an ordinary person, she might have died long ago, but she miraculously continued to live with the sole determination to overcome this cursed, incurable disease with her strength. …But by now, she must have realized herself that it was impossible to overcome it alone.

And so, time passed without promise once again.

By the time news reached Count Viya a large group of necromancers had been successfully repelled in the western big city of Behimruod.

It had been over a fortnight since anyone had come forward to offer a cure for the illness when a man sought out the Count.

A rare sight of a handsome young man. ……However, no matter where one looked, he hardly seemed like a healer.

But the Count, now truly backed into a corner as if a mouse were caught by a cow stepping backward, was in a situation where he had to hope for a miracle.

“My name is Allen Dewise Pomwell, Your Excellency. I am the leader of the Allen-Mercenary Group.”

He had thought the man was neither a priest nor a shaman, but he never expected him to be the leader of a mercenary group.

Of course, among those who sought the Count, the number of mercenary groups was not few. They generally tried to sell some mysterious drug or item they claimed to have brought from some mystical place at a high price. However, no matter how desperate the Count was, he was absolutely not the kind of person to be fooled by their nonsensical tricks.

He wanted to imprison them for daring to insult the lord of the city, but he let them all go politely, worrying that a truly qualified healer might be scared off if he did so.

“……So, how do you plan to treat my daughter?”

“It’s difficult to say here. It’s best first to assess your daughter’s condition.”

“Will looking change anything?”

“It’s necessary to identify the cause.”

An unwavering confidence without a hint of hesitation. Of course, it wasn’t that such individuals were entirely nonexistent, but the Count was certain that this person was at least not a mere peddler.

“Very well. Then let’s go right now. …Is there anything you need to prepare?”

“I have nothing to prepare, but one more person is accompanying me.”

“Understood. Do as you wish.”

The two left the Count’s office together. Outside, a woman was wearing a blindfold. Seeing her in a nun’s habit, it seemed she belonged to that order.

At that, the Count’s trust slightly increased. Somehow, he felt they were not just any commoners….

Since the meeting was arranged so abruptly, the Count said he would first go to his daughter to explain the situation and quickly left while Allen and the Blind Saintess leisurely followed their guide.

Sitting alone in her room, meditating and battling her illness, Natasha graciously welcomed the visiting Count.

“What brings you here?”

“A healer has arrived.”

It was news she hadn’t heard in a long time, but Natasha was not particularly pleased. After all, most of those who had claimed they could cure her had been charlatans, unworthy of even being associated with the word ‘healing’.

And she was convinced that this time would be no different… It was unlikely that suddenly, someone capable of curing her demonic disease would just drop out of the sky.

‘…It would be more realistic to overcome it with my mental strength.’

However, seeing her father struggle so much, she couldn’t just ignore it as his child.

“Understood.”

Shortly after, two people entered her room. One was an exceptionally handsome man, and the other was a nun wearing a blindfold.

The man asked the Count if he could please make some room. The father looked at his daughter, and she nodded lightly.

There was no reason for the other party to harm her, who was dying, and she still had the strength to move. She was just minimizing her movements to save as much energy as possible.

When the Count left, only three people remained in the dim room lit by a few candles.

“My name is Allen Dewise Pomwell.”

“I’m Ordnung.”

Although the two exchanged greetings, Natasha simply nodded her head without saying a word, as if to say, ‘handle it yourself’. Of course, her eyes were still full of distrust.

Before doing anything, Allen gave Natasha a warning.

“Don’t be too surprised by whatever you see. Staying calm will be beneficial for your well-being.”

‘Geez.’ Natasha snorted.

“Don’t worry. There won’t be anything surprising.”

“…Then, that’s a relief.”

The handsome man gave a slight smile and lightly nodded as he looked at the blind woman. Then, the nun untied her blindfold.

————!!!!

The moment she saw those abyss-like black eyes, Natasha felt as if her entire body was being stripped naked. And at the same time, a surge of nausea came over her.

“Ah, aah.”

After closing her eyes briefly and then opening them, Natasha felt as if she was falling somewhere. That terrifying sensation of floating… And right below her, a disgustingly ugly giant monster was waiting with its mouth wide open, ready for her to fall.

Aaaaa, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa—————!!!!!

She felt like she was suffocating in terrible fear. She wanted to live. She struggled desperately, wanting to live so badly. But nothing changed. She was just endlessly falling into the maw of that monster.

‘I want to live. I want to liveee——!!’

Then, something grabbed her by the jaw and yanked her up through the darkness as if pulling her out of the water.

“Aaaaahhh——!!”

Like someone who was about to suffocate, Natasha clung to the other person desperately because she wanted to live. Because she didn’t want to die.

“Shhh… it’s okay. It’s okay. I’ve got you. It’s okay. Everything is okay now….”

Allen gently stroked the skinny back of Natasha, who was clinging to him and trembling, to reassure her.

Then, the Count, having heard his daughter’s screams, rushed into the room.

“What’s the matter—!”

The Count hesitated for a moment as he saw Natasha gasping for breath in Allen’s arms. It was the first reaction he had witnessed since his daughter had contracted the demonic disease.

Meanwhile, Ordnung, who had put her blindfold back on, and Allen nodded lightly to each other as they looked at one another.

And then, Allen said to the Count,

“I think… I’ve found the cause.”